Losing the pounds

[Fisher's Mom]

I'm glad to hear your leg healed well, LT. After being semi-incapacitated for these months, it's little wonder you have some body changes. All the advice about lowering calorie intake and choosing lower fat foods is very good. You're also doing some excellent cardio with your bike riding.

You definitely want to strengthen your abs so that you can get your back and spine healthy again. Your abs are one of the major muscle groups that support your spine so you can't have a healthy back without strong abs. Since you are already experiencing back pain, I would add ab exercises carefully and work up slowly.

Crunches and leg lifts would be a good start. Don't push it to the point of pain in your back. Start with a low number of reps and work up. Concentrate on slow movements with attention to perfect form. Be sure and include plenty of stretches before, during and after all of your workouts so that you don't further injure your back, which would totally screw up your fitness routine.

If you can get your hands on a good yoga DVD, it would be an excellent way to increase your flexibility and balance as well as strengthen your abs without as much risk of injury. Good luck with this - you can do it!

 

[AMSeccia]

I wonder if you could try eating a whole orange in place of a glass of juice? You'd get the fiber and other benefits and still get that fruit taste you love. Try whole frozen grapes in place of your grape juice ... toss a bag in the freezer when you leave for your bike ride and pull 'em out when you'd normally have that glass of juice. It's surprisingly satisfying.

Good luck, you sound like you have more endurance than I do!

 

[bethzaring]

I dont know how i am going to burn more cals than i take in. I would be doing nothing but exercise all day, i do have a life.

This is a challenge that every human being has to confront, trying to determine how much food, on average, we can eat daily and not gain weight. It is a life long effort and the earlier you get a grip on it, the easier it will be for you to not become one of Americas' "obese", if that is your goal. Understanding the amount of food you need to eat to maintain your weight is the first step in reducing your food intake, in order to start to lose weight.

 

[LT72884]

Wow, i like all this advice. Here is the thing with water and me. I used to drink it all the time when i was younger. Then as i aged and went to middle school and high school, Mountain dew and A&W root beer found a place in my everyday life. During my high school years, I would consume on average 320 oz of Mountain per day. Breakfast consisted of pop tarts and soda.

The other day i was going threw some old clothes and found a pair of pants i used to where all the time in 11th grade. It was scary. they were like a size 42, currently right now i am at a size 36-38 waist. My senior year though was where i started to change. I ended up going into weight training class and did very well with the free weights. I weighed 208 pounds with a 10% body fat. Thats pretty good.

any way its been so long since i have drinkin a normal glass of water, that when i do, it tastes gross, even if it is filtered. So i found that i could buy special K protein water for $2.50 for 7 packets. Each packet will make 20-25 oz of protein water.

Im glad for all this advice. I just need to be conservative and not obsessed about it.

Matt Thomas

 

[redkitty]

I'm workin on some great ideas for you Matt!!

 

[LT72884]

I'm workin on some great ideas for you Matt!!

sweet action, thanx mate

 

[The Z]

As I've mentioned before, I track my food intake on a web site (I use thedailyplate.com) that has a vast data base so you can look things up. It also has a calculator function that tells you every day (based on your height, weight, activity level and weight loss goals) how many calories you should be eating. Always be aware of how many calories you're putting in your body and be honest with yourself. And remember that just because a product advertises itself as 'healthy', it may still be calorie dense.

Eat fresh, whole foods whenever possible. Eat whatever you want but, just as others have advised, practice portion control... and get over your aversion to water. It does not 'taste nasty' (maybe it does from your tap... I don't know), but you may need to buy a filter or buy already filtered water. Sugary juices are not good.

 

[Barbara L]

...My only problem is when im hungry and i dont eat i get really dizzy, so i have to eat something and when im dizzy, i shoot for carbs like whole wheat toast or something with high protein...

Have you had a doctor check your blood glucose levels?

Barbara

 

[LT72884]

Have you had a doctor check your blood glucose levels?

Barbara

Yes i have, My mom does it every once in a while. They are normal.

108

However, when i am dizzy, i have not checked my blood to see where it is.
I do not have any symptoms of a diabetic person except the dizziness possibly caused from low blood sugar.

For example, i am a lil dizzy right now because the last time i ate something was around 8 this morning and it is currently 1.

its when i go to long with out eating, my sugar level tends to go down a bit hence the dizziness.

Its either Hyper or hypoglycemia, i cant remember which one it is.

I have not been diagnosed with that, its just a theoretical guess.

Im going to get lunch. Except im tired of eating salads every day for lunch.

 

[bethzaring]

Its either Hyper or hypoglycemia, i cant remember which one it is.

I have not been diagnosed with that, its just a theoretical guess.

That is hypoglycemia. My dh is hypoglycemic and he controls it quite well eating a lot of whole wheat bread products. He always carries ww dinner rolls with him in case he starts to feel dizzy. Complex carbohydrates also help him control his blood sugar levels.

 

[Barbara L]

Yeah, that's why I asked. My sugar never goes too low, but if it drops really fast, I get dizzy. That happened once when we went out to eat. I felt dizzy and sick to my stomach when we got to the restaurant. I didn't even feel like eating. I checked my BG level and it had dropped drastically. I ate a roll as soon as we sat down, and my dizziness and upset stomach immediately went away.

You might want to carry hard candies with you. If you feel dizzy eat one (and then eat of course). It could help while you are waiting for the food to be ready.

Barbara

 

[LT72884]

Yes, thats why if i go to long im man down before i know it. It used be that i could go a day or two with out eating and be fine becasue my metabolic rate was screwed up, now since i have started to exercise more, it seems that a few hours is all i can go,.

 

[LT72884]

Yeah, that's why I asked. My sugar never goes too low, but if it drops really fast, I get dizzy. That happened once when we went out to eat. I felt dizzy and sick to my stomach when we got to the restaurant. I didn't even feel like eating. I checked my BG level and it had dropped drastically. I ate a roll as soon as we sat down, and my dizziness and upset stomach immediately went away.

You might want to carry hard candies with you. If you feel dizzy eat one (and then eat of course). It could help while you are waiting for the food to be ready.

Barbara

thats why i am going to have a harder time losing weight. I need to eat carbs every so often, so i have to make sure they are good carbs that wont cause me to gain.

 

[babetoo]

i am diabetic, dr. prescribed new oral meds as the highs were way out of line.now it has gone the other way. been fighting dangerous lows for a couple weeks.

i can really feel it when it goes that low, headache, dizzy, can't think and vision is blurry among other things. food to bring it up was not fast enough so had to eat glucose tablets. that is fairly fast.

if your blood sugar goes to low u can pass out and worse case go into a coma.

better to eat small amounts over the day. so no starving yourself to lost weight.


babe

 

[LT72884]

i am diabetic, dr. prescribed new oral meds as the highs were way out of line.now it has gone the other way. been fighting dangerous lows for a couple weeks.

i can really feel it when it goes that low, headache, dizzy, can't think and vision is blurry among other things. food to bring it up was not fast enough so had to eat glucose tablets. that is fairly fast.

if your blood sugar goes to low u can pass out and worse case go into a coma.

better to eat small amounts over the day. so no starving yourself to lost weight.


babe

Yeah my moms sugar has been below 15 a few times in the last 4 years. Thats scary. My mom is a type 1

 

[GotGarlic]

thats why i am going to have a harder time losing weight. I need to eat carbs every so often, so i have to make sure they are good carbs that wont cause me to gain.

Fresh fruit, especially oranges, is good for that. My aunt was diabetic and always carried orange juice with her in case her blood sugar got too low, but if you're not actually diabetic, eating an orange will give you the sugar with the added benefit of fiber.