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The ebb and flow of body weight.


Dottleshead

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I quit drinking over a year ago.  I quit smoking over 11 months ago (after a year or two binge).  Then I gained weight.  Like over 20 lbs in the last year alone.  I'm way too big and uncomfortable and have been getting serious about losing it this last month or so.  Damn thing is frustrating though because it takes so long to see the bennies and often short gains can be evaporated in a single day.  Yesterday, for example, I managed to put on 3 lbs (according to my scale -- which is the only one I use).  But all I had was some hot pot soup, and a cheeseburger.  And I didn't even eat but half that soup.  I get that the cheeseburger probably was close to 700 or 800 calories or possibly a bit more,, but you telling me the Asian soup had 8000 calories??  I limit my intake around 2000 calories or less a day and we all know salt is a killer.  It leads to water retention.  But can somebody please tell me HTF I gained 3 pounds eating soup and a burger?  

I know there's a good chance if I work out in the yard and am mindful of the food I eat today, I may see another swing in my favor tomorrow morning.  But I've had times where I've been good for stretches and their is no measurement gain.  Weight is like that.  Fickle.  Fluctuating.  Cut drinking and/or smoking and the positive results are immediate.  Changing one's diet may take 2 months or longer before seeing any positive results -- and you're only a meal or two away from destroying that 2 months of work in 24 hours.  

It's a bunch of crap is what it is.  Well, I'm not giving up and I am going to do this.  But I just wanted to share with you that weight loss at 51 is brutal.  I'm about to embark on one the more difficult challenges in recent memory.  Quitting drinking is fairly easy.  Quitting smoking is tough but can be done.  I'm afraid losing weight is going to be even harder.

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Water weight can make your weight fluctuate several lbs and the soup may have been salt laden adding to water retention.

If you weigh yourself in the morning daily you will see a a trending in weight loss or gain but a swing of 2 lbs a day is common. At least it is for me.

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1 hour ago, ChrisL said:

Water weight can make your weight fluctuate several lbs and the soup may have been salt laden adding to water retention.

If you weigh yourself in the morning daily you will see a a trending in weight loss or gain but a swing of 2 lbs a day is common. At least it is for me.

Agreed.  I choose to weigh myself in the mornings because that's when the results are the best!  :)

 

Anyway, I have dropped like 5 lbs in the last 3-4 weeks and I've changed some things. So in that sense I feel somewhat accomplished.  I've reversed the tide, I'm holding it, and it's gotten my focus once again.  I try not to get too microscopic in my view, and look at it like the stock market.  If you analyze day trading there are a lot of changes in amplitude.   But if you look at the monthly readings, you can clearly see the trends.

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25 minutes ago, Dottles said:

Agreed.  I choose to weigh myself in the mornings because that's when the results are the best!  :)

 

Anyway, I have dropped like 5 lbs in the last 3-4 weeks and I've changed some things. So in that sense I feel somewhat accomplished.  I've reversed the tide, I'm holding it, and it's gotten my focus once again.  I try not to get to microscopic in my view and look at it like the stock market.  If you analyze day trading there are a lot of changes in amplitude.   But if you look at the monthly readings, you can clearly see the trends.

Exactly, also one bad meal won't ruin weeks or months of work but a bad day or weekend can.

I also found that weight loss seemed to go in spurts.  I'd drop 2-3 lbs over a couple of days. Level off for 4-5 days and then drop another few lbs and so forth.

Keep the faith and with a good diet & excersize it will come off.  You would also be surprised by how little your body needs vs how much you give it.

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5 minutes ago, Longjohn said:

So that’s where my twenty pounds went? Actually I lost mine this summer. Try kayaking and forgetting to eat, I’ll blame that because I don’t want to think about it being my leukemia.

Oh I am sorry. I did not know. I am really sorry to read that John.

