What is most important to you?

iVillage Member
Registered: 04-08-2004
What is most important to you?
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Mon, 04-26-2004 - 11:43am

I was surfing around the other boards here (gasp!

Lori

"Remember, I'm pullin' for ya.  We're all in this together." --Red Green

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Registered: 03-26-2003
Mon, 04-26-2004 - 11:53am
What a great question, Lori! Well, for me the most important thing is good health - improving mine! Getting down to a size 3 or 5 isn't in my equation anymore as it was in my 30's. Getting my weight down to a good size for my height and health is a goal for me (and I don't have too much to lose to get there). All of my doctors have mentioned my weight to me because of my family history of heart disease & my borderline high cholesterol, so I better listen to them. Besides reducing the numbers, I would love to feel energetic and less stressful.

I don't have time to dwell on achieving a flat stomach or less jiggly thighs, although if I can have less fluff on those areas thru my workouts I will be happy. For me, just being able to get in 5 days of workouts is really accomplishing something.

Katherine (Kat)
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Registered: 03-26-2003
Mon, 04-26-2004 - 11:54am

Definitely being healthier to have a better quality of life now and as I age is my top priority, particularly since I was older when I had Rob. I want to be around to see his children, etc.


However, I'd be lying if I said looking better wasn't important too. I know that what we are inside is what really counts, but our appearance goes a long way toward making us feel better about ourselves and giving us the confidence to do more things with enthusiasm and energy.

Rhonda


Time invested in improving ourselves cuts down on time disapproving of others.

       ~~Rhonda~~


<

Avatar for imthebigsister
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Registered: 03-26-2003
Mon, 04-26-2004 - 12:55pm
I want all of that - to feel healthy now, to be as healthy as I can be as I get older (minimize poor-habit-related health issues), and to look darn fine on the way. If I didn't admit to the last part, I'd be lying. We all have different definitions of "darn fine." I'm not even sure I know what it is for me, but I think I'll recognize it when I get there.






Avatar for ive_got_five
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Registered: 11-11-2001
Mon, 04-26-2004 - 1:11pm
I'm with Donna! I want it all! I want the health without the drugs and all the rest of it, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't want to look better too! I was thin all of my life until I had my babies after 40 and I'm just not used to packing around the extra weight and I'm not making the adjustment very well at all! I want to tuck my shirt in and cinch my belt in and not have my belly wobbling around and got to the beach and feel comfortable in a bathing suit! Vain? Most likely, but I think it's more about my own feelings of accomplishment and my lack of discipline. The fact that I'm still dealing with this weight issue 3 years after having Max annoys me because I know if I knuckled under and reached my goal, I could move on to something else!

Shar

Avatar for imthebigsister
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Registered: 03-26-2003
Mon, 04-26-2004 - 1:20pm
This is all a part of my breaking down and admitting to becoming more high-maintenance than I've ever been in my life. I don't mean just on the outside. High-maintenance refers to the innards - the blood pressure, the cholesterol challenge, keeping my mind nimble and my joints flexible - as much as it does to the outside - the creams, lotions, hair coloring, make-up, et al. At least my DH is supportive. He's at least amused by some of it - I don't get perturbed at his head shaking or eye-rolling, it's fun (especially when he notices), and I've managed to keep it within reach of the wallet. Plus, I roll my eyes back at him, so who am I to get upset?

BTW, Shar - congratulations on your excellent results with Phase I, Part II. It sure is a boost to your self-esteem and confidence that you can see it through.



Avatar for ive_got_five
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Registered: 11-11-2001
Mon, 04-26-2004 - 1:47pm
Thanks Donna! Yeah, I'm feeling pretty darn pumped!

I hear you about the innards! I've never had to take meds for anything in my life, so the thought of starting doesn't appeal to me! I guess that's why I've resisted the Lipitor, etc. Dang it all! It's my own fault for not taking care of my body and I'm determined to rectify that!

