Fredrik
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I'm obese!I just thought we Langcaféinos could need to get away from our obession with national characteristics and gather around something more wholesome and inclusive: My dieting!
The thought has grown in me since Sander asked for diet tips some months ago and with Porthos mentioning race in every second sentence, I have now firmly decided to slim drastically down in order to do favour to my (human) race. It's badly needed, I weighed in at 116 kilos / 255 punds yesterday! With a height of 186 cm / 6'1, that gives me a body mass index of 33, 5. Since obesity starts at 30, I am one fat, obese person!
Although I am very fond of my body, I would like to fit into the national costume I inherited from an old grand-uncle, at my cousin's wedding in July. So my goal is going to be to loose 40 kilos / 88 pounds before July! I am pretty sure I can make it, as I once lost 20 kilos / 44 pounds quite easily by just eating healthier and exercising.
I don't believe in any specific diet, they are just rubbish. Everybody knows what's healthy and what's not. More important is, I think, to tie one's dieting up against some ideas and make an ideology out of your diet. So my diet is going to be:
- A celebration of the Democratic victory in the US and a fight against the evil Bush!
- A condemnation of spectator sports!
- A strike against corporate America!
- A vitalization of grassroot politics and a show of support for the Norwegian Green Liberal Party, Venstre!
- An embracement of the Nynorsk norm of the Norwegian language!
- An annihilation threat against the fir trees of Western Norway and useless celebrities!
And since a Democratic victor in Pennsylvania the other day said that as America had started in Philadelphia, the current change in America would start in Philadelphia, I'll post a picture for inspiration: a symbol of that beautiful Dutch-style Calvinistic zeal that is the best inspiration for a successful diet:
Independence Hall:
I'll keep you updated!
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Benjamin [inactive]
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Wow... your body mass index is double mine, LOL. 
And I must say... that Independence Hall is so Dutch! (Although it wouldn't look out-of-place in England either).
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Pauline
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Fredrik good luck with your diet !!! Benjamin, maybe you can go on a put on weight diet at the same time 
I've noticed, I'm more fat that last year ; it's not nice at all !! I'm not overweight, but if it will continue every year more, then after 10 years I will be fat. But, I like food, so a diet will not be very fun 
we can write down when we lose some weiht, and how many - on this thread ?
The most ducth thing of the photo (or one of those), is the tulips !
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Deborah
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Losing about 11 lbs a month is some serious dieting, Fredrik! I suggest you get a job as a bicycle messenger. A friend of mine lost 30 lbs in his first month at that job. Of course, this was in San Francisco, where bicycle messengers have to negotiate some pretty steep hills.
Recently one of my co-workers returned to the office quite upset after being told by her doctor that she was obese. As she was already aware of how much overweight she was, what upset her was the way the doctor just came out and called her "obese". Of course, the doctor was only using it as a technical term, but we're used to hearing people say it with so much more implied.
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Deborah
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| Pauline wrote: | | we can write down when we lose some weiht, and how many - on this thread ? |
I weigh about 15 pounds less than I did last spring (yay!). I actually had lost another 5 lbs, but I gained it back recently since I've been sleeping so badly that I have no energy even to go walking on my lunch break. This has to stop!
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Porthos
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Fred,
You might not like this, but this is what I would recommend. Eliminate carbs from your diet for a month. You'll drop about 30 lbs. I once went searching for a cure for my illness, and some quack homeopathic doctor put me on a diet which was completely absent of any form of carbohydrate, even in food ingredients. All I had was pure meat and vegetables. At the time, I was about 10 lbs overweight, but because of this diet he put me on, I lost over 40 lbs!!! I looked emaciated. I gained the weight back, but it took time. I weigh 164 lbs right now, and I'm in good shape, but what I do is just refrain from large portions, and I really don't eat junk food, and I never drink soda, which is so bad for you, and I drink tons of water.
