I'm 43 years old and doing this the old-fashioned way, through diet and exercise. My goal is to get back to a healthy BMI so that I will have higher quality of life and fewer mobility issues as I age.

Hi-resolution slideshow of my progress photos:
http://tinyurl.com/fatassTObadass

Graph of my progress:
http://tinyurl.com/origamifreak-physicsd
iet

I've been down this road before. In my 20s I lost over 100 lbs and got down to 144 and at the ...

I'm 43 years old and doing this the old-fashioned way, through diet and exercise. My goal is to get back to a healthy BMI so that I will have higher quality of life and fewer mobility issues as I age.

Hi-resolution slideshow of my progress photos:
http://tinyurl.com/fatassTObadass

Graph of my progress:
http://tinyurl.com/origamifreak-physicsd
iet

I've been down this road before. In my 20s I lost over 100 lbs and got down to 144 and at the time was unbelievably active and fit.

Over subsequent years the poundage crept back on (with several attempts to control it via Weight Watchers) until I found myself in the "Super Morbidly Obese" category at a BMI over 52. I have an emotional eating problem. I would rather hide away alone at home and numb my feelings with food than get out there and interact with the world.

In May 2007 one of my cats died from old age and I was devastated. I started eating less and walking. When I got up to about 4 miles per day an old knee injury began to cause pain and stiffness. I was diagnosed with severe arthritis and switched from walking to deep water aerobics. Although I was more active, I stopped paying attention to my intake and gained all but 10 pounds back.

In December 2008 I started again. I lost 46 lbs on my own before a wellness program at work introduced me to SparkPeople in March 2009.

Elective surgery scares me. For me that would have to be the very ultimate last resort. I don't think I've exhausted all my other resources yet. If necessary I would reluctantly consider surgery at the end to remove extra skin...

Other alternatives I have not yet tried are: personal chefs, checking myself into a residential fitness program, and getting my jaw wired shut. I do not handle stimulants well, so dietary supplements that raise my metabolism are not an option.

Eventually I will have to replace my arthritic knee, but I'm determined to manage with the "original equipment" as long as I can. I have been advised that I should not have it replaced before I am 60, if possible. I have been dealing with a bad knee my entire adult life since the original injury occurred at 17. They had to remove over half of the cartilage.

In the meantime I'm restricting my intake and increasing my activity.

I started with water aerobics 2x/week, eventually increased it to 4x/wk, and have now substituted spinning for the lower-intensity water aerobics class, and recently BodyPump for the higher-intensity water aerobics. In addition I'm doing weight training with a personal trainer once a week and alone once a week.

So far, so good, I think... For me it's all about building fitness-friendly habits into my lifestyle. Once they're habits then they tend to happen by themselves.

Nutrition:
-------------
High protein (30-40%), low fat (10-20%) nutrition profile, 1000-1200 cal per day on average. Yes this is low. I have an EXTREMELY slow metabolism, which has been determined by medical professionals. No, there's nothing apparently wrong with my thyroxin levels, or any other apparent medical reason for this. My metabolism is simply very very efficient. Do NOT try this at home. Please.

The most important factor in my nutrition is protein. I aim for at least 90g per day to maintain/ build lean muscle while losing fat.

I got the number from this formula:
[0.6 to 1.5 g of protein per pound of target weight]
Here's where the formula came from:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strength_tr
aining#Nutrition

Getting this much protein into my body early in the day (by 5pm) also helps control my cravings and curbs night eating.

I spread the protein into about 4-5 mini-meals, since the body cannot absorb more than 20-30g per hour.

Here are my top 7 lean protein sources (in no particular order):

1) Nasoya Lite Firm Tofu
2) Poultry breast meat
3) Lean seafood (shrimp, tilapia, cod, etc)
4) Whey protein powder (and/or egg white powder)
5) Nonfat Greek yoghurt or Skyr
6) Seitan
7) Textured Vegetable Protein

For emergencies I stash Optimum Nutrition diet protein and Doctor's CarbRite bars in the car, my purse, my backpack, my life vest, etc. I buy them in bulk online at bodybuilding.com

I've been trying different Optimum Nutrition whey isolate flavors and logging my impressions here:
http://spreadsheets.google.com/pub?key=t
FwEUAm0WUYByxujvy0-XKQ&single=true&gid
=0&output=html

In case you're wondering, here is a ranking based on how closely the amino acid profile of various protein sources compares with human dietary needs (the higher the rank, the more "complete" the protein source)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PDCAAS

Exercise Schedule:
-----------------------
- Spinning 3x/week
- Body Pump 2x/week
- Weight training with personal trainer at the Y 1x/week
- Elliptical, walking, kayaking, road cycling on off days and some evenings.
- Swimming 1000m when I can fit it in.

Helpful Equipment:
-------------------------
1) Tanita Innerscan scale
2) Moving average weight tracker at physicsdiet.com
3) Nutrition tracker here at SP
4) Accurate food scales (Escali at work and at home)
5) Accurate measuring cups (Oxo both at work and home)
6) Polar F6 Heart Rate Monitor
7) Pimped-out Bowflex PR3000
8) 10 & 15-lb dumbbells
9) Gel bike seat pad for spinning
10) Cleated bike shoes
11) Cateye Strada double wireless bike computer
12) Horizon E901 Elliptical
13) Polyester (chlorine-proof) swimsuit
14) Extra buoyant aqua bells

My previous trophy icons are here, if anyone else wants to "borrow" them. :-)
http://tinyurl.com/trophy-icons

Read More About ORIGAMIFREAK (Updated November 19)

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