I just signed up for membership to a pool! I'm excited, but scared. They don't have any new aerobics classes until fall, but I'm going to take a few lessons to remember how to swim better, so I have something to practice. Thanks for the thread Lindy, it helped propel me into action.

How about this... His comments made me pick up my copy of DANDR again and actually READING it, instead of just looking at it.
*don't worry, it took me three years to think this way, its in the thread on what got me motivated, the kick start one. those three years i called that kid every name in the book, in my head of course! And to this day, I can't look his mother in the face, for fear i just LOSE IT) *ok, i have issues! lol but I'm still swimming!

For REAL!!!???? EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I'm so excited for you!!! Do they have a smilie that jumps up and down?? I need one of those! EEEEE!!!! YAY !!! How COOL is this!!? Oh YAY YAY YAY I hope you love it - I know you will once you get in that water, it feels so good!

OH YAY YAY YAY!!

FatFreeMe - Aw hell no, I'd NEVER let my kid talk that way! But you're right, the mothers were WAYYYYYY worse, shame on them, no wonder the kid said what he did. Shame, shame on them.

But YOU kept going! YES! That's the way to be - fight the ignorance by ignoring them and not letting it (at least outwardly) affecting you. You should be proud of yourself.

Lindystar, where did you find your tankini? And are you using some kind of swim shorts, or just cutoffs? I don't think the Y will allow cutoffs in the pool.

I love being in the water too. Except for that part when you get OUT of the water and feel your full weight again!

..And your bathing suit sticking to all the most inappropriate places.. gawd i hate that part!

I did it! I went swimming! OMG! Gratefully, there weren't a lot of people there. My skinny husband was working out in the mini-gym, and I went by myself. And yes, it felt fantastic, and so much better for my body right now, not so hard on my joints. I didn't swim lots of laps, just some and enjoyed the water. I ordered some flippers One thing I didn't love was the clear shower curtains they have , I said to the lady, maybe I'll bring my own

Ditto. This helped a lot, and is exactly what I did. I have some lycra shorts and the tankini top. Perfect, and I didn't feel overly self-conscious-but I didn't look in the mirror too long either.

So Thanks Again!

ImOnMyWay - I got one of the tops at Meijer and one at Walmart. The shorts I got at Meijer and they're just a synthetic material short that I found in the same section as the bathing suits. Not like basketball shorts or anything, more like the material they use for guys swimming trunks. Good luck shopping to you! This is a great time of year for it - everythings on sale!

Knightfree - OH!! OH!!! EEEE!!!!!!! YYYYAAAAYYYYY!!!!!! OH!!! I'm so excited for you! YEESS!!!
Flippers! Oh aren't those fun!?
So proud of you, I hope you keep it up and enjoy yourself

I think the technical term for those is boardshorts.

I wear a speedo one piece bathing suit - I have a couple that I've picked up on sale over the years and I love them because they support mah girls better than the average swimsuit. They also never go out of style. They can be picked up cheap at Adidas outlet stores.

I have a tankini that I got from Lands Ends and I also have several one piece suits to. The one piece holds the old stomach in better though, I think.

We have our own pool so I am out in it most everyday. I do all my aerobics and exercises in the pool.
It a large in ground pool so I am able to swim laps in it to.

Wish you all were here with me so I could throw a big pool party.....

I am determined to do some swimming: but two obstacles:

1. The last suit I bought (size 14, and I was so depressed I had to wear a size 14) is now TOO ~&O*!! SMALL. Good thing I found a cute suit! Look at this cute tankini I ordered!

http://www.swimsuitsjustforus.com/schs8010f.html

plus some black (loose) swim shorts, I will be ready to go. Except:

Every summer I am prone to "heat rash". I've gotten it almost every summer, even when I was slender. All the way back to adolescence. Usually on the hands and arms, in the crook of the elbow, behind the knees, wherever sweat accumulates. Right now, I've got extremely dry skin that has progressed into little oozing bumps on my right hand. It's itchy as hell; what usually happens is I go to the dermatologist and get some "magic" skin cream that heals it. (When I was in Europe as a tourist, I showed my condition to a pharmacist and he gave me a diaper rash cream and it worked great!)

I've been told that chlorine will aggravate the condition. I've tried hydrocortisone creams (intended for insect bites); these make the situation worse. I've also used aloe vera gel, this helps but it doesn't go away. Lotions tend to make it sting; I got some homeopathic cream that seems to help, but last night I woke up at 4AM scratching & oozing! I think I'm going to wear cotton gloves to bed.

Any suggestions?

I had some skin troubles about ten years ago. I was getting chronic hives. I used Aveeno bath oil instead of soap. It helped only a little on the hives, but it totally cured my rashy bum. The nice thing about the Aveeno thing was that the effects lasted a very long time. Like, years. I think this is why they told us in the girlie magazines to beware of overwashing to treat acne. My skin is otherwise dry and sensitive - if i dry it out more I leave it vulnerable to "sucking up" things that it doesn't like (like my own sweat).

Personally I'd go for a two pronged approach, shower with Aveeno (no soap anywhere on the body) and treat the spots with butt paste.


The hives were from from taking St. John's Wort. I stopped taking it and they went away too.

Aveeno bath oil and ... what is "butt paste"?

Thanks!

You're such an inspiration!! I'm so happy that you've found real love and support. Swim on sister!

I love swimming at the gym, it's one of my favorite things to do there. I find it really works my arms too!