SDMB Weight Loss Club, January (08)

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
161

WOOT! Everybody dance with me! dances around to I’m Too Sexy by Right Said Fred

Today I was digging through a box of clothes and I found a pair of pants. They are a size smaller than my normal pants and I haven’t even looked at them in about a year. But lo, when I slid said pants up over my hips and zipped up the fly, they fit! I have been given a gift by the diet and excersize gods and that gift is fitting into smaller pants. This required a celebration, so I took my grocery list and went to the store and stocked up on foods that, when eaten in proper portions and combined with working out regularly, will help me shrink out of these pants and into even smaller pants! (Okay, so I also bought a pint of Ben and Jerry’s Lighten Up Brownie Batter ice cream, but that will last me a long time assuming my roommate doesn’t find it!)

I wish the joy I feel right now upon everyone who is posting in this thread. Seriously, I haven’t been this happy in a super long time. Hooray for smaller pants!

162

Hi, Everybody,

I’d like to join, too. Your posts are all so inspirational. Pbbth, you especially inspire me – I like your attitude of feeling that you are smokin’ hot, no matter what your size. Send a little of that vibe my way, 'kay?

FTR, I’m female, 55 years old and I’d like to lose 50 pounds over the course of the year. I lost about 10 pounds last year, and, more significant, 2 inches from my belly measurement, and 2 inches from my butt.

I need to become more consistent in exercising, and pay more attention to the quantity of food I take in. I already eat good food Start measuring the fats and oils I use in cooking, instead of eyeballing.

So – I belong to a gym. I have a good weight training routine, but I need to go more often, and have back-up routines for the times when I can’t get to the gym, like when I’m traveling. Because of some foot problems, I can’t jog or ski anymore, and the amount and speed of walking I do is limited. But at the gym, I’ve been using the rowing machine, recumbent exercise bicycle, and something called a Cybex, which lets me keep my feet flat but still move the big muscles in backside and thighs. I vary the intensity of my workouts, and how much time I spend on each machine, because I’ve read that it’s more effective that way. The body gets used to a routine, more efficient at it, so it becomes less effective. Shaking up the routine works.

Walking is still the best exercise for me, so I still work on getting my 10,000 steps a day, even though I need to walk slowly.

Two things I’ve done that helped me, and maybe someone here will find them useful:

  1. I have a mini-tramp at home, and jog in place on it (the give of it protects the feet) while I wait for water to boil or for tea to brew, or need to get up and stretch. It’s an easy way to sneak in more excercise in small segments, and give a boost to a metabolism slowing from too much sitting at the computer. I can even read a lightweight paperback while jogging in place on it.

(Warning! the following may be disturbing to some!)

  1. I used to love potato chips inordinately. So I did a self-hypnosis routine, in which
    I visualized the potato chip bag as being full of spiders…big, black, hairy ones, the size of wolf spiders. I visualized reaching into the bag for a chip, and grabbing a spider instead. I visualized all this intensely, and if I find myself in the chip aisle in the grocery store, I reinforce the associating by calling up those images again. Bags and bags of spiders on the shelves. Voila! My desire for potato chips is pretty much a thing of the past.
163

I have one of these moments lined up - I’ve kept two pairs of jeans from when I was 10st and I know that I will have succeeded when I can fit into them again (it means going from my current 34" waist back to a 30" waist). However that will definitely be the end of the line in diet terms as I can’t shrink any more than that without being unhealthy.

164

Hello Tapiotar, welcome to the club. Good luck losing.

Pbbth, woohoo! That is fun news.

As for me, I got tired of waiting for my groin pull to heal and went to the Doc (OK, I had other reasons for being there.) He put me on an anti-inflammatory and says I can probably start back on the elliptical in two weeks. Hooray! The Holidays were too kind to me and my lack of working out has dragged me down. I have a lot of work to do! I’m looking forward to going back to the elliptical.

At least I have kept up my strength training.

165

So, I was reading a thread in another forum about how someone would rather shove a coffee enema where the sun doesn’t shine for 20 days straight rather than take dieting and exercise advise from one who has “been there,” so to speak.

Of course, now I can’t FIND the thread to link… :smack:

ANYWAY…

This got me thinking. About me and how I have been handling MY own weight issues over the last almost 12 or 13-ish years.

Here’s some background on me, hopefully you all don’t die of boredom before you finish reading.

