Ok no laughing here.... I had to actually write down what you all are and have done so that I would not forget all the important things about you that make you all you and my aging memory... well I use most of it up at work so getting to know so many great people takes alittle memory adjuster BUT I am so glad you all are here!!

BBP - That is so cool that you set out your clothes (pants) what a great judge of where you are and not a # on the scale. Too Cool. I think an alternative way of how you know you have lost weight thread would be great to start But more importantly... 8 lbs down is just fantastic... Good for you!

Muse - Oh Lord I LOVE Chocolate and my treat for the day when I am stressed out is a Sugar free Dark Choc Mint patty oh Yum The peppermint helps the urge to eat alot and the dark Chocolate... well the Mayans and the Aztecs had it right... Good for the heart and head .

Have you every recorded any of your music? I have a friend who does keyboards and has self pressed 4 CD's and sold alot of them. His music is also on all the download web sites and a few New Age rodeo stations in Europe play his music.

Music is the language of the Soul!

Dirty secret I share with you and Tuscany too.... I used to give my condo neighbors a free show when I would dance like a Go Go Girl in my living room to Foreigner (Urgent), Romantics (what I like about you) Dire Straits (twisting by the pool )to name a few and in the 90's to Marky Mark and the Funky bunch (Good Vibrations) C & C music factory, Bell Biv Devoe, Madonna (Holiday). It was such fun that I cannot wait to lose another 20 lbs so I can do it again and not worry about the floor giving in. I say Go for it and dance with abandon that is the way life should be (Have you tried Zumba?)

Tuscany... Hula Hoop?? Really?? well COOL BEANS... that is so cool... I have one in my garage and for 40 years have never been able to keep it up off the ground. How are you doing it? Oh tell me your secret!! I bet you laugh alot

Cajunlady... I am so glad you stumbled by too. Camping is just the best. Fresh air, Wild Insect and Animal noises, good sleep, Connection with family and S'Mores... OH shoot I wasn't supposed to think of those.... SF Peppermint Pattiesl... Sugar Free Peppermint Patties........... LOL

Cincorn... to you and glad you have found us all here. I am so sorry about all the pain and trevails you have and are going thru. How courageous of you to try and get healthier with all the you have going on. You are a wonder! Family members.... sometimes you wonder where their heads are and what they are thinking. It does not last forever and that silence will stop....

Have a wonderful night all and a good day tomorrow.. I have a late RE closing I have to do tomorrow and the seller is a Crank Monster and I cannot get her happy I think even when I give her her proceeds check she is going to B*tch... lol Hugs to all and peace too!

Hello all
I had a very bad day today, I was feeling extremely depressed because my partner (who doesn’t live with me) is saying horrible things to me, I emailed him today and asked him to give me a few days to myself although I need a hug so badly. I have been to so many funerals recently and the anniversary of my mother’s death is in the next few days. I have been deeply affected by the sexual abuse cases in the news, the Cleveland cases but also similar stories in the UK including one where children were reporting long-term and horrendous sexual abuse by gangs and no one believed them for over a decade.
My partner doesn’t think anyone accused of sexual abuse/rape should be in the news or have any media coverage until their court case is over and they have been proved guilty in order to protect any man falsely arrested and charged with rape. This and other things caused a whole lot of arguing!
I have wanted to run to the comfort of chocolate and all types of food but I actually have eaten very frugally today and my only treat was a small fruit salad. Sorry to write so much, I hope I am not boring you with this. Communicating all this is good therapy for me.
So replying to you all:
Hello Wannaskip, glad you like dancing too. I have recorded CDs and all the other stuff, but I can’t sell them! Sold one or two in London and in Germany at gigs. If your friend can give me any tips for how he sells his, please pass them on, the other musicians I know here can’t sell their CDs or downloads either.Good luck with your weight loss.
Hello Cincorn, Congrats on your weight loss! Ah yes smoking, I love smoking and wish it wasn’t so bad for you but it is. I think I could lose around 14 pounds just from smoking but then what if I was smoking and was still overweight, that’s very possible considering how much I love food! I think not smoking but living a healthy lifestyle has got to be good. Sorry also to hear about your daughter’s behaviour. You are not alone in having struggles with family and having an empty nest is already a challenge. Good luck to you.
Hello Tuscanny, great to hear about your hoola-hooping. I was studying with a very slim girl last year, she told me her secret was the hoola-hoop and that she was addicted to exercise. Thanks for sharing your insider information on size, now you can Rock around the clock with a hoola-hoop. Good luck to you.
Hello BPP, I’ll just wish you good luck this time round and hope you are feeling good today and keep up the good work!
Hello for the first time from me to Cajun. Thanks for telling me to believe I am important and beautiful , I needed that, self-esteem is missing at the moment. Don’t beat yourself up over a piece of cake. Here we say “A little bit of what you fancy does you good” (don’t know if you say this in the States too). It’s eating a whole BIG CAKE on your own that would be a problem. I’ve seen many very thin women eat cake, but they just have a very little slice or share a slice with a friend. Remember you are brave and beautiful! Losing weight at our age needs guts ( oh forgive my sense of humour),it’s much easier when you’re twenty. .
I must do something else now. See you all soon! xxxxx

