Oh, to be a loser...

[Biciclista]

I'm a bit confused by this thread. I have no idea how much e.e. cummings weighs now, how much weight she is trying to lose, what she looks like, what her health is like, etc. She did not say she is weighing herself every day; it sounds like it's more like weekly which makes sense for someone in a four-month program. She's just trying to find a balance between food and activity and she would like to continue to lose some weight. I don't think it's uncommon to have trouble figuring out how to eat enough to fuel intense exercise while not overeating.

It's nice to say your weight doesn't matter as long as you're healthy, but being overweight can cause you to no longer be healthy. And there's nothing wrong with wanting to look better in addition to being healthy.

Unfortunately I really don't know what the answers are. Maybe 1600 calories isn't enough to keep you fueled, maybe you're really eating more than you think you are, maybe you're plateauing, etc. I think there's a certain amount of trial and error involved in figuring all this out. There could also be other factors -- for me a certain medication I take every day has affected my appetite and changes in dosage have caused weight gain/loss over the years.

As I've mentioned elsewhere I've found Nancy Clark's Sports Nutrition Guidebook to be very helpful. Other than that, I just try to eat reasonably healthy foods, only eat when I'm truly hungry, and do activities that I truly enjoy.

so you are all right, GLC, no i never had a serious weight problem but ask anyone who has ever been around me, I watch what i eat EVERY SINGLE MEAL and i never overeat and i still started gaining weight a few years ago, so have become even more fastidious. I am surrounded by family members with weight problems and my DH spent 5 years trying to get below 150 pounds and never ever could.

you're right, the OP didn't really state her specifics, until just now, so each of us just went off on our own rants about whatever it is we each think, sorry about that. I just get sad when people are not happy with what they have -- twenty years down the road you're going to slap yourself in the forehead and say "And I wasn't happy about THAT?" I've already done it a hundred times myself.

EE Cummings has now stated that she's on a diet and working with a trainer. I didn't know that before.

Channluv, you are very brave and keep doing what you are doing, I read all your posts and think you are a hero.

and Veronica, you've got more balls than most the guys on BikeJournal. I read all your adventures too - keep it up.

I wish you all the best and sorry if i PO'd the lot of you.

NYBiker, what i meant was, when i was 25 I weighed 110 pounds. I had skinny skinny legs. I had no energy. flash forward
I am now 57 and am creeping up to 130 pounds. I have INCREDIBLE LEGS, I can walk miles, ride many more miles, do pushups, etc, etc. Should i be freaking out because i am carrying all that extra weight? no, it's just a number. It does not reflect my BMI or the muscles in my legs. i gained most of that weight when i started cycling. that's GOOD weight. And my husband, back to him; when he weighed 144 pounds (when we got married) his legs were wimpy; his knees had hardly any muscle around them. So now when he whines about getting to that weight, i know it really IS impossible for him to do without losing those gorgeous muscles. if you don't eat enough, your body's going to start using those muscles as fuel and you're NOT going to get stronger.
Enough. shut up mimi.

[tctrek]

Mimi -- we know you didn't mean harm. It's just weight around your middle is the worst. It's not just an evenly distributed weight -- it's the dreaded belly fat! I have nice arms, thin face, fabulous legs, small hips, no butt and BELLY FAT!!

Arggghh... must stop reading this post. I love me just the way I am

[channlluv]

I recently fell prey to Prevention's marketing of their editor's Flat Belly Diet book. I was several chapters in when I finally got tired of the hype and fakey-fake nutrition.

Some of the tips here:

Don't chew gum because you could swallow air, which can cause bloat.
Avoid fibrous foods like broccoli and carrots and Brussels sprouts because the can cause gas which can make you bloat.
Avoid salt in any form because it makes you retain water, and that cause bloat.

Some of their recommended foods include white bread and Rice Krispies because they have almost no fiber, so they won't bloat.

THESE are people with an unhealthy obsession with their bellies.

I was surprised Prevention was backing this book, but when you look at their pharma-heavy advertisers base, they're probably not worried about the long term health of their readers.

Oy.

