Healthy Weight Loss
 

Hi everyone,

I looked for a thread on this topic and didn't see one...so (since this is part of my goal for this year), I thought I'd start one. :)

As a diabetic, I have to be careful of fad diets... and losing weight makes it much easier to manage my condition (not to mention finding cute clothes when out shopping!)

When I was first diagnosed, I followed the diabetic diet religiously, walked an hour a day, and lost 50 lbs. Woo hoo! Unfortunately, the diabetic diet makes life no fun...and I gradually went off of it. As a result, I've regained about 25 of those pounds over the last 5 years. Not a quick gain, but frustrating and unhealthy.

So...for 2011...I've resolved to get back to my walking...starting with 2 miles a day since I'm out of shape and working (as quickly as possible) back to the 4 mile walk that helped me lose weight initially, and which I know helps me maintain a healthy level of fitness.

I've also resolved to improve my diet...not the diabetic diet (cuz I'll want to hurt someone), but an easier to manage version using Weight Watchers points.

My weight loss goal (for now) is 35 lbs.

Here's a link to a very handy list of food point values (but I still cannot figure out the crazy formula on top to save my life...all I know is that about 25 points works for me).

Anyone want to share hints, tips, advice, and support on losing weight in a healthy way?

Calculating your points allowance
 

Sweet! I just found this great link for calculating how many Weight Watchers points you're allowed each day...and it's easy.

The best part? I get 26 points, not 25.....wooooooooo hooooooo! :cheer:

I also found another link to a calculator that tells you how many extra points you can earn by exercising...so every brisk half hour walk gives me 2 more points. Love it! Now that's incentive to put on my walking shoes. :)

Subscribing , because, "Healthy Weight Loss" sounds fun.
 

I go to a WW Meeting every Sat. AM at 6:30. They have a new points calculator and a new ponts system that started this year...UGH..

My Doc told me I was borderline diabetic about 6 months ago. My cholesterol was high, along with my BP..and my thyroid was wacky.

She said you must have beans, legumes, veggie's and fruits in the house. You must quit using Drive-Thrus as your food groups, and you must exercise.

I BEGAN eating organic fruits and veggies, veggie soups , regularly and quit eating meat, bread and dessert. I eat fish more often. My lab results last month were dramatically improved, plus I had a healthy weight loss, and feel great.

It will be an amazing year, and I am dedicated to either growing to 8 feet tall, or losing weight, feeling better, and having my bloodwork and BP results be great. Tired of being undertall for my weight.:)

I struggle, but am surviving and thriving. I am a NON-Cook, so, steaming veggies and making veggie soup is easy. After dinner was hardest-because chocolate or sweets call to me. My solution was not to buy, or allow bad stuff in my house. Holidays and Birthdays are exempt, and looked at as an okay time to have single portions of bad stuff I can't leave in the cupboards or fridge. I have air popped popcorn, without anything, and that does the trick.

Jacuzzi and pool in the morning, and walking the 2 flights of stairs at work instead of the elevators has helped.

When I NOW grocery shop, I take the extra steps and return the shopping cart to the rack at the store. Every step is helping. Oh..and my buddy bought me a new pedometer for Christmas.

Okay. subscribing and thriving, with a LOoooooonnnnng way to go.

[QUOTE=Tommi;261051]
Oh..and my buddy bought me a new pedometer for Christmas.
[QUOTE]

those pedometers are GREAT.. i have one, and actually need to start using it again, im curious just how much walking i do in the run of a day, but when i was using it, i found that seeing how many steps i took was very encouraging to want more and more, and you are right every step does count Tommi!! mine comes with a radio on it though which burned the batteries like crazy, i need to figure out how to switch that option off, or maybe ill just buy some rechargables!

long road for us all, but i'm on board too.. i needed to clear my mind before i could commit, and i feel i am 'there' now..

i need this, for health & for self esteem!

Yay! I am so glad to have others to share this project with! :)

And yes on pedometers! My doctor told me to aim for 10,000 steps a day...challenging when I work from home and the furthest I go is the coffe pot.

