40ish and Losing It!

This is a daily thread for women 40+ who are: losing those middle aged pounds, dealing with hormonal issues, family issues or just plain losing their minds!  I hope my friends follow me to this new thread and I hope to make more friends along the way - all are welcome.

Cheryl :)

Welcome back, Brigitte!

How's your ankle doing? 

Anyhow, I want to share my new discovery - products made with stevia - you can get them at: http://steviasmart.stores.yahoo.net/stevitast evia.html  Some items are a bit pricey, like the gum, but I think it beats chewing gum with the fake sweeteners that actually are proven to spike your sugar levels.  I ordered them and found them to be just like regular gum.  Along with my order they threw in samples of those little packets you throw into water bottles (like the crystal light packages) - and they are really great too!  Just thought I'd pass this along.

 

 

Cheryl

Thanks cheryl for the stevia info- I hope to order some soon.

About my ankle....

Was doing great until...today. I sprained it again today. It hurt so bad. I thought I broke it. I saw a doc friend and because I could walk (after the initial shock) on it and actually it's not bad to walk on but is still VERY tender. I will give it a break AGAIN and baby it a week or three and hopefully I can get back in the swing of things again soon. Thanks for asking. Maybe I'll post a picture of it. :) Wouldn't that be cute?

BTW- I think the worst thing about getting older for me has been the ugly veins all over my legs! It's just grose!

Thanks, home4ed, for the saving/spending analogy.  As I thought about it, I realized you were right on - I have never regretted (later) passing on an extra serving of something, but I, too, have often regretted eating things I didn't need - they just looked good at the time.

So, thanks for that piece of wisdom.  Every little bit helps!  :)

Does anyone make their own ice cream?  I'd like to make sugar-free ice cream and am trying to figure out what machine is best...

Sorry about your ankle home4ed...I know that has to be a real pain especially with the kids and home schooling. I hope it gets well soon!!

Corky,   I wish I could help you with the ice cream thing but I haven't made home made icecream since I was like 12 when me and my brothers took turns turning that old ice cream churn with the rock salt and ice. I would google it to find recipes.

I can also relate abot the ugly veins!!!!  My legs have always been one of my best assets..before the blue and purple started :-(

Cheryl,

One of my friends has an ice gream maker that I found very easy to use but I don't remember the name brand. What I do remember was that it had this really cool(no pun intended) bowl part that you keep in the freezer because it is double walled and has a liquid inside it for keeping cold. I thought that the bowl description might help you narrow down what you may have already seen. Any how It was just very easy to use and I have made awesome maple walnut icecream using no sugar but real maple syrup. And real whole unpasturized milk. Yum!

Cheryl,

I have a Cuisinart ice cream maker and have been using it for about 5-6 years. It works great and it has that "cool" bowl that you can keep in the freezer. It's very easy to use and quite fast (about 1/2 hr.  to "firm up").  I used to (pre-CC)  make a lemon sorbet that was my favorite (too much sugar, but it may be good with stevia as a substitute).  There are a few recipes that I got from CC for frozen desserts, too.  

Edie (just got back from another vacation and didn't gain a lb...yippee!)

Great job Edie! By the way when I weighed in on friday it showed that I stayed the same on vacation too! Still not counting yet very regular but trying.

That's the icecream maker I was talking about. It was even in one of the sales adds in our neck of the woods yesterday for $40 or $50.

The Cuisinart was exactly what I was looking into! I see a mother's day present coming my way!!

Okay, Edie, how did you go on a vacation and not gain anything - please share your secrets!

Cheryl

Ok, Ladies, let's stay razor focused this week. My guess is there will be some "breakfast in bed" this upcoming weekend and we want to enjoy it with no guilt this Sunday.

I'm really hoping to spend my mother's day in the garden with the help of my family! I would like an early start so there's no Breakfast in bed for me. I really hope for no rain. I have some Pachasandra (I'm sure I totallly butchered that) to trans plant and weeds to erradicate. If I get enough accomplished I hope to end the day with a family bike ride to get ice cream and I will engoy mine guilt free!

What are you all planning for Sunday? You don't have to be a Mom to answer. I would be spending time with My mom if I lived closer to her.

I will spend it at my mother in-laws house. It's weird for me, because it's like my mother in-law is the "mom" and then they go, oh yea, you're a mom too. They are going to grill steaks, steak fries, salad and strawberry shortcake. I have to figure out the calories and come up with a plan. We are hoping for no rain and a little warmth as well. It's been an awful Spring.

Hello ladies, thought I'd check in since I haven't been chatting lately.  How is everyone doing?

Regarding ice cream makers - I have that Cuisinart one with the freezable center also and I love it.  I've made sorbet and also regular ice cream and it's awesome.  Do be sure to follow the instructions on how much to fill it though - the ice cream expands as it churns and if you fill it too high..... big mess!

