Support posts.. for days we need support

[Capnsnott]

Hi all,
I hope this is ok to ask here.
First some background info.
I was into body building from the start of High School till my third year of college. I have sense stopped and the mucsle has gone to fat. Go figure....
I got patellal tendonitis during college, so my knees constantly hurt if I walk, run or sit. go figure again...
I have tendonitis in my shoulders too, the doc said it was from all of the heavy lifting both in the gym and auto mechanicing. Oh yeah, I also have carpel tunnel in my left wrist (right one had surgery).

Sooo, what the heck can I do? NO I'm not going to shoot myself....

I have started eating low carb, high quality foods, not a ton of meats either. I loosly follow the Curves diet. BUT exercise is tough. I do Palates as well. I have lost about 8# over the past 6 months. But I need to loose the excess weight on my chest (peck muscle area) and stomach. I got a new dry suit and it's a bit tight in the chest.
Any advise?
thanks
Greg M.

 

[CameronMartz]

Dr. Frankenmule,

Sounds like a challenge, for sure. Have you tried swimming? Of course, you should run anything new by your physician to be sure that your specific requirements are met, but swimming might be easy enough on your joints to get your heart rate up.

Cameron

 

[Capnsnott]

Cameron,
That is the one thing I haven't tried yet.
I have to swim with my head out of the water, so I get tired easliy. I know this will seem odd, but I get motion sick in the water very easily. The heads up thing was something I started when I was learning to swim at age 7. I'll give it a try though. I noticed a thread earlier about a web page on swimming, I'll go check it out too.
Thanks,
sorry too hijack the thread.

 

[CameronMartz]

Dr. Frankenmule,

You should really learn how to swim freestyle properly if you want to use this as a regular source of exercise. Swimming with your head out of the water is not only too difficult to maintain for any appreciable time, but it will be much harder on your shoulders. The reason Tarzan made it look easy was that he was an Olympic swimmer in real life before being tapped for the role of jungle man.

From new jet pilots who voluntarily do the "spin and puke" daily to deck hands new to the ocean, people "unlearn" motion sickness every day. As a diver, I would think you'd be especially motivated to kick any immersion-related issues, and just getting in the water and swimming will eventually acclimate you to it.

...that is all assuming that you don't have some issue with your ears, where water is getting places it shouldn't or otherwise affecting things it shouldn't.

Check out the several threads on swimming on this board. You will see that there are a few competitive swimmers here with loads of knowledge for people new to the activity.

Cameron

 

[DiverG]

Man the last 2 weeks have really been hard for me. I'm finding that I'm having a harder time eating properly. I'm starting to eat light night snacks more often, and not healthy stuff at that. At least, I've got a few more days to get back on track before next weigh in

 

[CameronMartz]

DiverG,

This is where the diet Yo-Yo starts, so this is where we need to make it end. First off, it sounds like you might have been "overreaching" with your diet modifications. I'm not sure how much less you're eating in total or how much less you're eating of the foods you normally crave, but those figures probably need to rise if you plan on losing weight that you'll keep off.

Secondly, I don't know if any authority comes along with my newly-appointed "Fitness Guru" position , but if I had any, I'd grant you a reprieve from the weigh-ins for now. That is a source of stress that will not help you to make the right decisions at a time like this, especially as it is only natural that your weight increase while you're trying to figure out a diet that works for you. Of course, my definition of "diet" is a healthy, sustainable group of eating choices that fits your lifestyle. "Get thin quick" approaches very rarely result in lasting change, though I am not accusing you of taking this approach.

...but you're not off the hook, either. Take an ENTIRE WEEK and eat exactly like you did before you started the fitness challenge, but not any more than that. We need to reset your metabolism so that you don't get these urges. During that time, think about what you eat that:
1. You can easily do without.
2. You don't have immediate access to throughout the day, or that you can easily limit your access to on your own.
3. You can easily improve on the quality.

Make a list of these things and order it from "easiest to change" to "hardest to change." You will then start with the easiest and work your way down the list making one change PER WEEK. In place of submitting your weight each week, I want you to submit a report on the one thing you changed and how well it's going.

Don't even step on a scale for a month. The results you want will come if you can work down your list and be comfortable with it.

If you want help with your list, you can private post me or get in touch with one of the dieticians that are also on this board.

Cameron

 

[seaangel]

Since I have not had a chance to go through the website yet, I am going to ask a question here and later on I hope I can go to the web site as well.

