Welcome, Heather!

I'm hoping to keep weight gain down thru the holidays. Its impossible to abstain totally from holiday goodies. I'm really hoping to keep my gain to 5 pounds.  Heather, in the past 3 years, I have lost 55 pounds, some of that using Ozempic, much of it by changing my eating habits.  Holidays screw up everything!!!!!   On Nov 1, I weighed 194.  Today I'm at 198.  I went so far as to reschedule a nephrologist appointment from January to March so I can lose holiday weight.  I really hope to go below 194 before that appointment. We'll see.  

I continue my food journal. This helps me stay focussed!  I only have one more holiday get-together to get through next Friday.  I have to make a cherry pie to take.  We're having cheese, crackers, pepperoni, pie and decadent coffee cake.

Today, I have to carry in enough wood to fill my wood rack. That'll burn a few calories! 22 degrees now.

Vicki, I had another ocular episode last night. It has only been a week since the last one!  I wonder what is bringing these on after so many years!

Teri, Could holiday stress be bringing them on? Hopefully you won't have another one anytime soon.

My weight has gone up a good bit this week which actually surprised me since I haven't been eating any more than I normally do. But I had a bad tummy upset the 1st of the week that kept me glued to the toilet most of the night that night, and it always seems I regain any "bathroom loss" the next ay or two afterwards. But this time the gain has been a little more than expected. I know Christmas Eve and Christmas morning I'll be eating a little more than normal because my son & daughter in law will be here and I'm cooking for them, but then it'll just be me again and any left overs will either be packed up and put in the freezer or trashed. I just want to get thru the rest of this month then start out totally fresh on January 1st.

Margaret, Sorry you had the flare-up from using your daughters shampoo. Skin can be so sensitve. Hope it calms down soon.

Heather, you're doing great with your exercise plans and it sounds like it really help. You say you don't weigh but are you really heavy or would you say you're slim but just holding like 10 extra pounds? Just curious on my part.

I was slim for a number of years and quite active. I loved to bike and would ride 15-20 miles a day. Then menopause hit, plus I had a bike (bicycle) accident that messed up my knee pretty badly so I couldn't bike for months, so I started really packing on the pounds. In a little over a year I had gained 100 lbs. Then over the next couple years I gained another 30 lbs. I struggled with getting any of the weight off but had managed to drop about 40 lbs. then my husband got really sick and I became his care-giver. That put a lot of stress on me. I didn't regain but I wasn't losing either. Then 31 months ago (as of yesterday) he passed and I grieved away about 20 lbs. But now over the last 1-1/2 years I've regained the 20 I had lost plus added back about 30 lbs. So I'm struggling to get the weight back down. My goal is to get back down below 200 lbs and then stay there, but it's not going to happen this year. Hopefully it'll happen in 2024. I can't exercise like I used to do because of a bad back so I'm limited in that respect, but I will be doing as much as I can.

Wow, Teri! 55 lbs is incredible :) I've been reading a lot about Ozempic and other similar products in the news this year. I just read this week that Oprah uses one of them and that Weight Watchers is going to start incorporating them into their plans. It's fascinating how quickly the world of weight loss has changed just in 2023. Have you noticed any adverse side effects?

Margaret, that shampoo incident is really bad luck. I hope it has calmed down by today :)

Vicki, was you bike accident really bad like involving a car? Colorado is a big biking state, and around here we have quite a few bicyclists hit by cars and many don't make it.

I am sorry for the loss of your husband. My mom was a caregiver for my dad before he passed. That was 15 years ago now. He had kidney problems and was on dialysis. I remember how hard it was for both of them. Both of my parents were/are heavy, so I have some genetics on my family side. My heritage is Polish and Scottish, which are heartier people. I would say I am holding 10-15 extra pounds. I am curvy in the hips and smaller in the waist. Although I don't have a weight goal specifically, I would like to drop a pants size. We try to eat healthy and we cook a lot, and we definitely enjoy good food and wine :) 

Vicki, you mention your back. In addition to that knee issue I mentioned yesterday, I also get lower back spasms. They used to be pretty bad but I started seeing a chiropractor and have been going once a week consistently for a few years. That has helped tremendously. The other amazing thing that has really helped my back is a bendy-bed. It's one of those mechanical beds that adjusts up and down with a remote. It makes a world of difference. Our bed is split in half so that I can adjust my side and my husband can adjust his own - so we don't have to match. We travel, and when I sleep on a flat bed, boy can that sometimes be rough the next day.  

