Trying to Lose Wieght

www.loseweightnow.com/O. is my website. I'm a Personal Wellness Coach and I have coached and supported woman to lose weight the healthy way. I have a client, Jennifer, who lost 60 pounds, went from a size 20 to size 10. I have another client, Junko, who dropped 5% in body fat percentage in 2 months. Another client, Ruth, lost 43.5 inches of unhealthy body fat in 9 weeks. If you would like to take a look at my website, I would love to help you out if you are interested.
-O.

I recently did the HCG thing and have been really happy with it. It takes dedication (as with any diet) but to see results so quickly really helps. Don't pay a bunch of money to do it though. I bought mine from the UK, read "Pounds and Inches" (the info written by the doctor who created it) and joined a yahoo group called HCG Protocol. I think the Yahoo group was the most helpful. Good luck.

Try Nutrisystem I have heard good things. It's kinda pricey but worth it, and from what I hear it tastes great!
Good Luck~B.

I started at 338 about a month ago and am losing great. Check out my blog: http://saygoodbyefatty.blogspot.com/ about the journey.

The guy I'm seeing to get me through this is helping train my metabolism - the exact thing a diet destroys. My dad had a total knee replacement and has been working with the same guy (he also has diabetes and high blood pressure) and his exercise is either walking slowly or recumbant bike (and swimming, which has been mentioned).

I've got lots of tips that I'm learning. That HCG stuff trains your metabolism through hormones and shots, but I'm doing it almost entirely through diet. You could probably lose a lot just following the same guidelines.

Seriously though, my blog is pretty detailed. Going back this morning to see if I've lost this week. *crossing fingers!*

Hi, B.. I read your post. I am overweight as well. I have tried just exercising but you know how hard that can be! Finally a friend told me about something her mom was doing that actually worked. Her dad does it as well, and he is diabetic. I am trying to get my dad on it right now. I started at the beginning of May. I just started my 9th week. In nine weeks I have lost 20 lbs and 36.75 inches all over my body. I am fitting into a size 16 pants for the first time in ten years. It is called isagenix. If you want I can get you the link but my friend is out of town right now. I wont lie to you, it is hard, and I am not sure if it is safe if you are nursing. But basically, you get a box with four canisters of shake mix, two bottles of cleanse for life, and a bottle of what they call ionic supreme. There is also a bottle of "snacks" which are like wafers and a bottle of pills that are all natural herb based. First, you substitute two meals with the shakes. Every morning you take two of the natural excelerators and an ounce of the ionic supreme. It is gross at first because it has black molassas in it but after a while you get used to it. The third meal you eat between 400-600 calories which isnt as hard as it sounds. (A three taco meal from taco bell with lemonaid is less than 600 calories!!!) You repeat that pattern for six days. On the seventh day you only drink the cleanse for life, 4 0z four times that day and 8 glasses of water. You can have a small salad if you want but really arent supposed to eat anything (though I usually do). I usually dilute the cleanse for life with water because it is pretty gross, but it flushes out the bad stuff we put in our bodies. I havent had Dr.Pepper in two months, which is major for me. I feel great, and it has been worth it. You are supposed to exercise too, 20 minutes a day, which is really easy if you want to loose the weight bad enough. I hope this helps you. If you have questions, feel free to ask. And good luck, I know how you feel!

My husband has also had huge success with hormone therapy combined with HCG. If your hormones are out of whack, you may not be able to lose weight no matter how you exercise and diet. So get a doctor who will help you get that under control and then put you on HCG. It is an intense 500-calorie diet, but because of the hormone injections you give yourself, your body targets the extra fat and burns it away, so you don't ruin your metabolism or go into starvation mode. You can do about 40 pounds at a time, so you will probably have to do a few rounds to get down to your target weight, and it's not super cheap, but it works. And then of course you need to eat right and exercise in order to maintain (this is the part my husband struggles with :)

My husband uses this doctor, but they are only in Utah and Arizona, so I would search in your area and see if you can find someone similar:

http://www.triellehormones.com/weight_loss_therapy.html

I say grab a friend and join a water aerobics class! It won't make you hot and it's super low impact so it will be good on you hip! I love it.

