can a 46 year old, with health issues, trim down inches

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  • JaceyMarieS
    JaceyMarieS Posts: 692 Member
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    after a certain point in age, women have greater difficulty losing due to the change of life (which i haven't yet started) and a slower metabolism. if you have health issues, it makes it even more difficult. thanks.

    More difficult? Maybe
    More important? Definitely

    I'm 45, with diabetes, Hashimoto's thyroiditis, degenerative disc disease and OA in my wrists, fingers, ankles and back. To keep going, all I have to do is think back to how I felt 2 years ago
  • CipherZero
    CipherZero Posts: 1,418 Member
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    after a certain point in age, women have greater difficulty losing due to the change of life (which i haven't yet started) and a slower metabolism. if you have health issues, it makes it even more difficult. thanks.

    So do men. A year of results:

    Weight : down from 230 to 181
    BMI: down from 35.4 to 28.3
    Body fat (guess from pictures): 40%+ to 28%
    Waist: down from 40 to 33
    Endurance: up from "Couldn't get up three flights of stairs" to "hiking six to seven miles a day in under ninety minutes."
    Lifts: Bench up from 60 lbs to 145. Squats up from 65 lbs to 160. Deadlifts are still new and rising 10 lbs a week.

    the tl;dr version: It takes longer. It's totally worth it.
  • LiftAllThePizzas
    LiftAllThePizzas Posts: 17,857 Member
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    You can do even more than you would imagine.

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/903628-one-year-of-barbells-and-ice-cream-my-story-so-far-pics
  • rcclcruiser
    rcclcruiser Posts: 98 Member
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    Your are only 46? I'm 54, but have always believed in preventing any health issues that could come up in the future. I have always eaten healthy and exercised, but at our age, that's not enough to lose weight. So I am doing the Flat Belly Diet. It is a book by the Editors of Prevention Magazine. So far, it is working - an assortment of great-tasting, easy food to fix, I am never hungry and have no cravings.
  • lithezebra
    lithezebra Posts: 3,670 Member
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    I've had health issues since my twenties. The fact that I exercise, for enjoyment, has made them a lot less bad than they could be.
  • RM10003
    RM10003 Posts: 316 Member
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    I'm 45, perimenopausal, and hypothyroid, and I have some nerve damage in one foot from when I messed up L5S1 a few years ago. I'm also down 20 pounds since February.
  • cityjaneLondon
    cityjaneLondon Posts: 12,309 Member
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    I am 63 and have had high blood pressure, all kinds of aches and pains, damaged knees and ankles, and was obese.

    One year later I am within one lb of 'healthy' BMI and nearly every health issue is resolved. One knee still clicks. I have eaten lovely healthy food around 1700 calories and exercised off 400 a day or a bit more. Gym machines and strength training. Dumbbelles. I hardly recognise myself, not just because of the way I look, though that is nice, but the fitness that permeates every second of my daily life.. I used to hardly be able to get in and out of the car and could not walk on the flat without being out of breath. I hurt everywhere. Even turning over in bed was a major struggle. Painkillers every night. Now I love to move. I feel a true miracle.

    You can definitely do it. The other posts on this thread are inspiring. The wheelchair users rock!

    Good luck, you can do it .:flowerforyou:
  • Shetchncn1
    Shetchncn1 Posts: 260 Member
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    Seriously if you don't get moving NOW you are not going to be able to move later. How do you want to be when you really get old.... Think about it....
  • Pixilox
    Pixilox Posts: 51 Member
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    I'm going to be 47, have Fibromyalgia, nerve damage, a bad back and going through menopause. If I can do it (dropped 35 lbs) then you can too!
  • HollisGrant
    HollisGrant Posts: 2,022 Member
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    I'm 59 and have lost 24 pounds since April 1st of this year. The "I'm old and it's so hard to lose weight" mentality is an excuse. I have a friend who's 87 who power walks and maintains a plot in a community garden. Your life is what you make it.

    Eat less and move more. Embrace life and find a reason to be happy. And I agree, the wheelchair users who posted are awesome!
  • SASSYnCHICago
    SASSYnCHICago Posts: 98 Member
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    Having health issues should give you all the motivation to make changes to live a more healthy lifestyle to avoid further complications.
    I'm 44 1/2, and really have no health issues, but I come from a family of 10 (4 sisters) and my mother. All I can say is that the health issues my mother and sisters have are not only genetic, but many are avoidable. What's genetic is thyroid hypo 7 hyper. - so I get screen for that year, nothing yet- thank goodness (as all 4 sister & mother have various issues). My mother also has high blood pressure, diabetes type 2, and high cholesterol and she is considered obese and has been for 50 years due to bearing 10 children, and not being health conscience. Some of my sisters are older than me by 7-11 years so they are in their low to mid 50's and they are starting to have the same health concerns. The sister that is only 13 months, yes - just only 1 year older than I - has all those issues as she is not active, doesn't watch her diet and they has caused the health issues.
    My point is, I don't know what your health issues are but by making improvements to your life style now, you will see a better improved healthier life!!
    My motivation is to avoid those health issues, and if I do come down with them then at least I know I've made the effort to reduce the impact and will moderate them first by diet & exercise.

