Diet/Exercise/Health/Wellness Support Thread

[performersmom]

Food for thought:
Yesterday, my nutritionist (very pro-low carb) told me that exercise suppresses appetite in men and increases appetite in women, based on the grehlin response.
My own experience is the same: I get much hungrier after exercising- that was what we were discussing.
And it does make sense in an evolutionary way: In prehistoric times, men would hunt (exercise) when there was no food, so staving off hunger would be useful. Women (fully fertile ones with complete hormones and relatively inactive lifestyle compared to men) would move more when the food arrived, either the crops and berries/fruit or the game.

I looked up some research. I did find a bunch of studies to support this, but they are very small. And it does seem to depend on how obese the women are. Here is one I found: Effects of exercise on energy-regulating hormones and appetite in men and women

p.s. In 5 weeks of strict lo-carbing, I am down 12 pounds (9 pounds of fat, 3 of water and no muscle loss). My energy levels are getting better, so I am adding exercise in small quantities. My nutritionist agrees that I, while not diabetic, am probably too sensitive to carbs to play around much with adding them, for now, as I do have more to lose. I have long muscles which build quickly, adding girth and pounds (lean), so I have to be careful or I will actually get larger and heavier with exercise (but healthier). I also do get hungrier after exercise- need to follow with protein and water! BP was 119/78. Ketostix are what keep me going, with a weekly weighing and monthly impedance measurement. Next month I will also do body measurements.

This thread also helps motivate and inspire me, so thanks. Some day I will be using your fitness tips!
You are all very impressive folks- you go!

[VeryHappy]

Yes, we are wonderful, aren't we.

[interesteddad]

I am down 12 pounds (9 pounds of fat, 3 of water and no muscle loss).

That is awesome performersmom. I was never able to lose weight that quickly, but I was able to sustain it at a pretty steady rate.

I tend to eat less when I exercise, I think. Part of it is just being hot and sweaty, then recovering for a while afterwards. Somehow I tend to do a little less grazing. But, I also don't do a lot of long cardio sessions. And, I usually eat a big dinner shortly after working out.

I look at exercise more in terms of improving my fitness rather than burning calories and losing weight, per se. However, re-visualizing myself as a "fit" individual was hugely important in maintaining my fat losss, I think... Getting more fit was the payoff (along with fitting in my pants again!)

[VeryHappy]

New personal best (in terms of distance) on the treadmill today. I'm now doing two minutes of fast walk followed by two minutes of jog; rinse and repeat. Feeling good. Making progress.

[mommusic]

I went in for a small procedure at a local hospital today and at intake--all the workers were sitting on stability balls! Large green ones. I asked why they didn't have them for the patients--I totally would have enjoyed it!

Tho I suppose if you were REALLY sick or disabled you wouldn't be up to it.

[BCEagle91]

2 hours of tennis. Felt sluggish starting out. Also had cramps in my hand near the end. I have an invite for Sunday doubles so I'll have to rest up for that. Good activity levels here all around.

[interesteddad]

Episode 3 of the Univ. of California TV series on obesity has been posted. It is absolutey brilliant. Nobody should miss this one:

Episode 3

[Deborah T]

Hello, all. I'm trying to make sure to use good form for some of the exercises I do at home. I like some of the "How To Do..." YouTube videos featuring a Gold's Gym trainer because she's very good about explaining how to do the exercises properly. Someday I might move beyond my miniature weights so I figure it would be wise to learn how not to hurt myself.

Would love to hear your recommendations for good beginner at home workouts using no weights or very light weights. I have no doubt there are many great recommendations on this thread, but it's over 1000 pages long so a little daunting to figure out where to start. Plus it's always fun to get input from current participants, and these days it seems there are so many new videos available too. :-)

Thanks in advance.

[MomofWildChild]

Coach iDad will get you going! Welcome.

[performersmom]

Thanks for "feeding" us each new episode, Idad- yes, brilliant, so I want more!! (sound familiar... lol)
Being addicted to Lustig videos is better than being addicted to sugar, though.

[interesteddad]

DeborahT:

You are really smart to focus on good form from the outset. I don't always have the fitness to do every exercise perfectly, but I try to use decent technique. And, I stop when I get too wiped out in a set to maintain form.

There are several people that I turn to when I want to see good form, but not one source for everything. What exercises are you doing? I'll try to point you in the right direction.

Performersmom:

This week's episode really captured the essence of the whole carbohydrate/hormone driven fat storage hypothesis. If I could recommend one 8 minute video for someone struggling with weight to watch, this one would be it. To me, it's so important to let overweight insulin resistant people know that it's not their fault and that, if they make the changes fix their hormonal balance, they can shed the pounds and get fit. The belief that "I'm bad because I can't quit smoking or stop eating so much...." is such a negative motivation.

[interesteddad]

Well, I punched the clock with my workout tonight. I didn't really have a lot in the tank, but I plodded my way through a decent workout. Did two sets of iPod nazi's little circuit for the core. I'm getting better at a couple of those. Stability ball mountain climber knee drives were good.

Chin ups were good again today. I feel like I've made some real strides on those. Not in terms of doing more of them, but in terms of doing them a lot better/stronger. I was really feeling the abs today on the chinups.

[notrichenough]

Went to the British Beer Company for dinner tonight, which is a local chain here in MA that is supposedly modeled after English pubs.

I did not get fish and chips, bangers and mash, onion rings, a burger, a poggwich, a pizza, or anything with cheddar mashed potatoes.

I got a salad with some steak tips on top. And one beer.

Not sure whether to pat myself on the back, or cry. Maybe both.

[Bromfield]

First week in a long time where I've had 3 days off. Felt tired and just had too much going on. I think taking a redeye home from CA got me. I figured I'd save a day of travel and instead I was wiped out for two days after the trip.

[blankmind]

Now I really want fish and chips.