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1 hour ago, Dottles said:

I quit drinking over a year ago.  I quit smoking over 11 months ago (after a year or two binge).  Then I gained weight.  Like over 20 lbs in the last year alone.  I'm way too big and uncomfortable and have been getting serious about losing it this last month or so.  Damn thing is frustrating though because it takes so long to see the bennies and often short gains can be evaporated in a single day.  Yesterday, for example, I managed to put on 3 lbs (according to my scale -- which is the only one I use).  But all I had was some hot pot soup, and a cheeseburger.  And I didn't even eat but half that soup.  I get that the cheeseburger probably was close to 700 or 800 calories or possibly a bit more,, but you telling me the Asian soup had 8000 calories??  I limit my intake around 2000 calories or less a day and we all know salt is a killer.  It leads to water retention.  But can somebody please tell me HTF I gained 3 pounds eating soup and a burger?  

I know there's a good chance if I work out in the yard and am mindful of the food I eat today, I may see another swing in my favor tomorrow morning.  But I've had times where I've been good for stretches and their is no measurement gain.  Weight is like that.  Fickle.  Fluctuating.  Cut drinking and/or smoking and the positive results are immediate.  Changing one's diet may take 2 months or longer before seeing any positive results -- and you're only a meal or two away from destroying that 2 months of work in 24 hours.  

It's a bunch of crap is what it is.  Well, I'm not giving up and I am going to do this.  But I just wanted to share with you that weight loss at 51 is brutal.  I'm about to embark on one the more difficult challenges in recent memory.  Quitting drinking is fairly easy.  Quitting smoking is tough but can be done.  I'm afraid losing weight is going to be even harder.

Where are you on the gender continuum? I know you identify as male, but if you are close to 50% or more female, then monthly cycles affect your weight. But it's all water weight, so not to worry. Same with salt.

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2 minutes ago, BuffJim said:

Where are you on the gender continuum? I know you identify as male, but if you are close to 50% or more female, then monthly cycles affect your weight. But it's all water weight, so not to worry. Same with salt.

No I think it was the salt. I did have some chips late at night that went unmentioned because it wasn't a lot. But toss that in with the soup and it's a lot of sodium.

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Keep at it Dottie...and be glad you are not female..cos it is even harder to lose weight..and I don't have that " monthly" weight gain thing going on any more.

Slow and steady wins the race...tweak your diet by making changes you can live with. As you exercise..muscle weighs more than fat...but muscle also burns calories more efficiently...keep up the good work.

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1 hour ago, Dottles said:

we all know salt is a killer.  It leads to water retention. 

Don't worry about the water retention portion of weight. Lower your salt if you have high blood pressure, I guess, but if it is really big movements due to water retention, you're good.  It is FAT retention you need to pay attention to.  If you are slowly progressing down, feel better and losing waist inches, just keep up the good work.

Tom

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I have seen the same phenomenon.  I was wondering WHY yoyo dieting is bad for you since I am doing that on a small scale, swinging aboot +-3 pounds over a week or two.

Here we go.  I am not a postmenopausal woman, but they say that if you are overweight, fuggedaboot it and just loose the weight already!

https://www.health.com/heart-disease/yo-yo-diet-heart-disease-sudden-cardiac-death

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21 minutes ago, RalphWaldoMooseworth said:

I have seen the same phenomenon.  I was wondering WHY yoyo dieting is bad for you since I am doing that on a small scale, swinging aboot +-3 pounds over a week or two.

Here we go.  I am not a postmenopausal woman, but they say that if you are overweight, fuggedaboot it and just loose the weight already!

https://www.health.com/heart-disease/yo-yo-diet-heart-disease-sudden-cardiac-death

Yeah sudden cardiac death is what I am trying to avoid.

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2 minutes ago, Further said:

Forget about the scale and pay attention to how your pants fit, and how you feel.

A pound of iron & a pound of foam weigh the same but look & act very different .

