<p>Those little gold cherry tomatoes are addictive. I also recommend purple bush beans: straight off the plant, they are delectable.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Never drink sugary soft drinks. Have never eaten a whole container of ice cream in my life. Haven’t eaten chips in several years. Haven’t eaten cookies in several years, and prior to that never in my life ate a whole package or anything close to it. Never go to the Olive Garden, and although I adore pasta have not had more than 2 oz dry on an occasional basis in the last few years. Alcohol, I plead guilty to. I also plead guilty to eating too fast. But I know I do it, and since I can’t seem to stop, instead I serve myself a smaller portion and make myself wait 10 or 15 minutes to see if I really am still hungry.</p>
<p>Nevertheless, I have struggled with my weight all my life. (For the record, I have never been actually “obese.”) Of course, I look back on when I thought I was “too fat” at the same height in my teens or 20s and devoutly wish I weighed that now!</p>
<p>I find that a lot of people who have never had weight issues just do not know what the hell they are talking about, frankly. I was recently reading a novel where the author described a teenage girl as being <em>hugely</em> obese. Then, a few pages later, she said the girl was 50 lbs overweight. Since she didn’t say the girl was a midget, let’s assume she was 5’4". Let’s assume she weighed about 175 lbs. That girl IS NOT hugely obese in the manner described. She doesn’t even have to wear actual “plus sized” clothes. I’ve read other books where the author goes on an on about what a huge bruiser a woman is, and then it turns out she weighs 145 lbs. Give me a break. This nonsense is part of the reason that women develop the feeling that nothing is ever good enough, and the reason why many just give up.</p>
<p>CCC, the foods you chose to eat were generally healthy foods, but no one can say “how you did” unless they know how much of them you ate and what was in them. You can continue to just make some different choices and hope that you lose weight. That might work for you. In my experience, it only works for people who are naturally slim and active and can easily knock off 3 or 4 lbs by consciously cutting back for a few weeks. I can tell you that I have mightily resisted the food diary thing myself. But it is the ONLY thing that ends up really working well for me at this point. And I plan to keep using it to develop good maintenance eating/exercise habits, which for me are far more difficult than weight loss and the key to the whole thing.</p>
<p>Here’s a site with actual pictures of actual humans by height/weight:</p>
<p>[Photographic</a> Height/Weight Chart - Body Size Gallery](<a href=“http://www.cockeyed.com/photos/bodies/heightweight.html]Photographic”>http://www.cockeyed.com/photos/bodies/heightweight.html)</p>
<p>And here’s 5’4, 180:</p>
<p>[Photographic</a> Height/Weight Chart - 5’ 4", 180 lbs., BMI:31](<a href=“http://www.cockeyed.com/photos/bodies/504-180.html]Photographic”>http://www.cockeyed.com/photos/bodies/504-180.html)</p>
<p>And 5’4", 170:</p>
<p>[Photographic</a> Height/Weight Chart - 5’ 4", 170 lbs., BMI:29](<a href=“http://www.cockeyed.com/photos/bodies/504-170.html]Photographic”>http://www.cockeyed.com/photos/bodies/504-170.html)</p>
<p>Yep. Those women look, to me, a bit overweight, but I would certainly not describe them as hugely obese. And they should not be thinking of themselves as hugely obese. They’re attractive women with curves.</p>
<p>When I am in full healthy eating trying to lose a few lbs mode I have a reboot on Monday AM plan. I find that I usually get back on track earlier but that seems to help keep me focused.
I also give myself the weekend off. That doesn’t mean going hog wild but allowing myself the foods that aren’t waist line healthy for my body type. That usually means one meal out where I will indulge. Bread with my sandwich, good fries from the local cafe or chips and salsa at the local mexican place.
I can’t have trigger food in my house. The last few weeks I have been on a stress eating binge. Bread and sugar. I had brought some chocolate chip mandlebrot cookies. I ate the entire bag in one day. The next time at the grocery store as much as I craved them I knew I could not buy them. I do keep ice cream in the freezer. It doesn’t satify me in the same way as a cookie or brownie and I find it easy to just have a tiny bit.
