The Weight Loss Support Group - 2018

[AbbysMom]

A group of us started posting and supporting each other in our weight loss journey in June of 2013. Not everyone stuck it out, but some of us did and there were ups and down, but weight was lost. I'm one of the ones that fell off the wagon. Going to try to do better this year.


It's 2018 and time for a new thread and new goals and hopefully more people joining in.

We'd like to share tips, ideas, recipes, etc. There are soooooo many different diets and theories out there and what works for one may not work for another. We'd like to know what is or isn't working for you.


If you aren't serious about this, then this isn't the thread for you. Sure, everyone has off days and falls off the wagon, but if all you are posting are excuses, you will get called out. Some days, particularly lately, I need to get called out. Of course if you are happy with your weight and just want to cheer us on, c'mon in! We'll take all the support we can get.

So who is in? All are welcome and can join in at any point during the year.

 

[AbbysMom]

Well yesterday didn't go as planned. I woke up to a sick cat and a sick husband. While our food plans yesterday got thrown out the window due to a delicate stomach, I overall did eat less than I have been eating.

 

[sivyaleah]

I haven't been adding anything to this thread (well, the 2017 one anyway) because I felt like I didn't need to discuss it all the time.

However, would like to let everyone know I've been seeing a nutritionist since, October 2017. Being accountable to someone has made a vast difference in my outlook on food and extremely motivating. I'm surprised how easy it has been to eat reasonably and (slowly) lose weight.

My high last year topped out at 242. I'm only 5' so this was just NOT ok. I started to cut back on my own over the summer and I'm now down to 222. Losing about 4-5 pounds a month. NOT obsessed, NOT hungry, NOT feeling deprived. All things I felt when on "a diet". This is just learning to eat right and discussing with the person I'm seeing to work out psychological reasons why I run into a wall at times.

Made it through the holidays without a hitch, allowed myself a treat or two and just ate well between. I stick to about 1500 calories a day, most days less. Cut out soda, most white carbs (like crappy bread/rolls, etc) and amped up my veggie/fruit intake. Being careful about carbs but not excessively as too low carb isn't healthy.

Bought a Fitbit which is helpful to help me monitor my calories and energy usage. Seems like most days I am burning off the right amount to lose the 4-5 pounds each month. If I could add in some longer walks now and then, I'm sure I'd see better results too but darn, it is just way too cold now to even think about taking a stroll so I do what I can.

I feel a lot better than I did a few months ago and am nearly able to go down a size now (I say nearly because I can actually fit into smaller pants, I am just waiting for a few more to drop off so I don't feel squashed into them). My knees feel much better also - it's amazing how just 20 pounds can take the pressure off bad joints. I have an end goal in mind which is still technically "overweight" for my height, but it's one I was comfortable at for most of my adult life until the past few years hit.

I feel like I'll be successful for the first time in my life because it's not a diet. It's just eating right. No fads = weight loss for me. YMMV as they say.

 

[Winchester]

Just found this thread again....I had been looking and didn't see it.

sivyaleah , good luck to you! I really wish you well in your endeavor this year. Losing weight is very difficult. And you're doing a great job! @AbbyMom, how are you doing? It's a hard time of the year to get walks in with the cold and snow.

I'm jumping on this bandwagon. I need to. I've gained 20 pounds over the last year and went up a size in jeans. I lose it, I gain it, I lose it, I gain it. Between the problems with blood pressure meds, depression, and everything else going on, well, I've been doing a lot of stress eating and binging. Count me in; I'll be here.

 

[sivyaleah]

Just found this thread again....I had been looking and didn't see it.

sivyaleah , good luck to you! I really wish you well in your endeavor this year. Losing weight is very difficult. And you're doing a great job! @AbbyMom, how are you doing? It's a hard time of the year to get walks in with the cold and snow.

I'm jumping on this bandwagon. I need to. I've gained 20 pounds over the last year and went up a size in jeans. I lose it, I gain it, I lose it, I gain it. Between the problems with blood pressure meds, depression, and everything else going on, well, I've been doing a lot of stress eating and binging. Count me in; I'll be here.

Welcome again, although sorry to hear you've had a rough time in the past year. Well, you are in the right thread that's for sure. For me, finally going through menopause (very late no less) really packed on the pounds plus some other minor health issues added to it. I always felt so well controlled in other aspects of my life - this was the one thing that needed attention.

My update is I lost 4 more pounds since I wrote above. I haven't seen the nutritionist in a couple of months. I'll probably catch up with her once the weather warms up a bit. The only time I can squeeze her in is after I get home at night - which is already too late as I commute into NYC and back weekdays. FYI that was a major contributing factor to weight gain too - I'd get home too late and didn't want to cook so of course, the easiest thing was grab fast food. We were eating it several times a week. Now it's once if that and I make far better choices when I do it; like grilled chicken over a side salad.

