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I am 51 years old. I started out at about 235-240 lb when I went on a low carb diet. I also increased my exercise. I had been walking a few times a week but I started doing interval training and added resistance training 2x a week. I am not sure of the exact weight because I was afraid to get on the scale. By the time I noticed my clothes were getting looser I got on the scale and I was around 230.
I was 48 when I started. I lost around 50 lb and currently weigh around 183 lb. When I started I wore a 20/22W dress. I currently wear a 12/14 dress. It took me around a year to lose the weight. However, since then I have not been able to lose any weight. I had put on a few lb (for no apparent reason) and my doctor prescribed phentermine. While on the phentermine I lose the weight I had put on. Since I have stopped taking it (April) I have been maintaining my current weight.
I cannot lose weight no matter what I do. I had been eating very little (coffee for breakfast, salad with chicken for lunch, protein/veggies for dinner, no snacks) and could not lose weight. I was told by my doctor, a nutritionist and my trainer than I was not eating enough. So now I am eating more and I haven't gained anything but I haven't lost either.
I am still trying to lose weight. I haven't given up but it has been years since I have been able to lose weight. Eating too little did not yield weight loss. It just made me exhausted and miserable and affected my workouts in a negative way. So now I am eating more, feel better, and am getting stronger. I am not sure what to do now.
I am not necessarily giving up on losing weight but I have come to the realization that my destiny might be to wear a size 12/14 dress for the rest of my life. My height and weight put me in the obese category but my blood lipid profile is healthy and I am not diabetic. My resting heart rate is low (around 50) and I am functionally strong. I would love to lose weight but it does not seem to be in the cards for me. So I haven't given up but I am at peace with being heavier than what is ideal as long as I stay healthy.
I am 51 years old. I started out at about 235-240 lb when I went on a low carb diet. I also increased my exercise. I had been walking a few times a week but I started doing interval training and added resistance training 2x a week. I am not sure of the exact weight because I was afraid to get on the scale. By the time I noticed my clothes were getting looser I got on the scale and I was around 230.
I was 48 when I started. I lost around 50 lb and currently weigh around 183 lb. When I started I wore a 20/22W dress. I currently wear a 12/14 dress. It took me around a year to lose the weight. However, since then I have not been able to lose any weight. I had put on a few lb (for no apparent reason) and my doctor prescribed phentermine. While on the phentermine I lose the weight I had put on. Since I have stopped taking it (April) I have been maintaining my current weight.
I cannot lose weight no matter what I do. I had been eating very little (coffee for breakfast, salad with chicken for lunch, protein/veggies for dinner, no snacks) and could not lose weight. I was told by my doctor, a nutritionist and my trainer than I was not eating enough. So now I am eating more and I haven't gained anything but I haven't lost either.
I am still trying to lose weight. I haven't given up but it has been years since I have been able to lose weight. Eating too little did not yield weight loss. It just made me exhausted and miserable and affected my workouts in a negative way. So now I am eating more, feel better, and am getting stronger. I am not sure what to do now.
I am not necessarily giving up on losing weight but I have come to the realization that my destiny might be to wear a size 12/14 dress for the rest of my life. My height and weight put me in the obese category but my blood lipid profile is healthy and I am not diabetic. My resting heart rate is low (around 50) and I am functionally strong. I would love to lose weight but it does not seem to be in the cards for me. So I haven't given up but I am at peace with being heavier than what is ideal as long as I stay healthy.
This is almost my story to a T. It started for me when I quit smoking. I immediately put on 35 lbs, on top of the extra 5-10 I was already carrying. I cracked down on myself about 3 years later. I watched what I ate, journaling every single day and over the next 2 years, I managed to lose 40 lbs. Very, very, very slowly. I was netting 1300 calories a day and working out 7 days a week. I was 45 years old at that point.
Then, even though I continued to journal every single day and tended to eat the same thing day in and day out, I started gaining weight. I went into premenopause, which I have been going through now for 5 years. I retain insane amounts of water, some days I can be up 7 lbs. Over those 5 years, I have gained back the 40 lbs I lost.
Between my metabolism slowing down after I quit smoking and starting premenopause, I can't get a pound to budge off from me. It's frustrating, but I'm not giving up!
For me, it is a lot easier eating out healthy than it is cooking healthy. Broiled fish, not butter, steamed veggies, not butter, etc.
Lots of chain restaurants have healthy options. Cheesecake Factory has an entire healthy menu, even McDonalds and Chick-Fil-A have healthy menus.
The OP travels a lot so she might end up in places where the options are very limited. Also take into account when you have to travel a lot you are exhausted from airplanes, airports, hotels, and the unknown of the place you are in. That alone makes searching for healthy food options a real chore.
What I would do in her place is pack nuts, instant oatmeal packs (the kind without any added sugar), meal replacement bars (the kind without a lot of added sugar), dried apricots (great for killing a sweet tooth, and other non perishable items that she can eat when she is in an area with no good food options.
I am 55 and at my desired weight - which is 10 pounds heavier than I was 7 years ago. I look better, and I am not as stressed to keep a certain weight because I just can't kill it working out like I used to on a frequent basis. I have tried, but I realized I am at a point in my life where I am weighing the enjoyment of my life to some preconceived notion of what I think I should look like. Of course to maintain I need to still watch my caloric intake and exercise. Just not as fervently.
