belly fat since menopause

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Replies

  • bborley
    bborley Posts: 19 Member
    I did well with my water intake today. I exercised again this morning.
  • shieldss75
    shieldss75 Posts: 2 Member
    I am new here -- starting over. I was taken off Climara patch May 2014. Gained 15 pounds on top if my already over weight self. Menopause hormones!
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
    bborley wrote: »
    I did well with my water intake today. I exercised again this morning.

    Well done!

    Don't forget to join us on the menopause group if you haven't. Lots of information there!
  • vivmom2014
    vivmom2014 Posts: 1,649 Member
    The body slims down proportionately when you eat in a caloric deficit. It works.

    As mentioned many times, add strength training - body weight or lifting weights to tighten up the midsection. But the calorie deficit is king.
  • bborley
    bborley Posts: 19 Member
    vivmom2014 wrote: »
    The body slims down proportionately when you eat in a caloric deficit. It works.

    As mentioned many times, add strength training - body weight or lifting weights to tighten up the midsection. But the calorie deficit is king.


  • bborley
    bborley Posts: 19 Member
    I know that calorie intake is the biggest thing. I did weight watchers lost alot of weight felt and looked great. I gained it back. Then I went on Herbalife and Shakology lost weight there to and gained it back. That is why I am going to try to make one healthy choice at a time. With the holidays coming I just don't want to gain anymore weight!
  • JustMissTracy
    JustMissTracy Posts: 6,338 Member
    I hear you, and I understand what you're saying. But if you start creating a deficit today, you'll start losing more today. It is actually a very easy component once you start, and will make the biggest bang for your daily buck. Promise xo
  • vivmom2014
    vivmom2014 Posts: 1,649 Member
    bborley wrote: »
    I know that calorie intake is the biggest thing. I did weight watchers lost alot of weight felt and looked great. I gained it back. Then I went on Herbalife and Shakology lost weight there to and gained it back. That is why I am going to try to make one healthy choice at a time. With the holidays coming I just don't want to gain anymore weight!

    I fell prey to some gimmicky things like avoiding sugar or eating low carb. It's great when the weight starts coming off, but definitely not great when the weight comes back. I just couldn't sustain those ways of eating. It's been revelatory to simply cut calories and keep eating everything that I enjoy.

    Focusing on one healthy choice at a time is great. But you really can just start eating at a deficit (not even an aggressive one) while implementing your healthy choices, and therefore get more "bang for your buck." Holidays aren't landmines at all - you just take less of everything that you like.



  • Elaine352962
    Elaine352962 Posts: 288 Member

    bborley. I understand where you are coming from with one healthy change at a time. I am 63 and struggle to lose weight. I have put weight on around my waist and stomach. I am a member of weightwatchers and find great support there. I love this site because you get lots of support and helpful advice. I am not sure how you add people on here but would love to help motivate you to keep going and also try to make one healthy change myself. People have sent me friend requests , for which I am grateful of their support. I am not sure how you add people.
  • bborley
    bborley Posts: 19 Member
    I was gone this weekend with my mom and sisters. It was a great time! My 2nd week challenge I will not have any food or caloric drinks, just water after 7:30 pm ( I get home at 6:30pm). I will be continuing my 64 oz of water.
  • vgasim
    vgasim Posts: 1 Member
    A very interesting board. Have enjoyed reading all the comments. All the advice and information points to a nutrition dense, plant based diet. My goal for this week is to try to stay within the 1200 calorie daily intake by avoiding mindless snacking. I am 55 and menopausal. Will post if my diet has any effect on the hot flashes!
  • middlehaitch
    middlehaitch Posts: 8,486 Member
    Please do not blame age and menopause for weigh gain.
    Barring untreated medical conditions, and the occasional treated, weight loss is the same no matter what your age- CICO.

    Fat gets redistributed during menopause due to the changes in estrogen levels. Unfortunately it tends to migrate to the waistline.
    However, just like people younger, you can lose the weight by eating at a deficit, keep your cardiovascular system healthy by doing cardio, good calorie burner too, and help retain muscle, and bone density by doing resistance training.

    Your BMI is dropping at the same rate as it has since your 20's. depending on your size, this is about 100 calories per decade.
    Part of this is a natural slowing of the metabolism, but the majority of it is; as we age we inadvertently slow down. We are not as active, this means our LBM decreases and we need less calories.

