WOMEN AGES 50+ FOR JULY 2012

Hello everyone...
I subscribed / posted / enjoyed this thread several years ago, and you helped me to lose 21 lbs, but life happened and I went almost all the way back to where I was - - gained back 19 lbs.
So, now I am determined to try again. With the help of MFP.

My plan is not easy ... first, get the exercise back up from 2 days a week to 4 days, minimum.
Monday and Tuesday I have to work late late (like to 10pm) so those are the only days I will have trouble.

Second, add some flexibility and stretching to my routine, somehow.

Third, back to careful eating. This is the hardest one. Sigh. I am really good all day long - busy, productive, distracted. But for a (mostly) single gal, the evenings are long. So, ladies, what works for you in the evenings? Any suggestions?
:blushing:

Happy hump day everyone! I'm having a good day because I took my dog to the vet specialist for a follow up today and his gallbladder and pancreas are normal. He had severe gallbladder disease that gave him pancreatitis and nearly died. I have been nursing him for over a month now and he's doing great! So another $1000 down the tubes, but it was well spent! :laugh:

We are going out of town this weekend and I have a huge to do list to get busy on! I don't know how I ever have time to work! I did great with calories yesterday; under my goal by nearly 400 and I walked a mile. I think my plan for vacation is to just portion control and try to make healthy-ish choices! I wonder what they have that is healthy to eat at Adventure Land LOL. We will be walking lots, so that will help.

Linder: good job staying strong with all your stress! Keep up the good work!

Tiarapants: your flying story is amazing! To see your brother unexpectedly; how fun. My parents lived in New Jersey at one time and they were looking to buy a retirement house in ARkansas. They were being shown a house at the same time another couple was there. They started talking ("Where are you from", etc) and found out they lived one block from each other and had never met! That kind of stuff is crazy!

Nancy, Angela, and rfsahae: WELCOME!!! You will enjoy our group!

Jane: ouch! shin splints can be so painful. I hope you are on the mend soon.

Michelle: OMG the hanging baskets had me laughing out loud! :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh: :laugh:

DeeDee: UGH i just hate sinus issues! I hope you are feeling better soon! I just got over about 3 weeks of them!

Kackie: Enjoy your son's wedding! Take lots of pictures!

Linda: I can't sit on the floor either from back problems, so I can empathize with you!

Laura80111: I'm so excited for you that you can get into your older "skinnier" clothes! I must admit to keeping my old clothes too hoping that one day I'll wear them again. You have inspired me! That must feel great. Where do you live that you can go biking and see deer?

I suppose I should go start tackling that list! I did call for the refills on the doggy meds (he's "down" to 4 a day now OMG), so I do have one thing crossed off. So have a great day everyone and stay OP today! :drinker:

Take care, Meg :flowerforyou:

wow 70 lbs - that's awesome - I find that being over 50 & overweight means I have to pace myself in exercise or I really hurt - just getting started and down 4 lb this week

Well, my dears, I just had to drop by and tell you that the Dr said I can kick the ortho boot and begin walking again! :happy: I have my foot back! :happy: Oh yeah. It will take some time to build up the strength in my ankle but I am so happy.

J'boy and I are at my parents place in Kelowna, he's taking sailing lessons and I am hanging around with my family. Last night I cooked a french food extravaganza (think melted butter and cream), :blushing: so yummy. Tonight it's bunless burgers with salad from the garden. I found the YMCA and have been at the gym too, very big compared to my small town place but the heavy lifters were just as kind to the old lady.

Hasta pronto,

nancy

Jen - my heart aches for you. I know this must be one of the scariest times. Please know I will keep you and your son in my thoughts. What a brave and courageous man, I thank him from the bottom of my heart.

Hugs,
DeeDee

Good evening everyone,

In a good mood because the scale is moving in the right direction and feel like I'm finally making progress! Also, noticing that since I upped my water intake definitely not nearly as hungry!

Linda-Great Chair exercises on YouTube.com-I especially like the sparkpeople ones-they're more challenging! Thanks to whoever pointed those out to me when I was looking!

