<p>So I’ve decided to post this on the parents forum because I feel like I’d get more objective advice. Since my first semester at college I’ve gained 15 pounds. I came to college 5’4 and 130 pounds and am now up to 146 pounds. I’ve literally had to buy all new clothes (originally a size 7 now up to a 11). I know I’ve been snacking a little bit more but I have been actually walking to class at least a mile each day. I’m home for break now and haven’t weighed myself since but I wouldn’t be surprised if I’ve gained 5 pounds due to the holidays and eating out w/friends. I would appreciate any advice on how to control my weight gain because I can’t afford to continue to become heavier.</p>
<p>crayola, unfortunately for all of us one of the keys to losing weight is exercise. I’m sure your school has a gym. Can you enlist a friend to be a workout buddy and put going to the gym into your daily routine? I know a lot of the gyms also have classes, would that be appealing? Aerobics, spinning, dance? I recently was reminded by my doctor that just cutting back on what you eat will not necessarily by itself cause weight loss.<br>
It’s a matter of cutting back on your food and exercise. The tricky part is that the more you exercise the better you feel and the less you focus on food.<br>
Good for you for deciding now to take action…it gets harder if you let yourself gain more weight…</p>
<p>normally i do not praise diet books, but i really suggest you read a book called Skinny B. itch. (hope that doesnt get starred out). its really about a lifestyle change, and i always struggled with my weight until i read this book and it totally changed my life.</p>
<p>Since I hate to diet, my best tools are: Drink a glass of water before the meal, then do portion control (1/3 less) of the exact same foods. Eat slowly, chew longer and really taste the food. </p>
<p>Remember that it takes 20 minutes for your brain to notice that your stomach is full. If you eat with college friends, talk, laugh, eat quickly and run off to class, then you’re more likely to just stuff in more food than you really need.
See if you can stretch the meal to more than 20 minutes, just to notice what’s really occurring with your appetite before finishing off the plate. If you do feel full, just push the food away and take less next time. </p>
<p>Also: ask yourself: Why are you snacking? Do you need it because you’re hungry or just excited/nervous/happy? Can you choose different foods for the snacks? I like crunchy stuff, but I have to make myself take an apple rather than chips, if both are available. </p>
<p>I don’t know if a one-mile walk is enough to help you lose weight. Does the college have a gym?</p>
<p>Good for you to ask on site for tips.</p>
<p>EDIT" You mentioned “eating out with friends.” Restaurant portions are out-of-control. You can ask for a box to take home half of it, and save for another meal. Some of us were programmed to eat all provided, but today’s restaurants are loading it on. Studies show restaurant plates are bigger, portions doubled since 20 years ago…</p>
<p>Sometimes I do a doggie bag, or offer to split an entire meal with another person, because for me the restaurants are doling out twice as much as needed to gain reputation. They don’t lose money this way, since in fact the way they make money is by serving drinks not by selling food. They attract people who say “the portions were so big!” as a way to compliment the restaurant.</p>
<p>If you think home food is healthier, you can actually eat a meal at home and just go out with friends to eat a salad or tea, with lots of socializing. Save the money and buy yourself something nice with it, so you won’t feel badly.
