SHIP OF FOOLS SISTERHOOD - Strong & Healthy in 2005!!!

[invaderzim]

PamPat . . .

Hi and welcome. I, too, just found this site and I agree, it is inspirational.

I can relate to the diabetes thing -- I have been warned once already by my doctor. Sweets and especially chocolate and ice cream are my down fall.

I lost 22 pounds before my cruise last year, but put 8 back on during the cruise. However, I am still down about 13 pounds -- so am trying to forge on and lost that other 30. I think I'm going to join back up with Curves. I lost 11 inches doing that last time -- it really does help you feel firmer, it's just hard to force yourself to go during those weeks when you really don't want to.

Thank you all for the warm reception -- and good luck to everyone!

 

[pampat]

An interesting point: when Allan and I did the East bound Carib. 7 Day Disney Magic 2003, we both managed to lose 7lbs! We were very hot and really didn't feel like eating much, plus we were so busy. We attended all the talks, lectures, dancing lessons, etc., etc. It was great!! Hope we do the same this time!

 

[winotracy]

Again this was not a good week with WW for me. I'm back to 10# to goal We're trying more working out, but after 50 minutes the last two days (two sessions, 30 min and 20 min each), I'm getting sore. I have switched to flex points for this week and writing everything down. Hopefully next week will be better.

WW topic for the week: Exercise!

There are three types of exercise:

Aerobic: cardiovascular; uses large muscle groups in repetitive fashion
Stretching: flexibility, elasticity of tendons and joints
Resistance: increase (or minimize loss of) muscle mass

Aerobics burns calories, stretching makes you flexible so you can continue to perform aerobics. Resistance training makes you stronger and makes aerobics more efficient and effective.

What is resistance training? using bands, weights, etc. and perform reps of a particular motion or exercise to build muscle or minimize the loss of muscle mass. Having more muscle burns more calories which means more weight loss. When you muscles are toned, you look better. Two people of the same height and weight where one is toned, the toned body will appear to weigh less. Resistance training also helps to strengthen bones. This will help to prevent osteoporosis.

If you simply restrict your caloric intake without adding activity, you will lose muscle not fat, because your body is not very efficient.

 

[Lisa F]

Hi everyone. Is there room for one more over here too? I only pop into WISH rarely because I'm pretty busy but I'm hoping this cruise can be some motivation for me as well. I have a LOT to lose though, so no one snicker at me in my bathing suit!

I've been fighting hypothyroidism for the last several years resulting in the horrible irony of being able to gain weight while dieting. After many frustrating years and many frustrating doctors all telling me essentially that I must be lying to myself, I got a referral to an endocrinologist who has just about saved my life by giving me a proper diagnosis. Unfortunately the progress is still very slow going, have a LOT to lose and a 1 lb loss in a week is a very good loss for me so it's going to take a while... but slower is better, right? It's just frustrating that with so much to lose, at this rate it is going to take years to take the weight off, but then it took me years to put it on.

My goal before the cruise is to exercise every single day for 30 minutes. Before I got on my thyroid meds and saw a nutritionist I used to exercise for an hour a day 4-5 days a week but apparently that makes my body go crazy and actually hold onto fat rather than burn it. I'm hoping that with lots of little meals and smaller amounts of regular exercise that I can train my body to not spaz out and build up to being able to do a longer workout without it having the opposite effect on me.

So it would be nice to have a place to check in on progress!

 

[sandygirl]

Tracy invited me over here, thank you Tracy.
I'm a mess. But I'm trying to make changes sure but slow to improve my overall health. Pounds really don't mean much to me anymore. I want to be active and healthy without aches, pains and fatigue. Which is hard with fibromyalgia. Most of the time I don't even mention the "f" word because I don't like to be defined by a condition. But it does play a significant role in my steady weight gain over the past few years.