Jen-My heart goes out to you! I will keep him (and the rest of your family) in my prayers! And jogging in the pool sure does count as exercise! It's part of what we do during water aerobics class!

Nancy-Great that you finally are rid of the boot!

Pennyns-Don't feel like your the lone ranger when it comes to pacing yourself with exercise. My knees and hips are still protesting from my walk yesterday and it was only 20 min. Going to break it into 2-10 min. ones for now. I started off too gung ho with exercise about a month back and paid for it with a really bad flare-up in my knee but now slowly getting back into it with chair exercises and water workouts mostly.

And to everyone else I missed, comgrats on all of your efforts! This is the best place to come to for support, motivation, sharing and acceptance!!

Take care,
Kathy

Jen,I feel for you and keep you in my prayers.My son was deployed to Afghanistan in 2003 for 9 months.The phone calls were a blessing.
Have a good night all.
HUGS
jane

Thanks for the warm welcome! I'm in the Chicago suburbs, and it's been hot and dry for weeks now. You would think I could just SWEAT it off! I teach quiltmaking classes on Wednesday mornings, then go to my office at church and work all afternoon, then home and chase the little grandson (he's 5) for a while. After dinner, hubby looked at me and said, "do you want to go ride your bike?" Yippee!!!!! Did another 13 miles tonight. Same route as Monday night, but it was a little easier going this time. So far I've lost a whopping 3 pounds, but I'm feeling very positive. I run around a lot at work, but it's not steady enough to really help much.

We leave Friday for Gulfport MS, where our youngest son will graduate from Air Force Tech School. He'll be coming home with us for a little leave time, then I'll be driving to Nevada with him, where he'll be assigned next (he's taking one of our cars and I'll fly back). A lot of travel and family/friend gathering time coming in the next month...I need to employ lots of new-found self-restraint in the eating and recording department, and determination to keep up with the bike riding.

Can someone please tell me - How do you add the progress graphic on your posts?

(Duh...I found it...nevermind!)

Thanks Barbie for the words of encouragement! My knees are much worse that :sad: . I need a knee replacement. A fall at work and 30+ years standing on my feet as an R.N.just plain wore out my joints,
I am doing well. I weighed this morning and The scale said I " only' lost 2 lbs! I was disappointed. I had some time to think and then I realized that I set my goal for 2 lbs a week. Its amazing how one's mind can put one in a negative place. When I realized that I met my wt loss goal for the week, I realized that " only 2 lbs" turned into YEA, I lost 2 lbs. I have to change my thinking, one day at a time and 1 pound at a time. :laugh:
I hope everyone is doing well and working on their goals. You all inspire me and keep me motivated!
Blessings, Linda Aka SundanceB

I have been a member here for a bit and this is the first time I am posting. I am finally starting to realize that nothing works unless I put some effort into it and I have no one to do this with offline. I know this is the middle of July but my goals would be: To come to the site everyday, to lose 4 pounds, to go to the "Centre" I joined two months ago, at least 2 times a week.The two most important things would be what you and another lady said. First try to convince myself it's never too late and try not to feel like a failure because everything I've tried in the past I have not succeeded at.

Good day everyone - I'm so glad to join everyone again. Just finished catching up on the posts from the last day. I'm sorry to hear of health problems, deployment, frustrations with life and with trying to be healthier.

I'm happy to read of all the interesting things that you do, the different types of exercise/activities you participate in, and how doggone fun you are!!

Ha, I had to wash clothes yesterday (if not no clean undies!) so I go downstairs with my laundry, an exercise DVD, my phone, a Kleenex (allergies) and get started. Oh yes, you've anticipated me haven't you? When I took the laundry out of the washer to place in the dryer there were little bits of Kleenex allllllll over. I'd dropped the Kleenex in with the laundry and never thought, oh gosh, where did that Kleenex go. I need to clean out the washer today of all the residue that didn't come out with the clean laundry. DUH.

Sipping coffee, wishing you all well. And tag :drinker: to the next poster!

