Short older women and calories

dupe

macgurlnet wrote: »

Okay, so similar to me...other than the age factor I was 140 when I started losing weight last year.

A

That's before exercise. If you get in a 30 minute walk, then you can log the walk and eat a bit more - 50%-75% of the estimated burn to compensate for an overestimate.

Try to get in some activity at work if you can - take the longer route to the bathroom, do a lap around the floor to stretch, etc. Doing those sorts of things gets me ~15 minutes of activity throughout the day (I wear a fitbit to track my steps).

You're not doomed - it just might take longer to get the weight off is all.

~Lyssa

I walk EVERYWHERE. Walking does not burn a lot of calories. I walk because it's good for my legs, lungs, and heart, not to lose weight.

Hi as @macgurlnet requested I have popped in.

The difference in our BMR with almost 2 decades in our age difference is a bit less than 100 calories.

Please ignore any advice that advocates you need to eat under 1200 calories to lose weight.
Nor do you have to stick to any way of eating (WOE) unless it is your preferred style, or recommended by your doctor to help with a medical condition.

It really does come down to calories.
I am 62yo, 5'1 and have maintained my goal weight of 100-105 lbs for 6 years.
(Avitar is me at 60, 105lbs)

Through inactivity in my early 50's I put on 30 lbs without noticing the insidious creep up the scale. ( check the pic in my profile page)

I decided to lose it through menopause eating 1200 plus a good percentage of my exercise calories.
My average burn for 60 min exercise is just under 200 cals.

At 130 I lost at about 1lbs a week
At 120 I lost at about .5 lbs a week
At 110 I lost at about .25 a week
The last vanity pounds took months of watching the scale barely move.

All the time eating 1200 + 125-175 of my exercise calories.
Overall it took close enough to a year to lose it.

I ate everything I always ate, just smaller portions, no longer gulping down the huge pice of cheesecake washed down with a bottle of wine; instead a romantic treat for 2. Half the calories in a lovely atmosphere, with the prospect of a horizontal dance later. A win all around!

It is slower going when you are petite and have relatively little to lose, but it is doable.
Input your goals into MFP. Just staying at 1200 did my whole loss, so I didn't have to recalculate as I didn't want to eat less. ( Mfp wouldnt have allotted less either)
If you get more than 1200 for 1lbs a week recalculate at the 10lbs loss. Your calories will be adjusted to your new weight. I would also drop to .5 lbs.

Log everything!!!

Use a digital scale and the appropriate cups and spoons for liquids. These tools are so important. The odd 5, 10, 50 cals missed, over time, means we don't lose.

Exercise is important for health rather than weight loss, so eat back 50-75% of your calories. You really do need them for good health. It is no use exercising if you are too tired and bad tempered to carry on with your regular life. It defeats the purpose of exercise.

Any kind of exercise is good, but do try to get in some type of resistance work. It is good for your bones and helps retain a little more of your muscles as you lose. More muscle also means more calories.

6 years later and 1200 is still my basic sedentary calorie allotment. I generally eat closer to 1400 because of my exercise and daily activity, and now I am at about 1500-1550 through doing a daily exercise challenge as an extra. I don't log or weigh at the moment, so all cal levels are estimates.

Sorry this has been so long, I tried to cover anything and everything in one post.
I don't do friends on MFP well but of you want a bit of encouragement just PM me.

Cheers, h.

For what it is worth: I turned 50 last year and lost 30 lbs (I am 5 ft 4 inches). I also aimed for 1200 cals per day. I ALWAYS get in 30 min intense exercise per day, which lets me have that glass of wine or other extra bit that I always just took for granted. In maintenance, I still aim for under 1400 cals per day (excluding my precious, earned exercise calories).

Like @middlehaitch, my portion sizes have dropped considerably. She eats a half slice of cheesecake as a special treat with her hubby. Another example is just something as simple as a sandwich - use only have a slice of bread. Or, even when I feel a bit hungry now, instead of eating a protein bar, I'll just eat 1/4 of it. I try to remember that most "servings" are intended for people much bigger than me.

Good luck! There are lots of us like you out here, and you need to find us, because I know that it just SUCKS seeing that so many other people need many more calories than we do!

Hi, I'm 40 this year and 5ft 0. I lost 32lbs last year on an average of 1100 cals a day with not much exercise. I maintain at about 1300 without exercise. I've had high days (birthdays, holidays etc.) and low days (sick etc.) over the year but I lost 1lb a week almost steadily.

I eat lots of snack, chocolate daily and drink tea constantly (I'm English!) but I don't really eat bread, pasta, rice, pulses or potatoes etc. as they make my stomach feel bloated- so that cuts down the calories of my meals. I've not really felt deprived- but then, food really isn't a big deal to me.