Obesity Discussion Forums

[Sharona]

My name's Sharona. I need to lose about 35-40lbs, & my 2 adult sons each need to lose about 150lbs. Their meds for mental illness are what caused them to gain so much weight. All they want to do is eat, but they can't change to a different med. We've tried many others, & Clozaril is the best for their illness. My husband & I are very worried about their weight. My husband is very physically fit, & I never had a weight problem till I turned 40, ten years ago. Looking forward to everyone's advice!

[Obesity Discussion]

Originally Posted by Sharona

My name's Sharona. I need to lose about 35-40lbs, & my 2 adult sons each need to lose about 150lbs. Their meds for mental illness are what caused them to gain so much weight. All they want to do is eat, but they can't change to a different med. We've tried many others, & Clozaril is the best for their illness. My husband & I are very worried about their weight. My husband is very physically fit, & I never had a weight problem till I turned 40, ten years ago. Looking forward to everyone's advice!

So we have two different issues here, yourself, and then your sons. You're going to be the easiest one to solve.....are your sons living with you? Alone? Can they exercise?

Can you give us a little detail on your activity level, ability/willingness to begin exercising and an idea of what a typical day of eating for you entails?

The more details the better.


Welcome!!!

[Sharona]

Our sons live with us. They're on SSI, & were so ill, they couldn't work for a long time. They're 24 & 25. Our 25yr old just started going to a MR/DD workshop 4 days/week, & his brother is looking for a part-time job, & might even end up going to the same place as his brother. We're seeing if he's eligible. They go for walks with us in the park, but Scotty(25) has to stop & rest every few feet. He refuses to give up smoking. His brother Sean quit, but he's quit before & keeps going back to it. Sean also goes to the YMCA 4-5 times a week. He seems to be getting more serious about losing the weight lately. He's eating alot less over the past week or so. I'm trying to keep my calories under 1,300/day. We're watching our portions. For breakfast, I usually have coffee & fig bars, or coffee, one egg, one piece of toast w/butter, 5oz juice (no added sugar), or coffee & a small bowl of cereal (no sugar). Lately, Sean only has a bowl of cereal & a banana & juice. Scotty will have 2 eggs, 1-2 pieces of toast, & juice. I eat breakfast so late, I don't eat lunch. The boys like low-fat lunchmeat or PBJ. We never buy white bread. For dinner: chicken or fish or turkey burger or mushroom burger & lots of veggies & V8 or tomato juice. Once in a great while, meatballs/spaghetti or meatballs/gravy, mashed potatoes, salads. They LOVE salads! Hope this isn't too long, but once I get started, I can't shut up!

[Obesity Discussion]

No please keep it going! I have a few meetings to attend to but I will get back to this later tonight.

[Sharona]

Okay... let's see... I don't have lunch, but I DO have snacks when I get all shaky from low blood sugar. Today for breakfast, I had coffee w/creamer, 4 fig bars (60 cals ea.), then for snack I had low-fat ham (110 cals) & cheese (110 cals) w/o the bread - I just rolled it up & ate it. Then for dinner I had salmon, tilapia, a tiny spoonful of mashed potatoes w/butter, cauliflower & broccoli w/butter, & a little wine, which I have everyday w/dinner. And that's all I had today, because I think I'm VERY overweight, at 5', 156lbs. I look terrible. Where my sweet tooth comes in, is when I'm upset. I guess I'm an emotional eater. I have alot of stress. Two paranoid schizophrenic sons... Scotty also is high-functioning autistic. Sean was in LD classes, that's why we think he might be eligible for MR/DD, like his brother. Scotty has lunch and a snack at his workshop, so I pack him 2 sandwiches, 2 little cups of applesauce or cut-up fruit, one little jello-pudding cup, a couple cookies or a cheese stick, a 6oz can of juice, he buys his milk. He's hooked on cheese, pop, & McDonald's, which we've cut way down on. He thinks we're mean! But sometimes, he says "I need to lose weight!" I have to put his socks & shoes on for him every morning, because he can't reach his feet. He needs to increase his stamina so he can do his little jobs at his workshop, so they want us to take him on more walks. But he's SO out of shape! Just a few years ago, he was so skinny his pants were always hanging off his hips. Like I said, Sean has really been getting serious about his diet over the past week or so. He's doing everything right, so no problems there. Oh, they were both ordering alot of pizza over the past couple of years & we've cut that out. We've also put locks on the fridge & freezer.