Friends will comment but you can handle that by saying, “I’m budgeting my money to buy something nice” rather than “I’m trying to lose weight” which is depressing to mention at a meal with others.</p>
<p>Thanks but I have knee problem that I had surgery for that stops me from doing any exercise. Also swimming is out of the question because my doctor doesn’t even allow it w/my knee problem. Another problem is that I love to eat and at meals I find myself often going back for seconds. So pretty much my doctor has said I can control my weight only through what I eat.</p>
<p>Also the food we eat at home isn’t great for losing weight. My mom loves to cook and laughs off my weight gain as just “getting some womanly curves”. I’ve tried eating less and food has literally been pushed onto my plate at home. My family mocks me for trying to limit what I eat and trying to become Paris Hilton size.</p>
<p>A mile walk only burns off 100 calories. That’s one apple. Or one quarter piece of pecan pie. Even if you can’t exercise your legs, you could probably still burn off some calories doing upper body work with machines or free weights.</p>
<p>Exercise is good, but portion control is critical. We’ve got completely distorted ideas about portions. [Making</a> Sense of Portion Sizes](<a href=“http://www.mealsmatter.org/EatingForHealth/Topics/article.aspx?articleID=52]Making”>http://www.mealsmatter.org/EatingForHealth/Topics/article.aspx?articleID=52) Protein shouldn’t be bigger than a pack of cards. Go easy on the carbs. Don’t eat anything white. Eat twice as many vegetables. Consider ordering just an appetizer or two at restaurants if you don’t want to bring home doggy bags.</p>
<p>OK, your Mom is trying to help you but she’s not. She loves you just the way your are, but for now you have a different goal. </p>
<p>You absolutely should be in charge of putting food from the family passing platters onto your own plate. Do they shovel it out onto your plate? If so, you still have the choices. You can shovel it back into the serving platter and glare; or just push it off to the side, but nobody has to be in the “clean plate club” anymore. That went out with Howdy Doody. </p>
<p>I’m truly sorry your family feels they can comment on your eating. Why don’t they support you on this? Size 7 is not Paris Hilton size! Can you simply not discuss the entire subject at dinner, because it sounds like you’ll lose each time. Or have a heart-to-heart with your Mom and tell her you NEED her to help you with this. </p>
<p>On the knee surgery, I sympathize because my back is fused in several places. However, I went to a gym with doctor’s permission and asked them to give me exercises that could be done without pressuring the back. To my surprise, there are plenty of things still left to do on some (not all) machines and with free weights.
Despite your knees, you could still do rowing, free weight lifting while seated… always seated and from the waist up, to tone your arms and upper body. You’ll feel like you are fighting back. It’s very important to fight back.</p>
<p>Also, ask your doc specifically if you can do walking on an elliptical, rather than treadmill or bike, as elliptical is somewhat “less” problem for knees, but only if doc says so. </p>
<p>For the pool, if you can’t swim, there are still many therapeutic exercises to be done. The absence of gravity on your legs is helpful. Did you get any physical therapy after the knee surgery? If so, go back to the physical therapist and demand more for the rest of your life.</p>
<p>Of course you must abide by your doctor, but the real question is not “what can’t I do” but “which exercises are left for me to do?” Please don’t let the surgery be a lifelong excuse. Work with what is left; take it from one who knows… And you don’t want to gain weight because that isn’t good for your knees either. Please take charge and find exercises that can be managed.</p>
<p>can you bike? that is easier on the knees, maybe worth looking into?</p>
<p>edit: post above mine has some good suggestions about avoiding knee stress, but still working out.</p>
<p>Thats a good idea about the upper body exercises…I’d never thought of that! Thanks! The heart to heart is a not going to work out. I’ve already tried and that is when she told me about “womanly curves”. Like having jeans that fit you 4 months ago busting open from both the button and fly when you sit down is “womanly curves”! Even when I told her I needed new sweatpants because even my old ones sweatpants were too tight she laughed it off! WOW…my mom just brought a piece of chocolate cake to my room and insists that I eat it…</p>
<p>Don’t worry about the actual size that you are wearing, as people of the same height and weight can look very different depending on frame, bone structure etc.</p>
