LisaP -- I love both of them. I would buy both if they were available in my size.

Well done on dropping the alcohol, sometimes it takes drastic action to break a habit. I have given up alcohol for Lent (one week down, five to go) and know how hard it can be, especially when socialising with friends. Like you, I am also hoping to drop a few unwanted pounds in the process!

The LuLus sold out on line... I have a similar pair of Calvin Kleins, similar ankle, great drawstring, I've been wearing for years. I'm in that same age demographic, early 50's, small boned, show every lb over my best weight (which I'm probably never going to see again! haha) I started whole life challenge 5 weeks ago and lost 8 lbs. Not Whole 30, which I've also done. WLC is an online daily tracking program (not everything you eat thank goodness, that would be ... onerous). but you get 5 points a day for food, and if you eat something non compliant you take a point off. so no sugar, alcohol, grains, dairy, fake sugar. so you could have a glass of wine, but lose just a point. Not all or nothing (and I am such an all or nothing kind of gal!) you also get 5 points daily for exercise, stretching (OMG is that making a difference, I mean I do yoga a couple times a week, but ten minutes of stretching is making me feel... young!), sleep, hydration, and daily reflection. I love this. It makes your choices mindful. and it's just points, right? Sugar is my weakness, always, and I am hoping once and for all to just break that habit. I quit drinking a few years back, so that isn't an issue for me, but I get that resolve busting affect it has! WLC starts again in May, I'm in maybe week 5 of 8. Depending on how many habits I hang on to, I'll sign up again. But I feel ya sista!

Yes, it was the woven pants I was thinking about, lisa thank you.

Lisa, these are great reviews, and I think it is brilliant to develop a small capsule that will work for now. Hurray for pants that fit! I might have to check out the LuLus! They seem like they could be good travelling pants (no pun intended, but hey, this is the sisterhood, after all!)

I am still up a bit in weight. I gained during a period of post-surgery recovery and illness last autumn and had planned to lose it over the summer. But it seems that losing my mother, travelling on average once a week and not being home much, quitting a job, gaining an unwanted teen tenant, juggling contracts, going to school, and dealing with a special needs kid interfered with my plans to cut back on wine and increase the exercise! HA!!

A little bird told me you had a similarly rough year, my friend.

Let's be gentle on ourselves, if we can.

For myself, all or nothing won't work (I get rebellious). I do best with moderation, so I am slowly increasing exercise (I have a plan for this) and putting wine off limits on weekdays (but allowing myself a few glasses on the weekend.) Crossing fingers for both of us!

Glad you found some great pant options! And I commiserate also. Although I need to do it again, I can say that giving up wine in the past was the fastest way for me to lose a little extra belly. One month and it was a real difference. Drinking herbal tea or lemon water at night is a good alternative to me as long as I don't put honey in it.

Lisa these pants are fabulous!! Too bad the Lulus are sold out online.

Regarding the weight gain- have you had your thyroid levels checked? I am 59 and one year ago I was 10 pounds heavier. I truly thought that this was just part of aging and resigned myself to being heavy. I am 5'3" and small boned as well and I really was not happy with how I looked. My natural path suggested that I have my thyroid levels checked and sure enough I was Hypothyroid (Hashimotos) Once I got the thyroid back in check my energy levels increased - my metabolism kicked in and I lost 10 pounds! It was quite amazing to have a metabolism again!!

Thanks for the reviews, and I'm glad you got two pairs of pants that tickle your fancy. They will look great with your sneaks, dressy blazers and coats, and gorgeous jewellery. I'm sure you'll pull together killer looks.

Lisa, I don't want to discourage you from your goals, but I have never seen you look better than in your last few WIWs. If your body is healthy at this newer size and weight, you have a lot going for you. There is no point in being miserable trying to get down to another size. Be kind to yourself sweet lady, and always dress the body you have now. I KNOW you have a good eating plan and workout very regularly. That is brilliant, and good enough.

As for premium jeans - their sizes are quite ridiculous. I've seen size 27s that would fit a skinny 10 year old, and size 24s that will fit a size 4. Don't let the number on the tag ruin your day. You are beautiful just the way you are.

