Losing Weight and Feeling Great

One thing I found out by accident earlier this week.  I don’t know if it’s the same for you as what I saw, but I thought it worth mentioning.

While you are losing weight and your skin is changing, it seems a little more sensitive to things like sunlight.  Now I’ve always tanned fairly easily, so perhaps I am a little lazy with slathering on the sunblock.

Looks like I need to be more careful now.

Sunlight and Your Skin Losing Weight

So, I put on the same amount of sunblock I would normally have used (pre-weight loss).  By the end of my little hike, I could tell I had gotten too much sun.

By the time I got to a mirror to survey the damage, it was both better and worse than I expected.  Better in that I was less red than I felt.  Worse in that the skin on my face seemed a little more painful, even though not as red.

It’s been 2 days now and I’m close to back to normal.  However, I haven’t been able to do my facercises the last couple of days, so my new set of photos may need to be a couple days later.

So why could the sun affect me more now, that I have had a good diet these past few months?  Why would a bad diet see less in the way of irritation?  Is there something in sugar and "the whites" (white bread, white rice, etc.) that affects the skin?

I’m going to do some investigating on that front, so stay tuned!

Ever feel like you’ve been at your diet for forever and not much seems to be happening?  You’ve come along way, perhaps, but it doesn’t really seem like it.

How about a novel way to document your weight loss — scrap it! 

The Power of a Scrapbook for Losing Weight

I discovered this quite by accident when I was around 13 or so.  I was probably around 40 pounds overweight and knew I needed to lose weight.  But being 13, I didn’t have the money for diet foods.  I didn’t know what I was supposed to eat (only that candy was bad).

I bought some of the teen magazines and in one, I remember a story about a teen who lost 100 pounds.  All kinds of pictures, and stories of what it was like, being fat and being thin.

I cut out that article and put it in a notebook.  And as I found other weight loss articles in other places, I put those in my notebook, too.  Whenever I was feeling low, I’d get out that notebook and look through all the pages.

(Yes, I did eventually lose the weight, got skinny and kept it off for many, many years.  Turning 40 did me in, but that’s a whole other story.)

Create Your Own!

So why not create a scrapbook about you and your weight loss?  No one else has to see it, but it can be there for you to page through when you’re feeling low on willpower.  Make it nice, just like you would any scrapbook.  Find old pictures and take some new ones.  Find motivational stories in magazines and cut ‘em out and scrap them.  Play around with it and have some fun!

Don’t know how to scrap?  If there’s a craft store near where you live (and there should be — they sprout like weeds), they probably have a intro class.  If there’s a scrapping store near to you, they will be more than happy to help you!

There are also some home scrapping parties around — someone you know probably knows someone who does one.

While learning in person is probably best, there are also scrapbooking magazines and books from which to learn.

And of course there is online information.  One place that seemed interesting is Scrapbooking101.  Another you might like to check out is Learn2Scrapbook.

So, scrap your weight loss!  You’ll be able to look back and realize how very, very far you’ve come.

Just a quick post, because I got excited about this.  A few days ago I started the Facercise challenge, where I took the before picture, would do the Facercise exercises for 2 weeks, then take more photos — hopefully there would be a change.  (Here’s the original post.)

There’s a change alright — after just 3 days!  Let me explain how I can tell.

There are three exercises for "hooded" eyes — you know, the kind of problem you want an eyelift for.  Saggy upper eyelids is another way to put it.

Of the three exercises, I have a problem doing two of them well with my right eye.  I can do them, but just barely (left eye is fine).

I looked in the mirror this morning.  I see a definite difference between my left eye and right, as far as the sagging/hooding.

After just three days of Facercises!

Of course, I still have a problem — how to coax my right eye muscles  to be able to do the exercises properly without involving my left eye muscles.  Gotta work on that.  But now I’ll be excited to show you the difference when I reach the 2 week mark!

I saw something interesting a week or so ago, and it was an article about how dieters who kept an online blog were more successful in losing weight.  More successful even than people who kept a journal.  Why?

Public accountability.

Sorry I can’t post the direct link to the article; I meant to bookmark it but it slipped my mind…and now I can’t find it again. 

Anyway, the whole idea is that blogging about your weight loss makes you more motivated.  Of course it could be that people who decided to blog are more motivated from the very beginning.  A chicken and egg proposition I guess.