B.;

You might want to try aqua aerobics. If you do shallow aerobics there is very little impact to the joints, if doing deep water aerobics there is no impact to the joints. The best thing about aqua aerobics...no sweating.

All the best to you and your weight loss efforts. It is a long road you are trying to journey...stay focused and you will make it.

I agree with the other moms. Whenever I've had to lose weight (after babies, etc.) diet has been 70-80% of the solution. Exercise helps, but even if I worked out pretty hard 5 days a week I didn't really lose anything without major changes to my eating patterns.

Exercise is great to keep you energized & help tone up all those areas that get stretched out and floppy after baby. If you can't count on walking, I've taken water aerobics classes--they're great. So is straight swimming. I like the programs at the YMCA here. We are military, so we get a nice discount on top of their low prices.

Good luck!

Hi B.
I've FMS/CFS & RA ~ obviously not the same ~ however have gathered a number of articles that might be interesting on MS (in my searches to understand my own)
http://msngroup.aimoo.com/APeacefulPlace/ms.msnw.htm
I've found a "no Wheat, no sweet" diet essential -more than 10 yrs now- and believe me I feel it when I stray.
can be found here: http://msngroup.aimoo.com/APeacefulPlace/diet.msnw.htm
I won't pretend I don't miss some foods, but have grown accustomed & sstuff doesn't even taste that good any more !
Chiropractic care & Yoga have also been a Godsend.
All the best & give that wee one a snuggle for me will you 8>)

I agree with the HGC note- I've done it and while it didn't make me loose weight in itself (it's combined with an extremely low calorie diet) it makes the low calories do-able. Water areobics is also great. I was in a car accident a few years ago and my residual injuries make activites like walking and areobics painful, but water areobics doesn't hurt in the joints!

Water Arobics are great. The temperature of the water keeps your temperature and the boyancy keeps the impact low on your hip. Check with your local pool, but the city of Fort Collins used to offer special MS classes if not take a regular class and let the instructor know your needs so they can help you adjust/adapt if needed. I used to think these classes were for old ladies (there are a lot of them in the classes), but it's a great work out and the water lets you get a cardio and resistance work out all in one. I've lost the weight form my second, but still working on a lot of weight I gained on my first (oh and my post wedding weight as well :P ) good luck to you.

I liked the isagenix idea, really helpful. I am currently involved in a competition to exercise as many minutes a day as possible, that has definitely helped me get off the computer. We have a $200 pot that we get to split with our workout partner if we win. So picking some friends you trust to do this sort of competition could help you. Try some pilates and yoga, do the stretches that you can, but do be careful as yoga can get you warm.

Another hint is that you can mix it throughout the day - park a little farther, do exercises here and there so you're not as likely to get heated, maybe just take 5 minutes every hour, and don't worry if you don't do the full 5. Another idea is to turn on exercise tv and just leave it going. When you walk through the room and see a move they are doing, go ahead and do it.

Also don't be frustrated if you don't lose or even gain weight at first. That weight is muscle and will help you burn the fat of course. Best of luck.

No treats. Sorry to be so un-fun, but I think a lot of losing the baby weight comes down to calories in/calories out, and for me, treats were killing my efforts. It takes about 30 minutes of walking to brn 200 calories, and if I ate a cookie or two (big, yummy ones) I was undoing my efforts and adding more calories on top of it. So, I worked really hard to skip all junk calories and choose healthy snacks. It make a big difference for me. A food diary will help.
My mom also has MS and I agree you should consult your doctor. This is a tricky issue for her, too. Consider a whole-foods approach that keeps your food choices simple and healthy and not laden with processed compnants that are not good for anyone, but especially someone who needs to keep her neuro pathways as protected as possible.
Best wishes, and good for you for being proactive about your health!

