Enough Lurking :)

[brangwen]

Hi all! I've been lurking and reading for a few weeks now, figured I should just jump in.

Almost 40 (female) and what I have always done to keep the weight down (running/cardio) is not working. Time to change it up and try something new... like weights...

Wish me luck!

[surge_supra]

Weights! Yes!! There are sooo many articles on Nerd Fitness (which I'm sure you've read more than a few) and everyone here is super friendly (yes, super). Take a look around the forums, post wherever you'd like.

Also, Steve stresses that "Appearance is a side-effect of fitness."

So what are some of your fitness goals?

[Warfighter]

Aye, welcome! I am curious about your goals myself - tell us!

[ionAurum]

Time to change it up and try something new... like weights...

Sounds like a good plan of attack. Welcome to the Rebellion!

[brangwen]

Thanks for the welcome! It was actually a google search on women lifting weights that lead me here originally.

As many of us nerds can be... I'm rather wishy washy with "goals" as in my teenage years I was very pressured to meet large, often unobtainable, goals... and that has carried through my adult life. I have struggled for years on how/what goals to set that won't leave me anxious and saying "aww eff it" when I don't make it.

That being said... currently 5'1" and almost 180lbs... which is up 20lbs from last year, yikes. I've had my thyroid and other assorted things tested and the docs say "I'm fine". I have eaten generally primal (I eat yogurt and minimal cheese) for about 2 years now and am still gaining. Of course those "eff it" moments creep in and I binge....

I have never been a slim person and I actually do have muscle under the blubber... my overall main goal is to get back that muscle and eliminate as much jiggle as I can. Rock hard and stacked, maybe not... but not a jello jiggler either.

<ramble out>

[Laureleye]

I'm 55 and hypothyroid. I've been doing body weight training and its done wonders and melting off some of the fat that I gained while my doctor said my numbers were "fine". What I found out is that most doctors are using recommended numbers that are over 20 years old, and that the "fine" number have changed by a factor of about 400%. I did two things to wake up my doctor:

1. Printed him a bunch of literature from this site.

2. I kept an obsessive eating/activity diary (with some nice geeky graphs) for 3 months and brought it to my physical. If you find that you're eating (a lot) more than you thought you were, at least you'll know where you are.

Using my fitness pal would probably give you what you need.

Welcome to the rebellion.

[emlily91]

Coming from a fellow lurker, posting is the best first step you could make. Everyone here is very encouraging and will see you to your goals. Hope to see you around the forum

[brangwen]

Thanks guys!  I cleaned out the kitchen yesterday... today will re-stock with better options.  Not sure DH is exactly "on board" with this yet.  

[Lydieboo]

Thanks guys!  I cleaned out the kitchen yesterday... today will re-stock with better options.  Not sure DH is exactly "on board" with this yet.  

 

Well done you.  Cleaning out the kitchen is actually a great first step.  The next is stocking it well.

 

A couple of suggestions (and these are suggestions, not scientific fact); You might want to look at what it is that makes you feel not great/want to binge.  I found that if I eat dairy products at all I feel way more bloated and unhappy than I do if I'm going Paleo.  This makes me disappointed in my appearance/feeling, which makes me want to binge.

 

You might also be bingeing because of something else you can identify and kick.  I love the idea of a bingeing diary, and especially focusing on what the triggers are that make you want to eat a lot.  If you can recognize those triggers and develop an automatic response to them (ie. having a craving for something "sweet" means you want fruit, because fruit is sweet, not a cookie, because a cookie is unhealthy), you can put out the fire before it starts.

 

That said, you'll hear it hundreds of times on this site that all calories are not created equal.  Bingeing on spinach is way different than bingeing on cheese.  (Trust me on this one.)  If you're struggling with eating bad stuff when you're just wanting to munch, pull together some things you can eat an unlimited amount of and, when  you sart getting the munchies, reach for those.

 

So, in summary: try not eating specific things for a minimum of 3 days at a time (for me, I found out that dairy was just crushing how good I feel and feel about myself after about 3 days of not having it), and keep a stock of things you can eat a lot of at home.  (Cashew butter goes great with celery.  Almond butter does not.  Just FYI.)

 

Good luck!