Here is my background information and question: I have been working on losing weight and improving my fitness now for two full years, at a snails pace. But, I am making progress. Two years ago I was 25lbs heavier and very out of shape fitness wise. My BP was high required medication, which I no longer need and my cholesterol was very high as well and I had to take 20mg of Lipitor daily, I am now on 10mg daily. My doctor will not take me off even with a total Cholesterol of 170. She feels it will go up again and that I have a genetic desposition for that. The only other medication I am on is Synthroid 0.05mg daily.

My doctor measures my body fat and BMI every 3 months, she follows my weight, exercise and diet monthly. I am still 25lbs from my goal weight, and by her May Data I am at 33% body fat! That seems excessive to me yet the BMI is 26.5 (I started at 30.3 BMI) According to her data I have 54lbs fat wt. and 106lbs of lean wt.

I am following Weight Watchers flex point program, I limit fat in my diet (I seldom maybe twice a year eat fried foods) I use all the good fat oils, margarine etc. when cooking. I eat fresh fruits and vegetables and use whole grain products. Ok, now about exercise I am doing many different things, I work out using video tapes doing everything from free weights, to pilates, I do interval strength training videos and I walk. Now the frequency is where I get into being inconsistent, my work and family sometimes get in the way of doing things on a schedule. But I try to get up at 5:30 am 3-4 days a week and do one of those activities. I will do them for 30-45 minutes when I do them. I also drink a minimum of 64oz of water a day.

Now my question, I am losing weight very slowly. And it seems that I reach a plateau and can't break it. As a matter of fact my weight is a saw tooth pattern on a graph that is steadily down. I will gain 1.5 and then lose maybe 3 or 4 lbs. Does that make any sense? Actually for the last 6 months I have not been able to break down any closer to my goal wt.
I am trying to figure out what I need to do?

If it is going to take me another 2-3 years to reach my goal I am going to get very frustrated. I am a nurse, as a matter of fact I am now a Diabetic Nurse Educator so I deal with diet and exercise daily. I don't want to be frustrated and try to teach others how to change their life styles. Plus, I enjoy diving and want to be in tip top condition for that. I plan to be diving for a long time yet.

Any suggestions?

 

[CameronMartz]

SeaAngel,

You raise a number of points. I am very glad to see that you are doing all the right things medically, including being monitored regularly by your MD for changes in health and fitness.

The sawtooth pattern to your weight loss up until 6 months ago is exactly as it should be. As I said in another post, fitness does not progress linearly. If you're doing it right, you will have your ups and downs from week to week, but over the long haul, the trend should be as you see. You are among a very small percentage of people who have lost 25# and kept it from coming back, so don't be too discouraged by your plateau.

I do have a few ideas that might help. Your list of activities is wonderful, but you mention the most important one last- walking. Out of all the things you list, this should be your priority. It will burn the most calories in a 45 minute workout, it will have the greatest impact on your blood profile, and it will improve the endurance of your finning muscles for diving. If you spend only 4 days per week on exercise, 3 of them should be walking with the other one being any of the strength-building activities which make up the remainder of your list.

During weeks when you know your consistency will be low, add 5-10 mintues during the days you get in. Start with a 30 minute walk and do 20 minutes of strength training, for example.

Even when you do all the right things, it can certainly take 5 years to undo a decade of bad habits, and you should not get too stressed about this. The things you are doing should be lifetime habits, not just some tricks to do until you get to your goal weight. Keep in mind that things would be much worse if you weren't putting in the effort you have during the last six months.

Cameron

 

[DiverG]

Cameron is averaging about 2lbs a week a get thin quick approach?

The main thing I've done in is cut back eating after dinner, and I've cut back my portions to what they should be. I'm still eating the foods that I normally eat. Most of the time I'm doing well, but I do slack ocassionally. I know to expect this, and I know that I will eventually have a week where I gain weight. Your post along with others are helping me to accept this fact. I know when it happens I'll be slightly disappointed, but I'll still be thinking long term

I've also increased my exercise from doing nothing to doing alot. Even now I've noticed I've gone from working out everyday to working out 4 to 5 times a week.

As far as granting me a reprieve from weigh ins, sorry "Doc" I'm addicted to weigh ins. Is there a 12 step programs for weigh in addicts?

Thanks again Cameron I enjoy your post in regard to all our questions on fitness.

 

[seaangel]

Thanks, Cameron. I needed your suggestions and it makes sense if I have had an off or irregular schedule. Like last wwek I only got in my walking on one day, but I did go swim yesteday so really I did two days. So when I walk tommorrow I can add 10 min. ? I am hoping to go swim later today too.

Thanks again.