posted on January 2, 2001 08:04:10 AM
About 29 years ago, I weighed over 250 for about a year total. I got it off, but it was hit and miss, trying this and that. I finally settled at sz 14, and Im happy here. I would be happier at sz 12, but my bone structure makes me look dumb at that size or smaller, so 14 is perfect for me (my german ancestry...Im definetly a fraulein in build). Anyway, I lost it that time by eating a large breakfast. Its your most important meal and sustains your body for the days activities. So, I ate whatever I wanted for breakfast. No lunch, very small dinner and not after 4 or 5 pm. Also, lots of water helps too, and flushes you out at the same time. The most important thing is expercise, even walking around the block. So eat properly and then WALK or bike, or kayak (Shar, get a bigger seat for your bike...I did and my hiney is fine...just have a problem pedaling and not catching my sarong in the spokes, lol) or any other means of MOVING AROUND. Im also thinking of getting taebo.
posted on January 2, 2001 08:23:28 AM
toke, there are lots of benefits to drinking that much water.
Yes, it does keep you from feeling empty, and may prevent the munchies from taking over. But the main purpose is to keep excess water OUT of your body. Yes, I know that sounds strange. But think of it as "priming the pump;" you need something for the kidneys to flush out in the beginning so that they can begin to work more efficiently. Women in particular tend to retain water in response to sodium -- and think of how much processed and restaurant food is highly salty. Excess water in your body increases your blood pressure, causes your heart to work harder, and can cause swelling in your hands and feet. In extreme cases, it can lead to a condition formerly called "dropsy" and now known by the frightening name of congestive heart failure. Water dilutes the sodium in the bloodstream, causes your kidneys to begin working so that they become much more efficient at removing excess fluid, thus lowering blood pressure, reducing swelling, and easing the workload on your heart. Your joints work better. Your skin looks clearer and firmer and tiny wrinkles don't show due to the increased hydration.
So if you are sodium sensitive, watch what you eat - try for lots of fresh, unprocessed, relatively low fat foods - and DRINK WATER!
--------
not SilkMoth anywhere but here
[ edited by SilkMoth on Jan 2, 2001 08:25 AM ]
Thank you so much for the great post...you've convinced me. I just filled a pitcher with 64 oz. of water and brought a glassful up with me. Just thought of an added benefit...just think of all the exercise I'll be getting going up and down the stairs!
posted on January 2, 2001 10:51:25 AM
I know some of you hate water but try this
Instead of ordinary tap water, which is full of yucky stuff around here I have an office water cooler in my dining room. The water is sooo much better you might even start to like it! AND it only costs $5 for 5 gallons, delivered. If you don't have a water company near you try Evian. It is the best bottled water around. Believe me, there is a difference in taste!
While I am a failure on the sugar thing. Bad experience. I will tell you that my habit has always been to drink 1/2 glass of water once a YEAR. I figured my body would rust from all the tea.
Actually, the water does help flush your system but it also helps you with water retention.
Last year for the first time I had several episodes with my kidneys and was forced a couple of times to up the water and cranberry juice and lower the amount of tea. I can only drink water with a twist of lime. Well, what I mean is that the water is not bad with a twist of lime. NOt good but not bad. I also am a little different than most (maybe a lot!). I can drink a cold, tap water cold, glass of water but will only sip on an ice cold glass. Others find the ice water easier to handle but I will also tell you that when I was losing weight and not dieting I did not drink water then. So, it should but.....
I will back off the other not by choice but necessity it seems but I am doing the water thing. Got yelled at by Nobs.
SilkMoth,
We are lucky to have very good well water and it is always nice and cool. I do have problems with our water in the Summer place we stay and we carry our own well water up there.
posted on January 2, 2001 12:34:01 PM toke...Consider a Brita pitcher. You use tap water to fill it and the filter takes out all of the impurities. I keep one in my office.
Also, year's ago, I was listening to a program (probably Oprah) on women's health and the doctor being interviewed said that women would have fewer internal problems if they drank the recommended amounts of water every day.
I do recall that he said the water should be at room temperature, but I can't remember why. I just know I've been drinking my water at room temperature ever since.
I have well water like Shar does, so my water tastes fine...I think the amount just seems overwhelming. The pitcher thing is working, tho. I've almost finished it just sitting here sipping.
Many trips down the stairs! Thighs of steel, here I come...
posted on January 2, 2001 02:06:30 PM
First, I would like to wish everyone good luck reaching your goals.
Toke-sis
I didn't yell, I raised my voice
I got worried when she cut out all the sugar and got lightheaded and shaky. So I encouraged her in my raised voice to see her Dr. first becuase she is on meds and I don't want anything to happen to her because she thinks she is 10-15 lbs. above America's ideal. So much is put on women and young women in this country to be a certain weight or look a certain way. Like I was telling Shar, 100 years ago the average woman weighed 180 lbs. Well, it has been going down since then. Now we have the Calista Flockart look.
