OT: I need to lose weight!

I don’t know why I’m posting this cause I don’t know what I’m really looking for :wall:

I was always a little bigger in highschool, I wasn’t overweight or anything but I wasn’t a size 6 either. Then after highschool I started working in a greenhouse :heart: I loved that job more than anything I’ve ever done in my life. And boy did I lose the weight! I got down to 115 lbs, I was grossly thin, and I never noticed it until I saw a picture of me and hubby’s engagement picture. My clothes just hung on me like a hanger. Yuk.

Well those days have long passed and its about 10 years later and boy have I put on the pounds. This is what happens when you work in a stupid office :-x Now that I’m home I recently started doing Yoga 3 times a week. I never thought I’d keep it up but I have! Plus its helped the left side of my back. (I couldn’t sleep on it for 2 years without waking with a major crick in it) Two weeks into it and wow what a difference. :doh: I can’t tell you how many doctors I saw, physical therapy, ugh you name it, what a dork I am…

But my main ‘Problem Area’ is my stupid hips, butt, thighs and everything attached! The yoga hasn’t done anything for those areas. We walk the dog everyday - Yes, EVERYDAY. No lie. And that hasn’t helped either. I don’t know what to do. My metabolism is faster than a speeding bullet.

I eat a meal and 3 minutes later I’m starving. (slight exaggeration) Yes, I eat frequently throughout the day, but I still don’t lose weight.

What’s a girl to do?? :waah:

(And no, there isn’t a greenhouse nearby, my car is the gas guzzler)

Thanks for letting me vent. :thumbsup:

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It really sounds like you’re doing all the right stuff! The only thing I can suggest is possibly adding some mileage to your walk…most weight loss stuff says get about an hour of cardio every day.

I’m in the same boat. I was a chubby child and then a chubby adult. Then I lost a LOT of weight and kept it off mostly for years. Now I’m right back up to where I was before. It’s very :oops: depressing. I don’t think my knitting even as often as I do burns any calories for me at all. :wall:

Celine…when you said something about knitting and burning calories, it gave me an idea. I wonder if it would be possible to knit while walking on a treadmill (something simple, of course). I wonder if anyone has tried that???

I have to cut out CHEESE and alcohol for me to lose any weight…and what fun is that cries

I’d rather carry around the few extra lbs than give up my wine and cheese!!!

I know how you feel about the weight issue. 2+ years ago I lost 40 lbs in 4 months following Dr. Phil’s eating and exercise plan. Then we moved to Australia where it’s harder to get low calorie/low sugar foods, I started working part-time, shuttling the 3 kids around and trying to spend time training our two shelter-rescued dogs, so couldn’t keep my same exercise schedule and half the weight is back on now and MOST of my clothes are NOT fitting! Thank god it’s winter here so I can hide under baggy sweat pants part of the time! I cannot tell you how fantastic it felt to be 40lbs thinner and I WANT THAT FEELING BACK AGAIN!

What I found that has helped me the most when successfully losing weight was not only writing down everything I ate, but PLANNING AHEAD so I would know what I COULD eat during the day. It wasn’t an obessive attention to the food, but if I was hungry in the afternoon, I would know “ok, it’s time for a calcium-based snack because I had a fruit snack in the morning” or something like that. I cut back on the carbs (hard to do, but planning ahead helped with that). I had a balanced diet that included 8 glasses of water a day – and, boy, does that help get the weight off faster and make you feel better. I had so much more energy and felt so much better when I was eating right.

Of course, knitting helps me not eat (I try not to have snacks next to me so am less tempted to have something at the end of a row!) Haven’t tried knitting while on the treadmill (yet!) as someone else was wondering about in an earlier reply, but wouldn’t it be great if I could! :slight_smile: My real problem is not exercising (I used to do the treadmill for 45 mins at a decent walking pace w/ varied inclines and/or a Kathy Smith exercise tape (about 40 mins of low impact aerobics) and not making good choices for food or taking the time to sit down and prepare a decent meal rather than grabbing whatever is convenient (and usually not healthy).

Don’t know if any of my ideas might help you, but I hope you take some small comfort in knowing you aren’t alone and don’t have to go through this alone. I’ll leave you with the words that Dr. Phil said that really got me up and moving and eating right (and I need to get back on track again!). He was talking to a mom who said “I just can’t lose weight.” She said she didn’t have the time to eat right, exercise, etc… Dr. Phil asked her what was most important to her in the whole world. She said “My kids.” He replied “So, why are you doing this (overeating, putting yourself at risk for all these other medical issues) to their mother?” That got to me and now I’m going to get up and go get my tennies on and get on that treadmill!