Shar

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Registered: 03-26-2003
Mon, 04-26-2004 - 3:42pm
It's been so long since I've seen "darn fine" that I'm not sure I'd recognize it. ;-) I have been fortunate about my health with the exception of a skeleton has that turned on me. If it weren't for the disk/joint issues, I'd be cruisin'!!

Rhonda


Time invested in improving ourselves cuts down on time disapproving of others.

       ~~Rhonda~~


<

iVillage Member
Registered: 01-03-2001
Mon, 04-26-2004 - 3:46pm
There are other boards besides this one????

Really great question, Lori! I want to be where I was 4 yrs ago.So very comfortable in my skin and happy with myself.I went anywhere in my shorts and never gave a thought tohow I looked in them.I was actually happy with my thighs.Ironically my workouts are probably more intense now and I feel great about that.But I've really let my food become an issue and I eat way too much junk.

I want it all. I want to feel good about myself inside and outside.And I think I'm heading in that direction.This may sound silly but when I look at my finger I feel so healthy.It is ugly and sticks out like a sore thumb :)But it truly has healed incredibly well.I know how bad it could have been and am so very grateful for how great it is.So when I look at it I see positive reenforcement of how the things I do to take care of my health pay off.And I realize that in spite of a head that often pounds and thighs that ripple I am incredibly blessed by good health.

Miss P




 

Avatar for imthebigsister
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Registered: 03-26-2003
Mon, 04-26-2004 - 4:28pm
"Darn fine" was me at about 35. I was a reasonable weight (high 130s-low 140s) and felt comfortable in my clothes. I walked with my head a little higher. My hair was thicker. I could wear higher heels. And I could wear contact lenses.

I'd settle for "darn fine" in the low 140s - maybe not the same physical construction, although I don't have the excuse of childbirth for the little pouch - but something close to that, with everything in proportion, and mostly where it belongs!

I'll put up with wearing glasses (contacts are uncomfortable with the amount of reading I do in a dry office, and I think I'd be a poor candidate for Lasik b/c my vision almost as bad as you said Erin's is, with astigmatism to boot). I'll also put up with thinning hair, b/c the biotin and coloring it lighter disguises it somewhat, and character lines in my face.

I'd like to be a couple of inches taller, but that's not going to happen. I'd like to able to wear spiky heels once in a while without needing traction the next day, not feel like a sausage stuffed in a casing when I wear pants, and just be generally more confident of my physical self. A number on the scale isn't the answer, but it does go a long way.

BTW, I did color my hair just before I got sick - Navajo Bronze, Clairol Naturals. I like it a lot. Much lighter than what I've been doing, more flattering to my skin tone, with light reddish and honey color highlights and caramel color lowlights. If I ever go for a professional coloring, I'd stick with these colors.

I'm thinking Lorraine Bracco looks "darn fine" for someone approaching 50. Not as the buttoned-down Jennifer Melfi character, but as herself. Also Christine Lahti.

Is "darn fine" getting clearer?

iVillage Member
Registered: 02-08-2001
Mon, 04-26-2004 - 5:46pm
Interesting question. Initially it was all about getting back to the weight that I was at for years until the onset of going back to a sit at the desk job and the onset of my forties. As time wore on I realized that that might not happen but was happy when my clothes started fitting better and I had managed to lose and go back to a weight that I was comfortable with. Would I still love to lose that "baby" belly-yes but also realize that some of that may just be who I am. I think at this point my health issues have to be at the forefront of my mind. Of course most of these issues have crept up on me while I was exercising and eating right (well at least most of the time). On bad days I could be found scratching my head, talking to myself that what is the point of all this if I've been dealing with blood pressure issues that have become a sore point to control, headaches and fatigue issues and Xrays, scans and MRIs of virtually every part of my body while trying to take care of myself. But I do come to the realization that without doing the right things maybe these issues could have had far more serious consequences. So I guess what's most important to me is to keep the health issues under control with good things for myself and learning to control the stress in my life which of course is also helped by taking care of myself.

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