Health At Every Size- NOT a weight loss group!!

[dawnball]

Seems like it is more about anything you want to do is healthy since your body wanted it.

Not really. Let me give you an example.

I have a knee injury (sprained ACL, meniscus tears, articulating cartilage damage, cyst, etc).

My body wants to go out for a jog. It wants to go to a martial arts class. I crave cardio. It wants narcotics so it doesn't hurt anymore. None of those things are healthy for me right now. There are plenty of other things I can do that are good for my body and my knee.

My understanding is that the point of this thread is non-weight-related health improvement. It doesn't mean that people can't also lose (or gain) weight as they need to be healthy - just that the focus here isn't on weight.

 

[-Hope-]

Not really. Let me give you an example.

I have a knee injury (sprained ACL, meniscus tears, articulating cartilage damage, cyst, etc).

My body wants to go out for a jog. It wants to go to a martial arts class. I crave cardio. It wants narcotics so it doesn't hurt anymore. None of those things are healthy for me right now. There are plenty of other things I can do that are good for my body and my knee.

My understanding is that the point of this thread is non-weight-related health improvement. It doesn't mean that people can't also lose (or gain) weight as they need to be healthy - just that the focus here isn't on weight.

Yes, exactly. Thanks for the succinct explanation.

 

[dawnball]

The thing I see posted is my body told me to eat a big mac and a pint of ice cream and the post will be tagged haes and intuitive eating.

Yeah, and how many people have said Atkins means they can eat sugar free cheesecake topped with bacon all day long? Or who eat whole boxes of low-fat cookies? The realms of behavior licensing and habit are fascinating research.

We all pick aspects of our health to work on, and aspects to ignore for now. I'd rather people accepted themselves as fat and tried to be healthy fat people than that they hated themselves for being fat and so made no effort to improve their health.

 

[-Hope-]

Yeah, and how many people have said Atkins means they can eat sugar free cheesecake topped with bacon all day long? Or who eat whole boxes of low-fat cookies? The realms of behavior licensing and habit are fascinating research. We all pick aspects of our health to work on, and aspects to ignore for now. I'd rather people accepted themselves as fat and tried to be healthy fat people than that they hated themselves for being fat and so made no effort to improve their health.

Great point!

 

[obxlvr13]

Does anyone know what is a good a point of protein and carb to have with each meal? I'm thinking if I up my protein intake at each meal and lower the carbs it will help with my sugars and make a difference in how I feel.

 

[dawnball]

I'm assuming you don't want to go straight to a low-carb diet? Chris Kessler suggests 50-75g/day for blood sugar regulation. You'd probably want about a half gram of protein per pound of bodyweight per day, then fill the rest in with fat.

If you just want to adjust your protein up and your carbs down - start with what you normally eat, and make exchanges. You can usually reduce the carb portion size by 10-20% without noticing. If you usually look forward to the carbs in your meal - try coming up with proteins or vegetables that feel special to you, so you're still getting a treat.

 

[-Hope-]

Does anyone know what is a good a point of protein and carb to have with each meal? I'm thinking if I up my protein intake at each meal and lower the carbs it will help with my sugars and make a difference in how I feel.

If you don't want to mess with measuring you can try something like the rule of thumb that 1/2 your plate should be veggies, 1/4 protein, and 1/4 starches. That being said there are some starches that I avoid for the most part because they do a number on my blood sugar regardless of food combinations or portion sizes. I seem to be able to tolerate corn but not wheat. Quinoa but not rice. Rye bread but not whole wheat. I figured all of this out by testing by blood sugar right before I ate and again one hour after beginning to eat and once more 2 hours after. Foods with significant spikes at one hour but that come back in a normal range at 2 hours are on my "sometimes I indulge" list, those that keep me elevated for 2 hours or more I try to avoid all together or if it's something I really love (like tater tots, lol) make it an EXTREMELY rare treat.

 

[strangebutspecial]

I love that we're all talking about low carb because that's something I do too. I know we're not focused on weight, but I did lose 13 lbs late this year just by cutting out a lot of carbs in my diet. A good dinner for me is protein + veggies. I used to have a whole potato or a cup (or two!) of rice along with dinner. I thought I would miss these things, but I truly don't.

