# Diet decisions, want to weigh in LOL



## DancingArabian (Jul 15, 2011)

Find exercise that you find fun. Try Zumba or swimming (aquazumba, water aerobics) or bike riding.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


----------



## Inga (Sep 11, 2012)

Weight loss is hard, Period. I had been very thin all my life. I then went though Cancer, chemo, radiation the whole nine yard. That is also following 3 major surgeries. Through all that I gained 75-80 pounds. I would love to take that back off but it is hard. 

When I was skinny, I was silly enough to on occasion think "I need to lose weight" I would then watch what I ate for like 5 minutes and I would drop 10 pounds. Now, I am older and I diet for 10 months and lose 5 pounds. Honestly, it is a life change and not an easy one.

Exercises that would be fun and help would be ground drive your horse, that way you are moving with him/her. Ride a lot of posting without stirups, and do a lot of transitions without stirrups. Set small goals for yourself and treat yourself when you reach them. Example I will lose 5 pounds and buy myself a new shirt that I wanted. etc...

It stinks to be heavy, flat out hurts. I hope you can reach your goals and feel better. At the end of the day, what is important is how we feel.


----------



## Golden Horse (Feb 20, 2010)

DancingArabian said:


> Find exercise that you find fun. Try Zumba or swimming (aquazumba, water aerobics) or bike riding.
> _Posted via Mobile Device_



OK, not excuses, but explanations, I would love to do some sort of water aerobics, but there isn't anything closer than the city, 1 1/2 hours each way:-( same with any classes. Bike riding, LOL, we live on the gravel and we had our first snow this morning, it takes a lot to get the reluctant person on a bike in that combination.

Guess I'm going to have to dust off the Wii again:wink:


----------



## WickedNag (Sep 7, 2010)

Medifast? I need something to jump start me. No hugely overweight but have gained. I have heart problems and so exercise it out for me as I can't add the stress to my heart... have a limit on how much I can even lift.


----------



## ~*~anebel~*~ (Aug 21, 2008)

Find something you like to do. I recently joined a local powerlifting club and it is hella fun. I have permission to make crash bangy noises with heavy things!! Plus I have work out buddies and we train together and motivate each other and I always have people to spot for me.
Zumba can be like that, or even just going to the gym with a friend.
As far as the eating thing, I'm the same as you. Weighing lettuce, seriously?? I just try to make healthy choices, and google stuff. I like googling stuff so I find cool ingredients for stuff that is healthy and then make it and if it's good I keep the recipe. And I learn fun facts like muffins are death food  So I get to have a DONUT! Because they are healthier than muffins. Not all the time but if I have a hankering for something delicious I can order a donut and feel good that it's not a death food muffin.

Stuff like that. Of course jump starting on a non-food diet can help to lose weight at the beginning. But at the same time maybe start nutrition counseling and come up with menu plans for every day for a week and do a few of stuff you will actually eat, or have time to make, etc.. So when you are back to real food, you have a plan.

Good luck!


----------



## tinyliny (Oct 31, 2009)

Golden,
i am in the same boat, kinda. I am much too fat for my own good and it is impacting my health and riding ability. And yet, I still find I am not WILLING to do what needs to be done.

I lost a lot of weight, years ago, with Overeaters Anonymous. I abstained from all sugar and all breads , and all white flour items, like noodles, and all white rice. Otherwise, I pretty much ate what I wanted. Nowadays, with middle age making some unhappy changes, I doubt I would manage on this, as I can eat a lot of meat or other things. However, it worked pretty well at that time.

OA is based on the 12 steps of AA. it works best when a person attends meetings, gets a sponsor and incorporates the spiritual aspect. however, you can craft an eating program by which you totally abstain from , and I quote from the OA / AA literarue.

"Surely if we are to live free from the bondage of (drinking/overeating) we must 
abstain from ALL FOODS AND BEHAVIORS THAT CAUSE US PROBLEMS"

So, does bread cause you a problem? Does lettuce cause you a problem? Do oranges? Do nuts? does meat? does eating in front of the TV? Does eating standing up?
If they cause you problems/trouble, then abstaining from them keeps you free from that bondage. 

Obviously, for a compulsive overeater like myself, I can become compulsive about nearly anything foodwise. So, I have to ask myself "does it cause me more of a problem than I am willing to bear?" So, if trying to keep myeslf in line and eat only a handful of almonds causes me too much mental machinations , occupies too much real estate in my brain thinking about geting more, then I am better off to never even eat one.

But, if I can handle that small urge, then I may go there and eat "some". 

The problem comes in being honest with yourself. And that is the key to any 12 step program; honesty.

I don't know if you have an OA program in your area, but even if you didnt', some reading of their literature might be thought provoking.


----------



## DancingArabian (Jul 15, 2011)

Golden Horse said:


> OK, not excuses, but explanations, I would love to do some sort of water aerobics, but there isn't anything closer than the city, 1 1/2 hours each way:-( same with any classes. Bike riding, LOL, we live on the gravel and we had our first snow this morning, it takes a lot to get the reluctant person on a bike in that combination.
> 
> Guess I'm going to have to dust off the Wii again:wink:


Digging a hole for a pool would be an uber workout  JK!

