Shaping up - Diet and exercise

[luckiest1]

My daughter was a figure/precision skater for 13 years, so has some trouble with shin splints. She is also on her feet all day at work, so for some reason, she hates walking. Funny that the elliptical doesn't bother her.

My goal is to do 6 minutes on the elliptical next time!

My bathing suit is 6 sizes too big but if I wear some shorts over it, no one knows the difference.

[Guest Toots]

Any bathing suit 6 sizes too big would hide all of the imperfections but it may just hide your whole body or you may float away!

[Gibby]

I lurve the elliptical machine. It's great for watching Clay vids on my treo! I set the treo up on the machine where I can see it, and wear noise-isolating headphones so that I only hear Clay instead of the crappy music played in the gym. The headphones are actually little in-ear earbuds, and have good sound quality. I sometimes get tired on the elliptical, too, but I'll motivate myself to keep going by watching until the end of a video. Then, I'll challenge myself to keep going until the end of the next video, etc. After awhile your stamina builds, and you can stay on the elliptical for longer periods of time. I'm raising the resistance now, and changing the type of elliptical workout, to keep myself challenged.

So, lucky, we just need to figure out a video or two that will last 6 minutes! Heeee!

I had problems with shin spints, too, so I went to a running store to get fitted for athletic shoes. This store fits you for shoes, and then has you run on a treadmill for about 15 seconds, and they use a camera to film your feet. Then they play it back in really slow motion to figure out if the shoes fit correctly. They are looking to see if you pronate or supinate (roll your feet in or out), and whether you need stabilization or shock absorption. I ended up getting air Nikes, which have helped so much! They are extremely comfortable. It's really worth paying a bit extra for good athletic shoes so that your feet and legs don't hurt during or after workouts.

[luckiest1]

That's really interesting about the running shoes, Gibby. Makes sense, too. We used to go to great pains to make sure she had top of the line skates that fit correctly, so why not running shoes?

Ahhhhh, I want a treo or a video iPod so bad now. Every time I get on the treadmill I wear my audio iPod, of course, but then I'm watching tv screens with inane shows while Clay sings. LOL. Maybe after Christmas I can start saving up for one.

[Guest Toots]

I bought a good pair of Ecco athletic shoes last year and it made a big difference in my leg strength when I was using the elliptical and the treadmill. Good shoes are a must! In my case it's to help my knees.

I'm off to the gym, I'm tired and really don't want to go....but I'm going!

I'm back from the gym. Worked out for about an hour, ellipitcal, treadmill and upper body weights. Feel much better........aww the benefits of exercise!

I'm having a glass of wine to celebrate myself and it tastes pretty damn good!

[Gibby]

Ahhhhh, I want a treo or a video iPod so bad now. Every time I get on the treadmill I wear my audio iPod, of course, but then I'm watching tv screens with inane shows while Clay sings. LOL. Maybe after Christmas I can start saving up for one.

Hey, Lucky - here's an idea for getting an ipod - the apple website sells refurbished ipods for half of the original price. We've gotten a couple of of them, and have had absolutely no problems with them. They come with the same warranty as a brand new ipod, and look brand new when they come. They also have all of the accessories a new ipod comes with (charger, software, etc.). I recently went to the apple website to get an ipod for our younger daughter for Christmas, and at the time they didn't have any refurbished video ipods for sale. We ended up buying the new video nano, which is kind of small, but has a fantastic, vibrant picture. It was about $155.00, which isn't too bad for a video ipod. We didn't have to pay extra for engraving or postage.

I'm actually going to save up for a new video phone next year. My treo is getting a little old, and and I'm going to buy an AT&T tilt. I saw one at the store, and they played a video for me on it. It looked like a mini-wide screen TV. Clack will look great on it! I love gadgets.

[ldyjocelyn]

If you're looking for a video iPod with the express use of using it while working out, don't buy a full iPod -- get a nano instead. Classic iPods (what they call them nowadays) are basically mini-hard drives, and thus aren't designed for a lot of bouncing. The nanos use flash technology, and they are built for more rugged use.

As for the rest of this thread -- I've tried using an elliptical machine, and I just can't get into it. I know it would be a better workout for me, but I do 5 minutes, and I'm finished. OTOH, I can do 30 minutes pretty easily on the treadmmill, even with a programmed workout where the incline goes up and down for more intensity.

luckiest1, the thing is -- you're getting a great aerobic workout with your walks, but you really do need some strength training in there too. My first weeks at the gym were TORTURE; muscles I never knew I had ached. But within three weeks, people around me were noticing my weight loss, and I could feel it in my clothes and how they fit. What I need now is something else, and that's why I keep thinking I'm going to try and work in the elliptical again too. Maybe if I can make it to 10 minutes....

[luckiest1]

I'm just not into strength training...don't care. I'd like to work up to being able to do the elliptical, but right now, the treadmill is great for me. Hey, remember, I am a person who hasn't got out of the computer chair in 10 years until the last 6 months!

Thanks for the advice on iPods, etc. I'm not worried particularly about bouncing while watching....I'd only use it on the treadmill, and it's stationary.