Hi Wannaskip: If the hoop in your garage is a child-sized one, then you're not likely to ever be able to keep it up. I was useless when I first bought the child's size. But, when I switched to an adult size, I had no problems. The darn thing just stayed up. Every now and then, it falls to the floor, but not too often. I'm even learning to walk while hooping!

Hi Muse: Sorry to hear about your problems and arguments with your partner, and with the losses you've suffered. I know how hard it is to lose someone you care for. At the beginning of 2012, I weighed 184 and it was my New Year's Resolution to go on a diet, which I did. I was doing very well, lost about 12 lbs in 6 weeks, getting down to the low 170's. Then, regrettably, my younger brother died...massive heart attack while he was on vacation. He was only 53, and his death was a total shock. Needless to say, my diet went by the wayside. I put all the weight back on and then some. So, here I am trying again.

I too have a sweet tooth and I love chocolate. However, I have managed to find a protein bar that tastes very much like a chocolate fudge bar...its 190 calories, with high protein and low carb. So, when I want a treat, I eat my protein bar and I don't feel guilty. Do you have something similar in the UK?

Well, tomorrow I'm off to my orthodontist. Here I am, 55 years old, and what did I do 6 weeks ago? I got braces! My teeth are pretty straight, but my bite is off and, as a result, I'm grinding my teeth at night when I'm sleeping. I don't even realize I'm doing it. So, they need to fix my bite or I'm going to grind my teeth away. The braces are the clear kind. They're actually not too bad...you can't even tell I have braces unless you're standing right beside me. Anyway, every 6 weeks, I have to go in for the braces to be adjusted. The adjustment itself is not painful, but it is painful to eat for about a week after the adjustment. For the first few days, I will be on a liquid diet and for about the next week, I'll be on soft foods only. Thereafter, I should be able to eat normally again. These braces are certainly helping me to stick to my diet.

Hope everyone is doing well.

Just checking in before bed. I want to eat, but I will check in here instead, then maybe if I promise you all I will be good, it might stick.
Muse, so sorry about your bad day. Arguments always make me feel a little ill. And missing those you have lost is just plain hard. But good for you by having a fruit salad as a treat. that is a very positive move.
I am hearing so much about the hula hoop, I might just have to buy one!
Tuscany, hope all goes well with the braces. Sounds a little uncomfortable. I am very sorry about your little brother. Sudden loss is so very difficult. My 25 yr old niece was killed by rogue wave 2 years ago...so senseless.
I walked for an hour this evening. Need to do that more often!
Take care everyone.

Hey Muse.... I asked my friend about music and selling it and he also said to contact him and he would be happy to talk to you... Below:

My recommendation is direct her to MarkBarnesMusic.com. My thoughts are as follows. She need a site like CDBaby.com which sells the Cd's physically and digitally. Also is she any good. I know that's subjective, but someone not good is not going to sell Cd's. But I don't mind talking to someone and directing them to the possibilities. I sold 10 this week on CDBaby"

I hope that this helps... He is very very nice and talented too

Hello all

Thank you all for your support and for sharing, my heart genuinely goes out to all of you who have undergone bereavements and losses. I have lost many friends, so has my son too in the past couple of years, so devastating. On better days I use these losses to think, feel, write, living my life with more intensity and purpose.