I’ll raise my hand to be a poster child of how this can be; here’s the scoop.  In January 2005, I started a weight loss blog to give me some accountability, and hopefully give others some information.  I think I blogged pretty well for a month, then less and less.  And yes, that kind of paralleled my weight loss success.  The less I blogged about it, the less motivated.  The less motivated, the easier to go off the diet.  Which I did, in a big way.  You can see this old blog here.

Fast forward to Summer 2007.  I finally decided to lose weight again.  And this time keep it off.  I really needed some accountability, seeing as I had (gulp) 135 pounds to lose.  I’d need a ton of motivation and accountability for that!  You can see in the above blog that I had 7 posts from that time, then I quit the writing.  Why?

To start building my Losing Weight Over 40 website.  And then of course this blog as well.

No, you don’t have to build a whole website to get the weight loss benefit (although if you want to, contact me for some information).  Blogs are much cheaper (free, even) and much easier to set up and use — takes 10 minutes or less.

If you want to try this route, why not go for a free blog over at Wordpress.com or Blogger?  Start up a blog and post.  You’ll not only help keep yourself motivated, but also perhaps help someone else with your writings.

If you think this blog you’re reading has helped you, why not put me on your blogroll of links?  Just use the address http://blog.losing-weight-over-40.com when you do (thanks!).

Maybe we can all help each other in our weight loss journey.  To our success!

By the way, is there anything in particular you’d like to see me cover in this blog?  Post a comment and let me know.

Did you realize that the scales can lie?  That weight loss isn’t always visible on those scales?  That you may actually be losing all kinds of fat while the number on the scale refuses to budge?

If you don’t know how the scales can lie, you may be giving up on your diet for weight loss far too soon.  You may be far more successful than you think!

Why Scales Can Lie

Scales are wonderful for weighing things, but terrible for describing that weight.  The scales are a number, but not necessarily the final determination if someone is fit or not.  Here’s an example that I’ve seen myself.

A lady by the name of Karen decided to join our weight loss group at work.  According to the scales, she was overweight — 121 pounds at 5" tall.  But no one who looked at Karen would describer her as overweight — the guys all drooled when she walked by. 

Turns out Karen had a part-time job as an aerobics and weight-training instructor for women.  She weighed 121 pounds, but she was solid muscle.  The scales were lying to her.  She didn’t need to lose an ounce.

(Turns out she joined our group for motivation and to make sure she didn’t slack off and gain fat.)

So although the scales were saying Karen was overweight, in reality she was very fit.  The scales don’t measure how much fat we carry.

What Can You Do?

OK, so the scales can lie — how can you tell?  Here are some tips for you to use:

• Weight yourself one a week at most.  Weighing yourself every day can be counter-productive — one night with some salty foods and you balloon 3 pounds.  No, take your weight once a week to see your overall progress.
• Take your measurements once a week.   The scales can lie in that you may be losing fat but replacing it with muscle.  Your weight may  seem like it’s stuck, but your fat is disappearing and your clothes are getting looser.
• Get a BMI (Body Mass Index) caliper — or use the old pinch test.  While the caliper is more accurate, how much (or as you lose weight, how little) skin you can pinch will show you the progress you’ve made.

Now in an ideal world, all three of these would keep going down at once.  But that doesn’t always happen.  If you go only be the scales, you may think you’re not losing weight when you are actually losing all kinds of fat.  You may be successful and not even realize it!

While there are BMI scales, they tend to be quite expensive.  But if you seriously want to keep track of your BMI compared to your weight, they can take out a lot of the guesswork.

So sure, regular scales are good for measuring overall weight progress, you have to take into consideration your measurements.  Inches count, too!

In my previous post, I talked about saggy skin on your face, and how you can combat it with Facercises.  Now let’s talk about the rest of your body.

Summer is coming, and that means more revealing clothes — shorts, bathing suits, short sleeves and tank tops.  If you’re like me, you avoid all of them!  (Well, maybe except for the short sleeves.)  Maybe now is the time to do something about it.

Yes, I know — exercise is not my favorite thing in the world.  And I’m limited in what I can do because of the sciatica (although that is getting better as I lose the weight).  And I don’t have much time to spare in my days.  So, does this sound familiar — something like you?

I think I may have found something that even I can do, and in 15 minutes a day.  Low impact, and inexpensive.  So, I had to investigate.  I have to do something, especially since my weight loss has slowed way down — time to add at least a tiny bit of exercise.

So, I bought Denise Austin’s book
Sculpt Your Body with Balls and Bands: Shed Pounds and Get Firm in 12 Minutes a Day.  What did I have to lose?

