weight loss journey

[Fazor]

You know; I've found a lot of very good food with tons of flavor that is healthy; but it takes more creativity than I naturally have. The killer is the salt. At 28, I don't worry that much about my salt intake -- though I've never been one to add salt to already prepared food -- but just the salt that's already in things is astounding.

Calories I've been able to cut out pretty easily without sacrificing flavor and variety. I have to watch what I drink, as I found a ton of "unnecessary" calories were coming from pop (almost never drink it anymore), beer (my lovely beer! I don't drink much of it anymore either), and even juice. I hate drinking water, but make myself at least substitute water for one drink a day.

I do use oil to cook most everything, but a teaspoon of EVOO to cook in isn't that bad either.

Anyway, good luck Barabino

[BigDon]

I'm 38 yo, 5.7", I weight 265 lbs. :-(

On april, I should go into a sort of rehab clinic for fat people :-(

Exercise can be fun, but I hate that I will no longer be free to eat what I whim:
I'll have to account for everything I put in :-(

35 gr pasta
no salt
no oil

everyday very simplistic meals = everyday the same stuff !

...sounds like living death to me :-(

That's one of the reasons I liked furniture moving. At the height of the moving season I'm moving five to seven households a week and needed to eat around 6000 calories a day to maintain a weight of 235 pounds.

*My* advice is to keep eating as you like and just encrease your energy output. (Join a gym.) Tone muscle consumes calories even at rest.

[Tinaa]

Cooked up a fine mess of fried catfish last night. I counted the points and consider it well worth it. I am going in for a bit of lap swimming today. I don't want to louse up my losing streak. And I'm even kind of looking forward to hitting the water.

[Tinaa]

I did it. I swam a mile in 38 minutes. My goal is a 30 minute mile.

[Fazor]

Congrats. Almost there. Then you'll Have to go for 2 miles in 45 minutes

I love swimming. Too fat now; cuts down on hydrodynamics. Helps bouyancy though.

[Tinaa]

Congrats. Almost there. Then you'll Have to go for 2 miles in 45 minutes

I love swimming. Too fat now; cuts down on hydrodynamics. Helps bouyancy though.

In my water aerobics class the instructor wants us to tread water for a minute. That does nothing for me; I can float vertical in the water without even sculling my arms.

[Tensor]

I'm not married. But yeah, I'm not out looking either. Fortunately for me; Tara's either got low standards or bad vision. ...

Or both..... ducks and runs.

[Fazor]

In my water aerobics class the instructor wants us to tread water for a minute. That does nothing for me; I can float vertical in the water without even sculling my arms.

I've been the same way my whole life. I can just lean back and float on the surface without doing anything.

[Tobin Dax]

I've been the same way my whole life. I can just lean back and float on the surface without doing anything.

I thought that was horizontal.

[Fazor]

I missed where Tina said 'verticle'; though that works too. just not as comfortably.

[cheery]

[SIZE="5"]
Hi I am also on a weight loss journey
My dr gave me a lecture too. I am having a difficulty with excersiseThe gosl is to lose 20 pounds by the end of April When I was in college 30 years ago[ i fasted all day on Sundays. So have reinstated that ritual
I have high blood pressure and colestrol too
Perhaps we can encourage each other. Is there an email address that I can chat with you? s/SIZE]

I have been on weight watchers since Dec. 20, 2010. I have lost 5% of my body weight. I still have a long way to go but I'm pretty happy with my progress so far. I get up and go to water aerobics three days a week and I swim laps 2 days a week. I am up to .68 miles in thirty minutes. I am working on the goal of one mile in thirty minutes.

My last checkup my doctor got on me, big time, about my weight, cholesterol, and blood pressure. I have six months to get it together or he's going to put me on meds for cholesterol.

Has anyone made these major life changes AND been able to keep it up? It is easy for a few months. Does good health become a habit?

I do realize that I will have to exercise for the rest of my life.

[gzhpcu]

The best way to lose weight for me (and I have been doing this for some time):
- drink plenty of water (at least 2 liters a day), drink prior to a meal (cuts down the appetite) (no soft drinks - water with lemon...)
- 3 meals a day: a good breakfast, a normal lunch (moderate quantities - anything is allowed), a light dinner
- make sure to eat fresh vegetables and fruits (bananas, apples, etc.)
- excercise (walking, gym, tennis)

[Tinaa]

I have found a longer term goal. I want to compete in a triathlon. A short one. I am in no way a runner; in fact, I hate to run. I'm not much of a bike rider either come to think of it. But, I like the thought of pushing myself to do something outside my comfort zone. A visit with a trainer is my next step.

[IsaacKuo]

I'm on my own weight loss journey, which I started at the end of last year when my doctor's check up came as a big wakeup call (my blood sugar had shot way up, and I had gained 15 pounds).