Heather, I was on Ozempic about a year. The only reason I stopped taking it was the cost. Its so expensive that I fell quickly into the insurance coverage gap, which increased my copay to $385/month.  The cost of Ozempic better become more affordable if they hope to get more people to use it.  Meanwhile I struggle with learning how to eat so that I lose weight, essentially low carb but not quite keto.

I had no side effects but many users do.

I've read about the cost being prohibitive. I wondered about that when Weight Watchers said they were going to incorporate it into their model. I wondered how most people would afford it. This leads me to believe the cost will need to come down. 

I mentioned the reason I'm here is to track my workouts. I will use this space to do my tracking. I'll try this for the rest of December and then see what will work for January.

My unofficial goal is to run a marathon's worth of miles (26.2) each month. I wear a heart rate monitor at the gym that tracks my distances on an app. December will be tight to fit in my miles, but I will try.

Total Run Distance December: 16.24 mi (final for the month)

Total Row Distance December: 25,969 (final for the month)

Total At-Home One Hour Strength Training Days December: One. This is a new addition to my routine

I hit 199 today. I've thrown caution to the wind in the name of the holidays. My BP is up, too, but I skipped my meds for 2 days so I can enjoy a red grapefruit. I'll eat that today and then go back on my meds. I know I have only gained 5 pounds since Nov 1 but it's weight I have to re-lose when I should be progressing down to 190.  But, this serves as a reminder of what tactics work in my weight loss........portion control, low carb, few sweets.  I will get back on my meds today, whether I have the grapefruit or not. High blood pressure is bad for my kidneys.

I have no Christmas plans until Friday. I'm just hanging out with my Meggie.  Reading, cross stitching, bringing in wood, baking a pie, wrapping gifts, watching TV, napping.  I hope you all have a nice day tomorrow!  

My weight is a good bit up today as well ( 256.1) but I'll get back on track after tomorrow. My son & daughter-in-law will be here in about 3 hours and I'm going to enjoy every minutes they're here.

                          MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!!

I am on cloud nine with happy tears! Yesterday I was sooo frustrated. Everything seemed hopeless with my knee. On my own, without the therapist pushing it, I could only bend it about 90 degrees. And I was so tired of icing it every hour when nothing seemed to improve. And the exercises I was assigned didn't seem to do anything either. Finally I decided just to skip a few icing sessions for mental health. I did go to Planet Fitness, and I tried their stationary bikes. Just like at PT, I went clockwise till my knee said stop, then counterclockwise till my knee said stop, and it looked to me like I was only going about 3/4 of the way around. But at least it felt like it was pushing at the swelling and doing more good than the home exercises, and the massage chair afterward was very nice.

I was up several times last night to pee, and the scale was down three pounds this morning, and my knee felt so much better when I woke up. I've iced a couple of times, but I'm not too motivated when it is clear the swelling is now receding. I am still doing the elevation and the exercises. Today at Planet Fitness, I did it! I really did it! I rode the stationary bike! I went all the way around. I am so happy! What an incredible Christmas gift!

That's so great, Margaret. Glad it's getting better.

Merry Christmas.

Wonderful progress, Margaret!

Heck yeah, Margaret! You go!

Hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and made the most memories with loved ones. I had my wonderful son Chris and his sweet wife Macy here for 3 days and couldn't have had a better Christmas. The only thing that could have put it over the top would have been having Bob still here with us. But I'm sure he was celebrating with family members that are with him in heaven.