The no-carb philosophy works because your body depends on carbohydrates for energy. When there is no sugar in your body to convert to energy, your body instead eats up its fat reserves, and the pounds disappear overnight. It's not a very healthy diet, and it's something that's not sustainable over the long term, although some would say it is.
Pauline,
Unless you are more than 10 lbs overweight, I wouldn't stress out about it. Girls here in America are paranoid about their weight, and far too self conscious. I tell them to ease up and enjoy life. Eat what you want, enjoy eat, and eat with passion, but only in moderation. That seems to be the key to everything in life.
I'm starting to sound like Dr. Phil.
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Pauline
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Porthos,
I'm not overweight but I'm much more fat. Until about one year ago, I was slim, so for sport it was better that now because I'm bigger and more heavier as well. What I think, is that, if it will continue, then after some years, suddenly I will disocver that I will be fat, and this is better prevent it. I'm 1,61m and approx 57kg, but probably I was - 10 kg before, and despite getting taller, this was in comparaison few difference.
I will go on a diet at the same time with Fredrik so we can write down on this thread how it go, and if we lose weight ! You recommend meat and vegetables. It will be difficult without eat chips (fries) 
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Porthos
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Yeah, and I also think that dieting should be gender based. Men and women generally crave different foods. Women crave chocolate, especially when on their period. Science is trying to find out exactly why. I think it's better to eat what you enjoy, but only in small portions. Otherwise, you might find yourself binging and eating two giant candy bars or something. Men are usually weak to salty starches, while women are usually more inclined to endulge in sweets.
And if you only need to lose a few vanity pounds, DO NOT go on the no-carb diet, especially since you are a teenager and still growing. If you only need to lose 5-10 pounds, then just focus on eating healthy, cutting down portions, and trimming daily calorie intake, while also exercising regularly.
And have you considered that you might have gained more fat mass simply because of puberty? Girls will start to develop a higher body fat percentage as curves kick in and fat is gained in other areas, which gives women that womanly shape. That is a good thing.
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Loic
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Fredrik: I think you should consider playing rugby or american football or some other intense contact sports. With a mass like yours, you can create plenty of momentum.
Can I suggest a regime of daily runs in the morning, squash in the afternoons and a game of golf in the evenings?
I don't think dieting is a good idea. It slows down the metabolism rate. In the same vein, I think the Atkins diet is baloney. Carbohydrates are very important if we are doing exercise on a regular basis.
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Walker
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Fredrik, det där var nästan lite rörande, faktiskt. Jag hoppas att du lyckas med att gå ned i vikt så pass att du kommer i din ärvda nationaldräkt! Med din "ideologiska diet" kommer det säkert gå bra, se bara till att ha dessa dina punkter framför dig (eller bakom dig) när du rör på dig.
| Pauline wrote: | | I've noticed, I'm more fat that last year ; it's not nice at all !! I'm not overweight, but if it will continue every year more, then after 10 years I will be fat. But, I like food, so a diet will not be very fun |
Don't worry, Pauline! Just make sure you get some regular exercise.
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David
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Good luck with your diet, Fredrick! Also, are you exercising regularly? If you are on a diet be sure to also exercise at least one hour 3+ times a week.
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Uriel
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Low-carb diets aren't that good for you -- yes, you drop weight at first, but it's not sustainable, since you can't stay on that diet forever. People on it tend to eventually gain all the weight back. It's also hard on your kidneys, and forces your body into ketosis (burning fat for energy), which sounds great until you realize that diabetics go into it all the time -- it's called diabetic ketoacidosis, and it's a life-threatening emergency, since all kinds of toxic chemicals are produced when the body has to metabolize large amounts of fat.
Diets just don't work (unless you've been eating McDonald's all your life and are now switching to real food). They just make you obsess about food even more. The only thing that really works is increasing the amount of exercise you do.
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Porthos
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No Uriel, in addition to exercise, you also have to reduce calorie intake. You need more calories going out then coming in. Negative calorie intake = weight reduction.
