I swear my metabolism knew when I turned 40 and shut down.

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  • Merrysix
    Merrysix Posts: 336 Member
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    I actually feel fitter now in my 60s, because I work out harder. But to lose weight I really have to stick with the macros (calories at 1500). Also, I just feel better and more like sticking to my calorie macros if I don't eat sugary stuff and white flour stuff -- I seem to feel it "sluggify" my body more now. So to feel full and satiated I eat 5 small meals with lots of protein. Works for me now. I'll never know if it would have worked for me when I was younger because (unfortunately) I didn't try it!
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 32,432 Member
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    Turned 60 while losing 63 pounds since April 2015 - that was one-third of my bodyweight. Seemed simple enough (though not always easy on the psychological front). One plus is that I know myself better at this age, including my excuses, dodges and evasions, and how to defeat them. Lighter feels great; it's been so worth the effort already.

    I was female last time I looked, and I'm darn sure I'm menopausal (hit that wall hard when I started chemotherapy at age 45).

  • sunnybeaches105
    sunnybeaches105 Posts: 2,831 Member
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    AnnPT77 wrote: »
    Turned 60 while losing 63 pounds since April 2015 - that was one-third of my bodyweight. Seemed simple enough (though not always easy on the psychological front). One plus is that I know myself better at this age, including my excuses, dodges and evasions, and how to defeat them. Lighter feels great; it's been so worth the effort already.

    I was female last time I looked, and I'm darn sure I'm menopausal (hit that wall hard when I started chemotherapy at age 45).

    *kitten* cancer. That *kitten* has has had a swing at too many of mine
  • WakkoW
    WakkoW Posts: 567 Member
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    I'm 44.333333 years old and smart enough to listen to good advice regardless of the number of X chromosomes the giver of said advice was born with.

    I'm so glad I started lifting weights in my 20s.
  • steph124ny
    steph124ny Posts: 238 Member
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    OP here.... just for the record, I'm not making excuses. I eat too much and exercise too little. I'm fixing that. But I have to eat even less and exercise even more than I did in my 20s. At age 24 after having 2 children I weighed 98 pounds and ate whatever, wherever with no intentional exercise. Now I am paying attention to what I eat, running 5ks as a personal "I turned 40 and I'm going to do this" bucket list, and I gain weight FAR more easily. So there are HUGE changes for me with age. It is what it is.... I want to be around 125 pounds again and I will get there. I'm not making excuses.... just observations.
  • sunnybeaches105
    sunnybeaches105 Posts: 2,831 Member
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    steph124ny wrote: »
    OP here.... just for the record, I'm not making excuses. I eat too much and exercise too little. I'm fixing that. But I have to eat even less and exercise even more than I did in my 20s. At age 24 after having 2 children I weighed 98 pounds and ate whatever, wherever with no intentional exercise. Now I am paying attention to what I eat, running 5ks as a personal "I turned 40 and I'm going to do this" bucket list, and I gain weight FAR more easily. So there are HUGE changes for me with age. It is what it is.... I want to be around 125 pounds again and I will get there. I'm not making excuses.... just observations.

    You didn't need to lose weight in your 20s. Losing weight sucks. I'm guessing (and trust me you were) that you were far more active in your 20s than you have been since. College, grad school, jobs, raising kids, etc. all conspire to pack on the weight, but it really is simply a matter of exercise and diet. The more you can do to build exercise into your normal routine the better you'll do.
  • prettysoul1908
    prettysoul1908 Posts: 200 Member
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    I thought it was my metabolism too. Then I thought it was meal timing. Then I thought it was about eating whole foods versus processed. And etc. etc.

    Then I realized I was moving a lot less than 15-20 years ago and I wasn't monitoring my caloric intake at all. (Didn't have to)

    Once I focused on adjusting my calorie deficit to my new lifestyle... The weight came off. Hit goal today! You got this!
  • Sumiblue
    Sumiblue Posts: 1,597 Member
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    I know some women experience hormonal changes that can really make weight loss difficult. I'll be 47 in 2 weeks. My lifestyle has seen the most changes in my 40s. Had a baby at 42, stopped working, less active, etc. I was at a normal weight in my 20s & 30s but I never actually worked at getting really fit until I was in my mid 40s.
  • soulofgrace
    soulofgrace Posts: 175 Member
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    shadowfax_c11 wrote: »
    I'm about to turn 46. I am in the early stages of menopause and have lived for many years with joint pain and severe depression. I am in better shape now than I was in my late 20's and early 30's. Losing weight without a problem. Yes it requires some effort on my part. No it isn't all that hard now I've put my mind to it. I am also more active physically and more positive mentally than I was in earlier years. My life is happier and more fulfilled and rich than it has ever been.

    Maybe metabolism gets more efficient or slows down, maybe not. I think a lot depends on the individual. How you think, how you live and whether or not you allow your number of trips around the sun to influence you positively or negatively.

    Me to to all that but half way to 49. I find that the hard things change over time, while some things become a no brainer.
  • Sumiblue
    Sumiblue Posts: 1,597 Member
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    steph124ny wrote: »
    OP here.... just for the record, I'm not making excuses. I eat too much and exercise too little. I'm fixing that. But I have to eat even less and exercise even more than I did in my 20s. At age 24 after having 2 children I weighed 98 pounds and ate whatever, wherever with no intentional exercise. Now I am paying attention to what I eat, running 5ks as a personal "I turned 40 and I'm going to do this" bucket list, and I gain weight FAR more easily. So there are HUGE changes for me with age. It is what it is.... I want to be around 125 pounds again and I will get there. I'm not making excuses.... just observations.

    OP, it sounds like you need to increase your LBM. If you aren't already doing strength training look into that. It's especially important for women to work on resistance training & bone density as we age. You might want to check into reverse dieting to raise your TDEE, too. Reducing calories more & more might give a lower scale number just reduces your TDEE over time.
    Are you tracking your measurements not just weight? Scale weight does not tell the whole story.

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