Obese? Wanting to join a friendly thread ?

[SeatbeltExtender]

Hi

As my user name says this summer the Ryan Air seatbelt did not fit.
Yesterday I had to sit on a wooden deck chair and I found myself trying to Google what the weight limit could be

So tomorrow I start a diet.
So many threads on Mumsnet are for people much smaller than me
I'm 18 stones and 5lbs.

Please feel free to join if you are seriously overweight, please don't join if you are just averagely fat.

After being really low and disgusted with myself I joined sw in January . I’ve lost 9.5 pounds so far, been really slow at losing it but went from a 18-14 in clothes size and feel so much healthier and happier . Still got 2.5 stone to go but determined to lose it

Hi @CakeFace1234

Love your name btw :) I'd usually be a HotCrossBunFace if I wasn't determined to get out of size 18/20 trousers.
Thanks for the info on weight-bearing exercises. If I can get my income back on track (I work for myself and contracts have dried up this year) I will look at joining a gym. Talking of which ... did you make it to the gym?? Motivation is the hardest part of exercise. Well, for me anyway.

Hi @typicaltuesdaynight that's good going! Well done. Slow and steady is the healthiest way to lose weight.

So just done my weekly weigh-in and I've lost another 1lb
:)
:)
Very pleased as I have had crisps and wine this week!
But kept portion size under control and only ate meat once since Sunday. Walked 2-3 miles most days.

I now have a BMI of 31.9 so still OBESE but feeling I CAN DO THIS.

2 stone to go ... this would put me in the 'Overweight' category but it feels like a reachable target and I'd be happy with it.

I bought some size 16 dresses for the upcoming cruise and feel good about dressing up for the first time in years.
Although I'm sure I'll be putting on a few lbs on the cruise over the next 2 weeks!!!
Will relax a bit but try not to undo all my hard work.

@Jaq27 you're doing brilliantly! How nice to enjoy dressing up.

I did three classes at the gym/pool this week and have booked Aqua Zumba for Monday. I work part time now so am making the effort to make the membership worthwhile. It was a treat for my 60th birthday last year. I have drunk wine but have kept carbs pretty low and avoided snacks as much as possible.

I'm shopping at the end of May for a dress for ds's wedding and want to look nice and have a decent choice (hard enough anyway at 5'10'' unless you're a willowy size 10 and wealthy) so my incentive's strong!

Hi @Mumwithbaggage
brilliant work on the exercise! Well done.
I remember your target of your son’s wedding. Something really good to aim for.
I’m 60 next birthday and losing the weight is definitely harder when older. I don’t eat the portions or snacks I used to but my weight still doesn’t shift much.
i have to say 5ft 10 sounds amazing!! I’d love to be a few inches taller. Us women always want what we haven’t got 😂
I’m only 5ft 1 so I’m in the obese category weighing 12 st 1lb.
I take a size 14 top, size 16 dress and size 18 trousers so I’m a bit of a dumpy triangle :(
i think I have to get to under 11 stone to get to ‘overweight’ on the bmi chart.
i met a really good seamstress who altered my dresses for the cruise and I feel good that they fit all over rather than baggy at the top and tight at the bottom.

@Jaq27 brilliant idea to get your dresses altered! I'm sure it makes a huge difference. Sadly I don't really have any thinner bits yet but I'm sure I will soon!😋

Hi All, I did get to the gym but didn't really work up a sweat, I don't think my heart was in it so am going to set my alarm and go tomorrow morning to start the weekend on the right foot. start the weekend off.

Arrgh posted too soon.

I did get to the gym but didn't really work up a sweat, I don't think my heart was in it so am going to set my alarm and go tomorrow morning to start the weekend off on the right foot. Weather looks good too so hopefully a bit of gardening will keep me distracted.

Jaq27 amazing news on the loss, 1lb in the right direction! hmm who doesn't love a hot cross bun! mumwithbaggage well done on the exercise. Aqua Zumba sounds great fun, plus you can't leave once you're in the water - locked in for the session. The thing with the gym is you can cheat and cut a planned workout short. typicaltuesdaynight, that's really good, you must have lost a good couple of inches, a great incentive! Can't wait to be a 14 again, I have so many lovely clothes in my wardrobe that size.

Hope you all have a good weekend.

I've read all of this thread, it's great, and you're all inspiring! I'm not eligible to really join in but I've seen that some of you are doing aquafit and that's one of my favourite things too. If you like swimming before/afterwards but find it boring I really recommend getting a waterproof MP3 player, makes all the difference.

I've picked up some great food tips from this thread too. For me it's about convenience - and having a husband who thrives on junk. I've started using TheGoodPrep, a chef makes the food and you just bung it in the microwave. Really tasty. I've never tried anything like that before, I was considering Jane Plan to shift a half-stone but that food is processed which I'm trying to dodge.

Menopause is the pits too.

Have a great weekend everyone.

Hello @LyingWitchInTheWardrobe I have three aqua sessions booked this week - it is fun!! Will try to do a few lengths before or after - if after it means the shower queue has disappeared!

Thanks for the MP3 suggestion!

I do the same thing, Mumwithbaggage, it's carnage in the changing room with 20+ women dashing off to shower/change in a room that's snug for more than 4 at a time.

Mine is Sony, it was about £80 on Amazon but it's great, keeps going and going. I like it because I don't take my phone to the gym/pool and I can load up all my tunes straight to the player itself. It's been a life-saver for me as I suffer from swollen hands/legs from water and swimming sorts that out.

