My, my, you've had a time of it. Hope the ticker and the chf continues to improve. You were looking good in the picture in VA. Health wise, age can bring on some surprises and sometime some tough luck. Here's hoping you stay well & continue to improve.
It has taken a long time to see much results; but I am actually about 20 lbs closer to my goal weight now. Because of the swimming and exercise, even though I was burning up fat , I have been also building up muscle tone, and the weight just seemed to putter along and only dropping a tiny bit and then going right back up again. I modified the food plan to include a kefir/flax smoothie for one of my meals, usually breakfast. However, I found that exercising after having the kefir smoothie did not sit well on my stomach; so on exercise days, I just have morning coffee, and then have the smoothie when we get back home as kind of a brunch. I have also started incorporating the meridian tapping into the mix, and that actually seems to have been helping me to lose weight, too. I have tapped on cravings (think chocolate), and have part of a chocolate Easter bunny that has been just tucked away because I have absolutely NO interest in chocolate candy any more at all. I should throw it away, but it intrigues me that I can look at it and not even want a taste of it. I do put some of the bakers cocoa in my iced coffee; but the cocoa is not sweetened and is not like eating chocolates. Even pizza is just okay now, and while we do still eat that occasionally, I do not get cravings for it since I tapped on craving pizza. A long as I am staying away from the inflammatory foods like sweets and starches, I pretty much do not have the joint pain and arthritis, and even my bad knee is working better. I found some exercises for strengthening my knees that are for in water so they are low-impact, and that is also helping with the knee flexibility. It has taken five long months to be able to finally make a good report; but I have hopes that if I continue, eventually I will be back at that goal weight again.
It seems like weight loss is just a whole lot slower as we age, and plus the health problems do not help. When I weighed today, it was finally another ten pounds since my last report here, and now I am 30 lbs closer to what I want to weigh. I know that the consistant exercise helps, and I can see the difference in my muscle tone, and feel it when I am walking and moving around. Everything seems to be moving more freely than before. Because of the heart failure and bad lungs, it is still hard for me to do regular exercise without being out of breath almost immediately; but in the water, it is a constant exercise and still not so demanding as even walking on the treadmill would be. I have also added a set of swimfins to help strengthen my leg muscles faster when I do the leg-kicking exercises, and also use them on my arms doing the "robot-walk" exercise. I can really feel the resistance that way. I know winter is coming, and that is usually the time we eat heavier meals; but I intend to try really hard to stick to what I know is healthy for me and keep away from most of the unnecessary carbs. This plan has been working well for me, I like it, and I know that I am already a lot healthier , and that really helps motivate me. Of course, compliments from my Sweetie Pie help a lot, too ! !
I just got an email about what is called a "keto summit" online. I signed up for it, and thought that maybe other people who are also on the low-carb eating plan of one name or another might be interested in this also, and it is free. Rather than try to explain, I am going to just share part of the email that describes what. Keto diet is andhow it works. " First of all, it’s helpful to look at the keto diet as a tool. It's something many people use from time to time to essentially "reset" their body, feel a lot better, and have a lot more energy. If you’re already following a Paleo type diet, transitioning to keto involves just a few minor tweaks. It’s like a low carb version of Paleo where you're still eating lots of nutrient dense foods but you're cutting out the fruit and sweet potatoes, etc. The technical definition involves a different metabolic state (called ketosis). Most people don't stay in ketosis forever (although some do), but either way, it can provide a lot of benefits. What many people don’t know is that a ketogenic diet has also been found to be effective for treating and preventing cancer, for reversing Alzheimer's, and for improving athletic performance. In the Keto Summit you’ll learn all about the latest research into this therapeutic way of eating, including: - short cuts for going into ketosis, - how to lose weight on keto, - whether keto can reverse cancer and Alzheimer’s, - and so much more The summit begins on September 25th, but if you register now you'll get access to a bunch of free bonuses, including a 3-part Keto Masterclass so you can find out more about keto immediately. " Here is the link if anyone is interested in learning more. http://ketosummit.com/
I have avoiding this thread, no offense, hahahaaah. I am having a hard time with my battle against the bulge this time unlike before when I could easily lose excess pounds. When I was 150 pounds, I could shed 5 pounds in a week or 2 with no sweat, so to speak. But it is my fault to neglect my food intake that I ballooned to 170 pounds. It is no just a battle anymore but maybe a war because my husband is scaring me that I am already obese and if my weight is not controlled then I will shoot up to 200 pounds like our former colleague who is now using wheelchair to walk due to her obesity. On a brighter note, I have shed a few pounds in the last 3 weeks and maybe in a month I would be down to less than 165 pounds which I find rewarding enough for now. I am on a no-rice diet because any other diet interferes with my usual routines of work in the office.
I have been watching some of the videos from the keto summit, and it is basically what I have already been doing; but I have been learning more about how and why it works, and hopefully, how to kick my weight loss into a faster mode. I downloaded a new carb-tracker app for the iPad, and that will help me get everything coordinated better, I think. We are going to go to the fitness center more days than we have been going, and I am hoping that doing more exercise will also help me to burn off more fat faster while I am building up my muscle tone and getting stronger again. I lost so much muscle tone when my heart was so bad, and for so many years; so I know that this is going to take me a while to get even close to what I was like before the heart went bad. Even so, it is my goal, and I am going to put everything that I have into achieving it and being healthy again. Since this is a program that a lot of the body builders use, and also people who are diabetic, not all of the summit is geared to people who are wanting to lose weight; but there is still a lot of good information and I am glad that they sent me the link for the program.
