What works over 40 and 5'3

snowmanluv · March 2012

Looking for some ideas on what works for over 40 and 5'3. I've tried weight watchers 4x with little changes. Tried slim fast. Working keeping track of fat grams which did work. Suggestions? Also added daily walking in pushed increments. Adkins for anybody (low carb)? How many calories? I thought 1200 would be good with additional 150-200 calories burned in exercising.

dlperry65 · March 2012

Get started here, by using the tools to figure your BMI & BMR. Myfitnesspal will tell you how many calories a day. Can find lots of threads about good food and exercise. I am 46 and 5' 3" and am down 31# since Aug. 2011.
Good luck.

Xiaolongbao · March 2012

I'm 5'3" and not quite 40.

Personally I think sensible eating is the best plan. Something you can stick with. So lots of fruit/veg/unprocessed food for me. Reason being I like to eat a lot and that's the way to get the maximum amount of food for your calorie buck. Not to mention all the health benefits of eating good food.

1200 would be too low for me because I'd be hungry all the time and not stick with it.

gaj87 · March 2012

I am 46 and 4'11. I have lost 54 lbs since April 2011. When I started, I needed to do something that I could keep up for the rest of my life, so I started by modifying what I ate for lunch. I made a commitment to add vegetables. I started watching my portions (I did not measure) and I tried to cut out fast foods. I started exercising a few times a week and making sure I never went more than two days between workouts. If I wanted something like chocolate or cake, I would ask myself "am I willing to work this off?", if my answer was 'no', then I did not eat it, if my answer was 'yes', I ate it with no guilt and enjoyed it. This worked for me because it made me think before I ate it. My friend uses the question "will this get me to where I want to be?"

I have only started using myfitnesspal in the last week. I have 12 more pounds to go and needed something to motivate me. It helps to see the food intake numbers.

Good luck and I hope you find something that works for you.

diane68 · March 2012

Hi there, I'm 43 and 5.3. I've been logging onto mfp for the last 8 weeks and so far lost 18 pounds - another 32 to go. I've not been on any particular plan as such just healthly eating and sticking to my calorie allowance. Oh and working out to wii Zumba about 4 times a week! I do eat back calories and I do cheat particularly at weekends but if you stick with it and accept it will take time It really does work.

Good luck you can do it!

Cornwallis68 · March 2012

This (MFP) works for me. I hadn't weighed myself in about 20 years and was comfortable, although fat. But started to notice some (minor) weight-based health issues at 42 - last year - and was in the right place to start losing some. I am fairly relaxed about it all in comparison to many on here, but I've basically started going to the gym twice a week and eating (most of the time!) within my allowance on here. Doing this has taught me about portion control, which was, I think, my biggest issue. I've enjoyed it! Plenty more to lose, but no particular goal in mind. I'm 43 and 5' 4".

ndelviii · March 2012

Burn more than you eat. Simple to say, challenging to do. That is the benefit of a fitness tracker like Myfitnesspal. The other thing that worked for me is to increase my workouts. It doesn't matter how much so long as each week I got better. A little more weights, a little more incline on the Treadmill, A few more calories burned in the same amount of time. I was able to lose 50 lbs over 8 months.

What works over 40 and 5'3

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