I was a skinny kid. Tiny, even. My gramma used to tell me I had “chicken legs,” or had “stickball bats dangling from my ass.” We would laugh and think it was funny - and it was. It was gramma and she spoke her mind. No big, really. Fast forward to around 2nd grade. Suddenly, I began the “baby fat stage.” Or thats what gramma liked to call it. The kids in school never really made fun of me, and the kids in the neighborhood didn’t either - but I think that was only because there was another girl fatter than me in the neighborhood - so all they could use to pick on me was my last name. For some reason, that used to send me home crying. But no one ever picked on me because of my weight. Ever.

By the time 8th grade started, I was on Weight Watchers. I asked to be put there - no one forced me, and I didn’t have a weight-obsessed mother (although she’s been on WW for as long as I can remember, and has been at her “goal weight” for at LEAST 20 years now). But she would go with me to meetings, and help me with the food and measuring and all the fun stuff. By the time 8th grade dance rolled around, I was a slim 115 pounds - down from 140-ish if memory serves.

I stayed there for a long long time, putting on MAYBE 10 pounds at best. I hovered around 115-125 all through HS and into college. Freshman 15? Pfft. No big. Gained and lost it. Graduated college in 1996.

And so it began…

Since 1996, I’ve probably gained 100 pounds - I blame some stress, but mostly I just ate my way through the last 12 years. If I LOST 100 pounds, I’d probably still be considered overweight, but I’d look smokin’. :smiley: My body tends to distribute weight in a way that it doesnt really show the TRUE poundage. But between the years of 1996 to about 2004, I must have tried every, and I do mean EVERY gimmick on the market: phen-fen, OTC pills, low-carb, high-carb, no-fat, low-fat, high-protein, working out like an obsessive maniac. You name the popular diet programs, I’ve done them - oddly, WW STOPPED working for me when they switched to the Points system. Went to doctors, specialists, and “medical weight loss” joints. I get to the first 20 pounds, and my body just…gives up. Then I give up, and I’m depressed for months. :frowning:

I’m not sure what my point here is - I guess I’m tired of trying. But this time, I kinda feel I HAVE to. I’m getting married in April 2009. I feel like I need to do this for ME (and for the sake of my pictures, haha). Luckily, my fiancee met me the way I am, and god love the crazy blind bastard, loves me for me - fat or otherwise. Easy for the skinny-minnie that HE is to say. :slight_smile: I think I’m just tired of failing. I’m tired of being this way, but it seems that nothing works for me anymore. I find myself sometimes looking for that “Magic Pill,” and I hate myself for that. I’m not motivated, I hate exercising - I’m basically my own worst enemy in the battle of the bulge. I havent been to a doctor in about 3 or 4 years (no insurance) so I have no way to know if it’s medical - I just feel like SOMETHING is off. I almost HOPE there’s something wrong with me so that it will all make sense in my head.

Yes, I know - the nacho’s didnt MAGICALLY work their way into my digestive tract, I’m not THAT delusional. :stuck_out_tongue:

I guess I just want to know - for those in a similar situation - what got you motivated? How did you beat the “demons” and come out on top? I’m slowly getting to the “giving up” point and resigning myself to the fact that I just may stay this way - but at the same time, I really don’t want to. See? Told you - I’m my own worst enemy.

Help? Or at least slap me into rational thought?

166

Welcome LilGypsyGirl!

As far as what got me motivated, I simply hit my rock bottom. I have found that if I am working to lose weight for my looks I can’t keep it off. I can’t stay away from chocolate cake just so that people think I am hot (heck, I am already hot enough without losing a pound!) Honestly it is a lot like giving up alcohol or cigarettes or any other addictive habit. Some people realize enough is enough and walk away without a second thought and others have to hit rock bottom to make the change. My personal rock bottom was 301 lbs.

Keep in mind as you are on the treadmill or standing in front of the pantry if you are saying “my ass is going to look so good in those smaller pants” instead of “I am going to live long enough to hold my great grandchild” you are less likely to succeed in the long term. That is only my opinion and my experience, of course, YMMV.

As far as getting stuck in a plateau and giving up, talk to tdn about that. He seems to be dealing with that right now.

167

Tapiotar, want to be work-out buddies? I don’t have an RL one (and don’t want one), but an on-line one would be nice.

Would you share your weight training routine? I plan to start in February, but need a routine that’s fairly fast (I work out before work), and suitable for an older woman.

I treadmill every morning and do floor exercises most evenings while watching tv. I bought a ‘fitness ball’ and do most of the exercises on the chart that came with it. I also use the ball as my chair; it’s supposed to keep your midrift toned.