I quit smoking cold turkey when I found out I was pregnant with Sandy. But I really can't use pregnancy as an excuse, even though I was high-risk and bedridden at the end. What's my excuse for the past 6-7 years? I eat too much and don't exercise. Plain and simple.

So for the past few days I have kept a log of everything I put in my mouth. It works so far because I don't want to write down "1 box of Girl Scout Cookies" so I don't eat ANY. I have increased my water intake (and also my trips to the ladies room!). Now I need to get moving.

So, that's where I am. Thanks for the encouragement you all offer each other here. I'll check in again. Hang in there everyone!

Darlene

 

[eye R.N.]

We can always use a few more sisters

I can (fianally) report a loss this week. 2lbs. The tape measure is moving in the right direction also. So it has been a good week.

On the downside, I have managed to wake up with a cold after going to swim class last night (why did I ever think a swim class in the winter was a good idea ) I hope all the OJ doesn't undo a weeks worth of hard work. Right now it's an effort to even type, let alone think about working out.

 

[mississaugamom]

Great to see new members here! Welcome, Sisters!

Dee - hope you're feeling better soon. I've had the same cold off and on since December.

Darlene - Great job on quitting smoking "cold turkey"! If only it were possible to quit eating "cold turkey". Unfortunately, I like cold turkey, especially with cranberry sauce Congratulations to you on drinking more water and writing everything down. Sometimes a visual list of what we're eating can help us make changes.

Lisa - You have my complete sympathy!!!! I also have hypothyroidism and the same unique knack of not losing weight on almost any diet! It's a very discouraging feeling to eat exactly what you're supposed to, exercise, and lose nothing. Then I get discouraged, eat whatever I want (bag of chips, McDonalds, etc) and still maintain the same weight. It feels as if my body fights to protect its' overweight status and shuts down my metabolism to protect itself. Once I return to bad eating habits, it can relax and process "normally" allowing me to remain as overweight as ever.

I've been trying weight watchers since January, and have lost only 3 lbs. (Same three I gained at Christmas and lost in January.) Just to shake things up again, I'm starting Phase 1 of the South Beach Diet on Monday. We'll see how that goes.

I'm hoping that regular exercise and persistence in sticking to a healthy eating plan will help me to lose some (although I'll be NOWHERE near goal by this cruise.) The support here is great, and I can promise you that NONE of the Sisters would ever snicker at another in a bathing suit. Good for you for wearing one and getting on with enjoying your life!

Keep checking in, everyone. I need the support and motivation from everyone - even when success seems to be far away.

Arlene

 

[disneydudette1]

OK...I found you all. Goal: lose 50# by cruise time although would be happy with losing the 30 I have gained. I lost just under 70# almost 3 years ago on WW but have gained 30 back.
I am trying to start but as you all know the dentist isn't helping much...living on ice cream and pudding every 2 weeks. Any idea's on "low ww points" soft non chewy food? Don't like fish. That's a shame because I could gum fish.

HELP!

 

[winotracy]

do you like protein shakes or smoothies? there's always room for Jello too. Other than that, I'll see what I can come up with. Soup is usually low point except for cream based soups. Good luck. Hopefully the dental work is over now!

Tracy

 

[Denine]

Welcome to our new sisters!

We got back from Hilton Head late Friday night. We went for walks and bike riding and had all around family fun.

We tried to be good with our points. I hope it worked. I will find out on Wednesday.

 

[disneydudette1]

do you like protein shakes or smoothies? there's always room for Jello too. Other than that, I'll see what I can come up with. Soup is usually low point except for cream based soups. Good luck. Hopefully the dental work is over now!

Tracy

I thought about some smoothies...will have to look for a recipe book. Amazon is across the street from work...7 pts for a large one. Soups are good also but then you practically starve. At least with the lower point ones. Unfortunately the dental work will continue at least through March with 1 more root canal and more extractions. All in the back so no chewing. Haven't neglected the teeth just bad genes.

