women 40+ would like to share progress

Missou: did I read somewhere that it took you 2 months to begin losing weight, even though you were following your plan & exercising? Can you share some tips on what on earth kept you motivated during those 2 months? The last time I tried to lose weight & get into shape, I went for 3 weeks without losing, and then just gradually fizzled away - not even on purpose, but I think my subconscious was saying "Aw, to heck with it!"

I'm thinking that maybe this time around, I'm only going to weigh myself once a month, but I sure would be disappointed if I didn't see a drop in the scale at all. And yes, I know muscle weighs more than fat, the scales aren't the perfect tool to tell what's going on, etc. Yet seeing the numbers drop certainly can be motivating.

I do have to say kudos to you for sticking with it no matter what! (And where are you going for your cruise??? My last cruise was for my 40th birthday, and I'm about due for another one. Would like to shrink a little first!)

Little Sista,

You can let your clothes do the talking for you. I did/have. I can tell by your post you noticed my "monthly" weigh-ins and you'll do the same. Yippie! I have converted my 2nd woman to weigh herself monthly!! :happy:

I too, had trouble losing the weight. My stupid quack of a doctor was giving me allergy shots that contained steriods and he didn't tell me. I GAINED 45 pounds and my periods were "funky" (this was back in early 2000, I married in 2004, and had a baby in 2006). Flash forward to today. I have lost 20 pounds in 8 months and my 2nd goal is to lose an additional 10 pounds BEFORE my 45th B-day (2nd March 2010).

And yes, muscle weighs more than fat. Remember to drink 64 oz of water a day, drink only ONE Diet drink at dinner, refrain from alcoholic beverages, stick to 'wheat products" and exercise for a full hour 3 times a day; then gradually go to 4 times a week. Drink black Chai/green tea instead of coffee. I learned from Oprah's Boot Camp (you can tell that was MANY moons ago, but stuck!) to stop eating 2-3 hours before I go to bed. Refrain from eating "fried" foods (French fries, Fried rice, fried egg rolls, etc). Use Extra Virgin Olive Oil, eat plenty of fruits/veggies as I see you're a vegetarian. Which means you're eating refined foods that contain hydro oils (which are bad for you), cookies, cakes, pies, cheese cake, etc.

Please remember to stretch before and after your regimen. AND stock up your medicine cabinet with Alieve/Tylenol. Look at MY results!

I began by power walking during my lunch hour 3 days a week (back on 30 March 2009; I REMEMBER the day). Since I read Prevention magazines, I read that the next step is to jog/run. I have. I am training myself to run. At first when I power walked I had terrible shin splints! I googled that and learned how to stretch 5 mintues before and after I power walked, to buy a new pair of tennis shoes (mine were 15 years old if you can believe that), to eat an apple 30 minutes before I work out. Why? Thirty minutes before you work out eat one of the following: one apple, OR one small box of raisins with a handful of walnuts, OR soup, OR yogurt. Why? "They are packed with high-quality carbohydrates, which provide a quick source of fuel for your muscles, but they have just enough protein and fat to help you maintain a steady, elevated energy level" (source: Prevention Magazine April 2007).

And to drink a Slim Fast (Special K, EAS Myoplex, etc) ready-to-drink shake after my work out. Why? "After a workout, your muscles need protein to repair microscopic muscle tears, plus another shot of carbs to help restock energy stores. Cyclists who drank it after a tough racing session had improved endurance and recovered fast than those who drank an ordinary sports drink (which supplies carbs and electrolytes, but no protein)" (Source: Prevention Magazine April 2007).

Last is MOTIVATION and WILL POWER: I had lost my will power a long, long time ago. When I found it this year it was like BAM! It hit me like a tons of bricks! We had our Organizational Picnic (I work for the Army; Civilian so don't salute me, LOL) two weeks ago on a Friday. Did I attend? Heck no! I didn't want the Bar-B-Que, cole slaw, beans, potato salad, DESSERTS galore, and Sodas! I stayed to man the office and during my lunch hour I worked out (ran around the PT track).

I get motivation from people at work. They'll tell me, "Was that you running around the track today during lunch time?" "Yep! that was me!" I'll proudly answer them. Or the ladies will see me in the ladies room when I'm changing and say, "There you go again, doing PT". Yep! Or I'll have people honk their horn or wave at me while I'm running around the PT track. I'll just smile and keep going! What helps me is that I wear my Sony Walkman when I work out. I JAM to the 80's music and is the best thing I do to help me get motivated! Yeah, I'm tired, lazy, feeling BLAH when I'm getting ready for my period, but I shake it off and go out to the track!