I am going to remember that hypnosis routine; I have a couple of bad habits I need to kick.

168

LilGypsyGirl, what got me motivated? Seeing 200 coming up fast (and I am NOT tall enough to pull that off). Just generally feeling lousy all the time; tired, fat, and useless. Feeling my emergency ‘fat clothes’ getting tight. Yeah, that was the worst, knowing I would have to go up another size, that the clothes I was embarassed to buy were getting too tight.

Things that are working for me?

K.I.S.S.

DIET: No grains or roots, a cup of fruits or vegetables with every meal. No other rules. It’s been working for me. (Well, I don’t eat bananas or avocados, I’ve cut back on caffiene, I drink at least a quart of herbal tea every evening, and I take lots of vitamins and supplements.)

WORKOUT: Every morning before work (and on week-ends). No exceptions. Even if I have only 20 minutes, I go. (I did miss one morning when I expect a big storm.)

EXERCISE: I’m just doing floor exercises now. I follow a chart, becuase it’s easier than paying attention. I have an extensive and complicated series of measurements and daily goals (I enjoy that sort of thing), and if I don’t make even ONE of my goals for that day, I have to do the floor exercises. Since my goals are unrealistic, I have to do the exercises every night.

GOALS: Keep them simple and realistic. You will never be the size you were when you graduated high school, or, probably, college. And that’s fine. Try for a pound a week from now until the wedding. And track a body measurement, like your waist or rib-cage; when you weight isn’t going down, your size might be.

169

This is it.

What got me motivated this time is that a few months ago I realized that my pants have gotten extremely tight, and when I went to the doctor to get a persistent cough treated I found out that I was up to 283 pounds, which meant that in the last six months I had put on over 25 pounds.

By just cutting down on the amount I was eating, and eliminating the grazing I did between meals, I managed to drop four pounds in two weeks. Now that I’ve finally gotten rid of the cough (which turned out to be temporary asthma) I’m going to start walking every day. I know that I won’t be able to keep up with a regimen that requires keeping track of calories consumed with each meal, but I am going to be reducing my portions and eating healthier. I’ve stopped buying stuff that I shouldn’t be eating so it won’t be around to tempt me.

170

I’ve done this.

This is what leads me to believe that there’s something loose in my wiring. even when the healthy stuff is in the house, I feel compelled to eat a TON of it. And I just realized it now. It’s like I have NO self control. I KNOW I lack willpower and discipline. This is why it’s so tough for me - it was easy once. I just can’t figure out why I can’t do it again. :confused:

Thanks, LurkMeister, j666, pbbth (this made me giggle - I thought I was the only one who spelled that that way). All your advice makes sense - I just hope I can implement it and stick to something.

My guest membership expires tomorrow, so I’ll be lurking from now on. Figures I find you guys 12 hours before my guest privileges get yoinked. sigh :frowning:

~Gypsy

171

LilGypsyGirl, as someone who has not succeeded, I can’t give you any solid advice. I will observe, however, what’s going well for me now. Realistically, I can’t be great about exercise and eating. I think that’s one thing I’ve learned in the past few years.

It’s useless for me to lose 15 pounds being perfect at following WW, because I can’t keep it up. For the past semester, though, I’ve been happy with being okay/good at keeping to plan. I’m not losing weight very fast - only 9-10 pounds in the past four months. But I’m not driving myself crazy anymore, which feels great. I like to know the points values of wha I’m eating, but I think I’m pretty consistently a few points over each day. I try to make the healthiest choices that stay within my not-inconveniencing-me zone. I can’t imagine a life where I can’t have Ben & Jerry’s when I’m having a major craving - I just try to only buy a pint once every few months now.

I guess I’m trying to say that if making your goal drastic-weight loss, and failing, gets you down (and that’s been the story of my life), think about changing your goal - make your goal to find a lifestyle that’s healthy and that you can live with.

172

Hi, J666, thanks for your comments,

What do you have in mind for workout partner? Mutual encouragement and support? Absolutely. Late next week, I’m starting three weeks of travel. Even though I’ll have my laptop with me, contact will be probably be irregular. Do email me directly – put sdmb in the subject line, and forgive the spamblocker.

I do my real weight training on the machines at the gym. It usually takes me an hour to do the whole circuit twice. I use pretty heavy weight for leg press and hip abductor and adductor routines – I’m very strong there – medium weight for abs and back and the twisty thing for the side muscles, and lighter weights for quads, hamstrings, chest and triceps/biceps. I do two sets of everything, 15 reps for lower body, 12 for upper body, which was recommended by the trainer at the gym who got me started. I do take the one or two days off in between weight training workouts for muscle recovery.