Roxy

[tctrek]

I recently fell prey to Prevention's marketing of their editor's Flat Belly Diet book. I was several chapters in when I finally got tired of the hype and fakey-fake nutrition.

Some of the tips here:

Don't chew gum because you could swallow air, which can cause bloat.
Avoid fibrous foods like broccoli and carrots and Brussels sprouts because the can cause gas which can make you bloat.
Avoid salt in any form because it makes you retain water, and that cause bloat.

Some of their recommended foods include white bread and Rice Krispies because they have almost no fiber, so they won't bloat.

THESE are people with an unhealthy obsession with their bellies.

I was surprised Prevention was backing this book, but when you look at their pharma-heavy advertisers base, they're probably not worried about the long term health of their readers.

Oy.

Roxy

Yep. Prevention Magazine is a bunch of hooey.

[channlluv]

I love reading your posts, too, Mimi. And we love you just the way you are, too, Tctrek.

Roxy

[Veronica]

and Veronica, you've got more balls than most the guys on BikeJournal. I read all your adventures too - keep it up.

Thanks Mimi! I had no idea you read about all my silly shenanigans.

And I'm not POed. Life is too short to get upset about stuff on an Internet forum.

Today was boxing day with my trainer. I LOVE boxing day. In between boxing was sprinting up and down the basketball court. Somewhere along the line I actually developed a sprint, instead of a lumber. It felt good - tiring but good.

I did these things today too. No that's not me.

Except I kept my legs straight. When I started working out I could barely do these with bent legs. Don't tell my trainer 3 sets of 20 with straight legs wasn't so bad. She'll make it harder somehow.

Last week I was jumping rope with a regular jump rope. 207 jumps in a minute. This week I had to use the weighted jump rope. She didn't have her stopwatch so I had to jump a hundred times. The rope only weighs a pound - but that makes such a huge difference.

It never gets easier.

Veronica

[Starfish]

I have had a couple of weeks of little, if not backward, progress and it is a mystery because I have been doing a lot and very careful about my diet (unless you count that whole cheesecake the other day, JOKE!!!) Perhaps I am over-training, perhaps I am creating a 'famine' climate within my body because I am just not that hungry, I just want to understand so I can be effective in what I am doing.

Just FWIW, about 2-3 weeks ago, I finally had a week where I was TIRED, CRANKY, and CRAVING. I didn't do it on purpose, but I ended up just eating for about 3 days: chips, ice cream, beer, etc. Well, that week, I did not gain a single pound, and it was the following week that I started to lose again. My body needed some more food and rest, I think.

And, Veronica: This was a great night for me to read about your sprints, etc. Tomorrow morning with my trainer, it is just me, him, an empty room, and some stuff: medicine ball, various sticks, etc. It is non-stop-motion day, and I will be soaking wet in minutes. I am still lumbering. How wonderful to hope that someday I could have a sprint.

[Crankin]

Mimi, you didn't piss me off either. I don't talk about weight or exercise in front of anyone except my cycling friends or my DH, unless someone asks. I feel extraordinarily lucky that I have a flat stomach. Sure, flabby thighs and big bums run in my family, but the exercise has taken care of that. I think that's why, even when I *was* overweight in my early 20's, I didn't see myself as overweight. I didn't have a belly, so I wasn't fat. I just got wider and wider and wider, until I had to buy pants 2 sizes bigger to get past my knees.
When I weighed even less than I do now, most people assumed I was anorexic, which really angered me. Anyone who knows me, would laugh at that suggestion. I was a compulsive exerciser, but eventually, injuries took care of that!

[NJ Jess]

In college I competed in track and field,..discus and shot put. I was out bench pressing and squating the guys. I was 150 pounds at 17 % body fat actually calculated via underwater weight. I still had a stomach,...and boobs! Solid as a rock in my arms, legs, back,....but my tummy and sisters where the only places I was storing my energy.

Then came in season sprints. Lots of them,....
For the next 6 months I was the at 143 pounds and 11% body fat.

It was beautiful for the moment in life, but the work to maintain that regime for a lifetime would be impossible.

