Newbee needing encouragement

I just joined and am not sure how this works yet. I am five foot five and 260 lbs. I used to weigh 350 about 7 years ago.

I want to get to 160 pounds so that would be a loss of 100 pounds. I have been on a vegetable kick and do not like sugar much, I am really careful of what I eat...but still my weight seems to stay the same.

My doctor told me today I have 3 poundas of water retention in my legs and will have to cut out salt. He informed me that one of my  medications, Depakote causeds weight gain. I take it for my seizures. So I can be fat or have seizures. Please help, I need encouragement and advice from anyone who know the agony of feeling like a failure.

Recently I followed a biker, too close, and he chased me down. He called me a ugly, fat, stupid, bitch. and said If I ever did that to him again he would kill me. I have been feeling scared to go out-for fear of seeing him again and I would stay home and eat losts of junk food, if I could. I don't do this because junk food makes me ill, since I gave it up years ago. (I even gave up sugar and now it makes me sick too)

My big dillemma is what do I eat that taste good and does not cause weight qain that both low calorie and low sodium. Need advice.

:( joanna I'm so sorry someone said that to you. I hope you don't let one idiot taunt you to the point you don't want to get your exercise in! When I was about 6 months pregnant I was feeling awful. I was big, bloated and miserable. I was taking a walk and a car full of guys pulled up and shouted "better speed it up, fatty". I wanted to DIE so I know how you must have felt.

Obviously check with your doctor before you do anything, but I'd load up on grilled chicken salads, all the raw veggies you can get your hands on and lots of fruit. I'm really lucky in that I can live on raw veggies. They are not a torture food for me. I put a dash of balsamic vinegar on my salads, load them up with all kinds of veggies and I'm totally happy with that.

I'm sure there are other people that can give you better ideas of what to eat since not everyone can live on nibbling rabbit food like I can. I just wanted to comment on that rude @sshole who hopefully fell into a ditch a block down the road >:o

You should try to up the fiber.  Have some beans and meat and lots and lots of veggies, like spirochete said.  Don't give up and try to exercise at home.  Right now my mom has a Gazelle and you can burn 200 calories in 20 minutes on that thing.  It is saving me because of all the bad weather:( But go for some more exercise and try not to worry so much about the salt.  I know that doctors are more trustworthy than some random girl on the web, but if you cut out too much salt it could be bad for you.  Take a vitamin and get some exercise every day!  That's my advice for you.

Heck yeah!  I'm new too!  I have been on here for 4 days so far and it is going really well.  If you use this website as a tool, you can't go wrong.  You are doing the right thing so far by expressing yourself on here.  We are all here for you and you can tell that biker dude he looks gay in his little outfit...or whatever.  (don't get me wrong, I love gay people, but that man was mean) He he he

Hi. I am new here too.

Don't worry about that guy, he's an idiot! He talks to others that way to make himself feel bigger, better,whatever. HMMMM, Maybe he's compensating?

I hope you stop by my profile to see my los.. YOU CAN DO IT TOO!!!! The key.. Honestly, if you cant get much exercise.. Eats Fruits VEggies & Lean meats.. The same thing youve probably been hearing for YEARS!!! If it comes in a box or bag DONT EAT IT!!! If it has been processed by MAN.. Dont eat it... Of course there is milk, yogurt, cheese, ect... that you can eat, but use your head on that.. YOU CAN DO IT!!!!!

I totally agree with loosingthepounds. What she said to eat was RIGHT ON! That's the way I eat, too.

Veggies, veggies, veggies...broccoli, beans...no salt is a bummer, but you can use pepper and garlic which jazz up quite a few things.  Actually, I've cut out almost all salt just because it's healthier even though I don't have any salt issues...still won't give up dill pickles every once in a while.

The key with veggies is to get fresh, high quality veggies.  They're more expensive but they're well worth it because they actually taste like something.  Avoid canned vegetables where possible.  You can go for frozen veggies, but try to get the baby varieties.  If you still can't abide the taste, try adding a slender slice of unsalted butter.  I like cooking a foil packet with chicken breasts and bell peppers and onions with pepper and garlic for seasonings.  The fat from the chicken breast adds a lot of flavor.  Also, many veggies are great when grilled.

