Weight Loss after 50?

[DarcyInOregon]

Wendy, I am not post-menopausal, but I am age 53. It is also very difficult for my body to burn body fat, but it does happen for me, slowly.

I eat only heart healthy. No odd diets for me because I eat the way I will eat for the remainder of my life. My health is most important, not my body weight. Every hospital in the country teaches a course to anyone who wants to sign up on how to eat appropriately for long-term health, meaning the goal is to live as long as possible without getting any of the nutritional related diseases of old-age, or how to reverse any current medical complications. The course lasts about three months and is taught by nutrionists, dieticians and social behaviorists. Weight loss is discussed, but only as being an effect of eating correctly and exercising diligently.

For myself, I learned nutrition and my diet follows the recommendations of the American Heart Association, the federal government and the medical community. I eat low-fat, fresh fruits and vegetables, low-fat dairy, whole grains, seeds, nuts and legumes. The carbs I eat are high in soluble fiber and I avoid overly processed and refined carbs. I keep my sodium low.

Every day I track my calories consumed and my calories burned. I use the Calorie King software, which is a nutrition database for tracking food and exercise. I use a Pulsar heart rate monitor to track the calories burned during my daily workouts. I keep my calories consumed to around 1500, never lower than 1200, and the calories are consumed through three heart healthy well-balanced meals. I exercise every day without fail. When the weather is bad I exercise inside on a Cybex treadmill, or a Cybex fitness bike, or my road bike on the trainer. When the weather is good, I am outside walking or biking. When I exercise inside I try to get my calories burned to be at least 300. When I exercise outside I try to get my calories burned to at least 400-500.

The weight comes off very slowly, but it is fat, not bone or muscle weight. I am very healthy, and at this time of my life I have no evidence of getting any of the aging diseases that many people get from the nutritional deficiences of incorrect eating.

[Tuckervill]

My main problem is the visceral abdominal fat so common in women after menopause. Nothing I do seems to be helping to get rid of this. I am careful about what I eat without obsessing, ride my bike or trainer as often as I can, do resistance training regularly. It's very frustrating to see no change. I am more concerned about the health aspect of the excess fat weight as opposed to being worried about how my clothing fits or what size it is (not that I don't think about that).

I've been reading a book called "You, on a diet" by Oz and Roizen. The main goal of the book is to show you how and why that abdominal fat should go. They say the appropriate circumference of the abdomen for women (as measured around the belly button) is at most 35", but ideally under 32-1/2".

I'd love it if my belly were under 35 inches, even if it was bigger than the rest of me. At least my behind wouldn't be so big! If yours is under 35" I'd say your health is probably not an issue.

Karen