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<p>That actually matters more for health, particularly abdominal circumference. Indeed, some of the other measurements can increase healthily if you gain muscle through exercise.</p>
<p>I’ve been participating on the other thread for a few weeks. It has been nothing but supportive. Please don’t feel intimidated because there are people posting on all levels of their own fitness path. For me, just the act of writing something down reinforces my will to keep it going. My favorite exercise will always be walking, although I’m trying the C25K. I do a few days of cardio and weight lifting a week at a gym, most often with my '13 HS son who’s extremely fit. My motivation to do whatever I can for help came in a wakeup call some 18 months ago, when my DH, not obese, relatively young, no markers except family history…had a heart attack that could have killed him. We have overhauled our eating and moving (he mostly walks for exercise, light weights) to give him the best chance of a normal life. It has worked. We do enjoy occasional treats, but until his heart event, I didn’t realize how much the treat aspect of our food system as morphed into a continual stream of junk. I love to cook, have made it a goal to eat well without feeling like we’re sacrificing. We have both lost weight–a perk–and DH’s heart health appears to be excellent right now. Mine too. </p>
<p>Enough of the ramble…but I really just wanted to put in a plug of support–whichever thread you follow-- for changing some habits for better health, and encouragement to post your journeys! Little steps DO add up, and having a supportive community makes it all just a bit easier!</p>
<p>Weight loss for dummies imo includes too many fad diets. I find the Exercise thread really good for me, even if it often makes me feel guilty! I record what I eat from time to time, because I’ve discovered if I don’t I gain weight. The breakdowns of carbs and sugars are done by the Livestrong website. Over the last couple of years I’ve found a mix of exercises and an approach that really works for me, and it’s all thanks to that exercise thread. I don’t consider myself an exercise fanatic at all.</p>
<p>I may have to start my own, “sitting on the couch watching TV polishing off an entire batch of chocolate chip cookies (with extra dark morsels)” thread, which is what we did last night. Going to have to run this afternoon! 
Great thread, but why the age cutoff?</p>
<p>abasket–awwww, you are always there with the encouraging words! I have been seeing progress, but wish it were getting easier or I was enjoying it a little more.</p>
<p>NJres–I’m sure nobody’s going to care what age people are but I can tell you things do. . . um. . . change after a certain point. Menopause sucks.</p>
<p>I used to qualify for the other thread. I ran nearly every day from age 20 to age 57. (My screen name means “runner” in French.) I’d run road races of various distances on the weekends, often winning my age group and occasionally placing in the top 5 overall (if it was a smaller race with not many big studs entered). Losing weight was not difficult at all. If the pants started to feel a little tight all I had to do was crank up mileage a bit and it would quickly melt off.</p>
<p>Those days are over. I can’t run any more. A few years ago my left knee declared that enough was enough. And x-rays showed that I have only a tiny amount of cartilage left in it before bone starts grinding on bone. So I can still walk without pain, but if I kept running I stood to lose even that.</p>
<p>So what do I do? To begin with I have gained a little weight, in the 5-7 lbs range. But mostly I battle it two ways. I walk for exercise, 3 miles/day on weekdays and 6 miles/day on weekends. After decades of running it feels really wimpy and disappointing to me, but I suppose it’s better than sitting on the couch. </p>
<p>The other thing I do is shave calories. No big, formal diets. No fad diets. No counting calories. No big obsession with cutting out all carbs or fats or any other specific food group. But I do read labels and look for lower cal, healthier options. I drink no sugared drinks, not even orange or other fruit juices. I buy only skim milk. I usually get the “lite” version of things. No butter on bread, in fact no butter on anything. I take somewhat smaller portions at meals. Desserts only very seldom. I just keep looking for calories I can cut out without making myself feel deprived or hungry.</p>
<p>Another thing I do is eat nothing after dinner. Nothing at all until breakfast the next morning. When I start feeling like a evening snack I just say no for a little while and then get up and go to bed. You don’t feel hungry or deprived when you are asleep.</p>
<p>So far it’s working pretty well. I’m not as skinny as I was in high school, but I’m a lot skinnier and fitter than many, perhaps the majority, of the guys my age - with their big bellies. Your mileage may vary. Maybe you just can’t live without butter or some of the other things I’ve jettisoned. Then find something you can live without and cut that out of your diet. Read the labels! Know what you are eating and keep looking for calories to shave. You are in it for the long haul.</p>
<p>Not sure if I should post this here, or in the Best Apps or WLFD.<br>
New website (and app) intrigues me. gainfitness.com<br>
Your own personal trainer. Sets you up with plans, goals–but best: audio cues to opt in to hear exercise names & encouragement–like your own trainer talking to you. You can watch how exercises should be done on video.
