Amazing news I learned at the Pool

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jen1229 Posted: Sat, Sep 12 2009 12:42 AM

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Today was my second day at the pool.  I hope to go three days a week.

The walk from the car to the pool is a long one.  Exercise for me in and of itself.

The tile floor is dangerous for canes when wet so I tried to walk without using it and that is also stressful, but hopefully will improve in time.

There is a bulletin board by the pool and it had some interesting facts on it today.

72 laps of the pool (all the way to the end of the pool and back is one lap) is equal to one mile.  Today i swam four laps before my water fitness class and did not stop before I go to the wall at the end of the pool (on Tuesday I had to stop halfway down the lane). 

One water fitness class is equivalent to one mile of lap swimming.

BS was 94 after swimming 4 laps so I ate one glucotab before water fitness class.  It's hard to tell if you are sweating in the water and I was feeling cold.  After going in the Whirlpool (my reward for finisheing) and showering was up to 104.  My numbers are getting better, but I must admit that my knees do bother me perhaps from kicking while swimming.

When I got home I was exhausted.  I sat down to change clothes and fell asleep.  Woke up at 5:00 PM so missed lunch.

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donw replied on Sat, Sep 12 2009 9:16 AM

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Swimming is one of the best (and most tiring) exercises in the world.  Start slow and work up gradually, you will be amazed at how much better you feel.

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tylersydney replied on Mon, Sep 14 2009 8:57 AM

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A 400 plus pound man at my pool was told my his drs..walk in the water..eat responsibly and lose 100lbs  or we will NOT do your hip replacement..in 5 months..he lost about 90 pounds....I saw him last Weds the day before his surgery..

He was so proud of his effocts but..still at 300 plus lbs..  had trouble getting out of the pool on steps..howver..he had worked hard and made progress....

My question.....how do Drs let patients get to 400 plus lbs without intervening?????????

Why wait til it is a crisis?????????????

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kat replied on Mon, Sep 14 2009 10:04 AM

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My question.....how do Drs let patients get to 400 plus lbs without intervening?????????

It's the person who lifts the fork who is responsible.  As someone who has been overweight all my life, I can tell you that nothing any doc ever said or did caused me to lose weight.  I had to do it myself.  And you can bet that when I was gaining weight, the last place I'd ever go was to see a doctor.  I got mighty tired of hearing that whatever was wrong with me -- from a sinus infection to shingles to acne -- was due to my weight. 

When I interviewed my current PCP, I took with me a picture of me at my max.  He looked at it and at me and it and at me and finally blurted, "Is that really You??"  We talked about my experience with other docs. He agreed that my weight, whatever it might be, is my issue and that he would treat me for my presenting problem without mentioning it.  I will accurately report my weight, but I will not get on a scale in his office -- unless it is necessary for determining dosages or the like.  To his credit, he has kept his side of the agreement. 

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Joe replied on Mon, Sep 14 2009 10:08 AM

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tylersydney:

My question.....how do Drs let patients get to 400 plus lbs without intervening?????????

Why wait til it is a crisis?????????????

I wonder if most people just tune them out till it is a crisis.

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whalen replied on Mon, Sep 14 2009 11:16 AM

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I don't think it's a tuning out so much as a lack of motivation to take responsibility.  Almost everyone knows how to lose weight, it is hard to stay motivated and do what needs to be done.  For some, I think who see it as a burden, the energy is just not there.  I have known few wake-up calls to come from a doctor.

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tylersydney replied on Mon, Sep 14 2009 12:21 PM

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I agree that is each of us has personal responsibility ...so..perhaps more and better health education is part of the answer????
Most Drs do not have or take the time to get too involved but they ought  to make suggestions..try to help folks get on a better path...do something!

Let folks know that they can improve elevated BG, high blood pressure and relieve stress on knees and joints by exercise and diet..

We need to start with EARLY intervention..the number of obese kids is staggering.

I am for PREVENTION!!!!!!!!!!!

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Joe replied on Mon, Sep 14 2009 12:44 PM

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I watched "Fast Food Nation" on one of the movie channels the other night -- having read the book and working my way thru college by working in a meat packing plant the movie didn't really present "new" information but it was well made and I think all kids should see it -- give them an idea what they are feeding their bodies and where it comes -- not to mention what kind of "stuff" is in much of our food.  That would be a help but the message must be constantly re-enforced if it is ever going to counter the food industry advertising.

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jen1229 replied on Mon, Sep 14 2009 3:41 PM

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While everything everyone said is true, let me give it to you straight from the horses mouth. 