 

[pampat]

Sandygirl, how refreshing to actually see someone else admit that the reason they are overweight is because they eat too much and dislike exercise. That is exactly the reason for my weight problems. I am greedy and I am lazy. Wow, this is like an AA meeting - my name is Pam and I'm a foodaholic. Is the sisterhood part of a 12 step programme for us? You are all very encouraging and supportive of one another. I have just spent the evening sewing (mad on cross stitch) and eating chocolate bars! I've not eaten choc for ages and had lost my taste for it, but I'm pre-menstrual and can't stop cramming it in my mouth. Help me!!

I'm going to bed to get out of the way of food. I don't know what else to do.

 

[sandygirl]

Thanks, Pam. And I am an avid cross-stitcher. I find it so relaxing and only wish I had more time to do it.

I went food shopping today and tried to pay attention to labels. What an eye-opener! I put quite a few items right back on the shelf when I saw the calories and fats and sodium levels. Awful! Of course I saved money at the checkout because my cart was not as full.

It's funny that you should be discussing creamed soups. They are twice as many calories as a broth based soup. Totally amazed me at the big difference. So, the creamed broccoli and creamed tomato didn't make it into the cart. But the Vegetable beef and regular tomato did. The Pop Tarts (a personal favorite comfort food) also stayed on the shelf. I did grieve that choice!

I told my sister yesterday that I don't FEEL as big as I am. But, boy, let me see a photo of myself and I say "who IS that person?".

Darlene

 

[Lisa F]

Arlene, I'm not sure if you already know this stuff but I had a very eye-opening meeting with a nutritionist after getting my initial diagnosis and her suggestions SEEM to make a big difference. It's sort of my feeling that these suggestions might work for just about anyone but especially for people who are hypothyroid. I know that I GAINED weight by doing the opposite (and could never figure out why I was gaining on only 1200-1600 calories a day while exercising) but it was because I would skip meals and forget to eat and consume all of those calories in 1-2 meals.

Basically when your metabolism is wacked out your body always thinks it is starving and therefore is always storing what you eat as fat. She said that it's not uncommon for people who are hypothyroid to "forget to eat" because their metabolism is so supressed. Believe me, if you look at me you would think I have never missed a meal in my life, but I do. Her suggestion was to eat at least 5 and as many as 7 small meals a day. Breakfast, snack, lunch, snack, dinner, snack, snack (If I am up late working, which I tend to be). These are not large "meals" of course, breakfast is generally oatmeal made with milk, snacks are generally some kind of fruit + protein... an apple and a tblsp of natural peanut butter, a cheese stick and some grapes, veggies dipped in hummus are pretty much my favorites. She recommended popcorn as a good snack too and hubby and I will share a bag of healthy pop (I think) kettle korn made with splenda, so the same calories as air pop. I eat the kernels one at a time and drink a bottle or two of water with it and I'm stuffed for the rest of the night.

She also suggested that I not exercise so much, at least not in one day. My habit before was to do at least 45-90 minutes a day every other day. Even though I FELT fine (heart rate in the target, can have a conversation while exercising, over time my resting heart rate did go down) this, too, can give your body the wrong signals about it being in stress and causing it to hold onto calories. I did Curves for 6 months with barely a change in inches when I was doing double and triple workouts (just because it's a pain for me to get there so I tried to load up when I was there). Her suggestion was a half hour a day, every day. It's too soon to see if this will really work since I just started seriously last tuesday and made it every day last week (except for yesterday, I am fighting this awful cold and decided to try to sleep it off while I had the chance). So far I have lost 4.6 lbs this week (weigh in day tomorrow) but I'm sure that most of that is water weight. After the initial water is gone, a 1 lb loss in a week (rather than 0.2 or something that I gain back the next week) is a REALLY good loss for me, which is frustrating since I have so much to lose.

