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It's important to remember that everyone's body is unique and that genetics, age, and other factors can affect body composition, including the distribution of fat. It sounds like you're already leading a healthy lifestyle with regular exercise and a balanced diet, which is great for your overall health and well-being.
Here are a few options to consider:
Focus on overall health: Shift your focus to overall health and well-being, including regular exercise, a balanced diet, and self-care.
Consider strength training: Incorporate strength training to build lean muscle mass and potentially reduce overall body fat.
Monitor portion sizes: Pay attention to portion sizes and avoid mindless eating.
Stay hydrated: Drink plenty of water to aid digestion and manage caloric intake.
Embrace self-acceptance: Practice body positivity and focus on what makes you feel good about yourself and your health.
Thanks. I just added in some do-at-home leg muscle strengthening exercise for runners I found online. I’ve never done this before. I’m enjoying this new kind of work-out.
Saturday 8 mile hike
Sunday: 6 mile hike
Monday, I ran hard for about 3 miles & upper body weight work out for about 15 minutes
Tuesday Fairly intense exercise biking for 35 minutes
Wednesday Hard 3 mile run & upper body work out
Thursday Upper body work out only
Friday Hard run for about 3 miles
This is a typical week.
I am athletic and would love to do more, but I am also managing a heart arrhythmia. If I don’t exercise enough, my arrhythmia gets worse. But it also gets worse — a lot worse — if my runs are too long or too intense.
I also have a neuroma in one of my feet which makes we worry about running more, although this doesn’t prevent me from doing more on the exercise bike. Although I also have sciatica on my left side and too much on the exercise bike does seem to trigger that.
I have had various pain syndromes (like Repetitive Strain syndrome, and Complex Regional Pain disorder) in my upper body, mainly on the left side. The upper body workout I do grew out of success physical therapy I had for these conditions. However, I was warned to go for moderate workouts only. So, here too, I find that moderate workouts (I use a set of 5 lb weights) are key.
What I don’t do, but could possible add are more core exercises (sit-ups) and more weight training for my lower body. But I feel like I would need to join a gym for lower body weight-training and I am resistant to that idea for a number of reasons (time, expense, hassle). Is there anyway to do lower-body weight-training at home? Also, does anyone know of a good core-toning regime?
I think from what you've said esp regarding previous pain like RSI that you would really like an at-home program called Fitforever by Dr. Jeremy James. It has a LOT of core work along with agility, balance and other strength training. I believe it costs $10 to $12 per month, with one week free to see if you like it. https://fitforever.com/
If I had to guess the OP has some struggles with an eating disorder. To be at the low weight you are and to exercise so much with the health problems you have is not healthy.
Many who have anorexia store body fat on the belly to protect the organs. Once you get to your body’s healthy weight which will mean gaining it should eventually balance out.
I don’t get the responses here to watch portions when the OP is on the underweight side and does so much exercise. You need to increase portions and focus on mind and body health.
I would encourage you to make an appointment with a dietician and a therapist.
If I had to guess the OP has some struggles with an eating disorder. To be at the low weight you are and to exercise so much with the health problems you have is not healthy.
Many who have anorexia store body fat on the belly to protect the organs. Once you get to your body’s healthy weight which will mean gaining it should eventually balance out.
I don’t get the responses here to watch portions when the OP is on the underweight side and does so much exercise. You need to increase portions and focus on mind and body health.
I would encourage you to make an appointment with a dietician and a therapist.
I don’t have an earring disorder. I have chronic pancreatitis which drastically affects what I can eat. I have become very aware of my weight over the years because there have been times I have had to try very hard not to be underweight (due to dietary restrictions). I am 59 and this is literally the first time in my life I am wondering whether letting myself fall a little below the BMI limit on paper might be OK if I still feel and look good.
To phrase this another way, I have had annoying belly fat ever since I went into early menopause at 43. And, in spite of that, I have always tried to eat more when I got to an officially BMI of 18.5. If I were anorexic, I wouldn’t always be trying to eat more when I hit that official number. Above all, I care about my health and have read elsewhere that 18.5 isn’t some magic indelible border between being fine and being moribund while having belly fat is definitely not a good thing.
I see a doctor regularly and have never been told anything negative about my weight. The opposite in fact!
Also, finally, I am not currently underweight and have never been for anything more than a few days at a time when I have had pancreatitis flare-ups in the past.
Last edited by Jill_Schramm; 04-13-2023 at 04:51 AM..
I am a 59 y.o. female. My BMI is 18.5, right at the low end of normal. I exercise every single day in some way whether it be walking, running, cycling, working out with weights, etc. And yet, I still have a rim of fat in the belly area. My waistline used to be 24” when I was young and now it is 27”.