Well, I think low carb diets are great if you can stick to them. I have found them to be very depressing in the past, but I think they have evolved some since that time. I will stick with weight watchers, because it does work, and as long as you count your points...you can basically eat what you want in moderation of course,,,once the points are gone, they are gone though!. My sister bought a copy of the DASH diet which her doctor recommended to her, and it does not even look like a diet to be honest...burgers, banana splits and so forth. Of course that is not everyday or all the time. I think that is more like the SANE diet which is also quite liberal.
Actually, the low-carb diet is the easiest one for me to stick to, @K E Gordon . The main issue that I have with most of the plans like Weight Watchers, or any other calorie-restricted food plan, is hunger. When you eat foods with carbs, it triggers insulin, which is the fat-storing hormone, and its main job is to take the sugar out of the bloodstream and store it as fat in our fat cells. When it does that, our blood sugar drops, and we are hungry. So, it is a revolving issue of being hungry, eating, insulin-releasing and storing the blood-sugar as fat, and then that creates hunger again. With the low-carb (ketogenic) diet, you don't eat the foods that trigger insulin (which is why so many diabetics are choosing this way of eating, too), and your body burns fat instead of sugar, and you lose weight. Plus, since insulin triggers hunger, if you are not releasing all of that insulin from eating the carb foods, then you are not triggering hunger as often. I hate feeling hungry all of the time, which is one of the reasons that low-carb works so well for me. I am insulin-sensitive, which means that just a few carbs will trigger insulin release for me. A person who is not insulin sensitive could probably do okay on a diet that includes more carbs, so that is why they can be happy with a program like Weight Watchers. One of the things that really surprised me is that the body builders and athletes are now turning to ketogenic eating plans, even though they do not need to lose weight. They have found that if they are fueled by fat and not carbs, they can think more clearly, and also perform longer and better. Some of the talks from the keto summit are focusing on people who are using the keto diet for other reasons besides losing weight, such as people with auto-immune diseases, and also diabetics, and cancer patients.
I haven't been hungry on WW, one of the reasons for this, is that fruits are considered to be zero point foods, so if I do start to feel hungry, I can grab an apple. I tried the 20/20 diet last year the Doctor Phil Plan, I don't think I lost much weight on it, and I found it to be a real pain in the you know what. It required 4 meals per day, and everything had to be cooked and prepared, measured etc. I don't see how anyone who was working a regular job could do this, without spending hours preparing their food. No thanks, too impractical...and some of the foods were very hard to find.
I absolutely agree that there is probably NO eating plan that works for every one, and the one that a person can stay on (happily) and lose weight is the right one for them. I have lost over 30 lbs over the last few months, a slow but steady weight loss, and at the same time I have built up my muscle tone because of doing the exercises at the fitness center, and at home. So, I have lost fat and gained muscle while still losing overall weight at the same time. I allow myself some meals that can be anything I want; so I do not feel deprived, and then I get right back on schedule again. How long have you been following Weight Watchers ?
Gosh, that is a tough question, I have been on it off and on over the years. However, what they are doing currently with all the flexibility is the best plan so far I think. My doctor also told me, that Weight Watchers is the number one diet for losing weight worldwide, Most likely a function of how long they have been around, and how many branches they have, plus the fact they offer specials, and re invent their program often is part of the reason.
I've tried weight watchers...twice and failed both times. So did my daughter, she also failed. My sister in law had success with it. Only low carb/good carb works for me. The most I ever had to lose was about 30lbs when I quit smoking....did that with south beach or the 17 day diet....they are similar. I've done Atkins but don't think I can go that strict with carbs. I'm an all day eater and I don't have to lose weight now but I surely can't afford to gain it. I've only been overweight twice in my life....after my first child and when I quit smoking but my whole life has been watching what I eat. Having a slow metabolism never helped either but I never blamed it for being overweight when I was.
I am wondering if I am the only one on the forum who is on a low-carb diet for weight loss ? Maybe I am the only one on any kind of a diet , we haven't had many posts in this section lately. In any case, what I wanted to share is a website called Carb Manager. They also have an app for Apple iOS, and soon one for Android as well, according to the webpage. Carb manager can show you all of the nutrients in anything that you eat if you want it to. There are charts and graphs for food, water, exercise, and even a place to add recipes. I like that when you enter in the food that you are eating, they give you a sliding chart so that you can put in the exact amount you are eating, and not just go by what amount they put in, like most of the food diaries do. How do I know if I am eating 100grams of something , for heaven's sake ? The website is free to use, the app cost me $3, and then I signed up for the premium edition once I had tried it and decided that I liked how it works. The Carb Manager tracks carbs, fats, fiber, and protein and also total calories for each day. When you exercise and add that in, then it shows you how many calories you have burned, as well. The chart goes into total detail of what nutrients were in the food you ate, so you can also see vitamin and mineral content; but you need the premium version to get the whole chart. Here is the webpage so anyone who is interested can check this out. This is also a great app to have if you just want to track your food intake for nutrients, even if you are not on a diet to lose weight. https://www.carbmanager.com/index.html
I'm not really dieting now but should. I've always followed low carb when dieting and even when I'm just maintaining. I've gotten off track lately...this summer messed me up a little but do need to get back and maybe lose 3 lbs..it's not a lot but when you don't feel like doing it, it's hard. I have a drs appt oct.31 and I think I'll wait til after that to start...see what my blood test shows, etc.