The "in our 50s group" ****GROUP OPEN****

Anybody out there in their 50s??
We seem to have a little harder time dropping our weight. Slower metabolism and less active I think. I'm looking for the 50s group to lose and share with. I KNOW you're out there!

Happy 2009! We can make this the best year yet!

Wat do you all eat on a daily basis? I know there was a thread asking this but for us over 50's I thought it might be a tad bit different.

A typical day for me is a Thomas lite English muffing with soy peanutbutter and all fruit and a smoothie. I usually pack some fruit for a mid morning snack or one of those 100 cal packs of something or other if I don't have fruit I want in the house to pack.

Lunch is either a Smart Ones entree and a small salad with fat free dressing or a sandwich (turkey or ham) and salsa and chips (the low fat free ones). I pack a yogert for an afternoon snack and always have a piece or two of the Weight Watchers chocolate candy in my bag for one of those just in case times when the chocolate urge hits. (they are becoming fewer and farther inbetween thank goodness. At first I allowed myself two pieces a day as I was (am) a chocolate junkie. The longer I go the less and less cravings I have.

I had a weight watchers icecream when I got home from work.

Supper is anything I decide to cook but always within my points I have left for the day. Tonight it is going to be left over grilled chicken, fried apples sweetened with splenda, a salad with fat free dressing and possibly green beans. I also have some pickled beets I may have a small serving of. Supper is going to be late as hubby has not yet started home and it is after 8pm so I will not have a bed time smack.

Weekends are a bit more of a challenge as we eat out at lest once but through trial and error I am finding things I can eat that satisfies me and is not too high in calories (or points).

I drink lots of water, mint decaf unsweetened green tea and and on weekends and very occassionally through the week I have diet root beer.

Hi everyone. I've been on CC since March but this is my first post. I'm 58 and can relate to how slow the weight comes off now. I've lost 15 lbs. since joining CC and still have 25 to go. It seems like an impossible goal, but I'll keep plugging. I really appreciate all the good ideas and support there is on this site. Please count me in the over 50 group!

Hi jcr and welcome. We are growing. 50 isn't fatal but fat just may be. It's nice to have friends in this boat.

I can't eat fat free. It is just too taste free for my taste buds.
I have hot or cold cereal for breakfast (special K red berries or shredded wheat). I just switched to soy milk. Not bad. Less cals and we're supossed to be adding soy to our diets I hear. Lunch is Lite yogurt and a banana (or other fruit), and maybe some form of protien. Tuna or chicken, maybe turkey. Dinner is chicken, pork, turkey, a green veggie, and a salad. I like Salad Spritzers. I keep grapes and other fruit around 24/7. Snack at night is  angel food cake, sherbert, and lite cool whip. (yum) I like egg substitute and turkey bacon on the weekends, but generally I try hard to go easy on the processed foods. I'm a Starbucks addict (love my joe). Thats been hard for me. No more fraps. What a shock when I looked those number up. Whew! But I can have an iced skim or soy coffee. By now that seems like a treat. Oh, and I LOVE "I can't believe it's not butter" spray. I don't leave home without it. Really!
My weigh-in is Friday. I'm praying for a new number.

Oatmeal is my new best friend. It keeps me full the longest. I mix in fruit, or as a special treat sometimes I mix in the 60 calorie caramel pudding. I know it sounds strange but it's yummy. My protein usually comes from chicken, or sliced turkey breast. I'm getting quite fond of veggie burgers - Trader Joes Nouveau Burgers are out of this world and I've just discovered Morningstar Farms Cheese Steak veggie burgers. They are great cut up to fill a La Tortilla 50 calorie wrap. I used to have a raging sweet tooth but am finding (thankfully!) that it is slowly disappearing as I eat less and less sugary stuff. One tip: I keep a Luna bar in the car for times when I am running errands and can't get home to eat when I'm hungry. It's saved me from the fast food drive throughs several times. I feel your pain, munsey, at giving up the Starbucks, although I occasionally allow myself a tall mocha lite frap (140 calories) as a treat. If it fits into my calories for the day, I feel like I've "cheated" without actually doing much damage.

Hey thanks for the tips:-) I'l try the lite mocha frap and the burgers. I love Trader Joe's too. Great tip about the Luna also. Where have you been hiding? Great tips! Thanks.