While I’m traveling, I’m going to take a 10 pound pair of dumbells and ankle weights with me (I’m going by car), and take a yoga mat for for floor work. The weights are lighter, but I’ll do three sets.

Have you read Younger Next Year for Women? That’s really inspirational reading, good for motivation.

Though it isn’t so directly related to weight, I try to do some chi gung (qigong) every day. Not unrelated, since repeated practice normalizes organ systems and hormones.

Thank you for asking about my workouts! Writing this helped me clarify some things and rev up my motivation.

173

Another fun thing for the waist – use a hula hoop! I used to be good at it when I was a kid, and still find it fun. Another thing where I can read and do the exercise at the same time…though I do only 20 minute hula hoop sessions now, not hour-long ones.

174

1.6 lbs down at my WW meeting. I was hoping for a bit more (my home scale had me down 2.5-ish pounds), but I did get my 5-lb star on my bookmark.

I really need to work out, but when I get home from work I’m exhausted, and I’m not a morning person at all.

175

Had my WW meeting today and weighed in at 194 even. That’s 2.6 pounds down from last week.

176

I weighed in here a couple of hours ago at 231.2. I was there a couple of weeks ago, but that was after 2 days post-wisdom teeth surgery of eating nothing: now I’ve already restarted eating, gained all that weight back, and apparently lost some more! I started the month at 237.6 with a 10 lb goal for January. I know I’m not going to make it quite that far, but I sure won’t thumb my nose at 6 and a half!!

Also, I joined Weight Watchers Online last night. It’s one thing to know I eat a bunch of crap and I really shouldn’t, and another to tell my (new-to-me) internist at my first wellness exam in years. I hadn’t prepared myself to answer the question of “What’s a typical breakfast, lunch, and dinner for you?” “Um, nothing, fried crap from the hospital’s night shift cafeteria, and fast food” didn’t sound very impressive coming from my mouth. Here’s hoping WW helps me to get myself into some better habits!

177

According to my scale I’ve lost seventeen pounds. That seems a bit much though. I am trying not to weigh myself everyday, but the temptation is great. Maybe I need to make another resolution, only on Saturday or something! :stuck_out_tongue:

178

178.6 @ 42.8 % fat, 102 cm waist

All the % fat on the scale is measuring is my level of hydration. During the week, I drink 3 to 5 bottles of water a day, and usually a pot of tea at night. Friday night, I kick back (do people still ‘kick back’?) with a bottle of wine and the spouse.
Saturday morning I am a shrivled dry husk.

Rather than give up the wine, I am switching my weigh-in date to Friday. I always show sensible slow progress on Friday.

I am also starting the weights next week, instead of Ground Hog’s Day. I am losing weight more quickly than my already unrealistic schedule calls for.

For anyone young and elastic enough to want to drop over a stone (nearly 15 lbs; I am enchanted with units even odder than those Americans cling to) in less than a month, I will repeat the routine that has ‘worked’ for me.

No grains or roots (or, obviously, any sweets)
At least a cup of fruit or vegetable with everymeal
About a half gallon (2 liters) of clear, non-caffienated fluid a day
Work up a sweat on the treadmill every day for 20 to 45 minutes (usually around a 200 cal. workout, according to the machine)

I also take lots a vitamins and supplements during the week (I only take a multi, vitamin C, and calcium on week-ends).

All that, and the power of shame.
If I know you are struggling to squeeze a workout into your travel schedule, I am not going to skip a workout over something trivial like a head ache or a broken leg.

I will find that book. I don’t want to be younger, I just want to be healthy.

(And kinda hot for an old broad.)

179

Weigh-in isn’t till tomorrow, or technically later today, but I just thought I’d mention I achieved a significant something today - stopping eating when I wasn’t hungry any more even though someone else had paid for the food. (When I ordered a jacket potato, I wasn’t expecting more potato than I normally eat in a week!)

180

Woo-hoo! to Kat, Drain Bead, Kerrigan, Baker, everyone on their losses and other successes.

J666**, What power lies in a public declaration. Eg, I didn’t want to go to the gym on Thursday, but I made myself. Mostly because I had said on this board that I do x amount of weight lifting and if I didn’t go and actually do it, I’d be nothing but a blow-hard. I didn’t want to be that, so I had to actually go to the gym and do the work out. It was great.

I’ve also been watching my intake carefully, and I’ve increased the mini bouts of exercise.