I radically reduced the amount of food I eat, which was very hard for the first week and a half, but then my body adjusted. My body also stopped losing weight, so I had to reduce the amount of food even more. The second time, though, I had no problem adjusting.

Up until yesterday, this was all diet--no exercise. I had lost about 20 pounds out of about 225, but I still rate as "Obese". I'm adding exercise now. I'm so out of shape, so I have no goals of competing in a triathalon or anything. Wii Fit tells me that my healthiest weight would be 145 pounds...not likely!

In the past, I have never been able to lose much weight, and exercise had never helped me lose weight at all. I just made up for it by eating more. But it's important for me to be healthy, so I'm making sure to add it in.

I'm sure that the reduced food intake will stick. It has radically transformed my relationship with food and eating, as well as changed my perspective of the quantities of food required for manned spaceflight. We'll see about the exercise. I've never had success with it before. Still, I'm not exercising to lose weight, I'm exercising to improve health.

[Tinaa]

Isaac I credit much of my weight loss to exercise. And learning portion control.

I spoke to a trainer at my gym this morning, He told me I should go for the triathlon. He said I'm in decent enough shape. I have 12 weeks to train and he showed me where to get the info for which I was looking. He said he would help in any way. I can set the stationary bikes for hills, etc. I'm also going to borrow my daughter's bike and ride. I have bad knees so he said I CAN walk the 2 mile run if need be. Training starts tomorrow!

I was really surprised about how my body was able to get stronger so quickly with my regular swimming workouts. I'm hoping it cooperates with the biking and running too!

[IsaacKuo]

I have started using Wii Fit Plus for about 30 minutes of low/medium exercise per day (none of the games involve more exertion than biking up a gentle slope).

Despite the relatively low exertion level, I think it has accelerated my weight loss. And even if it doesn't, it should be good for my health.

Previously, exercise never helped me lose weight because it made me hungry and I ended up eating more. But this time, I'm carefully measuring my portions. I've added a little bit to my intake per day to compensate for the extra hunger, but apparently not enough to cancel out the burnt calories.

[Tinaa]

WW has changed their program to allow unlimited servings for most fresh fruits and veggies. I like salty, crunchy, spicy snacks. A cup of crunchy carrots sure is a good substitute. Air popped popcorn is also a substitute for the chips I can eat by the bag full. Spray on a little butter flavored cooking spray and the jalapeno or onion salt will stick. Super YUM! Just knowing I can eat all the veggies I want seems to have a psychological effect. I reach for the veggies instead of something else because I can eat ll I want.

[IsaacKuo]

I like salty, crunchy, spicy snacks.

You may like an okra salad. You simply take some okra and slice them. Then add salt and pepper and a little soy sauce. (You can replace the salt and pepper with spicy Tony Chachere's Creole Seasoning or some other spicy alternative.)

Okra has an interesting mouth feel, with a crunchy outside and creamy seed filling. The large seeds provide enough oil and protein that no salad dressing is necessary.

Unfortunately, whole okra is too fibrous to really be a suitable snack without some prep work, and you really need to eat it soon after slicing for the best taste and texture.

[Tinaa]

I love fried okra. I'll try your okra salad.

I started spinning class Tuesday. I did 15 miles in 50 minutes...and it was so much fun. I can't wait for the class on Friday. I did 5.5 on my own today. I really think I can do the triathlon.

[Fazor]

15 in 50? that's really good. I was doing about 10 in 50 when I was using my bike. Need to start again. Need a new motto other than "meh, maybe tomorrow." heh

[HenrikOlsen]

I just got so far as managing a brisk walk for a bit more than a kilometer before boredom set in and I went up to check how long I'd walked.
Turns out I have an almost exactly 1 km route just by turning right four times and a near exact 2 km one by turning three times.
I suspect I'll just be starting with the brisk walks for now, but with sound next time.

[Tinaa]

I decided to switch my workouts today. I run/walked before I swam. Mistake! I think the lap swimming really warms my muscles up. My time was down and I couldn't swim as hard either. Tomorrow is a rest day and I need it.

[blueshift]

I am 62 yrs old. I am 5 foot 11 in and weigh 183. I work out six days a week, three for the upper body and three for the lower body. I do these workouts first thing in the morning right after drinking 30 ounces of water. I have a gluten-free diet so what follows doesn't fit everyone but it does for me. During the warmer weather I ride a bike for 26 miles each Saturday through a bike trail in the nearby forest preserve. If there is a star party on a Saturday night I only do a light workout on Sunday after. Sundays usually has me doing jump rope and wind sprints. Summer time I add batting practice at a nearby batting cage. The more raw food I consume the more energy I seem to have.

