My weight is creeping up bad. Since the PSA diag about 8 years ago, it has climbed because of inactivity. I put on the COVID 40 and that did not help. Suggestion on losing the weight, please!
Please don’t say EXCERCISE, that is a dirty word. Right now, I am struggling to walk. With all the pain, I have a terrible sugar addiction. I am working on getting that under control, but my weight is still creeping up.
About the extent of exercise I may be able to add would be walking more (or trying to).
I hate this because I am also a certified hypnotist and I know all the eating is emotional and from pain. My worst time is late night when I can’t sleep due to pain. If I can’t sleep, I start eating. At 6’5" I am at 330 lbs. I need to be back down to at least 280#.
Has anyone found anything that works!!! I’m not taking in roids, so that is not the issue.
Losing weight or maintaining a healthy weight is difficult for some. My Dad at 75 years of age weighed 5 pounds more than what he weighed his wedding. He maxed at 155 but shed 5 pounds when he sneezed. I am built more like a bulldog and even with exercise and health eating, and no booze…the battle of the bulge just never stops! The first thing that has helped me was throwing away our scale. Neither of us needed the daily high or low depending on the scale so we threw it in the garbage 40 years ago and never been happier. I know when I am gaining or losing simply by how my pants fit. But none of that helps you! There just isn’t any way around it…the weight went on 1 ounce at a time and will come off in the same way through that awful word called, “Discipline”…saying “no” to yourself. Look for small victories that when repeated, make big ones. Sorry @tamac, that’s all I got…and 3 full bottles of Rinvoq I don’t know what to do with them other than flush them or give them to the pharmacy.
First off PsA inflammation can cause our metabolisms to slow down which also doesn’t help when PsA inflammation inhibits exercise due to pain and incapacity. Nevertheless weight is always lost by reducing what you’re eating to what energy you burn. You need to be calorie deficient. But @tamac given all that is going on with you, don’t make this yet another stick with which to beat yourself up. You say you have a sugar addiction - I would concentrate on just getting on top of that sugar addiction. And only that.
I was away this last weekend with my cousin - same age as me - 62. I last saw her in early May. And since then to now, she has lost 2 stone as in 28 lbs. She said she had a sugar addiction and discovered as a result she was practically type 2 diabetic. Which frightened the life out of her. She has no PsA or anything like that. All she did was start working on her sugar addiction. And just that dropped all those pounds. She said she would eat sugary things in the evening after a day’s work - she’s divorced and possibly a bit bored too. So she had to have something else to do instead. So she took up crochet. She had never done it before. She said it keeps her hands busy and her brain working and that helped stave off reaching for the sugary things of which she bought absolutely none too. So there were zero sugary things in her house.
I walk as much as I can. It helps that I have a dog though. But the walking does other things. First I move, PsA does better when we move. The rhythm of walking and it doesn’t matter how slowly you walk either helps lower all that stress cortisol secondly. And thirdly choosing to walk somewhere pretty and lovely like a park or the woods or by the sea lifts your mood. And it can slowly increase your walking speed or how long you walk for so that you keep improving day by day. Another good form of excercise for us is swimming. Less weight on your joints too. And just like walking you can slowly increase it as you get fitter.
But essentially losing weight remains all about eating less. There is no magic bullet although there are many new weight loss meds out there. No idea how any of them would interact with PsA or our meds either. Personally taking yet another med wouldn’t be something that would appeal to me. Try any type of lower carb programme and simply lose the actual sugar - you get plenty enough sugar from any carbs.
It’s a process to be sure and it’s more about what you put in your mouth than the exercise, although the exercise helps.
Sugar is a very bad thing, no getting around it. Your body processes it fast as it’s a simple compound but there is more to it - sugar triggers insulin, insulin’s goal is to store. It takes awhile to break a habit - I agree with poo, breaking that habit is a very necessary first step. It doesn’t help that sugar is also hidden in so many foods. Read labels, shop for more complex carb foods, add more protein and plants, clean out your kitchen and remove the junk. My general rule is that if I’m going to have a treat I go out to get it (don’t store it in the house) - way less accessible.
As for exercise, if you can find a pool it is SO good on our crappy joints. In the winter when things are bad I hit the pool a lot - I excel at going from the hot tub to the cool pool and back, lol. I am a regular exerciser and I do believe it helps a lot. Just walking in the shallow pool or putting on a belt/taking a noodle into the deep pool and moving around a little helps and feels pretty good too. Our joints need to be moved and we need to keep our range of motion.
