.....how you girls over 50 are losing weight. What do you do.... and how can I do it? Is there another thread I may be missing? I think it's fantastic to all the ladies who are losing.... I just wanna be one of them...
We are doing it in different ways... some probably joined Weight Watchers, others use Atkins or South Beach or Jenny Craig... Or TOPS or Sugar Busters... and some, like me, count calories and keep track of what we eat that way. Most of us do some form of exercise as well!
I think I've grown more insulin resistant as I've gotten older, so South Beach has given me great results and I've been able to maintain my weightloss and lower my cholesterol. I've gotten my girlish figure back and love the foods I'm eating.
It is definitely harder for me to lose weight as I approach 60 - arugghghghgh! Being hypothyroid does not help. I am on Atkins and I also calorie count at the same time! I've been doing weight training 2x per week with a personal trainer, and cardio 3-4x per week.
The weight is not melting off like it used to, but I guess I figure I can stick with this and be 50 pounds lighter in a year at a pound a week. If I lose more, all the better. But the key thing is to have a plan and to be going in the right direction.
I saw a headline in a magazine that said "Keep the win at your back" and I've semi-adopted it. To me it means everything I do that's positive, let me keep that, it's like a base on a pyramid. Every pound, every inch, every exercise session is a win and all those "wins" are behind me (i.e. "at my back") and it all just keeps pushing me along.
I'm willing to change my eating and/or exercise plan. The low-carb thing is working better for me than calorie counting alone did. I'm always searching for new ideas and I love the support of this site. I just bought Dr.Judith Beck's book, The Beck Diet Solution which you can use with any eating program. There is an active Beck thread on 3FC.
Hi, I am in my 60's, have Grave's Disease, however, after ablation times two, I am now hypothyroid. I have been on Medifast since March 10th and as my ticker denotes, I am losing nicely. Been on Medifast before, but like many programs, re-gain is very easy and I didn't plan for maintenance. Plan to switch over to Weight Watchers for the last 10lbs, and think that learning how to eat properly to maintain the loss, will be something I will look forward to, instead of eating 'packets', like Medifast would love you to do forever! Not me, my plan is to eat real food in proper portions and I believe that Weight Watchers will show me the right things to do. I hope so! Don't want to go along this journey again. Twice is enough! Good luck to everyone, also!
Thanks for the replies everyone! I copied my 'intro' and wanted to paste it here. I'm thinking of WW or South Beach. Please comment on my intro. I am more leaning toward WW because of the late night dinner. I don't eat much at that meal. In fact, I think because of having my gall bladder removed, I cannot eat very much at one time for any meal.
Quote:
PERSONAL INFORMATION: I am 49 (Feb 09) so soon I will be 50. I am 212 and 5'4". I need to lose weight... if for any other reason than to feel better about my health. In December, 1999, I quit smoking; I weighed about 145#. I am sure 20# could be put on just by quit smoking cigarettes. Then, I was taking a prescription that had me gaining approximate 20# per year! Yikes, but I didn't find out about that until my OBGYN told me that was the problem. I don't eat alot... honestly! But, I do love the salty chips, Doritos and stuff like that. Not so much sugar treats like cookies, pies, cakes etc., but the salty stuff. I have come to the point where I must take control of my food intake, maybe 4-5 small meals/day. My downfail is that my husband and I don't eat supper until between 9-10pm each evening. That is the way it has been for about 10 years. It is not something that can be changed, as that is how my husband likes it.... and so do I. So, I guess I wonder if I can help with smaller meals during the day, and doing some sort of exercise, as I exercise NOT! I live in Georgia, and it's too danged hot to walk right now... and it won't be better until about November!
Now, keep in mind I have NOT gained a pound in over a year.... I eat most what I want, and yes at night as I said, with no exericse. If I could incorporate some sort of exercise 30 minutes per day, and go to the 4-5 small meals per day, can I expect to start to lose some of this weight, and get a healthy 145-150#? I could probably go higher in weight, as I have been told at 145# I was thin, a size 12.
We are doing it in different ways... some probably joined Weight Watchers, others use Atkins or South Beach or Jenny Craig... Or TOPS or Sugar Busters... and some, like me, count calories and keep track of what we eat that way. Most of us do some form of exercise as well!
