Fit by 60! - TomO's Pledge

Tom, I am as excited and pleased by your continued impressive progress as I would be for myself or someone I knew "up close and personal"...235...good for you!

I wonder myself if the shortage of older people on this and other weight loss forums reflects the number of older people actively engaged in weight loss. I suspect that some of it, as Bethann points out, has to do with a lack of comfort with the technology, but I also think that too many of us accept that certain things (weight gain, loss of bone density, slowed metabolism, loss of muscle mass, certain illnesses, etc.) are just inevitable consequences of aging rather than an accumulation of what we eat/do when we are younger...do we hit a certain age, and, just accept these things as "natural".

And, truthfully, I only know one person over the age of 50 who works half as hard as you do. She is an amazing woman who has a better body (no kidding) than most 30 year olds. Other than that - nope. And my primary gym is filled with older people (60ish) at a certain time of the day. The women stoll along on the treadmill or stationary bike, barely breaking a sweat while reading magazines and the men all congregate (sitting or leaning) around a weight machine and have social hour between occassional reps. And no doubt every one of them goes home convinced they have "worked out" and declaring that exercise is ineffective at their age.
 
bethann1156 said:
My theory is that there are still a lot of folks (our ages) out there, dieting, etc, but they are not on the computer/internet, using it as a tool for support. They are either not interested in what the internet has to offer, or they are overwhelmed by technology in general and do not want to take it on, or are not informed.
Click to expand...

Yes, this is definitely a factor. I started with computers in 1980, when I was half my age, so that makes a big difference. I think also as you get older, it may be harder for you to accept the idea that you really do need support. You think to yourself, "I'm in my fifties. Why do I need help from anyone?" And then you fail, and you're ashamed of yourself, and even more reluctant to ask for help.

cym said:
Tom, I am as excited and pleased by your continued impressive progress as I would be for myself or someone I knew "up close and personal"...235...good for you!

And my primary gym is filled with older people (60ish) at a certain time of the day. The women stoll along on the treadmill or stationary bike, barely breaking a sweat while reading magazines and the men all congregate (sitting or leaning) around a weight machine and have social hour between occassional reps. And no doubt every one of them goes home convinced they have "worked out" and declaring that exercise is ineffective at their age.
Click to expand...

Thanks so much Cym. Knowing you're such a task master with yourself, that means a lot!

I see those people at my gym, too, usually in the morning (though I rarely if ever go there then). It's true -- they're walking on the treadmill or sitting on the bike, reading the paper. Some of them even come in wearing their golf outfits. They're a very gregarious bunch, but I couldn't imagine them doing HIIT or a deadlift.

Part of it may be that doctors are so afraid of scaring people away from exercise that they tell people anything's better than sitting on your ass. There are countless articles telling people my age just to go out and have a 30 minute casual walk, and that's all they need to do.

There's certainly some truth in that -- it's far better than the alternative. But if you're way overweight, I'm convinced you really have to work hard at getting it off.

Steve said:
235. Good job.
Click to expand...

Thanks, Steve. As much as I joke about buning incense to honor the scale gods and GOM, it's really you I ought to be burning the incense for. :)
 
I think that you and Beth ae both right, in ways. It makes me upset because the human body is amazing and we can get healthy again! Even if we're "older"--I believe!

Thanks for stopping by my diary! CONGRATS on the 235!!! Looking forward to the 199...
 
Congratulations on 235 Tom. I had the thought that you should do a workshop for the 50+ crowd. You have SO MUCH to offer and people would love you, feed off you and find success themselves. There is a man in my community who started at well over three hundred pounds and he has gone public with his journey. He is in the newspaper and the public is invited to walk with him at certain times. Gee. I should go.

This month I hardly kept up with my DATA but it hasn't slowed me down!
 
Happychubette said:
Congratulations on 235 Tom. I had the thought that you should do a workshop for the 50+ crowd. You have SO MUCH to offer and people would love you, feed off you and find success themselves.
Click to expand...

LOL, thanks Kelly, but in truth, I think most people my age just don't want to work this hard at it. As much as I joke about the scale gods and GOM, there's nothing at all magical about my success. It's involved watching every calorie I've put into my mouth, developing a meticulous exercise program, and busting my ass in the gym, more than 95% of the people I see there, no matter what the age.

