I know alot of old people. I know alot of fat people.

But, I don't know that many old fat people.

Something for us/me to think about. Now is the time to put one foot in front of the other and journey on.

My health teacher in college pointed this out...you don't see many...if any 60+ overweight people out and about.

The old people that I see the most are the little old ladies that keep passing me on the walking track and at the mall. They walk fast!

A couple of weeks ago when visiting my daughter, we decided to take a long walk around a lake near her home. My daughter knows about my frustration at not being able to keep up with the little old ladies, so I told her that I was pleased that there was not a little old lady in sight. We got about half way around that lake when out of the blue, a little old lady came up from behind and passed us! We just looked at each other and died laughing.

I am in training to be one of those little old ladies someday!

As an older chick who lives in a retirement community, I want to say that there are plenty of old fat people. You just don't see them on the streets much--at least not walking. Mobility in older people who are overweight/obese is a major problem. Lots of golf carts, lots of electric mobility chairs, and so forth.

Besides, you don't know how many of those "little old ladies" who are walking so fast used to be overweight.

And by the way, even though I am older and not very tall, I would rather not be called a "little old lady." If you think about it, it's kinda dismissive and demeaning.

Jay

I have also known alot of older people that lost weight as they aged--an inherently natural process for the vast majority.

Yep, they are at home, in wheelchairs or Little Rascals...like my mom. Well, no Little Rascal yet. If she doesn't do something about her weight she won't make it to 70. It kills me but there is nothing on God's green earth I can do about it.

Dc, I am facing the same thing with my adoptive mom. I went to her house over the summer for 2 weeks--she lost 12 pounds when I was there. As soon as I left the weight came right back on--along with all her cronies that bring her the food thats is going to bury her. I know she will die soon. I have simply decided there is truly nothing I can do. She will be missed.

Jayell - we would never call you a little old lady!!

My mom lives at a senior apartment (55 years and older). There are just a few overweight people - and, yes, most do have a mobility problem.

There is so much to think about in this message.

Ya know - where I live, they don't allow the seniors to walk early in the mall any more. Mall folks don't want to spend the money on opening up early and having to pay security. Plus, the 'liability' - (of course) It's too bad, really.

I take care of my elderly parents who live in a retirement community. There are plenty of larger residents including a good number who are morbidly obese. Encouragingly, there are so many people in their 80's and beyond who are still playing tennis, swimming, golfing and even running on a daily basis.

It's never too late to improve the quality of our lives.

Jay, I am sincerely sorry for having offended you. In trying to treat this with a little humor, I was insensitive.

I really admire the ladies that I was discussing. Three years ago, my eighty-year-old mother-in-law, who was 5" tall, referred to herself as a "little old lady." I could not keep up with her when we walked. The reason... she was a fit and trim 80 year old who walked every day and I was a morbidly obese 51-year-old who moved as little as possible.

Seriously, I am in training to be a fit senior citizen. I am much fitter today than I was a year ago and hope that in another year I will be fit by anyone's standards. About the senior citizen part, I don't know if 55 will be considered a senior citizen or not. As I am just 5'2" tall, I will start referring to myself as a "little old lady" someday.

The wellness center where I walk has a free program for senior citizens so there are a large number of them walking the track. They regularly pass me because they are in better shape than I am. I look forward to the day that I can keep up with them. I will also sign up for the senior citizen program on my 55th birthday, the first day that I am eligible. They have free personal training and I look forward to that.

I am sorry that I offended, my underlining meaning was to compliment the ladies and express my desire to be like them. Lesson learned!

Mother is considering WLS but has other health issues her dr wants to solve before permitting it. I told her to find another dr. The other issues become a moot point if she dies from the obesity before they are solved. She can barely limp from bed to chair and back. I do not want to lose my mother to this!

I see morbidly obese older people all the time.

But then again, I work in a hospital.

time2lose, that's OK! Just doing some consciousness raising. I think once you get "of a certain age," you won't really want to refer to yourself that way. But I could be wrong!

Interesting how we don't refer to "little old gentlemen," isn't it? ;-)

Jay

I am in my mid-forties--and being old and finding it difficult to move was not an enticing future.

However, excercise is key to a healthy lifestyle for an older person, I think, even more than when we're younger. Those limbs just aren't going to stay limber on their own.

Keep taking your calcium, too, ladies. And weight bearing excercise helps--though I've yet t get that going for myself. Right now, I have my own weight to provide resistence--but that won't always be the case!