Best of luck to you. Feel free to PM me if you need someone to encourage you to get moving and eating right. Maybe we can get each other motivated! --Jill

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Have you ever tried the classic callanetics video? (That link is for the old VHS version, but there is a reissue on DVD as well. I just linked the earlier one since it had more reviews. Plus, the VHS is a fraction of the price of the DVD if you get it used.)

I’m usually pretty skeptical about programs that claim dramatic results, but this one actually made a significant difference in my lower body that was noticeable within the first couple of weeks. If you can get your hands on the Callanetics book, there are pictures of peoples’ back sides showing how much their butts lifted and hips and thighs trimmed down over the course of a few months. (It’s sort of mesmerizing, really.)

There are other programs with similar philosophies, but this one is the classic exercise video (dated though it is), and you don’t have to buy a whole series of umpteen volumes to get the all the exercises.

I lost 93 pounds between Jan 05 and March 06. I used drugs–the legal kind. I stopped taking them in March because they made my hair fall out. I’ve since gained 20 pounds, BUT I am eating much better than I did, say, in 2004. We try very hard to eat things with whole grains and high fiber. DH and I are able to eat lots of fresh veggies and fruits int he summertime because we have a garden, and even though the supermarket varieties aren’t as good, we keep that going as much as possible during the winter. A lot of stuff we eat takes time to fix; we don’t do hamburger helper, boxed mac and cheese, canned “things” every often. We hardly EVER drink soda–I can’t remember the last time we had one, to be honest, it was probablly before school let out. Since we don’t have kids, and we work opposite shifts, it’s easy and not a problem for us to fix whatever we want for ourselves–we don’t have to fix different things for different people, or take time to make snough for a “family” since we usually only eat together on weekends.

The hardest thing for me is recognizing when I am not hungry anymore. I’m still working on that. :aww:

I also try to adopt the principle that just a little bit of “something” will satisfy me as much as the whole thing. A small bowl of potato chips is a good crunchy junky snack that is satisfying durin Aunt Flo’s visits–I don’t HAVE to eat the whole bag. We try not to keep junky stuff in the house too, but it creeps in every once in a while. We do a “cleansing” about every 4 months, and get rid of all the junk food and bad stuff (we give it to BIL and SIL, they have kids who will eat it).

Like you, I walk or walk/jog every day. It was hard for me to set up a non-foods based “reward” for myself for exercising, but I found a FABULOUS system in the spring–I located a tanning salon that is exactly a mile from my house. I signed up for 2 months of unlimited tanning, and I walked or walk/jogged there. I would NOT let myself drive. I would walk 2 blocks, then alternate jogging and walking for the rest of the time, ending with a 3 block walk “cool down”. It was great… I started this in the spring when I stopped taking the medicine, and I was gaining weight, but it was most likely muscle at that point.

I also have sucessfully knitted on treasmills, recumbent bikes, and my NEW FAVORITE EXERCISE APPARATUS, a recumbent stepper! I wish they weren’t so expensive, or I’d get one for the house.

Keep at it! It sounds like there are several of us who are in the mood to get active and healthy and slim again… we should resurrect the KH Weight Loss blog, wherever that went… It was great for me last year because it’s like we each had our own little cheering section!

Not on a treadmill, but I’ve gone on a neighborhood walkabout and knitted. It was a small project and I’d just started so could keep the ball of yarn in a small plastic bag on my wrist. It was kinda fun.

sue

I have been losing weight and eating better after adding Psyllium Fiber to my diet.

Thanks everyone for all of your motivational words. :heart: I would luuuuvvvvvvvv to go for a jog or a run, but I hate both of those things. :oops: Ever since middle school when we were forced to run the mile for the stupid presidential thing?? Ugh, that was the longest mile of my life :teehee:

The annoying thing is that if I were active again, I know the pounds would fall off, but since I’m not working (by choice, but not for much longer) I don’t get out at all except for weekends and the walks with the pup at night. PLUS, we do live on a horrible hill, I’ve been walking it for at least 2 years and I still get winded every time we go up it. :passedout:

(I love these new emoticons!!)

Anyway, as far as my eating habits, I’m not great but I’m not eating potato chips and cookies and ice cream every night. (don’t think I don’t want too) Plus I can’t eat MSG due to my migraines and that is in every pre-made boxed dinner known to man (okay, maybe I could eat some, but I am also quite fussy) My hubby will eat anything.