I need help with actually getting out and doing workouts. I'm not sure what my block is there. I want to, then I just... don't. I get some social anxiety so maybe that's it? I hate being "on display" in public.

 

[strangebutspecial]

I have NO advice about sleep as it's a real issue for me as well. If you find something that helps, let me know.

Sleep can be an issue for me too but there are ways I can guarantee I'll get a good night's sleep.

1. Get TIRED. Do something active during the day to make you fall over later. Even walking the dog helps me.

2. Caffeine has a half-life of roughly six hours. So if you're aiming for, say, a 10pm bedtime, that means your last caffeinated drink should be consumed no later than 4pm.

3. Manage your light sources in the latter half of the day. This is the biggest factor for me. Light is a huge trigger for wakefulness. I use a program on my desktop computer called f.lux that gradually reduces the amount of blue in my screen according to the time of day. When I'm trying to sleep, I put away all backlit screens at least an hour before bed. That means no tv, and definitely no lying in bed and messing with my phone or iPad. A paper or e-ink display is usually okay for me, as long as the light shining on it is not in the blue spectrum.

4. Pretend to be tired. You can sometimes trick yourself into feeling sleepy.

 

[MeridaLove]

Hi All!

So happy to have everyone here I'm not good at repsonding to every post, but I tried to read everything and know that I am thinking of you all and rooting for healthy, happy days for you ALL!

I have been using a Fitbit for the last year (it was a Christmas present), and I really like it! It is so encouraging to watch those steps add up every day and it really does make me change my behaviour to choose more active options.

As for my food choices, I like to use a free program called Sparkpeople. I don't use it all the time, but it helps me to keep a good handle on how much fat, carb, protein I'm eating and keeps me on track with eating my veggies and drinking my water!

In case anyone is interested, I follow a really amazing blogger on Facebook named "The Militant Baker" (Jes Baker). She is a Body Positive activist who believes in health at any size and I find her so incredibly inspiring. I came from a family were weight was the ultimate sin (my mother was anorexic), and it Jes has really helped me to un learn those attitudes & behaviours to become more mentally healthy. She has shown studies that have proven that fat shaming is FAR more destructive to people's health than weight is, and that we need to "Change our world, not our bodies".

If you're looking for some inspiration - check her out!!

Hope everyone is looking forward to a great weekedn ahead! (and less snow than we have here in Ontario, Canada!

 

[dawnball]

For sleep, I've had good luck with sleep hygiene.

No sleeping in on weekends. No naps. No booze or food late at night. Lots of daytime light and daytime activity. A really solid bedtime routine.

I do cheat, and I'll read in bed - but it's part of the bedtime routine. Lately I've been having more trouble - the knee keeps me up, so I'm trying to remember to take ibuprofen before I get tired.

And of course, today I ate a handful of chocolate covered coffee beans without thinking about the consequences. I think I'm still vibrating 9 hours later...

 

[The Mystery Machine]

I love that we're all talking about low carb because that's something I do too. I know we're not focused on weight, but I did lose 13 lbs late this year just by cutting out a lot of carbs in my diet. A good dinner for me is protein + veggies. I used to have a whole potato or a cup (or two!) of rice along with dinner. I thought I would miss these things, but I truly don't.

I need help with actually getting out and doing workouts. I'm not sure what my block is there. I want to, then I just... don't. I get some social anxiety so maybe that's it? I hate being "on display" in public.

Are you me?

Yep, when I was Paleo, I felt better and looked better.

I also need to get to the gym! I am shooting for Monday. Mine is just pure laziness for my excuse. I exercised before that for 9 months straight.

I also need to stop the caffeine. Geesh. I am a mess I guess, and I certainly need to EAT BETTER.

 

[-Hope-]

I love that we're all talking about low carb because that's something I do too. I know we're not focused on weight, but I did lose 13 lbs late this year just by cutting out a lot of carbs in my diet. A good dinner for me is protein + veggies. I used to have a whole potato or a cup (or two!) of rice along with dinner. I thought I would miss these things, but I truly don't.

I don't miss them either. But I missed bread. When I discovered I can eat rye it was like Christmas.