Shardear
I'm sorry, I didn't mean to raise my voice but now that I know what you weigh I am glad I did. Heck, I got you by 15 lbs. easy and I am only 5'3" but this past year has made me blow up with the meds and inability to exercise. I look funny too .
I bet if you just drink all that water, you will be back to your teeny self in no time .. and you know you had a LOT of holiday goodies
Whichever method everyone chooses, please remember to go slow and do it sensibly - I would be very sad if anyone overdid it.
affirmation comes from within ...
not at the expense of another.
edited for UBB and to add ....
There is a group of people from a province in Japn who live to be older than anyone on Earth and the women in their 90s look better than women in the USA in their 50s! Their diet consists mainly of a starchy potato, beets, other starchy vegetables and little meat! And most of them smoked and they had no heart diseases or cancer. Go figure. I don't think anyone has this diet thing figured out yet and I think every body is different. White starchy vegetables are mainstays of a lot of diets around the world where the populace is mostly thin and free from heart and other diseases. I have the Sugarbusters book and a lot of it makes sense but then I am not a Dr. and on any diet that restricts a group of foods you will lose weight. I think that if you eat a wide variety of healthy foods and follow the principals of 30% fat - 30% protein and 40% carbs and mostly complex carbs (of your daily caloric intake) you will lose weight and if you can exercise you will lose it even faster.
I wish everyone good luck and good health!!
posted on January 2, 2001 02:47:29 PM
Good Morning from Australia on this sunny day.
Nobs, wow you took my thoughts away from me about seeing a doctor for a check up. I also think if you are cutting things out of your diet, some of us may need some extra vitamin intake. I know that I need the extra. My doctor told me to take a multi vit. with zinc and vit.C in it, I also take Vit. E (good for menopause).
BE CAREFUL HOW FAST YOU CUT THINGS FROM YOUR NORMAL DIET.
One of my sisters' lost a huge amount of weight a couple of years ago - she cut out all fat and sugar, and yes she lost weight, but she gained facial lines and wrinkles. After about a year she gained it all back again, and I think she is heavier than ever. Along with the weight she also gained a big dose of LOW SELF ESTEEM.
What I am trying to say is lose weight if you can, be healthy, but please do not go overboard with it.
Okay my rant is over for now.
I forgot to say,drinking lots of water is great for you, it cleans your kidney and in turn helps your body function in a healthy way.
[ edited by nettak on Jan 2, 2001 02:52 PM ]
posted on January 2, 2001 03:07:47 PM
Hello back to you Nobs, the pleasure is all mine. I was a lurker for a while (not game to post), but I love this thread.
Everyone seems lovely and I am glad to meet you all, and I hope we can all help each other meet our mutual goal for a healthier slimmer life.
posted on January 2, 2001 07:19:57 PM
I, too, have resolved once and for all, to lose weight. I would like to lose about 100 lbs overall. I gained alot of my weight while on fertility drugs. Don't know if it was the drugs or the mood swings caused by the drugs (CONSTANT PMS!!!!) But, whatever the cause, NOW, I'm paying the consequences. My blood counts & pressure are all great, but my feet and knees are starting to feel the stress.
I am surprised that no one has mentioned veggies!! They are very filling, and very good for us, and have few calories. They are full of fiber too! OF course, fiber can have {ahem} embarassing side effects, BUT that changes after your body gets used to it. Increase your veggies slowly.
I am also trying to cut out soda from my diet. I can't drink diet, because the nutrasweet gives me migraines, so, I drink 3-4 sodas a day. at least 1 being a McDonalds Large I'm trying to switch over to either coffee, or another great product I've found....WATER JOE yeah, caffeinated water. Whatever it takes right?
First, I was really teasing toke about you yelling. I was sure whe would get a kick out of it but everyone knows that you would never yell well, unless I didn't listen to you and it was in my best interest and I am very glad you did because I would probably have tried to keep going.
Silly thing to have to admit that I might have a problem giving up 2 sugars in 2 cups of coffee and sugared tea but I must have been unclear to you too. I wasn't giving up all sugar.
AND I am sure glad I didn't live 100 years ago. I can just imagine 180 lbs on 5'1 or maybe 5' me.:lol
nettak,
Thank you for the advice. I really wasn't offering much or I didn't think so. Just the sugar in my 2 cups of coffee and my tea for the day. No other sugar was I promising to give up. I was going to try a "little" help and to drink water.