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Uriel
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I have a friend who is a personal trainer, and she says eat whatever you want; just step up the exercise.
I think once your body and metabolism start to change, it begins to crave different foods anyway, or at least a different ratio of protein to carbs to fats, since it needs more of certain types of nutrition to maintain muscle versus fat. The eating problem probably begins to take care of itself. Plus, body-builders often eat many more calories than ordinary people, since muscle requires more.
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Porthos
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I think you're trying to have ur cake and eat it too. You can exercise all you want, but if you are still eating in excess of what you burn, then you are never going to lose weight. It's simple mathematics. You must be balanced. Biking for two hours at the gym ain't gonna do you any good if on your way home, you stop by at a burger joint, and chow down on a burger, supersize fries, and a coke. Only to go home to a beer and chips, or a piece of chocolate cake.
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Fredrik
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Thanks for all your encouragement, guys!
After having started exercising (my back was killing me when I went for a walk, as I'm not used to walk, I bike everywhere!) and eating healthily (what a delight poched cod with whole legumes and potatoes is after having been addicted to junk food! And now I have smoked mackerel waiting for me! mmm) I feel better!
I don't expect that great results for the next two weeks, as I'll be busy with exams, but good eating and exercise habits are of course very good for hard studying. And I think it will be really useful to get a good start before Christmas, so that I can incorporate Christmas in my diet. After all, Christmas is very well suited for dieting: Healthy, traditional food and long walks with family and friends!
I think I agree with Uriel that although a low-carb diet probably can do quick wonders, it's not that good in the long perspective. The trick is probably not to ban all carbs, but all refined and processed carbs. Wholegrain instead of refined wheat flour and cooked potatoes instead of fries.
(But my real secret trick is just to make the kind of food that my mother cooks. When I eat her food for any longer period, I always loose weight. And not because it's bad, lol, quite the contrary. But just like the Mediterranean diet everybody praises, traditional Norwegian cooking is a very balanced diet. Even though I get the feeling that we are eating all the time when I go home for visits, I realize that we are not eating junk, like I often do on my own, but frequent, small portions of very healthy, unprocessed stuff.)
Pauline:
According to Body Mass Index you are not at all overweight. Just eat healthily and exercise, heavy dieting is dangerous in your age. But I guess you know, you know so much for your age! (But perhaps less fried potatoes would be smart, although I know that must be difficult for a Belgian!) 
Walker!
How sweet and interesting of you to say that it was touching/moving to hear! That must be a Scandinavian thing, because I felt exactly the same when Sander wrote that he needed diet tips! It has to be a Scandinavian thing, just see how all the Americans here pour out good advice as if this is something they do every day! I guess we Scandinavians are bit more timid and shy about our weight and weight loss.
And i came up with another thing for my ideology:
- Anti-Australian (although I like their English, I hate their nation. Why couldn't they exterminate all their nasty snakes and spiders instead of their Aboriginies.)
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Deborah
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| Fredrik wrote: | And i came up with another thing for my ideology:
- Anti-Australian (although I like their English, I hate their nation. Why couldn't they exterminate all their nasty snakes and spiders instead of their Aboriginies.) |
I'm shocked! That is such a species-ist statement! Why should it be either/or?
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Deborah
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| Fredrik wrote: | Walker!
How sweet and interesting of you to say that it was touching/moving to hear! That must be a Scandinavian thing, because I felt exactly the same when Sander wrote that he needed diet tips! It has to be a Scandinavian thing, just see how all the Americans here pour out good advice as if this is something they do every day! I guess we Scandinavians are bit more timid and shy about our weight and weight loss. |
Well, for years we Americans have been watching talk shows in which people blab their most intimate secrets to a huge audience, so I suppose talking about one's weight doesn't seem out of the ordinary.
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Porthos
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Americans are more open about almost everything when compared to Europeans, except maybe sex.
And why don't you like Australians? I like Australians just fine, thank you.
