Did you gain weight when you FIRE'd?

[Chaos Abounds]

I've recently lost a significant amount of weight and am concerned that once I'm FIRE'd and am at home with cupboards full of food that I'll gain the weight back. So, I'm curious...for those of you who are FIRE'd, did maintaining your weight become an issue?

 

[CyclingInvestor]

I am 51, retired 3 years, like to exercise and eat, and need to lose weight.

I have lost about 15 lbs since retiring. I still need to lose more. I am
finding I am eating better at home than when I worked, mainly thru being
able to make alot of salads - always 1, sometimes 2/day. Taking salad
to work never seemed like an option.

 

[ls99]

Nope. More time for walks, workouts, kayaking.

 

[Nords]

I've recently lost a significant amount of weight and am concerned that once I'm FIRE'd and am at home with cupboards full of food that I'll gain the weight back. So, I'm curious...for those of you who are FIRE'd, did maintaining your weight become an issue?

I think you'll have more time to prepare & eat smaller, healthier meals at more regular intervals. You'll also have more time to focus on eating triggers & behaviors, and learn to avoid the pitfalls.

My problem was six-hour watches where I couldn't eat, or running around all morning dealing with problems and then racing through lunch.

You have to be responsible for your own entertainment, but we don't find ourselves spending the day waddling between Taco Bell & Dairy Queen...

 

[CuppaJoe]

At one year, I’m about the same. Before retirement I viewed my weight the same way as my PF, pretending there was a whole lot less there so that I would save more. After RE, PF is rising, weight holding it’s own and I’m paying attention to the numbers for the first time. It remains to be seen if the “cupboards full of food” is better or worse for the waistline than the stuff I picked up from deli’s near w*rk. Cooking at home more can be time-consuming, fun, work, a hobby, and part of an answer to the question, “what do you do all day.”

 

[Lakedog]

Lost weight due to more time for exercise and healthier eating (less fast food and more meals at home). I'm probably in the best shape of my life (or certainly since my college days). The biggest change is having the time for exercise, outdoor activities, and shopping for/preparing meals at home.

 

[Bestwifeever]

That's why God invented this thread:

http://www.early-retirement.org/forums/f38/its-wednesday-weigh-ins-24924.html

to which I will again be posting as soon as the Summer of Eating is over.

 

[CuppaJoe]

That's why God invented this thread:

http://www.early-retirement.org/forums/f38/its-wednesday-weigh-ins-24924.html

to which I will again be posting as soon as the Summer of Eating is over.

See 'ya there, good idea to wait (weight) until after Labor Day.

 

[Chaos Abounds]

I already bike or run 6 days a week and it's easy to control food intake at w*rk...it's when I'm at home on the weekends that I have trouble...and once I'm FIRE'd every day is a weekend...

Maybe I'll become a gym rat...

 

[W2R]

Weight loss has been a continual struggle for me, throughout my adult life. While I finish up my last few months of work I am not "winning the battle" but at least I am not going wild and eating everything in sight.

I sure hope that everyone is right, and that I won't gain in retirement. I admit that I have been wondering about that, too.

After I retire and cubicle-sitting is no longer required, I have great plans to sit less and move more. We'll see how that works out. Weekends are tough for me too, because Frank and I eat at restaurants all weekend. I am planning to make some rules concerning how many meals per week I can eat out, after retirement.

 

[Life_is_Good]

I made a promise to myself that I would lose and maintain a healthy weight after retirement.

I purchased an elliptical machine and I'm on it Monday through Friday for about 30 minutes in the mornings - vigorously. I consider it my only job.

I lost 30 pounds and have stayed in my healthy range for over a year. It's all in your mind. If you commit to it.... it works.

 

[W2R]

I made a promise to myself that I would lose and maintain a healthy weight after retirement.

I purchased an elliptical machine and I'm on it Monday through Friday for about 30 minutes in the mornings - vigorously. I consider it my only job.

I lost 30 pounds and have stayed in my healthy range for over a year. It's all in your mind. If you commit to it.... it works.

That is wonderful!! I am so impressed. I am hoping/planning to regard daily exercise as my only job in retirement, too.

 

[Gotadimple]

It's been a year, and I've dropped 15 pounds. This was intentional, but I am not exercising any more than I did when I worked. The difference is a less sedentary day. There's lots to be said for not spending all day sitting at a desk.

When I went for my annual eye exam, my prescription did not need to be changed. If anything, my eyesight was stronger. The doctor says that he sees that often with retirees -- less time on the computer -- less eyestrain.

-- Rita

 

[CTRetiree]

Losing weight in retirement

I retired two months ago at 59. When people asked me what I planned to do in retirement, I told them that the only goal I had was to exercise more and lose weight.

I had been overeating prior to retiring. I have started eating sensibly, but no real diet. Instead of having a McDonalds Big Breakfast and an extra hash brown, I am eating just cereal and occasional fruit. Lunches and dinners are the same things I was always eating, but in more reasonable quantities. Snacks are limited to carrots, tomatoes, radishes and the like.

