Weight Loss Buddies - Spring 2012 4/10/12

[tree]

Alexa, Congrats on getting back down after the fourth. It seems like doing it "your way" is working pretty well for you!
I have been really really bad this week. I need to weigh in tomorrow, but I really don't want to. I have been dealing with joint pain again, and my stomach has been too messed up to take much ibuprofen. It is so frustrating, and I need a better way to manage it than eating chocolate. We did go for a nice hike tuesday and wednesday. I felt a little better this morning and went for a run. It seemed to help, and I really hope this inflammatory cycle is ending.

Have you read Caryn's article in the July Expectations newsletter? It was a really good reminder that we aren't just doing this for us. Getting in shape and maintaining a healthy weight is really important for our long-term cardiovascular health, but it is also critical for our kids. They are at increased risk of high blood pressure and obesity after a pre-eclamptic pregnancy. I feel like I really need to maintain healthy eating and exercise habits as an example for my daughter. It is motivating me to get "back on the wagon" to keep the weight off and improve my fitness.

[alexa5]

It is hard to do things "right" when you are feeling off--no doubt about that.

I saw that article, and it makes me sad that the kids are impacted by it I can understand myself, as it was one of a few markers I have had to keep an eye out for cardiac issues.... but I don't like that what happened to me influences him. But you are right...if you try your best to remain at a healthy weight and do what you can to show them the right habits, that goes a long way. We do like our treats, though I think we try to make sure he doesn't have tons of them though, and I know I eat less of them now than I did, so that probably helps.

Good luck!

[wooleybear]

has anyone had any knee problems after this? I lost my baby at 32 weeks, I had such severe swelling. After I gave birth I lost almost 20 pounds. Then gained a couple back. I have been going to the gym and started doing spin again. I have never weighed this much before in my life (I weigh about 180 and never went past 168, when I got pregnant, I was 150 lbs).


My knees hurt so much. Especially walking down stairs. Icing doesn't help. I see the general prac doctor tomorrow(he does sports med too and is a doc to the philly Flyers hockey team). Hopefully he has helpful relief. Im just wandering if anyone else has had knee problems after a pregnancy.

It just seems I need to loose weight to help my knees, but after I work out they kill. I could probably swim, but Im not a huge swimmer, I love my spin classes!

[tree]

I hope the doctor has good news for you. Cycling is supposed to be good for your knees, but I know a lot of cyclists (including me) who have caused knee problems by overdoing it or a bad bike fit. My knees were really bad when I was carrying 30-50 extra pounds. It just stunk until I got it off. I have had both "upstairs" and "downstairs" knee problems in the past, and I think the "downstairs" version responded well to PT. It was always tendonitis in my case. I did not have to strictly rest, but I had to avoid anything that caused pain for a while to let it calm down. The good news about swimming is that you get a more intense workout if you are a terrible swimmer. I can destroy myself dog paddling in a pool in <30 minutes. It is efficient and less painful, so it can be a win/win if you have to live with it.

I have always had joint pain, but it got really bad when I was carrying around extra weight from the pregnancy. Losing the weight is likely to help, but you might be able to change some things with your bike position in spin class if you want to keep spinning and your doctor oks it. I had pain returning to class after my daughter was born, and it was due to poor bike position and excessive resistance. Is it a small enough class that you can ask the instructor to take a look at your position on the bike before class? You are obviously differently shaped than you were before pregnancy, but you may have also lost (or gained) some flexibility requiring a change in your seat fore/aft position. I still ask an instructor to look at my bike position every once in a while just to see if I have something completely off. I can tell a lot by feel, but an experienced cyclist/instructor can tell much more by looking at me on the bike. Are you rocking in your seat when you pedal sitting down? Is your knee bending more than 90 degrees when you pedal? This kind of thing is actually really easy to see and somewhat hard to feel if you aren't used to it.

You might want to think about dropping your resistance a bit. When my knees are bothering me, I reduce my resistance slightly and pick up my cadence. I have been a cyclist for a long time, and I spent most of those years as a "grinder". That did some permanent damage to my knees. I look at spin classes as a great opportunity to learn to spin faster. I try to keep my cadence well above 80 (usually 90+). I live in a really hilly area, so this gives me a workout that I can't get outside. Training your body to maintain a higher cadence instead of pushing monster resistance is generally better for you anyway. If I am not thinking about it, my "flat road" cadence will be something like 75-80 rpm in class. If my knees are bothering me, I will adjust the resistance to get to a flat road cadence of 85-90 rpm and adjust up or down from there throughout class. If my knees hurt suddenly in class, I will back off on the resistance or stand up for a few minutes and try again when things feel better. You can still get a really tough workout this way, and you get a bit more cardio instead of strength.

[LauraBeck12]

Ahhh! It's been way too long for me, sorry ladies!
So i weighed in at 171.8 lbs today. I'm almost to the 30 lbs off mark!
I cannot believe how much i have stuck with this.
I am still running, still eating clean.
my goal is to be out of the 170's in two weeks from now, that would be a huge success for me.

[tree]

Welcome back, Laura! Congrats on your weight loss!
I got a few good workouts in, which was a little challenging since my wrists are really bothering me again. My parents are visiting, and I am enjoying a little break from closely watching what I eat and working too much. It has been nice! I hope you are all well.

[alexa5]

Good job girls!

I have been on vacation, so ate lots of yummy food, but mainly stuck to 2 meals a day to make up for that. So, in the end I think I am pretty much the same weight as when I left which is a great accomplishment. I also made myself go on walks every other day, so I got some exercise in. Hope you are all having a good week!

[tree]

I weighed in at 144.8 lbs this morning. I decided to start paying much more attention to what I eat today since my weight has been drifting up the last couple of weeks. I went out for a nice ride on Saturday and a great hike with my husband yesterday. We were out all day while my parents watched out daughter. It was fantastic. I really love being able to do some longer day hikes without being completely miserable and sore, so it is good motivation to keep the weight off and fitness up. I am going to try yoga again on Tuesday. I really miss it, and my wrists are feeling a little bit better.
Hope you all had a great weekend!

[alexa5]

So, surprise today that I weighed 150.5.... after vacation and last week being slight disruptive, I was happy to stay at 152. But this motivates me to keep going. I know it will take a week or two for the new weight to "stick", but I was thrilled! I feel so much lighter and better right now, and would love to actually get to 148 again if that weight works with the amount I am currently eating.

Teresa, how tall are you? I am just wondering if you are already at your body's current happy weight? I know everyone is different, but if I hit 145 again, trying to go or stay below that would be difficult for me. Plus I know that my body is different now since I had a baby, so a few pounds more than before isn't necessarily always a bad thing (if in healthy range), because my body in general changed. Awesome about the long hike...fun! And glad you are feeling better.

Good luck to all...and have a great day.

[tree]

Alexa - congrats on the vacation weight loss! That is great news.
I am about 5'6", and my body's happy weight used to be about 130-135. I can live with 140, but 145 is what happens when I eat ice cream and bagels. Bagels are my kryptonite. I love them, and I gain a pound every time I eat one.
I will be off the grid for a few days on vacation. We will be camping near some really great trails, and I am hoping to literally run my gut off!