I gave up pasta almost 2 yrs ago. I don’t miss it and I find on the rare occasion I do make it I don’t need a whole lot to fill full. Nor does it hit me the same way. I can have it but not need or want it. Eliminating pasta has only been possible since the nest emptied.</p>
<p>CountingDown, there is no way I would be able to fit into 90% of that stuff or look good in 95% of that stuff either (or better yet - afford 99% of that NM stuff! :)), but they magically reduce my desire to eat junk.</p>
<p>Health reasons are very, very important. At close to 150 pounds (5’ 6"), I was not considered overweight by our standards and could even fit into some Euro designer clothes. I was generally healthy with only minor health issues like an occasional heartburn, but I was amazed what losing 25 pounds meant for me - no more heartburn, not even a single episode in the past couple of years! Do I want to rediscover the joys of chewing on Tums? Absolutely not! The ability to wear hugely discounted Gucci dresses is just an extra bonus that I can live without.</p>
<p>When I said my staff members were obese- I meant obese. Not a little overweight. Obese. Unfortunately, they still are and are having lots of health problems as they are aging.</p>
<p>Wasn’t thinking of your story, MOWC. I see morbidly obese people all the time, and frankly wonder how they got that way and how they cope with it. It really is astonishing how many people are that large. </p>
<p>Of course, all those little birdlike women probably look at me and wonder the same thing.:)</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I’m 5’4" and average / medium build. I don’t have to get all the way up to plus-size clothing to be appreciably heavier than I should be. I was up to a size 12. That’s simply bigger than I should be given my build (which is not to say that other people my height with different builds couldn’t do so), but c’mon - I’m not that tall.</p>
<p>I think we can all agree that someone who is 5’4", 175 is appreciably heavier than she should be. But that doesn’t mean she is an enormous cow who can’t fit through doorways. She deserves, and we all deserve, accurate body images.</p>
<p>I remember having a physical when I was 19. I was a collegiate swimmer, broadshouldered, with a butterflier’s muscles, and this was the beginning of the summer after a season of swimming. The nurse looked at my height and weight (not me) and hinted that I needed to lose weight. And I believed her! That was ridiculous. I was fine. (And much taller and lighter than our hypothetical 5’4" 175 woman).</p>
<p>A woman who is 5’4" 175 is overweight, and no one should doubt it. But she’s not morbidly obese, and it’s not going to help in any way to convince her that she is.</p>
<p>Well, I have to say that this discussion of whether 5’4" and 175 is an issue or not is monumentally depressing. I’m 5’3" and I weighed more than that not that long ago (within the last year)–and a LOT more than than that in 2004, when I got the first poodle (the one who saved my life). But here’s the thing: I walk a lot (my Fitbit says I do 100K steps most weeks), I can bike 20 miles without wanting to die, my blood pressure is low, my resting pulse is in the 50s, my cholesterol is great, and my blood sugar is fine. </p>
<p>Can we not talk about LOOKS and instead talk about HEALTH?</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Applause, applause!</p>
<p>^^^clapping hands :)</p>
<p>Lets face it. Everyone posting on this thread and is coming in. All shapes, sizes and poundage. Shouldwe all start our post listing our weight, height and waist size?? I didn’t think so. Everyone of all sizes an have suggestions/ opinions but some people are interested cause they want to go from a size 8 to a size 6 and some would be thrilled to go from a size 18 toa size 16.</p>
<p>It’s all relative . What important is the benefit of eating Better for health and I will add - for feeling good about yourself- no matter what your size at the moment.</p>
<p>As I mentioned in my previous post, I really did not need to lose weight if vanity was the only issue. The extra 25 pounds I carried around were causing a few problems that I was not even aware were weight-related. It was an eye opener for me!</p>
