Anyone wanna eat right/lose weight/exercise?

[LadyShea]

I would like a buddy. I was able to stay motivated when Frankie was doing it with me, but the guy stays exactly the same whether he eats right, works out, or not, so he is not motivated.

Anyway, I let my weight get away from me during the fertility treatments, and need to lose about 20-30lbs and want to do it with a well balanced diet and moderate excericise. I do not want to do Atkins or any other specific "plan", nor do I want to join a gym since we're moving soon.

Anyone want to join me? We can keep food and excercise journals and be accountable to each other.

[Dingfod]

Hello, my name's Blimp, Goodyear Blimp.

I need to lose umpty-schleppenty pounds. However, I do not think I'm your diet and exercise mate, LadyShea because I'm going back on a low carb diet. Its the only diet that ever really worked for me. I'm willing to participate in a group effort, including posting my weight and food and beverage intake. Y'all can kick my ass all over the place about not exercising, but leave me alone about what I'm not eating.

Start tomorrow?

[LadyShea]

Hey, if low-carb works for you then great. I am just not doing it so I will have no idea if you cheat or anything ;)

Yeah, we can start tomorrow, I just got back from the grocery store with my healthy stuff.

For the record, I do not own scale, but last time I was at the doctor's office I weighed 152, as heavy as I was before losing a bunch of weight in 2002 which I maintained for over 2 years :(. I am happy at 125, but will take 130-135...I was 132 day one of IVF #2.

[AspenMama]

May I join in? I'm trying to stick with the South Beach diet-- so fairly low carb for me as well. My goal weight is 115. If I get there, I've got a promise for a first class trip to Paris. We could set up a weigh in day-- perhaps every Wednesday morning or some such?

I've got a treadmill and trade off with the bike at the rec center. I'd love to take up kickboxing somewhere-- but it's never easy for me to attend regular classes considering the whole mommy deal...

[Dingfod]

I do own a scale. This morning I weighed a immensely grotesque 291.4 lbs. I haven't been happy with what I weighed since I weighed 210-215 and people thought there was no way I weighed over 200, knowledgeable people like RNs.

You will know if I cheated because I will say I cheated because I'll mention eating anything like bread, potatoes, rice or sweets of any kind.

[LadyShea]

So should we set up a thread to keep our food and excercise journals? Aspen, one shouldn't lose more than a pound or two a week, so maybe weigh in every two weeks?

[Beth]

I need to loose fat and about ten more pounds. I weigh 143 currently, want to get down to 133. I've been less, but 133 is a good weight for me with my bone structure. I'm leary of dieting and of being held accountable, but maybe if I am, I will be able to show control.

All this said, I would be content with only replacing fat with muscle and lose inches and gain tone.

[godfry n. glad]

Okay... I'm at 220. I'd like to be at 180, or even, if possible, 170. I've got a nag session with my doc a week from Monday, having just done the blood draw last Thursday.

I do fairly well with my diet (although I fall off when I "celebrate") but my need is to get back into a regular moderate exercise regime. I had my weight down to 195 when I left on my Asia excursion. I got there by controlling my intake and setting a goal of walking a mile every day. (I never did do it every day, but managed to do 4 to 5 days out of 7.) I lost two inches around my waist during the month abroad, but came back weighing exactly the same.

I do NOT do low carb. I'm a type-II diabetic and I need to manage my carbohydrates so that I have a lower and regular level of intake, but too low and I could suffer from low blood sugar (which is not fun).

So... I'm really sucko about journalizing. Initially, I'll watch the goings on here and chime in when I get the drift.

godfry

[LadyShea]

I need to loose fat and about ten more pounds. I weigh 143 currently, want to get down to 133. I've been less, but 133 is a good weight for me with my bone structure. I'm leary of dieting and of being held accountable, but maybe if I am, I will be able to show control.

All this said, I would be content with only replacing fat with muscle and lose inches and gain tone.


Then you should do weights of some kind. Please join us no matter your goals, this is all about friends helping each other. Accountability simply helps ME refrain from cheating, but you certainly don't have to do the same.

Godfrey, I had something very informal in mind, just a post with what you had to eat that day and what if any exercise you did. Again, I am less likely to cheat if I know I have to record that somewhere....and by making this committement, I have to, because I don't like to lie.

