40-something with some baggage to lose

echoegami

I refuse to let age get the better of me and after six years of slowly gaining weight (I went from 115, the weight I'd been all of my adult life -even after having a baby- to 168 in just six short years!) I realized that I needed to make a change. I just started getting serious about nutrition and portion control lately even though I have always eaten fairly healthy. The reason I gained so much weight is because I was still eating like I did when I was young and poor and didn't know where my next meal might come from.

Anyway, I'm starting my third week of "getting serious" and I've lost 4 pounds just by staying within my calorie limit and getting some good cardio workouts twice a week. I wish I could do more but, it's enough for now. I'm in it for the long haul, I don't need to lose weight fast what I need is to make a lifestyle change that will last through the rest of my life and hopefully inspire my adult daughter to make better choices about food especially as she ages because before you know it, you're forty-something!

fmbarbuto

Welcome to the party! I can totally relate! Happy to join you on your journey! I'm 41 and in the same boat.

Been on MFP since the end of June and just love all the motivation and support I've recieved from my MFP's! Feel free to friend me if you'd like some support & motivation as well!

Goog luck to you! :flowerforyou:

cinsteve52

I have lost 8 lbs in 5 days. I know this will plateau now that the water is gone!!! Getting back into fitness and eating right is amazing, but my best way to have success is to lay off breads so my body is feeling the negative results as hunger. Oh well, that means more exercise to have a bread once and a while.
If u like seafood, canned clams and crackers are a great filling snack!!!

echoegami

fmb - thanks! I know there's a lot of us in the same boat, our metabolism just naturally slows around 40 years.

cin - I also cut out the bread and instead of three main meals a day I eat several small meals. I have two breakfasts and two lunches! They're made up of a protein shake first thing in the morning, old fashion or steel cut oatmeal for my second breakfast a couple hours later followed by 3-4oz of animal protein, 1/2 cup of brown rice and a cup of greens for the lunches and something similar for dinner. I have two servings of fruit a day and no refined sugars, low to no sodium, and no refined carbohydrates!

dk_runs

I am forty something as well...and proud of it My story is similar to yours in the sense I was a skinny girl up until about 12 years ago...then the metabolism slowed. Horrrible. I ramped up the exercise over the past few years, but still was not losing weight. I started keeping track of what I ate in Februay then in April joined MFP. Keeping track of what I eat has been the ticket for me. I have lost 16 lbs since the end of Feb and am almost at my goal weight. I like MFP; you get a lot of support and meet a lot of folks in the same boat as you.

Sound like you have a handle on the weight loss thing...good for you for starting to turn things around. Best of luck on your weight loss journey.

Rav3nw0lf

woohoo.. someone else who does elevensies and twelvsies!!!

Breaking things into 5 or six meals a day really does seem to help here as well.

Good luck on your journey.