Breakfast --I take raw pineapple and cut it into wedges and add one pear cut into about 15 pieces of equal size. All that goes into the stir fry pan with no oil added. I stir them up for about three minutes or so and then add pickapeppa sauce, the gluten free answer to worcestershire sauce. Stir that in and then I slice a banana up and add it to the stir fry for 15 seconds before shutting off the heat. Sometimes I use Thai Peanut Sauce, GF variety, instead of the pickapeppa.

With that I put 6 tablespoons of flax meal in a small dish and add enough apple cider and mix it into consistency between a paste and apple sauce.

Lunch is usually Thai Noodle soup mixed with 4 tablespoons of flax meal and a dish of raw cauliflower and some slices of raw seedless cucumber. !8 ounces of water preceded the meal.

Supper is usually a stir fry with green and red raw bell peppers cut up along with mushrooms. I add palak paneer and then about 6 tablespoons of flax meal with the apple cider again.

Other nights I have dosas ( I make my own ) or Thai Peanut noodle stir fry or baked tofu and potato. I usually eat fish once or twice weekly and tandoori chicken once every three weeks. Saturday afternoons before a star party I make up my own GF pizza. I put green peppers and mushrooms and pepper jack cheese on it.

With all the scare tissue in my body from colon surgeries, my small bowel will obstruct whenever I eat any large meals. So I never gain weight. Without the GF diet my bowel would constantly be trying to obstruct right around the clock.

It sounds like a lot of diets here are working out.

[Spoons]

I decided recently that enough was enough, and started doing daily exercise, along with quitting cigs, cutting down on beer and increasing my water and fruit & veg intake. One of the main drivers for me was my little nephew being born, the other, a lady.

I've just decided to leave the car at home and ride to and from work, which gives me about an hour and a half riding per day. It's been a week, and it's going really well. I actually got an offer for a job which would pay quite a bit more, within the same company, but I turned it down in part because it would mess up my new routine, which I'm really enjoying.

I think once you decide to put your health first, and you really want to, it's not so hard to keep it up.

[Jens]

I've just decided to leave the car at home and ride to and from work, which gives me about an hour and a half riding per day.

On horse or pony?

[Spoons]

Two dozen ferrets.

[Tinaa]

I lost four pounds this week. I've certainly been working out hard enough! And I painstakingly wrote down everything i ate this week. Feeling pretty good today.

[IsaacKuo]

I find it difficult to measure how much weight I have lost in a week. Even when I measure at the same time every day, and my food/exercise is more or less identical, there seem to be fluctuations of 2-3 pounds.

I think that my weight loss has mostly leveled off in the last week, but it's really hard for me to tell (can't seem to push below 190). I'm still way above my target, and still in the upper range of "overweight".

I've punched a new hole in my belt, though, which feels significant.

[Tinaa]

One notch smaller is good! I weigh on the same scale at the same time every Monday. I've really upped my water and other liquids and cut down on my salt. I know you mentioned that exercise makes you hungrier but i find that I feel less hungry after working out in the morning.

[IsaacKuo]

Breakfast --I take raw pineapple and cut it into wedges and add one pear cut into about 15 pieces of equal size. All that goes into the stir fry pan with no oil added. I stir them up for about three minutes or so and then add pickapeppa sauce, the gluten free answer to worcestershire sauce. Stir that in and then I slice a banana up and add it to the stir fry for 15 seconds before shutting off the heat. Sometimes I use Thai Peanut Sauce, GF variety, instead of the pickapeppa.

With that I put 6 tablespoons of flax meal in a small dish and add enough apple cider and mix it into consistency between a paste and apple sauce.

Lunch is usually Thai Noodle soup mixed with 4 tablespoons of flax meal and a dish of raw cauliflower and some slices of raw seedless cucumber. !8 ounces of water preceded the meal.

Supper is usually a stir fry with green and red raw bell peppers cut up along with mushrooms. I add palak paneer and then about 6 tablespoons of flax meal with the apple cider again.

Sounds like a yummy and wonderfully healthy diet! Not to my personal tastes, since I'm not into the somewhat sweet flavor of typical Thai food, but the pepper/mushroom stir fry is one I'll definitely try out (minus the cider).

My diabetic condition is such that I have to watch my carbohydrate intake anyway, and raw fruits are recommended for me over cooked or dried fruit. Suits me fine--I like them less sweet anyway, and cooking/drying tends to concentrate the sweetness.

Other nights I have dosas ( I make my own ) or Thai Peanut noodle stir fry or baked tofu and potato. I usually eat fish once or twice weekly and tandoori chicken once every three weeks. Saturday afternoons before a star party I make up my own GF pizza. I put green peppers and mushrooms and pepper jack cheese on it.

Gluten-free pizza? How does the dough compare to traditional pizza dough? Just curious--I don't really eat pizza of any sort lately since it's so heavy in carbohydrates.

It sounds like a lot of diets here are working out.

Some days I'm not so sure. It's certainly working better than any time I've attempted to diet before, but I'm still worried that it's just temporary.