Difficulties we face to lose weight in 30s & 40s
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DrSelfish1131
Posts: 35 Member
I with my wife kicked off our weight trimming odyssey two weeks ago.
I had put on around 10 kgs in the last 12 months. Nonetheless I was certain that like before I would curtail my weight effortlessly.
Regrettably my physique is responding exceptionally sluggishly to my ongoing diet and exercise.
Did anyone had any comparable experience in the past? Please feel free to share it.
I had put on around 10 kgs in the last 12 months. Nonetheless I was certain that like before I would curtail my weight effortlessly.
Regrettably my physique is responding exceptionally sluggishly to my ongoing diet and exercise.
Did anyone had any comparable experience in the past? Please feel free to share it.
3
Replies
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I can't say that I've experienced this, to be honest.
I've been overweight my entire life, and my serious weight trimming odysseys started in my teens. I don't have logging stats going back that far, but I do have my stats from the first serious attempt when I was 21. I lost 30kg in a year, with a combination of a stupidly restrictive diet (at one point I was practically living on garden peas) and hours upon hours of cycling. Needless to say, as soon as I started eating normally, all the weight came back.
Second serious attempt was age 27...again lost 30kg in a year, again with sub-optimal intake and loads of mountain biking. This was followed by a few more gain and lose cycles throughout my thirties.
Tried again in 2012 (aged 47) using MFP and lost 40kg in 18 months, with a more sensible eating plan and a moderate amount of cardio. Incidentally, this was the only time (thus far) that I've actually reached my weight loss goal.
And now I'm back again, aged 56 (post-menopausal) this time. Started on March 17th 2021 (15 weeks ago) and I've lost 15kg so far. I'm eating 1500 cals/day and walking the dog for 60-120 mins a day. I burn some calories through gardening, and the odd gentle cycle ride, but other than than I don't do anything particularly strenuous. This is my fastest weight loss rate to date - so fast, in fact, that I'm about to raise my input to 1700 calories/day to slow it down a little.
I expected the weight loss to be slower in my 50s because everyone says that it is, especially for post-menopausal women, but I can't say it's been true for me.
You're only 2 weeks in and that's far too short a time to make any assumptions or draw any conclusions about your likely progress. Hang in there and get a couple of weeks worth of data under your belt. And remember, a slow steady rate of loss is a lot more sustainable than a race to the finish line! Good luck!17 -
Thank you very much for your response. I am really feeling hopeful now. And congratulation for reducing 15 kg in 15 week effortlessly.0
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Aging causes a decrease in
- basal metabolic rate
- skeletal musculature
- glucose tolerance
- energy consumption by physical activity
and an increase in
- fat accumulation
Source-
Shimokata H, Kuzuya F. [Aging, basal metabolic rate, and nutrition]. Nihon Ronen Igakkai Zasshi. 1993 Jul;30(7):572-6. Japanese. doi: 10.3143/geriatrics.30.572. PMID: 8361073.1 -
I think part of it is that by the time we get to our 30s and 40s, most of us have firmer, set responsibilities that require working around. I stay at home with my kids, which on the one hand is a job without set hours so I can build in some flexibility when it's available, but it's also an on-call 24/7/365 kind of thing. In my 20s I worked but they were all the kinds of jobs I could clock in, clock out and my brain wasn't worried about what went on when I wasn't there. I could go home and pretty much do whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted. I rented an apartment and didn't worry about upkeep beyond basic tidying and cleaning. Also no gardening, no hobbies that could take up any significant amount of space because I didn't have it. I do regret now that I wasted that time on so much stupid stuff, but I guess that's just part of life.
It might be that you were more unconsciously active when you were younger - I still walk a lot but it's not like when I was in college and didn't use a car pretty much ever. There's a really good thread about how to increase your calorie burn in subtle ways: https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10610953/neat-improvement-strategies-to-improve-weight-loss
I'm not sure I buy that as a lady in my mid-30s my body is acting in any way that could be considered elderly. I suppose my fertility may have started declining from its peak in my mid-late 20s, at least statistically, but beyond that and maybe a stray gray hair I'm not getting old yet. Not even close. I don't know how men think about this, but I'm not going to begin thinking about myself as old until perimenopause at the earliest, which I don't anticipate happening for at least ten years, though I know everyone varies.