[Guest Toots]

lucky, if you decide to do strength training you will need a trainer to help you get the max benefits and keep you from injuring yourself. I know you aren't into that yet but over achiever that you are it's just a matter of time before you come over to the dark side You are like the Genie in a bottle, once you popped out it's too late to go back in!!!

Just got home from the gym, 1 hour on the treadmill because I was watching the Food Network Challenge for cakes and got so engrossed I forgot to quit treading. Also did my lower body weight workout tonight.

Mood: Feeling good and drinking a glass of wine.

[luckiest1]

Hee, I'm only an over achiever in things that I enjoy....which usually means that the name "Clay" is involved somehow.

I stepped on the scale this morning and it seems to have gone down a pound or two. I think I'm in that yo-yo stage, I've been fighting these couple of pounds for a couple of months now. But it was still nice to see. I was good yesterday - I made my Christmas cherry ball recipe, which takes a cup of butter, 3 cups of icing sugar, and three cups of coconut (not to mention the graham cracker crumbs you roll them in) and all I did was lick my fingers after they were all made. How good am I?

[djs111]

Wrong thread!

[Guest Toots]

Holy shit lucky, those balls should be on the list of public enemies! Where do they get the name "Cherry"? :o

I couldn't let you lose those pounds alone so my scale also looked 2 lbs less this morning. :F_05BL17blowkiss: Of course that only wipes out 2lbs of the 5lbs I gained because my back was not well and couldn't do much exercise. I was supposed to be going down 15lbs and instead I gained 5lbs.

ldyj, do you dislike the elliptical or just find it difficult? When I first started I worked for 10 minutes at a time, stopped and rested for about 2 minutes then went another 10 minutes, etc. I worked my way up to 30 minutes without any problem and probably could go longer if I employ the same method but it's tough. Listening to my IPod and watching the TV's keep me from getting bored. I can stay on the treadmill all day but only walking not running.

Edited because I just looked at your recipe in the Cooks Corner and saw that you use the same cherries my husband liked in his Manhattans!

[luckiest1]

Hee, yeah, I forgot to mention the maraschino cherries that are involved. BWAH!

I'm not ldyj, but within 2 minutes of getting on the elliptical, I was sweating buckets, and I forced myself to keep it up for 5, but it was horrific. Maybe the settings weren't right for me or maybe it's just that I haven't worked those muscles for too many years, I'm not sure. I can do the treadmill for 30 minutes with the recommended heart rate for my age and barely break a sweat.

[Guest Toots]

lucky, the elliptical is a very hard machine to work on and it takes a bit of time to get up to even 15 minutes. Everyone I know has the same experience you are having when they first start. It's an excellent cardio work out, probably the best one around but it is hard. If you want to use it just do the stop and start routine I told you about until you work up to more minutes. Take your time with it, it really does work!

Gibby and I both have asthma and I know my breathing capacity has increased more than I can even measure because of the elliptical.

You are doing good lucky , exercise does become a little addictive over time!

[Couch Tomato]

Welp, I did it.

I paid the 99 for Ballys fitness and I have a year membership. Whoo hooo. I hope ya'll got photographs because you won't recognize me in April

[luckiest1]

Good for you, couchie!

I finally got my ass back to the gym last night, after probably 2 weeks absence. I really had to kick myself to do it. It's amazing how much stamina you can lose after that short period of time. I couldn't do the same speed on the treadmill without my heart rate going over the limit the machine set.

Now if only someone would come and eat all the left overs in my fridge. I have a thing about not wasting food - comes from too many years of living on a tight budget, I guess - and I feel obliged to eat them up. However, 3 meals a day of turkey, stuffing, potatoes & pie isn't going to help me maintain my weight loss. Why oh why are my children so freaking picky? They won't touch the left overs. But I'm damn well not cooking until they are gone! I have decided that whatever is left tomorrow morning is going either in the freezer or the garbage. *sigh* I'll thank myself later, I know I will.

[Clayzorback]

I'm trying to eat up all the sweets and potatoes and pasta. Get all the bad stuff out of the house. Of course I have to eat it instead of throwing it out. Mother would turn over in her grave if I wasted food. Think of all the starving children. LOL I almost hate to post that I plan to diet for my New Year's resolution. If I fail, it will be embarrassing.

[zena]

This is zena dropping in :chair: to officially make her little mark in the sand on this thread.

I have been judiously avoiding threads of this nature because there has simply been too much going on in my life to add the immense challenge of addressing my significant weight problem.

But today somehow I found my way here and read the entire thread through without the usual feeling of impending doom. Maybe I am beginning to be in the right place to make small but positive changes.

I joined a wonderful gym last April; the kind where there are more recovering cardiac clients than buff grunting twentysomething guys... hee; there are some of those, but not enough to intimidate slow completely overwhelmed rookies like me. It took a huge measure of confidence to join a gym when I had never set foot in one before. Add to this the complication that I live sixty minutes out of the city, and have to drive in to do my workouts. The staff has been great though; do a lot of individual counselling, and help keep me on track.