    I gained weight as I neared menopause, nothing to do with menopause though- I bought a car. This made me less active than I had been for decades.

    Replacing my pre-car natural activity, riding my bike or walking everywhere, with purposeful exercise, got my activity level up to where it had been, and my fitness level is even better.
    My BMR is pretty good for my age and size too.
    A year calorie counting got the excess pounds off.

    Now, 6 years later, and 62yo, I have kept the weight off, easily, and by continuing to exercise have a better fitness level than I have in my life. I started a progressive weight lifting programme on Friday.

    Age and/or menopause is not a hinderance to to weight loss.
    Hormone shifts, we have had then for decades, can be challenging. But just like the mood and food cravings during our periods, we just have to acknowledge them, and work around them.
    It is moving less, and eating more calories than we burn that are the hinderance- just as they always are no matter our age.

    Cheers, h.
  • 47Jacqueline
    47Jacqueline Posts: 6,993 Member
    I'm with @middlehatch. Belly fat is due to not moving and eating too much, not to menopause. If you are relatively healthy, you can lose weight and keep it off by getting off the couch and shutting the refrigerator. Everyone's metabolism shifts as we age, and ascribing a fault to one occurance is an excuse. We are aging as soon as we are born.

    I am 68. I lost 34 lb over three years ago, increased my activity level and had no trouble losing the weight gradually, over a year, and keeping it off easily by maintaining an active lifestyle. The reason people gain weight is due to inactivity and overeating (again, I am not addressing anyone with a serious, chronic condition).

    This country is in a health crisis becis 90% of people are sedentary and eat too much, not because of menopause.

    Enjoy.
  • amk165
    amk165 Posts: 21 Member
    I like the idea of making small changes. Weight loss can be overwhelming when trying to make many changes over a short period of time. I know that cico is important. I get that. But sometimes....it may be helpful to think of one thing you can change to help you achieve your goal. Master that change and then go on to the next.
    This week, I am going to start walking up and down the stairs during my break at work!
  • vivmom2014
    vivmom2014 Posts: 1,649 Member
    bborley wrote: »
    I was gone this weekend with my mom and sisters. It was a great time! My 2nd week challenge I will not have any food or caloric drinks, just water after 7:30 pm ( I get home at 6:30pm). I will be continuing my 64 oz of water.

    You do realize that this is completely unnecessary for weight loss?

    I tried the "no eating after X hour" and several other rules & restrictions, and as I mentioned earlier, I could not sustain them. By all means, you're free to embark down whatever path you'd like, but the calorie deficit is all that matters in the end.

  • Soopatt
    Soopatt Posts: 563 Member
    The belly does go. Sometimes it is the last thing to go, but it does eventually go.

    Due to health issues, I have been in menopause since my mid thirties.
  • mochapierre
    mochapierre Posts: 4 Member
    I'm not at menopause age but I gained weight due to ivf pregnancy etc and belly fat is stubborn, feel free to add me you can lose it.

    I'm interested in learning how to lose belly fat also...Any suggestions?
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
    I'm not at menopause age but I gained weight due to ivf pregnancy etc and belly fat is stubborn, feel free to add me you can lose it.

    I'm interested in learning how to lose belly fat also...Any suggestions?

    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/1161603/so-you-want-a-nice-stomach/p1
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,295 Member
    Please do not blame age and menopause for weigh gain.
    Barring untreated medical conditions, and the occasional treated, weight loss is the same no matter what your age- CICO.
    (. . . good stuff snipped . . . .)
    Age and/or menopause is not a hinderance to to weight loss.
    Hormone shifts, we have had then for decades, can be challenging. But just like the mood and food cravings during our periods, we just have to acknowledge them, and work around them.
    It is moving less, and eating more calories than we burn that are the hinderance- just as they always are no matter our age.

    Ohso +1.

    Another data point: I'm 60; have been in menopause for 15 years (it was chemotherapy-induced); took estrogen agonists (Tamoxifen, Arimidex) which have a reputation for increasing weight, for 7.5 years; and am hypothyroid. In other words, several of the "can't lose weight" (supposedly) bugaboos are true for me.

    But since 4/17/2015, I've lost 54 pounds purely CICO, going from 183 pounds (obese) to 129 pounds (mid-normal BMI), at 5'5" tall (5'6" before osteopenia :/ ). I've been active for a dozen years, and haven't upped my activity level (much) to lose - pretty much continued my existing activities except for maybe adding a couple of bike rides a week when I couldn't row (which I do 4-6 times/week, weather permitting, in season) - not a huge change for me. I even had gall bladder surgery with the attendant activity restrictions in June.