Do you have a mildly Internet savvy relative or friend? If they have a wii, you could connect via webcam and both get your Wiis going at once and work out "together". My husband and I used to watch movies like this when we were long distance.

There's always an indoor bike. Grab some horsey magazines and those horse catalogs that you keep meaning to look through as soon as you have the time and pedal away on a stationary bike or treadmill!
_Posted via Mobile Device_


----------



## CowboysDream (Nov 12, 2011)

If you get a lot of snow where you live, get some snow shoes! 
Or if there are any big bodies of water (when its warmer maybe), try kayaking. I thought I wouldn't like it, but man I was surprised. 

I agree with the people above that say find fun exercise. I hate hate hate exercise. But there are some I don't mind - dancing, hiking, kayaking, snorkling, horseback riding. I am trying to find more I like but not having much luck. As for no classes being close you can find many zumba dvds or youtube videos. There are even video games for zumba. 

- Find a partner you can do exercise with. 
- Write out a list of goals you want to accomplish and give a rough timeline. (ie. I want to lose 5 lbs in 5 weeks, 50 lbs in 2 years, do 20 minutes straight of 2-point at a trot, run for 10 minutes without stopping, 25 crunches, etc.)
- Maybe wean yourself off the Medifast, start incorporating real food in sometimes so you can adjust properly. 

Not much I can say lol. Just you go girl! I need to get my butt in gear for sure, my mum keeps telling me that I need to do it now while I am still young.


----------



## Tracer (Sep 16, 2012)

I started a shake diet 2 weeks ago and already have noticed a huge difference. 

I've been having a shake for breakfast every day (except days I work, when I have 2 slices of toast and an apple), and just trying to eat a little healthier. I am not cutting out any certain types of food. I'm basically eating the same stuff, just less and more often. I have tried finding some healthier alternatives though, like unsalted peanuts as a snack rather than a packet of chips.

Just by doing that and not much exercise, I've lost just over 2lbs already. Imagine if I was sticking to the rules and having 2 shakes a day and exercising.

Just a tip too - I had a dietician's appointment recently and she gave me a factsheet on what to look for in foods. Less than 10g per 100g of Fat (3g for dairy), 3g per 100g of saturated fats, 400mg per 100g of sodium, and more than 3g per 100g of fibre.

As for exercise, I would take up some of the suggestions here and exercise with your horse. Do some warming up and cooling down on foot rather than in the saddle. Ride without stirrups. Pull in your stomach muscles whilst riding.

Also, an exercise bike is a great idea. My friend and I are both going to get one, and our plan is to set them up in her lounge room and ride them whilst playing COD 

IMHO, if you want to be able to stick to your diet and keep the weight off, don't cut out foods entirely, just cut down on how much.

Also, don't think of it as a diet, or losing weight. If you've got a mindset like me, neither of those are good things - all our lives we've been taught that losing isn't good, and diet has the word die in it... I prefer the term 'gaining health', or 'being able to ride a horse without looking like The Blob'. Another way of thinking that might help you is thinking that you're doing it for your horse. I'm working towards my goal for horses in general. Plus, when I do go for a walk, I take my dog and tell myself that I'm doing it for him, because he's getting a little chubby around the edges.

Good luck!


----------



## Golden Horse (Feb 20, 2010)

Lots of great thoughts and ideas thanks guys.

A learned a few things on my last big weight loss, and the most important thing for me is NOT to set any of those I will lose 8 pounds this month type targets, because when it comes to it you can 't MAKE your body give it up to your set timeline. A big huge YES to setting goals, but for me that has to be put into things that I can control, I will eat 100% on plan for 2 weeks, with no cheats, totally in my control, I will exercise x minutes a day, totally in my control and far safer to set than those weight loss goals.

YMMV, but for me if I'm doing everything I should be and the body won't give it up, then I can't let that derail me.:wink:


----------



## clippityclop (Jul 12, 2012)

I agree - new shoes, weight watchers and zumba three times a week works for me.

Another thing that makes women different for men (maybe, maybe not) is hormones - anyone else notice that? Isn't it true that it is harder to lose weight the older you get? And then when/if you do lose the weight, your skin takes a good 2-3 years to shrink back if you are over 40 because of less estrogen. Weight loss is hard on women physically and mentally. At least once a week in Zumba before or after class we sit around and compare flab stories. :lol:

I'm all for eating what I want so that's why WW worked for me. Everything started falling off when I started exercising. But I still drink Dr. Pepper, whole milk, eat butter and use heavy whip cream when I cook - and I love ranch dressing. I WILL NOT give up that stuff - so I just make changes to everything else to fit those in. LOL!

I don't know about you all but if I gave up everything I loved, I would surely fail. It took baby steps and lots of time for me - I wasn't super heavy, but I started WW in/around 2004, managed it ok - got pregnant - had a baby and didn't get back to where i wanted to be until just this year. It might take years and that's ok! But a support group of friends is such a BIG help...either with dieting or exercising - if I didn't have girlfriends to share weight war stories with, I'd never have gotten this far.


----------



## CowboysDream (Nov 12, 2011)

Well thats why I gave other goal ideas  I found people generally think goals have to be weight related, but they definitely don't


----------

