Is age really a factor or an excuse?

neanderthin

We slow down as we age and lose lean body mass. If we move more and exercise as part of a lifestyle that factor is reduced or can be pretty much negligible. In my experience, and I'm no spring chicken.

tigersword

Age is an excuse.

It's a factor, but a very small factor. Metabolism slow down with age is mostly attributed to muscle loss. Another reason why strength training is so important.

ernielaurie

Yes it is a factor.

You need less calories as you get older, and you also tend to move less than you did when you were younger. It's not an excuse and it can be done, but it takes me longer to lose now than it did five years ago.

This absolutely, I'm 50 and very active! and it's harder to lose weight now than in my 20's and 30's. But that isn't an excuse, you just have to work harder and shake things up once in a while. I'm trying boot camp and it's helped, but it's hard!!!

goldthistime

Age is an excuse.

It's a factor, but a very small factor. Metabolism slow down with age is mostly attributed to muscle loss. Another reason why strength training is so important.

I took some time reading studies on this stuff at one point, and the conclusion was, as this poster pointed out, that metabolism is correlated with muscle, not age. Seems harder to gain muscle now, so we get round to the same thing in a way.

eddiesmith1

At 53 I can say Age is an excuse, Reality is though it's years of inactivity and weight gain that is making it harder to hit the calorie burn levels i did when younger. I have friends my age who are in better shape now than when we were 18-20 they never stopped exercise and I doubt they have ever suffered weight issues (One guy has been 5'8' and about 135 as long as I have know him. He trains Navy Seals and others in Jeet Kun Do and can still toss a 220 pound Seal around ) so yep Age is more excuse than a factor. poor fitness is the real factor - Not to discount some people will be suffering from health issues but then health is the issue not age

aes1959

Age totally is a factor - metabolism begins to slow - at your age minimally - personally, I think the only way to combat that is to get regular exercise....not only do you burn calories working out but your metabolism remains ramped up for a while after your finish your workout......my suggestions is to make a habit of it now before you get older - I am 54 and the only way I can lose at this point is to eat 1200 calories and if I want to eat more I MUST burn them at the gym. I have been able to keep my weight in check for years but it is a chore and I recognize that I will never be the weight I was in my 20's or 30's. Focus on health first and the weight will come off and stabilize. Overall my endurance and health is better than ever now and I have always been athletic. Tracking what you eat is also key if you want to take off weight - accountability works.

jkleon86

I'm 53 and used that excuse and having had 4 kids as an excuse also but I was only hurting myself with them.
I am now down 46 and feeling great I still have a way to go but "no more excuses!!"

Leslie1124

So my diet has stayed the same and been on here awhilel so I know what I should and should not be eating/excercising etc but now I am getting into my thirties my weight has slowly been going up for no reason. I have gained an extra 10% within the last year.

And trying to lose it now is alot harder than in my twenties, I seem to work my butt off to lose 1 kilo and then gained it back after having one bad meal or a few drinks, it is so frustrating. In my twenties would just have to say the word diet and the weight would come off.

So my question is, is this common as you get older or is there something wrong with me?

this is me exactly. I had no problem losing weight when i set my mind to it in my twenties. working out and dieting would bring it right off. exactly at 30 i changed nothing and my weight kept slowly going up and up. Id work so hard with very little results. I now have to do soo much more to lose anything. its frustrating but im getting used to just working out harder and more often and more closely watch my calorie intake.

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sbrownallison

I believe age is a factor but probably more so into one's 50s and older. I've been overweight virtually my entire life but could always easily "diet" it off. Then, regain of course. As I got older (I'm 69), however, it became more difficult to lose weight, even by drastically restricting calories. Two years ago, I got serious about losing once again and, being a Lifetime member, returned to Weight Watchers. Even with strictly counting "points" (they don't use calories), I rarely lost any appreciable weight. Then, I made two changes: (1) began a consistent exercise program and (2) took bread out of my diet. Immediately began consistently losing one pound a week. For me that was a significant loss, week after week. I'm very close to my new, lower, goal (well below my WW one) and, due to the exercise, am stronger and much more fit than I was. I think the key, as we age, is to combine calorie-watching with exercise: either one of these alone is probably not going to do the job.

ktsmom430

Seeing these answers I guess it just depends on the person.
March 12, 2012 I was 60 years old, 290#. This morning 2/26/14, I am 62 years old 134#.
For me, it was definitely an excuse, as I bought in to the being harder to lose after 40, and thought to myself, "why even try?"
It is not easy at any age, but barring any health issues, doable for most of us.

bluebird321

Age is a factor and it is an excuse. You just learn to work and stick with it.