Personalize for your weight, height, goals (health or weight loss or fat loss); workout type (full body, core, legs, upper body); and your location (home or gym). I plugged in some for home and got the kitchen counter dip for example. Tells you how many sets, reps and how much time you should rest between sets or next exercise. Also does cool down exercises. Has tools to calculate body fat and bmi. Custom work outs and tracking.<br>
A guy frustrated with keeping fit while traveling for work came up with this…lots of stuff you can do in hotel room…or hotel gym…</p>
<p>sorry, should have linked in #27
<a href=“http://www.gainfitness.com%5B/url%5D”>www.gainfitness.com</a></p>
<p>I second the no sugared drinks suggestion. Learn to enjoy the taste of water. I also encourage women of our age to try cutting out all, or essentially all, breads, pasta, potatos, rice, etc. if only for just a week. I think you will see and feel a difference.</p>
<p>well, every thing must start some where. I was totally out of shape last May - could barely walk a mile. </p>
<p>Today, I just complete my first ever 10K run in my life time. Having lost more than 50 lb and regular physical exercise makes me feel really good. </p>
<p>I am over 50 and have a demanding job, leaving 7 am in the morning and get home by 7 PM. </p>
<p>In other words, it is not that hard. Just start an exercise tomorrow - you will get there. Good luck to all.</p>
<p>NJres–I guess I put the age 50 because for me, that is when things really started to change. And as MyLB said, things do change after a certain point. But of course ALL are welcome!</p>
<p>I too have cut out butter and cut down on dairy. Only skim milk and low fat cheese. I use to hate skim milk. Now I can’t drink whole milk. Even 2% milk tastes like cream.</p>
<p>I used to mainly walk for exercise. I liked being outside. But I found that working out to cardio DVDs are more effective with weigh control and keeping my blood pressure lower. I work out at home. In the time it would take to drive to and from, I could almost have my exercise done!</p>
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<p>I’ve always been thin, but with menopause I saw the scale begin to creep up. I adore bread, so I didn’t cut it out entirely, but I did cut back on it and other carbs, and upped my protein and veggies. 5 pounds melted off in a few weeks and have stayed off. </p>
<p>I was very surprised, as I’m leery of diets that advocate eliminating anything - I’m much more a ‘moderation in all things’ person. But at least for me, cutting back on the carbs has really worked. I still eat them (because buttered toast is a major food group ;)), but probably half of what I used to.</p>
<p>The bread thing is huge – I realized my diet was: bagel or muffin for breakfast; sandwich for lunch; pasta for dinner (not all the time but often enough). Now I’m trying to switch to: yogurt and fruit for breakfast (or just fruit); salad for lunch (with some protein in it but the greens:meat ratio is at least 3:1) and no pasta for dinner. </p>
<p>I feel like I’ve added a few pounds that I can’t blame on crazy scales or the dry cleaner shrinking my clothes. I got on the digital scale at the gym (after a nice older lady told me my favorite scale in the ladies locker room was low by 7 pounds) and saw 126. That’s high for me. I figured my clothes and sneakers must weigh at least 20 pounds, right? I don’t want to be as thin as I once was (102) but I don’t like the feeling of a few extra pounds, and when you’re small (I’m 5’4"), you feel every single pound. So thanks for starting this thread.</p>
<p>I’m sorry some of you feel that the Diet/Exercise thread is intense and/or intimidating. We really do have all levels of eaters AND exercises there. I am a competitive runner, but struggle to eat healthy foods with a demanding job, lots of social functions and lunches out. Remember that a few of the posters on that thread have lost as much as 90 pounds and have gone from not being able to walk down the driveway without being winded to having an exercise and eating program that works! We are all human and no one judges anyone else on that thread. Not all of the information shared is interesting or relevant to me, but I have learned a lot from the thread and from people’s experiences. You just skim over what you don’t care about digesting (pun intended). I know I enjoy helping people who want to start running or step it up to the next level. We all started somewhere!</p>
