Posts by workzalot

I had my tonsils out as an adult - I was also about 25 when I had it done.  I think you'll be fine for your vacation.  Your first week will be pretty rough if your experience ends up being similar to mine.  I wouldn't worry about your metabolism, etc - it's not going to be a long term thing - for me I did end up eating quite a few frosty's, milkshakes, and macaroni salads and things that were not hard to eat.  If you're like me, you'll find that you're not eating a lot, but the foods are higher in calories, so it'll even out.  The main thing they'll tell you is to drink often to keep your throat moist.  Just make sure you give your body time to recover - this surgery is much more difficult as an adult - kids recover in a matter of days.  Don't push yourself - but listen to your body.  I also remember being very tired the week after the surgery also.  Of course, I haven't had any problems with my throat since the surgery - so in the long run it was definitely worth it!  Good luck!! 

I bought the shred quite a few months ago - and I swear by it - with my heartrate monitor you burn 300 - 400 calories in 20 minutes - you can't beat that - and the levels definitely increase in intensity.  Basically as soon as I could get through one level - doing every rep and not stopping I'd move to the next level.  Once I got up to level 3 I would cycle in some of the 1's and 2's occassionally since they are different exercises.  I don't do them on back-to-back days as Jillian instructs though - too much strength training and I think it's more effective ifyou have a day to recover in between.  The BL Cardiomax DVD is a good one to throw in between days - or more intense weight training.  It's definitely worth the money - and definitely use heavier weights than 1 pound!  You're not going to get bulky by using an 8 or 10 pound weight - especially when you're doing 30 second to 1 minute cycles!  I figure if you're going to work out for 20 minutes you might as well push it to the max and burn as many calories as you can - good luck!

I don't have any magical answers - but I do know some companies make diabetic snacks - which aren't bad - I've tried the Russell Stovers peanut butter cups & chocolate covered peanuts - they're similar in calories to other foods, but much lower carbs - they also make something by Glucerna I believe which has shakes and snack bars for people with diabetes.  Also - you may want to purchase the Eat Clean Cookbook for families & kids by Tosca Reno.  She promotes low-glycemic sweeteners such as agave nectar and stevia and has good recipes in there for families - even recipes for desserts such as cupcakes, quickbreads, etc.  I've been using the cookbook for a little while and I've learned a lot - and most of the recipes would be lower glycemic, as the sweeteners don't cause as much insulin production as sugar would.  Of course, you may already know all of this! 

I'm not sure what you mean by weak joints - do you mean you have arthritis in your knees?  I don't think your joints could be weak - although the muscles around them may be.  If that's the case - then certain exercises could make them sore - but I've found tha if I strengthen my legs and all of the muscles around my kneecaps that my knees are no longer sore.  I've had osteoarthritis in both knees since I was 24 - and I no longer take any medication for them - they still sound horrible because they grind - but they don't hurt.  I would say that they were sore off and on probably the first 2 months I started exercising - of course if you feel any pain while doing an exercise you should stop immediately - but being a little sore afterwards isn't as bad.

I also love the Exercise TV On Demand - and I also recommend the Shred workouts or Jackie Warner - they both get results FAST - just try them and you'll be amazed how much work can fit into 20 minutes - I do them before my family wakes up in the morning -

Women's health magazine has a "Training Guide" out now - looks like a paperback book and is arount $10 - and it breaks down your body type by your ability to build muscle, size, etc. and has exercises specifically for your type - so for example it would have exercises for you that would not bulk you up - but for my type I need to do upper and lower body work to get any definition - not sure if they have anything similar on their site?

Probably should check with your doctor - I know one of my friends was cold all the time and it ended up being an iron deficiency -

For a great cardio workout in a small space Biggest Loser Cardiomax is great - you start out at 20minutes and add 10 minute segments until you can do all 3 workouts back to back - I also love Jillian Michaels new Shred workouts - they're 20 minutes and have 3 diff workouts - they combine cardio, strength and abs for a killer workout - and I just started using Jackie one-on-one - I guess she has a show on Bravo- and she has great strength training workouts for upper body, lower body and core.  I am addicted to Exercise TV, a I can do all of these workouts anytime I want plus about 200 more included with the cost of my cable bill!  (but I did buy the cardiomax DVD because I loved it so much) - good luck!

I get Smucker's natural - they have creamy or crunchy - it's peanuts and some salt - nothing else - If you go through it within a few weeks you don't need to store it in the fridge - which makes it almost impossible to spread - you just need to stir it up before you use it - I've also used Smart Balance peanut butter, which has added Omega-3's - I've incorporated PB into my diet almost daily and have lost 29 pounds since January - I think nuts are a great source of healthy fats and protein.

I went through this a couple of years ago - honestly, you're not going to feel like eating much - cold drinks will be helpful - if I remember right, I think I did popsicles, wendy's frosties, maybe puddings or jello's.  You don't need to worry about gaining weight - because you're just not going to be able to eat much.  I also liked macaroni salad after a couple of days.  My grandmother actually bought me baby food, which I never did try - but you probably could.  Also something like Ensure would give you well-rounded nutrients - but like Jennifer says, you can't use a straw and you can't open your mouth much - just focus on getting better - don't worry about calories for the next few days!!

I would agree that you should increase your food intake - I'm also 5'10" and have lost 30 pounds since January - I started at around your weight - and I also eat some more protein - mixed nuts are a standby for me - they really fill you up and don't cause your blood sugar to spike - I aim for 1600 - 1800 calories a day - more when I do cardio and less when I do weight training, which I alternate each day.  I'm still losing weight at this calorie intake, and I weigh less than you - so I would say to up your food for a few weeks and see how it goes - just don't get discouraged because the scale may go up slightly for a week or two - but then it should start dropping - also maybe you want to focus more on weight training so you're burning more calories all the time.  Good luck!

Every night I have a snack of 60% or higher dark chocolate - you can find them individually wrapped at the store - and I look forward to eating 2 pieces (which is 1/2 a serving) of them in the evening while I watch TV - the nice thing about this snack is that it doesn't make me feel like I'm depriving myself and the dark chocolate is low-glycemic - meaning that it won't cause my blood sugar to spike, which would cause me to feel hungry and have the munchies.  Also - maybe you should incorporate low-glycemic dinners into your diet - if you're eating carbs at dinner that would cause your blood sugar to rise you would definitely get the munchies - I try to only have one thing that's high glycemic - and I make sure it's whole grain - you could even try no carbs at dinner - meat and vegetables wouldn't cause your blood sugar to rise - it's worth a try! 

What I do is pick out a couple of things that I really enjoy - for me it's a specific chocolate candy - and I already plan to eat that on Easter - as well as a "normal" easter meal with normal portion sizes - For me, I don't like to pig out because I sometimes have a hard time getting back to healthy eating if I do that - everyone's different though - I guess you need to find what works for you - and I would say don't "forbid" yourself to have something that you really enjoy that reminds you of the holiday -

As far as how much I eat a day - I aim for around 1500, but what I've found that seems to really be helping me lose weight is that I try to eat low-glycemic foods that won't send my blood sugar through the roof - that really has helped me lose a lot more weight than other things I've tried.  I make sure I have protein with eat meal or snack - and eat whole grain carbs in moderation.  I also work out 6 days a week - I love the Biggest Loser Cardiomax workout because I find that I can burn 400 -500 calories in 40 minutes - so I do that one day and strength training the next, etc.  I started CC last year, but quit after a couple of weeks - I've been doing it now for a couple of months - and it really helps to plan out my day ahead of time so I know how much wiggle room I have - what have you found that works for you??