<p>Yeah, I’ll give spinning a try. I do a lot of biking in the warm weather (not now!) so maybe I’ll like it.
Interesting, I read an article a while back about how those obsessive aerobic dance exercisers may have damaged their bodies in the 80s. Well count me in. I was addicted…sometimes doing two or three classes in one night. Then I took up running for years. Now my knee is shot. My back hurts. My hips and hamstrings are crazy tight. </p>
<p>So yeah, something that doesn’t involve jumping around and waving my hands over my head to music sounds like it might be a better match for me…lol.</p>
<p>CF, the difference here is that alphabetizing your shoes isn’t critical to enjoying a longer, higher quality life.</p>
<p>This thread was started by someone who wanted support in figuring out a diet/exercise regime to be healthier. I’m just passing on knowledge I paid a lot of money and dedicated a lot of time to get in hopes it will help others. I’m fully aware everyone is not going to do this. </p>
<p>My trainer says he can pretty much tell during his first meeting with a client if they have the attitude and discipline to achieve their stated goals. He also tells me the vast majority don’t.</p>
<p>My kitchen is currently a total mess but I’ve done my workout:)</p>
<p>hmom5, I get that if I were just like your perfect self I would have a better life. But I’m not. Contemplating the wonderfulness of the life I’d have at age 75 is not enough to deflect my hand from the cheesecake sitting in front of me to the bran-tofu-stevia surprise. That does not work for me. I need to find a regime that will work for me. Exhortations that I should be something I’m not do not count as supportive in my book.</p>
<p>And if your personal trainer fails with the vast majority of his clients, then he’s a pretty poor personal trainer.</p>
<p>well, Hmom I think your tips have been very helpful…even if I’m not going to adopt all of them.
We pick and choose what works. Yes everyone is different but I DO like hearing how everyone is coping with expanding waists, creaky joints and the like…</p>
<p>So why are you on this thread? There are no miracles, this does take work and learning to eat healthy food. No judgment on my part if you’re not interested in doing it, but the majority on this thread seem to be willing to put in some effort.</p>
<p>My trainer is in fact an excellent trainer, but he’s not able to control whether clients want to put in the effort and get over the hump of the hard part–learning to like a little tofu and being willing to dedicate a few hours per week. </p>
<p>All you have to do to understand that a lot of folks won’t put in the effort is to go to a local health club the first week in January when it will be packed and then go back in March when it will be far less crowded. This is not the club’s fault.</p>
<p>As I said in an earlier post, you either have the self motivation to do this with sacrifices involved, you can wait for a health scare to get real about it or you can blissfully eat all the cheesecake you want–my opinion should not matter a bit, it’s all up to you.</p>
<p>I’m on this thread to offer the counterpoint to you, hmom5. I keep fit without torturing myself, by using my strengths, doing things I like to do, and making it more difficult for myself to do things I don’t want to have done.</p>
<p>Then why don’t you start by making a list of what you can do?</p>
<p>I’ve lost about 8 lb. over the past 3 months simply by adding one thing to my daily routine: walking the dog. </p>
<p>[This is because I recently got a new dog – my old, departed, dog was blind and arthritic, and mostly had to be dragged from one spot to another — but she went away to doggie heaven and in her place I acquired a new puppy who taught me the meaning of the phrase, “bichon blitz”. The dog NEEDS to go out on a walk every day or she tears up the house. Even if I want to sit at home starting at my computer screen, the dog will nag me until I get up and get the leash]</p>
<p>My walks are not particularly long – maybe 3/4 of a mile on average – and not particularly fast – but they do get me outside and on my feet every day of the week, rain or shine – and my guess is that was enough to raise my metabolism and lead to shedding the few extra pounds.</p>
<p>OP here. I do appreciate all you have shared here, hmom. </p>
<p>I know I am never going to like tofu or raw almonds and will probably never buy stevia or agave. I have consciously tried to watch what I am eating these past few weeks and after not seeing any weight loss at all am finally starting to see the scale move. I notice I have not been doing things like buying snack sized almond joys at the grocery during lunch and eating the entire bag during times of peak stress in one afternoon. I don’t even want to anymore. </p>