My parents and siblings all weigh over 300 pounds each. Three of them have had gastric bypasses. My twin got down to 150, but after 4 years has grazed herself up to 250. Gentics are nearly impossible to overcome. I "workout" at least 3 days a week my entire life and have a physical job to boot.

Make yourself happy, but don't kill yourself doing so.

[shootingstar]

In college I competed in track and field,..discus and shot put. I was out bench pressing and squating the guys. I was 150 pounds at 17 % body fat actually calculated via underwater weight. I still had a stomach,...and boobs! Solid as a rock in my arms, legs, back,....but my tummy and sisters where the only places I was storing my energy.

Then came in season sprints. Lots of them,....
For the next 6 months I was the at 143 pounds and 11% body fat.

It was beautiful for the moment in life, but the work to maintain that regime for a lifetime would be impossible.

Wow. Yes, it is alot of work, more like overtraining (?) to maintain that weight + low body fat.

Had my fat measured 1 and only time so far, over 4 yrs. ago. I can't even remember the %.. don't really care nor have a need to know. Too much effort to plough through my papers to get to the set of medical test results.

[GLC1968]

Mimi - I'm not PO'd. I just felt the need to express myself. And I didn't mean that rant to be directed solely at you. There are lots of people here who try and tell those of us who need to lose weight that we should embrace our curves and our muscles and I think they are missing the point.

I've been party to other forums where there are TONS of women who were going to extremes so that they could have that 'willowy' look. They complained about 'big thighs' when their thigh measurement was 17". The goal was 15". Seriously? I had NOTHING in common with those women.

I just find it so refreshing here on TE that when women talk about losing weight, they truly want to build muscle and lose the extraneous fat to improve performance. And because I'm so happy to have FINALLY found camaraderie on this subject, I'm quick to defend it.

No worries!

[e.e.cummings]

I recently fell prey to Prevention's marketing of their editor's Flat Belly Diet book. I was several chapters in when I finally got tired of the hype and fakey-fake nutrition.

Some of the tips here:

Don't chew gum because you could swallow air, which can cause bloat.
Avoid fibrous foods like broccoli and carrots and Brussels sprouts because the can cause gas which can make you bloat.
Avoid salt in any form because it makes you retain water, and that cause bloat.

Some of their recommended foods include white bread and Rice Krispies because they have almost no fiber, so they won't bloat.

THESE are people with an unhealthy obsession with their bellies.

I was surprised Prevention was backing this book, but when you look at their pharma-heavy advertisers base, they're probably not worried about the long term health of their readers.

Oy.

Roxy

I am glad to find someone else who feels the same way about that book. I bought it, and I found it as shallow as you do. The only thing missing is to tell you to wear vertical stripes and dress in black to hide your belly.

[channlluv]

<snort!>

No kidding. Shallow - that's exactly the right word. I'd like to donate the book and the cookbook that accompanies it, but I'd feel guilty inflicting that thing on anyone. Most of my friends are really health-conscious. I suppose I could donate them to the public library.

The last time I had my fat measured was about a year and a half ago. It was 46%. I was about the size I am now and doing yoga, but not much else, and honestly, not much yoga because my belly and thighs just wouldn't allow for a lot of those positions. (Love me some Warrior, Bridge, and Shevasana, though.)

I don't even want to think what my BMI is.

But I can ride 50 miles on my bike and live to tell the tale, so there.

Roxy

[shootingstar]

I've been party to other forums where there are TONS of women who were going to extremes so that they could have that 'willowy' look. They complained about 'big thighs' when their thigh measurement was 17". The goal was 15". Seriously? I had NOTHING in common with those women.

I just find it so refreshing here on TE that when women talk about losing weight, they truly want to build muscle and lose the extraneous fat to improve performance. And because I'm so happy to have FINALLY found camaraderie on this subject, I'm quick to defend it.

A 17" thigh is getting pretty thin. 15" thigh on grown women..any height is anorexic...This is purely a subjective judgement.... but already I know, since I'm pretty small myself in bone structure.

Their desires must be based on the starving, thin models stalking down the runway.

[spindizzy]

<snort!>
I suppose I could donate them to the public library.
Roxy

I'd suggest you throw it out - or burn it! No-one should be exposed to that sort of drivel.