My mind set is really different and it's becoming second nature after so many months to pick the right foods and not overeat or eat out of boredom, or whatever drove me. If anyone had told me months ago I'd be the kind of person scooping out the middle of a bagel I would have laughed in their face LOL.

Winter isn't the most optimum time to go for long walks. Having the Fitbit on daily has made me way more aware of calories in/out. I now understand the need do more on the weekends to get me moving. Weekdays aren't too difficult since I do a lot of walking getting to and from work around NYC. Weekends are far too lazy. I'm looking forward to Spring and intend to force myself to get out there a couple of times a week minimum to take a long walk.

Anyway, I have a goal in mind now. We booked a belated honeymoon in Turks and Caicos late June. I want to be below 200 by then and I do think it's entirely possible. That right now would be amazing to me as I haven't been below in probably a good 8 years or so.

 

[foxxycat]

Congrats on your weight loss sivyaleah

I too have to buck up as well. I was doing really good- from 221 in August/September down to 205ish in End of November-back to 210=BUT I will get back into the exercise=biking/gym etc. movement.Music really helps for those who need motivation-helps me pedal faster to keep up to the beat of the music. Missed out on skiing because I still can't fit into my winter gear-but there's always next year.

Since I cut out HFCS and rice/potatoes it's made a big difference. I make my own bread, cook my own food. Buy raw ingredients-only rarely do we eat out. It's hard the first month or two but then you get used to it.

 

[Winchester]

Good for you foxxycat !

I agree about music. I'm on a treadmill in the basement, no tv, only a window looking out at the dark morning. Music helps me. And good for you for stopping the rice/potatoes. We eat a lot of sweet potatoes/yams and squashes now. My GYN told me to eat lots of dark colors: beets, spinach, squash, etc.

I'm not sure if we're supposed to post weekly changes or issues. I lost two pounds last week.

 

[furmonster mom]

So good to see folks encouraging each other here. Winter is always a tough time to lose weight. It's hard to get out and exercise when it's so cold, and you just want to curl up with some hot chocolate, a cuddly cat, and a good book. lol
But it can be done... with the right tools.

So, in Aug of '16 I weighed about 186... I'm fairly full figured, so I carried it relatively well, but I wasn't happy with myself.
Then, early Feb of last year, my father passed away, and the ensuing stress over the next several months caused me to drop to 176 by Sept.

I realized that it was not the best way to lose weight, but it did get me thinking about trying again. I also realized that the things I'd been doing hadn't been working, and I wasn't really using the gym membership that I'd bought several years ago. So I decided to go a different route, and hired a personal weight trainer.

Why weights? because I read several articles that mentioned that muscle is a metabolic calorie burner, just by it's existence. What I didn't realize is that as we get older, our bodies don't want to build any more muscle, and in fact, if you're not using your muscles, you will lose them. So, this was going to be a challenge.

I interviewed a few trainers, looked at the facilities they liked to use (usually a large or shared gym), and finally settled on a guy that actually had his own small gym, which meant that my time would actually be one on one and not shared with other people. He is also very well educated in physiology, fitness psychology, and nutrition with his certifications and degrees posted on the wall.

He started me out with accountability, which I expected, with exercise and food logs. Then he started talking nutrition, one little subject at a time, with each session. I learned that I was consuming a lot more sugar and salt than I realized once I started looking at labels again. Also, started looking more closely at balancing my daily intake of fruits, veggies, proteins and carbs... and portion sizes. One thing I like about my trainer, is that he is forgiving while still encouraging to be better. Portion control has been a big step; yes I can still have my cheese, but try 1.5 oz instead of 2.5...

Another thing that I learned about is "high intensity" or "interval" training. Basically, short bursts of high intensity exercise will get your heart rate up, then your body continues to burn at that rate even as you recover.

Building muscle is challenging for sure, especially at my age, but I'm doing it bit by bit. My knees are stronger, and don't turn into grapefruits after my run/walks or hikes now. Next focus is abs and arms.

I weighed 176 when I started in October. Yesterday I hit 155. My first big goal is 150, my next is 140. It's slow, and sometimes frustrating when I have a setback, but I'm feeling better about my ability to recover and get back on track.