Hey everyone, How's your week going? Late night I walked 3.79 miles. I walked with my church group ladies. So much more enjoyable with company. I don't think I'm eating enough cals, because of exercise. I'm stuck once again. Gotta step it up!:D

We'd love it if you'd come and join us in the Senior Corner on the Lounge Forum

Senior Corner

We have quite a large group!

Had a DR. appointment yesterday. The first one since starting on my weight loss journey. He was pleased with my success so far, however my BP had not gotten any better?and I seemed to be retaining water?.quite a bit as my sandals were cutting into my feet so he upped my water pill. Since I hadn?t taken one in a couple days (ran out) I took the first one last night and of course was up all night in the bathroom! I really need to make sure I drink LOTS of water today as I lost 5 pounds water weight over night! Don?t want to dehydrate!

Veggie burgers?.It is either Morning Farms or Boca?.but they have one with a char grilled taste that I love! I actually heat them up on the grill while grilling regular hamburgers for my husband. For Ohioans the Kroger lite buns are 1 point. So I have my burger on a bun piled high with grilled bell peppers and onions. Sometimes I add lettuce and pickles and/or a slice of low fat cheese. YUMMY! Last night I had a portabella burger that was good too but I still like the char broiled taste best!

Another find?.Dannon Lite and Fit Crave control yogurt! It is the best yogurt I have ever tasted! And it has FIBER!!!! 0 Fat, 70 calories!!! No added sugar!!!

Wow, fancy55, that was good news about your Mother's ring now fitting. (saw it on the another forum) Every success story makes it a little easier to keep on going. I have a suggestion to pass along - maybe it will help someone else like it helped me. I have a weakness for ice cream. I haven't had a 1/2 gallon in the house since I started trying to lose weight since once I start eating the box, I can't stop. I have been eating low cal fudge pops, WW bars, etc. but got tired of them. So last week I bought my first box of regular lite ice cream, brought it home and immediately portioned it into 12 small margarine dishes of 1/2 cup each. For whatever reason, I just won't open two of them at the same time and eat more than one serving like I would with the open box. Now I treat myself to a little container when I have calories to spare at the end of the day and I don't feel at all deprived!

Wow fancy and jcr, you're making me hungry! Thanks for the tips. I need all I can get. I too love icecream. I've switched to sherbet, it's a little lighter and I love it. I also like Skinny Cow stuff, and anything else I can get my lunch-hooks on. I also struggle with water. I have to make myself drink it. It only works well when I use the To-Go things from Crystal light or some other off brand. Hope that's not cheating. My bp is good, but cholesterol is high.

Back in the day, when I went to Weight Watchers (would you believe I'm a relapsed, 25 lb. overweight Lifetime Member!) I ate so many Skinny Cows that I lost my taste for them. That's why I was glad to find a way to eat a variety of flavors without pigging out on the whole box. I also have a hard time drinking plain water. The flavored waters are my salvation. I've become terribly fond of Aquafina Alive mango flavored water. It's a little pricey, but I stock up when there's a good sale (they sometimes have 2 for the price of 1 in my area). It's very light tasting and quenches my thirst. I also can enjoy it at room temperature. I think there's 20 calories in a bottle but I don't let that bother me. I'm seldom without my bottle of Alive. Amazingly, my cholestrol was good at my last physical. I've been on BP medicine for 10 years, though and am anxious to see if I can go off it if I lose enough weight.

Guess what? I'm also a  "relapsed Lifetime member", but probably more like 35 lb overweight. I really don't know. CC says at 5'7" and 53 I should weigh 147 I think. That I know is to light for me. I started CC at 196.4 down now to 182ish. I set my first goal at 160. I think for me that is more realistic and maintainable. What do you think?
I'll try your Aquafina Mango. I water down even the crystal light, it's too strong for my taste, and tends to leave an aftertaste. Also, I work at our good ole local Wal*Mart, so it shouldn't be hard to find. Thanks

I could be your 5 year older "twin", munsey. I'm 5'6". I also started CC at around 193 (had been 197 two months earlier) and am now 181. I hit a long plateau of 183 for several weeks but am starting to see some loss again. I was considered at goal at WW at 160 lbs. and would be thrilled to see that again. CC wants me down to 147 (or sometihng like that) but we'll have to see...By the way, my exercise of choice is the Gazelle my husband bought me for Christmas. Love that thing! I keep it set up in my sunroom and I really love to ride it. I try to log in an hour every other day (pop in a movie and the time just flies).