[Dingfod]

Please join us no matter your goals, this is all about friends helping each other. Accountability simply helps ME refrain from cheating, but you certainly don't have to do the same.Same here.

[maddog]

I'm in. I could stand to lose a substantial amount of weight; so much that I don't even want to say how much. I'm training for the LA marathon (WALK not run) next year. I just bought a treadmill, not delivered yet. Food is hard for me. I could use an accountability/cheering squad.
#354

[LadyShea]

Okay, why don't we keep this thread for the comments/cheerleading/way to gos/oh it's okay that you cheated todays and I'll start another thread tomorrow for the actual daily journals. Post here and/or post there and post how and what you want. I don't want this to be heavy pressure, no fun food police type stuff.

I plan to loosely count calories, so will probably just post my foods throughout the day, a calorie count, and what exercise I did. When I can get to a scale I'll post my weight.

[Dingfod]

Cool. The amount of detail should be up to what the individual participants feel comfortable with.

[viscousmemories]

All this said, I would be content with only replacing fat with muscle and lose inches and gain tone.
Then you should do weights of some kind. Please join us no matter your goals, this is all about friends helping each other. Accountability simply helps ME refrain from cheating, but you certainly don't have to do the same.
Making myself accountable to others is a big part of the reason I started this thread (http://www.freethought-forum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1884) when I began working out at home a few weeks ago. This method isn't typically very useful for me 'cause I fully embraced complete personal failure by the time I was 16. But it does help some. :P

Nutrition is of course a big part of the program I'm on, but I've rationalized not worrying about eating healthily by patting myself on the back for at least doing the workout every day. But I do want to lose weight (and/or convert it to muscle) so it's about time I started to be more careful with my eating.

I'm in. :)

[LadyShea]

I changed the name of the thread to reflect all our different goals.

[Ensign Steve]

Count me in, too. I already went to the market and got my healthy food, but I haven't buckled down and started actually eating it. My eating is not low-carb, but more just balanced with huge focus on, well, balance, and portion control. I try to do the food-pyramid thing where I eat 2 milks, 3 fruits, 2 vegetables, 6 starches, 3 meats, 1 fat per day. Plus exercise and vitamins and water. I did this for about five weeks and lost 11 pounds, but I fell off the wagon a week ago and haven't gotten back on. I do own a scale, but I haven't checked to see what kind of damage I did the last week. I had got down from 183 to 172. I'd like to see 145 this summer. That's about the smallest I've been and I feel real comfortable at that weight. In other words, Count Me In! :) See y'all tomorrow.

This (http://www.freethought-forum.com/forum/gallery/showimage.php?i=103&c=3&userid=39) is me at 145. Maybe I can use that pic for inspriation?

[godfry n. glad]

Dognamed! :damn: I'll use that for inspiration!

godfry n. blsdfndkdvdedd :tongtied: uh-huh

(I told ya she was a Victoria's Secret model....)

[xorbie]

I'm not trying to lose weigh (more like gain 5-10 lbs) but I'd be glad to keep an online excercise journal or something. I certainly slack off occasinally on my routine.

[LadyShea]

Hmmm, Lauri is here and wants to take us to brunch. I'll try to make better choices than usual, but I don't think I can officially start today.

[AspenMama]

I'd like to set a mileage goal of walking 2 miles on the treadmill or biking 8 on the exercise bike every day. I'm going to download a week of the South Beach diet-- it's not as strict as Atkins and it is also low fat. So far today, I've had 3 pieces of turkey bacon, (half the fat of regular bacon) an egg and coffee with nonfat milk. I'm going to weigh myself first thing tomorrow to have a starting weight for this. I'm around 144 right now I think.

[Beth]

I am trying to figure out what exactly is a healthy weight for me. I am 5'9". I don't want to shoot for an unhealthy goal.
So far today, I have swept several rooms, vacuumed for nearly 45 minutes, washed dishes, and chased a puppy throughout the house. By the time I am done with tyhe gardening and cleaning and laundry, I doubt I'll have energy for a walk on the treadmill or yoga.
So far I have had a cup of coffee with non-dairy creamer and half a salted avocado(165 cal.) stuffed into half an oatmeal pita(65 cal). For lunch, 2 banannas(200 cal.) and ate an orange(60 cal) for a snack.