Hello Wannaskip

I know this is not about dieting but I think that building up my general welfare,finances, social life and self-esteem are key to my weight loss so thanks so much for asking your friend for information and thank him so much. I might get in touch with him, his online "presence" is very impressive and he clearly knows how to market himself. My online presence is not very impressive and neither is the sound quality of my recordings. I guess I was going for the "anti-materialistic home recordings on a low budget" look and sound but I'm not doing myself any favours.
At live gigs audiences are usually very appreciative and people are always saying things to me like "You have no idea how good you are" or "I can't believe that you're not famous", but I have fluctuating confidence, terrible stage nerves and it is a very tough and competitive scene in London where pretty young girls who present themselves well get the money, and record deals even if they are not very good! I also like to write (words) about society, politics, fiction, and poetry but with all these things I've never made a big effort to earn money (I usually teach for that). Anyway enough, this is a slimming forum after all!!!
But as part of my new life as a slimmer person I think if I can somehow take my extensive creative output more seriously and market it all a lot better then I could be onto something that will keep me happy, busy, less poor and off the chocolate cookies.
Thanks so much you are a diamond.
And congratulations on losing so much weight! Thank you also to everyone. Good luck with all your various diet plans and fitness routines.
XXXXX

Oh Muse.... Anything I can do to help someone is the best present I can give myself. If strangers say something to you.. then maybe you gotta believe it too! I sure do hope that everything does work out for you... and yes I know that this is a Get Healthy forum too I get side tracked sometimes I am also very sorry for all the pain you are experiencing. Gosh it is alot.. but you are working thru it and keeping your health in mind. Keeping yourself well is the most important thing. (Its hard when you get tugged on in other directions I know!) Keep strong and can't wait to hear about you

Have a great day or afternoon to you I think!

Jogging done. I have to confess yesterday I didnt jog. Should have made time or it but I just didn't. I think I overate yesterday. I skipped supper due to being overfull. My weight loss is stuck. It's driving me crazy. I'm going to win this war with the scale though. I can be patient. Lol.

Muse I love your sense of humor. We all need encouragement from time to time. Sorry about your relationship troubles and your losses.

Tuscany I have often heard ajustments are painful after they do them. I would love to glue my mouth shut sometimes.

BBP I hate exercise but love the feeling I get after it done.
Be back later. Having trouble with site
Cajun

Good morning everyone! I hope you all are having a great day. I'm beginning to feel a little better. My doctor put me on HCTZ (a diuretic) for hypertension a week and half back and OH MY! I felt AWFUL! I lost 6 lbs. overnight, but I was dizzy, weak, heart pounding, chest pain, just getting up and walking across the floor felt like I would pass out. So I called him and he told me to half them and take them at night. Okay, so I did that and still felt bad...not as severe symptoms but enough that I couldn't take them. I've been off of them for 4 days and 2.6 lbs. have reappeared. I have hardly been able to force myself to eat anything (maybe for the first time in my life LOL!) for a week and still the 2.6 lb.s Oh, well, for sure it's water weight.

I'm sure most of us are here because we spent our time taking care of others and not ourselves, eating our feelings and our pain. You just lose yourself somewhere. I'm doing this for me.

I weighed 233.6 this morning. I just need to practice patience because the weight is not coming off as quickly as I'd like or even as quickly as I gained it. (put 50 lb.s on in 7 months on steroids for colitis). MUST...DRINK...WATER.

I hope you all have a great day!

Good morning! May I join in this thread?! I may have posted on this one earlier this year, but it seemed to be inactive or I forgot (more likely) or who knows.

A little about myself. I'm 63, have been dieting all of my adult life -- evidently unsuccessfully -- but finally have been shocked into changing my life style for real brought on by high BP and cholesterol. Got diagnosed with a fib and have been battling it and sleep apnea for the last 3 months. The amazing thing is that I'm having to admit that I feel so much better!

The other thing I'm trying to do is not have my entire focus be on eating, what not to eat, etc. I've started volunteering again (retired so I can do that easily), yard work, and more traveling.

I'll look forward to getting to know all of you better.

Good morning everyone,
Cincorn, I feel for you with the darn med side effects. Doctors mean well (most of them), but they seem limited to only providing pills. I have been on 7 different antidepressants and not only did they not help the depression, they had side effects that made me feel worse than before I took them. And I am a nurse, so I am part of the "system"! I find I keep my depression in check with real food, exercise, talking therapy, and practicing cognitive behavioral therapy.
Anyway, your hypertension should disappear with continued weight loss, so we are here to cheer you on. You and I have very similar weights and goals. lets keep going!
Welcome Betsy! Glad you are starting to feel better. You have lost 54 pounds. That is awesome!!! And your strategy of focusing on areas other than food is very smart. A life filled with meaningful activity does not have room for excess food.
I am off to work. Have A great day everyone. -bb

