I'm sorry you're dealing with this weight gain and the pain from your accident.
Physical therapy may be of great help to you for your back. Ask your doctor for a referral.
With regard to other exercises, try a swimming pool. Water exercises and swimming are great to build strength and lose weight and are very low impact exercises. Even people with little mobility can do well in a swimming pool and a human body weighs less in water than on the ground. There are great water aerobic classes (using floaties or noodles) that offer good exercise with lots of weight support and easy floating. I've done them myself at 9 months pregnant with sciatica and it was great relief.
Regarding food - this can be hard. Caloric intake versus exercise is 80/20 of our weight loss. In other words, what we eat affects weight gain by 80% with exercise at 20%. So while exercise is very important for our general health, it's our calorie intake we need to focus on for weight loss.
You will need to consume fewer calories than you use, to lose weight - something most menopausal women figure out pretty quickly. It's very unfair but it's the way it is.
Don't eat any processed foods - frozen meals are filled with salt, additives and all sorts of chemicals we don't need. They cause weight gain and aren't particularly satiating. Eat fresh, unprocessed food and eat a lot of filling fiber. Snack only on healthy items like low sugar yogurts (I highly recommend Icelandic yogurt), nuts (not Brazil nuts!) and eat brown goods - brown rice, brown breads and whole grain pastas and cereals. Eat some fruit and as many vegetables as you wish.
Don't "drink" your calories. Choose water and a half-juice-half water mix, as well as tea and coffee without all the "Starbuck" type add-ons.
Keeping a food journal is one of the best ways to see how we eat and when. We underestimate how much we eat and the fat/calories involved. However, give yourself a cheat day once a week when you can eat your favorites, otherwise you may binge and life isn't much fun without your favorite treats.
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Hello Anon
Thank you for writing.
I'm sorry you're dealing with this weight gain and the pain from your accident.
Physical therapy may be of great help to you for your back. Ask your doctor for a referral.
With regard to other exercises, try a swimming pool. Water exercises and swimming are great to build strength and lose weight and are very low impact exercises. Even people with little mobility can do well in a swimming pool and a human body weighs less in water than on the ground. There are great water aerobic classes (using floaties or noodles) that offer good exercise with lots of weight support and easy floating. I've done them myself at 9 months pregnant with sciatica and it was great relief.
Regarding food - this can be hard. Caloric intake versus exercise is 80/20 of our weight loss. In other words, what we eat affects weight gain by 80% with exercise at 20%. So while exercise is very important for our general health, it's our calorie intake we need to focus on for weight loss.
You will need to consume fewer calories than you use, to lose weight - something most menopausal women figure out pretty quickly. It's very unfair but it's the way it is.
Don't eat any processed foods - frozen meals are filled with salt, additives and all sorts of chemicals we don't need. They cause weight gain and aren't particularly satiating. Eat fresh, unprocessed food and eat a lot of filling fiber. Snack only on healthy items like low sugar yogurts (I highly recommend Icelandic yogurt), nuts (not Brazil nuts!) and eat brown goods - brown rice, brown breads and whole grain pastas and cereals. Eat some fruit and as many vegetables as you wish.
Don't "drink" your calories. Choose water and a half-juice-half water mix, as well as tea and coffee without all the "Starbuck" type add-ons.
Keeping a food journal is one of the best ways to see how we eat and when. We underestimate how much we eat and the fat/calories involved. However, give yourself a cheat day once a week when you can eat your favorites, otherwise you may binge and life isn't much fun without your favorite treats.
Joining a weight-loss program may also help.
Keep us posted on your progress.
Best,
October 3, 2018 - 11:08amSusan
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