So hopefully some of that will be helpful. We are snowed in and I hope to make it to curves today but if not I have my 30 minute walk away the pounds dvd. I'm actually getting used to doing "only" 30 minutes, it's over before I know it.

Lisa

 

[Denine]

Lisa: that sounds like good advice. Even though the tests show I am not hypoglycemic, I have a very slow metabolism. I would go all day and not eat much but then I would eat in the evening. May be the same amount of calories as now, but now it is spread over the course of the day. I do 30 minutes a day on the treadmill, but that is all I have time for.

I also love cross stitch and haven't been able to do it in about 2 years. Hopefully, when Kaleigh is older I can get back to it. I need to finish Cinderella's castle!

 

[Mom2Belle&PeterPan]

Welcome all our new Sisters, glad you all have found our thread! Thank you for the many helpful contributions and sharing too.

Here is an article to read for this week. "What is an optimal diet?"

http://health.discovery.com/centers/nutritionfitness/nutrition/articles/dietmyths/optimal.html

***Edited to add: Check this out! "How Many Calories Does THIS use up?"

http://health.discovery.com/tools/calculators/activity/activity.html

Also, I've been reminded this past week of the importance of cutting out high sugar and junk foods. They cause imbalances in blood glucose levels, thus cause more food cravings. Keep trying to balance all foods, making sure to get the good complex carbohydrates in each day. Also, cardio plus weight training will keep these balances as well as begin to decrease one's fat cells and rev up one's metabolism.

Kudos to all of you with special health difficulties! They are great tips for the rest of us...my metabolism seems to be at an all time low, but I have not had it tested. So, thank you for the great eating tips! Makes good sense for all of us!

Keep working at it! It's a journey...not an easy one, but one that is worth it for our long term health and overall self-esteem.

Take care everyone,

Barbara

 

[disneydudette1]

For those of our new Sisters, we have a thread going for:

SHIP OF FOOLS SISTERHOOD - Strong & Healthy in 2005!!!

***Anybody have a good recommendation for a fun, easy-to-follow low impact aerobics DVD? I would be eternally grateful for some good recommendations!

Thanks!

Barbara

Back when I was faithfully exercising I would alternate 1 day Sweatin' to the Oldies...fun and nice to see big people exercising, and Pilates...you know, the one with the infommercial on at 4AM. Love the 20 minute Pilates, tolerated the aerobics. I will get back to it I promise!!!

BarbarTHought this might get buried on the other thread so I put it here also .

 

[Lisa F]

I just wanted to check in as this is my first official week's weigh in. My desire to exercise every day was cut short by a nasty cold this past weekend. I could barely catch my breath going upstairs (normally not a problem) so I figured working out would not be the smartest thing in the world to do. I can't even take a decongestant because of my thyroid issues so I just have to suffer, boo hoo.

Anyway, I lost 5.2 lbs this week! I know a lot of that is water weight but I'll take it. Now the real work begins, the true test for me will be whether I can actually continue to lose weight at a somewhat steady rate. I'd be thrilled with a 1 lb/week average (not counting this first week!) and 2 lb/week would be a miracle. I do have a lot to lose but it's a start.

Lisa

edited to add: I, too, loved the sweatin' tapes but my current favorite is Leslie Sansone Walk Away the Pounds. The music is not as much fun, it's just a beat, but everything feels more controlled and targeted to me.

 

[winotracy]

Outstanding Lisa!

 

[pampat]

Lisa, brilliant. And how wonderful that you are not setting yourself unrealistic goals. We have a TV programme over here, Celebrity Fit CLub, where d list celebs enter a fitness and weight loss programme. They are given totally unrealistic goals of 9lbs over 2 weeks to lose and then, when they 'only' lose 6lbs, they are told they are a failure. It makes my blood boil.

Good on you girl, onwards and upwards and I'll be motivated by you.

Does anyone else have a notation at the bottom of their typing box for posting that says "increase size" and "decrease size"? How very appropriate!