I had 2 days now where I just want to eat and eat and eat... I am making better choices of fruit and lighter snacks and smaller portions, but I know I had too much.  I had that this is a daily struggle, sometimes hourly.  I spent the 50 years of my life with food as an issue and I don't want to spend the next 50.  I know I need to exercise.  I have a bad back and going to PT and I am tired.  I don't want to but I know it is really good for me.  I even got a bean, because I said that is what I wanted, for mother's day.  I had been really good on it everyday, even just watching tv.  But the last 2 days I have not been on it.  I need to take control and just get to it.  Need everyones support.  I am the middle child, my older brother works out regularily and my little sister has always been very thin.  I was the fat kid, she was the smart one.  I was the one that heard a thousands times "such a pretty face", but what I heard was "What a fat girl".  I am just tired of it all.   Is this menapause...? 

Anyone see "Menapause the Musical?"


Love this thread..need your support.

Hang in there, susanbeth. Everyone has days that they want to just give up. The secret is not to let those days stretch into months or years. I saw a poem on one of these threads that I copied and pasted to my journal that talks about this. It really helped me. I'll see if I can find it for you. I'm realizing this is something I'm going to have to deal with for the rest of my life. Discouraging? Yes, maybe but not as discouraging as the weight that kept creeping on just because I wasn't willing to try to get my eating under control. I guess I'm saying that food probably will be an issue for the next 50 (!) years of my life, but I want to make it a GOOD issue, not a bad one. Quick questions: how do you like your bean? And where did you get it?

Hope it's OK to just copy this hear. I don't know how to find it again in the forum and don't know how to post the link even if I found it! When you've eaten too much and you can't write it down,

And you feel like the biggest failure in town.

When you want to give up just because you gave in,

and forget all about being healthy and thin.

So What! You went over your points a bit,

It's your next move that counts...So don't you quit!

It's a moment of truth, it's an attitude change.

It's learning the skills to get back in your range.

It's telling yourself, "You've done great up till now.

You can take on this challenge and beat it somehow."

It's part of your journey toward reaching your goal.

You're still gonna make it, just stay in control.

To stumble and fall is not a disgrace,

if you summon the will to get back in the race.

But, often the struggler's, when loosing their grip,

Just throw in the towel and continue to slip.

And learn too late when the damage is done,

that the race wasn't over...they still could have won.

Lifestyle change can be awkward and slow,

but facing each challenge will help you grow.

Success is failure turned inside out,

the silver tint in a cloud of doubt.

When you're pushing to the brink, just refuse to submit,

If you bite it, you write it....But don't you quit!

- Author Unknown

Whoops! I meant here instead of hear. I do know better!

Jcr, That is awesome! THanks for sharing. I have those days. Especially during plateaus. But I know the end result is worth it. And so am I.

susanbeth.... I can relate.  I have a brother, 11 years older, and a sister 4 years younger. They're both small built and short, blue eyed blonds. I'm the brown eyed, dark haired bloated one. Makes me want to say "who's my daddy". I do however appeciate my height. Even if I do stick out in the family photos. (unfortunately in more ways than one).

jcr - I loved the poem.  I got the bean at Walgreens, they have a small as seen on TV section.  But you can get it thur a TV add.  I really like it.  My back feels much better.  I have been going to PT and the therapist said I can do all the exercises on the bean instead of a ball.  I am not good at doing the exercises, but I sit and rock and pull in my stomach and tuch muscles while I watch tv.  It is better than just watching tv.  I need to step it up a bit.  I am back in the game and really look at this journey as a life style change and to a diet.

thanks also to munsey for your support.

Thanks, susanbeth. We have a new Walgreens that just opened last month so I'll check it out. It did look good on TV - like something you could use to exercise as much or as little as you wanted. I think using something like this even just for stretching the different muscles would be helpful. I needed PT for frozen shoulder two different times, so I know how important stretching can be. I also have problems with back pain from time to time. Glad to hear you're back in the game. We're rooting for you!