<p>If you feel that you are overeating, you probably are. And if you have gained 20 lbs. in 4 months, then you should be watchful.</p>
<p>There are many online tools that help you with portion control and also just monitoring what you eat, and calories you consumed per day. I used one last year that was great. It actually gives you an insight into WHAT you are eating and its kind of horrifying when you see that you started out with walking to the pantry for 1 cookie, but then made 5 more return trips.</p>
<p>I actually forced myself to make an online entry each time I ate something, even a cracker, or apple, and realized that I was eating a lot more than my body needed.</p>
<p>Don’t let you family intimidate you. They probably mean well. And in many families, mealtimes are important bonding events. But you know what is good for you. Set yourself some goals, and work towards them.</p>
<p>You should also try lifting weights. Building muscle plays a crucial role in fat burning. Have you tried Pilates?</p>
<p>Biking might be hard on the knees.</p>
<p>Awww, I don’t know if I want to hug you or punch your ma out!!</p>
<p>Is she overweight? It’s almost like she’s trying to trip you up or level the field. Can you tell her you love her, and you know she loves you, but it’s time to stop showing love with chocolate cake! For goodness sake, if someone brought cake into my room, I’d be helpless to resist.</p>
<p>crayola: Exercise is the key, especially in your case, since it appears you do little.</p>
<p>Now, the knee issue probalby complicates things a lot. However, I find it difficult (no, impossible) to believe that a chronic knee issue means you cannot do ANYTHING that involves the knee. Swimming, especially. Let’s put it this way: walking is far more strenuous for your legs and joints than swimming, and clearly you walk a lot. So your doctor forbidding swimming doesn’t make sense to me.</p>
<p>If I were you, I’d go back to the doctor and ask him what the reason for that is. If he gives you a very good one, fine. If not, find another doctor and get a second opinion, because frankly not being allowed to swim sounds a little bogus (especially since you can do various strokes that almost don’t use your legs at all). If the reason is that you can’t be in water with the knee issue, so be it.</p>
<p>Now, if you CAN do some swimming and stuff, do that. Swimming burns huge amounts of calories if you do it well and hard, and it’s low-impact.</p>
<p>If you can’t, I would suggest circuit training. Basically, you go into a weight room, and do different exercise in a circuit to both help strength and get a cardio workout. For you, all the exercises would have to be upper-body. Luckily, there’s lots. Getting a consultation from a trainer or somebody experienced in such things would be best.</p>
<p>There are upper body cardio machines called Upper Body Ergometers that will allow a workout without any lower-body involvement. I don’t know if your college’s gym has them, but that is an option.</p>
<p>[Upper</a> Body Cardio Workouts](<a href=“http://yourtotalhealth.ivillage.com/diet-fitness/upper-body-cardio-workouts.html]Upper”>http://yourtotalhealth.ivillage.com/diet-fitness/upper-body-cardio-workouts.html)</p>
<p>That is a link to advice from a specialist in response to a query similar to yours.</p>
<p>Try googling it and doing some more research. I bet you’d be surprised by how much you can find on working out without damaging your knee further.</p>
<p>My boss in his 50s lost 20+lbs in about 3 weeks.
He uses quickweightloss from Texas I think. See link below</p>
<p>[Quick</a> Weight Loss Centers - Weight Loss Programs, Products, Diet Pills](<a href=“http://quickweightloss.net/]Quick”>http://quickweightloss.net/) </p>
<p>He showed me the list he has to go by. All natural. I copied that list and lost about 5lbs(I need to get into a certain dress for Christmas party) without actually trying very hard. When I’m hungry I eat, when I’m not so hungry I have a quick shake of whey protein(from Whole foods). But what I learned is to eat a huge breakfast. It kicks start one’s metabolism.</p>
<p>I agree with the poster about portion control. I tend to pile up lots of food on my D1’s plate. She has been telling me, she would do the serving and therefore manage to pile less.</p>
<p>The upper body exercises are going to happen for sure! I love the link one of you guys gave me too! I wish I could go to the doctor for an opinion on the swimming issue, but that would involve my mom. She would definitely tell me no! Also as asked my mom is one of those women who could stand to lose more than a few pounds, but carries her weight quite well so nobody including herself realizes how overweight she is! And truth be told I didn’t resist the cake…mom told me she wouldn’t let me bring a plate that wasn’t licked clean down. Also I’m trying not to focus on my pant size but it is the most obvious indicator of how large I’ve become…I actually just weighed myself and I’m at 151 pounds now! Definitely motivation to work out!</p>
