I have the Etekcity scale recommended in the article @Colorado_mom linked. I’ve had it since March. It replaces my 20 y/o simple, non-digital scale which had become unreliable. So far I really like it but I didn’t necessarily want or need anything fancy. I track my weight in myfitnesspal, manually entering my weight. I don’t care about linking a scale to my phone.
I didn’t realize until just now while looking in my Amazon account to see what scale I bought that I have a food scale by the same company. I’ve had it for a couple of years with no problems so hoping the regular scale will be similarly reliable.
I just realized I posted in this thread way back when it was restarted in February and I had decided it was time to dust off my running shoes after a year of not running at all. I posted the first day I ran and don’t think I posted again! On that particular day (March 1) I got on the scale for the first time since before the holidays and almost fell over at the number I saw at my feet. That began an earnest weight/exercise journey.
I was also doing some exercise videos when I first started C25K. I don’t know what happened, as someone who has never had knee problems, but part way through week 2, I was in excruciating pain when trying to run. I think it was new strain on muscles I had not worked in a long time (I was doing, and still am doing, a lot of squats/lunges). So I gave up on doing C25K and continued walking, and also got new inserts as my were due for replacement.
So a little update since that last post.
After changing up my eating habits on March 1 immediately after seeing the scale (low carbs, no sugar, no alcohol/wine, lots of protein/veggies), daily walking and cardio/strength training videos at home, I have lost 23 pounds. 10 of those pounds were Covid pounds and the rest were thx to menopause, less exercise. I’d still like to lose another 5-6 lbs but I honestly am pretty happy now and feel and look so much better. I’m hoping that getting rid of that weight and my stronger legs/knees will make it easier to get back into running again. However, it is hot and humid here in the summer and I just cannot deal with humidity at this point in my menopausal life. I’m planning on continuing to walk through the summer and pick up C25K in about 6 weeks.
What a great update! Congratulations! And what a great reminder that it takes soooo long.
I find it takes about 10 days to permanently lose a pound now. And with it taking so long, I have to be really careful to manage aches and pains so I don’t end up with injuries that get in the way of a fitness plan (and take longer to heal than when I was younger.) It’s so much more of a lifestyle endeavor now! Mixing in yoga or swimming when I need to back off a little is far more common for me now
I never had a problem with weight until I hit menopause. Any short term weight gain I could easily lose, but after menopause, the same methods did not work. I would lose 6 or so pounds then nothing else would budge. I would just keep gaining/losing those 5-6 pounds. With Covid, my daughter was frequently baking out of boredom, my husband decided to take up a sourdough starter hobby, and it was just not pretty! I did a lot of research this time about menopause and weight gain. Different methods are needed for post-menopausal women which is partly way my old way wasn’t working. I was pleasantly surprised when, for once, after that initial “big” loss of weight the first couple of weeks, I continued to lose a pound a week, week after week, which was a nice mental boost to keep going.
What also really helped me was the my husband was totally onboard as well, which helped with planning meals, etc. It was still challenging b/c with my kids home, they want rice, potatoes, etc. We also used to eat a lot of pasta centered meals - I think that was the hardest thing to give up as it made me planning so much harder taking pasta out of the mix!
Anyway, I really miss running. I have no desire to get back to the distance running I used to do, but being able to run a few miles without dying would be nice.
@4kids4us - congrats on the healthy changes and positive results!! Good for you!! My sugar consumption has been inching up, as well as my carbs. Need to get those lower.
I went to the gym 2 days in a row, yay - thanks in part to the encouragement from reading this thread! I could see that walking 4x a week throughout COVID lock-down was completely insufficient to maintain/build muscle and tone. Def need the weight machines & fun to be back.
Thanks Colorado_mom for the recs on scales! Wirecutter is great. I really like the idea of a digital that captures fractions of pounds. Keeps things from getting out of control early on! Just ordered from Amazon!
4kids4us- I’ve been doing my fitnesspal for 2 months also - hopefully I’ll have the same positive results as you! (just have to kick that sugar to the curb, lol).
Wow… gym 2 days in a row… you are on a roll! Let us know how you like the new scale. And try not to get too hung up on the fractions of pounds. You’ll see daily variations. Just watch for the downward general trend.
Thanks for the scale advice!! Got the Etekcity digital and it works great!! Super easy, readable, and affordable.
Have been going to the gym regularly. Seems at this stage in life it’s the only thing that tightens things up and builds muscle. Almost daily 2 mile walks all thru the pandemic just did not cut it (kept excess weight off but muscle tone and mass sharply declined).
Also went running this week and will shoot for that 5k sometime soon! Good luck to the other couch-2-5kers!!!
Thanks for the update! Sound like you are doing great
Personally I feel like maybe I should start a 5k-2-couch club. In the July head I’ve done some gardening/watering and house projects (hubby painted bedroom, and I helped a lot on furniture moving etc). But not much running or hand weights. I did hop on the bike once… I need to do that more. Inspired by you post, I will go do a stretching video in the back-together bedroom.
My walking buddy, a husky, shamed me this week a couple of times. I was making the walks a little shorter for him because it is really been hot and because he’s older and has had some leg problems (and posters on here said we were going too far at ~7000 steps). I tried to stay in the neighborhood but nope, he wanted to go to the park and refused to turn around.
Last week he was at the dog park (off leash) with my brother and brother couldn’t find him at the end (dog comes on a whistle). Brother found the dog stuck in a muddy creek, had to climb in and pull him out, and then it took hours for the dog to walk back to the car. And an hour at the dog wash to get the mud off. He’s a trooper.
That husky is a trooper! How nice of him to be your fitness encourager.
Last night I did leg stretch video AND arm/dumbell video. Still not eager to run in the heat… even at 6am it is 66 degrees and brutally sunny. But I did do a late morning bike ride, 10 miles (all flat, but about 4 miles on packed dirt). That cheered me.
The weather has been difficult for running between the heat, the sun, and the humidity, so I’ve been doing some walk/run which has made it more tolerable. I’ve been trying not to focus on how hot or unpleasant it is and for some reason, that makes it all the more tolerable.
I thought of you this morn, getting back into the running habit lately after a summer of mostly “garden exercise”. It was perfect weather - 60 degrees, cloudy (a BIG factor in CO, which I was reminded of the few times the glaring sun peeked thru) and slight breeze. I liked it so much that after my normal 5k run I decided to go a bit slower for another 1k and ended up doing another 2.5k.
I owe it to the dog. I feel so guilty if I miss a day with him, so on Saturday I walked in the morning with a friend but then went the normal 5000 steps with the dog at night.
I’m sad it is getting dark earlier. We’ve been waiting until 6:30 to walk (after Jeopardy and when it cools down) but I like to walk on the canal (a paved walking path) and I can’t do it after dark because of some urban campers who stay along the trail and because there have been fox, coyotes, and bobcats sighted on the trail.
My dad is 94 years old, still pretty healthy… and I credit it to his lifelong exercise (skiing, tennis, windsurfing etc), walking (especially when he had an energetic chocolate lab) and “5 a day” fruit/veggie habits. He is still a regular walker at Midhudson Walkway in Poughkeepsie, NY using a cane for caution.
It’s been a lovely autumn in Colorado…… the cooler (but still nice) weather got me to to do more running. I get out a few times a week to run 5k at our local lake trail, and if the day is lovely (and not too hot) I sometimes add another 5k.
This article made me think of the group. Gettting in a walk (or run) every single day sounds like a great thing to do … not there yet, but it is a good goal