I put the dog on leash and walked 2 miles today...first time in a long time (like over 4 months). Wow, I could feel it ...and so could he, poor thing...but it's good for both of us. I figure I'll start with 2 miles and work our way up. The doc said that doing 2 separate walks of 2 miles a day is even better because it keeps the metabolism fired up...so that's what I'm aiming for.

Tommi...I'm so glad you're seeing results. You definitely want to stay out of diabetic territory if you possibly can...it's no fun. I have damage to my eyes, and the nerves in my feet...scary stuff. And, oh yea, fast food is my mortal enemy. Periodically it lures me back (because I simply adore Big Macs)...but they really aren't worth what they do to me...or anyone for that matter!

Yay us! :cheer:

BMI
 

Never gonna have snow here. BUT , I did trim a 15 foot high Bougainvillea bush, and raked eucalyptus and pepper tree debris from our 7 days of rain. Grass is still too mushy to mow today though.

So,if interested, here is a Body Mass Index Calculator . Here it is.. :goodluck:

I don't like the BMI thing at all. it doesn't take into account things like body type and muscle mass.

Thank you Tommi!!!

I just did the BMI calculation and my results did not please me. I am going to lose those last 30lbs.

Zimmy

"Center for Disease Body Mass Index: FAQ link

""""CDC:Body Mass Index (BMI) is a number calculated from a person's weight and height. BMI provides a reliable indicator of body fatness for most people and is used to screen for weight categories that may lead to health problem"

The better discriptors here :byebye:

How reliable is BMI as an indicator of body fatness?
The correlation between the BMI number and body fatness is fairly strong; however the correlation varies by sex, race, and age. These variations include the following examples: 3, 4

At the same BMI, women tend to have more body fat than men.
At the same BMI, older people, on average, tend to have more body fat than younger adults.
Highly trained athletes may have a high BMI because of increased muscularity rather than increased body fatness.
It is also important to remember that BMI is only one factor related to risk for disease. For assessing someone's likelihood of developing overweight- or obesity-related diseases, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute guidelines recommend looking at two other predictors:

The individual's waist circumference (because abdominal fat is a predictor of risk for obesity-related diseases).
Other risk factors the individual has for diseases and conditions associated with obesity (for example, high blood pressure or physical inactivity).
For more information about the assessment of health risk for developing overweight- and obesity-related diseases, visit the following Web pages from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute:"""Assessing Your Risk
Body Mass Index Table
Clinical Guidelines on the Identification, Evaluation, and Treatment of Overweight and Obesity in Adults

Thank you Jo Jo for starting this thread!

Four years ago I put myself on a diet to lose the weight I had gained from being in college. My starting weight was 210lbs and I am 5'0 tall. I lost 60lbs and I have been able to keep 43lbs off.

I was drinking three 20oz bottles of coke a day. That was my first step, to give up soda. I did it cold turkey and I lost 35lbs in two months. I can powerwalk three miles a day and I try to do that atleast three times a week.

My goal is now to lose the last 30lbs to bring me down to 137lbs.

If you have an iPhone, the app I use is called LoseIt.

I'm subscribing!

Zimmy

Give up Diet Coke....So, that really helps huh............
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_xudVvW5q4R.../diet_coke.jpg

Same here, I checked out Gemme's link, and will follow up on it. :hamactor:

Thanks for the BMI link Tommi....I came up much higher than I like. Of course, it says for my height a range of 119 to 152 is normal...and I know that the lowest weight I've had as an adult (living on fish and salad and working out 2 solid hours a day) was 155.

For me, a weight of about 175 is fabulous...I feel good, I look good, clothes fit well, my diabetes is under control...and, yes, I still have a big butt! :cheesy:

Weight is such an individual thing...I think as long as the numbers are good (blood sugar, cholesterol, blood pressure, etc.) then the rest is just a matter of where I feel good.

When I stopped drinking soda and when I craved one, I would keep a natural fruit soda called, Izze soda. It is fruit juice and sparkling water.

