I have serious acid reflux disease, I have asthma, I have a herniated disk and I have fatigue. I know that I MUST lose some weight but I have been overweight all my life and I am over 40.
Anytime I try to follow some diet, I do some damage to my stomach or my sugar levels go haywire (Weights watchers, e-diet, the leptin diet). Exercise has not worked for me in many years now but I still exercise 30 minutes a day to get my good cholesterol up. I am vegan to help my overall cholesterol which is working out quite fine. I need to find some solution for weight loss that would do no more harm. Does anyone have any brew or suggestions?

Both My Fiancee and I are trying to loose weight. We are over 40. We went last week and got the Wii and the Wii sports. We got the Active this past tues. past 2 nights we haven't done anything cause we both are sick. What we have been doing is watching the fat and calorie content. I try to keep under 1800 a day. He tryes 2000. He weighs alot more than me. (270) For me Its alil bit more. I can not drink water. Bet your thinking everyone can drink water. I could but water makes me more thirsty and I get full and it hurts. If I do any activity after drinking water I get sick. Sooo I don't change my drinking habbits. I use splenda in my tea so for us its all about watching the fat and calorie content. I hope that helps.

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The ADA diet (American Diabetic Association) is the easist to follow especially if you are not diabetic --- just make it a way of life. It gets your nutrition and limits your calories at the same time. You divide 1500-1800 calories per day into 5 or 6 meals. I recommend 1800 to maintain and to lose, go down to 1500 (if you are short-5'6" or less, sorry it's 1200 to lose and 1500 to maintain). Eating lots of fat free soups, salad and using a fat free salad dressing most of the time is a big help when on the 1500. Eating at least 35 grams of fiber per day will keep you feeling satisfied and regulate your blood pressure and cholesterol. I drink a fiber supplement and try to make sure any breads I eat are low cal/high fiber/whole grain. Excercise is important at least 30 minutes per day, but if you don't break a sweat, you need more intensity or time.

Weight is an issue for me since having my children. I am on the weigh to achieving my ideal weight again! I had gestational diabetes during my second pregnancy and that's how I discovered the ADA diet. Patience is very important. Look at it like you are driving to a great destination. If you undertook to drive there, you wouldn't give up because you know you just have to keep driving. Same thing, if you have an ideal weight to reach you need to follow your plan until you get there.

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I find that a strict walking regimen helps me more than any diet I've ever done.

Right now, I'm walking 2 miles a day. It's boosting my energy and making me feel better in general, and I've lost 12 lbs in a little over a month without depriving myself of things that I want.

I think that when you're going to the trouble of staying on a strict excercise regimen, you tend to forego eating larger portions. Plus, I'm 48 (almost 49) and I can use all the help I can get in speeding up my metabolism. Excercise does that best.

Weight Watchers works for me also, but I starve to death constantly and can get pretty miserable, and if I slip up and go off of it, I gain the weight back quickly.

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"Now that she's back in the atmosphere
With drops of Jupiter in her hair, hey, hey
She acts like summer and walks like rain
Reminds me that there's a time to change, hey, hey
Since the return from her stay on the moon
She listens like spring and she talks like June, hey, hey" ~ Drops of Jupiter by Train

I cannot be hungry, this damages my stomach so a low cal diet is not possible. By being vegan, I naturally have a diet low in fat and refined ... anything. If I need to add any sugar to something, I only use Agave Nectar which does not affect my insulin levels. I will do some research on herbs.

Try fiber. I have this great supplement called Super Seed Beyond Fiber by Garden of Life. I mix it with a glass of water (or you could do juice) and it really makes me feel full; it has only 80 calories per scoop. Also there is a fiber supplement called glucomannan that swells up to 60 times the size of each capsule. It has no calories and you feel very full when you drink a glass of liquid with it.

Dividing your food into 5 or 6 meals, eating lots of salad with fat free dressing and vegetable soups make it very possible to stay in the low calorie range and never be hungry. Especially if you are vegan, you should be able to stay in the weightloss calorie range. Just watch the fats and sweets, because they can raise your calorie level to the point where you won't lose weight. For your sweetener, try stevia it has no calories in addition to not affecting blood sugar. I like the brand Sweet Leaf Stevia Plus because it is not bitter and it has soluble inulin fiber added to each packet. I recommend that everyone just try and count calories for one day and look at your options. It is very easy to fool yourself in this regard. It is also suprising to find out the large quantity of food you CAN eat, when the fats and sweets are limited.

I start some soup first thing every morning. I make a big salad at lunch time and revisit it several times during a day. I keep the veggie soup always on the back burner so that I have some when I might otherwise crave something sweet. I make my own fat free dressing with apple cider vinegar or balsamic vinigar, a variety of mustards, stevia, spices and V-8 juice. Even with all that, I really credit fiber with being the thing that makes me feel full the longest enabling me to stay on the 1500 diet most of the time.

I do take breaks for special occaisions and I don't beat myself up about it. I just continue my journey to my ideal weight and look at it as a rest stop on the road! Maybe those stops lengthen the journey, but they sure make it more enjoyable!

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Blessings to All

Admin. Assistant and Moderator of:

The Witches' Moot, Psychics's Fireside, Book of Shadows, Spellbinding Books, Brews and Broths, Children of the Moon, Specialist Topics, Aromatherapy and Herbs. PM me, I'm here to help.

There's nothing easy about any of it, I find.