Lisa..... I have the Fitbit One.....available at Chapters. It's the basic model but great for getting on track with eating and activity. Pop the app on your phone or tablet and easy peasy. I'm a fairly healthy eater to begin with but actually seeing the numbers in front of me and seeing what I burn just naturally and I what I burn when active has been a positive thing. I'm not a gadget person and I don't like to get too caught up in food and exercise.....because that's no fun.....but surprisingly this thing is a good little motivator once you get into it.....even if used short term to get on track.

Oh, I must add that I totally agree with Angie. Your WIW's look great. But as someone who also battles belly and hip fat I get where you're coming from.

Marilyn, how do you use One for calorie tracking? I'm have one and just use it to see my steps...I'm not a calorie counter. I see there is a way to enter everything you eat, but ...uh...no. Do you do that?

Lisa, also nodding with Angie -- you always look sensational. So there. But I also get how the way clothes feel on the body has a huge impact. I know this is true for me. It's not about the numbers; it's about distribution or something. When I'm active I just feel so much better in my clothes.

Marilyn - thanks for the tip - I'll look into that ! I'm in my nearest Indigo a couple of times a week !

Angie - thanks for the kind and thoughtful words. What I show in pictures doesn't really reflect what my body looks like underneath I want to be able to wear a bathing suit, shorts, tanks, workout clothes with confidence, not embarrassment . It's truly not a #/size thing. The one upside of extra weight is that my face is not as drawn looking as can happen to women as they age and maintain a thin body. You know the saying : your face or your ...... And with regards to premium jeans - I have a pair of CE Stilettos in a 28 - they seem to be a pretty generous fit - and i can still get into them, albeit not as comfortably. But yesterday, I tried the same jean on in a different wash and even a 30 wasn't working. I did notice that the store still had a ton of small sizes left in the premium jeans (there was a big selection of them on sale ) but all of the larger sizes were getting picked over, which leads one to believe that that accurate sizing is indeed a problem. Anyways - I wouldn't have cared what size they were if they had actually fit comfortably. GAP GF ones do, and they were 1/4 of the price, again .

andib and diane - funny the pants are sold out on-line. Our local store had a ton of them. And re; thyroid issues, yes, I've been obsessed with that but my levels are just fine, according to my dr. I admit i was a little disappointed in hearing that as I was hoping for a clear reason I could focus on and deal with. I'm so glad you got your situation sorted out - i have a good friend with Hashimoto's too and she has to be very vigilant about food and liquid calories .

suz- yep, you're right about having a really wacky year. I have been in denial about this - and completely underestimating the effect of getting together with my 3 best ff's (one at a time- lol) , drinking wine , and having a bite to eat. Do that once or even twice a week for many months - and no wonder this happened. I was so happy to be connecting with friends though that I was ignoring the effect it was having on my body and health. I lay awake for many hours last night thinking about this - and it comes down to not treating my body with respect. And something Vivian said in another post about us living in a culture of alcohol (i'm paraphrasing ) really stuck with me. Everything socially that we do is built around it - and looking at it with clear eyes, it's not a healthy thing. I am an all or nothing type - and moderation has never been the answer. Perhaps one day when I have myself back on track, I'll investigate how having a glass now and then works for me, but until then - I'm trying to treat myself/body with the respect it needs at this age. I know what you're dealing with too - and I'm always on the other end of an email..as you know

Lisa, of course. Your mind, body and spirit need time to process and heal after your hectic year (Suz's body, mind and spirit do too). By all means set yourself a goal for your body. Goals are good things! Also remember that if you can't reach that goal, or maintain it - it's also okay. Much love to you.