MRSpivey

IMO it's an excuse! If you want something bad enough you will do what it takes to achieve it!

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Deipneus

So my question is, is this common as you get older or is there something wrong with me?

Probably varies by every individual. In my mid twenties I ate constantly and was athletic. By 59, it took months of monitoring food intake and exercise to get to the same weight. Of course, no matter how hard I work you can't make a 60 year old body into a 25 year old body.

RushBabe_214

Age is a factor, but definitely not an excuse.

Our metabolism slows as we age and we tend to move less or get less exercise.

I'm 51 and I work at it every day. It can be done. Just depends on how badly you want it.

_AwesomeSauce_

This thread is classic!

Let's see, 20-30 year old's mostly agree that it's an excuse, while 30-40 year old's agree it's both age AND an excuse, and those 40+ agree it's age-related, and NOT an excuse.

It shouldn't take a software engineer to see 'the' pattern here :glasses:

Blacklance36

I'm over 50.

Yes it is a factor.

Yes, it is an excuse.

obrientp

When I turned 40 I noticed my metabolism slowed down quite a bit. i have to be more disciplined in watching what I eat, now, and exercise more. I can still manage my weight, though, and I am in better shape than I was in my 20s.

hbrittingham

If you believe in science, it's a factor, not an excuse. Our metabolisms slow as we age, which means if we do exactly the same thing we always did, we'd still weigh more, the older we get (to put it, unscientifically).

I agree. When I was younger, I also smoked. If I wanted to drop a little weight, I'd just cut back a little and the weight would come right off. Now I don't smoke and I log all of my food and exercise at least 5 times a week, running three of those days, and the weight is very slow to come off. My Bodymedia Fit and my TDEE both had me at over 2000 calories a day at a 20% deficit. Supposedly I should lose weight eating that much. I don't. I have to stay within 1300-1400 net calories to lose weight.

I do agree it's calories in vs calories out. It's just that some of us require less calories at our height and weight than others of the exact same height and weight require. Nobody has the exact same metabolism and to tell people they are using that as an excuse when they aren't losing weight is ridiculous.

craftywitch_63

I don't believe in science, so can I use it as an excuse?

Sorry, no. If you don't believe in science you must blame your inability to lose on a deity of yoiur choice.

:bigsmile:

fast_eddie_72

It's an excuse.

If you eat at a caloric deficit, you lose weight. It's no different at 20 or 50. It's the same math equation.

Fiddle with your age setting on MFP and see what it does to your numbers. Anything that makes it more difficult to maintain a calorie deficit, by definition makes it more difficult to lose weight. And, at least according to MFP, it is different at 20 than 50. If I change my birth date to make myself appear to be 20, it gives me 150 more calories per day - more than 1,000 calories per week. It takes me about a seven mile run to burn that many calories. When I was 20, I did it watching TV.

I'm not saying it's a factor that can't be overcome. I'm overcoming it as are many others here. But it is a factor. Is that factor an excuse? That's up to the individual.

stellastar2014

hi i'm stella and i'm 47 years old, i weigh 169 llbs at 5'3. i've been on a diet on mfp for several weeks and i'm doing 1300 calories aday and i've lost NO WEIGHT, so not sure what i'm doing wrong, am i under eating or eating too much. i weigh 99% of my food. i'm a vegetarian, but i eat eggs. i try and do a 30-40 mins walk every day, and i do aqa fit class on monday evenings. today i felt low and so i've had a mars bar, i bought a pack of 7 and could probably eat the lot. please can someone advice me on why i'm not loosing weight? is it the age?