I'm not the most disciplined person to ever walk this earth, so it's been hard for me.

I tend to do alot better at losing weight once I start to see the results...When my clothes start to feel a bit more loose, that's my incentive to try harder.

What type excercise are you doing, croy?

I've modified my eating habits alot, pretty much allowing myself to have what I want, just in moderation. This is a perfect time of year for me to lose weight because of all the great fruits coming available. If my body would allow me to do it, I could live on fruit alone and never hunger for anything else.

My daughter and son in law are firm believers in the Wii fitness program, too, sea willow!

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"Now that she's back in the atmosphere
With drops of Jupiter in her hair, hey, hey
She acts like summer and walks like rain
Reminds me that there's a time to change, hey, hey
Since the return from her stay on the moon
She listens like spring and she talks like June, hey, hey" ~ Drops of Jupiter by Train

I can't believe I didn't ask this before, since your post was requesting recipes!

Are you signed up at Magicka Space? If so, there is a "Recipe Sharing" group you can join...I've posted lots of Weight Watchers recipes there!

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"Now that she's back in the atmosphere
With drops of Jupiter in her hair, hey, hey
She acts like summer and walks like rain
Reminds me that there's a time to change, hey, hey
Since the return from her stay on the moon
She listens like spring and she talks like June, hey, hey" ~ Drops of Jupiter by Train

Morgane, speaking of fruit diets, have you ever tried the Beverly Hills Diet? It's awesome to do this time of year, very cleansing/detoxifying and in one month many people lose 20-30 lbs. It uses the enzymatic action in fruits to your benefit.

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Blessings to All

Admin. Assistant and Moderator of:

The Witches' Moot, Psychics's Fireside, Book of Shadows, Spellbinding Books, Brews and Broths, Children of the Moon, Specialist Topics, Aromatherapy and Herbs. PM me, I'm here to help.

No, I've never tried it!

Right now, I'm trying to get a few pounds off before attempting to quit smoking...Again...

I've lost the weight by dieting before, but just gained it back when I quit smoking. That's why my focus is more on excercise this time around, and the things that will speed up my metabolism.

I will be looking to implement a diet once I give up the cigarrettes, in conjunction with the excercise, so I'll certainly look into it!

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"Now that she's back in the atmosphere
With drops of Jupiter in her hair, hey, hey
She acts like summer and walks like rain
Reminds me that there's a time to change, hey, hey
Since the return from her stay on the moon
She listens like spring and she talks like June, hey, hey" ~ Drops of Jupiter by Train

I have a Gazelle trainer, this is what I use 30 minutes a day. I have used it so much that I had to grease the thing and it still needs greasing now. I tend to listen to fast music when I do my Gazelle and it does make you break a sweat. I did try Stevia but I find it too sweet. I don't need to sweeten anything really, I drink water instead of coffee, tea or soda. I don't bake cakes and muffins and whatnot. I am full with just my main meals. I have used Konjak root (glucomanan) but did not find any weight loss. Thanks for your help anyways.

I don't use the glucomannen suplements very often either--only when I feel like an unsatiable hungry monster!!! I also have the miracle noodles made from konjak and they are so rubbery that I don't use them except when I make asian style food. The Super Seed does great for me and just adding up my daily fiber to make sure I get the 35 grams. I have noticed an overall difference in my blood pressure and cholesterol that I credit the fiber with. For every gram of fiber you eat you can deduct 10 calories from what is absorbed in your system. When I eat 1500 calories including 35 grams of fiber, my net calorie count is actually 1,150!

There is a great book out there called Gut Solutions especially for people who have issues with their stomach and digestive tract and need to lose weight. It sounds like you are on the right track and just need to be patient. I know that I want to lose weight yesterday, but it took time to put it on. It's going to take time to get it off!!! Plus I don't want to suffer.

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Blessings to All

Admin. Assistant and Moderator of:

The Witches' Moot, Psychics's Fireside, Book of Shadows, Spellbinding Books, Brews and Broths, Children of the Moon, Specialist Topics, Aromatherapy and Herbs. PM me, I'm here to help.

I understand the use of "fast music" when excercising. It tends to set your pace. I actually have a specific "excercise" playlist on my mp3 player, and it also works well for house cleaning days!

I don't care for Stevia, either.

I mainly drink water. Every once in awhile I allow myself an iced tea (with sugar) or a pop. I find carbonated drinks cause bladder issues for me, so I try to stay away from them as much as possible. I only use artificial sweeteners in my morning cup of coffee, but would rather not use them at all.

I try to bake everything I can with Splenda rather than sugar.

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"Now that she's back in the atmosphere
With drops of Jupiter in her hair, hey, hey
She acts like summer and walks like rain
Reminds me that there's a time to change, hey, hey
Since the return from her stay on the moon
She listens like spring and she talks like June, hey, hey" ~ Drops of Jupiter by Train

It's important to know that there are many brands of stevia. I hated the first ones I bought--they were either bitter or sickly sweet. I waited a couple years and bought another kind that came in little packets from Trader Joe's and it was okay. Then I was in the health food store and found Sweet Leaf Stevia Plus. That is the one that is just right for me.

_________________
Blessings to All

Admin. Assistant and Moderator of:

The Witches' Moot, Psychics's Fireside, Book of Shadows, Spellbinding Books, Brews and Broths, Children of the Moon, Specialist Topics, Aromatherapy and Herbs. PM me, I'm here to help.

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