Any 45+ females succeeding at losing weight, pre/menopause?

imathena

Hi Ladies,

I'm Athena, trying to loose weight and having a hard time because of what I believe is pre-menopause, I'm 46. I could use any tips or advice on what has worked for you, because it seems like nothing works for me. Would like to break my plateau.

Feel free to introduce yourself. Thanks!

dollypz

Dolly here. Just getting started. I'm 50 & hsve gained about 35 # with the menopause.

JustJudy

Hi My name is Judy. I am 47 and I've noticed the slow climb on the scale lately too. I have found that I HAVE TO exercise every day or the weight climbs. I've tried the light dinner approach too and it hasn't helped yet.
Add me and we can tackle this monster together! I'm looking to add more friends that actually use MFP. I do.

Sued0nim

Don't make excuses age isn't that much of a factor

Don't make it complicated or follow fads

Throw away everything you think you know about losing weight

Eat at a calorie defecit across the week, weigh all food, log accurately and with care

Move more

Start a progressive resistance programme

That's it, all you need to do ..it's not difficult, it just takes commitment

Good luck

LZMiner

Actually, age is a factor! I've been doing a lot of research on menopause...and it's well documented by the medical community--Mayo, WebMD, AMA---that weight will gravitate to your midsection during menopause. As someone who never had this problem before, it's been really frustrating...and why I'm here! I'm trying to eat less white processed stuff...pasta, egg noodles, bread.....and exercise more with weights. We'll see how it goes!

LZMiner

And my name is Lisa...I'm 49...my goal is to firm up my midsection and lose 10 pounds.

Sued0nim

LZMiner wrote: »

Actually, age is a factor! I've been doing a lot of research on menopause...and it's well documented by the medical community--Mayo, WebMD, AMA---that weight will gravitate to your midsection during menopause. As someone who never had this problem before, it's been really frustrating...and why I'm here! I'm trying to eat less white processed stuff...pasta, egg noodles, bread.....and exercise more with weights. We'll see how it goes!

That research is population based ..eg they are reporting on what is happening across a population it's not a fait accompli ..if there is no excess weight there is nowhere for it to gravitate to

It doesn't HAVE to happen though

It's a lifestyle choice

A progressive heavy lifting programme improves your musculature and increases your TDEE (can overtake the 100 calorie per decade drop we get with aging) ..it also helps stabilise some of the hormonal fluctuations

A calorie controlled diet ensures your body fat percentage does not rise ..it doesn't have to be low carb,or cutting out foods or food groups unless that's how you hit your CICO

The two together with an active lifestyle can help you buck the trend

I'm 48

I've lost over 55lbs since last May (been in maintenance since this February )

That's my midsection in my av

paulmaryadam

Hello - I was recommended to this site by my physician. I am in the same boat with gaining weight - menopause and an underactive thyroid. I would love to have a group of women that I could chat with on a daily basis to keep me motivated...am I in the right place? I just turned 50 and would like to loose 20 pounds...

loconnor466

Hi there, another Lisa and 49 years old. I have lost 50 pounds since joining here. I have another 15-20 I would like to lose, but it will be a slow process. I have not entered into menopause yet, but have had different issues that I believe are peri-menopause. A lot of it is hormone based and every woman is different.
I do believe a woman's body changes and it is a bit harder to lose. I have been overweight most of my life and have always had more than "10 pounds to lose" Quitting smoking at 47 only added another 20 pounds.

I believe my success this time around is heavy lifting. It has changed my body and my mind in so many ways. I cannot recommend it enough. I always hated cardio, even if it was disguised as dancing, zumba, jazzercise, whatever. Never saw the amazing changes that I have seen with lifting. Then again, I could never stick with cardio. I will never have the abs of rabbitjb, but that is OK, I never had them in my life before anyways.

Sued0nim

loconnor466 wrote: »

Hi there, another Lisa and 49 years old. I have lost 50 pounds since joining here. I have another 15-20 I would like to lose, but it will be a slow process. I have not entered into menopause yet, but have had different issues that I believe are peri-menopause.
I do believe a woman's body changes and it is a bit harder to lose. I have been overweight most of my life and have always had more than "10 pounds to lose" Quitting smoking at 47 only added another 20 pounds.

I believe my success this time around is heavy lifting. It has changed my body and my mind in so many ways. I cannot recommend it enough. I always hated cardio, even if it was disguised as dancing, zumba, jazzercise, whatever. Never saw the amazing changes that I have seen with lifting. Then again, I could never stick with cardio. I will never have the abs of rabbitjb, but that is OK, I never had them in my life before anyways.

You might be surprised what happens when you drop enough bf to see the results of all that lifting

I know I was

LZMiner

Alright ladies, I'm inspired! Thanks for the push!

Sued0nim

LZMiner wrote: »

Alright ladies, I'm inspired! Thanks for the push!

Yay


it all comes down to calorie intake for fat loss so don't forget your calorie counting
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1080242/a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants/p1

Walk more to get your basic activity level up

This is a decent read: http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2009/10/26/how-to-not-suck-at-working-out/

Get a programme
Books
Strong Curves
New Rules of Lifting for Women

Structured online programmes
http://stronglifts.com/5x5/
https://www.muscleandstrength.com/workouts/jason-blaha-ice-cream-fitness-5x5-novice-workout
http://www.muscleandfitness.com/workouts/workout-routines/4-week-guide-starting-strength


Why?


Also see Staci
http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2011/07/21/meet-staci-your-new-powerlifting-super-hero/

If you can't bring yourself to do free weights yet then do a decent bodyweight programme
http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2009/12/09/beginner-body-weight-workout-burn-fat-build-muscle/

farfromthetree

I started MFP at age 47. I am now 50 and lost 40+ lbs. I have regained about 5 and am working on dropping them again.
Logging and counting my calories and weight fluctuations has shown me how much damage just a couple hundred extra calories/day can cause. It is more difficult as we get older but like someone above said, it's a lifestyle choice.
Excercise helps tremendously, but only in conjunction with diet.(For me)
Since I only eat around 1500 calories/day, I try to fill my day with lean meats, veggies, healthy fats and whole grains. Most important I try and reach my protein goal for the day.
I have grown to love my diet, and no longer miss the junk food. If I really want chips, candy, I have it but fit it into my day.
If I have a really bad night (which is rare anymore) I very quickly realize why I dont eat like that anymore!

Abby2205

I'm 47 and I've lost 20 pounds. I knew that my weight was slowly creeping up as I got older but I was never overweight so I told myself I didn't care: "I'm a middle aged mom, this is what it looks like." "I'm still in the healthy BMI range." But I had summer shorts that were too small and I just decided that I was not going to buy larger sizes without at least trying to lose 10 pounds.
First I cut way back on fast food--I was buying my lunch almost every weekday, and the value meals and sandwiches with chips really add up. Then I got a pedometer and later a fitness tracker and focused on doing more walking because I figured it was good for me. Then I started tracking my calories so I could really understand what I was eating. 10 months later, I'd lost 20 pounds.
Over the long term, my average rate of loss agreed with the calorie deficit I set up in MFP. Short term, I'd often go three weeks at a time with no loss (my scale only reads to the nearest full pound).

Kira_72

Age is a factor. I'm having trouble too. I'm 44...yay! Weight is creeping up a bit, and for no apparent reason. I'm trying Estroven. ?? Anyone else try it? Doing elpitical and walking plus pilates DVD about 3x a week.