I'm here because I'm stuck.

[HughMannity]

I've been overweight to a greater or lesser degree for the past 30 years or so (I'm coming up on 62 this May). This has killed my knees, so I now have a nice pair of aftermarket cyborg knees which work quite well. I also have an arthritic shoulder (something to do with a couple of motorcyle accidents during my misspent youth).

The limitations on my mobility kept me on the couch for years, until I was "old enough" to get the knees replaced. But that was 8 years ago and since then I've started slacking off again. At the end of my active rehab phase I got up to about 98% range of motion on the knees and could walk at least 3 miles non-stop. I lost some weight -- about 30 lb -- and stuck.

7 years ago I got diagnosed with type II diabetes. They started me on metformin and my blood glucose came down a bit. I cut back on carbs to between 50 and 90g/day and got off the metformin (which has anti-social gastric side-effects). Fast forward to November 2011 and it all went horribly pear-shaped and I was getting fasting blood glucoses of around 200mg/dL and an HbA1c of 7.7. My doctor put me on metformin (again) and Januvia and blood pressure meds (180/110 is Too High). I put myself on the Paleo diet on January 2, 2012.

Two months later, I'm getting ready to cut back the meds. An HbA1c done on Feb 2, was 6.9 -- a huge improvement -- and I'm getting consistent blood glucose measurements well withing the ACE (American College of Endocrinolgists) guidelines.

But I'm not losing much weight, without clothes I'm an eyesore, and my BP and blood glucose numbers need to come down a bit more. And I want off the damned drugs before they kill me. I want to be able to keep working for a good few more years. I don't want to find myself stuck in a wheel chair in some nursing home being pumped full of drugs, living on carbs, and basically being warehoused until I die of boredom.

So I'm stuck. I know I need more exercise than just walking (running is not recommended on the cyborg knees), but I don't know where to go or what to do. I suspect I need a personal trainer who can work with my assorted physical limitations, but I don't know where to find a reputable one.

I'm hoping you guys can help me unstick myself and point me in the direction of some exercise that will help me keep things running and possibly even not breaking mirrors when I take my shirt off.

['Roos]

Hey dude! First off, welcome to the rebellion. Diet is going to be 98% of your battle so that's probably a good place to start - what does you on paleo look like? Second off, of all the long-term meds you can be on, metformin is probably one of the best as far as long term organ risk, etc. Given your past less-than-awesomeness when getting off of metformin, it may be a good idea to stick with it until you're at your target weight/health, not just when your blood glucose and hba1c look good for a bit.

[unicornassassin]

I hope you find some thing that works for you. I think joining NF will be a great start, hopefully you can get a lot of support and tips.

I just want to say- don't discount walking. I know people that have lost lots of weight 'just' walking. Can you do uphill walking? That can get pretty intense.

[Hammlin]

Uphill walking can be a fantastic workout!!! Hi and welcome to you!

[ebm1224]

glad you found us! alot of people with joint issues really enjoy both swimming and bicycling. do a quick google search and look for gyms in your area - esp ones with indoor pools. alot of people don't love the idea of gyms but personally i really enjoy the idea of going somewhere where my only concern is getting fit. it can be really motivating and they often also have personal trainers on staff that can assist you. classes are a great way to try out some new fitness activities and lifting weights will make you feel and look better. welcome to the forum!

[HughMannity]

My diet (since Jan2,2012) is dead simple: No grains(other than a little rice with a curry now and again), no potatoes, starchy veg (carrots, parsnips, beans, etc.) less than once a week. All the meat, fish, eggs, and green veggies I can eat, a small amount of dairy -- cream in my coffee, and cheese occasionally. A glass of wine most evenings, green tea, and a little bit of fruit a couple of times a week. I have been known to have dark chocolate as a treat. I've never drunk soda, and have cut back my caffeine to 1 XL Dunks a day during the week and 1 large French press on weekend days.

I'm a decent cook, people rarely turn down my dinner invitations . I love Middle Eastern and Indian food and am quite happy to cook it from scratch. Right now I tend to make a batch of a curry or stew on Sunday to cover 2 or 3 days lunches at work, then make stir fried protein and veggies in the evenings.