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Fredrik
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Well, it's more the Australian nation that I dislike. With all the spiders, crocs, sharks etc. it sounds like an awful place where I'd never go. And the thought of what they did to those Aborigines is equally awful. Especially when modern Australia presents itself as such a casual, open and friendly place....hypocrites! A lot of Norwegian students also go to Australia to study and Australia just sounds like a place that undermines classical learning.
Cant' really explain it, with Australia and reptiles I'm very species-ist and non-PC, hehe.
No back to the topic:
Yesterday I had an orgiastic but extremely healthy culinary experience:
Smoked mackerel with boiled potatoes, carrot and cucumber......mmmm
If you have never tasted cold-smoked mackerel you have to! It was a long time since I had had it, and it was so good! And the best thing is that it is brimfull of Omega-3 fatty acids.
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Uriel
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| Quote: | | It has to be a Scandinavian thing, just see how all the Americans here pour out good advice as if this is something they do every day! I guess we Scandinavians are bit more timid and shy about our weight and weight loss. |
Really? You find us weird?
Can't agree with you on the Australian thing, though -- I've always wanted to try one, myself. 
As for the spiders and snakes and sharks, oh my! -- from what Australians have told me, the likelihood of actually running into one of those nasty critters without an Animal Planet camera crew behind you is actually pretty low. Kind of like at my work, where we've spotted (and almost stepped on) at least a dozen poisonous rattlesnakes in the last month or two, and yet no one's even come close to being bitten -- one snake did rattle a warning, but that's about it. We just call the snake rescue guy and he comes out and gets them.
And the aborigine thing -- you're really going to hold that against modern-day Australians? Oh please! Didn't you guys invent the VIKINGS? The Scourge of God? "From the terror of the Northmen, O Lord, deliver us!"?
That's the pot calling the kettle black if ever I heard it!
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Fredrik
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From what I have heard, Aborigines are still very absent from mainstream Australian society. They are not included in the same way as Native Americans are in the US.
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Pauline
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I have heard, that the children of Aborigine families, was brought away of their families, for obligatory live in a place similar with an orphanage. The treatment of them, this was measured according to the colour of the skin. So, therefore, the generation after didn't had anymore the traditions and knowledge to have a good society /community etc.....
Frdeik, das war besonders schwierig auf Englsich zu schreiebn ; also, was ich meinte wäre, dass wenn die Kinder weggenommen werden, und in einem Waisenhaus aufwachsen, dann ist es selbstverständlich nachher so, dass die nicht wissen wie ein Famile zu « leiten » und gleichzeitig verliert man die Traditionen. Sonst, weiss ich gar nichts von Australeien, ausser, das man Englisch spricht und solche Sachen die alle wissen.
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Porthos
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| Fredrik wrote: | | From what I have heard, Aborigines are still very absent from mainstream Australian society. They are not included in the same way as Native Americans are in the US. |
My friend is half Native-American, and she gets money from the government every month, simply for being of Native American blood. She also gets free university, anywhere in the U.S., and she will never have to pay taxes, just because she was lucky enough to be born to a Native American woman. I always joke around about her hooking me up with free college. We get a good laugh out of it.
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Loic
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I must say, the Aborigines do have a fondness for the bottle.
The 'White Australia' policy is a bitch, but it was in the past. Modern Australians are egalitarian and open-minded. Too egalitarian, in fact. They have a 'tall poppy syndrome' which instinctively compells them to take down anyone who has become too successful.
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Walker
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| loic wrote: | | I must say, the Aborigines do have a fondness for the bottle. |
There's a lot alcoholism amongst Native Americans too. Perhaps there's a reason for it - the evil of the white man.
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Porthos
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| Walker wrote: | | loic wrote: | | I must say, the Aborigines do have a fondness for the bottle. |
There's a lot alcoholism amongst Native Americans too. Perhaps there's a reason for it - the evil of the white man. |
Speaking as someone who once lived near a reservation, I can tell you, that Native Americans still have a tendency toward alcoholism. It's genetic.