Lin

Good morning from sunny Portland!

rfsahae, welcome. Are you eating enough during the day? Evenings are difficult, for sure. You might try eating bigger breakfast and lunch and having a late afternoon snack so that by evening time you're not famished. And drink tons of water. For some reason we tend to "reward" ourselves with food in the evenings. I've been trying to overcome that hurdle myself. It's very difficult to tell myself No More Food. You could also try doing some exercise in the evenings, something to keep yourself occupied. It's definitely a challenge.

It's amazing, really, how sometimes we just eat for no apparent reason. We're not hungry, but we still eat. That's of course how most of us got here in the first place, and now we're trying to undo the bad habits. It takes an awful lot of willpower and drive to tell ourselves to stop eating when we've reached our quota. There's just something about food that keeps calling my name, and it most definitely has nothing to do with hunger. :grumble: Planning meals early in the morning helps me stick with the program, and getting proper nutrition helps me keep my head on straight.

We need lots of potassium-rich foods and Omega-3s. Go low on the sugar, low on the carbs. Get some good fats from nuts and avocados. Learn to use fruit for a dessert or treat. Drink half of your body weight in ounces of water every day.

Tracking potassium is a bit difficult since many MFP entries do not include it. I've had to look up potassium counts in many foods on other web sites and edit entries in the database. Painstaking, but I'm telling you, getting enough daily potassium helps me feel better overall. And Omega-3s. I get my daily dose from walnuts, 12-14 halves every morning with a little yogurt and fruit.

I can't eat back my exercise calories if I want to lose weight. Tired and true.

Oh my goodness look at the time. :noway: Must get going here!

Good day all, let's make it a great one! :drinker:

jb

Deb A: Thank you for the reply. I lurked at the edges of this group thinking all I needed was a place to write down what I eat, but that's not the case! I am 60, my blood pressure is up, my joints are hurting with every step I take! I have fought my weight most of my life, even had my stomach stapled back in 1985. The whole time not realizing that at the end of the day the change has to come from with in yourself...like you say something has to "click"I think my switch is broken, but maybe with the help of this group and if I try to actually commit to it,things will change. I need to lose around 100 pounds but right now my goal is 30 pounds to start. Cathy

:flowerforyou: Thankful for Thursday,

Lin, I just hate it when that stray kleenex gets in the washer & dryer:grumble: It reminds me of the time I washed a blue crayon with a load of clothes that Son #1 had in his pocket (I think he was 2 at the time) when I pulled the clothes out there were blue spots on all the clothes where the crayon had touched and melted...it ruined one of my favorite dresses some of the white polk a dots were blue Ever since I have checked pockets and the things I have found have been quite interesting

Deb A- your post of your 11 month journey is truly inspiring:drinker: One meal, one day, one week, one month at a time great advice:flowerforyou:

rfsahae- Welcome back:flowerforyou: I totally understand where you have been and the return. I too lost (in 2010) and then gained almost all of it back (2011) so here I am again:ohwell: What I've learned is that this journey doesn't stop once the goal has been met, you just move on to the next goal which is making sure that the lifestyle change sticks We can do it! In the evenings I make sure that I have already planned what I'm going to eat, have checked out a few success stories to keep me motivated then complete my food diary for the day grab a glass of water and say food is NOT a option because I've closed my diary for the day:bigsmile:

Katie- I have only had one migraine in my life and it was awful...hoping that your head ache doesn't last long:flowerforyou:

Meg-so glad that your dog is on the mend. I live in Colorado in the south end of the Denver Metro area (so pretty much city) but we live near a resevoir it's about a mile from our house and we go there to ride our bikes, it's a state park and has boating, fishing, camping and picnicing. There are a lot of wetland trails as well as biking trails so it's a pretty enjoyable place to ride

Nancy2- congrats on the loss:flowerforyou: every little bit is a victory. I too find that if I prepare my food for the next day the night before it helps get me out the door faster and then I don't think about it the next day...I just have to eat what I'd planned

Jen- {{{hugs}}} to you during your sons deployment. I remember when we first heard that #1 son was headed to Afghanistan (2003-2004) it was really hard:sad: He was out in the middle of nowhere and they had to build their FOB (Forward Operating Base) from the ground up they had one satelite phone for the 120 guys since he never knew when he could call we had our home phone forwarded to our cells phones so we'd never miss a call. Then when he was in Iraq (late 2006-early 2008) he had internet access everyday and I talked with him by instant messaging every day:bigsmile: So I'm sure you will hear from your son once he finds out where he will be overthere.