My experience has been that once I started focusing in on the math of calories in and calories out, my weight loss has progressed pretty much as it should. When it's stalled, it's because I'm moving less than I planned or I'm eating more than I thought I was (or was willing to admit.)
12 -
Really appreciate you for sharing valuable discerning thoughts.
"It might be that you were more unconsciously active when you were younger" - sadly this is the foremost hurdle to cross.2 -
DrSelfish1131 wrote: »Really appreciate you for sharing valuable discerning thoughts.
"It might be that you were more unconsciously active when you were younger" - sadly this is the foremost hurdle to cross.
Yes, true, but that thread that @penguinmama87 linked to above includes a wealth of invaluable tips regarding how to burn extra calories without hardly thinking about it. I'm pretty sure it's my NEAT burn rather than my dog walks that has contributed most to my recent weight loss.DrSelfish1131 wrote: »Aging causes a decrease in
- basal metabolic rate
- skeletal musculature
- glucose tolerance
- energy consumption by physical activity
and an increase in
- fat accumulation
Source-
Shimokata H, Kuzuya F. [Aging, basal metabolic rate, and nutrition]. Nihon Ronen Igakkai Zasshi. 1993 Jul;30(7):572-6. Japanese. doi: 10.3143/geriatrics.30.572. PMID: 8361073.
Also true, but it doesn't mean you can't lose weight at a sensible rate. And you're in your 30s/40s...that's hardly decrepit! With a sensible calorie budget and a modest deficit (burning calories through NEAT and a moderate amount of exercise) there's absolutely no innate, age-related reason why you can't achieve weight loss of 0.5% - 1% of starting body weight per week.
Questions you need to ask yourself:- Are your weight loss expectations reasonable?
- How much do you need to lose?
- Are you logging/weighing accurately, fully, and choosing accurate entries from the food database?
- Could you be over-estimating your calorie intake (through inaccurate logging) if you've not lost anything in the first two weeks?
- Are you 100% sure you're running a calorie deficit at the moment?
- Could you burn any more calories through NEAT or additional moderate exercise?
5 -
DrSelfish1131 wrote: »Aging causes a decrease in
- basal metabolic rate
- skeletal musculature
- glucose tolerance
- energy consumption by physical activity
and an increase in
- fat accumulation
Source-
Shimokata H, Kuzuya F. [Aging, basal metabolic rate, and nutrition]. Nihon Ronen Igakkai Zasshi. 1993 Jul;30(7):572-6. Japanese. doi: 10.3143/geriatrics.30.572. PMID: 8361073.
I'm always curious about these studies. I am far from an expert and even when I was heavy into academic research the natural sciences were not my subject area - but part of me wonders how they know it's "getting older" that made those things happen, not "all the other stuff we tend to do as we get older" Other academic disciplines are prone to the correlation=causation error for sure and it's maddening. Or, a scientific study that reports some miniscule change that wouldn't be observed in any meaningful way by a typical person gets reported in regular media as certain doom and gloom.
All of these things could be true, but I wonder - what age are we talking about here? What degree of change?
Part of it is very hard to examine in a vacuum because humans do not live in vacuums.8 -
I think the change in BMR is probably much less than the difference in lifestyle. My TDEE has been going up consistently as I lose weight, because with less weight I am having more spontaneous movement and feel better so my activity level is increasing.
HOWEVER: Ain't no way this would be the case when I was in my 30s instead of my 40s. In my 30s, as now, I had a desk job (unlike my 20s when I was working in food service and on my feet all the time). The big difference is that now my kids are grown and my work hours are flexible AND I have another job that requires activity (training dogs) and active hobbies I have the time and money to pursue. In my 30s I needed to be available for kids, didn't have a lot of money and had no flexibility on the when or how much I worked at that desk or how long I sat there.
