Looking for weight loss support/suggestions

I haven't had weight loss surgery yet. I'm still waiting for the approval and surgery date. I just wish that the day would come and go so that I could get started with my journey. I realize that I will be attending classes & speaking with a dietician regarding foods. However, it would be nice to have support from another person going through weight loss. I don't have anyone I can relate to, anyone who I can speak with frequently, or anything like that. It would be nice to meet people who can offer advice on proper eating habits, good easy exercise routines to start out with, and what worked/didn't work for them. I am capable of eating healthy just have no idea where to start. I find that I like healthy foods I just make the wrong decisions, eat too much, and then feel guilty afterwards. . Instead of before. My weight prevents me from doing hard exercises, but it would be nice to know some exercises that people can do starting out. It would just be nice to start things now instead of waiting until starting the classes. I don't know how long those may be from now, and it would be nice to have a confidence booster. I find that I am so disgusted with myself lately. It is depressing. So any thoughts, advices, exercises, or anything you may want to share. . . Feel free to :)

I started out pretty large.. 385 at seminar, 383 day of surgery.  The exercise I did after surgery was walking.  Every day I took my dog on a walk, and every day I walked just a little bit further.  Eventually I was walking a mile.  Then 2 miles.

I also quit using my dryer unless it was pouring rain.  I hung clothes on my line.  I put the basket at one end and walked back and forth to hang up each item.

I parked at the back of the parking lot at the grocery store and walked all around the perimeter of the store before I put anything in my cart.  I carried my own groceries to my car, and then returned the cart all the way back to the store instead of putting it in a corral.

I put the silverware away one spoon at a time, then one fork at a time.  I quit asking my kids to get things for me from other parts of the house.

After I lost my first 100, it started raining here and rained every day for a week.  Where I live there's not a mall to walk in.. so I went and bought a weeks worth of gym membership and used the treadmill.

Get a good pedometer (Omron makes a good one for about 25.00 with a tether and it will work at your waist, in your pocket or in your purse) and try to get in 10,000 steps a day.  It may take a while to work up to that, but if you can get in that many, you'll start seeing some results.

And get good shoes to walk in.  It makes a huge difference.   Hope this helps some.

I so agree with the walking advice. Start out low and gradally increase your intensity/duration.
You seem anxious to get started. I say you do it now, and when the band comes it will just get easier. Keep in mind, it may takea few months to get to a "sweet spot". Congrats on your impending surgery!

When I first started working out I was about 280 lbs.  I started out walking at a speed that felt fast to me but wasn't very fast.  It was about 2.7 mph.  I did that for 30 minutes.  Was I sore...yes.  I was sore and pulled muscles but I kept on going.  As I lost weight and became more fit I kept adding time and speed on my treadmill.  I also did weight lifting from the very beginning.  Weight lifting is very important to losing weight.  Here is an article I post on here from time to time about the importance and benefits of weight lifting. 

http://health.yahoo.net/rodale/WH/lose-your-fear-of-lifting

as I was saying I started off small...30 minutes a day 5 days a week.  Now I workout 90 minutes a day 6 days a week.  60 minutes of that is cardio and 30 minutes is weight lifting.  I now do intervals and run for some of the time I'm on the treadmill.  Considering not even 8 months ago I was barely able to walk 30 minutes straight.  Now I am running!!! And I have lost 150 lbs since my surgery.  I even had to increase my calories to fuel my workouts.  How many "non-workout" people can increase their calories and still lose weight.  I don't eat 1000 calories...I eat about 1400 calories.  I have plateaus once in awhile but they rarely last more than 2-3 weeks.  I am two years out and still losing at a very good pace. 

To me exercise has been the most important part of my weight loss.  I don't always like doing it but afterward I feel good inside and out. 

The waiting is so hard, I know.   Don't be disgusted with yourself.  I know, easier said than done but you have started your journey to get healthier so feel good about that.   We so judge ourselves by our "outsides" and not our "insides".   Unfortunately, other people judge us too by our appearance so it is hard to feel good about yourself. 