Nancy- YEAH you can finally get back to the exercise:drinker: I'm sure it will take you no time at all to get your ankle back to full strenght. Yummy french food

Michele-hope you and Vince are better soon:flowerforyou:

Kathy- good advice on the exercise...if you are just starting out take it slow...we are NOT as young as we used to be:laugh: or as limber unfortunately.

Barbara-your line dance class was getting you sweaty, now that's a class

cjspensley- Congrats on those #3:drinker: great start. Enjoy your time with your son at his graduation and leave time. It ought to be fun driving with him to his duty station, I would have loved to have done that with my sons when they were in active duty, but that never happened.:ohwell:

Linda-:drinker: #2 loss is GREAT. I have had to set my expectations much lower to .2 (2/10th) at a time and boy does it move slowly at that rate.:grumble:

jb- I agree with you I can't eat back my exercise calories and lose:happy: I know that there are all those people talking about eat more to lose, well I know for my body it DOESN'T work, I' glad for those that it does, but I'm not part of that group

Robin- good luck on the new job tomorrow:flowerforyou:

Welcome to all the newbies:flowerforyou: keep coming back and let us get to know you. This is the BEST group.

*****
Amandas story about seeing her brother at the airport and then Jen's about her son being deployed reminded me of a time when all three of our sons were in active duty (2002-2008). #1 & #2 sons in the Army & #3 son in the Air Force. It was in December 2002 and all three were coming home for #2 sons wedding and Christmas. #3 son was at the airport in Atlanta and was waiting for his flight to Denver and saw a group of Soldiers (all of them traveling were in uniform) and started talking with them and found out that they were from Ft. Jackson and he said his brother was at Ft. Jackson...then found out that his brother was there, they hadn't seen each other since July when #2 son left for basic training in Texas. As it turned out they were booked on the same flight to Denver and after getting some buddies to change seats they were able to fly home together and get caught up on each others lives.:bigsmile: Now only #2 son is still in the Army and in the Reserves and will be promoted to Captain on the 26th.

Last night when I got home it wasn't too hot and we got in another good bike ride, but hubby wanted Chinese food for dinner and I had no will power to say no:sad: It was good, it's over and today I'm back on track again.

Everyone have a good day. log your food, drink the water:drinker: move the body, drink the water:drinker: and drink more water:drinker:

Laura80111

Hi all, I joined this post a few weeks ago, and really have to keep up! Not able to log on as much as I like, especially when I am flying..I don't usually take my laptop with me, unless it is a long layover.

I am actually staying home this weekend, and looking forward to it! Going to the Mets/Braves game tomorrow at Turner Field with my boyfriend...I am a Mets fan, he is Braves fan...this should be interesting.

I really don't like using the work 'boyfriend', any suggestions on another word??? I am 51 years old, that word does not fit! . We are are more than just dating, even thinking about getting a house together next year, and he has even asked me if we get married, what kind of wedding do I want? ( LOL, of course I said a small one, backyard party BBQ or on the beach!)

Hope everyone is having a great summer, and taking vacations! My next trip is with the Balimore Orioles next week, then at the end of the month, I head to California with the Mets, to San Francisco, and then fly with the Tampa Bay Rays from Oakland to St Pete Florida. ( my all time favorite team!) I moved to Atlanta a year a a half ago from Tampa for this great job promotion, and it has been the best move I could have made. I love my job, met a great guy and my 19 year old daughter loves it here as well. Life is good! Finally!