I love when we get fruit at the store, but its so dang expensive. I know you have to bite the bullet sometimes and we do, but $4.99 for 6oz of raspberries is just hard to handle.

I have been wondering if I should try one of those aerobics dvd’s, but I haven’t the foggiest idea of whose to get. Why does this part of life have to be so hard? Not hard, but frustrating. :hair:

After reading this thread, I am wondering why is it that approximately 65% of Americans are overweight or obese but 95% of clothing options are size 14 & under? And the “plus” sizes are so expensive if you want something that doesn’t resemble a tent.

And doesn’t it suck that gaining weight is so easy, but losing it is so hard? :hair:

Hilde, I applaud your weight loss! I’d be afraid to take the meds, but that lap band surgery seems like an option. I am at a point that I feel that simple “eating right and exercise” seems like an uphill battle. If it were twenty pounds it would be one thing. But it’s now about 80 pounds. Although I think I’d feel thin even losing (just!) 50. Oh, I could go on and on…

I would suggest the “Walk Away the Pounds” by Leslie Sansone. Sounds corny, but it’s so not intimidating and there are different challenging levels. And she doesn’t go on with stupid motivating fat girl sayings.

[quote=“jamiejeans”]

I would suggest the “Walk Away the Pounds” by Leslie Sansone. Sounds corny, but it’s so not intimidating and there are different challenging levels. And she doesn’t go on with stupid motivating fat girl sayings.[/quote]

I’ve been a taebo fiend and jogger in the past so getting the “walk away the pounds” video for me was humbling (ive always been big but ive also always been physically strong). im glad i humbled myself though. its a great workout. i use the two mile one.

i would love it if we could resurrect or start up a new weight loss blog. i need the inspiration you guys are the best group of people ive found on the net. of course its probably bc youre all knitters :muah:

Lift weights. I know a lot of women are afraid they’ll bulk up if they lift weights, but that only happens if you’re lifting tremendously heavy amounts and/or on steroids. I’m talking light free weights (5-12 pound range). Muscle burns more calories than fat, so the more muscle you have, the more calories you’ll burn. I don’t know how vigorously you’re walking, but you may have to step it up a notch; at least 30 minutes 4-5 days per week & it’ll have to be hard enough where you can’t easily converse. The best of luck to you!!!

I’m currently reading Oprah & Bob Green’s Book “Make the Connection” and it has 10 tips for weight loss that we all know (drink more water, exercise 5-6 days a week, eat 3 meals and 2 snacks, more fruits & veggies, etc)

I’ve decided that the only way to break my bad habits is to tackle them ONE at a time. And work at that one until I really have it down. SLOOOOOOW but effective. So far I have given up some food things, but my latest things are more water (80 oz/day) and not eating (NOTHING) after 7:30pm.

I’m hoping we do get some kind of blog or Trim-a-Long going. We could all use tickers for our goals and encourage each other, etc.

My :heart: :heart: and good thoughts are with all of you dealing with this and being so brave to share about it!!

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Here is the fit knitters blog in the blog forum. The latest stuff from today starts HERE on pg. 21. We’ve already added a page just tonight :woot:

I think this might help you:

I’m getting a few for my family.
:slight_smile:

Also a few things :
Check your food for High Fructose Corn syrup, try not to eat many things that have it;Everyone in my family lost 10 pounds from that alone!

Switch all your oils to Extra-virgin olive oil
Eat whole grains, oatmeal, etc.
make sure your meals are not empty calories like white rice, and diet sodas/fat-free packaged foods.
:slight_smile:

doglover - have you ever thought of riding a bike since you don’t like walking or jogging? it’s much more low impact, but it still burns the calories! I also like it because you get to see more because you’re going faster. Losing weight is a tough battle. There are so many gimmicks and tricks out there, but it all boils down to calories in needs to be less than calories out. Like Hilde said, whole grains and fibers keep you fuller longer, which is why sweet snacks can be so addictive, because they are so unfulfilling. Also, make sure you are eating breakfast as soon as you get up. Get your metabolism working right away! Eating smaller meals more often is also better than the three standard meals a day. I’ve had many friends who were successful on the Weight Watchers points program. I think they have the basics right in their program. You can still splurge, but all that means is that you have the scrimp somewhere else. If you have pizza for dinner today, have fish the next night. Create a balance, but don’t deprive yourself, I think that’s why so many people get tired of trying to lose weight, because they feel like they are depriving themselves, and then when they go off the program, they go back to their old habits because they were frustrated, and the weight comes right back on. Get used to having a snack every other day if you currently have one everyday. Starting small will make a big difference in the end because you’ll adjust much easier.