My journey...again...3rd time

RoyBeck · November 2020

Hi everyone.

37 year old here from London, England.

I lost 60lbs in 2007 in about 5 months - ate too little and exercised too much. Looked great but didn't teach myself enough of the lifestyle habits that would last longterm.

In 2013 I lost about 50lbs in 6 months. Cut out all carbs and exercised like a demon. Again, short term I got great results, but unsustainable for long term goals

So here I am back up to 266lbs from 230 a year ago. I want to reach onederland and surely will but I have a question. I'm down 9lbs in 21 days. I'm eating 1900 a day. I'm walking between 10,000 and 20,000 steps per day ADDITIONAL to my day to day activities ie I set my pedometer only for intentional exercise. How much harder will it be for me to lose weight now, at 37, compared to when I was 24 and 30 or will it not?

Also is the steps only going to help continue my weight loss with around 59lbs til i reach my goal weight?

Thank you.

SharpWellbeing · November 2020

Hi fellow uk friend

The principles of weight loss don’t change regardless of age, habits can be harder to break and you may have to eat slightly less than you did before but it’s not really going to be overly significant at only 37.

Sounds like you know what you need to do to lose weight, great start with the steps, one of the most under utilised weight loss tools there is.

Mix in some resistance training and you’ve got all the set up for weight loss.

Wish you all the luck in the world mate

RoyBeck · November 2020

Thank you. I'm a big guy but weak as anything lol in terms of lifting. I've never really lifted in my life even work has only been bars and restaurants and now office based.

Why is it so important to add resistance training as you get older?

sijomial · November 2020

RoyBeck wrote: »

How much harder will it be for me to lose weight now, at 37, compared to when I was 24 and 30 or will it not?

Easier I would guess.
You have more experience and should have learned lessons from what didn't work from both weight loss and weight maintenance. Have a really serious think about maintenance at goal weight, start setting those lifetime habits now and don't wait. No doubt those habits will include long term vigilence. If you have a scan of the threads in the Maintaining Weight forum you will spot common behaviours amongst successful maintainers and also several threads where people get to goal and feel lost - don't be one of the lost!

Resistance training is a great thing to do for your current and long-term health whatever age you are but to avoid age related muscle loss (sarcopenia) which primarily comes from declining exercise and activity levels. Use it or lose it really does apply to your muscles - you have a constant turnover of muscle breakdown and muscles being rebuilt and resistance / strength training is a major contributor to boosting your muscle protein synthesis to tip the balance the right way. Plus it simply feels great to live in a strong and fit body. Don't wait for our gyms to reopen, do it now in whatever ways you can.

In old age keeping muscle is not about looking good on the beach, it's all about retaining your independence and capabilities. My daughter has already told me it's not going to be her wiping my backside when I'm (even!!) older.

SharpWellbeing · November 2020

RoyBeck wrote: »

Thank you. I'm a big guy but weak as anything lol in terms of lifting. I've never really lifted in my life even work has only been bars and restaurants and now office based.

Why is it so important to add resistance training as you get older?

Resistance training isn't really for the weight loss, it's for the health aspect more than anything else. It will aid the weight loss though. It could end up being a new habit that really benefits you long term. Don't have to go over the top with anything or have desire to be a bodybuilder, just start slow and challenge yourself etc. The post above touches on sarcopenia and it's absolute spot on, prime age to get started.

What's your strategy going forward?

RoyBeck · November 2020

SharpWellbeing wrote: »

RoyBeck wrote: »

Thank you. I'm a big guy but weak as anything lol in terms of lifting. I've never really lifted in my life even work has only been bars and restaurants and now office based.

Why is it so important to add resistance training as you get older?

Resistance training isn't really for the weight loss, it's for the health aspect more than anything else. It will aid the weight loss though. It could end up being a new habit that really benefits you long term. Don't have to go over the top with anything or have desire to be a bodybuilder, just start slow and challenge yourself etc. The post above touches on sarcopenia and it's absolute spot on, prime age to get started.

What's your strategy going forward?

To be healthy. Since I was a kid I've struggled. Always the fat kid in class. Hit 270lbs at around 21 then got down to 205 and looked great but thought 'Now what?'

Similar the 2nd time around.

My ultimate goal is running. I stopped last year due to several injuries and never gir started again and the weight went up. I cant run right now at 260 though it hurts but I'm walking 5-8 miles a day as I'm off work right now (furloughed)

SharpWellbeing · November 2020

So at 21 you got to your target weight and then thought now what...

Sometimes that is the problem with goals, I would definitely concentrate less on the goals and more on the process, I.e. losing weight allows the freedom to enjoy running.