Last week was a good one for me as I hit a couple of milestsones.  I have now officially lost over 20 pounds and I am now UNDER 150  pounds!  Yay!  Plus as of today's weigh-in, I am only 2.5 pounds away from the halfway mark to my goal.  Yay!

Of course, that still leaves 27.5 pounds to lose.  Ugh.  Just gotta keep plugging away.  I keep expecting to hit a major plateau any time now.

On that topic, I was just talking to a friend who is a Professor of Biology at a college in San Diego. She was telling me that there is new endocrinology research that shows that a plateau is normal, and even a good thing.  Apparently, after you've lost around 15-20% of your body weight, your body has to "reset" itself for this new weight, which kind of makes sense if you think about it.  She said that a plateau of SEVERAL MONTHS is normal and should be expected, as your body reworks itself to run at this new size. 

So, if you hit a plateau, try not to freak out - it's actually a good thing as your body gets used to its new size.  I know that's probably not going to help when I hit one, but I figure it's at least a relief to know I'm not doing anything wrong - it's normal.

Anyway, just thought I'd share that with y'all. Hope everyone's having a great week!

Valerie

Good job Valerie! Your doing great...

Thanks for the info on plateaus. That helps alot in understanding why it happens.

Thanks Valerie for the info on plateaus. It will be good info to have when I reach 15-20% of my starting weight. I didn't realize how LONG a plateau can last! I'm so glad to hear of your accomplishments as well! Keep up the work you are doing!Do you have any rewards you will allow yourself for reaching your goals?

Brigitte

Original Post by home4ed:

Thanks Valerie for the info on plateaus. It will be good info to have when I reach 15-20% of my starting weight. I didn't realize how LONG a plateau can last! I'm so glad to hear of your accomplishments as well! Keep up the work you are doing!Do you have any rewards you will allow yourself for reaching your goals?

Brigitte

I don't have any specific rewards set up for these milestones, and I find that the weight loss is a pretty motivating reward all on its own.  But, I needed to get some new clothes since the old ones are starting to get pretty baggy, so I bought a few new things.  I actually enjoyed shopping for clothes - the first time in years and years - and pretty easily found some clothes that fit.  That was very rewarding!

We are planning a trip to Vegas in August as a reward for reaching my goal weight.  I may or may not actually be at my goal weight by then, but should be pretty close (unless I hit that big ol' plateau), and it's the best time for my boyfriend to take time off, so we'll be going either way.  That is fairly motivating too because I want to get some new clothes then and be feeling confident for Vegas.

For some reason, I'm just really, really motivated this time around.  Maybe because I finally realized I HAD to do something about my health, or maybe because it is working.  Don't know.  Whatever the reason, I haven't had any trouble keeping motivated so far (knock on wood...).  The rewards I give myself are kinda just gravy!

Okay, here's a question for the menopause ladies out there:  Have you noticed your hips and butt getting a little smaller (but your midsection and back getting the fat)?  I read that this happens.

Here's the thing, I have an hour glass shape, so I tend to gain the weight on the butt and thighs (unfortunately I have those horrendous saddlebags that, if I was rich and brave enough, I'd have lippoed out...).  Now, since I hit meno a few years ago, I gained 15 lbs.  I gained weight in the middle as well as the bottom area.  Now, I'm noticing that all my size 10 pants are baggy on me, but my weight loss really stalled, so I'm not losing anything.  Could the fat be redistributing?  Does that happen?  Or is it that your NEW fat only gets put in your middle?

Cheryl :)

 

Hey Cheryl I know what you mean...my pant are baggy in the butt but not in the waist!!!  I have been menopausal for 6 or so years now and I can tell such a drastic change in my proportions.  seems like no matter what i do I stll got this "thick" waist.  It's frustrating but I keep tring different exercises to see what might work. I have finally lost some of the yuk from my upper back by using weights.  I was shoked one day when I caught a glimpse of my back in the mirror with my bra on.  It was not pretty so I knew I had to do something.  I am working hard to try and figure out what will work for the "spare tire"  I will let you know what progress I make.

Cindy

Cheryl,

Im pretty sure that I read in Dr Lee's book for "What Your Doctor May Never Tell You about Peri-menopause" was that gaining weight in the stomach was a symptom oe perimenopause and menopause and due to imbalence of hormones ie. estogen high. I, like you, have always been "hippy" but since meno, I can't believe how much I gained in my waist! I am going down and experiencing success...lost 17 lbs so far! I have 17 to go. I thought the progesterone cream factored into some of the success. But eating less (according to metabolic burn) and exercising really are the key. I hope you are able to get that turned around.

Brigitte