Well, something very weird happened today and I was having some pretty severe reactions to that or something else but I have not been quite right (please no comments:lol) all day and was really having problems but trying to convince my self I wasn't.
So. I am your first drop out failure. Sorry everyone. I am going to do the water thing though.
Oh, and I think it was you. Sorry if not but the added sugar in things you wouldn't think of. Well it is so true. MIL was a diabetic and did pretty well but when she also had to go on dialysis there was another diet completely and the 2 clashed at times. Luckily she was a food (can't think of the right title) expert and was able to assist the Drs and nurses and would always discuss her needs with the food staff at the hospital.
On top of all of this she was a huge drinker of water. Loved it and could only have 2 cups of water total including the natural liquid in foods. She was one tough cookie though and did a terrific job.
Toke,
I'm sorry I wasn't more clear this morning. It was about the sugar not the water that Nobs yelled. You know, she doesn't actually yell. She is one of those silent ones like E.F. Hutton.:lol AND I listened.
Nothing like good well water is there? I have now had 7 glasses today and without the lime. Got to get that next time dh goes to town.
It may have been something else that had nothing to do with the sugar but I have been working all day at trying to feel right. I am not up to par but it could also have to do with how I was feeling New Year's Eve and the aftermath. (no nothing hard just punch with the gk's.)
posted on January 2, 2001 11:15:53 PM
I didn't quite make my new one mile walk today... I made it as far as the first block and realized that I was in danger of freezing to death. Maybe I'll have to actually try the D word until it warms up a bit.
posted on January 2, 2001 11:30:38 PM
Just a note: Anyone who suffers with congestive heart failure, (as mentioned in one of the posts), should definitely not drink gallons of water each day.
They should in fact, watch their liquid intake carefully as most of these patients already have problems with fluid building up around and in their heart/lungs and are often prescribed a dieurtic for this problem. Therefore, a large increase in fluid intake could cause serious problems for these people.
posted on January 3, 2001 04:19:09 AM
Great thread!! My new year's resolution was to lose weight & get in shape. A friend and I have already started walking as excercise. I live near a hospital and at night time it's all lit up outside so we go walking about 2-3 times a week (around 6pm) and walk all around the hospital and around the whole block. We walk for about an hour.
I would love to hear about foods that help you lose weight and are safe to eat (for diets).
I see a lot of people saying "drink lots of water" - but yuckkk! I just can't drink water. I drink Snapple Iced Tea and Lemonade. That's just about all I drink. I just can't drink water - I don't like it!
posted on January 3, 2001 05:06:07 AM
Well, I'm up to day two of eating more sensibly. Except for the chocolate chip cookies yesterday evening. Heck, what can you do when your 10 year old son proudly presents you with cookies *he made himself* (i.e. baked). They were good though.
Trying to drink more water. My problem is that coffee is right next to me at work but I have to go downstairs for water. But the walking up and down the stairs is good for me, right?
I feel lighter already!!! (yeah, I know it's probably my imagination but ... whatever works!!)
posted on January 3, 2001 05:41:08 AM
Some interesting scientific data show that there seems to be a set point for ones body weight. If you go up 10 % of your body weight, your metabolism speend up, burning more calories for the ssme amount of activity and lowering the body weight. Conversely, losing above 10 % of your body weight of it's setpoint, results in a lowering of the metabolism and causes weight gain. Thats why most people seem to fail on diet alone.
However, if one combines a modest and sensible diet with an exercise program there is a much higher cance of sucess. The exercise helps to counter the lower metabolism from the weight loss. The more extreme the diet, the more the body interpets that it is a famine and the more it tries to conserve energy and body fat.
To really stay at a much lower weight (lower than the 10 % body weight threshold) a change of lifestyle where one exercises on a frequent basis is needed.
Finally, there is data that exercising in smaller increments rather than all at once burns more calories. That is, doing five minutes of vigorous exercise ten times a day rather than an hour once a day. It take some time after you stop exercising for your metabolism to drop to its base rate and therefore you are burning calories at a faster rate. By the way, eating also causes a rise in metabolism. So eating the same number of calories but divided in smaller and more frequent meals also burns more calories.
posted on January 3, 2001 05:42:50 AM
Let me preface this by saying that my husband is a "brittle" Type 1 diabetic. This means that he has the more serious form that begins in childhood (he was 11), must take insulin injections a minimum of three times a day, and must be extremely careful of what and when he eats in order to maintain his blood sugar levels near normal. We've been married 27 years and he is now nearing 50 years old with no noticeable neuropathy (nerve and tissue failure) from the diabetes, so I can claim a LOT of experience in planning and cooking sensible diets. His doctors say that his condition is remarkable for a man with the most difficult form of the disease to control, who has had it for 39 years.