That chicken foil dinner is a super idea!

I had not thought of chicken foil dinners, have never made this. How its this done.

Actually, Joanna, it is very simple. Just tear yourself off a couple of good size pieces of foil. And then in the middle, put your seasoned chicken breast, and veggies. Then fold up the foil and bake it at 375 or 400 degrees for about 45 minutes

As for the biker:what goes around, comes around! Trust me, sooner or later, he'll fall on his ugly butt and there will be no one around to help him because he's  a mean person. As for staying at home and eating junk food, sounds nice...... Herm. But then you won't loose any.

So ignore the uneducated mean bikers on the planet and join us :-) Most people are really nice, right! And then you've lost a lot of weight already, which is so cool!

Hey Joanna.  I'm new to cc.com as well and I just wanted to say that the biggest step you've taken so far and probably the most important was joining the site and admitting that you want to lose weight.  That was the hardest part for me.  Finally admitting that I am overweight and am at risk for far too many health problems when I get older.  I started my lifestyle change about 5 weeks ago and have lost 11 pounds so far.  I've started by maintaining portion control and cutting out the fast food and junk.  As for excercise I started off slowly by walking 3 nights a week.  Now I walk home from work everyday which is between 1.5 and 2 miles and it's all on an incline.  It takes me about 30 mins or so.  I've also started biking again and do that about 4 times a week. 

Just realize you've already made a huge step and be proud of that.  And I see you've already lost a lot of weight already and that can be used as a big motivator!  That's such an accomplishment and you should be proud of yourself!!!  Just start off doing a little at a time and realize it's a lifestyle change and not a diet.  And we're all facing the same struggles and can help each other and support each other! :)

Trial and error with your diet.  (and excercise)

Water weight is water weight... it can come off anytime you eat low sodium stuff so dont worry about that as much as Fat.

does it matter if it taste good or not?  sometimes thats the sacrafices we gotta go through... yes there's tastey food out there but thats if you have time, money, and can cook. lol  I eat...tuna, egg whites, oatmeal, cottage cheese.... and some veggies n greens.  Glamorous i know!  Comes down to building your will power to get what you what.

as for the biker,  hu?  so what...Dont let nobody push you around like that.  Go and if he says some shit,  call the cops. :P

just hang in there, if you need anything PM me.

I was on depakote for a while for migraines.... before that I had been on prednisone, between the two I bloated up from 150 to 180 in a matter of weeks (IV prednisone 1000mg+ a day.) Then I couldn't get rid of it for the life of me, and gained another 20 lbs over the time I took depakote (2 yrs?)   Problem being, my Drs never told me depakote could cause weight gain, so the whole time I was trying to figure out what the hell I was doing so wrong.... After I found out that was the cause, I weened myself off of it, but still had a wicked hard time losing (so don't feel bad that you can't stop taking it.)

I suggest that you try to see a nutritionist who can factor in that you have seizures and help you set up a diet plan.  There are some diets that can help you lose weight, and aid in preventing seizures, especially in conjunction with an epilepsy medication.  If you can't get to see a nutritionist, just monitor your calories closely for a bit, reducing them bit by bit, until you notice a loss of about a pound a week.  It may be at less calories than this site tells you, due to the weight-gain-causing meds.

Best of luck to you!

Joanna, I'm so sorry that mean biker yelled at you.  I don't blame you for feeling afraid to go out.  The good news is he really isn't out there waiting for you -- he's probably gone on to yell at someone else.  So don't be afraid and get back out there.  You'll be fine. 

As another poster said, you've done the hardest part already -- you've decided to change your life.  That's a HUGE step and you should be very proud of yourself. 

Since you have a medical problem, be sure to check EVERYTHING out with your doctor or a nutritionist, but people have given you some very good advice already.   For me, the first step was just writing down everything I ate to see where I was, calorie-wise and nutrition-wise.   Do that for a few days first off so you can see what you're doing right, and what improvements you might need to make.  If you click the "analyze" button at the top of the food log screen, it will tell you your sodium intake as well, which will help.  (It will also tell you sodium if you analyze individual foods.)