You should try the HCG diet. I have always struggled with my weight and I'm actually seeing results on this. I would recommend that you find a good Dr. to help you with it, but it can be a great way to loose a significant amount of weight in a relatively short amount of time. Where do you live? I can suggest a place or two.

I have lost on weight watchers. I also let a coworker borrow my weight watchers books and since he went on weight watchers he has lost over 105 lbs. He looks amazing. Weight loss is a very difficult thing for me. Good luck.

I highly recommend looking into www. slimbodycoach.com. They are a wonderful company that has a free website where you get daily motivation from others in the same situation as you. There's a lady that has lost over 100 pounds and she's bound to a wheelchair, so she has proven that exercise isn't even necessary. They have wonderful safe weight loss products you can purchase through them. Their protein shakes are the best and don't have HFCS (high fructose corn syrup) in them. Stay away from anything sugar-free too -- they are worse for your health than the real thing. You can enter there contest which is what motivated me -- I was the Round 1 winner in 2007, so it's the real deal and it really works. You have to change your metabolism.

It teaches you to change your lifestyle by eating real food. You eat healthy choices 5 times a day, 3 hours apart, with each meal containing a 1/2 cup of each: protein, carb, and color carb (veges & fruits). The calories you eat depend on your weight x8 (so it lessens as you lose weight). It's time consuming at first to figure out the calories and protein grams of the things you like to eat, but after you get it down it's worth it. It takes time to change habits, so allow yourself that time.

You should drink 10 - 12 oz. glasses of water each day (I drink before and after each meal to help me get it all in with a routine). I found that it helps lose faster if you eat at least 100 grams of protein per day. You are allowed one cheat meal a week (anything you want and only lasting one hour). This helps my brain and willpower by saying "I can have it later".

I also would highly recommend water aerobics at first until you lose some of your weight and get more in shape. Then you can slowly start walking -- like 5 mintues every day for the first week, and add 5 minutes every week. I might even consider doing that in the evening, and water aerobics in the morning. I personally love aerobics, and really love the Turbo Jam series right now.

I was really happy that I found this company because I don't feel like it's a diet. It's just learning how to eat right and changing your habits and lifestyle. I always like to try things the natural way first before I would ever consider surgery or other options. On the site, they will answer any questions you have as you go. I found it helpful to plan out what you will eat tomorrow the night before -- less room for cheating. I wish you the best!! ~D.

You could try water aerobics. There would be no strain on your body parts and it works all of your body.

You could also get tested for thyroid problems. My thyroid is sluggish and it's hard for me to lose weight. My thyroid wasn't tested until after I had a baby. I was feeling tired all the time, my skin was dry, and my hair was constantly falling out.

I can feel quite unmotivated to lose weight unless I am going walking with a friend. Perhaps joining a group is what you need. There are free calorie counters and other such things to help people keep track of their caloric intake and how many calories they burn doing certain exercises. I know it helps me to lose weight if I have to be accountable for what I eat and do. Go to webmd.com and look at the calorie counter/diet program they have on there.
Good Luck!

My Aunt has MS, she talked with her insurance and they were willing to pay for a tummy tuck to make her "comfortable". I'm not sure what she did to get them to do it, but she has had numerous things done and they have paid for it.

My husband was 310 lb, he gains weight with each of my pregnancies (funny I know), and then when ever he has high stress from work. He went and had a VSG. It cost us about 10k, but he has already lost 30 lbs in the 6 weeks. This isn't normal, every one is different. But his friend had it done about a year ago and has lost 150 lbs.

Otherwise, I would find the diet for those who have had VSG and try it out. The only problem will be the hunger pains. As those who have had a VSG their stomach can't hold more than 4 oz total And they don't have the "hunger" hormone any more.

But you pretty much have a liquid diet for a month trying to consume as much protein as possible, then you have a week of soft foods like eggs. And then for the rest of your life you eat tons of protein and no bread.

But it's pretty nasty and would do it only if your desperate.