6 -
Bella_Figura wrote: »DrSelfish1131 wrote: »Really appreciate you for sharing valuable discerning thoughts.
"It might be that you were more unconsciously active when you were younger" - sadly this is the foremost hurdle to cross.
Yes, true, but that thread that @penguinmama87 linked to above includes a wealth of invaluable tips regarding how to burn extra calories without hardly thinking about it. I'm pretty sure it's my NEAT burn rather than my dog walks that has contributed most to my recent weight loss.DrSelfish1131 wrote: »Aging causes a decrease in
- basal metabolic rate
- skeletal musculature
- glucose tolerance
- energy consumption by physical activity
and an increase in
- fat accumulation
Source-
Shimokata H, Kuzuya F. [Aging, basal metabolic rate, and nutrition]. Nihon Ronen Igakkai Zasshi. 1993 Jul;30(7):572-6. Japanese. doi: 10.3143/geriatrics.30.572. PMID: 8361073.
Also true, but it doesn't mean you can't lose weight at a sensible rate. And you're in your 30s/40s...that's hardly decrepit! With a sensible calorie budget and a modest deficit (burning calories through NEAT and a moderate amount of exercise) there's absolutely no innate, age-related reason why you can't achieve weight loss of 0.5% - 1% of starting body weight per week.
Questions you need to ask yourself:- Are your weight loss expectations reasonable?
- How much do you need to lose?
- Are you logging/weighing accurately, fully, and choosing accurate entries from the food database?
- Could you be over-estimating your calorie intake (through inaccurate logging) if you've not lost anything in the first two weeks?
- Are you 100% sure you're running a calorie deficit at the moment?
- Could you burn any more calories through NEAT or additional moderate exercise?
I have just gone through your link. It was really helpful regarding how almost effortlessly someone can lose weight throughout his/her daily activities.
Answers to your six questions are -
1. Yes
2. 10kg
3. I think so. (Not sure)
4. Yes (according to my entries)
5. I think i am underestimating
6. Not sure
7. I am eagerly looking forward for it1 -
penguinmama87 wrote: »DrSelfish1131 wrote: »Aging causes a decrease in
- basal metabolic rate
- skeletal musculature
- glucose tolerance
- energy consumption by physical activity
and an increase in
- fat accumulation
Source-
Shimokata H, Kuzuya F. [Aging, basal metabolic rate, and nutrition]. Nihon Ronen Igakkai Zasshi. 1993 Jul;30(7):572-6. Japanese. doi: 10.3143/geriatrics.30.572. PMID: 8361073.
I'm always curious about these studies. I am far from an expert and even when I was heavy into academic research the natural sciences were not my subject area - but part of me wonders how they know it's "getting older" that made those things happen, not "all the other stuff we tend to do as we get older" Other academic disciplines are prone to the correlation=causation error for sure and it's maddening. Or, a scientific study that reports some miniscule change that wouldn't be observed in any meaningful way by a typical person gets reported in regular media as certain doom and gloom.
All of these things could be true, but I wonder - what age are we talking about here? What degree of change?
Part of it is very hard to examine in a vacuum because humans do not live in vacuums.
I do agree that Additional large and lengthy researches are necessary that consider both short term and long term changes in some form of visual scales .0 -
I'm with @penguinmama87 and skeptical about the purported magnitude of this rampant decline as we age. I don't dispute the existence of these changes but I don't think the year-over-year decline as nearly as prominent as perception would lead one to believe and are dwarfed by the extenuating circumstances baked into lifestyle shifts. For many people it seems like the math changes and they fail to recognize and/or adapt accordingly to those changes.