Suz.......I have the Fitbit app on my tablet (you can use any device with bluetooth) to sync my device. And I use my "dashboard" at fitbit.com to log food and activity. And yes, I have been logging my food for about a month.....once you get going with it it's not as monotonous as it sounds. I don't know that I would log food indefinitely but for now it's giving me a good picture and I find it quite insightful. It's one thing to say to yourself, "I think I ate well today" and it's another to actually see the numbers. Then see how much you burned that day. I've lost 3 lbs in the last month and at almost 53 I've found that hard to accomplish lately. I can see the difference in my belly and hips.
I also log my activity that is not step related......stationary bike, resistance training, classes, etc. It's impossible to get calories in and out exact but it's a good estimate. The stuff you see on your Fitbit will sync to your dashboard.
I tell you I was less than enthusiastic when I received this as gift from my daughter. But, she's so in to hers and was excited to give it to me so I felt like I needed to make the effort. It's a bit tedious at first until you get the hang of things. But, I'm happy I gave it a go because it's given me a boost. I have a friend who's a lawyer and she actually turned around on her way to work and went home because she had forgotten hers. I thought she was nuts but now I totally get it. You really get attached to the darned thing.

My apologies for the long post.

Thanks for this Marilyn - I used to use myfitnesspal for this entering of food and activity and it was a little time consuming ....but this sounds perhaps better.

I wanted to suggest another excellent option for a transitional pant - I'm in the same boat as you, and found this pant to fit really well.

Take a look at the Everlane slouchy trouser. Beautifully made, with a very nice price. And, Everlane ships to Canada now, too!

I'm a 10P right now and I bought a size 10, which fit well.

Wow - those are really nice Kristin - thanks for the tip. The price is good too, considering our awful exchange rate right now. I have only ordered from Everlane once, and did like what I ordered. I'll check this out further to see what actual shipping costs are. I love this style !

Lisa......Yes, logging things IS a bit of a commitment. But I find it gets easier as you go. Fitbit creates a "most logged" food section so for example my rotation of breakfast foods are always there as is my lunch smoothie (which is an average of my various concoctions). So it's just a couple clicks and done. I create "custom foods" for home baked muffins/snacks and such as they come up as well as some dinner things. Dinner is trickier to log so it's a best estimate sometimes. For Valentine's Day dinner I just entered Restaurant and 1000 calories as I knew the day was blown and I'm fine with that. Cheat days are a must for me.

FWIW, I ordered the slouchy Everlane trousers depicted above in two sizes, and the pockets flared opened in both.

Marilyn, thank you for that! I also track activity besides walking and do enjoy the Fitbit for that. I'm just allergic to calorie counting, but I do agree that tracking can be a useful aid for weight maintenance at times and have done that briefly in the past. I am glad you are finding that this is working for you!

Sorry for the thread jack, Lisa. I agree that it is a shame so much socializing is built around going for a drink (or food and drink). Although to be honest, I'm a huge foodie so I can't really regret the food part. But I have tried and tried to meet up with friends for a walk instead of the inevitable drink, and only certain ones are interested, and sadly, most of the ones who are live in a different city than mine and I only see them for hikes/ walks when we travel and meet up together! Of course this disinclination for outdoor meet ups might have just a wee bit to do with our weather. Anyway, one switch up that has worked for me and two of my close friends is meeting up in a really nice spot for tea. Of course tea can also lead to brownies or lemon squares. So it is six of one and half a dozen of the other, as Mr. Suz would say. Sigh...

Good luck with your new goals, but in the meantime, YLF!

ok, so this conversation impressed me A LOT. i wish i had this kind of determination to stay fit. truly inspiring Lisap!

Thank you olga - very kind of you to say so. My parents and brother (and I) were and are a mix of professional or competitive amateur athletes . A fit, strong, healthy and competitive lifestyle was a given. Letting it get out of hand for whatever reason - is not honouring that part of my life. Determination comes from the weirdest places

Lisa, I totally get the body image issue and the glass (or 7) of wine dilemma. My job has me so much more in need of relaxation and social time, and frankly a glass of wine with besties is the quickest fix. I can't feel too guilty about it.

Yet even though I now know that my swollen midsection is due to medical issues completely beyond my control until surgery, I STILL find myself feeling terrible and guilty when my waistband feels tight or when I eat a bite of dessert. It's a battle between how easy it is to "give in" to temptation and how easy it is to be self-critical and mean to myself.

How about if you talk to yourself as if you're talking to me, and I'll do the same with you? In other words, humor, encouragement and kindness. I could certainly use some of that, anyway.

Just to add, there would be a little bit of sass and sarcasm in there too - because it is us, after all. 