FWIW, teaching hurting people water fitness is my very part time job (9 hours a week). We work under therapists and are a doctor referred program and instruct people with all sorts of ailments, including PsA, RA, joint replacements, etc. Water is excellent. I’m on deck but I feel like I’m getting paid to do my own therapy sometimes.
Sugar is our killer. Many years ago when I first saw a hypnotist chronic pain (and he got me out of it), I also asked him to stop me from eating sugar! He did! I had not desire for sugar for about 2 years or more. None! I didn’t change anything else and I lost 40 lbs.
Sugar is an addiction. Unfortunately, since i am a hypnotist myself now, it is hard for someone else to hypnotise me and fix my sugar problem! I just got my test results back from a physical and my A1c is 5.9. Pre-diabetic, I think my first issue to deal with is my sugar intact, plus some more walking.
Does anyone else remember that old Saturday Night Skit Eat less Move more! I used to show this to my hypnosis clients!
HI, I have been tracking my food, and going to weight watchers meetings.You may be surprised at the success of each and every person that attends, and I have had success also.Its a gradual change.If you can accept a gradual lost and not compare yourself, or say thats to long to loose, (its a mindset)Its about what you already know with personal accountability.If your thinking everyone is taking shots and there not taking accountability, change your thinking again.Also, be open to the fact that some members do so for various reasons Nd are supplementing.Still its the gradual change that helps shape you regardless of methods.It may be more quicker or easier for some with shots but the road is not any easier.You still need to take accountability. I am not taking the shots but have a friend that is.It depends on much and is helping them.Good luck.
I understand the ongoing battle it is trying to loose weight. My inflamation has increased and so has my weight, My exercise has decreased due to pain. In the warmer months I make one of my meals which is a salad with a small portion of meat or seafood. My preference is prawns (shrimp) or crab meat Only home made salad dressing (olive oil and vinegar) and in the cooler months I eat 1 meal of home made vegetable soup which can have meat in it. My other meals are on a smaller plate, entree size or smaller like a bread and butter plate with 1/4 meat and half vegetables (not potatoes in this count) with either a 1/4 rice, pasta or quinoa and now you can count a 1/4 of the plate can be potato.
Mostly one or two poached eggs for breakfast or porridge or home made baked beans, asparagus or avocado, tomato on home made bread made with organic flour. I replace sugar with honey, maple syrup or stevia in small amounts. Stevia is very sweet and you only need a little. No pre-packaged foods. No take-away foods. No eating out unless you check what is in the food. Check every food label. No foods with chemical additives. Nothing with numbers or letters on the labels. Organic if possible or affordable. Try and only eat foods that have not been altered and are as close to the natural state. 5 1/2 cups of vegetables and 3 fruits a day. Include fermented foods in your diet like yogurt, sour dough bread, saurkratt.
Make your own yogurt if possible or buy plain with no sugar and lots of good bacteria in it and add your own fruit and a little honey. Good for a snack inbetween meals. I only buy low fat white cheeses like riccotta or they are less processed. Keep a food diary. I am not always good and break out and eat something yummy and sweet. If I am struggling I will buy a 79% cocao dark chocolate and eat a couple of pieces i can never eat very much but it satisfies my desire for chocolate. I may eat two or three dried dates or appricots to satisfy my sweet cravings.
I do hope this gives you some ideas on helping with your weight. It helps stop my weight increasing and I do go up and down depending on how much inflammation and pain I am in. I do hope this gives you some ideas.
I have a similar problem especially re the sugar addiction. As you say exercise is not easy with PsA - I swim in the sea 2/3 times a week throughout the year and walk. However, if I do too much my tendons become inflamed and I swear my tummy expands too🤣
However, I have found drinking half a glass of organic beetroot juice with a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar each morning has really helped reduce sugar cravings and helped with brain fog. I’m also introducing kefir into my diet in an effort to enrich my gut biome.
A helpful book on this subject I’d The Immune Mind by Dr Monty Lyman.
I’m 72 and had my diagnosis for nine years. I’ve just started seeing a personal trainer once a week for half an hour. She completely understands my limitations and works within them.
She’s also helped me work out my calorie needs to lose a pound a week. Plus the ratio of protein to carbs required.
I’ve made some protein power balls to have with my morning coffee 92 cals each.
I can find the book of recipes if you are interested.
Start by writing down what you are eating and times. Then try replacing unhealthy snacks with stuff a little healthier. I have managed to lose 60 lbs in 8 years and it’s been difficult. I set small goals. Exercise is walking for me. And in short distances several times a day. I still eat some junk but smaller portions. And it’s tough. I cut carb portions in half and eat more protein and drink more water. Hang in there. Having my dog helps. I walk because he needs it.