When I joined Weight Watchers in January I weighed 370.4  pounds and was well on my way to 400.  I had sores on my legs that were oozing fluid constantly.  This was either related to diabetes or to the fact that the blood couldn't circulate due to my weight.  I had sores on my belly as well.  I had trouble walking and fell a lot.  My BS was way out of control, I was falling asleep all the time, and had all I could do to get to work in the morning.  In April of '08 my doctor suggested that I leave my job on disability.  I didn't argue, I was on my way to being let go, because although I worked at a major hospital, no one from my boss to those in Occupational Health cared about what happened to me.  So did I get on a weight loss plan at that time?  No.  Did my doctor push me?  No. Why? Because after all the years I have been his patient he knew that pushing me would only result in the opposite.  I tried to go out.  tried to get a little exercise, but I was so heavy that I couldn't walk well and still had problems with falling.  I couldn't sit up for very long at one time, and even did my grocery shopping on-line and had it delivered. I finally woke up one day and realized that if I didn't do something soon, I was going to die, and I didn't think my time here was done yet.  Do I decided to join WW.  I really can't afford the extra money for the Y as evidenced by the that I have $13.00 to buy groceries this week, until I get my SS next week.  So I make do, with what I have and the only exercise I can really do is in the pool so I have to do  it. 

One reason I hate losing weight is because I become obsessed and if I gain weight one week I am afraid I will never lose again.  Then I get realy aggravated and spout off.  It is very hard for me not to do this as some of my friends have been finding out, the past few weeks.  To date I have lost 55 pounds and I'm about 1/4 of the way to my ultimate goal of 150.

So you can say anything you want about how to get fat people thin, but unless the person really wants it, it ain't gonna happen.  And like Type I teenagers who will do things like not take insulin or eat lots of junk foods, fat teenagers want to be like everyone esle as well.  If their friends are going to eat at McD's they will too.  And while there are healthy choices to be had no matter where you eat, those teenagers are not going to choose healthy foods unless their friends do.  Of course, some of the owness for the the so-called epidemics is on the people who keep lowering the numbers as to what constitutes obesity and diabetes and once labeled many of those kids will probabl y just give up the ghost nd say to H-ll with it.

I was so forced into losing weight so much as a child, teenager and young adult that I developed an eating disorder.  No-one ever knew about it because when you are fat, and you start to lose weight, no one cares how you do it as long as you do it.  I did papers in school on eating disorders and still no one got it. I was having heart palpitations and figured I was on my way to a heart attack if I didn't stop, so I was lucky in that it didn't get so bad that I couldn't stop. 

So you want to know why it gets that bad?  Because the person has to have a reason to do it.  I will tell you that I have several friends who needed to lose weight in order to have joint replacement surgery and most of them, after the surgery have gained the weight back.

 Say what you will, it all comes down to the fact that you cannot force anyone to lose weight.  You can start teaching them at a very young age, as we did with cigarettes, then the kids come home and tell mom and dad what they learned and mom and dad get guilty and quit smoking.  Do this with diet and even if it doesn't work like we want it to, at least there will then be a generation up and coming armed with proper nutritional information.  I'm not saying that kids should not be encouraged to lose weight, but they need to know that sometimes it is OK to have french fries or ice cream, that is the good thing about WW.  Nothing is off the table, and it is up to the person to make the choices.  Then there is no one to blame but yourself.

Sorry for the long post.

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tylersydney replied on Tue, Sep 15 2009 10:04 AM

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Again..PREVENTION..working with kids ...teaching proper nutrition at home and in schools....and insisting on better phsyical education for children.... seems to be a good place to start..

and maybe throwing out TV'S????????????

Sorry your struggle has been so difficult...

But..hurrah for sharing it with others....

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Tor replied on Thu, Sep 17 2009 1:57 AM

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Thanks Jen, appreciate your brutal honesty and there is no reason to apologize for the length of your post. 

You are right about people needing a strong reason to lose weight and that just the fact that others think you should lose is not enough. In my case, the trigger to lose weight was not a desire to lose weight, although I did have about 40 to lose, but a strong desire to lower blood sugars without having to go on medications. As it happened, the same things that helped to lower blood sugars - walking, low GI carbs, portion control - also helped melt the lbs off.

Two pant sizes sizes smaller, the same things that are helping me to continue managing blood sugars are also keeping the lbs from coming back on. But in itself, my previous-life pot belly was not enough to motivate me to walk the walk and do the diet. My blood sugar meter however provided that motivation.

Tor

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jen1229 replied on Thu, Sep 17 2009 8:25 AM

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Hi Tor:

I understand what you mean.  As soon as I started to lose weight and my blood suagr improved all of the problems also started to resolve.  My legs started to clear up and the sores went away almost overnight.  I think the two go hand in hand.  I had let my BS get way out of control (8) and it was at last check 6.3.  I'm due for another one this month and I hopeit will be down more.

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Spirit replied on Thu, Sep 17 2009 9:41 AM

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Jen:  Good for you for the improved A1c!  You are on a healthy roll, girl!

Spirit

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tylersydney replied on Sat, Sep 26 2009 8:57 AM

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Patience and perseverance....

a constant challenge but..you can win!