One of the first things I was told to do to prepare was to cut my portions down.   The best I could do with that was not to take second helpings.  You say you are all for eating healthy but you don't know where to start?   Try cutting out or waayy down on sugars and white flour carbs.  That's a big step right there.   Try adding more fruits and veggies to your eating.   Take the skin off your chicken.  Little things like that can add up.

After you are banded it is soooo much easier to do all these things.  Your portions will be very small but you'll feel satisfied.   Maybe not right away, not until you get some fluid in your band.  But just the band itself was keeping me from feeling hungry for about 10 weeks after!!  That was a real blessing.  Unfortunately it's not that way for everyone.  My husband also just got banded and he is hungry quite a bit but hanging in there.

Although I was not hungry my head was going crazy for awhile there.  Too bad we can't band our brains!  But eventually the food obession left.  Oh, it rears it's ugly head now and then and it's still not easy but it passes.

Walking is the best things you can do right now.  I hated every minute of it but I did it, working up from 10 min to 30.  Now, since I am in Florida, I use the community pool 4-5 times a week. I usually stay in the water for 1-2 hrs and the whole time I am moving not just floating around.

Do what you can and feel good about it! 

Contact me anytime.

Lyn.

I joined curves two weeks after my surgery  (Feb 16, 2011) and I also started walking on the treadmill for 30 minutes.  I've lost 27 lbs so far, but I do get a little frustrated with the weight not coming off more..,.Curves is easy and fun.  Good luck to you....

You've gotten great suggestions'

My weight is coming off so slow but I admit that my exercising has been hit or miss. I have promised myself that this week I will walk for an hour a day on my treadmill while I watch TV instead of sitting.

I'm not starting off with too much . I have been exercising for years but never consistently and I don't push myself. I was banded back in August and I know I could be much further along if I exercised like I should. I'm not a young chick anymore I need to step it up.

If you start now you'll give yourself a great advantage. The best to you.

Yeah I think the biggest problem with me is I'm too embarrassed to do anything on my own. I wish that I had someone else to go through the weight loss with me. I would love to go to the gym, but can't even bring myself to walk in. I don't want people to be rude to me, or to have to be the only overweight person in there :(  As for the walking I do enjoy walking. I just feel that I'm not walking enough to make any progress with my weight. I walk a little while but my back, knees, and feet end up hurting after a while so I have to stop. As for the water thing I love water. If only other beverages weren't so addicting. I think I'm just going to stick to water. And I also found low calorie drinks called Fuze. I like them. So hopefully I will make some progress with no pop or anything in the house. As for the food I'm so frustrated with my choices. I know what is healthy and what is not. Yet I find myself going for the unhealthy foods anyways. Then afterwards I feel guilty. I'm thankful that the weather is warmer. I can find something to do outside, away from home, or go for a walk instead of being inside with food all day long. I know that the doctor mentioned making a menu and sticking to it. He said if you make a menu you are less likely to make compulsive decisions with what to eat. I thought I might try this. And I think not having foods I like in the home would help for now while I'm still trying to make good choices. The doctor also mentioned having my own space for foods. That way I can have all the good foods in there, and not have to open a cabinet up to find healthy foods and junk food mixed together.  I thank you all for your replies. It is good to have other people to speak to about the matter.

I have an idea regarding gyms. There is a company called "Touchmark" that has 12 retirement communities around the USA. They have fitness centers that are open to the public. Membership is pricey, but you can get a 7 day pass to check it out.  I am 460 lbs and everyone treats me with respect. Most of the members there have serious health issues and are not put off by seeing an obese person in shorts or a swimsuit.  They have exercise equipment with a 400 lb capacity, pool for aqua trim or laps. Our pool and hot tub have strong solid rails over shallow steps. Most accessible pool I have ever visited.  If there isn't a Touchmark community in your area, try contacting various retirement communities.  Good luck.