quote:

ORIGINAL: Toppingfrmbottom

We don't eat fried foods. We used to eat kfc like close to once a year or what ever but the last time it made me sick. That was enough for me. when we eat bread it's largely wheat and rare. I next to never eat potato's, but other than white, what are other potato options?

quote:

ORIGINAL: angelikaJ

Tfb,
A lot of poor posture is simply bad habits. That is something you can remind yourself about. Shoulders back when you walk. Small little steps....ask the physical therapist for other reminders.
Your eating habits are likewise bad habits which you can unlearn. Make healthy choices: lots of fiber, vegetables and lean protein in moderation. Stay away from greasy fried food and things like white bread, white rice and white potatoes....also things that contain white flour and sugar or a lot of any type of fat.

Your lack of energy is simply the result of bad habits.
You can change those.
Don't give up!
/quote]

Tfb,
re: potatoes, believe it or not sweet potatoes in a normal serving size (i potato) are much better for you than white potatoes. They have fiber and vitamin A.

As for the rest of my remark, which you did not comment on I do hope it isn't that you focus on what doesn't fit that you disregard the rest.

Repeated efforts to change bad habits will give you positive results over time.

quote:

ORIGINAL: wandersalone



TFTB - please be careful of using an exercise ball too much. If you do get one, ensure that you get clear instructions (with pictures if possible) of the correct way to sit on one.  Many people buy these balls and start using them for hours a day however they sit incorrectly, with their spine twisted etc to compensate for the pain or discomfort, and this actually agravates any injuries.

To  summarise a few things so far -
a corset - terrible for your back muscles, it will increase pain and symptoms when you are not wearing the corset but when it is on you will feel and look ok.

yoga - great - start with just a couple of the very basic stretches, the key is to hooooooooooooold the stretch [:D] not to bounce or jiggle your body.

pilates - again an excellent choice - mat pilates just needs you and a yoga mat.  Ask your PT to give you exercises to build your core muscles first, especially the ones in your groin and the ones that go on either side of your rib cage and spine.  It is really hard at first to  feel these muscles but eventually you will be able to identify them and isolate them quite easily.

With your walks, it sounds like you are worried about your mum.  Even though it sounds like it is a bit annoying how about you encourage her to go for three short 5 minute walks with you a day, that way  she gets her much needed exercise, you get your much needed exercise and you get to  do something wonderful for your mum's health as well as your own. 

Take a camera with you so while she is talking about all of the gardens or something you can tune out and focus on framing future photos in your viewfinder.

And yep the pool sounds great, I love water, it is so relaxing and makes me feel happy.

TFTB, we have seen you make some changes over the years, sure to some who don't know you, it seems like you do ask a lot of questions (because it is true[:D]) but  what you seem to then do is process all of that information slowly and you think about it a bit more, ask some more questions, rinse, repeat and then...one day, you start making some changes.

I am sure I am not alone in really enjoying watching you take these small steps to improve your health and your life and your future, you did it with your food though that still  needs more improvement and now you will get back into your exercise routine.[:)]

.

quote:

ORIGINAL: angelikaJ



Tfb,
re: potatoes, believe it or not sweet potatoes in a normal serving size (i potato) are much better for you than white potatoes. They have fiber and vitamin A.

As for the rest of my remark, which you did not comment on I do hope it isn't that you focus on what doesn't fit that you disregard the rest.

Repeated efforts to change bad habits will give you positive results over time.

quote:

ORIGINAL: GreedyTop

doll, just do what it takes.. baby steps at first!

*has faith in you*

and no, it won't be easy at first, and likely there WILL be setbacks (as you know), but after a setback, just reset your mind and start over! *hugs*

quote:

Thank you wanders. The pt doesn't yet recommend yoga for those who have had their core atrophy and weaken, because to begin with you won't have the strength to control those muscles, ,but she did say Pilates was a very good option. And there's a very, very simple exercise she gave us to do, that if you can be on your hands and knees you can do it. If you can't be on your hands and knees you can do it on your back, but personally I find being on my back brings on back cramps and muscle spasm, and on my hands and knee's don't. It's basically sucking the belly button in and up if you're on your back, if you're on your hands and knees you still suck it up and in but you round your back up like a angry cat, and then you relax, then you do it again. making sure to breath the whole time, which right now for me is tricky hehehe, but I'll get the hang of it, if it feels good you can even relax into a downward sway,

quote:

ORIGINAL: VirginPotty


Oddly enough that was my least favorite exercise in Pilates class.  I'm sure it was because I wasn't breathing properly......exhale up, inhale down or vice versa.  I'm not very good at breathing correctly during exercising, especially in class.  I always catch myself holding my breath during the more challenging moves so at the end of class my face is so red it looks like my head's going to explode![sm=angry.gif]

I do love the group exercise classes!  We have a great time together and it's always fun to challenge each other.