<p>MOWC This thread was not started because I was intimidated by the diet/exercise thread. I did find it, at least recently, intense. And it is great that so many people have gained a lot from that thread (or should I say lost a lot?). :)</p>
<p>This thread was not meant to be competition. And I asked in the first entry if this thread is redundant.</p>
<p>I guess I just wanted a thread where those of us who are not hard core, maybe a bit overweight, do not want to count calories or anything else can share ideas, stories, etc.</p>
<p>All threads that lead to healthier, happier lifestyles are good.</p>
<p>I enjoy reading all the weight loss/exercise/diet threads…they are all helpful!</p>
<p>It’s actually quite simple. Calories taken in have to be less than those used in order to lose weight. I don’t count calories. It is pretty well documented that people who track their food intake carefully do better with weight loss. Tracking is not fun, and I don’t do it currently, but there is no question that it is extremely beneficial. It really keeps you honest. </p>
<p>Exercise is important- not so much for weight loss but for cardiovascular health, bone density and muscle maintenance. This is even more important as we age. You have to come up with something that you somewhat enjoy doing, or you won’t stick with it. Hence, all the rowing machines and cross country ski machines that sit u used in basements. </p>
<p>I have a co-worker who LOVES to walk in big, party atmosphere half-marathons. She truly enjoys this and trains for them by increasing her walks. Many hardcore runners make fun of people like that and don’t want them cluttering up the race course. I think it’s great that they can walk for that long and enjoy it. I have friends who love Zumba. I can’t go in the right direction in that sort of class! I like hot yoga and have friends who think that would be pure hell. You do what you can, but you need to MOVE. The more you move, the healthier you are and the more calories you burn.</p>
<p>Personally, I’m glad you started this. I don’t feel the need to have competitive runners telling me that I should be doing 10 miles a day, or more. I am healthy, at a really good weight and don’t count my calories. I suppose I could up my exercising, but then I’d have to eat more and my doctor thinks the level I’m at right now is fine. I would like to read more on what kind of activities I could add that are fun, not mind numbing like running a marathon. </p>
<p>And before someone else comes back and points out the error of my ways and tries to convince me that the other thread is much better for me; I’ve read it. It’s not for me. Can’t we just keep this one for those who are interested, and you guys go encourage yourselves over there? We’re not trying to convince you guys to leave it and come here. To each his own.</p>
<p>For a great fitness app - check out pumpone.com. Great classes, exercises, for all levels.
Very inexpensive.
I work out ( meaning do something) almost every day but hate to count or track calories. Have found<br>
that cutting down on white carbs and processes food helps. But if I cut it out entirely, I would rebel.</p>
<p>So many kindred souls here! Count me in the group that could live on <thickly> buttered toast all day long. My adjustment of late is to have one piece in the morning (I mean–I’m not sure I’m constitutionally capable of <em>not</em> starting my day with tea and toast), but really no bread after that. We also haven’t had pasta in several weeks (DS is trying to eat better, and DH is always on board), which used to be a couple of times a week. We actually did spaghetti squash last night for the first time–not bad! Oh wait–crackers. I forgot I am still snacking on crackers most days. Oops! And I’m also not one to get in my car to drive somewhere to exercise.</thickly></p>
<p>morris–I really like this thread. Good on ya.</p>