I think there are many women who come to a big point of struggle once they hit the age of about 45+. Losing weight not only becomes much more difficult, but the hormonal changes also make the body want to hang onto fat.If you have always had a weight problem you start to realize that the "someday I will be slim" fantasy will never happen.The same rigorous workouts and disciplined food plans that used to result in weight loss don't work anymore and that can become very discouraging. I am continuing to fight the battle but boy, I can understand why others give up..
No excuse. I lost almost 100lbs after I turned 47 and have kept it off. The "someday I will be slim fantasy" is not a fantasy - it's an excuse lazy women tell themselves. These are the same women I see gobbling up donuts and muffins when people bring them in to work, and drinking sugar laden coffee or Starbucks frappuccinos - then they lament "I don't understand why I'm not losing weight!".. And at this age its not just about vanity, it's about health.
I do Pilates 3/4 times a week and weight training at the gym 3 times a week. I MAKE time. I get up earlier, I budget for the gym/Pilates classes, I don't keep crappy food in the house. Is it always easy? Heck no. But it's a lot easier than being fat, insecure and uncomfortable. The food part will always be a struggle for me, but I really look forward to the fitness. It took me a year to really enjoy working out, and for the first six months I hated it. I look and feel better now than I did when I was in my 30s and 40's. I'll never look as good as I did in my 20's - that's a given. But, I want to look and feel the best I can!
Cheers to all of you who have been able to lose the weight, to those that are still trying - don't give up!
I had the same issues until I finally just recorded everything I ate and limited everything to total 1700 calories a day, gross. The "healthy" foods I ate added up to a lot of calories when I actually counted.
For example, 16 OZ of brown rice is 437 and 16 oz of plain oatmeal is 318. That is the amount that fits in a normal bowl.
While I always knew a Big Mac was 540 calories and would avoid, I would eat a nice big serving of brown rice or plain oatmeal knowing that they were "healthy."
Ah, the hunt for small bowls.....yikes. I got married 30+ years ago and my first set of dishes had 10 ounce bowls. Next set was 24 ounces! A normal portion in that bowl is guaranteed to look tiny and mentally unsatisfying.
But, I did find some. You have to order them, because no one carries them, but Fiestaware makes an 8 ounce stacking cereal bowl in multiple colors.
not really true. I'm late 40s and i have lost over 100 lbs. Regardless of age, the thermodynamics of weight loss remain the same. If someone is over 40 and say they can't lose weight, i say show me a 90 day food and exercise journal where you documented every morsel of food that went in your mouth and every minute of exercise you performed. The answer will be in the journal.
Weightloss is 80% of what you put into your mouth and 20% exercise. How old you are has nothing to do with losing weight.People have been in their 60's or 70's and they were able to lose weight and there are people very young who can't seem to lose it.To me it's only when you are ready to lose it is when it will happen.When you have dealt with all your other baggage in your mind is when things start to fall into place.
Not really true. I'm late 40s and I have lost over 100 lbs. Regardless of age, the thermodynamics of weight loss remain the same. If someone is over 40 and say they can't lose weight, I say show me a 90 day food and exercise journal where you documented every morsel of food that went in your mouth and every minute of exercise you performed. The answer will be in the journal.
The dynamics of nutrition after about 55 change radically for many people, though. Starchy (carby) foods provoke much more of an insulin reaction, after significant hormonal decline, and insulin causes fat gain. People at that age, unless they're on hormone replacement, need to cut back on carbs more than earlier in life to see progress. Weight Watchers, and other calorie-counting diets won't work, because they still allow sugar and starches. The dynamics of the metabolic hormones change, with middle-aged changes in the endocrine system. This is why some doctors tell their patients past a certain age to give up. Other doctors acknowledge that, while weight loss is possible, it requires a lot more effort after a certain stage of life.
Weightloss is 80% of what you put into your mouth and 20% exercise. How old you are has nothing to do with losing weight.People have been in their 60's or 70's and they were able to lose weight and there are people very young who can't seem to lose it.To me it's only when you are ready to lose it is when it will happen.When you have dealt with all your other baggage in your mind is when things start to fall into place.
Absolutely this ^^^. I am nearly 68. Eight years ago I was nearly 60 lbs overweight. I lost it, albeit very very slowly. I dropped 30 and stayed there for a couple years or so. Then I dropped 15 more, and then 15 more, and I pretty much stay at the weight I am now, which is right for my age and height. I did it by always watching what I eat, and exercising EVERY SINGLE DAY. These days I do not do the long strength training sessions, I just really hate it, so I basically have about six or so compound exercises for strength that I do daily or several times per week. The rest of my exercise is devoted to that which I love; which is various forms of dancing and riding my bicycle. The regime keeps my weight down and my figure quite nice, the muscle gives shape to my arms and legs; and the dancing is great for balance.
Bottom line, YES YOU CAN lose weight, regardless of age, etc. As long as one is realistic. I do weigh ten or fifteen lbs more than I did in my 30s, but I look and feel better, and that is natural. As others have said; it is not necessarily easy; you do have to work at it and never let things get out of control, that is the key. One really must be motivated by health factors as much as anything else.
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