Posted on 05/08/2009 8:02:54 AM PDT by knarf
I'm 61 and I'm fighting a gaining battle ...
I don't eat much snack food ... I didn't think the toast was such a burden, but y'all have convinced me.
I love chuck hamburger and do a pretty good sized one two or three times a week
Get those hamburger 'rolls' at WalMart, slice through the plastic and all every inch, peel off the plastic, ease it into a fold-over sandwich baggie and freeze (I'm lazy ... when I want a burger, I want a burger!)
I have my deer yet, and will start mixing half n' half next 'batch' .. don't know how just yet to get those beautifully round patties though.
I like those "Monster" energy drinks ... I know, all caffeine and V B's. (I like the blue label, 3 grams of sugar ... don't like the taste of the sugerless)
I confess to being lazy about excersize ... that will change ... I miss my wife and our sexcersize. (Soon to be remedied .. /8^) ... )
And I LOVE oranges! .. I can eat (and have) 5 - 10 a day. And I eat a lot of salad ... starting to pay attention to the dessing these days.
I sure appreciate all the help everyone her has given ... Thank You.
Water! Drink Water! All day every day...water. If you go out to eat order water with a lemon in it.
You got to flush those Monster drinks out of you. do not drink those things...they are very bad for you. my advice is that if you want energy, don’t look for it in fake, artificial drinks. Just think of the chemicals that you are putting into your body, that were not intended to be there. they not only load toxins in your body, which cause weight gain, cravings, bad habits, addiction, but the energy they give is unnatural.
Exercise will give you energy! The better shape you are in the more energy you will have. Start out walking. Take a long morning and evening walk. If you are into measuring things mark out a 2 mile course with your car and walk it in the morning and at night.
Make sure you take a break every week. Give yourself a holiday from everything...eat anything you crave and just relax. Every time you are tempted by ‘bad food’ just look forward to your special day each week and wait for that day. Treat yourself special that day you are worth it. Then the next morning start off with your water, long walk, and healthy nutrition.
Find a friend to walk with you.
And don't start lifting weights or other serious exercise without getting a physical, especially a blood pressure check.
By the way...for those interested in the calories burned by either walking or running here is an excellent article on the subject, which really explains it in an easy to understand fashion.
“HOW MANY CALORIES ARE YOU REALLY BURNING?”
http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-242-304-311-8402-0,00.html
Remember though that getting 30 minutes of exercise twice a day is more important than the actual number of calories burned. If you eat and drink right, the weight will come off and more importantly you will feel better and have more energy!!!
>> And I LOVE oranges! .. I can eat (and have) 5 - 10 a day. <<
Ya welcome. Also watch the oranges. That’s a LOT of sugar.
And didn’t we all! ;9)
Excellent link ... thanks .... it’s a wonder I’m still alive!
Diet soda slows down the metabolism. The notion that weight gain is proportional to caloric intake is a load of crap. Human beings can maintain their weight with shockingly low caloric intake. It’s how efficiently they burn their calories. And drinking one can of diet soda a day can bringing your calorie burning to a screeching halt. You’re MUCH better off drinking the sugary stuff.
The national fear about carbonation is another load of crap. Holding your breath for a few seconds will affect the amount of CO2 in your bloodstream a lot more than a can of soda will.
Phosphoric acid is a much bigger problem. No the problem isn’t the acid; it’s the phosphorus. Bones are made of Calcium Phosphate. Calcium is a little tough for your body to directly measure, so it measures phosphorus instead. When your body detects high levels of phosphorus, it gives the OK for your body to start excreting calcium. Forty years from now, we’ll see an osteoporosis epidemic like no-one can imagine!
So, go ahead. Drink up the sugary, yummy root beer (in moderation). Just stat away from Diet Coke.
You’ve gotten some good advice, but I don’t think anyone has hit the nail on the head.
As you get older, you tend to be more sedintary,
so your metabolism slows down,
so you put on weight because you don’t lower your calorie intake,
so you become more sedintary,
so your metabolism slows down,
so you put on weight because you don’t lower your calorie intake,
so you become more sedintary,
so your metabolism slows down,
so you put on weight because you don’t lower your calorie intake,
so you become more sedintary,
so your metabolism slows down,
so you put on weight because you don’t lower your calorie intake,
so you become more sedintary,
so your metabolism slows down,
so you put on weight because you don’t lower your calorie intake,
etc...
And you spiral downward year after year until one day you say “where did this extra 50 pounds come from?”
You have to break out of the spiral. Dieting doesn’t break it, becase when you go on a diet your body thinks there must be a famine (otherwise why would you quit eating as much), so it:
lowers your metabolism,
so you become more sedintary,
so your metabolism slows down,
so you put on weight because you don’t lower your calorie intake,
etc... all over again.
The key to breaking this cycle is to exercise. Exercise not only RAISES you metabolism, it puts on additional muscle (I’m not talking about weight lifting, even walking adds muscle) and the added muscle burns more calories which:
makes you lose weight,
so you feel like being more active,
which raises your metabolism,
which addes muscle,
that consumes more calories and makes you lose weight,
so you feel like being more active,
which raises your metabolism,
which addes muscle,
that consumes more calories and makes you lose weight,
so you feel like being more active,
which raises your metabolism,
which addes muscle,
that consumes more calories and makes you lose weight,
etc...
The reason most diets don’t work is they ignore the exercise part (or focus 90% on calories and throw in some advise to “exercise daily”.) If anything your main focus should be getting into a daily exercise routine. Once you’ve accomplished that, THEN you can start worrying about calories.
Take it one step at a time. Exercise first. Dieting second.
Eat less, move around more. People aren’t plants. They can’t turn the atmosphere into biomass. Even 400 calories daily in excess of what is burned up can cause weight gain over time.
Buy a $10 pedometer at a sporting goods store. Try to do 10,000 steps per day in your activities at home and at work. It’s tough, but if you do it and watch what you eat (lay off the damn carbs), you’ll lose weight.
I know of what I speak. I’m a physician who heads a Employee wellness company with 22 nurses, a dietitian and a personal fitness adviser.
Thank you. That makes sense. I guess now I’ll have to eliminate my sugar-free Rockstars from my life too. (frowns)
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