    What I have done is track calories meticulously, experiment with the timing & composition of meals & snacks to maximize my satiation, and keep my net calories at a level to lose about 2 pounds/week initially, then 1lb/week (when I only had 15ish pounds to goal), and now 0.5lb/week approximately since goal is within about 5 pounds.

    No meal timing tricks, no calorie cycling, no carb cycling, no cleanses, no weight-loss supplements, no low-carb/low-fat kind of manipulation . . . just eating the food I found kept me satisfied & nourished on the schedule my body told me it wanted.

    Midsection fat was one of the first things I gained (back in the 1970s/1980s, waaaay before menopause), and true to form, it's being one of the last to leave . . . but it *is* leaving. Waist measurement is down 9.5" since I started losing.

    You can do this at any age, IMO. I think, in some ways, it could even be *easier* now than when I was young: I understand myself a lot better, so I'm better at keeping myself on course to achieve a goal.
  • bborley
    bborley Posts: 19 Member
    I hear what everyone is saying. By drinking water curbs my appetite and not eating after 7:30p will definately will reduce my calorie intake!
  • kbmnurse
    kbmnurse Posts: 2,484 Member
    It's not menopause ladies. It's calling too many calories in not enough calories burned. Simple.
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
    I'm not at menopause age but I gained weight due to ivf pregnancy etc and belly fat is stubborn, feel free to add me you can lose it.

    I'm interested in learning how to lose belly fat also...Any suggestions?

    eat in a calorie deficit, hit macros, and get on a structured lifting program.
  • Charleyyyxox
    Charleyyyxox Posts: 3 Member
    Hello I have plenty of clean eating recipes, for delicious healthy meals that will fill you up too, feel free to message me
  • usmcmp
    usmcmp Posts: 21,219 Member
    Hello I have plenty of clean eating recipes, for delicious healthy meals that will fill you up too, feel free to message me

    Saying to message you is suspicious on the boards because it looks like you are trying to sell something in secret. I highly suggest that if you want to share the recipes start a thread in the recipe section with your recipes in it. Then you can link that thread in other threads and you won't get treated like a salesman.
  • bborley
    bborley Posts: 19 Member
    Week 1 challenge-drink 64 oz of water-doing well with that.
    Week 2- no eating after 7:30p- this was hard, but am doing it.
    My week 3 challenge is to at least exercise 4 times a week. This one will be harder than my last 2, but am determined!
  • norcogrrl
    norcogrrl Posts: 129 Member
    bborley wrote: »
    Week 1 challenge-drink 64 oz of water-doing well with that.
    Week 2- no eating after 7:30p- this was hard, but am doing it.
    My week 3 challenge is to at least exercise 4 times a week. This one will be harder than my last 2, but am determined!

    Well done!
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
    usmcmp wrote: »
    Hello I have plenty of clean eating recipes, for delicious healthy meals that will fill you up too, feel free to message me

    Saying to message you is suspicious on the boards because it looks like you are trying to sell something in secret. I highly suggest that if you want to share the recipes start a thread in the recipe section with your recipes in it. Then you can link that thread in other threads and you won't get treated like a salesman.

    From a 28 year old on a menopause thread.
  • debrakgoogins
    debrakgoogins Posts: 2,033 Member

    From a 28 year old on a menopause thread.

    I'm not sure what age has to do with helping someone in their weight loss goals. I began having menopause symptoms at 26.

    To the original poster, good for you for making small changes. Be sure that the changes you make are ones that you can sustain and are necessary for your future goals. If you make changes that aren't required for weight loss and are hard for you to maintain, you may end up failing and then giving up.

  • vivmom2014
    vivmom2014 Posts: 1,649 Member
    usmcmp wrote: »
    Hello I have plenty of clean eating recipes, for delicious healthy meals that will fill you up too, feel free to message me

    Saying to message you is suspicious on the boards because it looks like you are trying to sell something in secret. I highly suggest that if you want to share the recipes start a thread in the recipe section with your recipes in it. Then you can link that thread in other threads and you won't get treated like a salesman.

    From a 28 year old on a menopause thread.

    Well, a man contributed too. :o

  • bborley
    bborley Posts: 19 Member
    Any suggestions regarding healthy "chocolate" snacks. It's my worst downfall!
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