[LadyShea]

I didn't realize you were so tall Beth. What's your frame size (basic: small, medium, or large)? You can guage this by the size of your wrist and shoulder width. I am small framed, so my ideal weight is on the lower end of normal.

At 5'9" a healthy weight for a woman (based on various BMI and medical advisory charts I sorta smooshed together) could be anywhere from 130-160 depending on muscle tone and frame size.

[Ensign Steve]

Yah, okay, so how are we going to do it? Start a new thread each day or what? I think Monday is a good day to start, as well (mmmm Sunday brunch sounds good). I'm starting today, though, is anybody else? Should we start a thread or just wait for tomorrow? Or keep it in this thread? I dunno. :shrug:

[LadyShea]

Go ahead and start a thread. Each person can post per day there...I don't think we need new threads daily.

[Beth]

I started it here. (http://www.freethought-forum.com/forum/showthread.php?p=49128#post49128)

[Dingfod]

This site (http://www.he.net/~zone/prothd2.html) is a Body Fat Percentage and Ideal Weight calculator that uses height and waist measurements as well as neck measurments in men and neck and hip measurements in women. It showed me at 37% Body Fat and a idea weight of 211 pounds.

This one (http://members.nuvox.net/~on.jwclymer/bmi.html) uses weight, height, waist size and age. It showed my BMI is 38.5 and athletic weight (ideal, I suppose) is 204 pounds.

Funny thing is that last one showed my athletic waist size should be 33.5 inches. I haven't been that small in my waist since I was 13 or 14. In fact, when I got married (1 month before I turned 21), I weighed about 190 pounds and measured 35 inches in the waist when I was fitted for my tuxedo. I wasn't skin and bones then but I couldn't "pinch an inch", the Special-K slogan that was the rage then. Now it's more like pinch a handful. I do not put any stock at all in the BMI calculators that use only height and weight in their calculation.

[Beth]

The second one has me at a 21.6 BMI, 16.3% body fat, and my BMR is 1,458 calories a day. The athletic waist is much bigger than I am. cool site.

I don't believe, though, with my body shape that my body fat is so low. I have been reading that a woman's body fat should not get below 12%, so I think I'll try not to go much lower and aim for only losing about five more pounds.

[LadyShea]

Beth, I wouldn't worry about weight at all if I were you. Simply toning and adding muscle mass and being as fit as you can be. Sounds like you're at the right weight, numbers wise.

The American Dietetic Association recommends that men have 15-18% body fat and women have 20-25% body fat.

[Beth]

I didn't realize you were so tall Beth. What's your frame size (basic: small, medium, or large)? You can guage this by the size of your wrist and shoulder width. I am small framed, so my ideal weight is on the lower end of normal.

At 5'9" a healthy weight for a woman (based on various BMI and medical advisory charts I sorta smooshed together) could be anywhere from 130-160 depending on muscle tone and frame size.My frame is small, according to my wrists(I can wrap my fingers around my wrist with about a half-inch to spare) and ankles. People in my family have joked about me being an Amazon woman because most of the women are very petite.


Beth, I wouldn't worry about weight at all if I were you. Simply toning and adding muscle mass and being as fit as you can be. Sounds like you're at the right weight, numbers wise.Well, I'm not, really, I want to lose flab and reshape a little. I will just be more cautious about how much I lose. Just the problem is that I have been having trouble eating because of nerves, so I force myself to. Recording what I eat helps me to remember to eat and eat properly. My thing is maintaining and not gaining, anyway.

But I think the chart is wrong, I can well pinch more than an inch all over except on my forearms and calves and I wear a dd bra.

[LadyShea]

If you have a soft tape measure, get a measurement of your wrist. Your hands usually match your frame, so being able to circle your own wrist is expected.

Warren, that first one, with the measurements says my ideal weight is 134 lbs, which is the same as the low range of BMI. I never go by a single source, though, I have always sorta mixed everything up so thanks for the extra info. Looks like 130-135, my intended goal, is pretty close to suggested healthy range.

But I think the chart is wrong, I can well pinch more than an inch all over except on my forearms and calves and I wear a dd bra.

But you can be too thin and still have flab. Pinching isn't a good measurement of anything. I had flab when I weighed 103 lbs and looked like a skeleton with skin hanging off it. Toning with weights, not just diet, is what gets rid of that.