Have only been out to eat maybe 8 times since retiring. I used to go out to lunch every day. Restauarant meals are an invitation to overeating. The one "gimmicky" thing I have done is to eat 4-6 Fiber Choice tablets per day (6 is the recommended max on the bottle). It *seems* to make it easier to avoid overeating, so I'm good with that.

As far as exercise, I have developed a habit of walking an hour (about 3 miles) a day on the walking trails in town. I skip it on days I mow the lawn and occasionally if it is too muggy, or if my body asks for a break, but I have been able to do it most days.

By now you are wondering whether it worked. Well, this morning I was 232, down 30 lb from my start at 262. Works for me.

If you want to lose weight in retirement, make it your new job.

CT Retiree

 

[Rustic23]

So far no difference that not retired. I lost about 15 lbs in the first two years, gained 20 in the next two years and I am not working on the next two years, and the yo yo is going down.

 

[Westernskies]

I gained weight BEFORE I retired. I'm an overachiever.

 

[Buckeye]

After my last day of work (at least for now), we spent 10 days in FL with friends, then 8 days with my girlfriends and family in Seattle, and then another 4 days with friends in FL. Lots of food and drink and a few extra pounds. They made me eat and drink too much!

 

[Martha]

Gained weight after I retired. Oops!

 

[REWahoo]

I've been retired a little more than 4 years with no weight gain - or loss.

 

[Chaos Abounds]

Glad to know it's not a given...

 

[freebird5825]

I never weighed myself when I FIREd, so I'm not sure. My guess is I lost a fair amount because I no longer eat those lunches every day.
Since I started reporting on the Wed Weigh-in thread, I lost about 6 lbs and promptly put it right back on during my vacation. Oh well.
I still haven't gotten over the exercise bicycle hump. I loved sports but I detest repetitive machine exercise. I get my strength building exercise in the yard and garden in short spells. If I try to do too much, I trigger my RSI symptoms again.
I move around a lot all day. I do notice I am more toned all over than when I sat [-]suffered[/-] behind the desk. People always comment that I look like I've lost weight.
My RSI aches and pains are almost gone. That alone is a huge improvement.

 

[Moemg]

My job was very physical . I would be on the constant move for ten hours so when I retired my weight started to creep but I joined a gym and have lost eleven pounds from my retirement weight . I'm going to try for ten more .

 

[Moemg]

l haven't gotten over the exercise bicycle hump. I loved sports but I detest repetitive machine exercise. I get my strength building exercise in the yard and garden in short spells.

I also detest machine exercise so I take exercise classes . It keeps me motivated plus it is a great social outlet.

 

[freebird5825]

I also detest machine exercise so I take exercise classes . It keeps me motivated plus it is a great social outlet.

I have been thinking about this. At the risk of sounding like a whiner ,
I have to be very careful with standard exercises to avoid more problems with my upper body and arms. I had a lot of nerve (hands) and tendon (fingers, hands, elbows) problems as well as deep muscle knots (back and neck). What a mess!
I tried some Pilates using a video at home - ouch. I looked at a Yoga book and the thought of trying those positions made me "ache" all over. My PT recommended stretching only and light yard w*rk until I was "all better".
On the bright side, I am almost symptom free, which means I am finally healing after 2+ years out. Yay!!!!

 

[Rambler]

I'm not retired yet, trying to lose weight before retiring so that getting health insurance does not become a problem. I go to the gym usually about 4-5 times a week, but when I have had a late night, when I've had too much stress, etc, it gets skipped. I'm thinking that during the first couple of years of FIRE while I am doing the work of landscaping my yet untouched 2 acres, I will probably lose some. And if I have had a late night, I will get up when I get up, and still have plenty of time to get on the treadmill or walk into town and back with DW (4 mile round-trip), or go into the next town on my bicycle (18 mile round-trip), or take a kayak to the lake and paddle for a while, etc. Currently, if I've had a late night and end up getting up too late, my chance for any exercise at all that day is shot.

In essence, I am looking forward to being able to be much more active than I am now. Our California (home) weather is nice enough that I can get lots of outdoor exercise whether by working in the yard or sporty activities, and when the weather is not so nice I can still use the exercise equipment (treadmill, rowing machine and probably an eliptical by that time). For eating, I love to cook, and will be doing lots more cooking at home, using healthier ingredients than I can get here (overseas assignment). I have 50 or so pounds that need to come off, and if I wanted to get to a BMI of 23, then I would have maybe 15-17 more to go beyond that. My goal is to lose at least 30 in the next two or three years before FIRE, and work on the rest over time...maybe three years for the next 20, and two or years for the next 15 to get to that 23 BMI. If I try to do it all at once, I'll have to do some kind of severe diet, that I know won't last (yo-yo back up) and having to buy clothes on the downside, and then have back on the up side. If I do it slowly, over a long time, then my annual clothing budget should cover it and I won't have as much risk of ballooning back up.

R