Anyway, Denise explains how you can use a balance ball and some resistance bands to tone and trim your body.  Get your metabolism revved up some.  De-sag your muscles with exercises that attack your problem spots, whatever they are.

Denise’s book is well laid out and easy to follow.  The exercises themselves are demonstrated in photos that show the exercises from start to finish.  So far, so good.  She even has sample exercise routines that cover your whole body — or you can design your own workout with her guidance.

Ok — 12 minutes a day.  Low impact.  Inexpensive.  Meets my criteria.

So, I’m going to give it a shot.  I’ll take my measurements tomorrow and start the exercises.  I’ll post my results at 2 week intervals.  I’ve slowed down to 1/2 pound a week on my diet alone, so let’s see what this does — will I start losing weight faster again?

Why not join me?  Get a copy of the book at your local bookstore, or order it online .  Same thing with the balance ball and resistance bands — go to a sports store and grab some, or order your stability ball
and stretch band set
online, too.

It’s 12 minutes a day.  Your body is worth it.  Low impact, inexpensive and you can do it in the privacy of your own home.  Let’s do it together and post your results!  Join in anytime — I’d love to have you try it and get your opinion, too.

A friend of mine one time said something along these lines:

"I figure if I’m skinny all my life, when I get older, I can just gain weight and I won’t show the wrinkles.  You know, kind of like a balloon — fat will stretch the wrinkles out."

That was almost 20 years ago, and I think she’s had time to reconsider that statement.  But is there a nugget of truth in what she said?  If you lose weight, will the skin on your face sag and get wrinkly?  There’s no one way to answer that, because everyone is different, but here are some things to consider.

Your Age

The younger you are, the more likely your skin will spring back.  For example, if you’re in your 30’s or 40’s, you have a better chance of not having much skin sagging, if at all.

The older you are, the more possible it is for a sag effect — but keep reading, as there are ways to fight back!

The Number Of Pounds You Have to Lose

The fewer pounds you need to lose, the less adjustment your skin needs to make.  Conversely, the more pounds, the higher possibility of some sag.

There’s a way to fight back here, too.  By losing weight slowly (no more than 2 pounds a week), you give your skin time to play "catch up" with your weight loss.  You’re less likely to show a saggy look.

Your Skin Type

If you have very dry skin, it has less of an ability to adapt to your weight loss.  Your best bet here is to splurge — with every 5 or 10 pounds gone, have a professionally-done facial.  And between times, use a good exfoliant and moisturizer suited to your skin.

If you have oily skin, you’re more in luck, as it tends to spring back faster.  But you can also benefit from a professional facial after every 10 or 15 pounds gone.  Meanwhile, exfoliate regularly and use a water-based moisturizer.

Combination skin — your have the best and worst of both.  Yep, a professional facial would also benefit your skin every 10 pounds or so and (you guessed it) exfoliate and moisturize appropriately.

Fight Back!

Obviously you don’t want to add wrinkles to sagging, so common sense applies here — limit sun exposure and alcohol, and quit smoking — these all help.

So what can you do for the sag?  How about facial exercises?  The whole idea is that the face exercises strengthen and build up your muscles (cheeks, forehead, eyes, chin, throat) so that they hold up your skin better.

They are quick (usually about 20 minutes) and you can do them anywhere — at home, in the car, lying in bed before you go to sleep.

One book I’ve read and think is excellent (and am putting into practice) is by Carole Maggio called Facercise.  Carole has packed a lot of information in this book, and the exercises cover every spot on your face — from forehead to throat.

A neat part of the book is in the beginning where she shows some real women’s before picture, and then after just 7 days — the book is worth it almost worth just those pictures, but Carole shows us how they did it!

And it’s not just about sagging — the facercises can also combat wrinkles.  While they may not totally go away, they can certainly be less noticeable and give you a younger appearance.

Oh, another way the facercises work is that they increase the blood flow to your face and that nourishes it…and helps to give your skin a bit of a glow.

I got excited when this book finally arrived and I was able to read it and then actually do the exercises.  Now I’ve only really done it once so far, and I’ve put my "before" pictures on the "Facercise Challenge" page.  I think then I’ll give it two weeks, get another photo, and then again 2 weeks after that.

Warning, though — they aren’t quite as easy as they initially seem from the book.  I just finished a set and my face is kind of sore — I didn’t realize how out-of-shape the muscles actually were!

