Hey, this thread was originally started in the introductions forum by harpandflute entitled "New, 47 NO IDEA WHAT I AM DOING!". The thread was closed but was not moved. Suzanne suggested that we start a new thread in the support group forum. So, this is calling out for harpandflute, notfatjustfluffy, kimush, sylviafromNS, cleveland, KEM, 2beslim, kotapaint, SusanB, theslimme and everyone over the ripe old age of 40 who wants/needs other oldies but goodies to share the ups, downs and changes at this stage of life. Oh, and there are several Python fans on this thread as well! Please join us!

Jo

Oh My Gosh...

I have been looking everywhere for for "us" and yeah...I found you, Jo!

What an ordeal...I must have read the one we used to write in about a dozen times and I tried to reply but I couldn't so I thought...poop! This sucks big ones...

Rock On you have a lot of names from the old one...

So I am very impressed that you were able to start a new thingie...

So how was everyone's day? Had a good night went out to dinner with group of social worker friends from work for dinner and conversation and dessert (I had a chai tea only!)...not to shabby...good decisions...

Hi there. I have a small rant that is age appropriate ...
It's not fair to have hot flashes, night swaets and cramps in the same day!!!!

Ok ... that's all. Thank you for being here.

Hi SusanB and kimush! I'm so glad you guys found this thread. I was so bummed when I went to the other thread and it was closed. I get why Suzanne3FC had to close the other thread cause it was in the "Intro" forum, but I just wished she had moved the whole thread. Oh well, maybe they can't do that! I'm just glad you guys found this. I'm hoping the others find it too.

Susan, wouldn't you think it would be impossible to have hot flashes and cramps at the same time? What is up w/that? Guys have it so easy!

K, good job on the food choices. And congrats on the 2 lbs. lost. Howz the haircut?

I'm doing pretty well. Lost another lb, down 11 so far. The kids are off all next week and don't go back till the Tues. after Easter. I'm gonna do my strength workouts at night after they go to bed but don't know if I'm going to fit in any cardio. I'm sticking to the food part pretty well. Except for yesterday -- TOM and salt cravings = corn chips w/nacho cheese sauce. Oh well, much better today.

Here's a great link I got off of a thread from this site. TONS of info; great site. If you click on "Skwiggs World" then at the top click on "Stuff to Read", there is SO much info. here. Some practical, some inspirational, some diet, some exercise, some just obeservations. She's a hoot to read! http://skwigg.tripod.com/blog/

Have a great weekend. TTFN!!!

Jo

Hey all,

Susan B that so completely sucks...what ever happened to compromise...Women get the bloating, cramping, sweating and the men get the television remote...do you take herbs to off set any of the symptoms? Evening Primrose and Black Cobosh are supposed to be terrific...Susan I have been meaning to ask you...how do you keep track of your kilometers? Walk, run, jog??? Anyways, I am glad you made your way over here...

Jo...that is awesome 11 lbs...terrific...and the next pound is just around the corner...You know it is just one day at a time...You sound commited to the exercise thing...I think after I get up to about 8000 steps per day then I will begin to look at exercising...The only thing is that I really hate to exercise but I love walking and hiking...I just never made time for it before...but now I make myself take the time to walk...as much as possible and everywhere that I can...Random and rapid change in subject...are you eating breakfast? Last few days I am having a dickens of a time eating breaky...I have resorted to eating a semi-nutrious rice pudding (but I can barely choke that down)...I am eager to check out that website you suggested...

Have an awesome weekend guys...Kim

Morning!
There's a site called gmap pedometer ... or something like that. If you put that in a google search it'll come up. It even has our little town, so you'll be able to use it. Each time I go out, I come home and click thru my route and it tells me how far I've gone. Ilene found it and I love it!

Right now, I do a stumbling and slow combination of walking with the odd bit of jogging thrown in.

So here's an update for those of you who struggle with hormonal fluctuations. I even looked awful this morning. My face, my hands ... all puffy. Four pounds in three days.
Thankfully my blood pressure was fine.
I spent half the morning (it seems) in the bathroom, dumping fluid. I look and feel much better. I'll weigh myself on Wednesday when I go back to work.
Please keep this in mind if you must weigh yourself during your period.

Hey All,

Susan B...it is so unfair...but at least you have a good handle on this nasty little roller coster ride...I am on my third pedometer...my first one was very cheap (I won it) and it just died on me after about 3 weeks...my next one I dropped if on a ceramic floor and it died...so now I am one one with a strong clip...this one also tabulates distance and calories burned...very complicated and I haven't gotten the hang of the all the cool things it does...I will go on and search out this website you are talking about it sounds cool...the other website that Jo talked about...it went on and it is a blog thingy...it has a ton of information in it...I don't know if you checked that one out yet but it talks about Kettle weights and stuff...

Hi Ladies,

I hope you don't mind me joining your thread. I first joined 3FC years ago (before I turned 40!) and the plan was to be slim by the time I reached 40, but as you can see, it didn't work out and I've gained much more weight since then!

I haven't been around for a while but I've had a really bad weekend and things have finally come to a head for me. I've spent a lot of time thinking about what I want and had a good long discussion with my hubby, who is totally worried about me and who is upset at the way I've let myself go. He rarely mentions my weight as he knows how upset and defensive I get, but he can see that it's destroying who I really am. I used to be slim, attractive and confident ... but now my life is so different ... and it's all because of the way weight. I no longer look forward to going out with my husband when other couples are invited because of how I feel about myself, I'm ashamed about the way I look.

We were due to go on holiday this week with some friends but were unable to get the flights we needed ... instead of feeling disappointed, I felt totally relieved.