Blessings!

Eva

DeeDee, I will tell you to listen to your body. If you gain some weight while you get your strenght back, remember that you will have the time and the energy to work very hard once you feel better. You lost 31 pounds so far, I don't beleive you will gain them back because of the flu.

Take care of yourself, you definitly do not want to have a re-lapse!!! :flowerforyou:

Thank you! I think I just needed to hear someone say that I am not a wimp by respecting this time of convalesence and that it does not signal the beginning of the end!

Anyone else suffer from the fear that this might just be a phase and that in a few years you will be back where you started?

Maybe it is a healthy fear to recognize that unless you truly change your lifestyle you are destined to fall back into what is most familiar. Habits that have been entrenched from our mother's knee are hard to break and may need ever vigilance to abstain for life.

What do you all think?

Hi everyone. I just saw the 40+ and I wanted to reply. I am new to this site. I joined in oct. I have to say that is the BEST!!!!!!. I am 45 and have to beautiful daughters that are 8 and 5. Yes I know, I had them late. We tried for 18 years to have my first one. I decided to loose the weight for me!!! No one eles but for me. I have lost 13 pounds and I to hope to have lost 20 by thanksgiving. If I don't, thats ok I will keep trying and never give up because I like the way I feel!!!!. I wish everyone the best of luck on their journey!!!!!!:happy: :flowerforyou:

Welcome Debdouglas! Sounds like you are doing great on your weight loss journey! This site is great and full of helpful and encouraging people!!!!

Ann

Yes it is hard to break old habits.I just do the best I can and take one day at a time.
I feel with me loging my food intake helps to know what goes in my mouth and be acountable.
Hope you all have a great day
cc

I have a Health-o-meter digital scale and it seems to be pretty accurate. Sometimes too honest

My doctor advised me to not weigh myself except for once a month. That is really hard for me, but she said it would cut down on me getting discouraged and calling it quits!!! I'm all for that so I am trying to do what she said!

Deb Douglas, just wanted to say hello - I'm 46 and I have an 8 year old, so I know what you mean about the late-in-life parenting! I never thought I'd have a child, so she's our miracle girl.

Gives us added incentive to get & stay healthy!

Hey everyone! I've always been a stickler about cleaning my plate. I think a lot of us grew up with that eat all your food or you can't get up from the table. I've never done that to my kids, and i regret it only a little as I hate to waste food. I've learned, though that I only cook what I know we'll eat and I freeze the rest. Saves time, money and I don't feel so guilty. So I haven't weighted myself this week ( alittle nervous) but I did measure my thighs and I've lost an inch (yay). Don't want to lose any more around the chest area (haha), just the heiney. (Yes, I'm talking to my body right now, you don't have to listen, but my body sure does!)

I'm taking a minute to pat myself on the back, because this has been an extra stressful week and I have not gone off my diet! yay again! I'm really bad for eating lots of carbs when I'm stressed and justifying it. Then when my belly hurts and my heiney can't fit into my pants, I get mad. Well, so far, so good! I ahve splurged on oreos, but I've counted what I can eat and stayed within my diet budget. I'm not gloating, I just rarely find a cause to be proud of myself these days. Too busy and worried about silly stupid things. I hope everyone here always finds a good reason to pat themselves on the back. I'm learning, I don't mind admitting it! Good luck to all! :smooched:

Welcome to all of the new members of our group.

DeeDee - rest and get better :flowerforyou:

Missou - glad to hear your knee is feeling better.

I have a doctor's type scale and everyone that comes over tells me it is as bad as their doctor's (more accurate). It is very consistent and easy to use.

Old habits are hard to break. That's why I'm here - to form newer and healthier ones. Right now I wish I had the will power to pitch all of the left over food from my company this weekend. I don't want to waste it but I don't want to eat it. Now when I open the door I'm going to see all those starving kids in Africa.:huh:

We played The 80's Trivia and I must be getting old. I couldn't remember half of the topics let alone the answers :sad: At least we had fun and reminisced about our days in high school and college.

