51, menopause & weight loss

Hi there. I'm 55, also menopausal and feeling frustrated and worried about the slowly increasing weight gain. In my younger years I wanted to lose weight to look better but now I need to do it for health reasons. I was just at the funeral of a female colleague who was three years older than me and who had a massive heart attack. She was a lovely woman and her passing really got to me.

In my mind I keep thinking of myself as younger than I am and with lots of time before I have to worry about getting old and about things like heart disease, diabetes, etc. I've had to face the reality that, while I'm still youthful on the inside, my body isn't!! Luckily, I have no health issues yet but if I keep on the way I have been, my bad habits will quickly catch up to me. I have tried every exercise and diet plan known to man but always find some excuse not to continue. That seems to be the real issue. After the first few days on any plan, when it starts to become work, I give up.

I have updated MyFitnessPal goals and also paid for a premium membership to FitStar. My plan is to religiously keep track of all my food and to start with gym workouts three times a week and walks with the dog on other days. I'm hoping to find a group of friends on MFP that can "talk me off the ledge" when I get discouraged so that I don't give up.

I don't know if this will work and I'm sorry I'm not really answering your question. Thanks for asking it because there are some really helpful people posting answers that I'm finding very motivating. Good Luck!

I just turned 50 and peri menopausal and have stalled in weight loss since May no loss at all.It is driving me nuts along with the hot flushes.I just started Evening primrose capsules to see if they help with fatique and flushes.

Hi, I'm Cat, age 54, 5' 2". Belly fat, sucks, true, but I love not having periods! There, I said it.

When I turned 50 I had double hip replacement surgery. The recovery was very painful, and I just sat and sat and sat. And gained weight. Finally I joined a gym doing High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) which is hard, but quick. People said I looked slimmer, but I really didn't lose weight because I wasn't willing to sacrifice my foodie tendencies. That's my entitlement hang-up; my tastebuds are very spoiled.

Then I moved to a new area and didn't work out for a year, until now. I just joined a new gym, again doing HIIT. And today I did my first-ever Spin Class - whew, hard!

So I've come to the conclusion that calorie restriction is my missing piece of the puzzle. I know what to do, it's just a matter of doing it. MFP has been very educational in that regard. Plus I like meeting all you nice people.

-Cat

raynelundberg wrote: »

Hi, I'm 64 and post menopausal and have struggled with my weight big time since hitting the big 50. I only have one bit of advice and that is to never loose sight of the fact that 90% of weight loss is what you put in your mouth. It is very sad but true. I have never been a big exerciser, but I tell myself that's okay because I want to do everyday exactly what I can do everyday for the rest of my life, and that is to walk briskly for about 40 minutes. I have been a weight watcher leader in the past, and I really liked doing that and I might even go back to that at some point, but for right now fitness pal is working for me, because it doesn't matter what plan you are doing the key is journaling, or honestly keeping track of the food that you put into your mouth. It is the key to success in every situation. I have proven this to be true over and over again. Journaling (keeping a food count) is the KEY to success!

You took the words right out of my mouth - I couldn't have said it better, especially your first sentence (well, I'm only 62, but hey). Whose bright idea was it to store fat in our bellies after menopause? Good grief. What I'm doing - consulting with a dietician, journaling my food and exercise, walking more, climbing stairs at work, doing free weights at home, and eating as clean and organic as possible and reducing the overall amount of sugar (in all forms) in my eating. Losing weight slowly but surely and feeling better already.

Interesting....I'll put my little two cents in

I'm 51 and in my last month of P90x (classic schedule)...this is my 2nd round in a row. Started in April. Kept my calories as high as possible with a slight deficit only losing 1 pound per week (sometimes got in what I call a "bonus" pound)....I've lost 30 pounds to-date. Was 183 now 153 = I'm 5'8" tall. My bmi range should be 127-164 pounds. I'm shooting for getting in the 140's.....

Since doing the workouts....NO more "flashes" at all. I eat 40 / 40 /20 for my micronutrients (protein / carbs /fat)....more protein to hold onto my muscles and enough carbs to have energy to get thru the workouts.

I can only speak for myself, but I had to really challenge myself with weights to get things moving at this age....at least that's what I'm finding out. I lift 25 lbs in each arm for example (that took awhile to get to)....do pullups, ab work, leg work, yoga, etc...

We have to up the ante as they say to make the changes for sure...its harder, but its still do-able!

PS:

Hi, I'm Cat, age 54, 5' 2".
When I turned 50 I had double hip replacement surgery

Cat, I had a right hip resurfacing done in 2008 (after 3 previous hip surgeries throughout my life)....best thing I every did....no more pain...I suffered every single day!