I'll be turning 45 in September and I feel that I've already wasted far too many years of my life hating the way I look and feel ... I don't want to waste the rest of it. I'm not being fair to myself, or to my husband ... I'm miserable ... and I'm making him miserable.

I weighed-in this morning to discover that I'm now up to 192lbs ... the heaviest I've ever been in my life ... I hate it!! ... It's got to stop!! So, here I am, starting over again ... hopefully for the last time! I'm going to make a real effort ... I know there's much more to life than feeling like this.

Apologies for venting!

Hi Nichola ... I think we've met before ... I'm glad you're here.

I gave up on actual pedometers a long time ago. I was showing that site to my friend last night and she noticed that it does have a calorie counter too. I think I'll keep an eye on that.

Hey Kim, I know what you mean about exercise. I never exercised in my life b/4 my oldest was born. She's 16 now. To lose those 25 lbs. I tried watching what I ate but mostly just started exercising. We had a stationary bike at the time. I hated it but did it anyway. I also did several FIRM tapes. Slowly the weight came off. Of course, I was only 30 at the time! It just takes longer now with much more effort. Walking and hiking are great places to start. Try getting 5 days a week in and try increasing the speed you go several times w/in the walk or hike. Really try to push it. I think interval spurts are great. Your body won't be able to figure out what the heck you're doing!

Yes on the breakfast. I usually get up around 5:15 a.m. and have coffee - 2 tspn of sugar and 2 oz. of whole milke; just won't give that up! I'm eating 5 or 6 smaller meals a day so I usually have a snack around 7:00 a.m., after my two oldest get out the door. Something like a small banana w/a smear of peanut butter or maybe a cheese stick and some grapes or banana. Just something to shut my stomach up. I ususally exercise then, get my youngest out, fininsh exercising then around 9:30 a.m. have my breakfast. Hot cereal, maybe scrambled eggs (1 whole w/two whites) w/some mushrooms, fruit or possibly a leftover baked potato w/it. Protein shakes are a way to go too. I'm game for anything for breakfast. Last night's dinner even! I eat a Balance Bar w/a glass of skim milk on days I have to run out the door. I could never eat right away but after 2 hours, I'm usually hungry.

Fat in HK!! Glad you found us! This whole weight loss thing is so challenging but it's great having support and friends to share in the journey.

Hope everyone had a good weekend. I was great till last night. Nothing too bad but darn the stupid Easter candy I bought! I don't even like speckled eggs!! NO MORE.

Jo

I'm 47 can I join in.

I feel like I have no idea at times the way I eat. However my hubby fixed my bike yesterday and I just got bacck from a 30 minute bike ride. I feel really unfit now.

So today should be a good day as it's Monday.

Hi Clydegirl and Hey, don't be so hard on yourself! You've lost 10 lbs. and that is terrific!! Keep up the good work and soon you will feel very fit on your bike. This is a great place to be for support. I love that we're all the same age -- after all, misery loves company!

Jo

Thanks to all for the welcome!

Hi Susan ... yes, I believe we have met before ... as I said, I've been around 3FC for ... a long time I'm determined to stay on track and visit more often, so you'll be seeing a lot more of me!

I had a really good day yesterday, stayed on track and was well within my calories for the day. I even managed to to say no to a glass of wine with dinner last night ... which is a first for me! I'm off work for the Easter holidays at the moment (I work in a primary school), so when hubby came home from work he asked if I'd like him to open a nice bottle of red ... I'm really pleased with myself for saying no, as I know one glass would lead to half a bottle and I don't want to be having all those empty calories. Wine is one of my biggest downfalls and it always sabotages my diet. I'm going to save it for the weekends only and enjoy a couple of glasses then.

Exercise is and always has been a problem for me ... I've always hated it and it's a real struggle for me to get started. I know I need to get myself moving, it's finding something that I'm able to do and going to stick at that's the problem. I guess walking is probably a good idea for beginners ... I'll see what I can do.

Hey Everyone...

And Welcome to Nicola and Clydegirl...

Nicola I was were you are in December...I was off on holidays and ill (MSRA rash/infection) and feeling sad and gross and fat...I weighed myself and I actually thought I was going to initally pass out...and then I went off to eat something...between then and January 16/07 I ate more and obsessed about my weight when I saw Bob Greene on Oprah talking about the "Best Life Diet"...and he made sense and I knew what I had to do...and that was make drastic dietary changes, exercise and make even more drastic life changes...and what I found was "me"...and now I self-talk
and I think about these at the same time as I think to Bob Green's hunger scale...OR...When I am really upset, angry, bored, sick, angry, moody and just looking for any excuse to blow my healthy life choices and eat my heart out...and since January 16/07 I have been making some really healthier choices about my life (exercies, food, water).


1. I have such a problem saying no to people who ask me to help them out a work or to do things that I simply don't want to do...and when I don't say no it is generally to my detriment...so really what I am saying is that I don't matter or count as much as the people that I say yes to...SO...I started saying NO...and that includes to me!

2. I am an immensely strong, independent and courageous woman so why can't I get a grip of this one aspect of my life...I put myself through 5 years of university (including graduate school) and worked to jobs and raised my daughter by myself...so surely I can stop at one portion, or dance to one extra song, or stop eating 2 hours before bed...As there really is always tomorrow and I can eat then...

3. If I don't give myself a pat on the back and indulge myself every once in a while (stay up late and watch trashy old movies) no one will do it for me...

4. I am an emotional eater...So What...get over it...lots of people life with much more adversity in their lives so pick up a book or drink some water...or just have one **** of a good cry...but move on!

Jo I bought a new pedometer as I broke my last one dropping it on the ceramic floor. This one has a ton of gadgets and does a ton of things...so I am just trying to figure it out...

Clydegirl...you go girl!

Susan B I gott a check out that website tonight...

We rock!!!!