Healthy Living Club 2011

[garymacd]

Hi All!

Melanie said it! So here it is: the all new (well not really) Healthy Living Club for 2011!

Let's hear what your goals for this year are.

My immediate goal is to get out of this chair and go do about an hour and a half of Yoga!

Two years and I still stink at it!

At least I can touch my toes. Too bad I can't stand on one foot, grab the big toe of the other foot, extend it all the way out and wrap my other arm around my back. It sounds SO simple!

I am going to try to post some healthy living hints every once in a while, so stay tuned!

Good luck to all in 2011.

Gary

[roses]

Great post! I gained weight having my dd... So I would like to at least get back onto a decent workout schedule. it was Alot easier back in the day...

[rubato]

2010 was a great year for healthy living for me. I ran my first half marathon in April for my 40th bday present. There was a lot of running to train and eating healthy.
2011 is even better so far. I ran the Disneyworld half and full marathons on marathon weekend. I had an amazing time and am now hooked on the marathon distance. But, in training for these races, I put on some weight. I was just hungry ALL THE TIME!

So, my goal for the rest of 2011 is to lose about 10 pounds and do it all through cleaning up my diet. I am plenty active, but eat horribly. I just need to lean out a little bit, and I'll be fine.

Can't wait to hear from others on their goals.

[garymacd]

2010 was a great year for healthy living for me. I ran my first half marathon in April for my 40th bday present. There was a lot of running to train and eating healthy.
2011 is even better so far. I ran the Disneyworld half and full marathons on marathon weekend. I had an amazing time and am now hooked on the marathon distance. But, in training for these races, I put on some weight. I was just hungry ALL THE TIME!

So, my goal for the rest of 2011 is to lose about 10 pounds and do it all through cleaning up my diet. I am plenty active, but eat horribly. I just need to lean out a little bit, and I'll be fine.

Can't wait to hear from others on their goals.

Good for you! I had neither the time nor the drive to train for a marathon or even a half-marathon, but I applaud anyone who has done it.

As for being hungry all the time; yes I can understand that. Regardless of what I had done for fitness all winter, when spring time comes and I start riding my bike seriously, I notice after about two weeks that I can't get enough to eat, especially proteins and carbs!

[MizMissy]

My 2011 healthy living goal is to fit into the summer clothes I bought in 2008 ... the shorts still fit in 2009, but not last year.
I started a diet 2 1/2 weeks ago - 9 lbs. lost. Mostly low calorie diet. I am a carb-oholic, so very limited carbs, more protein and no caffiene. Going well so far, trying to stay focused on my goals.

I haven't really started exercising yet. I love to ride my bike, but can't stand riding in cold weather. DH has a crazy work schedule, involving lots of travel, so it's hard to get into a gym routine. I would rather workout at 5:00 a.m. and return home before needing to wake kids up for school. I have time to ride my bike, but not hit the gym after the kids leave and before work. After-work workouts do not work well either because it doesn't leave me enough time to spend time with the kids and prepare dinner. Soooo...come on warm weather!!

I'm trying. It was much more fun gaining the weight than losing it.

[VWL Mom]

I grew up in the restaurant business and love to cook. It's not a problem for DS16 and DS19 as they are both in athletics and pretty much burn what they eat. DH and I, different story....55 seems to do that to you.

Anyway, I have started converting all my recipes to be WW friendly and the ones I've done so far have come out pretty darn good. I even got my grandmother's cheese cake down from 12 pts to 6 pts.

[garymacd]

I'm trying. It was much more fun gaining the weight than losing it.

Amen ot that!

I also enjoyed the years of putting on the weight, but when I saw my job performance starting to slip, and I couldn't keep up with the kids at work, I felt it was time to do something drastic.

You mentioned cutting down on the carbs. That's my weakness, too. A nice loaf of fresh italian bread will do me in every time.

The key to eating carbs is to eat the right kind of carbs. For instance: if you eat plain white bread, you might as well eat sugar. Your body can metabolise the refined white flour so fast that your body can't possibly use it fast enough. Where does it go? Your body doesn't like to waste anything, so it turns all that starch into fat for storage.

