ideologyhunter
Contributor
Toni: Nothing much worked for me on weight loss 'til I tried water aerobics. I'm in my 9th year of it and have maintained a healthy BMI since the 5-month mark, back in 2011.
Toni: Nothing much worked for me on weight loss 'til I tried water aerobics. I'm in my 9th year of it and have maintained a healthy BMI since the 5-month mark, back in 2011.
For my family, there is a strong history of obesity. I was the only one who, as an adult, was at or under my ideal weight. I'm sure genetics play a strong role here but my diet is extremely different than the diet I grew up on and the one that my siblings still maintain. I'm thinner than any of my siblings but weigh much more than I should. I'm also more physically active and as far as I can tell, my diet is much, much healthier, with few processed components, and far less salt and sugar and fat.
Toni: Nothing much worked for me on weight loss 'til I tried water aerobics. I'm in my 9th year of it and have maintained a healthy BMI since the 5-month mark, back in 2011.
I'm curious how much of your time is spent on the water aerobics.
I weigh what I did in high school. . Since we are talking about our struggles with weight, I'll share mine. I started to gradually gain weight in my 30s and became a bit too chubby for my satisfaction in my late 40s. So, I started walking a few miles most days, and I also started counting calories again, like I did in high school. I found that I could lose weight by cutting back to about 1500 calories a day, as long as I remained active. Over the course of a year or so, I lost 30 lbs. and got down to my high school weight.
Then I started having arthritis in my feet and the long walks were no longer possible due to the pain, so I joined Curves. Curves helped me maintain my weight but it really wasn't that great of an exercise program. So, about five years ago, I joined the local senior center and started doing aerobic exercise for 45 minutes three days a week. I made new friends in our wonderfully diverse group of women, who's ages ranged from 50 something to 90. Now, I can easily eat over 2000 calories a day of whatever foods I want and still maintain a weight under 120 lbs.
I do love vegetables, very small portions of meat, plus lots of carbs. I must have lots of carbs. I tend to think that there is no one perfect diet and different things work for different people. For example, one of my exercise friends just told me she is losing weight on the fasting diet which is very popular right now. I, on the other hand am a grazer. I eat cereal for breakfast with fruit, then I snack pretty much all day long every few hours. Most of my meals are fairly small, by American standards, but when I add up my caloric intake, it's almost always at least 2000 per day.
Here's a few more things that have worked for both me and my husband. We both weigh every morning. If we are up a pound, we cut back for that day. If I miss my exercise group, my weight will start to increase. There has been research recently that supports the idea that while exercise alone doesn't usually cause much weight loss, it does help one maintain the weight loss they've already accomplished. It also helps if one cuts back on eating along with increasing exercise.
Plus, exercise is now believed, according to some research, to be more important than one's weight. In my group, many of the woman are obese, but they keep on working out. I think if nothing else, it's helped them from gaining more weight. So, if you can't lose the weight, at least establish a good exercise program.
I do agree that eating habits and weight gain are probably somewhat connected to genetics. I think not being able to control one's appetite may have a genetic link. So much of who we are is based on our genetics. But, there must be more to it because we have never had so much obesity as we do these days. Perhaps some of it is due to the abundance of high caloric food that first world people have available. I tend to think that eating in restaurants has also been part of what has caused so much obesity. Just look at the caloric content of meals in chain restaurants. It's not unusual for one meal to have nearly the number of calories that an average person can eat in one day without gaining weight. And, then there are sweetened beverages and breads that often are provided in restaurants. We have changed the way and the amount of what we eat over the past several decades, making it more difficult to maintain a healthy weight. Most people no longer know what a normal portion size is. It's a lot harder to maintain a healthy weight these days than it was when I was a child.
I ate breakfast two hours ago and I'm getting hungry right now so I think I'll go get a snack.
I thought old people were supposed to grow more fearless and speak their mind more. The opposite has happened to me somewhat, because I feel that I am more vulnerable. Aldo I feel a lack of respect/ prejudice against old people in our society.
That's an interesting thought. I speak my mind less too, partly due to vulnerability, but it's also equal parts 'maybe this is a waste of energy'. I tend to only initiate conversation if I'm going to learn something or have a productive exchange.
I thought old people were supposed to grow more fearless and speak their mind more. The opposite has happened to me somewhat, because I feel that I am more vulnerable. Aldo I feel a lack of respect/ prejudice against old people in our society.
That's an interesting thought. I speak my mind less too, partly due to vulnerability, but it's also equal parts 'maybe this is a waste of energy'. I tend to only initiate conversation if I'm going to learn something or have a productive exchange.
Yes, lower energy is also a factor for me.
I thought old people were supposed to grow more fearless and speak their mind more. The opposite has happened to me somewhat, because I feel that I am more vulnerable. Aldo I feel a lack of respect/ prejudice against old people in our society.