Snowflakes et al, it is sooooo hard for me to waste food. It took me forever to stop eating the left overs on the kids plates. Now I am a stickler for portions...take a little, you can always get more if you are still hungry.
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Oh My, This was one of my big hang-ups too, I have found that all of us had portion problems as well, so I started measuring everyones food out and I put them on smaller plates. My son has lost 18 pounds this past year..(he's also grown taller by 6 inches) but his tummy is a lot smaller. I wish my daughter would get on board with us, but she eats emotionally (like me) and the stress of school has really put some pounds on her, especially after she quit playing softball last year.

I just keep trying to make the right choices when I go to the grocery store and I am hoping the scale will start moving down again..it's beens stuck for a while...I have started adding more cardio in.I have been doing p90x, on my 9th week with that...I just wish I could figure out my magic combination so I could regularly take off a pound or two a week, it gets hard to keep going when I don't see the results.
Everyone have a super day!
Debra

Help Ladies......
I am seriously trying to figure out what my calories should be for the day....I exercise for at least an hour a day, some days 2 hours, I do p90x, so it is a mixture of strength and cardio. I was feeling that I may have been lacking in cardio, so last Friday I started adding in more cardio. I want to lose 2 pounds a week. I'm very confused as to wether or not I add back in the calories when I do extra cardio...or even add them back in at all, and just stick with the 1330 calories per day the site suggests I have to be able to see the loss. I read the files, but I'm still confused.
What are you gals doing? Do you add back in your calories or not? Thanks in advance..
I've got the kids off to school, so I'm going to get my workout in......
Good luck today in whatever you do! :bigsmile:

You should definitely eat at least some of your exercise calories. I recently increased my calories to 1400 because I wasn't losing weight any more, and have started the scale inching back down again. Also, I have been eating a little bit more fat, and I think that helps too. I think it jumpstarts your body to burn it's own fat. I had been going under on my fat a lot. I am not talking a whole bunch, but I have started adding olive oil and vinegar to my salad, where I used to eat it with no dressing, and I occasionally have a tiny but of butter on a slice of bread. Stuff like that. It seems to help, and I have a lot more energy.

opps a little happy fingers there on that last post....thank you for your answers...I was wondering if I have been eating enough, it's just so darn scary to up the calories...I'm trying to wrap my mind around it and realize that if it is whole (good for me)food, it should be fine.
I do love the calorie counter...I'll keep using it and up my calories some.
Thanks again....
I'm heading down for some lunch now, had a good workout this morning, Ab/upper body and went for a run with my favorite pal Bella..
Hope your all doing well!
Debra

Hi all, I'm 40. Just started last Friday, but I'm already feeling better. I'm really looking forward to looking and feeling great! Life Does Begin at 40!

Hi Debra,

The scariest jump is eating your excercise calories!!!

I went through a very long plateau (almost two months) and the answer everyone kept telling me is to increase my calories. It made no real sense to me but eventually out of desperation I did and guess what...after about two weeks of eating more I started to lose again. I eventually increased my calories by 50 per day and try to eat all or most of my excercise calories.

Right now with not excercising I am still eating about the same...many days I am over by 200-300. I am waiting to see if I gain doing this or maintain.

Just give it two weeks and see what happens. The worst that will happen is that you go up a pound or two but really if you are doing P90X, I doubt that will happen.

A HRM is an excellent suggestion. I can't live without mine now.

As for our daughters....excellent topic. My daughter is 12 and went through puberty over a year ago so she is quite developed with a pronounced pear shape. Her breasts, hips, thighs and bum are very curvy. Many of her friends are still flat chested with no curves. She has one in particular who is always saying she is fat (really she is quite tiny, it is sad) and my daughter questions her weight often now. She loves chocolate and is very indulgant. I have started working with her and she now excercises with me. The challenge is to teach her a healthy lifestyle and motivate her to do this without making her feel like I am saying that she is fat. It is my hope that by just encouraging the healthy lifestyle that we don't even need to go there too much.

I am working on ways to create more nutritious meals for our whole family. I may need to just sit down with all of them and say, "look, this is how it is going to be from now on...don't complain!" My husband is on high blood pressure meds and has high cholesterol and my mother who lives with us just had a cardiac catheterization today and is also on BP meds. It would be good for everyone!

When I started this I made my meals seperate and continued to fix for all of them the meals that they enjoy but I think that needs to change!

I am growing quite fond of all of you!

I too need more people to really share with.

Missou...can you explain the 3/18 and 18/18...I don't understand fully and really want to. Your progress etc. is so interesting. I hope it is good news from your GP and nothing bad. Keep us posted.

DD