Whole wheat breads and pasta have more fibre and roughage in it, so your body has to work hard to break it down. This takes energy AND gives you a slower release of the carbohydrate energy into your system. This does a few good things for you. First, you feel fuller longer; second your body gets a nice even dose of energy longer instead of a quick rush, and that also relates to storing less fat from unused carbs; third, it has more fibre so you are getting some of the dietary fibre that you should be getting daily anyway, which will help flush some fats from your system.

Well, thanks for the opening for this week's/month's healthy living tip.

Spring is coming and, like you, I can't wait to get the bike out.

[IloveDisney71]

About two years ago I lost weight doing weight watchers and got down to my goal weight. I've stayed within 5 pounds of that goal weight for two years. However, I've recently gained a few extra pounds(8) due to some health issues. Once i get my cast off and finish my physical therapy, I plan to get back into my workouts. For now I just need to focus more on healty eating! I know I can do this, it's just frustrating because I'm limited in what I can do right now. If i get too hot my cast starts to itch my skin & it drives me crazy!!!

[MarkC]

Walk. Walk. Walk. Thank goodness we have fitness programs at our employer that reward us for fitness and also for healthy behaviors, i.e. wellness checkups, dental and vision exams, etc.

My 21 year old son challenged me on the walking program, and its amazing what you can do when you take limits off of yourself. Two years ago I average 10,300 steps per day. Last year it was about 15,000 per day. This year I am over 18,000 steps per day so far. I took away all the mental limits I had set for myself, which at age 51 is not easy. Just clear your mind and get going!!!

[magicofdisney]

My husband also travels a lot so I must find alternatives. That's why I'm using DVDs for my workouts. It allows so much flexibility in my schedule. I'm seeing improvements here and there. I too would like to see warmer weather so I can have more outside options.

[magicofdisney]

At least I can touch my toes. Too bad I can't stand on one foot, grab the big toe of the other foot, extend it all the way out and wrap my other arm around my back. It sounds SO simple!

Gary

Your struggles are perplexing...

[garymacd]

Walk. Walk. Walk. Thank goodness we have fitness programs at our employer that reward us for fitness and also for healthy behaviors, i.e. wellness checkups, dental and vision exams, etc.

My 21 year old son challenged me on the walking program, and its amazing what you can do when you take limits off of yourself. Two years ago I average 10,300 steps per day. Last year it was about 15,000 per day. This year I am over 18,000 steps per day so far. I took away all the mental limits I had set for myself, which at age 51 is not easy. Just clear your mind and get going!!!

Good for you, Mark! I was going to talk about the benefits of walking in my next tip. Glad to see you are doing so well with it.

[princessjojo]

Well I have to say that I now weigh more than I ever have. I guess being married for 17years makes you comfortable with each other. But for me, I'm not comfortable with me.

I used to run and lift free weights on a daily basis and felt wonderful inside and out. I was never happier. Then, over the last couple years, life has happened. Now 12months post neck surgery and I'm scared to death to run(that's what I did when I blew out the disc in my neck). I have started some, but stick more to briskly walking, machine weights and have begun working on the stationary bicycle. I don't necessarily have to lose a lot of weight, but would love to change my fat:muscle ratio; get down 1 or 2 pant sizes and lose some of my bat wings....

Good luck to everyone!!!!

[UCJen]

Oooh, may I join?

I finish my master's degree in June and I put on about 10 lbs since I started grad school. It's been very stressful and I was "eating my feelings." Plus, it seemed like there was never any opportunity to work out. I want to be my old dress size for graduation.

It's a bit embarrassing, as I used to be a personal trainer.

So, I joined WW and ordered a bunch of fitness DVDs. I now carve out about 45 minutes a day for exercise. I do high intensity DVDs, so I get serious calorie burn. I strength train a couple of days a week, too.

Another challenge for me is wine. I think it was also a contributing factor in my weight gain. I am slowly tapering down.

[garymacd]

Oooh, may I join?