On top of that, I don't have the general knowledge that Steve does; I only know what's worked for me. Out of every hundred people my age, I doubt there are 5 that would be willing to take on a program like mine.

So it would be a lonely workshop, indeed!
 
I hear ya, Tom--I doubt many chicks would be doing deadlifts and barebell squats on top of running 15+ miles a week in the woods, doing sprints uphill.
 
Curvie Girlie said:
I hear ya, Tom--I doubt many chicks would be doing deadlifts and barebell squats on top of running 15+ miles a week in the woods, doing sprints uphill.
Click to expand...

Since December 2006 at the gym, where I have seen literally thousands of people work out, I have seen exactly 3 women do bb squats, and 0 do deadlifts.

Most of the women spend half their time on the abductor and adductor and ab machines.

Mythology is alive and well in the fitness industry. It puts my worship of the scale gods and GOM to shame!
 
TomO said:
Since December 2006 at the gym, where I have seen literally thousands of people work out, I have seen exactly 3 women do bb squats, and 0 do deadlifts.

Most of the women spend half their time on the abductor and adductor and ab machines.

Mythology is alive and well in the fitness industry. It puts my worship of the scale gods and GOM to shame!
Click to expand...

Yes it does! Women need to understand that more muscle=higher metabolism and a possibility for more fat loss. Deadlifts work the entire body--look at me! I lift as heavy as possible--am I bulky? NO! I cross-train--stretching, running, kickboxing--best way, ever! I swear. And I can still eat a lot, LOL!
 
TomO said:
LOL, thanks Kelly, but in truth, I think most people my age just don't want to work this hard at it. As much as I joke about the scale gods and GOM, there's nothing at all magical about my success. It's involved watching every calorie I've put into my mouth, developing a meticulous exercise program, and busting my ass in the gym, more than 95% of the people I see there, no matter what the age.
Click to expand...

Yep, Tom, you're right...and it goes back to a topic Steve and others were discussing a few weeks back...your determination in reaching your goals (there was a lot more to it than that...I way oversimplified :) ).

The forumula is simple...eat less, excercise more...but the process is hard and IMHO, it takes more mentally and emotionally than it does physically. Like you, I count each calorie, and journal each part of the process...workout, water, food, vitamins and supplements, measurements, weight...and I am keenly aware of how I feel...and stay in tune with that, so that I don't let my emotionals derail my progress (I take a detour here and there, but it usually a planned detour ;) )

I absolutely do not want to be at the mercy of my overweight, out of shape aging body...age is one thing I cannot control, but I can control how I age and I am doing everything I can to do it well and stay healthy.

Arthritis in my fingers is one thing I just have to deal with.... *sigh* Thank God for Aleve....:D
 
bethann1156 said:
Shame on me....CONGRATS ON THE 235 !!!!!! :) :) :)
Click to expand...

LOL, no shame involved, PLEASE! To tell you the truth, I'm more viewing my birthday in July as my true halfway point. This is because I suspect the last 35 lbs. will be much harder than the first 35 lbs. I'm hoping by July, it's only 30 lbs. or so, though.
 
TomO said:
LOL, no shame involved, PLEASE! To tell you the truth, I'm more viewing my birthday in July as my true halfway point. This is because I suspect the last 35 lbs. will be much harder than the first 35 lbs. I'm hoping by July, it's only 30 lbs. or so, though.
Click to expand...

Yep, I agree! I think this is where the "been there, done that" part comes in...I have set October 1st as my goal date...because I know that my weightloss does seem to slow to a creep at the end. I am more realistic in goal setting, the older I get...LOL!
 
In defence of "most women"...

I think many still believe in spot reduction and typically it's thighs and stomach that bother most women.

I bet "most women" don't know what a dead lift is.

Even when I was obese, I was still walking 35-40 miles every week and at a reasonably fast pace.

Many people do the best they can with the information they have. It's also much easier for a "skinny chick" of 140 pounds to hit the gym and feel comfortable branching out to anything other then a machine.

Sorry guys - but these kind of over generalizations are bothering me lately.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top