    Best wishes for you and I hope you can find it within yourself to stay motivated and focus so you can be the best person you are able to be in regard to your health. Take Care.

    p.s. - and YES would have been the simple answer to your question: Can a 46 year old with health issues, trim down inches. I've lost 25 lbs and 18 inches in the last 1.5 years and I'm in the best shape of my life. Done by exercising and making better eating choices - not always the best choices 100% of the time, but I'm knowable what foods are healthy and I do my best to eat those 80% of the time.
  • SASSYnCHICago
    SASSYnCHICago Posts: 98 Member
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    after a certain point in age, women have greater difficulty losing due to the change of life (which i haven't yet started) and a slower metabolism. if you have health issues, it makes it even more difficult. thanks.

    More difficult? Maybe
    More important? Definitely

    I'm 45, with diabetes, Hashimoto's thyroiditis, degenerative disc disease and OA in my wrists, fingers, ankles and back. To keep going, all I have to do is think back to how I felt 2 years ago

    Wanted to send a shout out to you: YOU ARE AMAZING!!
  • takumaku
    takumaku Posts: 352 Member
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    Yes. Don't let your health issues be an end-all-be-all downfall to your weight lost. A lot of us on this forum have health issues. We have learned how to work through our health issues to reach our goals. I personally wouldn't have lost over a 100 lbs and been maintaining at my current weight if I didn't take accountability for my health issues and worked around them.
  • MelStren
    MelStren Posts: 457 Member
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    Feel free to add me. I'm 45, have/had health issues and I'm doing it! I started the "change" yet either but I feel like if I'm healthy before it starts it can only make things easier!
  • Giggleegoos
    Giggleegoos Posts: 2
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    I'm inspired by your post. I had knee surgery a few months ago and developed complications afterwards...I'm finally starting to feel as though I'm able to move without discomfort. I've been tracking my food for a couple of weeks and the weight isn't decreasing, actually increased by three pounds. Ready to get moving today. Thanks.
  • ktsmom430
    ktsmom430 Posts: 1,100 Member
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    I will be 62 in September.
    I did not even begin any kind of exercise until I had been on MFP for 6 months and had lost 90 pounds. My knees were rebelling and when I began exercising it helped to strengthen my knees. I went from only being able to take one step at a time to where I am now, exercising almost 2 hours every day, mostly on an elliptical and walking. I am a changed woman! Most anyone can do it, if I can! I started eating back some of my exercise calories about 2 months ago. Tomorrow is my first official weigh in since then, but I cheated and weighed myself. I have gone from 290 to 134.5 in the past 15 - 1/2 months and am in the best shape I have been in in decades.
    Best of luck to you!
  • gigglybeth
    gigglybeth Posts: 365 Member
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    These posts are incredibly inspiring!
  • sunglasses_and_ocean_waves
    sunglasses_and_ocean_waves Posts: 2,757 Member
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    I am absolutely inspired and impressed by the people responding here. Seriously.

    I'm in my late 40's and have survived (for now anyway!) breast cancer. I can't even remember how many surgeries I had last year. 4 I think? Each one was harder than the last to get back into shape, but I never ever gave up, and I never let age or anything deter me. The minute the surgeon cleared me to lift again, I would pick up the 3 pound dumbbells. Oh that was hard. I felt so degraded shaking with those little weights.

    I didn't know my then 12 year old was watching me. This year he picked up the weights. He told me I inspired him. He said if I could keep coming back after all that, he could manage to do it 3x/week. I've got my strength back (mostly), and I'm back in sz 6. But most of all, seeing that kid doing chest presses is the proudest I've ever felt.
  • waskier
    waskier Posts: 254 Member
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    Absolutely! Anything is possible if you commit and stay focused.

    I am yet another example like the people above. When I was 38 my doctors told me they thought they could get me walking again after severe knee injuries. I spent 6 years in extreme pain and gained a lot of weight. I developed a number of serious health issues including fatty liver and was diagnosed pre-diabetic. 2 years ago the pain in my knees began to diminish. I started my new journey by simply walking on a treadmill and lifting some weights. In less than 6 months I lost almost 60 lbs. Once I got the weight off I started running, which my doctors said would NEVER happen again.

    Last summer I ran my first half marathon. Last December I ran my first marathon. In 3 weeks I will complete my first half Ironman and at the end of August I will complete Ironman Canada.

    I went in for my first physical since my transformation a few months ago. My doctor didn't recognize me. ALL of my health issues are gone. Every single one of them. My knees still hurt but I deal with it. No excuses.

    You can change, but the key is change. Too many people want a quick weight loss fix and then want to go back to. How they were before. You have to be willing to change on a permanent basis. No quick fixes, no temporary adjustments.

    Anything is possible, but it is up to you to make it happen. There is a ton of helpful information on this site and a whole community of people willing to help. Take advantage of all of those resources and you can be anything you want!
  • laserturkey
    laserturkey Posts: 1,680 Member
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    I'm 49 and have a variety of health issues that interfere with working out from time to time. I have been losing weight and inches, but I'm on a slow, gradual track.

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