I don't have a sodium problem, but do try to limit it to under 2400mg each day.  Does your doctor recommend cutting it out altogether or can you have some?

I like steamed zuccini and season it with just a dash of salt and squeeze fresh lemon on it.  You could probably use a salt subsitute and it would taste great.  I also eat lots of fresh fish, which also tastes good with either salt substitute and lemon, or dill. 

I cook most of my main courses on my George Foreman grill, which is GREAT.  It drains off the fat and cooks things quickly.  I try to have either chicken or fish as my main dinner course, and lots of veggies and fruits throughout the day.  Once a week or so I fix a side, like a lentil/feta/celery salad, or some tabouli, that I divide into portions and eat throughout the week.  It's nutritious and ready for me on the days I don't want to cook. 

Also, why don't you google "low salt recipes" and "herbs salt substitutes" to see what other herbs you can use that will give you good flavor without increasing your sodium? 

Try to keep your carbs at no more than 50% of your diet (the "analyze" button on CC will help you figure this out) and try to make most of them complex carbs, like whole grain, etc.   Also get about 30 grams of fiber per day.  The increase in fiber and complex carbs slows down your digestion system and makes you feel full. 

I know that's a lot of information to process at once.  Don't try to do everything all at one time.  Remember it took you a while to gain weight so be patient with your body while you're learning how to best help it get to it's optimum weight.  Don't hate it -- love it and recognize it's doing it's best for you!   You can DO this!  You've already made the first step so keep it up. 

I have a George Forman grill too and I also talked to my doctor about the Depakote and dieting. He is the one who gave me this site address.  He said I have 3 pounds of water in my legs. That is each leg. He said my thyroid is working again and I am going to the lab tomorrow on a 10 hour fasting blood draw, to check my cholesterol. I think it should be great, considering all the vegetables I eat.

The last cholesterol. test draw showed 198 on my cholesterol but when I was 350 pounds, it was over 500 and my triglycerides was around 1200. He said it is a wonder that I had not had a heart attack.

My mother died of congestive heart failure on June 21, 2004. That is when I decided that I did not want to die like she did and started back on no sugar or preservatives.  The diet that my doctor gave me back then was called the Paleo Diet. It is what the pioneers ate, everything in their natural state, with no processing. fruit, vegetables, potatoes, meat ( I ate mostly fish or skinless chicken) I did not drink Lattes from Starbucks or any soda pop. I drank water instead.

I do the majority of this now and was glad to find out that my meds is what is making it harder for me to lose the weight. I know that I can do it.  Monday, I will start water walking or aerobics (something that is easier on my back and knees)  Gold's gym also has a saunna and whirlpool. I first use the exercise bike to warm up my knees then go in the pool. I also use some of the other equipment to limber up my arms and work my bad shoulder and both knees that have tendonitis. My back has arthritis and the pool should help this out, I look forward to the heat of the whirlpool and often wish to stay in there longer.

Is there anyone in the Salt lake City, Utah area, who has a Gold's Gym membership on 5600 South and 300 East? I have not been to the gym for a while, since my cousin had to end her membership, for lack of money.  I think it is always better to have physical support at a gym so I have more courage in my swim suit.

Hi , I am new here and to tell you the truth I have no idea how this works, can someone advice me on how or even where to start? My current weight is 240 lbs. I am 5'5 and I have a 7 month old child. I have no car (of my own) and I am with out support (just moved home, no friends, started school...what time?) Can anyone  help me?

depakote almost certainly is a factor in your weight gain.  depending on what type of seizures you have, what medications you have already tried, etc., there may be an alternative anticonvulsant that is less likely to have this unpleasant side effect (i'm simply surprised that your doctor had not already mentioned this to you - it's one of the most common complaints that people taking it have).  topiramate is an anticonvulsant that shows some efficacy in weight loss - it's usually not a great epilepsy drug when used alone for various reasons, but it may be helpful as an adjunct to other regimes for helping to control your weight.  talk to your doctor.

and tell stupid people who think it's their business to give you their opinion on what's wrong with you to shut up! don't let it affect your self-esteem.  just remember, whenever someone says something nasty about you, you have two choices about what to do with it: spit or swallow! (hint: the correct answer in this situation is spit!)