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Loic
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Porthos: I must say that your sometimes rather un-PC opinions can be rather refreshing.
But I do not think that a tendency to alcholism is inherently genetic. It is more likely a culture that is tolerant towards such behaviour.
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Porthos
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| loic wrote: | | Porthos: I must say that your sometimes rather un-PC opinions can be rather refreshing. |
Why thank you! I pride myself in them.
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Deborah
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| loic wrote: | Porthos: I must say that your sometimes rather un-PC opinions can be rather refreshing.
But I do not think that a tendency to alcholism is inherently genetic. It is more likely a culture that is tolerant towards such behaviour. |
There is a growing body of scientific evidence suggesting that some people have a genetic predisposition to alcohol dependance.
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Uriel
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| loic wrote: | Porthos: I must say that your sometimes rather un-PC opinions can be rather refreshing.
But I do not think that a tendency to alcholism is inherently genetic. It is more likely a culture that is tolerant towards such behaviour. |
It has nothing to do with being PC or not. As Deborah says, it's been pretty accepted lately that the tendency toward alcoholism does have a biological basis.
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Walker
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| Quote: | | How sweet and interesting of you to say that it was touching/moving to hear! That must be a Scandinavian thing, because I felt exactly the same when Sander wrote that he needed diet tips! It has to be a Scandinavian thing, just see how all the Americans here pour out good advice as if this is something they do every day! I guess we Scandinavians are bit more timid and shy about our weight and weight loss. |
Yeah, I guess we are! Since almost everyone at work is female and 50+ there's been quite a bit of dieting going on there, even collective dieting. But I don't think I've ever heard anyone give another person advice on how to lose weight. The risk of misinterpretting the advice is probably too great, it might be perceived as "you're a fat-ass!. Plus, one's weight is a very personal thing for many people.
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Uriel
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| Quote: | | Plus, one's weight is a very personal thing for many people. |
I've never understood that. People can SEE how big or small you are with their own eyes; who cares what the number is?
So, Fredrik: how goes the slimming campaign? You picked a horrible time to do it, with the holidays coming up -- unless Christmas isn't the pigfest for you all that it is for us. You're already ahead of the game by our standards -- we just set ourselves back with the calorie-overload that is Thanksgiving, which you don't have to contend with!
I just heard on TV that the average T'giving meal is 3000 calories (or Kcal, for purists) -- almost twice what you should consume in a whole day. 'Tis the season also, it seems, for joining a gym -- gym memberships soar during the month between Thanksgiving and Christmas. And of course a common New Year's resolution is to lose weight -- or at least the 10 lbs we usually pack on over the holidays!
I, too, have been trying to go walking at least every other day -- I was doing it pretty regularly at one point, and dropped almost 10 lbs. Came right back when I stopped, though. My dog got sad, too, since he loved the walks. I tried jogging one summer and lost a good 20 lbs, but of course, they're back, too. Oh, well! Can't get discouraged!
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Benjamin [inactive]
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Well I've lost 5kg (about 10lb) over the past few days, which constituted nearly 10% of my total body weight. This isn't a good sign, considering that I was underweight already...
So how has your diet been doing, Fredrik?
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Uriel
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Losing ten pounds over a few days is not normal. I'd hit the doc, Ben. Take advantage of that free health care ya'll are so proud of!
Weight loss associated with illness or, I suppose, a general failure to thrive is called cachexia. Your body's telling you something.
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Porthos
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I think you have something wrong with your thyroid gland or something. I would suggest going to the doctor and possibly an internist ASAP.
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Uriel
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I don't think an overactive thyroid will drop your weight that fast, although it might be responsible for your your overall thinness. Sudden weight loss is always worrisome in the medical profession, though.
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Benjamin [inactive]
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I assumed it was just because I had an upset stomach for about two days, and was vomiting a lot and wasn't really able to eat or drink anything. It does seem rather a lot in such a short time though.