 

[foxxycat]

Thats how I have been trying to loose weight. lifting weights actually burns more calories over a longer period of time and it's good for our bones. Sadly yes if we don't use the muscle we loose it. I am so happy that you found a trainer you like and treats you well. One thing to remember-fats are not the enemy that we once thought. I have been able to loose weight while upping my fats but I try to use good fats. Fats keeps me full longer so I am not picking. Cutting out crackers/chips was really hard for me. I munch on green beans and spinach/carrots now instead. It isn't the same but some butter on the veggies and a bit of cheese helps satisfy me so I don't walk around feeling hungry all the time. In fact last month I was very bad with the sugar junk=more so than i normally am-and this week I have been trying to eat more veggies instead of dumb cookies etc.

I need to get back to the gym and back on my bike. When I was riding the bike I burned quite a bit of calories. In fact tomorrow and Thurs supposed to be warmer-hopefully I will be able to get out there and do 20 to 30 minutes. I hate the bikes at the gym=super uncomfortable. I do miss the weight training-I was doing so well and was lifting almost as much as the men on the universal weights. That's definately a goal I want to get back into.

I like how Winchester does 250 steps every hour=that's a good way to break up the day. I started reading and pacing back and forth to help get me more mobile. It is hard to get rolling-but I find once I reach the 2 week milestone-it gets so much easier after that-because I am a creature of habit and like to have structure. Thanks for posting your progress @furmonster mom=it really helps us to stay motivated!

I think my favorite part of my year of weight training was seeing my progress from 10 lbs up to 120 lb. When I first started-i was only at 10 to 15 lbs for most exercises. It takes a good month for you to get to the next level-one thing I did was teh 5lb increment rule=every workout I increased the weight by 5lbs. I kept this up until I got to the top. It took about 4 months to reach my max-now I could have gone more aggressively but I found the 5 or even 2.5 lb rule each workout to give just enough kick to get my muscles to build.

Lat pulldowns were my strength. Bench press was the hardest for me. Everyone has strong points and poiints that require more work. Today there's so many options for weights-don't forget the most important tool=form. Make sure you use correct form when doing squats-dont let your knees go over your toes for one. back straight. chin up. slow and steady wins the race.

The 5lb increment was inspired from stronglifts.com. it's a 5x5 plan- here's a page that describes it-

Is StrongLifts 5x5 The Right Training Program For You?

I modified it to fit my needs but I think you will find yourself pleasantly surprised how fast you go up the weights if you give your body the 24 to 48 hour break inbetween workouts. That's the only thing I did wrong-I didn't give the body a rest day-I was very motivated to just keep going and now I know I need to slow down-stop trying to do so much so fast. I found weight lifting did something inside me=it was both a physical thing and emotional thing-almost added self esteem. Keep us posted!

 

[furmonster mom]

Yep yep... incremental adds are the way to go. My trainer actually has smaller increments, and he is always watching to see where that "match point' is for each exercise. His comment was that he wants to get the exact weight that matches my ability such that it's not too easy, but not discouragingly too much either. He looks for just the right stress point. Which is another reason I am enjoying the personal trainer approach, it's that outside perspective. And he is indeed very good about form, always talks it through, though I've never actually had him correct me. I think I started out with pretty good form since I also do a bit of yoga, which is also form focused.

 

[furmonster mom]

So, I've had some pretty heavy meals the last few days, so today is a FVP (fruits, veggies, protein) day.
Basically, I eat small restricted amounts of fruit, veggies, and non-meat protein throughout the day. It's not exactly dieting, not exactly cleansing (like with juices), but it is eating a bit lighter for the day.

This is a strategic kind of day. Good for dialing back a little, on a low energy day (no exercise), or to give the metabolism a little boost. I only do it for one day, strategically, a couple times a month.

 

[furmonster mom]

Dropped a couple more. Not quite to my goal, but getting closer.

I have about a half dozen bras that don't fit anymore, as well as my jeans. Gonna have to go shopping.
Bras are expensive for me... I have a small band with a large cup, and have to order online. The odd combo means they are custom order, and more expensive.

 

[furmonster mom]

GOAL!!!!

At least for a hot minute.
Hopefully it will stick.

 

[Wenda]

Hi guys,

I'd like to root for everyone and join in too! I need to definitely clean up my eating habits and start exercising more. I just recently got my degree in Nutritional Sciences, but you wouldn't know it to look at me lol. I find that boredom is my downfall (combined with cold weather) and working and meal prepping to be super helpful. My goal is to do yoga everyday to regain flexibility, taking Ares on his walks (and then a solo one for myself because cats be sloooow and terrible walking buddies), and start picking up the weights staring at me on the floor instead of just blatantly ignoring them. I also plan on sticking to 1300 to 1500 kilocalories and upping my H20 intake. I know my energy will amp up when I ditch the "junk," but dang it, it can be hard to kick.