<p>Sometimes eliminating a few items from your daily intake could make a huge difference.</p>
<p>For example, no sodas or juices. Only beverages should be water and skim milk. Actually, drink plenty of water during the day. Limits on icecream or cake. Limit yourself to one small treat at the end of the day if you did well all day.</p>
<p>Are you getting enough of sleep? This is key to successful weight loss.</p>
<p>Im enjoying reading the tips. I’ve gained about 7 pounds just during the Christmas break. Im up to 210 now (But Im 6"4 and a guy, so this isnt the end of the world.)</p>
<p>My problems are snacking, and mistaking dehydration for hunger. I snack waaaay too much at college, but I also walk 3 miles a day to and from classes, play basketball on saturdays, work out, etc. But Ive developed a sweet tooth unfortunately. I dont have a car at college and riding the bus to the store is a huge pain, and our tap water tastes like what it is-backwoodsy east texas tap war. So Ive taken this newfound love for snacks back home, where we have a ton, where Im not the one paying to re-stock them, and where I DONT get any exercise. I dont look too bad now, but I want to reverse the trend before it gets out of control.</p>
<p>You don’t have to starve yourself, but your body and metabolism are changing and you need to adapt. You’re smart to learn about a healthy diet now; it will have a positive effect for the rest of your life.</p>
<p>Eat more fiber - whole wheat cereal and wheat bread instead of white. Limit white potatoes and white rice. Watch out for salads with creamy dressings or mayonnaise - ask for a tiny amount of dressing on the side. Avoid convenience foods - they are loaded with fats and sugar. Cut way back on sodas, chips and crackers.</p>
<p>Many overweight people in our society are malnourished because they make such poor food choices. The simpler the food, the more likely it is to have the nutrients you need. When you get back to school, talk to people about healthier food choices and where to find them. Starting lunch and dinner with soup or a salad is a good way to slow down your eating and feel full on less food. For cravings, try nuts instead of chips, yogurt instead of ice cream, skim milk with a little chocolate flavor instead of a candy bar.</p>
<p>Good luck! You have the motivation to get started, and as you lose the weight you’ll figure out how to tell your well-meaning mom that food is not the only source of happiness.</p>
<p>crayola, has anything else changed in your life? Have you started taking any birth control pills? They are a sure way to a noticeable weight gain if you do not step up your excersize routines!</p>
<p>Building muscle mass is key to weight loss. Muscle burns more calories than any other body tissue. You do not have to lift heavy weights or go through bodybuilding excersizes to tone your muscles. Free weights or push ups, or rubber tubing, or other Pilates-type excersizes are great for that purpose. If your knees hurt, you can swim using just your upper body while holding a pull buoy between your knees, I’ve seen people doing it in our public pools, and usually there is a box of those “devices” on pool deck for classes and swim teams to use.</p>
<p>Cutting out sodas as well as not putting sugar into your coffee or tea will shave a truckload of empty calories off your daily food intake. Try to drink a glass of water with every meal instead of a sugary drink. Also try to include lean protein (chicken, fish) in your meals. Protein-rich foods are more filling, they take longer to digest, so your stomach would not feel empty for a longer period. Also, protein does not get metabolized by your body into fat (as fats and carbohydrates do).</p>
<p>Try to eat a hearty breakfast, get a big lunch followed by a mid-day snack, eat a small dinner and go easy on foods after 7 pm. Ideally, nothing should be eaten 2-3 hours before bedtime.</p>
<p>Here are some words of wisdom that my H got from his gastroenterologist. People who try to loose weight sometimes rely too much on artificial sweeteners. Do not try to replace sugar in your foods with artificial sweeteners. They are just plain bad for your body. Carbohydrate-based sweeteners (eg sucralose) are not recognized by human enzymes, so they do not get digested in the stomach and just travel down the digestive tract to the places where no sugars belong. At the same time, such sweeteners can serve as food for nasty bacteria that can colonize the parts of your intestines where they find this stuff. This can lead to indigestion, stomach pain, bloating and other side effects.</p>