Weight Watchers...Start the recovery process with us!

I absolutely agree... WW is a healthy way to lose weight.  Two of my favorite web sites while counting points is http://www.dwlz.com/ and http://www.augustgames.com/weightwatchers.htm.  They are both very helpful particularly when you go out to eat. 

My goal is to lose 10 pounds... would love to lose 12!

~Jan~

Cruise,

thanks for starting this thread!  i need to lose chemo weight too!  and.....a healthy weight and low bmi help keep cancer away!  that is LOTS of incentive!

I just got back from a nice long walk and plan to start walking daily again (I used to walk 5 miles daily till chemo kicked my butt!)   I'm going to start off with a mile or two tomorrow.

Met with the radiation doc today.  The nurse said something about I needed to check with my BS before I start lifting weights again... she was referring to my arms.  Any input from y'all?

Mom of Boys, I was diagnosed with very mild lymphedema, and as a result was told to start with very light weights and increase slowly. Actually, the first flare-up I had (when I noticed that one hand was slightly bigger than the other) was after I did some push-ups.  So I don't do those anymore.  You should ask your surgeon and (if necessary) a physical therapist before jumping back into the weight lifting.

I am almost 4 weeks out from a delayed DIEP reconstruction surgery, so my only exercise for now is walking (I'm up to 20 minutes and trying to increase a little every day) and the arm stretches to improve my range of motion. Now that my stomach is almost flat (!!!) I am even more determined to tone up my arms and legs, and lose those extra 5-10 lbs that I am still carrying around.  Actually, I think I'm finally almost back to the weight when was dx in December '07 (I gained about 10 lbs during chemo and due to stress eating), but at the time I needed to lose 10 lbs, so I am definitely with you on this weight loss/fitness journey. (I don't have a scale at home but I weighed myself when I took my son to the doctor last week, and I was about 4 lbs less than pre-surgery -- mostly due to the fact that during the 5 days I was in the hospital I hardly ate anything at all.)

I had six months from when I ended radiation (in Sept) and my surgery on March 30th.  During that time I joined a new gym (with good child care hours, yay!) and started doing Weight Watchers. I felt really healthy and strong, but weight loss was extremely slow (like 4 lbs in 4 months!).  I think this may have something to do with Tamoxifen slowing down my metabolism.  So I expect any future weight loss to be slow going. This week I started writing down everything I eat and counting WW points again. I'm not being super strict with myself but it does help me with portion control -- especially since I'm home most of the time with easy access to food! In a couple more weeks I'll be back to work and a normal routine (I'm working a few hours a day from home now), and hopefully by mid-May I'll be able to start aerobics again (slowly!).

Great idea for a thread to keep everyone motivated - -I will definitely be checking in regularly!

Lauren

Thanks Cruise!  I'm weighing myself into this thread at 162.6 lbs today, a success in itself as I was just under 168 lbs right after finishing three months of taxol on 3/19!  My first goal is 149 lbs, where I was after mastectomy and before chemotherapy. 

I've made a few false starts at doing the "Fast Track Detox Diet," but have benefited from each of my efforts with that plan still (haven't given up my coffee!)

We can do this!!  oxo Cath

Hi All,

I would love to join this group.  I gained 18 pounds during Chemo and that was 16 months ago and lost only 6 pounds of that.  I must admit that the last 6 months of putting up with the reconstruction process has not helped either.  I had my exchange surgery on March 19th so I am a few more weeks before I can really get into it again.  Also I just found out that I have a seroma and will have that drained on Monday.  So I am held up with medical stuff that seems to be holding me back right now.  With the better weather - I am more active and trying to eat less junk!!! 

I wish everyone well and would like to join in to keep a check on myself and be supportive.

Take care,

Shirley

Dx 4/07 IDC 1.6cm, Stage 1, grade 3 - 0/6 nodes ER+/PR+HER2- 6 months CMF just finished reconstruction!! 

Firni, if you just finished chemo 4 1/2 weeks ago, don't be too hard on yourself. It takes 2-3 weeks for the icky chemicals to even begin to leave your system, so really it's been a very short time that your body is even close to normal. I felt like my body aged 10 years in 10 weeks w/ chemo (and I only had 4 sessions of A/C, mostly people do more than that). I would walk for five minutes and my ankles were swollen. Just try to walk one more minute each day and slowly you will begin to feel better. Healthy eating makes a big difference too.

I finished chemo last May and was just beginning to feel ok by mid-June.  Then I had surgery in late June. Honestly, it wasn't until I had enough hair to go "topless" in August that I began to feel even remotely normal. Then I started rads.... But by October I was doing aerobics and traveling for work....  So give yourself a break -- you WILL feel better, it just takes time.

I am halfway through chemo and am starting to add pounds.....Glad to see this thread. I will be dropping by and picking up any good tips I can get. Great idea for motivation

StartRecovery -- I am totally with you re: how hard it is for a mom who works full-time to find time to exercise. When my son was a baby, I discovered a Saturday-morning aerobics class at a gym with child care, and that became my regular weekly routine -- even if I didn't do anything else all week, at least it was something that made me feel good. These days, what I'm using to combat the excuses in my mind is the thought that if the President of the United States can find time to work out six days a week, I can manage at least once or twice. (Of course, he doesn't have to worry about paying for child care...  )

I am on board with you starting today, Cruise.  I am just flat out too fat, and I lost 20 lbs on WW a year ago with the CORE plan.  My girlfriend and I decided on Friday to start today, so I'm weighing in for the first time at noon.  I'm just going to subscribe online.

Best of luck to everyone!

I've had 1 serving of fruit/veggie so far today. 

Thanks LorenaB for the reality check and encouragement.  I know I'm being impatient.  I do need to take it just one day at a time.

 Mom of boys, I think the port weighs more than 7 lbs.  And it's a lingering weight that doesn't go away when the port is taken out.  Really odd. 

I may try to do this without joining online - I need to find my materials from last year.  I need to review which foods are CORE, etc.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with the CORE plan, there is a very long list of things you are allowed to eat without counting points.  You're allowed 35 points for the week, so you can still eat other foods.

The key is to make sure you get 5 servings per day of fruits or vegetables (no juice since it is fattening and you're not getting that fiber you get when you eat whole fruit), 2 servings of fat free dairy per day (the calcium binds with fat in the gut and helps you not to absorb as much as you normally would), 2 tsps of olive oil or canola oil per day, and 8 glasses of water.

CORE FOODS

All fruits and vegetables, including avacado and banana

Eggs

Whole grains, including cornmeal

Lean meats - eg, any chicken without the skin (you can eat chicken with skin as long as you pull it off first), lean ground meat, sirloin steak and sirloin tip roast, any fish or shell fish.

You can have 1 portion of potatoes per day that you do not have to count.

Count me in!  I did WW about 2 years ago but used the flex plan

Texgirl -

Have they gotten rid of the CORE plan altogether?  Because if they have, I definitely won't spend the money to join online.