I have a healthy diet for me. I have chronic pancreatitis so I must eat a very low fat diet (and can’t drink at all). That said, I eat lots of whole grains, veggies, fruit, lean protein etc.
So, this is it, then? I guess I’m just stuck with a rim of fat around my middle, unless I want to be officially underweight.
So give up and accept? Other options? (I mean besides plastic surgery. I don’t care nearly enough to do that l.l)
Do you check your blood sugar?
I couldn't get rid of belly fat, until I got diagnosed diabetic, and medicated.
Saturday 8 mile hike
Sunday: 6 mile hike
Monday, I ran hard for about 3 miles & upper body weight work out for about 15 minutes
Tuesday Fairly intense exercise biking for 35 minutes
Wednesday Hard 3 mile run & upper body work out
Thursday Upper body work out only
Friday Hard run for about 3 miles
This is a typical week.
I am athletic and would love to do more, but I am also managing a heart arrhythmia. If I don’t exercise enough, my arrhythmia gets worse. But it also gets worse — a lot worse — if my runs are too long or too intense.
I also have a neuroma in one of my feet which makes we worry about running more, although this doesn’t prevent me from doing more on the exercise bike. Although I also have sciatica on my left side and too much on the exercise bike does seem to trigger that.
I have had various pain syndromes (like Repetitive Strain syndrome, and Complex Regional Pain disorder) in my upper body, mainly on the left side. The upper body workout I do grew out of success physical therapy I had for these conditions. However, I was warned to go for moderate workouts only. So, here too, I find that moderate workouts (I use a set of 5 lb weights) are key.
What I don’t do, but could possible add are more core exercises (sit-ups) and more weight training for my lower body. But I feel like I would need to join a gym for lower body weight-training and I am resistant to that idea for a number of reasons (time, expense, hassle). Is there anyway to do lower-body weight-training at home? Also, does anyone know of a good core-toning regime?
If I don't exercise my sciatica returns too.
- At 50+ I don't see the benefit of running as it adds more pressure, wear and tear to your knees and joints. I hope you're not running on hard pavement. I run but on a clay court.
- my physio helped me recover from a herniated disc and sciatica. She had me doing low impact workouts which include; walking a mile or two, using free weights of 10lbs instead of 20-25lbs I was doing, and 4 different lower back/ab exercises. I cont'd doing my at home work outs as well.
Important: each ab exercise is the type where you lie on your back and do not lift your upper body. Only your legs are lifted. You may want to try some pilates positions as they targeted stubborn fat areas.
I stopped going to gyms because the locker rooms and machines were not cleaned properly. I've been doing beach body at-home workouts for the last 14 years. Be careful. proper form with pilates or yoga is very important or you could aggravate the sciatica or spinal nerve.
To phrase this another way, I have had annoying belly fat ever since I went into early menopause at 43. And, in spite of that, I have always tried to eat more when I got to an officially BMI of 18.5. If I were anorexic, I wouldn’t always be trying to eat more when I hit that official number. Above all, I care about my health and have read elsewhere that 18.5 isn’t some magic indelible border between being fine and being moribund while having belly fat is definitely not a good thing.
Focus more on BF% than BMI. BMI is a population measure - it's for measuring millions of people, not 1.
when you were 42, you should have been carrying more fat, but now you can get lower. You HAVE to have 13% BF. Your organs will start to shut down with less fat than that. Everyone says stay above 21.5%.
Don't rely on online calculators, they are garbage. Scales are pretty bad too, depending on your body composition. Someone well trained with calipers or a DEXA scan are the best. Dexa might be covered by insurance if your in danger of osteoporosis - it's a bone density and body composition scan.
I’m far from an expert, but I have been doing a lot of research and talking to trainers and a physical therapist recently as I rework my program. My goal is to increase muscle mass to boost my metabolism. Like many guys, I started on the vanity muscles: biceps, triceps, bench press. What I’ve learned is that if you really want to increase metabolism by building muscle, then you need to focus on the large muscles, primarily the lower body: hamstrings, glutes, quads. A gym would be ideal, but if you want to do it at home, a set of adjustable dumbbells could work for squats and deadlifts. Make sure you have good form to avoid getting injured. I imagine you have very fit legs for all your exercise, but you need to focus on making them larger and stronger. Your weight may go up as a result of additional muscles mass, so I wouldn’t focus on BMI. (It’s a terrible metric.) a body fat scan, like a Dexa scan, would provide much better data.
Someone else mentioned overtraining Are you allowing your body to get rest? Are you getting plenty of sleep? Best of luck to you!
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