I was just wondering why so many people who loose a lot of weight just seem to go weigh (:) ) too far and wind up looking worse because they look emaciated.  Then I realised it must be because you feel better and better as you loose the weight, so why would you stop?  I think I can beat that phenomenon. :D

 

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Just now, Dottles said:

Honestly I want to stick to the 1 pound a week thing. I think that is realistic. 52 weeks in a year. I would be good.

I pigged oot last weekend and then I lost aboot 5 pounds this week due to disgust.  I better stop that before sudden cardiac death raises its ugly head.

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When I was approaching 40 I was in pretty bad shape and was concerned about getting old & fat & dieing.

I started running, lifting, and paying attention to what I ate. Not really a diet, just a decision to only eat healthy food, and somehow I knew what was healthy.

I dropped some pounds, maybe 10 or 15, I was at the top of the BMI chart (heavy for my height)  and was in the best shape of my life. Strong as a bull, could run forever, flexible as a slinky,  and clothes fit perfectly. 

It ain't about weight.

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3 minutes ago, Dottles said:

You can get free note phone calendars to track it. I mean it's just a point I need to get very anal about it because it would just sneak up. I am tired of that.

It is obvious you are sirius if you gave up drinking.  I am trying to just cut down and it seems to be working, although pretty darn slowly.

I always say my biggest problem is meals not chosen by me.  I think I could easily be a monk with an austere veggie-centric diet if on my own, although there are the potential occasional "flareups" to worry aboot when you have to have some heavier food.

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Ralph..just eat a little less of those meals not chosen by you...:skipping:turn into a plastic container toting "senior" :whistle: Home or out...put some of your not chosen by you meal in a container...might not be enough for tomorrows lunch..but add a salad.

I lived with a lady in her 80's who was a dancer all of her life..coffee flavored haagen dazs ice cream was her thing..every night...but it was about 3 Tablespoons..no more..

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Well Dottie..there are 2 of you...You are not alone in that struggle..There are so many things I just cook..and no matter how hard I try..it is more than a meal for 1...somethings..great package the leftovers..freeze some, take some to work for lunch..but dang sometimes I eat that extra 1/2 to an entire extra portion..especially if alcohol is added :whistle: It takes work and determination to put that leftover aside and let it be a leftover...lunch or dinner

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16 minutes ago, petitepedal said:

Well Dottie..there are 2 of you...You are not alone in that struggle..There are so many things I just cook..and no matter how hard I try..it is more than a meal for 1...somethings..great package the leftovers..freeze some, take some to work for lunch..but dang sometimes I eat that extra 1/2 to an entire extra portion..especially if alcohol is added :whistle: It takes work and determination to put that leftover aside and let it be a leftover...lunch or dinner

Portion control is a big part of what I like to do. 

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15 minutes ago, petitepedal said:

Well Dottie..there are 2 of you...You are not alone in that struggle..There are so many things I just cook..and no matter how hard I try..it is more than a meal for 1...somethings..great package the leftovers..freeze some, take some to work for lunch..but dang sometimes I eat that extra 1/2 to an entire extra portion..especially if alcohol is added :whistle: It takes work and determination to put that leftover aside and let it be a leftover...lunch or dinner

I will do it. I am out of options. My life is literally at stake. It's a mindset. I am committed no matter what. I have one year to turn this around and no excuse is acceptable. I do this or I die.

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8 hours ago, Dottles said:

I limit my intake around 2000 calories or less a day and we all know salt is a killer.  It leads to water retention.  But can somebody please tell me HTF I gained 3 pounds eating soup and a burger? Changing one's diet may take 2 months or longer before seeing any positive results -- and you're only a meal or two away from destroying that 2 months of work in 24 hours.

...Well, I'm not giving up and I am going to do this.  But I just wanted to share with you that weight loss at 51 is brutal.

I'm glad you're persevering!  It's not easy.

I went from 294 to 231 in 18 months in 2013-14, became sedentary with hip, shoulder, and other problems and was 280 this past winter and am 255 now.

I did it by calorie counting.  I went on sparkpeople.com and used its calculator to determine how many calories I should eat per day to lose weight at a certain rate.