My initial goals centered around strengthening the muscles around painful problem joints so that I could eventually increase my tolerance for activity. Trying to tackle the weight problem right off was something too big to handle right off, and something I was sure I would not succeed at. I've had lupus induced arthritis ( which behaves somewhat like rheumatoic arthritis) and fibromyalgia for 15+ years that together with unreasonable fatique have resulted a virtual metabolic stall. This, along with the million or so drugs and their nasty side effects I've taken along this path has left me feeling uncomfortable, unattractive, and unable to move.

So, this tall skinny person who never ever understood what it was like not to eat anything and everything is now this tall XXXlarge person who can't lose a pound to save her life. (literally)

For me, food; eating snacking etc is very much an emotional issue. As a former health professional (registered nurse) it isn't the intellectual understanding that is missing. Giving up what has become a major comfort item in the context of my tentative and still fairly new venture back toward a position of strength and holistic self confidence is a huge thing.

It's something I know I need to be committed to for my own well being; not something some else has decided is good for me. I also need to find a way to do this that will be practical for me; otherwise there isn't a hope I will be able to maintain it. And if there is one thing I don't need is feeling like a failure once more and again.

The gym is a good place for me; I've become comfortable there. I've had some small victories, and I'm learning to ask for help more and more. I just finished a 12 week yoga class which was mind

blowingly wonderful for me. Is it crazy to feel happy about learning how to stand and sit up straight when you've spend your life trying to shrink into yourself? I don't think so.

I can't get myself to exercise at home with any type of regularity and I don't have the excuse of having no time or space. And clayrazorback I have a whole pile of Christmas goodies to "clean up", and your method sounded ominously familiar.

Yep, it's a daily battle, and I'm heading to the front lines again.

It'd be nice to have some company. I talk alot so if you need me to shut up just tell me to stick a carrot (or broccoli, I reeeelly don't like lima beans) in it!!!

[Clayzorback]

zena, I know two people who suffer from fibromyalgia and their medication has caused them to put on lots of weight. My weight gain this year has come from severe stress eating. This year has been one thing after another for my husband and I. The house repairs and the medical, financial burdens have taken their toll. 2008 has to be a better year. It just has to. I finally started taking something to deal with the stress, but too late, to stop the weight gain from stress eating. I've been suffering from leg cramps, toe and foot cramps, and cramping in my hands and fingers. Or I guess you could call them charley horses. I have been eating bananas to get some more potassium, and trying to drink more fluids. They still are a problem. I have some arthritis in my fingers, too. Not the real bad kind so I can imagine how your Arthritis must hurt. Mine is mainly in the same two fingers of each hand in in the first knuckle joints.

Good luck on your diet. I don't have a particular diet plan. Just eat less meat for awhile, cut out the sugars and sweets and bad carbs. Portion control. Exercise is really not my thing, so I can see it taking me a long time to drop 15-20 pounds.

[Gibby]

Hey, couchie, lucky, clayzor and zena - it's great to see you all here! Looks like we are all trying to turn over a new leaf in the new year. Good for us!

It's been a few weeks for me, too, since I was at the gym last. I loaded up my treo with lots of new Clay vids, and hit the gym for an hour today! Watched my COI and CITH vids while I was on the elliptical, and then listened to audio while I did weights. It felt good to be working out again. I've put on a few pounds over the holidays, so I wouldn't mind losing them. I'm going to work on my diet once 2008 starts in a few days. Can't make too many changes at once! :lmaosmiley-1:

[luckiest1]

So, I froze the turkey. Threw out the stuffing and mashed potatoes. Figure the turnip will be ok for a few more days, since it's not so fattening. But it's all the damned shortbread, squares, pies, chocolates & munchies that are still hanging around that are killing me!

Gibby, good for you for getting back to the gym. I didn't go yesterday (walked the dog though) but I went the day before. It does feel good. I haven't stepped on a scale, I'm afraid to.

[annabear]

Aaaack! After being down & out sick after the summer tour, I finally seriously started back to Weight Watchers in Nov. The scale was slowly, but surely moving in the right direction until I skipped my last 3 meetings and all of the vendors starting sending the Godiva & See's candies to work and the "treat desk" turned out to be right next to mine.......

My plan is to get whatever goodies are left into the trash by midnight tomorrow night. Come Jan. 1st, I'm back to cutting out the sugar & refined carbs, back to Curves & onto my stationary bike.

In the mean time, wouldn't it be nice if we could really lose weight like this - > :lmaosmiley-1:

Good luck to everyone! :F_05BL17blowkiss:

[Couch Tomato]

ok two days with my membership restored and I've

1. found my old card

2. looked at the class schedule

one of these days real soon I might even make it to the actual gym

[Clayzorback]

The last three days I have had:

1. A half of a grapefruit for breakfast

2. A salad for lunch

3. A salad for dinner.

Tomorrow I think I will have Cereal for lunch and dinner and maybe a green vegetable or a banana. No meat for two weeks at least.

[annabear]

After skipping 4 meetings, I dragged myself out in the cold, wind & rain to my WW meeting this morning. I've gained back the exact 4.6 lbs I'd lost since Nov. :glare: