SoWell on SoWal 2008

[TooFarTampa]

Paula I won't quote your most excellent post but kudos to you!

It is awesome that you were able to figure that out all on your own. I always said I needed someone to tell me what to do, so I never really did anything. Before I got pregnant with my third child I felt way too heavy and was having some back pain. Then after having her, by six months postpartum I still was 12 pounds over my pre pregnancy weight. A friend brought me to Weight Watchers and I found it was very easy to follow.

Weight Watchers worked for me. As others have posted above, I found that recalibrating my portion size and finally understanding the value of individual foods (and the flip side, the cost of unhealthy ones) was what ultimately made the difference. Over about 6 months I lost 32 pounds, and I've been at my goal weight for about four months.

I have not counted points for a couple of months, but I found that by remembering the principals of portion size and healthy eating, I can stay where I am as long as I weigh myself daily. I also measure myself once a week.

A HUGE help has been the benefit of strength training. For this I met with a trainer who has developed a couple of programs for me. I have been a big slacker in the past month but have found that the increased muscle I still retain continues to boost my metabolism. This thread is motivating me to get back to the gym though. I really need to!

Strength training is the best! You burn calories all day long!! IBD once you get into a routine I think you will love it.

I also started running, which I am fairly bad at but it does help tone my butt so I keep trying. My goal this year is to do a 10K race. I'd better get crackin! I did a 3-mile race in December. I definitely follow Jeff Galloway's run/walk guidelines so I will never be any kind of macho athlete, but it works for me. You guys who are doing the Seaside Half are extremely inspiring.

Best of all, I feel great, and my back pain and acid reflux problems have disappeared. But maintenance is hard too. Another thing I have learned is that the slower the weight loss the better, so you get used to the new lifestyle. I was able to do Weight Watchers and was almost never hungry. I just ate according to plan. Now, I can't eat seconds or large meals like I used to, which doesn't bother me one bit.

I'm glad you revived this thread jdarg! It is so hard to stay on program and it helps to have encouragement from others. And ideas! I would LOVE to have ideas for healthy make ahead and freeze meals. I need this desperately but I don't know what freezes well. I am really not a very good cook.

 

[Beach Runner]

Congrats, TFT! That's inspiring. You are so right about the weight training -- it is so important, not only for weight loss, but for bone health.

IBD, I hear ya. I'm not into making big batches of stuff, but what I need to do is (a) plan ahead, and (b) not try to make a gourmet meal everytime I cook.

 

[Jdarg]

Soup. Broth based, lots of veggies, with barley, wheatberries, or beans instead of white flour pasta and potatoes. No cream or cheese based soups, but a sprinkle of Parm or grated cheese when serving is OK.

I am looking for a few more soup recipes to add to the lineup.

I have a good vegetarian chili recipe somewhere- I will post when i find it. Has garbanzos and peanuts in it.

 

[Paula]

Thanks TFT... Congrats to you, too. And you're right that the weight training seems to boost metabolism as an extra bonus. But, I didn't do it on my own because my 2Xweek sessions with the trainer provide the support I needed. I put those sessions on my work calendar like a regular appointment would be and plan my work day/life around them. It has been expensive (I could have bought a used car with the trainer payments by now but I already have a used car so I don't need another one), but after all the $ we pay to other people and all we do for others, I figured I/my health was worth it. In about 6 months to a year I may decide to go it alone without a trainer -- we shall see.

Scooterbug has the big 3 right: portion control, healthy foods, and exercise.

BR: OK, that makes more sense because you looked very good when I saw you at Grayton Beach.

And planning meals ahead of time and keeping the fridge/freezer stocked with healthy things definitely helped me. I keep a shelf in the freezer that's just for me (no one else can touch it because my family likes to eat everything up and then not replace what they eat or let me know they ate it all, so that one shelf is my healthy food haven). On that shelf, I have home-made granola and granola bars, whole wheat mini bagels and english muffins, whole wheat low cal bread (I think it's weight watchers brand), frozen already made Irish Oatmeal with lots of good stuff in it sorted into 1 portion serving sizes and I add low-fat condensed milk, frozen berries on the shelf, 100 calorie ice cream sandwiches (and a little limoncello stashed in the back...). So, when I need a snack, I always have something low-cal and healthy to go to. I also keep some low-cal frozen meals in there (but they all have too much salt though I eat them anyway). And I keep LOTS of Activia lite vanilla yogurt in the fridge for quick snacks - about 70 calories and I add some of the frozen (microwaved to defrost) berries and a topping of the granola. And I keep low fat/high fiber granola bars available in the car and at my office as well - The Fiber 1 bars are very good. These snacks keep me going for much of the day. Egg white omelets stuffed with veggies are good if you have time to cook. I wish I ate more fruit but I never really think about grabbing fruit for a snack - it doesn't seem to fill me up at all.

So yes, having things on hand and keeping them in a special place so they're always there is very helpful. And we split meals/desserts at restaurants most of the time (except now I don't split salads because I really need to eat more veggies and fruits). Clearly, this has been a life style change, not a diet and that seems to have made all the difference.

Sadly, though, the weight trainer said today if I want to get "Italy Arms", one step up from "Beach Arms", I'll have to increase my repetitions to 3 rather than the 2 I do now... sigh...

 

[seacrestkristi]

Paula, you are very inspiring.

 

[Helping Hands]

good for you, whats the secret to your motivation?

 

[Paula]

It was just time to take care of myself after years of taking care of others. I frame my changesas taking care of myself and healthy living rather than as a diet or exercise program. And I changed basic routines/habits in my day. This was absolutely critical.

Seems to me that lots of SoWallers have maintained healthy lifestyles (it sure looks like that when I see them in person) so I wonder what they do and what advice they can pass on to us... hmmmmm...

 

[JUL]

Congratulations, Paula. What an inspiration you are!

After my daughter went away to college, I got really depressed because I missed her so much (still do). Then it all hit the fan. Hubby had major heart surgery. His Mom died, and my Mom quickly went downhill with Alzheimer's. Even the dog was sick, I was driving to Auburn every day, but they had to put her down. Some other traumatic things happened that I won't mention here. I haven't had the physical or emotional strength to exercise or eat healthily. Since daughter left for college, I've gained 50 pounds.

I'm tired of being fat. I want to look good in clothes (and a bikini) again. I want to be healthier (my cholesterol level is not good). So I am really trying hard to eat healthier and start exercising again.

My biggest temptations are Mexican food (I assume there are no healthy choices there) and Italian food (I love pasta). Oh, and cheese is my middle name.

Question: is there any "healthy" brand of pasta that tastes good? Every brand of whole wheat pasta that I've tried from the grocery store tastes like cardboard -- I just can't eat it.

Try Barilla yellow box...it is whole-grain and yummy and very filling so you don't eat as much as the regular stuff so star out with a smaller portion . Try Cooking Light recipes....i just made an egg strata yesterday that was yum.

 

[Beach Runner]

Try Barilla yellow box...it is whole-grain and yummy and very filling so you don't eat as much as the regular stuff so star out with a smaller portion . Try Cooking Light recipes....i just made an egg strata yesterday that was yum.

Okay, thanks. I'll try it.

 

[Paula]

I'll try it, too, (thanks) and I love Cooking Light magazine (Health magazine, too - more for women I think).