And I have the bad luck of being a total foodie.  In my desperation to look good again (combined with my crazy work schedule), I have days where I eat nothing but a yogurt and a handful of almonds - and I'm not only miserably cranky and still not skinny but HUNGRY.  "Eat to Live" by Joel Fuhrman worked for me, but only while I did it, and I found it was really more for people who eat to live, rather than people like me who live to eat.  Sigh.

Lest you think I'm exaggerating...

Una - I get it , I really do. And I appreciate every word you wrote. But here's the thing: I don't view trying to regain health and fitness as beating up on myself or not being kind to myself. Drinking too much wine, eating the wrong kinds of food BECAUSE I'm drinking too much wine - THAT is not being kind to myself. I"m not berating myself - there is no point in that . I'm taking a stand that I should have taken a while ago, but as we all know, timing is everything and there is usually something that kind of clicks that pushes the button for you one day. I'll say something here that may get me into trouble but - when has that ever stopped me? If I look at the women I know who drink a lot of wine - there is not one single one of them who looks good in terms of body weight and overall fitness. Not a one. I love them, they are my friends, but it's pretty clear to me that alcohol and the way I want to present myself don't work together. I may be exaggerating or sounding overly dramatic, but I've not been successful in the all things in moderation approach. I'm crazy - I LOVE hard workouts and heaving weights around and I'd be doing crossfit if I had a knee that functioned normally still. I never drank as much as I did - every - until this past year. It's a slippery slope for me, and I"m better off staying away from it. Here's another funny thing that happened - if you saw my Facebook post yesterday - and I can copy and paste it here - about the real effects of wine....every one of my friends were being oh-so-funny and pushing back at me. Interesting eh? Anyways - I'm fine , I don't beat myself up , I look at myself with a very critical eye (not bad-critical, but analytical critical ) and know what I want and what is achievable for me. Wow - I really need to start journaling or something - this is way more info that anyone needs to read here

And lol on the yogurt and almonds. I live this way too xo
L.

Okay then! Notice I did not comment on your FB post.... I get it too. For a long time, I was one of those skinny, fit people who always secretly frowned on the diet-conscious and size police - and now I am realizing that middle age is just a slap in the face.

This health issue has given me a lightbulb moment though. The fact that I was so focused on the idea that it was MY FAULT I WAS GAINING WEIGHT and was determined to starve and exercise my body into submission, only to find out that I have a medical condition (my doctor was like "Hell yeah, you look 20 weeks pregnant!"), was a bit of a shock. I've blatantly ignored all kinds of obvious symptoms - exhaustion, cramps, swelling, other details too hideous to relate - all because that little voice inside whispers that I am a lazy slob and should be able to control myself better.

So that's where I'm coming from, and now I'll stop imposing my narrative on you. Shall we co-journal?

Other than not drinking wine, you could try doing a girls yoga night with a vegetarian dinner afterwards. We have a new vegan juice bar place that opened up next to the hot yoga studio and the food looks amazing.

I think a lot of people get annoyed by the trendiness of this lifestyle, but it is healthy.

AndiB thanks for the info about WLC-. It looks like it would be good for me. Even if I eat a few of the non-compliant foods a day, just using it as a way to get more ordered about my sleep and exercise would be well worth it. And I like the idea of stretching and self reflection/journaling being important.

Una -speaking of looking 20 weeks pregnant, I actually had a bit of panic attack about a week ago wondering if there was any way that it could be possible that.......and I nearly died from anxiety over that. I am quite sure it isn't but could you IMAGINE?

For what it's worth, I think your attitude here is positive, Lisa. My view is that our bodies have a long way to go and if you want to feel good and be active in those later years you'd damned well better take care of it.

I've been an avid wine drinker and it hasn't been that hard to cut back over this last month. A big part for me is just breaking that 4 to 5 days a week habit....it tastes good, it relaxes me (and I need that!) but it's empty calories. I indulged in one glass last night and it was kind of a treat.

I'm not into starvation though. I love food so I look for healthy options. I just baked some Vegan Blackbean Brownies (in muffin tin for portion control) and my boys gobbled them up without the knowledge than they were full of beans and fairly healthy. LOL

Ooh - that sounds like a great treat - the brownies. I'll look up the recipe!