It worked for me.  I need to get more exercise to avoid losing muscle mass, but otherwise it's going ok.  I hope to be around 240 by the end of the year and under 220 the following year.  If I get part of the way there, it's still worth it.

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14 hours ago, Dottles said:

Yeah, so much socializing is around food. If you cut out drinking altogether, food now becomes the number one activity to get together whether home or away. And since I live alone with my wife, if there are any leftovers, I have a big target on my back to finish it.

As petite mentions, LEFTOVERS ARE LUNCH.  Don't "finish up" the extras.  Just put it in a tupperware and have a tasty lunch the next day.

But simply put, everything in moderation.  That  includes beer/wine/booze, but also snacks and sweets.  If you simply pull back consumption, mildly increase activity, and keep a long-term view, the weight WILL come off. Even with some backsliding.  Day-to-day attention to weight changes may be okay for a few folks, but it is often just a way to get demoralized for many more folks.  Maybe weekly weigh-ins would be better for you.

Tom

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I've been the poster child for poor eating, I used to say my favorite foods, and I could live off of them, were the three P's.  Pancakes, Pasta and Pizza.  I ate them all with amazing regularity.  Now I eat pancakes as a treat on Sundays only, and I eat less of them than I used to.  I have pasta a few times a year, pizza, I almost never eat.  Maybe once a year.

I used to drink a ton of calories.  Lots of soda, gallons of juice, not too much alcohol, and anything else sweetened.  Now all I drink is water.

Over the years I've slowly changed my eating habits, I refuse to call it a diet - those only fail.

I am a vegan, that just makes eating harder, not less caloric.  I also have Celiac, that is a blessing is disguise as I can't eat most bread.

I have a lot more veggies in my life than the past.  I rarely eat things like french fries or other garbage food.

I do slip up - a lot.  There is a vegan fast food place I walk past on the way to my car from work.  They have the most amazing chocolate chip cookies.  Every now and then I stop in for a couple.  I enjoy them immensely, and do not feel the least bit guilty.  I do try to plan them around an activity.  For instance, yesterday I ate two, but did a hard ride.  Tonight, I will eat anything I want as I am going on a 5 hour hill ride tomorrow.  I burn off thousands of calories.

I think many people "replace" calories they think they burn off.  I used to when I first started riding.  This too I think sabotages many people.  I'll be doing the Mt Washington century in two weeks.  It's long and grueling.  I'll burn over 3k calories.  There is no way I will replace that.  I'll drink about 600 calories while I ride, and have chews for maybe another 200 calories.  I'll eat a small breakfast, almost nothing for lunch, and likely a veggie dinner.  I'll probably lose at least 5 pounds because of that.  I don't do that on purpose, I do it because I am not in the habit of replacing calories.  I will not starve, I probably won't even be hungry.

So much about me is in a better place now.  I am down almost 15 pounds for the year and about 70 from my heaviest about 10 years ago.  I rarely go up more than a few pounds.  I plan to keep losing be continuously refining how I eat.  My cholesterol has dropped almost 100 points,  My resting pulse went from the mid 90s to the mid 60s.  I took blood pressure medication for decades, I no longer need that.  My mental status has improved greatly.

Sadly, I think most, and I really mean most, of what people eat is pure garbage.  Tons of calories, almost no nutrition.  Does it taste good?  Of course.  I'd love a yummy meatball sub smothered in cheese.  Probably more calories than I eat in a day.  I haven't had one in at least a dozen years, and likely never will again.

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14 hours ago, MickinMD said:

I'm glad you're persevering!  It's not easy.

I went from 294 to 231 in 18 months in 2013-14, became sedentary with hip, shoulder, and other problems and was 280 this past winter and am 255 now.

I did it by calorie counting.  I went on sparkpeople.com and used its calculator to determine how many calories I should eat per day to lose weight at a certain rate.