<p>I was feeling pretty discouraged this morning as it seemed the thread was turning into the “I hate to exercise” thread. I am not a great athlete, never was, probably won’t be. But who knows? I’ll never find out without trying. </p>
<p>So can we get back to the helpful advice and suggestions for healthy eating and exercise and stop arguing? Thanks, all.</p>
<p>Moderation is the key to success…strict rules and guidelines don’t work for the majority of us who are trying in small ways to improve their health. Some of us are more the tortoise than the hare. I know I will never choke down oatmeal, tofu or yogurt…never liked it when I was thin and still don’t like it now. But I have not had red meat for years and loved the switch to whole grains. I believe in the slow but steady approach and actually eating things that taste good. I don’t believe you have to make “sacrifices” to be healthy. I used to play competitive tennis until a cerebral hemorrhage sidelined me. Still haven’t found something I love but I keep trying! Mainly just walked until I tore my meniscus this past summer. Recovery has been SLOW but am now doing mall walking…ahhh…retail therapy and health…perfect combination!</p>
<p>I think it’s important to note that everyone is in a different place when it comes to healthy eating/fitness. It’s important to run your own race (no pun intended). Make incremental changes and seek to find new ways to eat healthier and get more activity in a way that will work for you.</p>
<p>To follow up on the “what you can do post” – I am about 5’5" and 6 years ago I weighed about 200 lb. Now I weigh about 132. I lost about 70 lb. in 18 months following a diet plan of my own devising, that consisted largely of my inventing new “rules” that I imposed on myself. </p>
<p>One thing I did was identified all of the fattening or unhealthy foods that I personally could do without. For example, I was willing to give up Krispy Kreme donuts, forever. That was easy enough – I didn’t have to go to Krispy Kremes to buy them, and I don’t happen to own a Krispy Kreme food replicator in my house. So right there is a start. </p>
<p>You mentioned cheesecake. Is there any cheesecake in your house? There shouldn’t be. If it’s not in your house, it won’t tempt you.</p>
<p>But what if you encounter cheesecake at other places where it is available for free? Such as a buffet luncheon? </p>
<p>Here’s another tip: if you are invited out to an event where there is sure to be a lot of finger food to snack and munch on, eat at home before you go. (Eat healthy food at home, of course.). Then when you get to the event where all the other food is, you won’t be very hungry.</p>
<p>Leading to my last tip of the day: The smaller you cut the slice of cheesecake, the less fat and calories it has. So if you can’t or won’t give it up – you can at least get into the habit of eating smaller pieces of it. If you are at a party with 3 types of delicious cake and you want to try them all – then slice yourself very, very thin pieces, and fill up the rest of your plate with fresh fruit. Then eat the cake in small bite, very slowly. Now you have been able to enjoy every delicious bite of every flavor offered, but instead of taking in 800 calories, maybe you’ve only taken in 250 calories. (I realize my calorie count may be way off, but the point isn’t my numbers but the principal. Fruit is high in natural sugars and calories, but also high in fiber, so the net calories are less. In general, your body will absorb fewer calories from stuff eaten raw than stuff that has been cooked or refined.)</p>
<p>Here’s something else I figured out recently when overcome by the desire for fresh brownies. It is an alternative way of baking brownies – it requires 1 can of black beans and 1 box of brownie mix. </p>
<p>Drain the black beans and then add enough water back into the can of beans to cover them – then put the whole mess in a blender and puree them. Then add the black bean puree to the brownie mix, and don’t add anything else. (NO butter or eggs, just black beans and mix). Stir & bake as usual. </p>
<p>It’s amazing, but you can’t taste the beans in the brownies. The brownies come out a little “fudgier”, less cakey – but they are delicious. They are still loaded with calories, but a lot less fat and a lot more fiber. (More fiber = good for you plus slows ability of your body to absorb the calories, because your body has to work harder to digest everything).</p>