What do you think you'd like to try?
Jay
OK... I was leaning towards WW, then calorie counting. I looked in our library for weight loss books and found Your Perfect Weight by Prevention magazine. I started reading it, and I am going to reduce my fat intake and count calories. I think that will work for me. And, since it is beginning to get really hot in Georgia, walking is not an option, so I think I'll try and do low-impact aerobics for 20 minutes, 3 days per week. Got to do this for my heart.
I'm 48 and so glad you posted this question, ladyviv. I've been losing weight, but in the last 18 months, it has slowed to an excruciating crawl of .5 lb a month. I'm trying to be happy with that rate of loss and to not feel low about it.
What is most helpful to me is to treat myself as if I've got PCOS, am insulin resistant as well a hypothyroid. According to my medical team, I'm on the border of all these diagnoses, but definitely have type 2 diabetes (that I'm controlling with diet and exercise - last H1c was at 6.3.) and hypertension (and I refuse to take meds for this because of the side-effects...I tried and am having to do other things to manage blood pressure). When I'm tight with the food management and do my well-timed exercises, then I am successful. I'm just not that disciplined and overwhelmed with other life issues at the moment.
You're so welcome, Georgia. We can only do what we can do. We all fail at times, and we all need the support of others to get through the rough patches. I wish you all the best in your day-to-day struggles. If you ever need to talk in private, please pm me.
ladyviv, you need something like 30 posts and 30 days to be able to send and receive PMs, I think. So if you don't get any, don't despair! Just keep on posting in the threads.
Another calorie counter here. You CAN lose weight after 50. Really!
It was slow and stead (averaged 1.7 lbs per week), but it came off.
For me, there were several keys:
1. Eat clean - fewer processed foods, more whole foods
2. Exercise daily - nothing radical, just 30-60 minutes of moderate exercise
3. Eat often - I eat 6 times each day, small meals each time. This keeps me from getting too hungry and keeps my blood sugar stable
4. Balance - I balance my calories every time I eat - protein, carbs and fat. I actually eat lots more fat now than when I weighed 215. I like the concepts in the Sonoma, Mediterranean and Flat Belly diet - adding MUFAs seemed to help. (mono unsaturated fatty acids - avocados, nuts, olive oil, etc.)
5. Balance - stress. I find I can't lose weight when I'm stressed out. So I need my Bible reading, meditation & prayer, yoga, etc.
6. Mindful eating - not only counting calories, but making my calories count
Last edited by CountingDown; 05-31-2009 at 05:47 PM.
ladyviv, you need something like 30 posts and 30 days to be able to send and receive PMs, I think. So if you don't get any, don't despair! Just keep on posting in the threads.
(It's to discourage spammers.)
Jay
hehe, yea, I got a pm, but could not reply; said I needed 10 posts. But, that's no problem! I'll be here for 30 days for sure!!
Thanks countingdown! Hubby says I can lose it; and keep it off, so I do have support at home! My weight gain came from probably about 20-25 # from stop smoking in Dec. 1999.... but then my doc put me on some kind of med (can't remember what) that had me gain 20# in 1 year! And, I did NOT overeat! I gained probably 70# with that stupid med, and the doc didn't figure it out until about 2 years after taking it daily. grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!
Anyways, I can incorporate nuts later. I see right now it can't be an option because of the fat grams. I love 'em though, so it will be added down the road.
I gained a lot of weight (+60 lbs) while on anti-depressants and anti-anxiety meds as well as steroidal inhalers. It took over a year to get that stuff out of my system. I am very leery of taking anything. I seem to be a sensitive girl so I do what I can drug-free.
Managing diet, exercise and good sleep patterns has worked the best for me. I'm trying to lose as much weight as I can now. I have to get down to 200 lbs. in the next three years when I'll have to get my own health insurance after getting divorced. No one will cover me now except what I have through soon-to-be-ex's work.
I am 53 and am doing Medifast. I personally love this program but it takes diligence and dedication. You have to be very serious with this program but if you do it like it is written, the weight falls off. I also exercise on a tredmill every other day for an hour. Not really fun but it has to be done. In all honesty, and the truth hurts, exercise should be done for the rest of my life! I give a big thumbs up to Medifast.
I guess what I want to know is....
