2015 Weight Loss and Healthy Living Support Thread

I haven’t been in this thread before.

Back in April I visited the doctor because I was having a hard time shaking off the effects of a cold. It was a classic good news and bad news situation. My longs were clear.

But my blood sugar was very high, and my A1C count twice what it should be. So, meds for me and dieting.

I went on a 1400 calorie per day diet. Lots of fruit, salad, soup, very few fats and sweets. Not that I can’t have them, but a candy bar wouldn’t fill me up as much as an equal number calories of salad.

As of today, fourteen weeks into the diet, I’ve lost almost thirty pounds. People have noticed, and I’ll need some smaller pants and tops for work. I haven’t weighed this little in thirty years. if I can lose seven more pounds I’ll be at the same weight as I was in 1974, when I got out of basic military training.

Now I need to start working out again. I may weigh less but it’s still kind of flabby. I may start with simple walking, there’s a school track a block away. Then I need to get back into karate workouts. This morning the scale said 161.2 pounds, or 73.1 kg.

Wish me luck.

Good for you, Baker! That is a lot of weight in that amount of time! Woo!

-65 pounds, with -70 as my goal. These last 5 pounds are a bitch.

At my last doctor’s visit, a follow-up for my new blood pressure medication, he kindly pointed out to me that I had put on 70+ pounds over the past 3 years.

Not long after that I decided to change gyms, no particular reason but I got tired of the crummy showers in my old gym, and I felt like I could afford, and also that I deserved, better.

In the new gym, of course, they gave me a free session with a personal trainer. But they didn’t just pick one off the shelf, they interviewed me about what I have ever liked or disliked about personal trainers in the past. And this trainer and I really hit it off, so I signed up for 40 sessions.

So now I am going to the gym 5 times a week (3 for cardio, 3 for weights - one day I do both - which include 2 sessions a week with the trainer). I am writing down all my food again, something I used to do when I kept my weight mostly under control. This gym has software that makes it easier.

My goal is to lose 1 pound a week, something which I think is reasonable for someone my age (65) and, when I reach my goal I should be in a place to maintain it. It’s been 5 weeks and I’ve lost 7 pounds, so I’m doing OK. I’m often kind of sore but I don’t get hungry much, which is a good thing. My goal is to lose 50 pounds in the first year, and 35 pounds in the 2nd year (because I know it will be harder).

I’ll check in here from time to time, but a pound a week is not very exciting so I probably won’t post very often.

Doctor’s appointment today (drum roll, please):

Weight loss: 35 pounds (since my last appointment in May)
BP: 110/68
Fasting glucose: 95

He cut back one of my BP meds by half, and depending on the A1C numbers, may cut back my glucose med significantly.

Happy dance.

So, I had not done well by my body for much of this year. I told a friend that I’d eaten every single one of my emotions, good and bad, since around last October, when my dad died. And I’d not exercised much other than incidental things. Add in house-buying and car getting totaled…and all my stressors went to food.

Well, I went to the doctor in August and saw a number on the scale that I never wanted to see. It wasn’t 300 pounds but it wasn’t all that far off. I got a referral during that to the Emory Bariatric clinic - but I can’t afford their program. Being big enough to be referred to bariatric was, for me, shocking.

And so. I’ve readjusted my eating to what worked for me a few years ago when I was losing. Very low carb, and nothing refined (except for the 1 tsp of sugar I put in my coffee. I’ve tried artificial sweeteners and just can’t. So I’ll use real sugar in a small amount tyvm.) Quality proteins, good fats, lots of veggies. Low sodium, because I am sodium sensitive and on a bp med. Tracking everything I eat

Exercise: Walks at lunch time, working on the c25k program 3 days a week after work, strength training 3 days, 1 rest day.

My doctor’s appointment was August 24. Late last week I got on the scale for the first time since (I didn’t own a scale, so I bought one), and showed down 15 points to 277. Most of that may be water weight, but that’s fine. It was a confidence boost and made me feel like this is doable.

And then I put the scale away and won’t get back on it for another month. If I leave it out, I’ll check daily, even multiple times a day, and I know from past experience that’s doesn’t put me in a good state of mind.

My wife checks every morning. I’ve tried to tell her that it’s like checking your stock portfolio every day: a sure way to madness. Fretting over ounces or even a pound or so is pointless, as something like lack of a bowel movement can account for those fluctuations. I check once a week, usually.

I weigh everyday, but it helps me. I’m currently 4.8 pounds from my goal of 125.

I may lower my goal to 120, if I don’t struggle too hard with these last 5 pounds. That will give me some more wiggle room for the winter when I’m less active.

Chefguy, good news for you. That’s awesome. Keep up the good work.

Looking for a place to brag, I found this thread!

Back in April I was sedentary, feeling fat, and smoking ~8-10 cigarettes a day. So I did the logical thing, I signed up to run a half-marathon in October, having never run one before. And to make it even better, it’s a trail half-marathon over hilly terrain.

About 3 months ago, reality set in that this run was really going to happen and if I was going to participate, it was time to get serious. I quit smoking (and re-started a few times), I started going for short walk/jog/runs, I traded lunch for a protein shake and cut back on the booze.

I’m now completely smoke-free for 59 days. I’ve lost around 12 pounds, and last night I went for a run and realized I’d done almost 4 miles without stopping to walk any of it.

For the first time I’m beginning to think I might actually finish this half-marathon in the time permitted! So, if you’re hunting for motivation, consider signing yourself up for something crazy.

Me too chiming in.

In June I joined a new gym, and started working with a personal trainer there. My goals were to lose at least one pound a week, for a total of 100 pounds over no more than 2 years; to improve cardio fitness; and to improve my muscle fitness so that I can continue to live a full and active life into my 70’s and 80’s.

In the first 14 weeks I have lost 20.5 pounds. The muscle fitness is hard to measure, but it certainly has improved. When I do weights or machines, those numbers are going up appropriately.

Sadly, I am losing my trainer in a couple of weeks, since she is moving 50 miles away as her husband has a new job. Working with her is how I got started, and I don’t know if I will be as happy with someone else.

Next up for me is to get back in the gym and get some muscle tone going, along with some core strength. Losing a lot of weight is kind of offset by loose skin and stubborn belly fat. My goal was to be under 200 pounds by Thanksgiving. Since that’s now only six pounds away, I think I’ll shoot for 190, which should be doable in 2 months.

As of this morning, I’m now 3.6 pounds from my first goal of 125. I know it doesn’t sound like much of a loss since I last posted, but I can really feel the difference in my clothes.

And the best part is that I am losing in spite of the fact that I’m not being super strict with my diet on the weekends. Last weekend I went to Apple Hill and allowed myself to eat whatever I felt like having.

I hope everyone else is having good results. I have so much more energy and feel so much better, that it hasn’t been as hard these last couple of weeks.

The last time I was on the scale, I was down another 5lbs, making 20lbs total since August 24.

Still focusing hard on being very careful with carbs (and staying within a calorie budget) while also getting daily exercise.

So I still feel positive about things this time around. Hopefully my planning will help me keep on top of this.