I don't generally do doctors, and will often go for several years without ever seeing one. I went about a month ago because I had an ear infection, although before then, I hadn't been for four years, before which I probably hadn't been for about seven years.
Anyway, I'm sure I'll be all right. I lost some weight unintentionally earlier last year as well, and nothing serious happened, although it did coincide with sudden the tiredness and dizziness every time I ate chocolate that I experienced for a while, which was strange.
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Benjamin [inactive]
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I've just had a look into this thyroid thing, and it seems as though I actually have most of the symptoms commonly associated an underactive thyroid, except for weight gain, as weight loss is associated with an overactive thyroid. So I don't really no what to make of all that. Otherwise, it would have been perfect.
Maybe I'm just in denial about the fact that I've had all the typical symptoms of diabetes for a while now, and I'm just desperately looking for alternatives to reassure myself that hopes still exists if and when I finally get around to seeing a doctor.
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Uriel
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I had an uncle who self-dignosed himself as having cancer because he was pissing blood. He "knew" he was going to die and he didn't want to have to go through chemo and radiation and surgery and all the other torments of cancer, so he refused to go to the doctor, locked himself up in his room, and over the course of the next month or two, finally died, alone and in terrible pain ....
...from an easily treatable bladder infection, that turned into a fatal kidney infection.
Such are the perils of self-diagnosis.
Go to the doctor. Quit guessing, and quit second-guessing what you might have and might have to go through. Most problems are much more easily managed when you catch them early, and never get a chance to turn into major problems.
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Fredrik
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| Uriel wrote: |
So, Fredrik: how goes the slimming campaign? You picked a horrible time to do it, with the holidays coming up -- unless Christmas isn't the pigfest for you all that it is for us. |
Thanks, it's going very well! After lots of walking in Moscow and traditional, nourishing Norwegian Christmas cooking (we have pinnekjøtt = stick meat = mutton ribs for Christmas in Western Norway) I am down to 110 kilos already, without doing much (mainly due to a cold that erupted on Christmas Eve), except having good company while eating, so that I talk more and eat less. The last year I have lived all by myself for the first time in my life and I have put on quite a few kilos because I have been eating too fast.
Although I live in the worst rainhole in Europe, my New Year resolution is to brave the constant rain and go out for some exercise sometimes.
Uriel wrote: | Quote: | | Take advantage of that free health care ya'll are so proud of! |
I'm not sure how it works in Britain, but here in Norway only hospitalization is free. A visit to the doctor will set you back a few hundred crowns, i.e. a few ten dollar bills. So the health system mostly benefits those who get really ill.
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Benjamin [inactive]
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| Fredrik wrote: | | I'm not sure how it works in Britain, but here in Norway only hospitalization is free. A visit to the doctor will set you back a few hundred crowns, i.e. a few ten dollar bills. So the health system mostly benefits those who get really ill. |
Both hospitalisation and visits to the doctor are free here. Of course, you can choose to pay for private healthcare if you want, in the same way that you might choose to pay for private education.
A few months ago, I went to a religious conference in Germany, where I met a young American woman who was living temporarily in Denmark for some reason. She was talking very excitedly about the 'free healthcare' system in Denmark, which she seemed to think was both absolutely wonderful and fundamentally extraordinary. I suppose it's funny to think that something which I've taken for granted all my life could bring so much excitement and joy to someone from a country (United States) which I'd always assumed had a higher standard of living to Britain. Especially as people here are constantly complaining about how awful the National Health Service is, and what a terrible state the hospitals are in etc.
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Uriel
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Medical care in the US is extremely expensive if you have to pay full price. I inadvertently went to a doctor not covered by my insurance, and two visits cost me nearly $400.