I weighed this morning and am at 248.6, which is almost 6lbs. down since the weekend. Now to just keep it going in the right direction.

Back up 2 pounds but I'm still indulging in holiday eating.  Tomorrow is the last day of it and I'm not getting bent out of shape about it.  

I know you'll end up getting the weight off Teri.

I think in the New Year my focus is going to be more about self care and self love and not worry so much about the numbers on the scale. As of Jan. 1st, I'll just be weighing just once a week, on Sundays. I'll do my basic measurements once a month on the 1st of every month to check on that progress. I'm going to really work on getting more exercise and treating myself better. Just being as healthy as I can be will be my focus.

Well, December is not going to be a strong exercise month for me. I have been sick all week and unable to exercise. Boo. I sincerely hope to get back into it tomorrow - fingers crossed!

Since December is not going to pan out on getting my mileage goal, I am now focused on my January miles :)

Tomorrow's workout is going to be rough, but I need to start to get back into it at some point.

Good attitude, Vicki, and Heather! Positive.

I had my Christmas get together today. I had cheese, crackers, salami, deviled eggs and TWO pieces of my cherry pie!  I left the rest of the pie with them.

Teri, I don't blame you at all. It is the holiday week. I didn't go to any celebrations other than the one I had with my son and daughter in law here at home. It was such a joy to have them here. They visited with me for 3 days (stayed at hotel at night).

I adjusted my goals above. I know as long as a scale is in the apt. I'm going to get on it more than once a month, so I'll just weigh once a week, on Sundays. Tomorrow will start that. As of this morning, I'm 246.9, so I'm actually down 9.2 lbs. since last Sunday. It was funny but as long as the kids were at the apt. and photos were being taken, I had my dentures in so couldn't eat anything (can't eat with the dentures in). I won't have my photo taken without my dentures in my mouth. So when it came time to eat I'd tell them no photos of me and I'd go take the dentures out. So I was only eating one meal each day while they were here, and not a big amount either, and it paid off. So now I'm continueing the same thing although if I'm not leaving the apt. I won't worry about the dentures. But I'm only eating one meal a day, around 4pm. I'm drinking a little more coffee thru-out the day instead of just my 1-1/2 cup in the mornings. That's actually helping me to not be too hungry until I'm ready to eat.

 For now I'll continue to eat what foods I have in the fridge and cabinets, but then I'll be mainly eating a high protein, very low carb plan. I know that works the best for me. I know there will be times when I eat a little something not on my plan, like fast food. My son gave me $55.00 worth of fast food gift cards for Christmas (Wendy's, Burger King, and Subway), so I will be using those, maybe once every other week. But then I'll make the healthiest choices I can. I tend to order the same things each time at those places, so it won't be too bad. Especially at subway.

 Starting Tuesday I'll be back driving for Uber (taxi service only) but I only do that mornings, but it'll get me out of the apt. and talking to others, plus it'll help out financually (sp). I only plan to work 3 mornings a week, but that may increase, depending on the amount of trips I get per day. Some days I may only get one trip, other days I could get as many as 6 in the time frame I work. I pick which trips I accept since I won't take trips going to Orlando (won't do toll roads), plus Orlando is just too congested for me. Trips along US1 or 95 work just fine for me. So some mornings I may not get a lot of trips I'm willing to accept. I'll see how that goes.

Well, I'm leaving 2023 behind with a weight of 247.2, which is 10.8 lbs. more than I started the year at. A new year begins tomorrow with a chance to finally get the weight down to where I want it to be. Do I want to be super thin? No, that's not practical at this stage of my life. But to get below the 200 lb. mark is a reasonable goal to continue to work for and hopefully manage in 2024.

Hope everyone has a terrific New Years Eve. Please, if you go out to party tonight, don't drink and drive. See you in the new year!

Happy New Year's Eve!

Happy New Years Eve, Heather.

I'm just staying home tonight!  Happy New Year!

HAPPY NEW YEAR...... This forum is closed. Please join me in the January 2024 forum