I finish my master's degree in June and I put on about 10 lbs since I started grad school. It's been very stressful and I was "eating my feelings." Plus, it seemed like there was never any opportunity to work out. I want to be my old dress size for graduation.

It's a bit embarrassing, as I used to be a personal trainer.

So, I joined WW and ordered a bunch of fitness DVDs. I now carve out about 45 minutes a day for exercise. I do high intensity DVDs, so I get serious calorie burn. I strength train a couple of days a week, too.

Another challenge for me is wine. I think it was also a contributing factor in my weight gain. I am slowly tapering down.

Congratulations on your Masters and deciding to get back in shape! At least for you, it has only been a few years to lose the conditioning. For me, it was about 25 years of good living and hard working to lose it. It took the better part of a year to get back to where I wanted to be.

Keep working and you will get there.

It's funny you mentioned about gaining ten pounds while working on your Master's. My daughter went away to college about three years ago and was told to expect to gain the "First Year Fifteen" and was determined not to have that happen to her. Well, it did.

Then she learned to cook and eat better and joined the gym at the college. She lost the weight and got in better shape. Now that she is working, she has again found that the two hour commute and an eight hour day really cuts into her social life and exercise time. So now, it's back to Ten Minute Trainer and eating better.

[JanetMegan]

Another challenge for me is wine. I think it was also a contributing factor in my weight gain. I am slowly tapering down.

One of my main challenges as well...

I'm still here, still need to lose about 50 lbs. I started WW around Nov and did well at first, did terribly in Dec and keep seeming to lose and re-gain the same couple of pounds each week. I am working on being more active, cutting out the booze and adjusting some of my favorite recipes!

[MizMissy]

Another challenge for me is wine. I think it was also a contributing factor in my weight gain. I am slowly tapering down.

Ditto for me, too! I love wine all the time and beer in the summer and when watching football. Alcohol has very HIGH calories. I've been counting calories on my diet and just knew there's not much room for alcohol. To start my diet, I cut out all alcohol and caffiene. Not very easy when my husband is opening up bottles of beautiful cabs in my presence. Oh well .... not any more difficult than ignoring the fried cheese sticks, ice cream and the tortilla chips and dip my children enjoy in front of me (the chips being my biggest weakness). Oh well, three weeks in and so far, I have resisted.

[dnickels]

Two half marathons and one full marathon down so far in 2011, I'm hoping to do somewhere around 8-10 for the year. No special secrets, just getting a good night's sleep and getting out every morning for that exercise. And for anyone rolling their eyes saying "I wish I had the time for that", it's as simple as shutting off the television. I don't even watch 30 minutes a day and it frees up so much time.

I eat pretty well but I'm always looking for ways to make my diet better. In the past I often would have a baked potato with dinner but I've recently swapped most of those out for sweet potatoes after I learned regular baked potatoes are affectionately knows as 'blood sugar bombs.' So if you like your potatoes, consider switching them for sweet potatoes as an easy diet tip.

[UCJen]

Two half marathons and one full marathon down so far in 2011, I'm hoping to do somewhere around 8-10 for the year. No special secrets, just getting a good night's sleep and getting out every morning for that exercise. And for anyone rolling their eyes saying "I wish I had the time for that", it's as simple as shutting off the television. I don't even watch 30 minutes a day and it frees up so much time.

Trust me. I don't watch TV. My life is a never ending parade of journal articles to read, papers to write, and I work for free three days a week as a requirement for my degree.

Did I mention I have a son with special needs and I commute 3 hours a day to school and my internship?

Because of this, I often don't get to bed until after midnight and I am up at 5:30 AM. Exercise is a luxury for me.

Ironically, since I've made exercise priority, my grades have gone down sightly, as I am not reading everything for class and I am up all night writing papers--because I'm working out instead!

So I *really* don't need a lecture about watching TV.

[dnickels]

It wasn't meant as a lecture or directed at anyone in particular.

This is the Healthy Living Club thread, I was just trying to share a tip that I've used in my life to allow me to get some extra exercise.