Have fun at work!

Zimmy

response to JustJo's post
 

JustJo, I am the same way about Big Macs. I have to order 2 to make it worth my while. One only leaves me with the "wanting" feeling. Not that it really helps but I do take out the middle piece of bread. I do it because I am not that fond of bread and it really only serves as bland filler for me.

That's a great suggestion Zimmy! I love soda and miss it, but know that I can't drink regular soda...and diet soda isn't great for me either. Last time I was in AZ my work buddy turned me on to Zevia soda also...sweetened with Stevia, so no sugar, no artificial sweetener...and stevia actually has a stabilizing effect on diabetics' blood sugar levels. It's expensive, and I need to order it.....although I just discovered Amazon will deliver it free.

I am convinced that Big Macs are addictive Brock....there's something about them! I do like your idea of taking out the center bread for those times when I do cave in and get one though...at least I can feel a tiny bit virtuous, even as I'm cheating!

I pretty much blew it yesterday....had such a busy day of shopping that I didn't get my walk in...so my exercise was pushing shopping cart and dodging people in WalMart, walking in BJ's, and carrying in bags. Not great. I also ate too much...and was just getting ready to be all hard on myself when I remembered that the last time the WW points thing worked for me, I took one day a week "off." I followed the points 6 out of 7 days, walked at least 5 out of 7....and it worked. So....yesterday was my day off....and I don't even have to feel bad about it! :)

Cheers to you all!

JustJo ...
 

JustJo, make sure you scrape all the dressing off the middle piece of bread and back in to the burger when you remove it. It makes the experience so much better. :)

Damn, it is 8:30 a.m. ... our city is preparing for an ice storm ... and all I can think of now is a couple of Big Macs. Must get a couple as soon as they start serving burgers at 10:30 a.m. - forunately I have less than a mile to drive.

Gotta have ... the craving has hit! LOL!

Hi sylvie,

I'm so glad you posted this! I was hunting for a link that I (thought) I had put in the diabetes thread...but now I'm not finding it....grrrrrrr....

Anyway, there have been studies that show that diet soda (and artifical sweeteners) while having zero calories themselves, actually increase your cravings for sweet foods...and also change the way your body processes the calories it receives from other sources and makes you more likely to store them as fat.

I'll keep looking for the article...

Okay, this isn't the one I was looking for, but it covers some of the same idea....

info on xenical.............. http://www.drugs.com/xenical.html

basically it blocks fat from being absorbed.....which means any and all fat you eat gets pooped out almost immediately......get ready for some seriously abnormal stools and gas.....close proximity to a bathroom is a requirement...

here is the side effects part from above: http://www.drugs.com/sfx/xenical-side-effects.html

I know folks who tried it and lasted maybe two weeks before they stopped taking it......because of the gastrointestinal problems.

-------------------
Safeway grocery stores sell stevia.....there are a couple of different brand names....so does Trader Joe's and Whole Foods...it should be in most big chain grocery stores where you find sugar.

Hey Toughy....thanks for posting this. I was interested to see that xenical is the stuff that's marketed as Alli.

The company I work for (a wellness company) has a whole system of health coaches and programs for us....and the weight loss program provides Alli to anyone who wants it free....however, they specifically do not allow diabetics or others with any kind of chronic condition to take it through their program. When I asked why, the nurse hemmed and hawed a bit, then said...."well, it's pretty tough on the body. We don't recommend that anyone who isn't in ideal health take it."

That was enough for me!

I got this www.loseit.com its free. I put it on my iphone and love it. I suck at writing my food journal but this I can enter right away, put the amount of exercise and track my progress. I'm normally awful at this.

You can invite friends to support you.

I'm eating healthy but no diet foods for me. screw that! I decided I would eat a huge piece of crusty fresh baked bread everyday and I just do it but try and keep my meals healthy. The most important thing is tracking and I know if I stick to a 2 pound a week weight loss I'll reach my goal. If my calories happen to go over I just exercise more to balance it out.

just have a look. I think you'll like it and if you have a smart phone its very cool.