So get a copy of the book and join me.  Let’s fight back with Facercise.
  The book isn’t expensive at all (less than $11) so it’s cheaper than some of the face moisturizers you use!  Buy the book once and you have it the rest of your life.

Let’s get facercized!

There are some scary diet "tips" out there, coming from the celebrity front.  Sure, we’ve all heard about the models who are anorexic, the actresses afraid to eat more than a few leaves of lettuce at a time.  No, I’m talking about some diet "tips" that can tip you right over into a grave!

Here’s one of the new diets — a fast.  With a twist.  Fasts aren’t anything new, and they can be healthy — but not Hollywood-style.

How about a diet of water, lemon juice, maple syrup and cayenne pepper?  And then take a colon cleanse (so what is there to cleanse, anyway?).  And I’m not talking a one or two day fast, either.

Another trick is to use a laxative tea.  A cup is fine, but some people are drinking five and ten cups of this stuff a day.  Now that’s a way to mess up your body’s schedule — as soon as you stop with the tea, you get painfully constipated.

Here’s one I talked about the other day in my post about drunkorexia — women who subsist on coffee and alcohol, and the trend started with the celebrity circuit.  Heaven forbid that something healthy should pass between their lips.

This one may hit home with us, though — why can’t we lose weight when we do the same things other people do?  The "other people" may not be doing what you think; case in point:

“I had one actress who trained with me and took six Spin classes a week. And all
she ate was lettuce and Swedish Fish. When the press asked her how she’d
‘transformed’ her body, she said, ‘Oh, I do yoga and hike with my puppy.’ That
made me laugh. Don’t lie about how much you work out, because other women are
going to think, I walk my dog, why don’t I look like that?”
— Gunnar
Peterson, fitness instructor

(Read the rest of the article here.)

Losing weight the right (i.e. healthy) way is hard and slow.  But wouldn’t you rather be healthy while you’re losing weight than so sick by the time you’ve lost the weight that you don’t have the energy for anything?

I’m speaking of the gowns they give you in the doctor’s office — you know, the lovely ones that leave either your frontside or backside exposed to the chill of the air conditioner?

I saw a report where overweight women were less likely to be screened for cancer, compared to women who were of normal weight.  Why?

One of the reasons is that women who were significantly overweight avoided the doctor’s office.  Why?  One of the reasons given was that the office gowns didn’t cover enough of the body.  Another reason was to avoid a confrontation with their doctor over how much they weighed.  And finally — embarrassed to get on the scales.

I can relate to the last one.  In one office the scale was in a very public place and the weight was called out over the din of the office clatter.  Whoa!  Dead silence after that.  Embarrassed?  You betcha!

I also have an issue with those gowns they give you to wear.  There have been times I’ve wanted to ask for two — one to put on each side.   A few times, I’m not even sure that would have worked.  (Who do they design these things for — elves?)

Well, all humor aside, ladies, we do need to get checked and screened more often as we get older, not less.  I have a friend who died of stomach cancer not too long ago; she was about my age (mid 40’s).  She had avoided the doctor until she got too uncomfortable.  And paid far too high a price.

Life is trying at times, but it’s also precious.  Don’t let your weight get in the way of getting regular checkups and screening.  It’s your life we’re talking about here, which is more important than a little embarrassment.

(If you’d like to read the original article, you can find it here.)

There was an article yesterday reported by Reuters, about a possible link between obesity, refined carbs and throat cancer.  A partial quote from the article follows:

"The researchers, all associated with Case Western Reserve University and
University Hospitals of Cleveland, in Ohio, compared National Cancer Institute
data for esophageal adenocarcinoma from 1973-2001 and food consumption
information from the National Nutrient Data Bank from 1909-1997."

You can read the entire article here.

Now what’s interesting here is that the link seems to be that refined carbs are implicated in obesity.  Overweight and obese individuals tend to have acid reflux more often than those of normal weight.  The acid reflux is then contributing to the esophageal cancer.

What’s a refined carb?  The "whites" for sure — white bread, white rice, white sugar.  Also included are pasta, bagels, buns…comfort foods.

This would also loosely include other sugars — raw, honey, corn syrup.  And products made with these sugars.

This is anecdotal, but my husband has had acid reflux all the years we’ve been married.  Last October he went on a diet that has very little in the way of refined carbs and lots more fresh veggies, fresh fruits, whole grain breads, etc.

He’s lost weight and his acid reflux is virtually gone.  This from a man who has been going to doctors for years and they put him on all kinds of prescriptions.  No one told him to just cut the refined carbs.  Interesting, hmm?