Good luck

Swimming is a great way to work out that is low impact on your body. If you could join a water aerobics class, I believe that would help you out a ton! I also have heard that using an elliptical (sp?) machine is great to start Cardio exercise that is low-impact as well. -I also have really bad joints, bad knees, hips, back, shoulder, etc. so I have to be really careful with what I do to work out, and after having my first baby I started eating right and got on the elliptical machine 30-40 minutes a day and lost my baby weight and then some in 4 months!
Good luck with whatever you decide to do! :)

My dad lost a lot of weight by just upping his fruits and veggie intake. I also love the book "Eat this, not that" Supermarket Survival guide. It is about $20. I borrowed mine from the library. This book has actual picts of what you should or shouldn't eat and explains why. I found a lot of things shocking in this book and believe that I can lose weight by just changing what I eat. Also check out www.zonya.com. She is a dietician and has a lot of interesting info and good recipes. Hope this helps.

I don't have too much to add to what others have said, but if you have a pool near by you could try swimming or a water arobics class. Just go at your own pace. Any exercise is better than none :) You can also do different arm exercises at home using a water bottle or canned foods as weights... or even start out with no weights. Good luck!

Hi B., you should definitely talk to your doctor. You need results to happen fast so you can get your life moving forward. There are Rx high-protein, super low-carb diet programs that could probably help get your metabolism to kick back and start working some of the initial weight off for you. As you become more physically comfortable you can start with 5 minutes of walking every day and just build up the amount of time you can manage. "A little something is better than a lot of nothing" has become my moto. If you don't manage to get a little walk in every day, don't beat yourself up. Maybe soon a short walk for a few minutes outside in the morning with the baby in the stroller, your 3 yr old running along, with a little chat with your 8 yr old could become a nice morning tradition. Please don't set a goal now of getting to 150lbs. Set a goal of "Get Information." Then your goal is "Get Organized and Get Started." Then your goal becomes "Get through Day 1".... Get through Week 1..... Walk 5 minutes a day...... You can do it by making small steps and feeling good about them!! Getting 10% of your body weight off (29lbs) would be an incredible major milestone and it will do wonders for your knee. At that point you'll have a system that is working, a doctor who is supporting you, you'll feel good about your results and you won't be wasting time(!) & money(!) with programs that set you up for failure and guilt. About me: A few years ago my dr. recommended Medifast (available online thru lots of websites) along with an initial Rx for phentramine. It is a strong stimulant only given by Rx. After a couple of months I went off the phentramine and kept making progress because I was in the groove and had made progress that motivated me. I am now ready to take some more weight off, so I am starting a program called "Ideal Protein" without any Rx support, but I am being monitored by my dr.'s staff each week so I feel I have someone to be accountable to and people I can ask questions (and whine) to. In my day to day life, I am active with a 2 yr old, work out and weight lift regularly, and avoid junk food & soda, but my metabolism never lets go of the weight without a big push. Good luck!! You can do it!!

Don't take OTC diet pills, they are not safe or good for you. Go to Weight Watchers, they have excellent help and support for people trying to lose weight and they have a great program that is just for nursing moms (I don't know if you are nursing or not but if you are that is another good reason to STAY AWAY from diet pills). As for exercise, try swiming, I know it seems embarassing to get in the pool in your swim suit but it can be such good exercise. Look into a water arobics class at your local rec center for best results, as a bonus there are usually mosty "normal" sized women in those classes, not super models. Good luck!

Anything in the water will be non-weight bearing, which means very little impact on your joints. And, the water resistance builds muscle as well, which helps boost your metabolism. Start with gentle water aerobics. Check out local community centers or senior centers, they often have low-cost classes.

As far as diet pills, I have no experienc, but there is one OTC that is FDA approved, which just seems like the better way to go for me. I think it's alli

You mention that you like to walk but it is hard because of your hip. Have you considered water walking-either walk in a shallow pool that is 3-4 ft deep (you want the water to be waist to chest deep). As you increase stamina you can even progress to water jogging which can be done in deeper water (they do make belt style flotation devices if you don't swim-personally I found them annoying but than treading water is easy for me).