TFTB, I haven't been following your workouts so I'm not sure if you tried good old fashioned walking for 30 minutes.  Remember the "bald lady" fitness guru from the '80's--Susan Powers I believe is her name  --she was grossly overweight & she decided to just walk everyday.  Building up her endurance and walking further as she started gaining more energy.  Get a pedometer & track your progress.  If you have an iPhone or something equivalent you can download one for free/or the RunKeeper program which tracks walks too.

The stability ball is great but as someone mentioned if you don't have the right form you'll only end up hurting yourself.  That's true in any exercise that you do.  When I started doing sit-ups I always found myself PULLING my head up w/my arms so that my elbows were up near my eyes.  An instructor told me just last year that to keep your elbows pointed out, if you find them coming in toward your face then you know that you're using your neck which will definitely cause injuries.  Now when I do sit ups/crunches when I feel my arms going inward I know my form is off.

I'm jumping ahead, baby steps, don't try & do everything at once, you'll only become discouraged & quit.  There's a good support thread here http://www.collarchat.com/m_3689950/tm.htm for those that want to exercise/establish a proper diet.  Noone ever judges anyone, merely offering support/suggestions.  Come on by & give it a try.

quote:

Remember the "bald lady" fitness guru from the '80's--Susan Powers I

quote:

ORIGINAL: GreedyTop

well, hon.. if ya want me to, just email me when ya feel ya need a reminder ok? I'll be happy to do what I can to help you do a reset :)

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ORIGINAL: Toppingfrmbottom

I like food to much and have gotten lazy. That's all. But also now I'm getting sort of immobile and do not get around very well any more, and that makes it hard. I get incredibly tired and weak feeling so fast, and the pain afterwards of being active, nothing soothes it, so you're just laying there feeling miserable.

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ORIGINAL: LadyHibiscus

Even losing ten percent of your body weight makes an enormous difference. Granted, that can be a rather large number!

I did this exercise class once with resistance things that we attached to our legs, they were like flanges, so your lower legs looked like a transformer. Even running across the pool in them was great resistance. Try walking in the water, rather than swimming. Swimming is generally not the best weight loss exercise due to pools being cold, but the weight off the joints is wonderful.

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ORIGINAL: agirl



I appreciate the difficulties that she has keeping motivated to lose weight and to exercise, especially as she's not hugely interested in physical fitness to the degree that I am. She doesn't get the same enjoyment that I do from physically working hard. This is unfortunate as she still needs to do it, to shift lbs, for it to become more pleasant.



Both my daughter and I know that if she was living with me , she'd be slim within a year. Not because we like different foods, but because she eats far more out of comfort and boredom predominantly and I eat for nutrition predominantly. She'd eat what I put in front of her and love it and when she got *munchy* there are always munchy, tasty and nutritious nibbles to eat.

Still, on the bright side........I know it's only going to take a couple of months of persistant encouragement for her to see some results, enough to help her *see* that it's possible and obtainable. I think she's lost sight of that fact.

quote:

ORIGINAL: LadyHibiscus

Even losing ten percent of your body weight makes an enormous difference. Granted, that can be a rather large number!

I did this exercise class once with resistance things that we attached to our legs, they were like flanges, so your lower legs looked like a transformer. Even running across the pool in them was great resistance. Try walking in the water, rather than swimming. Swimming is generally not the best weight loss exercise due to pools being cold, but the weight off the joints is wonderful.

quote:

ORIGINAL: LillyBoPeep


Also, if you like videos (do you?) and don't mind a little Christianiness (some people are religious, some aren't, i dunno =p), try the Walk Slim videos by Leslie Sansone. They're at Wal-Mart and are really cheap ($10), and u