Further, I think it's all a bit of a self-fulfilling prophecy, especially in the current 50-60+ population. I've seen this first hand with my parents and in-laws, all in the early 60s, all overweight to some degree, and all are quick to point out how hard it is to lose weight at their age. However, only one of the four of them have ever taken what I would consider to be a sensible and sustainable approach to losing weight (i.e. tracking/portion control via MFP); otherwise, it's a lot of Dr. Oz-level fad diet attempts and complaining that they're too old and/or don't like to exercise. In my view they're making it hard because they've been told, and believe that it is/has to be hard for them.4 -
DrSelfish1131 wrote: »penguinmama87 wrote: »DrSelfish1131 wrote: »Aging causes a decrease in
- basal metabolic rate
- skeletal musculature
- glucose tolerance
- energy consumption by physical activity
and an increase in
- fat accumulation
Source-
Shimokata H, Kuzuya F. [Aging, basal metabolic rate, and nutrition]. Nihon Ronen Igakkai Zasshi. 1993 Jul;30(7):572-6. Japanese. doi: 10.3143/geriatrics.30.572. PMID: 8361073.
I'm always curious about these studies. I am far from an expert and even when I was heavy into academic research the natural sciences were not my subject area - but part of me wonders how they know it's "getting older" that made those things happen, not "all the other stuff we tend to do as we get older" Other academic disciplines are prone to the correlation=causation error for sure and it's maddening. Or, a scientific study that reports some miniscule change that wouldn't be observed in any meaningful way by a typical person gets reported in regular media as certain doom and gloom.
All of these things could be true, but I wonder - what age are we talking about here? What degree of change?
Part of it is very hard to examine in a vacuum because humans do not live in vacuums.
I do agree that Additional large and lengthy researches are necessary that consider both short term and long term changes in some form of visual scales .
I hope I didn't come off too harshly in my previous replies!
Basically, my concern is that it's very easy to get into the mindset that we have less control than we think we do. It can be very, very freeing to stop trying to control things we actually can't and go with the flow - that was an important life lesson for me a few years ago. But you can also swing too far that direction and think you're just a passive participant in everything, which is also wrong and a recipe for despair. Certain things are inevitable. I will die someday, for instance, as we all will, and I can't prevent it. I would like to get old first, though, and there are things I can do to make it much more likely that I reach those years. But let's say I have at least 50-60 years left, as is likely based on demographic data - do I want to be saying, at 34, "oh this is so hard already my body is falling apart?" I haven't even reached the likely halfway point yet!4 -
I'm with @penguinmama87 and skeptical about the purported magnitude of this rampant decline as we age. I don't dispute the existence of these changes but I don't think the year-over-year decline as nearly as prominent as perception would lead one to believe and are dwarfed by the extenuating circumstances baked into lifestyle shifts. For many people it seems like the math changes and they fail to recognize and/or adapt accordingly to those changes.
Further, I think it's all a bit of a self-fulfilling prophecy, especially in the current 50-60+ population. I've seen this first hand with my parents and in-laws, all in the early 60s, all overweight to some degree, and all are quick to point out how hard it is to lose weight at their age. However, only one of the four of them have ever taken what I would consider to be a sensible and sustainable approach to losing weight (i.e. tracking/portion control via MFP); otherwise, it's a lot of Dr. Oz-level fad diet attempts and complaining that they're too old and/or don't like to exercise. In my view they're making it hard because they've been told, and believe that it is/has to be hard for them.
Yes, this is my family too, and it is very hard to watch. It's interesting on a generational level, too - I am blessed to have all of my grandparents still living, and they have had various health concerns but actually are very active and have full lives. Their children are much more doom and gloom about health stuff. Same genes, but generally not doing as well in their 50s and 60s as their parents in their 80s (!). And in their children, that doom and gloom has hit for many in 20s and 30s. I think there's some historical trends and things much bigger than just our particular family dynamic that play a role here, but it's weird and alarming. When I was growing up, I did not think at all I would end up being the cheerful, optimistic one. Yet here we are.
I generally think "positive thinking!" as a cure-all is a load of hogwash and an excuse to kick some people while they're down. Sometimes really bad stuff does happen, and thinking it won't happen to you won't prevent it. But persistent negative thinking and assuming the worst isn't going to help either.4 -
wunderkindking wrote: »I think the change in BMR is probably much less than the difference in lifestyle. My TDEE has been going up consistently as I lose weight, because with less weight I am having more spontaneous movement and feel better so my activity level is increasing.