As far as your hip is concerned I am wondering if it isn't a case of your spine being out of alinement. I only say this because I suffered for years with hip pain myself only to hear it's your weight (I am close to 350 right now but have been loosing slowly)just loose some weight and you'll be fine-unable to exercise because my hip hurt so much. I finally went to a chiropractor and found out my spine was so out of alinement that it was pulling my hip out of alinement causing pain. Due to my second pregnancy I actually weigh more now than I did before I got adjusted and don't have the pain-it's the weight ya right. Just something to look into. If you want a recommendation of a great chiropractor in your feel free to pass me a note privately (I am in the same general area).

As far as eating is concerned while you need to cut calories it is important not to cut them too much. Those 1200-1500 calorie diets don't work for us bigger folks because the amount of calories that we need to maintain our current weight is higher than normal so our bodies go ok we are being starved here and we don't know how long this famine is going to last we better hang onto every ounce of fat we can so we can survive. I use a great program though 123 Fit that helps me plan my meals based on the number of calories needed for my weight (I do with my trainers advice cut 2-5% off the number so for example at my weight if I need 2500 calories a day I aim for 2375-2450)that are nutritionally balanced on all the nutrients. I am finally after years seeing results and I have tried several different diets over the past 20 years only to keep gaining weight except for a brief while in college when I was doing both swim and dance teams along with teaching swim lessons as a water safety aid and was working out 6-8 hours a day not counting walking to classes).

T.

I saw that someone else suggested water aerobics, and that is what I would recommend also. My aunt was morbidly obese (close to 500lbs) and she couldn't do regular workouts because she had knee, hip, and back problems. She also couldn't have gastric bypass because she was so over weight. She did water aerobics and ate healthy and the weight came off. The water didn't put pressure on her joints which made it very "easy" for her to work out. Good luck on your weight loss

Talk to your doctor first! (I should put that in caps, but it looks rude.) I don't have to tell you this is a serious problem. You need to be under supervision to get this under control. Since you have a good attitude about your MS, you'll just want to work around it, and your doctor is the expert on that, too.

Any kind of weight gain comes from taking in more calories than you put out. Something you can do right at home (and I just hate to do it, but it works) is to journal every single bit of food that goes in your mouth every day. You might start by writing down only what you eat and what time of day. Don't cheat - write down every bit. You might be surprised by how much is going into your mouth. After you do that for a week or so, buy a calorie book to help you figure out how many calories are going into your body along with the food. When you want to lose weight, the calories that do go into you need to be the top-notch - the ones that are healthiest and work for you best.

In addition, every movement you make burns calories. You might look at how much you move. Even standing instead of sitting helps. Take extra steps around the house whenever you can. Be a little less organized so you have to move more to put the laundry away than you usually do. Figure out what you can to do add extra motion to your daily routines.

These are just baby steps to help you get going. Getting healthy is a long process and it can be a slow one. But what does it matter if the journey is slow as long as you get there and stay there? Please don't listen to the ads and commercials. Don't take any pills or supplements - most of the over-the-counter ones aren't effective anyhow - unless your doctor tells you specifically what to use.

Hey B.. I see that several people recommended the HCG diet. I am doing this right now and it does help you lose weight. I feel a huge difference and I am only in the second week. I was hesitant to try it because I don't like shots. But I found HCG in a drop formula that you just put the drops under your tongue. It is great! No needles!

Here is the website: http://yourhcg.com/index.php

I also recommend the south beach diet way of eating. With the HCG, you will have to change your lifestyle afterward to avoid gaining it all back. The South Beach Diet has a great plan for eating healthy for life.
Good Luck with everything!