[Beth]

If you have a soft tape measure, get a measurement of your wrist. Your hands usually match your frame, so being able to circle your own wrist is expected.

Warren, that first one, with the measurements says my ideal weight is 134 lbs, which is the same as the low range of BMI. I never go by a single source, though, I have always sorta mixed everything up so thanks for the extra info. Looks like 130-135, my intended goal, is pretty close to suggested healthy range.Thanks. My wrists measure out to 5 1/4".

[LadyShea]

Yep, small frame :)

[Dingfod]

Interesting. I just measured my wrists. My left wrist is about 1/4" smaller than my right; Left = 7-3/8", Right = 7-5/8". I'm medium-large framed.

My dad and my younger brother are almost exactly the same height and frame size as I am. My dad, 71, now weighs around 210-215 pounds and except for a little paunch, looks thin, but not as thin as when he and my mother were on the grapefruit diet back in the early 70s; he stayed on the diet until he was down to 165 pounds, which is the same weight I was at the time at age 16. He was absolutely anorexic-looking at 165 pounds, my mother was pretty skeletal too when she weighed 115 pounds, I've seen photographic evidence to back up my memories of it. We're a large boned bunch in my family.

[viscousmemories]

I just did the two calculators. I'm 6' tall and 210 lbs. I'm almost positive I've weighed between 185-240 for my entire adult life.

The first said I have 30% body fat and my ideal weight is 169 lbs.

The second said my BMI is 28.5 and that I have 29.9% body fat.

I also found out I'd weigh 15 stones if I were in the UK, but my BMI would be the same.

My wrists are both 7 2/8" around.

[pescifish]

169 seems low for that height. My brother is 5'11" and probably weighs in the 150-160 range but he's a long distance runner, vegetarian and not only teaches yoga several times a week but practices the lifestyle and healthy precepts. He always looks incredibly lean [read that as "thin"].

vm, anytime I've seen you, you seemed a perfect weight. I can't imagine how you could drop 40 pounds and be at the ideal. :nojustno:

[viscousmemories]

Thanks, but you've never seen me when I'm not sucking in my gut. :giggle:

Seriously though, I swear every time I've looked at an "ideal weight" chart in the past it has said 185-190 is my ideal weight. That seems much more reasonable to me. I can't imagine losing more than 20-25 lbs. without starting to look unhealthily thin.

[Beth]

My downfall for me is the concession stand food when my kids are active in sports. My son is now in Little League and the smells of the fried food is everywhere during the game. I confess, I am in love with crispy, fried foods, so the fries are always a temptation, a temptation that I am finding myself yielding to more often. The problem is, when I eat it, I begin to panic, get dizzy, and just really feel awful because my blood sugar gets way out of whack. Anyway, game seasons is usually the time that I am most likely to gain weight.

[Ensign Steve]

Beth, why don't you bring a nice alternative with you to the game? I big salty bag of light popcorn or pretzels (assuming you don't have a sodium problem) might be a good crunchy-salty alternative to something like nachos, ya know?

[Beth]

Beth, why don't you bring a nice alternative with you to the game? I big salty bag of light popcorn or pretzels (assuming you don't have a sodium problem) might be a good crunchy-salty alternative to something like nachos, ya know?
Good idea, thank you, but pretzels also make me sick, for some reason. THe whole thing is the crispy, crunchy outside of a fry and then the hot, moist inside. The crunchy fried cheese sticks with the gooey cheese inside. Yummy. I usually take a tin of Ice Breakers with me and munch on them during the game and it helps most of the time and sometimes I'll take a veggie stuffed pita with me, if I feel really hungry, or I'll get a pickle. None of these compare with the yummy-ness of concession stand seasoned fries though.

[AspenMama]

The bad munchy time for me seems to be in the evenings. I want to snack on chips or anything crunchy. I think I'll buy some more nuts to have on hand and just ban myself from the kitchen after 9pm.

[godfry n. glad]

Just a warning here from Mr. Supposed to be Low Sodium: Heavily salted foods will cause your body to retain water...water weight. Pretzels, potato chips, popcorn and salted nuts...or any other typically salted foods...often can be obtained in unsalted or low salt alternatives (but you have to look for them).