Yes, betsy2013 it does seem that after we are over 50 our motivation is more health than wanting to like good LOL! At 20 we might dream of a getting into a bikini but after 50 and obese I'm just dreaming of getting around without constant hip and knee pain
Good morning BBP . I agree that the weight loss will probably solve the hypertension. I'm going to the cardiologist tuesday because I'm also concerned about the resting tachycardia and persistent fatigue. I'm a retired LVN and I know that mostly you are going to get a pill if you go to the doctor and that ALL of them have side effects. We all need to be proactive about our health and in fact be our own health care provider 95% of the time!
I've got to get up and move a little bit now! Later!

Hello!
Thanks for the willpower dust! I am so enjoying reading everyone's posts and writing. I ate too much yesterday and have been very exhausted the past 48 hours, all the drama in my life and trying to exercise too much just made me ill and I have to rest. But thanks for sending us your "Will power dust" Cincorn, this is what I need and today I started a TV and internet diet too. I am going to try and cut down TV watching to one or two hour's a day and try to avoid using the computer all the time.Why?
When I watch TV I see ads for food and I'm sitting around often with negative thoughts from watching the News or beautiful young women on all the shows who make me feel inferior, and then I see an ad for chocolate cake, crisps, and all kinds of wonderful food!
A TV diet will force me to do other things, to get up and look for things to do, people to phone, places to go to.The computer and internet are good but essentially it is still sitting down, even playing a musical instrument or singing or talking burn more of those golden calories. So I drink a toast of mineral water to burning those golden calories however we can in big or little ways. ( am now going off for an evening walk)
Bye all xxx

Evening Ladies! BBP, I'm sorry to hear about your niece...it's tragic when things happen at such a young age. I hope you managed to have another walk after work.

Hi Muse...I wondered what you meant by a TV diet, but having read your post I now understand. I rarely watch live TV, because I too hate the commercials (advertisements). There are a few shows I enjoy, but I wait until the season is over and I buy the DVD, and then watch about 20 minutes a day (minus the ads), while I eat supper. Right now, I'm watching the series Brothers & Sisters, which I really enjoy.

Cajun & cincorn. I can sympathize with your ongoing battle with the scale! I'm having the same problem of late.

I lost a fair bit quite quickly (no doubt a lot was water weight). However, for the past 3 weeks, I've been bouncing between 174.5 and 175.5, up or down a quarter or half pound a day...up, down, up, down...it's driving me bananas. I thought for sure I'd see some movement this morning. Yesterday, I had to pick up my bike. So I walked to the bike shop, which is a 6 km walk, and I then rode 6 km home. It was hot , and I was soaked when I got home. I also did a 30 minute workout in the morning when I got up. As for eating, I had two bowls of soup and 2 small containers of Greek yoghurt...perhaps 600 calories in all, because my teeth were too sore to eat much. Yet this morning, all I saw was another silly quarter pound movement....aagghh! I was not happy, although I stuck to my diet again today...not much choice since my teeth are still sore.

Thanks for the willpower dust, cincorn. That helped to get me moving again today. I did a 30-minute lower body workout, plus a 3.5 km walk and a 4 km bike ride. The darn scales have to move at some point (I hope!).

Hi Betsy and welcome! I'm glad to hear you are feeling better and seem to be winning your battle. Volunteering is a great thing to do given that you are retired and have some time. What sort of volunteer work do you do?

Hope your closing went well, wannaskip...

A great evening to all!

Hello all and sorry I forgot to say hello to Betsy!

I don't think I have lost any weight this week but it will come, am reforming my life and not sure if I have a partner anymore ( been in love with him since I was 18 so it's a big deal).
I had to spend two days keeping my old father company who likes to feed me as many fattening foods as possible which is a delight but also doesn't help me lose weight.
-Tuscanny I can't understand why after all that exercise and so little food that you are the same weight, but keep going on your diet and exercise, you are on the plateau but it's got to shift somehow.
I don't think I could do a day of so much exercise and so little food myself but one of these days I might try it! I am a pretty lazy dieter but I need to be kind to myself.
What is everyone going to do to lose weight this weekend ?
I am going to keep a food diary and do some housework and try to get out and about and also try to find old friends or new ones. I might go swimming again but only if I feel fit enough.
Let me know what you are doing this weekend to get closer to goal!
XXXX