Hi B.-I recently read the book "Skinny Bitch" and I have gone vegetarian. I still eat seafood but nothing else in the meat dept. I have already lost 12 pounds in less than 2 months and I haven't even really been exercising. The book tells you all about how animals are raised, slaughtered and processed and it pretty much totally grossed me out! The ladies give examples of meals and some great tips for eating and "alternative" meats. Good luck in your adventure!

Try the HCG diet. My mom tried that and it worked. She wasn't losing as much weight as others at first then she got her thyroid tested. She got on some medication for that and her weight started dropping.

Diet is 80 percent is any fitness plan. Try to avoid any processed food, eat lots of veggies (especially green veggies), drink lots of water, and just a slow walk would be a good start. Eat lots of fiber and control your sugar intake.

I have had two knee surgeries and currently weigh 230lbs, I have just recently lost 30lbs thanks to my doc being sympathetic to my plight that I can't do much in the way of cardio exercise because of my knee. He put me on topiramate aka topomax, it is for seizures but the side effect is loss of appetite, I don't have seizures. It has worked wonders for me... no more late night cravings.. no more eating too much at meal times, I find I eat healthier too, also temptations are not there either, I can turn down the doughnut or the piece of chocolate, I know, CHOCOLATE!!! I'm not saying that I was a glutton before but I did not have a great deal of will power and if I was offered a sweet I didn't say no where as now, I can and it helps. Even the 30lbs has helped my knee and I am headed for more surgery sometime later this year, the date hasn't been set yet and I am determined to get more off before then in hopes of a better recovery. I'm sure it will help your hip too. Meridia is another appetite suppressant that would help get you started so that you can then get into the exercise routine without overheating and hurting yourself so much. That was my problem too, but now that some of the weight is off, I don't have as much of a problem.. Good luck!!

S., Mom of 4, loving life!

Hi B.! It looks like you've gotten a lot of advice and I would like to second (or third, or fourth) the aqua aerobics. I am a certified aqua aerobics instructor and have taught for several years. I have seen so many women have success losing weight doing this low-impact exercise. I recently had a gentleman in my class hit his 150 pound weight loss mark through diet and aqua aerobics. I also had a woman start at over 300 pounds and last I checked she was down to 180. Be careful and check with your doctor regarding this exercise with your hip problem and let the instructor know what the doctor suggests. So many of the exercises can be adapted to accomodate your hip problem. Best of luck!

Hi B.,
I have 2 close family members with MS. They have both made huge diet changes and what a difference that has made for them. It is not easy, but I agree with the other post that said to avoid processed foods. Years ago my family and I made this switch and I will never go back. My kids will do anything to avoid fast food. Shop the outside aisles of the store---the fresh vegetables and fruits, the fresh meat counter and the dairy and eggs. Almost everything in between there is junk!!!(Except beans and rice). On the rare occasion that you may want to buy something in a bag or box, make sure you read all of the ingredients. The list should be very short and you should know everything in there.
The experience of my family has been that once we changed our food choices, we felt better and were able to get out and move a lot more which led to losing weight and that led to feeling better and being able to move more and on and on and on.
If you are a reader, I highly suggest "In Defense of Food"
Take care, B.

Even if you wear shorts & a t-shirt, go buy a pool pass. You need to find some place that's big enough that you can swim laps. Ask your doc to recommend water exercises you can do w/MS that won't aggrevate your anything, or take in some that you find online & ask then.
Diet pills don't work really & more & more are being banned. Just not worth the risk! My mom is lactose-intolerant & was recently diagnosed w/reflux disease. Her allowed foods went to barely anything & she went from a 14/16 to a 6/8 in a matter of a few months. She was eating healthy-as much variety as she could. Look up both & make a food list up for yourself from the allowable foods for both. Her biggest thing is that she can't have above 5% fat.
Once you drop some weight, try walking on a treadmill or using a stationary bike-maybe losing even a little will make you able to do either one w/o much pain.
My best advice is the pool though. SIL has lost 20 lbs doing water aerobics-and most of the women in water exercise classes aren't 20 & aren't skinny, which will help you feel better about getting in the water to start with.
Good luck!