[Beth]

I also want to say that there are 3500 calories in one pound of body fat. In order to lose 1 pound of body fat, we must eat 3500 less calories than our body burns. I recommend calculating how many calories your body needs to function and how many calories you burn in your daily activities and exercise. Then figure out how much you would like to lose per week. Base your caloric intake on that goal. i.e. if you plan on losing 2 pounds per week, you must take in 7,000 fewer calories per week than your body uses.

[godfry n. glad]

When I was going to WeightWatchers, they were adamant that participants should eat fats with breakfast. According to the leader, a small amount of fats "primes the pump" for the fat burning process.

Also... Often the key to controlling intake is not WHAT you eat, but HOW MUCH you eat. Portion control is key.

[AspenMama]

When I was going to WeightWatchers, they were adamant that participants should eat fats with breakfast. According to the leader, a small amount of fats "primes the pump" for the fat burning process.

Also... Often the key to controlling intake is not WHAT you eat, but HOW MUCH you eat. Portion control is key.

Oddly, I've rather found the opposite is true. The more I eat of the correct foods, the more weight I lose-- without worrying so much about the portions even. When I skip meals or do not eat a good breakfast or lunch, I tend to maintain or gain weight. It's about eating the right fats and adding more protein for me. I was a vegetarian for about 10 years and just this last year have started eating some meats again. I've found I get full faster and that feeling lasts longer.

[godfry n. glad]

When I was going to WeightWatchers, they were adamant that participants should eat fats with breakfast. According to the leader, a small amount of fats "primes the pump" for the fat burning process.

Also... Often the key to controlling intake is not WHAT you eat, but HOW MUCH you eat. Portion control is key.

Oddly, I've rather found the opposite is true. The more I eat of the correct foods, the more weight I lose-- without worrying so much about the portions even. When I skip meals or do not eat a good breakfast or lunch, I tend to maintain or gain weight. It's about eating the right fats and adding more protein for me. I was a vegetarian for about 10 years and just this last year have started eating some meats again. I've found I get full faster and that feeling lasts longer.

Heh... I lost 25 lbs. in about a year when my usual breakfast consisted of two glazed donuts and coffee. For me, it was portion control, particularly of fatty meats and carbohydrates, along with regular exercise, that did the trick.

Skipping breakfast entirely - on a regular basis - was my ticket to weight gain.

[Bella]

My wrists are 7" around. I am 5'6" and weigh <gasp> 200 pounds, and I'm a size 12-14, depending on the store. I have a size 38F bra, a 36 inch waist, and 44 inch hips.

Well, the first thingie said I should weigh 130 pounds and the second thingie said I should weigh 150-ish.

Fuck 'em.

That being said, please do not treat any foods or food groups as "bad" or "evil" - there is nothing out there which is inherently bad. There are only bad eating habits. Realise that eating is one of our most base needs. Enjoy your food, eat small portions of HIGHLY CONCENTRATED FLAVOUR with a large variety of textures and colours. Eat slowly - don't read, watch TV, or work the crossword puzzle in the Times. Try eating Continental style, if you don't already know how; it will slow you down enough so you can really engage your mind in the process of eating. Try chopsticks. Just sit back and ENJOY. Please! For my sake, if nothing else! Otherwise, where will I be in 10 years?

[TomJoe]

Skipping breakfast entirely - on a regular basis - was my ticket to weight gain.

This is my problem. I hate eating breakfast. I'd much rather have trhe extra 15 minutes of sleep. I've now topped out at 180 pounds, and my cholesterol is at 180 too. When I left Buffalo for Oklahoma, my cholesterol level was 100 and I weighed 140 pounds. Now I have a gut, and it's killing me to look at it every morning.

Guess I'll start eating a bagel or toast for breakfast.

[godfry n. glad]

Skipping breakfast entirely - on a regular basis - was my ticket to weight gain.

This is my problem. I hate eating breakfast. I'd much rather have trhe extra 15 minutes of sleep. I've now topped out at 180 pounds, and my cholesterol is at 180 too. When I left Buffalo for Oklahoma, my cholesterol level was 100 and I weighed 140 pounds. Now I have a gut, and it's killing me to look at it every morning.

Guess I'll start eating a bagel or toast for breakfast.

I was told that a small amount of fats (like buttering the toast or light cream cheese on the bagel) helps jumpstart the fat-burning process after a period of calm and quiet (sleeping).

They also recommended that the midday meal (which we call lunch) should be your largest meal.