That's an interesting thought. I speak my mind less too, partly due to vulnerability, but it's also equal parts 'maybe this is a waste of energy'. I tend to only initiate conversation if I'm going to learn something or have a productive exchange.
Yes, lower energy is also a factor for me.
I weigh what I did in high school. . Since we are talking about our struggles with weight, I'll share mine. I started to gradually gain weight in my 30s and became a bit too chubby for my satisfaction in my late 40s. So, I started walking a few miles most days, and I also started counting calories again, like I did in high school. I found that I could lose weight by cutting back to about 1500 calories a day, as long as I remained active. Over the course of a year or so, I lost 30 lbs. and got down to my high school weight.
Then I started having arthritis in my feet and the long walks were no longer possible due to the pain, so I joined Curves. Curves helped me maintain my weight but it really wasn't that great of an exercise program. So, about five years ago, I joined the local senior center and started doing aerobic exercise for 45 minutes three days a week. I made new friends in our wonderfully diverse group of women, who's ages ranged from 50 something to 90. Now, I can easily eat over 2000 calories a day of whatever foods I want and still maintain a weight under 120 lbs.
I do love vegetables, very small portions of meat, plus lots of carbs. I must have lots of carbs. I tend to think that there is no one perfect diet and different things work for different people. For example, one of my exercise friends just told me she is losing weight on the fasting diet which is very popular right now. I, on the other hand am a grazer. I eat cereal for breakfast with fruit, then I snack pretty much all day long every few hours. Most of my meals are fairly small, by American standards, but when I add up my caloric intake, it's almost always at least 2000 per day.
Here's a few more things that have worked for both me and my husband. We both weigh every morning. If we are up a pound, we cut back for that day. If I miss my exercise group, my weight will start to increase. There has been research recently that supports the idea that while exercise alone doesn't usually cause much weight loss, it does help one maintain the weight loss they've already accomplished. It also helps if one cuts back on eating along with increasing exercise.
Plus, exercise is now believed, according to some research, to be more important than one's weight. In my group, many of the woman are obese, but they keep on working out. I think if nothing else, it's helped them from gaining more weight. So, if you can't lose the weight, at least establish a good exercise program.
I do agree that eating habits and weight gain are probably somewhat connected to genetics. I think not being able to control one's appetite may have a genetic link. So much of who we are is based on our genetics. But, there must be more to it because we have never had so much obesity as we do these days. Perhaps some of it is due to the abundance of high caloric food that first world people have available. I tend to think that eating in restaurants has also been part of what has caused so much obesity. Just look at the caloric content of meals in chain restaurants. It's not unusual for one meal to have nearly the number of calories that an average person can eat in one day without gaining weight. And, then there are sweetened beverages and breads that often are provided in restaurants. We have changed the way and the amount of what we eat over the past several decades, making it more difficult to maintain a healthy weight. Most people no longer know what a normal portion size is. It's a lot harder to maintain a healthy weight these days than it was when I was a child.
I ate breakfast two hours ago and I'm getting hungry right now so I think I'll go get a snack.
Honestly? I don't really like eating much and I strongly dislike feeling too full. I actually enjoy the feeling of being slightly hungry. And I don't actually eat much. As I've mentioned, when eating with friends, they often ask if that's all I'm having, usually take leftovers and at holiday meals, I find I put a lot on my plate and....eat very little of it.
For me, I think the biggest need is to move more, although when I started gaining weight, I was chasing 4 young kids all over a large house and carrying laundry up and down 2 floors, etc. in addition to walking to do a lot of errands, taking little kids to and from school, etc. For years, I never actually felt hungry. I simply ate when I was feeding the kids/husband. On the rare occasions no one else was around for the day, I maybe ate....toast or a bagel. Or yogurt. With fruit. I don't drink anything except water and tea and a very occasional glass of wine and even rarer beer. I am certain I don't drink a six pack over the course of a year.
Your metabolism sounds like mine in my younger days. My best friend had inexplicably gained weight during her last year of high school and was trying to lose weight so she insisted on twice daily weigh ins and would be extremely frustrated because I would gain a pound or two over the course of a day--and lose it all by the next morning. I ate much more than she did--didn't think a thing at all about what I ate or how much. She was living on egg whites and vegetables and not losing a pound. A few years later, she was down to her usual weight (and eating normally but healthy) and has maintained a healthy weight while I struggle to not gain more each year.
I wouldn't call myself "old" just yet, but I'm not quite "young" either. ... But yes, my attitudes have changed a bit over time. When I was in university in my early 20's I was extremely shy, introverted, petrified of rejection, and generally unhappy. But when I hit 30, I got a new challenging job, a serious girlfriend and a whole lot of confidence from both of those. These days, I'm still an introvert, but I've stopped worrying too much about what other people think. Now, I'm happy.
Wisdom comes with age. ... Usually.
Confidence really is the key to a lot of success. That was something I knew back in university too, but I also knew that confidence without SOME foundation of competence was foolish. I didn't know that I was under-valuing myself, and I suffered for it.