I need help with actually getting out and doing workouts. I'm not sure what my block is there. I want to, then I just... don't. I get some social anxiety so maybe that's it? I hate being "on display" in public.

I'm the same way. I love everything about yoga and still sometimes I just don't do it. Due to mild ADD transitioning from one activity to the next can be difficult for me so I have to actively think about stopping what I'm doing (even if I'm just watching TV or on the DIS), then think about getting up, changing my clothes, etc.

As for feeling "on display" I felt that way for a while. I know that some people have horror stories about going to the gym but I've never had a bad experience. I've found that everyone is so focused on their own workout that they barely noticed me.

Sleep can be an issue for me too but there are ways I can guarantee I'll get a good night's sleep.

1. Get TIRED. Do something active during the day to make you fall over later. Even walking the dog helps me.

2. Caffeine has a half-life of roughly six hours. So if you're aiming for, say, a 10pm bedtime, that means your last caffeinated drink should be consumed no later than 4pm.

3. Manage your light sources in the latter half of the day. This is the biggest factor for me. Light is a huge trigger for wakefulness. I use a program on my desktop computer called f.lux that gradually reduces the amount of blue in my screen according to the time of day. When I'm trying to sleep, I put away all backlit screens at least an hour before bed. That means no tv, and definitely no lying in bed and messing with my phone or iPad. A paper or e-ink display is usually okay for me, as long as the light shining on it is not in the blue spectrum.

4. Pretend to be tired. You can sometimes trick yourself into feeling sleepy.

All great advice! My trouble isn't really with falling asleep. It's that once I'm woken I have a hard time going back to sleep. And there's no tricking for me- if I try to go bed before I'm actually tired that's when I will actually have trouble falling asleep and it will extend way past when I'd normally go to bed. It took a few sleepless nights for me to figure out what was going on.

Hi All!

So happy to have everyone here I'm not good at repsonding to every post, but I tried to read everything and know that I am thinking of you all and rooting for healthy, happy days for you ALL!

I have been using a Fitbit for the last year (it was a Christmas present), and I really like it! It is so encouraging to watch those steps add up every day and it really does make me change my behaviour to choose more active options.

I so want a Fitbit! I'm making do with the step counting app for now but it's on my wishlist.

As for my food choices, I like to use a free program called Sparkpeople. I don't use it all the time, but it helps me to keep a good handle on how much fat, carb, protein I'm eating and keeps me on track with eating my veggies and drinking my water!

It's awesome that you've found something that works for you! I've found that tracking my food makes me more likely to lose control and I'm trying to follow intuitive eating. I think it's awesome that we can each find what works for us personally. :

In case anyone is interested, I follow a really amazing blogger on Facebook named "The Militant Baker" (Jes Baker). She is a Body Positive activist who believes in health at any size and I find her so incredibly inspiring. I came from a family were weight was the ultimate sin (my mother was anorexic), and it Jes has really helped me to un learn those attitudes & behaviours to become more mentally healthy. She has shown studies that have proven that fat shaming is FAR more destructive to people's health than weight is, and that we need to "Change our world, not our bodies".

If you're looking for some inspiration - check her out!!

Hope everyone is looking forward to a great weekedn ahead! (and less snow than we have here in Ontario, Canada!

Awesome! I'll have to check her out!

For sleep, I've had good luck with sleep hygiene.

No sleeping in on weekends. No naps. No booze or food late at night. Lots of daytime light and daytime activity. A really solid bedtime routine.

This sounds really simple but is so hard in practice, lol. I have found all of these habits to be helpful though- it's just following through I have to work on! :

I do cheat, and I'll read in bed - but it's part of the bedtime routine. Lately I've been having more trouble - the knee keeps me up, so I'm trying to remember to take ibuprofen before I get tired.

I can't sleep without reading. I read recently that the act of reading makes our eyes tired which will trick our brains into believing we are tired. Of course I've learned that I have to be careful that whatever I choose isn't too engrossing or I'll stay up all night reading...

And of course, today I ate a handful of chocolate covered coffee beans without thinking about the consequences. I think I'm still vibrating 9 hours later...

 

[-Hope-]

Hi guys!