Thanks Stella

wilsoje74

Yes it is a factor.

You need less calories as you get older, and you also tend to move less than you did when you were younger. It's not an excuse and it can be done, but it takes me longer to lose now than it did five years

1princesswarrior

Age is an excuse.

It's a factor, but a very small factor. Metabolism slow down with age is mostly attributed to muscle loss. Another reason why strength training is so important.

I took some time reading studies on this stuff at one point, and the conclusion was, as this poster pointed out, that metabolism is correlated with muscle, not age. Seems harder to gain muscle now, so we get round to the same thing in a way.

I just did a quick Google scholar search and read through some abstracts. It appears that protein synthesis slows down by about 3.5% per decade so age is a factor but not insurmountable. How much of a factor is still a debate in the scientific community after reading through five or six abstracts (I don't have access to the full text articles).

alizamanuk

BIG EXCUSE - YOUR JUST BEING LAZY 1

Annie_01

This thread is classic!

Let's see, 20-30 year old's mostly agree that it's an excuse, while 30-40 year old's agree it's both age AND an excuse, and those 40+ agree it's age-related, and NOT an excuse.

It shouldn't take a software engineer to see 'the' pattern here :glasses:

Well...I am 61...I think a little differently maybe...

Since I didn't start an exercise routine until I was 60...yea...that part was harder than if I had of started it when I was 20-30.

However...the diet part...eating at a deficit...might be a little easier.

IMO...when someone is young their social life often centers around meeting up with friends at restaurants...cafes...bars. They have to figure out ways of dealing with those social outings. I don't have to as much at 61.

So while physically it might be harder at my age...socially I believe it is easier now.

It is difficult at any age to make these types of changes...the obstacles are just maybe a little different.

I don't know...other than some aches and pains I think that it has been easier for me this time than ever before...maybe because I realize that at my age...I don't have that many more years to accomplish this...no putting it off...

lunapetu0311

I absolutely believe age is a factor!! For me atleast. I am 35 years old (and have two kids) and I am about 15lbs heavier than I was in college. I have been working out way harder and eating way better than I did in colllege and I just CANNOT get back to that weight!! I used to be able to eat anything and not gain weight but now I easily gain weight. So age is definitely a factor in losing/maintaing weight. I am sure for many it's an excuse too

Annie_01

hi i'm stella and i'm 47 years old, i weigh 169 llbs at 5'3. i've been on a diet on mfp for several weeks and i'm doing 1300 calories aday and i've lost NO WEIGHT, so not sure what i'm doing wrong, am i under eating or eating too much. i weigh 99% of my food. i'm a vegetarian, but i eat eggs. i try and do a 30-40 mins walk every day, and i do aqa fit class on monday evenings. today i felt low and so i've had a mars bar, i bought a pack of 7 and could probably eat the lot. please can someone advice me on why i'm not loosing weight? is it the age?

Thanks Stella

Nope...not age...I am 61 and average losing 2lbs a week...I eat these caramel nut protein bars...have one every day. I eat more calories than you do but it sounds as if I workout more than you.

So...can't say why you are not losing...but IMO...age has nothing to do with it.

amm8589

I don't know if it's age as much as it is lifestyle. When I was in my 20's, I was very active. I would run 4 miles before I would go to work, walked two miles on my lunch break, and would walk again in the evening. Weekends were spent taking long bike rides, spending a couple hours in the gym, etc. At 5'4", I was 110 pounds, wore a size 2, and felt great. In my 30's I had 3 kids and my constant movement became chasing toddlers rather than aerobics and jogging. When I reached my 40's, my kids were older and in school but I just wasn't motivated to exercise as much. Last year, weighing 130 pounds, I decided I wasn't going to be a middle age cliché and blame my age for my weight gain. I began logging into MFP faithfully, started exercising an hour every morning, and made smart food choices. I don't have hours on end to exercise anymore but I do make the most of my workouts, enjoying intense cardio such as Turbo Fire and in-line skating, as well as light weight training. Now, at age 46, I'm back to 110 pounds and wearing a size 2. I feel better than ever!