And congrats, furmonster mom, for reaching your goal!! That has to feel nice

 

[Wenda]

Also, has anybody here done the random three minute dance parties? You either set alarms throughout your day or have some buddies you can randomly text "Dance Party" and whenever you do that or get a text you stop what you're doing, crank up the tunes, and dance like a dork for a short period of time. Kind of nerdy, but super fun and a good way to wake up and get the blood moving throughout the day/week.

 

[furmonster mom]

Also, has anybody here done the random three minute dance parties? You either set alarms throughout your day or have some buddies you can randomly text "Dance Party" and whenever you do that or get a text you stop what you're doing, crank up the tunes, and dance like a dork for a short period of time. Kind of nerdy, but super fun and a good way to wake up and get the blood moving throughout the day/week.

Ha! That sounds like fun... the real trick would be getting someone to do it along with.

 

[furmonster mom]

So a few months ago I told my sister, who is a runner/biker, that I'd started weight training. She was encouraging.

Yesterday I told her I'd met my weight goal... and I got a lecture on eating disorders and body image and was told that she couldn't support me on my weight loss journey.
wtf???

So I assured her that I was not "dieting" and that I'd lost the weight with healthy eating, exercise, and the guidance of a good trainer (tyvm!). I also pointed out that, at my age, being overweight had health risks (as much as being underweight), and that since I'd been building muscle, improving my cardio and losing the weight, my knees and back have been less creaky and achy... and hey, it beats going in for surgery!

Her response.... She was concerned because "study after study has shown that people who lose significant weight gain it back in 2-5 years" and that she just wanted to be sure that I would still be happy and love myself when I gained the weight back...

well, thanks for the presumption of failure, sis.

 

[louann jude]

Hello all its been a long time. I wanted to rejoin the group because in 2016 with the great support of this group I lost 102 pounds. Unfortantly with a nasty bout of depression last year and mother nature deciding that it would be a good time to start early menopause I gained most all of it back. It really messed with me. I still see all the pretty clothes in my closet and get so upset because I can't fit into any of them.

Thankfully my doctor prescribed me zoloft for the depression and it seems to be working. I am amazed at how well its working. I have only been on it for two weeks and I feel like a different person. I didn't know how bad my depression was until this started to work. I am wanting to care for myself again. I enjoy it actually. I don't have to lose 100 pounds again in less than a year but I would like to be under 200.

 

[foxxycat]

So a few months ago I told my sister, who is a runner/biker, that I'd started weight training. She was encouraging.

Yesterday I told her I'd met my weight goal... and I got a lecture on eating disorders and body image and was told that she couldn't support me on my weight loss journey.
***???

So I assured her that I was not "dieting" and that I'd lost the weight with healthy eating, exercise, and the guidance of a good trainer (tyvm!). I also pointed out that, at my age, being overweight had health risks (as much as being underweight), and that since I'd been building muscle, improving my cardio and losing the weight, my knees and back have been less creaky and achy... and hey, it beats going in for surgery!

Her response.... She was concerned because "study after study has shown that people who lose significant weight gain it back in 2-5 years" and that she just wanted to be sure that I would still be happy and love myself when I gained the weight back...

well, thanks for the presumption of failure, sis.

Good grief...that's something I never saw coming!!

I have fallen off the wagon a bit but the past 2 weeks I am omiting my pasta in my lunch as I am not doing as much bike riding- rain, snow, cold...I upped the amount of chicken and spinach. Suprisingly I am not hungry until it's time to get out of work- I eat my lunch at 9:30 and a light snack at 2ish then more of same for dinner- I was expecting to be sluggish and tired- I also had a change in my work hours so it's less sleep-so for now I am tired more than usual but working hard to say no to carbs until I get home- for some reason sugary foods make me sleepy... I am anxious for spring- the snow is still here and some more coming today.

Oh I discovered I love curry and Thai type sauces=I found a sauce at buffalo wild bills that only has 2 grams of carbs- its Thai Curry sauce-it's pretty hot and flavorful- has some fats in it from coconut milk- I add this to the chicken to make it less bland...I heard curry is good for us but the ones I have tried in jars is just too tame for me-guess I like things with a good KICK to it...

 

[furmonster mom]

Penzey's Spices has a couple of curry box sets ("bright, bold, unique" collection, set of 4, or 8). They are a great way to experiment with different curry flavors. yum!

Last month was a fairly low on the exercise but my food/nutrition stayed on track, so I ended up holding at 147. Patience and perseverance is going to be my challenge now because the lower my number goes, the smaller the margin for loss becomes. It's hard to stay on track when the margin goes from .5 lbs a week to .3 lbs a week.