[Merle]

I think sugar is your biggest culprit. That alone could make a huge difference! I also see a lot of butter in your diet as well am I mistaken?

Welcome to the site!

[Sharona]

Hi!
You're absolutely right - sugar & butter. But I can't eat my veggies w/o butter. I tried the spray butter, but it just wasn't the same. How can I make veggies more palatable?

[Sharona]

Maybe I could just drench 'em with the spray butter.

[Sharona]

I just had 1 cup of Breyer's fat free ice cream. Now I'm done for the day. Oh, and the boys & I are extremely sensitive to artificial sweeteners, even Splenda. It causes us to have headaches, anxiety, & insomnia. That makes it harder for us, otherwise we would follow a diet for diabetics.

[inlove]

Welcome!!! I wish you the best!!!!

[Sharona]

Thank you!! Same to you!!

[inlove]

Thanks. Yup we need to stick together. Since we both are tiny. LOL

[Obesity Discussion]

Originally Posted by Sharona

I just had 1 cup of Breyer's fat free ice cream. Now I'm done for the day. Oh, and the boys & I are extremely sensitive to artificial sweeteners, even Splenda. It causes us to have headaches, anxiety, & insomnia. That makes it harder for us, otherwise we would follow a diet for diabetics.

That's not such a bad thing....studies have shown that sweeteners can actually increase your cravings for sweets doesn't necessarily help matters

[Obesity Discussion]

Originally Posted by Sharona

Our sons live with us. They're on SSI, & were so ill, they couldn't work for a long time. They're 24 & 25. Our 25yr old just started going to a MR/DD workshop 4 days/week, & his brother is looking for a part-time job, & might even end up going to the same place as his brother. We're seeing if he's eligible. They go for walks with us in the park, but Scotty(25) has to stop & rest every few feet. He refuses to give up smoking. His brother Sean quit, but he's quit before & keeps going back to it. Sean also goes to the YMCA 4-5 times a week. He seems to be getting more serious about losing the weight lately. He's eating alot less over the past week or so. I'm trying to keep my calories under 1,300/day. We're watching our portions. For breakfast, I usually have coffee & fig bars, or coffee, one egg, one piece of toast w/butter, 5oz juice (no added sugar), or coffee & a small bowl of cereal (no sugar). Lately, Sean only has a bowl of cereal & a banana & juice. Scotty will have 2 eggs, 1-2 pieces of toast, & juice. I eat breakfast so late, I don't eat lunch. The boys like low-fat lunchmeat or PBJ. We never buy white bread. For dinner: chicken or fish or turkey burger or mushroom burger & lots of veggies & V8 or tomato juice. Once in a great while, meatballs/spaghetti or meatballs/gravy, mashed potatoes, salads. They LOVE salads! Hope this isn't too long, but once I get started, I can't shut up!

My first question for you is, how often do you eat on a given day? I would not recommend skipping lunch to anyone if they can avoid it, although if you eat a late breakfast followed by a late lunch that might be OK. When you say you are trying to keep your calories under 1300, what is the range of the calories you are eating in a given day? From 1000-1300 for example? How are you keeping track? Another concern I have is lack of protein. Sean is not getting any for breakfast and between lunch and dinner maybe 60 grams total at most?

Same goes for you, I see either no protein or very little for breakast, and none for lunch. I would highly recommend adding protein to both of your diets.

Originally Posted by Sharona

Okay... let's see... I don't have lunch, but I DO have snacks when I get all shaky from low blood sugar. Today for breakfast, I had coffee w/creamer, 4 fig bars (60 cals ea.), then for snack I had low-fat ham (110 cals) & cheese (110 cals) w/o the bread - I just rolled it up & ate it. Then for dinner I had salmon, tilapia, a tiny spoonful of mashed potatoes w/butter, cauliflower & broccoli w/butter, & a little wine, which I have everyday w/dinner. And that's all I had today, because I think I'm VERY overweight, at 5', 156lbs. I look terrible. Where my sweet tooth comes in, is when I'm upset. I guess I'm an emotional eater. I have alot of stress.