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André in Zuid-Afrika
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| Uriel wrote: | | Medical care in the US is extremely expensive if you have to pay full price. I inadvertently went to a doctor not covered by my insurance, and two visits cost me nearly $400. |
Same here. A visit to a doctor (full price) would be around R300-400. Based on comparitve living expenses, that's roughly the same as Uriel's $400 for two visits. Medical funds (insurance) pay 80% of that (regardless of which doctor you go to). But it varies from medical fund to medical fund (my company's fund is considered to be one of the best in the country). Free medical service is available if you can prove you're too poor to afford paying for it.
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Fredrik
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Wow, Christmas made me loose several kiloes, so that i was down on 110, but now that it's not Christmas anymore I'm up on 114! Hmmm, wonder if I'd loose all the weight if I were on an eternal Christmas diet?
Have to get a bit more tough now. Had lovely pickled herring with potatoes and cooked beans yesterday and I'm going to repeat that healthy treat today...mmm
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Uriel
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Iggg .... I'd be thin on that crap, too.
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Fredrik
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Oh, but pickled herring is lovely!
Looked into the mirror today and was, as always, struck by how handsome my face is! Have to give it the right body to go with it....
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Deborah
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I like pickled herring.
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Deborah
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| Fredrik wrote: | | Looked into the mirror today and was, as always, struck by how handsome my face is! Have to give it the right body to go with it.... |
I was struck the other day by what a nice person I am! I just have to get the right body and face to do with it!
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Uriel
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You have a lovely face and body, Deborah. One can't be a dancer forever, but a little filling out is hardly unattractive.
Of course, I've never been thin, so I have no idea what it must be like to pine for one's "past glory".
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Deborah
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| Uriel wrote: | | a little filling out is hardly unattractive. |
Well, thank you for the compliment, but 50 pounds is hardly "a little filling out"! (I've gained another 15 pounds since we met.)
| Quote: | | Of course, I've never been thin, so I have no idea what it must be like to pine for one's "past glory". |
The past glory I pine for is not so much for looks, or for seeing a certain number on the scale, but rather for the ability to run easily to catch a bus, or to walk a lot without my feet hurting (and when I've lost 15 or so pounds a couple of times in the past year, my feet have hurt less), or to be able to bend over while I'm sitting down, for instance to put on my shoes, and not get nauseous from the pressure on my stomach! I was just talking about this today with one of my co-workers, who weighs about what I do, although she's 4 inches shorter (but she also has a much heavier natural build), and apparently she has none of these problems. She's also been heavy most of her life, so maybe she actually experiences these symptoms but they just feel normal to her. I really want to know how other people with my amount of excess poundage manage to tie their shoes without getting nauseous.
BTW, if I wanted to get back to the weight I was when I was a dancer (which I don't), I'd have to lose 65-70 pounds. And I wasn't even a super-skinny dancer like you see these days.
But I know that if I can get the energy to go to the gym regularly (or walk up Telegraph Hill on my lunch break regularly), I'll lose weight easily enough. However, that's probably not going to happen until I can get more than 4-5 hours of sleep a night.
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Uriel
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Exercise actually has the magical ability to both give you more energy and let you sleep longer and more soundly -- I know that when I am having trouble waking up over and over and feeling all blah, a fews days of walking the dog for 30 minutes or so usually sorts it all out. So you might try starting small -- just around the block or so. (Although depending on what part of San Fran you live in, that could be a workout in and of itself! Hopefully your street isn't too vertical!)
Nope, never noticed my feet hurting, and I could probably stand to drop at least forty pounds by now -- Christmas was good to me!  And if you spread your legs to bend over and tie your shoes (I know, not very ladylike!), you'll go down sort of sideways and take all the pressure off your stomach. (I just tried it --not sure how I do it normally; I've never paid attention.)
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Deborah
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I know everyone always says that if I exercise I'll be able to sleep. Well, I had insomnia the entire time I was a professional dancer. However, I was able to get by because my sleep was more productive than it is now, when I have sleep apnea. Supposedly I'll eventually be able to sleep wearing that damned machine and my 4-5 hours of sleep will really feel like 4-5 hours, rather than like 2.