<p>for those of you who want to continue to eat beef…try grass fed. Yeah, it’s more expensive but just buy less and pair it with lots of veggies and grains. </p>
<ul>
<li>Grass-fed beef has a lower total fat content than grain-fed beef. In fact, it is even lower than commercial chicken!</li>
</ul>
<p>-The grass-fed meat has 2 - 4 times the amount of Omega 3 Fatty Acids. </p>
<p>-Meat from grass-fed cattle is one of the best sources of Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA). CLA is another one of those good fats for the body.</p>
<p>-Finally, grass-fed cattle are also higher in Vitamin E, which is linked to a lower risk of heart disease.</p>
<p>On the exercise front, I like to follow a plan so I can see progress. I just finished week five of a couch potato to 5k running program and picked up a book at the library today with a 30 day plan for weights. I get bored easily so having a guides for what my workout will look like each day is helpful.</p>
<p>I’m no good on the moderation thing. I tend to fall off the wagon the way an alcoholic might after a single drink so it is actually easier for me to be all or nothing on food. When I do indulge, I have to mentally prepare myself that my decision will be followed by intense cravings for about three days while I go through sugar withdrawal symptoms. My body is probably missing some key enzyme or something.</p>
<p>Great advice, calmom! And congrats to you for sticking to your method!</p>
<p>An ounce of food cut in small pieces and eaten slowly is more filling than the same ounce of the same food wolfed down in one piece. There is physiological explanation to this phenomenon.</p>
<p>Yes, great idea. Here are some things I can do, and plan to do, to get rid of those six pounds which made their unwelcome appearance this holiday season, and maybe a few of their fatty friends:</p>
<p>Eat breakfast every morning to prevent that afternoon/evening ravenous feeling that makes me eat what I shouldn’t. Whoever suggested oatmeal, thanks. I’ve been having oatmeal with frozen strawberries, yogurt and a little honey. I’m not so fond of plain oatmeal, but with added stuff, I like it. Oddly, I like the strawberries best still mostly frozen.</p>
<p>Have a salad with dinner every night. I love salad.</p>
<p>Find some tasty meatless, cheeseless recipes. Make them. Suggestions?</p>
<p>Lead two rides a month for my bike club. I have to go on the ride if I’m the leader.</p>
<p>Ride once or twice a week with my biking friend. We catch up on our kids – unfortunately lots of bad news for both of us lately :(-- while we ride. Therapy and exercise at the same time.</p>
<p>Do one biking overnight a month. This month, I rode over the mountain to visit a good friend who lives on the other side, and stayed overnight at her house. Next month I’ll camp out somewhere. </p>
<p>Get Wii Fit. Use the yoga program.</p>
<p>When I have spaghetti, use Bionaturae whole wheat spaghetti. Other whole wheat pastas I’ve tried are horrible, but Bionaturae actually tastes good.</p>
<p>Okay, I’m gagging here at the thought of black bean brownies. Maybe that in itself is enough to keep one away from brownies…whenever you want one, imagine they are full of whole, Mexican-seasoned black beans. (Only kidding - I’m sure they’re fine. However, I made a chocolate cake with pumpkin instead of oil as suggested on this board and I was the only one in the house who would eat it.)</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>My H is a stay at home dad who will not give up his two hour a day workout for anything. I’d be so happy if he’d switch to one hour a day and a cleaner house!</p>
<p>I wouldn’t eat the black bean brownies either, nor do I like the baked goods made with applesauce or pumpkin instead of butter and eggs. People sometimes say, you won’t be able to tell the difference! Yes I will.</p>
<p>But I can limit my consumption of brownies to once or twice a month or whatever, and the rest of the time have something that is naturally tasty but not so calorie-dense, like fruit.</p>
I know I will never choke down oatmeal, tofu or yogurt…never liked it when I was thin and still don’t like it now. But I have not had red meat for years and loved the switch to whole grains. I believe in the slow but steady approach and actually eating things that taste good. I don’t believe you have to make “sacrifices” to be healthy. I used to play competitive tennis until a cerebral hemorrhage sidelined me. Still haven’t found something I love but I keep trying! Mainly just walked until I tore my meniscus this past summer. Recovery has been SLOW but am now doing mall walking…ahhh…retail therapy and health…perfect combination!</p>