I thought it might be helpful if we each choose one healthy habit we'd like to adopt. We can then encourage and offer advice much more easily.

My goal right now is tied to my step counter. I have a number that I try never to go under and I'm trying to gradually increase that expectation. Today was kind of busy so I actually doubled that number and feel great!

 

[Michblue]

My step counter app looks like a heartbeat monitors when I look at the week or month chart. One day up, next day down. I would love to get it more consistent. But for now I'll take the every other day success.

For the past month I have been trying to hit 10k steps. I finally did it one day last week when I watched my 2yo and 3yo nephews. It was 8 hours of non stop moving. And I had to do laps in the house at 11pm to get the last 1000 steps. If that's what it takes to hit 10k, I don't think that will be happening very much! I did some reading about it and I'm ok with a smaller goal now.

Of course tomorrow I will be at Magic Kingdom and I'm curious to see my number! This should be a good week for steps!

 

[Michblue]

Congratulations Hope on doubling your number!

 

[SurferMom]

Hi, great thread!

I am a 53 y.o. mom of teen twins adopted from Russia when they were three. Leaving work to raise them and focusing on their nutrition resulted in going from a size 6 to a size 12, and really unhealthy habits like no exercise ever. I was and am now an ethical vegetarian.

I developed PCOS, breast cysts, breast micro calcifications, chronic sleep issues, joint pain…I was a disaster.

One day I realized that being 35 years older than they, I had a responsibility to them to get fit and healthy. I put down the fork, started walking on the treadmill…then running a tenth of a mile a week then two….

Now I run 30 miles a week, surf whenever I can, still do some step aerobics (ha, yes, that dates me) and cycle..mostly to cool down. On a rare occasion I go to the gym, but loathe it. I returned to what I loved doing as a teenager.

So I am just here to say that you CAN get fit. I am more healthy than I have ever been in my life and every one of you can do what I did. I don't have one of the symptoms I listed above. I am not special, I didn't go on some miserable diet (that in my opinion gets you thinking MORE about food than less) and I did all of this within a hectic schedule.

It was also the hardest thing I have ever done in my life.

Luck to everyone!

 

[worm761]

I love this concept/idea. Health isn't about weight. Though I am actively trying to lose some. A few years ago I developed high blood pressure over night. I had no symptoms and had just gotten a clean bill of health 3 weeks earlier. And now I also have a pre-diabetic diagnosis with a strong family history of diabetes. So, I have generally gone low carb and started exercising. That has brought my blood pressure down some but not enough to get me off all of my meds. But it has kept A1C in check.

My one thing I am currently working on is going back to the gym. My husband and I have found that working out at home just tends to make us not do it. So, we joined a Planet Fitness. I would have never thought it but I love lifting weights! My goal for the gym is to do the circuit training 2-3 times a week and to do cardio the other 2-3 days. We don't go to the gym on weekends but we are fairly active on weekends. We get up at 3:30 in the morning to go to the gym before DH has to go to work. If we wait until later in the day, we just don't go.

 

[Wishing on a star]

Anything that focuses on health is good!!!!
And, no, health isn't all about weight.
One can be thin and still have dangerously and critically high cholesterol levels or blood pressure. Or any other type of health issue.

But, I think it is pretty clear that when it comes to being a certain level over-weight, yes, health is about weight.

I will say that far, far, too many people use this line of thinking to give them selves some kind of positive spin, and false sense of how great they and their health is, when they are over-weight. A nice way to dismiss the whole obesity issue.
It is just human nature...

IMHO, my personal opinion... there is just nothing healthy about obesity.

 

[NFLDERS]

Anything that focuses on health is good!!!!
And, no, health isn't all about weight.
One can be thin and still have dangerously and critically high cholesterol levels or blood pressure. Or any other type of health issue.

But, I think it is pretty clear that when it comes to being a certain level over-weight, yes, health is about weight.

I will say that far, far, too many people use this line of thinking to give them selves some kind of positive spin, and false sense of how great they and their health is, when they are over-weight. A nice way to dismiss the whole obesity issue.
It is just human nature...

IMHO, my personal opinion... there is just nothing healthy about obesity.