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Deborah
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Something that's frustrating to me about having gained so much weight is that, having a very slender framework, I can gain a tremendous amount of weight and people think I look normal (normal = not very wide, I guess). Also, most of my weight gain is on my torso, and since now I always very loose tops and have stopped wearing sleeveless clothes (and I'm really good at holding my gut in when I'm walking around), no one realizes just how much weight I've gained. Maybe if I start wearing formfitting clothes and let my abs relax, people will stop telling me I only think I'm overweight because I don't look the way I did when I was a dancer. But then people will be coming up to me to ask me how many days it is until my baby is due and wondering how I managed to get in this condition at my age!
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Uriel
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You have to wear a CPAP (or something like it)? Bummer. Yeah, sleep apnea is a whole different problem.
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Deborah
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| Uriel wrote: | | You have to wear a CPAP (or something like it)? Bummer. Yeah, sleep apnea is a whole different problem. |
Yes, I have to suffer through the one I have, which will change the air pressure when it senses that you're inhaling or exhaling but has a pre-set pressure range, long enough to prove that it's not working for me (which it's not) and then maybe they'll give me a snazzier model that senses with every breath how much air pressure you need.
Someone I know who uses one of these (his apnea was causing him to wake up 40 times a minute during some periods of sleep) said he went through what I'm going through, and had to really fight to get the insurance company to shell out for the more advanced model. But he said it was definitely worth it.
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Pauline
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You've got overweight on a differnt part of your body that I've. My waist and hips are okay, but my arms and legs are too fat. So, when I wear a skirt nobody can know that I'm fat, but I don't feel pretty at all when I'm wearing jeans or mini-skirt. I would like to lose about 10kg.
To wear a CPAP must be horrible. Don't the doctor give you some medicines for sleeping?
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Deborah
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| Pauline wrote: | | To wear a CPAP must be horrible. Don't the doctor give you some medicines for sleeping? |
I haven't asked for any, because I didn't like the side effects of any I've tried. My doctor also recommended trying everything else before resorting to medication.
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Uriel
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I didn't know there were any medications that worked on sleep apnea. Are there? Sleep aids might make you sleep through it, but the anoxia itself is not good for you -- it can cause confusion during the day.
We have a patient now who has both obstructive sleep apnea and central sleep apnea -- his cerebellum is degenerating, and doesn't always "tell" him to breathe. He also hasn't eaten in 7 years -- he's fed through a PEG tube in his stomach, because he can no longer swallow. That's a sad, slow way to go.
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Deborah
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| Uriel wrote: | | I didn't know there were any medications that worked on sleep apnea. Are there? Sleep aids might make you sleep through it, but the anoxia itself is not good for you -- it can cause confusion during the day. |
The medications I was referring to are sleep aids, not something that lessens the effects of sleep apnea. My past experiences with sleep aids, both prescription and over-the-counter is that I preferred the feeling of being sleep-deprived to the feeling of being detached from the world that I got from the medications. The only one I've tried that I liked was one a former roommate gave me. She was a nurse, and she doled out two of these magic pills (whose name I've forgotten) to me. I did sleep wonderfully well, as she predicted -- although this was before I developed apnea -- but she said they were quickly addictive. I later asked a doctor about this stuff, and she concurred about their addictiveness (and was bothered by the fact that someone gave them to me without a prescription).
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Uriel
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Benadryl knocks me out. Clears my sinuses, too. But too much and I definitely feel loopy the next day -- I usually use a non-sedating antihistamine during the day, if that's all I want it for. I've never tried Ativan or Ambien or any of those real sleep aids.
But you can give 1 mg per pound of Benadryl to an itchy dog -- for a big dog that might be twice the human dose! -- and they do just fine.
(And you should see the doses of levothyroxine you give to hypothyroid dogs -- a human would just be able to nibble on a corner of one -- anything more would be toxic! That's because it's protein-bound in dogs, but not in humans.)
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