Hey, just arriving. I started at 131.6kg on 31/3 and now down to 125.5kg. Read The Fitness Chef book which helped get my head in the right space again and have been calorie counting for a week. The real test will come when I’m back at work (I’m a teacher and I snack a lot, also our canteen is used to catering to teenage boys - their portions are a bit bigger than I need!).

I am still plodding along. It's touch going at times but my weight is (mostly) still going down not up.

I had such a tricky weekend though with my 10 year old daughter. I found loads of empty packets of sweets stashed in her bedroom which she has been secretly eating. It really upset me because it is something that I did when I was younger and it is so hard to regulate. So, we had a really difficult talk this morning about sensible eating, drinking more water, eating to fuel ourselves etc.

I cried though. I see so much of myself in her and I know how hard it has been for me my whole life to control my weight.

@GrammarTeacher welcome! I find it so hard at school! I now have a zero hours contract and try really hard to take good snacks to school. School is really remote so if I don't take food I'm stuck on custard creams and carb heavy school dinners. Not great.

@Mumwithbaggage - my school is really near a Tesco Express and a yummy bakery. It’s a nightmare!

@FriendofDorothy that must have been hard. Sounds like you did a good job dealing with it.

That's tough @FriendofDorothy - many sympathies.

I put on 1 lb on holiday. Surprised it wasn't more because it was very hard to control food. I don't mind the lb but I'm unable to get out of the holiday eating now I'm back - predictable. I'll work on this over Easter weekend when I have no appointments and don't have to see anyone, mercifully.

Am a bit depressed about my swimming gear. I love aquacise but my gear - originally bought for outdoor swimming and designed for plus size - is not at all flattering and odder-looking than a normal swimsuit. Has anyone discovered a full swimsuit - for proper swimming - which covers properly and has real support? I am short-ish with a big tummy and need boob support, so it's difficult.

These are my favourite types of swimsuit and I have found Bon Marche make the best ones!

www.bonmarche.co.uk/swimsuits/ruched-front-swimsuit-9002826.html?dwvar_9002826_color=07

How is everyone. Kind of dreading this weekend. 4 days out of the routine is not good for me. I need to make a plan to be sensible.

My biggest problem is I have lost touch on what hunger feels like after years of binging and constant eating. I need to try and get back in touch with this.

Thank you FriendOfDorithy, thar looks interesting! I'm checking that one out.

I don't know if it would help Rainbow but not eating sweet things and always eating carbohydrates with some protein and fat should help dial down cravings for food, even if you're not in a routine.

@Fattitude I know what you mean about keeping eating in holiday mode. I have 3 of the adult kids and partners here this weekend so there will be lots of food.

@FriendofDorothy I like that swimsuit! Sadly, being tall, it's really hard to find that style to fit. Monsoon always made one like that and I felt quite put out when they stopped. I do aqua in a very unflattering "proper" swimsuit from Long Tall Sally but at least it stays on!

@Sunshineandrainbow it will be avoiding carbs as much as possible here and avoiding those pesky snacks that are always around when we have visitors. I keep some 2kg dumbells in the kitchen and always do a few arm exercises while the kettle's boiling/coffee's brewing etc. Gives me a reminder of how I'm working on improving myself.

Enjoy the long weekend everyone that's not working!

@Mumwithbaggage can you recommend any for bingo wings. I have some small weights I could use. Since losing 3 stone I have noticed my arms are awful.

I have also noticed that Bon Marche do tankinis in the same style -that might be good if you are tall.

I've ordered the BonMarche swimsuit, plus a pair of swim shorts from Yours and longish top from Calypsa. Will report back!

@Sunshineandrainbow there's a woman on facebook called Petra Genko who I followed - lots of easy exercises. Also, Sally Gunnell. She talks common sense and knows her stuff. I also got my kids to show me some stuff.

It's only a bit at a time but I feel like I'm doing something. It's got to be a habit already. And I haven't dropped a dumbell on my foot yet so that' good 😂

@FriendofDorothy that must have been such a tough conversation for you with your DD I always swore I wouldn't end up like my DM - she loves sweet, carby food - but lo and behold, so do I she was a relatively ok weight when I was young, put weight on from mid 40s onwards, became (and still is) very overweight from 60+ and I really don't want to end up that way.

@Mumwithbaggage Aqua Zumba sounds awesome! I used to do an aqua aerobics class years ago when I was made redundant, I could fit it in during the day between job hunting, it was just me and lots of pensioners at the time it was loads of fun!

@Jaq27 there's a lovely ladies gym near me but the hours just aren't long enough for me to make it there, it's quite reasonable in price and has classes I'd love to do... I just can't get there! They even do sessions for girls (for people who want to take their DC along) but I only have boys, so that's out too...

I completely empathise with the sugar addiction @Fattitude, I used to be able to keep it under control pre-DC with plenty of exercise, but since being at home with small DC I've fallen into the habit of snacking and needing bits of chocolate here and there DS1 is 9yo now and I need to lose the equivalent of him in weight

Your pre-diabetes meeting sounds really interesting @CakeFace1234, it sounds like they are trying to get you to focus on what you can change, what you can acknowledge what part genetics plays too?

We went to a food fair over Easter with BIL & SIL (DP's brother and his wife), SIL has always been very slim so it was interesting for me to see what she'd choose to eat - there were loads of food stalls with different things to buy, plus lots of takeaway vans. I was hovering round the doughnuts, brownies and cake slices but she ignored the lot, didn't even give those kind of foods a backwards glance! She did buy a large chicken wrap with salad for lunch, but that was it. It was honestly eye opening for me to see that not everyone is irresistibly drawn to cakes unlike me and that it was possible to enjoy yourself without dreaming about scoffing brownies!