Big problem here is before dinner you have only have carbs and fat throughout the day. . Although there is no added sugar to the juice, the juice you drink does have sugar. So do the figs (probably a lot), so does the creamer for the coffee and so does the wine. And this is before your sweet tooth kicks in. While orange juice is not bad, I would ditch the figs, and replace them with low carb protein bars or a low carb/low calorie protein shake. I would really work on getting your sugar intake under control. That will undermine everything you are trying to accomplish.

I would also cut all that butter out, and add the low calorie spray butter, plus pepper or other seasonings (not salt) as you see fit.

Originally Posted by Sharona

Two paranoid schizophrenic sons... Scotty also is high-functioning autistic. Sean was in LD classes, that's why we think he might be eligible for MR/DD, like his brother. Scotty has lunch and a snack at his workshop, so I pack him 2 sandwiches, 2 little cups of applesauce or cut-up fruit, one little jello-pudding cup, a couple cookies or a cheese stick, a 6oz can of juice, he buys his milk. He's hooked on cheese, pop, & McDonald's, which we've cut way down on. He thinks we're mean!

Again, I see a ton of sugar. Applesauce has sugar, so does fruit, so does jello, so do the cookies, so does the juice and so does the milk. You should try to add more protein for scotty and drastically reduce his sugar.

Originally Posted by Sharona

But sometimes, he says "I need to lose weight!" I have to put his socks & shoes on for him every morning, because he can't reach his feet. He needs to increase his stamina so he can do his little jobs at his workshop, so they want us to take him on more walks. But he's SO out of shape! Just a few years ago, he was so skinny his pants were always hanging off his hips. Like I said, Sean has really been getting serious about his diet over the past week or so. He's doing everything right, so no problems there. Oh, they were both ordering alot of pizza over the past couple of years & we've cut that out. We've also put locks on the fridge & freezer.

First off he's got to quit smoking. It's killing his stamina, which is already hindered by his weight.

It seems like Sean is getting better, but I'm more worrieda bout Scotty.

Lastly, encourage everyone to drink more water, especially you since you drink coffee which dehydrates you even more. Drinking a lot of water can make you feel a little more full and help keep you from overeating.......and also encourage everyone to eat slower. If you eat too quick your brain doesn't register that you are full until after you've already overstuffed yourself.


Thank you for sharing all of this with us, I commend you for taking charge of your family's health, and for being such a caring parent for two boys dealing with a difficult situation.

[Irving]

i agree with OD i think there is much room to improve on the food being eaten here. i think a lot of the responsibility on getting your sons healthier is on you since you make the lunches for the boys.

welcome to the website!

[William Wallace]

I concur with what I've heard so far.....

1. Get the smoking out of your son's lives, it makes it harder to exercise both physically and mentally.

2. Too much sugar/carbs/junk and not enough healthier items and protein


These changes are very doable, especially with you at the helm!

I wish you the best of luck in your quest!

[Sharona]

Wow! Thanks, everybody! For some reason, I wasn't getting my email, so I didn't see all these responses till today. You all sound VERY well-informed. I'll re-read all of it a few times till it sinks in. I really appreciate all the help. Thanks!

[Sharona]

I'll answer questions more in depth tomorrow - gotta go watch the news! Thanks again!

[Sharona]

Hello!
Help! I have to go shopping for lunches for the week for my boys. What should I buy? My husband wants me to go ASAP. Thanks! P.S. I'll respond to yesterday's questions later!

[Sharona]

If milk sugar is bad, should we switch to Lactaid or Soy Milk? My husband will say they're too expensive. What about my calcium needs? (I'm 50). Are my calcium substitutes enough or can I have low-fat dairy? What about calcium-enriched orange juice? Oh, BTW, am I supposed to get off the introduction forum into other forums? I'm new at this. Thanks.