It worked for me.  I need to get more exercise to avoid losing muscle mass, but otherwise it's going ok.  I hope to be around 240 by the end of the year and under 220 the following year.  If I get part of the way there, it's still worth it.

We are similar. 

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On 7/14/2018 at 2:02 PM, Dottles said:

We are similar. 

Thanks - you help me stay motivated!

This past weekend I spent out-of-town at a cousin's 80th birthday party and she said she loved the presents but wished someone would give her "one of the toilet seats they make for fat asses."

The spread of food put out at the hosting cousin's home, whose husband is in the food distribution business, was so huge it reminded me of the observation that through the past two millennia the depictions of Jesus' Last Supper show more and more food on the table as time has marched on.

My lone living aunt, who will be 98 on Aug. 1 and isn't entire all-there mentally and hasn't seen most of her nieces and nephews and the now-50's grand versions of the same, commented on "Gee, how fat everyone has become!"

It's tough to lose weight when those around you are baking incredible cream puffs, huge cookies in the shape of "80," etc. and the next day take you to the best pizzeria in town that has incredible, fresh toppings, etc.  I treated every one to three pieces and the waitress brought me four - smart since she knew I was paying and tipping. I didn't send it back.

 

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I typically lose 10-15 lbs each year when go to visit daughter in Switzerland. I called it my Swiss chocolate diet (plus she doesn't have a car so walk everywhere.) Then last week saw som click bait on chocolate and apparently there is something to losing weight on chocolate. It does have to be at least 70% cocoa for a benefit due to the sugar in the lower amounts.

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1 hour ago, MickinMD said:

It's tough to lose weight when those around you are baking incredible cream puffs, huge cookies in the shape of "80," etc. and the next day take you to the best pizzeria in town that has incredible, fresh toppings, etc. 

My wife is a fabulous cook.  I told her a couple of years ago that she can't bake any more and thank goodness she has responded in kind.  She used to make things like that -- and she'd like to experiment -- and she was really good experimenter.  But before that, when I wasn't great but I wasn't horrible, she did cook and bake that stuff and I not only felt obligated to eat the stuff she made, I was very happy to oblige her.  I honestly think that period is when things went from bad to worse.  I'm glad I married a woman who can cook as well as she does (and likes to cook) -- but there are downsides.

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So now I'm down to what I was just a week ago. I'm hovering around a certain number.  I worked in the yard all day yesterday and didn't eat much so in ways that is discouraging but then I remind myself that it's not going the other way and I've held for some time now.  My body takes some time to adjust so I am hopeful if I keep doing what I'm doing -- I'll continue to see the needle move to the left.

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All of the weight loss talk and different takes  on how to lose weight takes me back to Drill Sergeant Heron.  You don't need no fancy diets or weight loss programs,!its really this simple.  Eat less and PT more!  And believe you me were gonna PT the fat right off you privates!!!!

Hoo yah Drill Sergeant!!!!! 

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2 minutes ago, ChrisL said:

All of the weight loss talk and different takes  on how to lose weight takes me back to Drill Sergeant Heron.  You don't need no fancy diets or weight loss programs,!its really this simple.  Eat less and PT more!  And believe you me were gonna PT the fat right off you privates!!!!

Hoo yah Drill Sergeant!!!!! 

Stop making this stuff complicated!!!!

Tom

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6 minutes ago, Dottles said:

It's computer science 101.  Less input, more output.  The problem is if you keep the energy output high and constant, you're weight is going to fluctuate widely based on what the input is.

Same is true for "The problem is if you keep the energy output low and constant, you're weight is going to fluctuate widely based on what the input is."  

Which of the two results in weight loss (and likely muscle gain, health improvement, and better fitness)?  

Tom

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2 minutes ago, Razors Edge said:

Same is true for "The problem is if you keep the energy output low and constant, you're weight is going to fluctuate widely based on what the input is."  

Which of the two results in weight loss (and likely muscle gain, health improvement, and better fitness)?  

Tom

Is this one of those trick question things?

 

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