Breakfast is a variable. I often skip it if I'm not hungry and just have coffee. At weekends it becomes a bacon and eggs brunch. Work days if I have anything to eat it's some sort of leftover grilled meat, homemade burgers (yes, I eat cold burgers), eggs, or cheese.

Lunch is either leftover grilled meat and salad or whatever curry/stew I made up over the weekend.

Dinner is stir fry, grilled meat/chicken/fish and veggies, stews, curries, roasts.

I don't snack. I've given up beer (because I can't stomach the low-carb crap) but still drink wine and like a nice scotch now and again.

I did great off metformin for about 5 years until it all fell apart this fall (and I admit my carb intake went up a fair bit then). Trouble with metformin is it gives me horrid gas and what my son described as "earthquake tummy". Most anti-social. I'm only taking 500mg/day ATM and that's starting to mess me up. I was on 1500mg/day before and not getting any better blood glucose than I was without it. My last A1c on 1500mg metformin was 6.7. After I stopped it, and was eating about 50 - 90g carb/day I was averaging 6.3. Not good enough, but not too bad.

I've started walking in the evenings after work and at weekends. I've got some measured distances worked out at a couple of scenic locations. I don't go if the weather's too nasty -- it's no fun.

['Roos]

Have you been losing fat (inches, bf%, etc) and just not losing weight, or have you not been losing either weight or fat? Do you know how much protein you're taking in? Have you tried giving up alcohol, rice, etc for two weeks and seeing what that does to your weight? Just trying to come up with some quick suggestions.

[Daffy]

Welcome to the forum! I don't have any specific advice for you, but glad to have you part of the community. Sounds like your diet is already very good. Are you doing any weight training?

[HughMannity]

Have you been losing fat (inches' date=' bf%, etc) and just not losing weight, or have you not been losing either weight or fat? Do you know how much protein you're taking in? Have you tried giving up alcohol, rice, etc for two weeks and seeing what that does to your weight? Just trying to come up with some quick suggestions.[/quote']

I haven't measured myself lately -- the tape measures run away and hide when I think about it But my pants are looser than they were. And I can almost do up one pair that I couldn't come close to doing up a couple of months ago (bought a size too small by mistake)

I've given up alcohol and rice before, with no apparent difference in weight loss. I suspect that I'm actually building muscle by taking up walking -- the legs of my pants are looser as well as the waistline.

I haven't started weight training -- for a couple of reasons: not knowing where or how to start, and how to manage with an arthritic left shoulder that has quite a limited range of motion.

There's a brilliant physical therapist/muscle worker I've been seeing who's helped a lot with my shoulder. He's out of town right now, but he might have some recommendations.

[lonefrontranger]

hi HughMannity, welcome and I'd like to 2nd cycling if you can handle it. One of my first ever cycling students as a newly minted coach in the 90s was a 50something guy who ticked the scales at 306 lbs at 5'8". The first day he rode with me he couldn't go 10 miles on a flat path and I was afraid he would give up in frustration. Well it's a long story and I worked with him for over 2 years but at the end he had lost over 100 pounds and was doing intermediate level racing with his teenage son. The most recent update I got from him after I moved from Cincinnati to Denver was an email with a photo attached of him and his son BOTH standing inside one of his old pairs of "fat pants" on his 60th birthday. His final 'racing' weight was 153 lbs and he got there slow and steady through some major diet and lifestyle renovation.

It took him over 2 years to get there. I'd say that in just shy of 2 months, having gone down a size in pants with diet and walking is really outstanding! Keep in mind that the weight did not just magically appear overnight, and it's not going to magically disappear overnight either. You are in this for the long haul. A good personal trainer could be just what you need. My former student said several times that he considered me a life coach as much as a cycling coach.

['Roos]

Well, if your clothes are getting looser that's a good indication that you're losing fat, which is the right direction! It could be a matter of keeping to your diet for a few months before your weight loss/muscle gain balance even out and you start losing absolute weight in addition to just body fat. If you have health insurance you may try getting a referral to a physical therapist, who may know good trainers for people with various weak joints, so you'd get some exercises which would help your injuries and build muscle, etc. Since you're moving in the right direction it may just be a matter of sticking the course, and seeking further help locally in finding a good pt-sensitive trainer.

[HughMannity]

Definitely losing flab. Today I'm wearing a pair of size 38 waist pants that have been lingering forlorn in my closet since I bought them because I couldn't do them up.