I'm also working on trying to lose weight and not gain anymore if nothing else, it's been a ten year battle , though the weight is honestly still the same its the dress size that keeps climbing up... Started at a size 4 (200 lbs of lean muscle) now it's down to 12 from a 16 (200lbs still) ah 5'8" here btw.

For me, my issue has always been eating, I'm a rolly poly aneoxic lol. So to go from 16 to 12 it was a simple matter of setting alarms to remind myself to eat and listening to those alarms. But the DH has decided to get in better health too, so I'll offer what he's done...

Eat breakfast! And include protein with breakfast... Not a bowl of cherrios and glass of OJ. Peanut butter on toast, frozen breakfast links, a hard boiled egg, pick your poison.

Watch portion sizes, even many of the microwave meals are really portioned for 2 meals despite packaged as "individual" meals. See if you can't scare up (or you might already have) an old version of better homes and gardens cookbook. It's great for remembering what a "portion" really is. Like for red meat, make a fist, the size of which is a single portion of 'uncooked' red meat.

As a female, eating red meat is important, but still shouldn't exceed 2x a week. Ditto for fish.

And if freshness is an issue, frozen veggies would be you next best bet, most veggies if you're going to use them with a month can be simply frozen as they come. Longer storage requires the par-boiling and such. Also as a small note for lettuces which don't freeze, whole baby leaf 'bagged' salad mixes last a little over a week in the fridge vs the American or italian mixes.

And as Sally pointed out, PT exercises can certainly help. 20 mins of exercise a day is the recommendation to stay healthy. And it can be broken up into 10 or even 5 min time slots throughout the day.

Given the age factor I imagine you already know to avoid 'fad' diets that tell you to cut out one food or another... So we'll just go with eat a variety, eat often and move as much as you can. If you want a bit of technical help with figuring out where you should be on caloric intake And making sure you're getting some nutrients from your food, I would recommend Myfitnesspal. It's both an app and available online.

Lots of good suggestions here.....thanks! I think accountability is what makes me succeed.....keeping track of what and how much I eat.

I think a lot of the time I eat out of boredom. I need to get a hobby of some sort but it's hard when your hands don't work well most of the time.

I've went vegetarian and pasta now.... Still though I cannot be as active as I once was... So yes...ive put on about 60 pounds in four years. It sucks. Od like to find out how to shed the weight....but how? I can't do rigourous exercise.

Good thread.

For lumia: it can be quite difficult to keep down weight without exercise on a veggie/pasta diet. Mostly because that pretty much translates to carb diet. That doesn't mean you have to eat meat, but do ensure you're getting plenty of protein from beans, nuts and seeds. Also make sure your veggies cover a large variety. And try to stick with whole wheat/grain pastas whenever possible. And be careful with the use of oils to flavor (including salad dressings)

Many people think eating salads and going vegan is 'healthier' or will translate to weight loss, but rarely is that the case in fact the opposite is generally more true. The number one issue is to pull off a vegetarian diet one has to basically be a grazer, that is not allowing more than two hours pass without eating. When ones diet is higher in carbohydrates it quickly burns through them, by not replenishing them you're telling your body it is in 'starvation' mode. Which causes it to store them any way they can (weight gain).

Also there's the difficult task of finding veggies and fruits with similar amino acids to red meat (such acids actually help the body build muscle and burn fat) I beleive its gourds that can mimick meats in that, but not 100% sure.

However the number one thing is to ensure you are still getting plenty of protein without eating meat. A body with insufficient protein will turn to mush, it's what fuels and builds muscles, without enough even if you were an Olympic competitor last year your body would quickly breakdown making weight loss impossible.

I got a carb counter in the mail today! It's from Atkins so I'm sure they want me to buy their foods.

I've lost weight before on a low carb diet but I was working at the time and was busy.....not sitting at home watching food commercials! Does it seem like every other commercial if for food?? Maybe I just need to stop watching TV.

My problem is I love carbs. Bread, pasta, etc. I think it's just asking for failure if I try to remove all of that from my diet so I will try to manage my intake and keep a record of what I eat so I can see just where my downfall is.

I think it's between breakfast and supper

I gots to has my carbs. Life wouldn't be worth living.
That's the big reason I take GC W/ Rasp. K. I helps to
swallow up some of the carbs/sugar/fat.

That's my story and as long as I'm not gaining,
I'm sooo sticking with it.

Wishing you rotts a ruck, Kel.