With that said, I want to offer this comment: Both his doctor and the dietitian I work with say that it's okay to allow yourself a truly sinful treat once a week. To quote the doctor: "Go ahead and eat that banana split once a week, if that's what you need to stay on the diet. You'll feel like hell the next morning, but it won't wreck your blood sugar profile in the long run."
So if you've been "good" for several days and then can't resist the cheesecake after dinner, don't beat yourself up. Enjoy it. Remind yourself that it is a treat, and eat sensibly again tomorrow.
posted on January 3, 2001 06:05:06 AM
My two cents for all the people who don't like water---Crystal Light. I love the stuff, it comes in a lot of different flavors--raspberry being my fave--and Weight Watchers says it is fine to drink--I think it is zero points. Best with lots of ice, you can get in 8 glasses easy in a day. I also love the Brita pitcher, I have the sports bottle too and it makes even bottled water taste better.
posted on January 3, 2001 06:15:17 AM
Doesn't Crystal Light have Nutrasweet in it? I believe Nutrasweet has saccharin in it which has been known to cause cancer - which is why I don't drink diet drinks (not to mention they taste awful).
posted on January 3, 2001 06:34:26 AM Hi SilkMoth,
Re the banana split...Isn't it funny how some things stay with you?
In an interview back in the 60s on the Mike Douglas Show with the actress, Diahann Carroll, the subject was how she maintains her slim figure. (This was the days of Twiggy, the original waif, hence the focus on physical appearance.)
Diahann Carroll said she would never, ever allow a banana split to cross her lips. Such vanity!!! I remember thinking, how sad that one should be so vain as to not enjoy one of life's little pleasures.
I might watch my intake of high-sugar foods through the year, but when fresh corn on the cob is in season, I would never deny myself with another of life's little pleasures.
posted on January 3, 2001 06:50:11 AM
Oops, forgot about the nutrasweet in Crystal Light. I still drink it though, I read an article about nutrasweet while sitting in my dr.'s office a year or so ago. I believe it was in a Parenting magazine. Apparently new findings show that nutrasweet didn't show any conclusive evidence of causing cancer in humans, although it may have caused in in lab rats. I can't remember what it all said, but remembering think Hmm, interesting.
posted on January 3, 2001 06:56:02 AMI didn't quite make my new one mile walk today... I made it as far as the first block and realized that I was in danger of freezing to death. Maybe I'll have to actually try the D word until it warms up a bit.
NO, NO, NO, mybiddness.
You don't think your AW motivators are going to let you get away with that, do you? However, you do get an A for good intentions.
Bundle up in layers, cover your head and ears, wear gloves with mittens over them and move, move, move. Slowly at first and then you will work into your stride.
A good pair of shoes will be your friend, also. I like my Nike AirLiner's.
Once you get in the groove, you will be stripping off some of those layers before you get back home. And, you will feel GREAT!!!
posted on January 3, 2001 08:20:28 AM
Executivegirl, I dont like water either (I like to snorkel in it, but not drink it ). I still drink my pepsis (no diet) and I drink whole milk (hate the low fat stuff), and I still have my 4 tsps of sugar in my coffee with a dash of milk (I am one of those sweet tea and coffee drinkers). I wont eat veggies like brocoli, without cheese sauce and I dont know calorie from starch. I just cut down on servings. I have to have my bacon (Oscar Myer center cut, 4 strips please), and my eggs, toast with jelly, coffee and orange juice for breakfast. I dont eat lunch, because I dont eat breakfast til 10 or 11 (I cant eat when I first wake up, which is about 7 to 8am). Dinner is served at 5pm and my plate looks like something a 4 year old would balk over. Very VERY little food is on it. Then I walk the dogs. Its hard for me to drink water...its boring. Even the flavored kind. So I have to make up for that lack of water by drinking other fluids...tea, pepsi, sunny delight. I will drink one glass if I remember.
). Anyway, I lost it that time by eating a large breakfast. Its your most important meal and sustains your body for the days activities. So, I ate whatever I wanted for breakfast. No lunch, very small dinner and not after 4 or 5 pm. Also, lots of water helps too, and flushes you out at the same time. The most important thing is expercise, even walking around the block. So eat properly and then WALK or bike, or kayak (Shar, get a bigger seat for your bike...I did and my hiney is fine...just have a problem pedaling and not catching my sarong in the spokes, lol) or any other means of MOVING AROUND. Im also thinking of getting taebo. 
I just know I've been drinking my water at room temperature ever since.
They are very filling, and very good for us, and have few calories. They are full of fiber too! OF course, fiber can have {ahem} embarassing side effects, BUT that changes after your body gets used to it. Increase your veggies slowly.
However, you do get an A for good intentions.