HOWEVER: Ain't no way this would be the case when I was in my 30s instead of my 40s. In my 30s, as now, I had a desk job (unlike my 20s when I was working in food service and on my feet all the time). The big difference is that now my kids are grown and my work hours are flexible AND I have another job that requires activity (training dogs) and active hobbies I have the time and money to pursue. In my 30s I needed to be available for kids, didn't have a lot of money and had no flexibility on the when or how much I worked at that desk or how long I sat there.
Thanks for your insightful words that postulated some rancorous certitude about human servival.0 -
I'm with @penguinmama87 and skeptical about the purported magnitude of this rampant decline as we age. I don't dispute the existence of these changes but I don't think the year-over-year decline as nearly as prominent as perception would lead one to believe and are dwarfed by the extenuating circumstances baked into lifestyle shifts. For many people it seems like the math changes and they fail to recognize and/or adapt accordingly to those changes.
Further, I think it's all a bit of a self-fulfilling prophecy, especially in the current 50-60+ population. I've seen this first hand with my parents and in-laws, all in the early 60s, all overweight to some degree, and all are quick to point out how hard it is to lose weight at their age. However, only one of the four of them have ever taken what I would consider to be a sensible and sustainable approach to losing weight (i.e. tracking/portion control via MFP); otherwise, it's a lot of Dr. Oz-level fad diet attempts and complaining that they're too old and/or don't like to exercise. In my view they're making it hard because they've been told, and believe that it is/has to be hard for them.
I do agree.
The worst human attribute is to have absolute self certainity.
We need to be self critical before assuming anything to be unequivocally perfect.0 -
Penguinmama87 wrote - "Certain things are inevitable. I will die someday, for instance, as we all will, and I can't prevent it. I would like to get old first, though, and there are things I can do to make it much more likely that I reach those years. But let's say I have at least 50-60 years left, as is likely based on demographic data - do I want to be saying, at 34, "oh this is so hard already my body is falling apart?" I haven't even reached the likely halfway point yet"
Thanks for your intuitive thoughts.0 -
penguinmama87 wrote: »I generally think "positive thinking!" as a cure-all is a load of hogwash and an excuse to kick some people while they're down. Sometimes really bad stuff does happen, and thinking it won't happen to you won't prevent it. But persistent negative thinking and assuming the worst isn't going to help either.
Yeah, it's definitely not a cure all but sometimes we have to know when we're in our own way. I know before I started lifting my self-talk told me that I wasn't "a lifter", wasn't "one of those guys" but that's what I wanted to look like. I had plenty of access to equipment in high school and college but never felt like a belonged in the weight room. It wasn't until I'd bought my own equipment that I allowed myself to work out in a way that really let me pursue my goals.3 -
I'm 41...almost 42...and I'm in a job where I'm on my feet a lot, but when I track my food and my activity, I get good results (weight loss) as compared to when I don't (weight gain).2
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So, at the ripe old age of around 38 after having my youngest child, I set out determined to lose close to 50lbs and did so with what I thought was relative ease at the time.
Over the years I have gained most of it back and over the last 3 or so years have made a few attempts to drop the pounds again but ran into that “why is this so much harder in my 40s” mentality when the scale was slow to respond to my expectations.
Fast forward to 3 months ago and I once again set out to get the body I wanted more determined than ever. Lo and behold, the pounds are coming off just like they did 10 years ago.
All this to say that yes our bodies change as we age but I don’t think there’s a significant impact to the weight loss equation.5 -
My mother is 83 and has more stamina than me (54) and my brother (47).
I've had a desk job since 2005. Mom has been super active since she retired @ 20 years ago. She struggles to stay above Underweight because of all her activity, which includes extensive gardening, walking, swimming, yoga, maintaining a 250 year old house, and, until the pandemic, working out with a trainer.
My brother would be considered very active if not compared to our mother.5
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