Did you ever join a running club before? the support would definitely help long term in maintaining whatever success you have now with weight loss.

RoyBeck · November 2020

SharpWellbeing wrote: »

So at 21 you got to your target weight and then thought now what...

Sometimes that is the problem with goals, I would definitely concentrate less on the goals and more on the process, I.e. losing weight allows the freedom to enjoy running.

Did you ever join a running club before? the support would definitely help long term in maintaining whatever success you have now with weight loss.

Yeah I ran with a local club last year and can do so again when the time is right.

That's my problem I get down to my goal weight and am totally lost. This time I'm lowering my goal weight to 182lbs. I've not been that light since 1997! WHEN I get there maintenance will be my new goal.

SharpWellbeing · November 2020

Keep checking in to let us know how you get on. I’m genuinely interested to follow

AnnPT77 · November 2020

I don't personally think that age makes it harder (I lost 50+ pounds at age 59-60), but I think yo-yo-ing in weight can possibly make the loss a tiny bit harder each time, and losing fast has the potential to cause unnecessarily much loss of muscle tissue alongside fat loss, which reduces TDEE a tiny bit, too.

In the most caring way possible, I'm going to go into tough-love granny mode here.

So, now you're back, and so far you've lost 9 pounds in 21 days, 3 pounds a week, which - if it continues - is aggressively fast for your current weight, 266 pounds. You're walking quite a lot on top of daily activity; seems like it would take a chunk of time out of your day. Can you keep that up for the rest of your life, and maintain good overall life balance - enough time and energy for all the other things you might like in your life, such as a job, friends, other hobbies, etc.?

I get that you want to drop weight like it's hot, so you can start running (which will be more time-efficient and fun, as exercise). And I understand that your weight loss rate may actually average a little slower than the 3 pounds a week you've seen so far, because (1) many of us lose faster in the first week or two, and (2) if I had to guess, I'd guess you've cut carbs steeply again, which causes an even larger drop of water weight at the start.

My advice would be to treat weight loss as weight maintenance *practice*, with the cushion of a moderate calorie deficit to create a soft landing in case mis-steps occur along the way. Go for a slower weight loss rate, start experimenting to figure out an exercise routine and eating habits that you can keep up for the rest of your life easily and happily, even once you're back in a post-pandemic life, to maintain a healthy weight long term.

Weight management, for any of us who have some kind of persistent weight problem - I was obese for most of my adult life, several decades - is not a project, an unusual set of habits with an end date. It's a lifelong practice, a set of new habits we keep permanently, if we want to get healthier and stay that way.

Wishing you much success!

RoyBeck · November 2020

Thank you AnnPT.

nanastaci2020 · November 2020

The lesson to be learned: figure out a way of life you can do long term. Try to identify the things you did before that you could not keep up long term. The difference between losing weight and maintaining weight: you live & eat mostly the same way in both phases, but get to eat a little more in the maintenance phase.

My husband (age 47 now) has lost & gained weight multiple times over the past 5 years or so. He is now starting the process again (well, he is a 3-4 weeks in, I'm not exactly sure when he got started 'again') and trying to do so with more balance. Because he knows the extreme methods of the past don't work long term - because they don't translate to maintenance. What he did before: eat 1200-1500 Mon-Fri, a little more on weekends as he 'wouldn't track' them. 2-3 hours of exercise daily to burn as much as possible. He probably lost a good bit of muscle in the process.

This time: he is eating 1500-2000 M-F and in that same general area on weekends. He is working to change some of his ways of thinking as well. One of his prior problem areas: he'd get alot of food for dinner, for fear that a regular size meal 'would not be enough'. Then he'd feel obligated to eat it ALL since the food was already prepped/paid for and he grew up being taught not to waste food. Now he is aiming for a 'normal' meal size, knowing he can have a snack later if he wants/needs it. He is not doing crazy exercise, but is working to be more active in general. Getting in 20-30 minutes of walking some days, doing yard work other days. And he is trying to be mindful of his protein intake. He tends to not eat during the day (coffee in the morning and all of his calories in the evening) so he is trying to incorporate a protein shake midday. *Keep in mind, when in the day you get your calories is not important to weight loss. For him, though, the habit of none all day encouraged him to eat excessively at night so that is the habit he is trying to change.)

He is down ~12-15 pounds in the past few weeks, though some of that is likely water weight of getting started and changing one's habits, lessening one's intake of food quantity in general. He still has 25+ to go before being out of "Obese" and making it to "Overweight" according to BMI scales.

My journey...again...3rd time

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