<p>Another personal anecdotal weight related health observation. As soon as Mr B gained 5 pounds above his “steady-state” weight, his BP went a notch up (confirmed by daily readings). As soon as he got rid of them, his BP returned to normal readings. Only 5 pounds!!!</p>
<p>I won’t lie, though – feeling better is great, but looking better is fun, too! I’m wearing types of clothing I haven’t worn in the past now that I’m more toned, and I’m planning a splurge once I hit my goal (which is still well within the healthy range, I am not going to turn into a waif by any stretch of the imagination).</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>That is why weight is not a very good individual assessment of whether one is obese or has the health risks of obesity. One can get healthier while getting heavier with muscle.</p>
<p>A better way of checking your risk of obesity health risks is to use your waist divided by your height. It should be half or less.</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.ashwell.uk.com/images/2012%20Ashwell%20Gunn%20and%20Gibson%20%20Ob%20Revs.pdf[/url]”>http://www.ashwell.uk.com/images/2012%20Ashwell%20Gunn%20and%20Gibson%20%20Ob%20Revs.pdf</a></p>
<p>I think you and I were similar, Bunsen. My weight was OK and I didn’t think it was a huge problem. My cholesterol was higher than it should be, but much of that is genetic. Once I lost the 30 pounds, which was motivated by my daughter’s upcoming wedding and the desire to look a little slimmer in pictures, the cholesterol dropped a good bit and my running improved considerably. I’m not at the running weight I was when I was 30, but I’m within 7 or so pounds and have better upper body strength than I did back then when no one cross-trained.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I’m sorry, dmd. But that was in fact my point. One reason why I love that site Cardinal Fang gave the link to. There is too much emphasis on women’s weight and women’s sizes in general. Health is the most important thing (although a little vanity isn’t bad either). 
</p>
<p>I must say that when I lost weight, I also lost heartburn, which was a great thing. And I enjoyed fitting into my old clothes again, and buying new ones. Right at the moment I’m working to fit back into some of the new ones. My regaining weight had to do with injury and with depression. Getting that under some kind of control was the most important thing of all. It’s far from ideal, but it’s a LOT better. Health is all.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>By now, everyone should know that clothing label size is not a reliable guide of anything, including the size of the clothing the label is attached to. Even men’s clothing, which has sizes that are supposed to be actual measurements, do not have reliable sizing: [Pants</a> Size Chart - Mens Pant Sizes by Brand - Esquire](<a href=“http://www.esquire.com/blogs/mens-fashion/pants-size-chart-090710]Pants”>Pants Size Chart - Mens Pant Sizes by Brand)</p>
<p>Delete (moved content over to D/E/H/W). Argh! Wrong thread. Sorry!</p>
<p>How did I get to morbidly obese (in no particular order):
- daily chemo drug which causes weight gain
- antidepressants because I was on chemo (required under my treatment protocol)
- polycystic ovarian syndrome which ties into metabolic syndrome
- too much food (I was not eating tubs of ice cream and chips in front of the TV, but did the drive-through fast food thing way, way too often)
- not enough exercise (exacerbated by the fatigue from chemo plus self-consciousness about my appearance)</p>
<p>When I was in HS, I was 5’8" and 160. Everyone thought I was fat. The flag corps at my SEC university would not let me march unless I weighed 126. (I was 140 by that point; I got to 136, but don’t remember those three weeks. I slept all the time. I’d have 4 oz of protein and one salad a day. Period.) As an adult, it was ten pounds here, ten pounds there, and the scales crept up.</p>
<p>So, while I am thrilled I have gone from a 26-28 to a 14-16, my appearance is not my motivation. Even now, the only way I can tell I’ve lost weight is by the clothes. I still see the old me in the mirror.</p>
<p>We all think we’re going to live forever or at least not have our bad (or slacker) choices affect our health. Trust me, you don’t want to be dead on your kitchen floor at age 51. BTDT.</p>