Okay over 50 and can't drop the weight!

[Tuckervill]

Another change I made was to only use the salad plates at home, not the dinner plates. Everyone in my house uses them now. I'm even in the process of collecting new, beautiful, handmade salad plates. My DILs have been instructed not to buy dinner plates if they help me with my collection. Eventually the wedding china we use regularly will be disposed of.

That change has had a great impact on how much I eat, and I get full quick. So eating out is not a problem for me, because I mentally divide the meal and only eat as much as I know will make me full. My biggest struggle with that has been making the decision to do it before I decide to eat out, but hypnosis has pretty much solved that. It made me more mindful of my intentions in this area, and regular self-hypnosis reinforces the mindfulness.

Karen

[OakLeaf]

I just gotta say this... because we're talking about two different things here, and conflating them. Maybe even three different things. Hormonal changes in body fat distribution; getting to a healthy body fat %; and getting to a body fat % that's more suited to racing (or being a model).

Body image issues are really complicated, maybe even more so in an athletic setting. So I hate to even talk about weight loss, for fear of reinforcing somebody's unrealistically negative body image (including my own).

I'll be honest here - with myself as much as with anyone. I don't have an accurate numerical measure of my body fat %, but I'm sure it's at a healthy but higher than ideal level. I can feel my iliac crests all the way around within 2-3 mm of the skin. I have some definition in my arms, mid to lower legs, delts, pecs, back, upper abs and obliques. The last time my cholesterol was checked, it was a total chol. of 165 with 102 HDL. All my life I've carried extra fat around the hips and upper thighs. I was going to say I'm nowhere near a racing weight... but that's not true; I'm within 2-3 lbs of my racing weight, but my body composition is not what it used to be. I've never been happy about my big butt and thunder thighs, but right at the moment what I'm really bummed about is that pooch around my navel, and the loss of definition in my middle abs. (I never had any in the lower abs ) Bottom line: I'm lamenting the depredations of age, and because of my fitness focus I'm a whole lot more bummed about the menopot than I am about the white hairs, the laugh lines or the saggy boobs.

I just had to say this. Because it sounds like there are some people in this thread whose health might improve if they lost weight. There are people like myself, who would like to lose fat for cosmetic reasons, but doing so would mean deprivation. There are competitive athletes who would like to lose fat for performance reasons, and who are willing to deprive themselves to get there. And then there are probably some people reading this who believe they need to lose fat, but really, really don't.

So just... it's an issue of mine. If fat were self-defined, then Karen Carpenter was fat on the day she died. Are we commiserating about getting old? Sharing tips for ways to naturally maintain higher estrogen levels? Or playing that same old fat game?

[Pax]

Can you give me an idea of what a typical day's food intake might be Queen?

Hi KG, a typical day would look like this -

Breakfast:
- cereal with soy milk
- an apple or some orange juice
- coffee

Mid-morning snack:
- some raw cashews or almonds

Lunch:
- PBJ or veggie wrap
- lots of fresh peppers, cucumber, cherry tomatoes, celery, carrots.
- V8

Mid-afternoon snack:
- apple or banana

Dinner:
- Black beans and cous cous
- a veggie of some sort (broccoli, asparagus, green beans...)
- a couple of Trader Joe's "Joe-Joe's" cookies for dessert

Snack (not every night but once in a while):
- Sesame sticks or some sweet potato chips

And about a gallon of water a day.

[emily_in_nc]

I'll be honest here - with myself as much as with anyone. I don't have an accurate numerical measure of my body fat %, but I'm sure it's at a healthy but higher than ideal level. I can feel my iliac crests all the way around within 2-3 mm of the skin. I have some definition in my arms, mid to lower legs, delts, pecs, back, upper abs and obliques. The last time my cholesterol was checked, it was a total chol. of 165 with 102 HDL. All my life I've carried extra fat around the hips and upper thighs. I was going to say I'm nowhere near a racing weight... but that's not true; I'm within 2-3 lbs of my racing weight, but my body composition is not what it used to be. I've never been happy about my big butt and thunder thighs, but right at the moment what I'm really bummed about is that pooch around my navel, and the loss of definition in my middle abs. (I never had any in the lower abs ) Bottom line: I'm lamenting the depredations of age, and because of my fitness focus I'm a whole lot more bummed about the menopot than I am about the white hairs, the laugh lines or the saggy boobs.

Oakleaf, you said this really, really well. I am 46 and pretty much could have written the above too. Even down to the HDL > 100! I weigh less than I weighed in high school (by about 6 lbs.), and back then never exercised at all, but today my waistline is larger, despite never having children due to infertility issues. I have loose flab/skin on my belly and in my love-handles area and around the back on my flanks (back fat, ugh). My upper thighs are looser on the side than I'd like. I almost hate to post on a thread like this, because I am the kind of woman that larger women would probably look at when I'm dressed and "hate" because I'm small -- but seeing me naked is another story. I am NO Karen Carpenter. I can pinch flab, plenty of it.

I only weigh 102-103 at 5'1-1/2", so losing more weight would require depriving myself more than I am willing to (giving up my nightly glass of wine, or occasional dark chocolate...) or working out/training a lot more than I really have time for with my job and life. I already do some form of exercise every day, even if I only have time for thirty minutes.

So I live with this middle-aged spread, as it were, and figure I'm still in pretty darn good shape for my age. But I do get what you are saying. And it's a little frustrating to weigh what I do, exercise every day, and still have more flab/higher BF % than I'd like. I know if I had lived the lifestyle I live now in my 20s, I'd have had a flat tummy, no question.

I try to tell myself, though...the alternative to aging is definitely not preferable! I try to be thankful for my good health and not let my imperfections get me down. But you won't see me flaunting it in a bikini, that's for sure!

Emily

[Susan126]

I just love coming to this forum and reading all of your posts! You guys never fail to bring a smile to my face! And I've learned a lot from your posts too! I'm also glad to know that I'm not alone in this battle. And I have made changes this week.

For breakfast (yes I am finally eating breakfast!) I have been having either hot oatmeal with soy milk and coffee of course or scrambled eggs (egg beaters) and coffee.

I have not been having snacks. Is that important?

For lunch I have rice and a chicken breast.

When I get home from work I am usually famished and will have a bowl of cherrios and soy milk.

Dinner I have with hubby. This week it's been lean meat (chicken, chicken, and more chicken . . . except last night I baked tuna filets) with rice or baked potato and fresh veggies.

So one week down and already I've noticed I am losing a lot of "water". I am also trying to drink a lot of water. But really I am going to the bathroom almost every half hour at work! Cheryl, the librarian at the middle school where I work, must be wondering about me this week. LOL

Oh nights are still very hard for me. I had such a craving for ice cream last night! But I was good and instead had a bowl of dry cereal, cheerios.

Oh I hope I can keep this up with the holidays approaching! Hubby will be out of town for two weeks, Nov. 3 - 17, and my daughter and I decided this would be a good time to bake our annual holiday cookie stash. I place the cookies in my big freezer and take them out over the holidays for guests and to give away too. I must bake 12 dozen or more cookies. All kinds! But I'm on a mission now and I think I will get through it fine!

I don't know what my body fat is (I don't think I want to know) and my HDL and LDL levels were not good in June when I went in for a checkup. Hopefully I can bring that around. Has anyone tried the Promise Active Supershots for high cholesterol? It's new on the market. I have been drinking them with breakfast and dinner. I hope they help.

[Pax]

Susan - Conventional wisdom says that spreading your calories out throughout the day...same amount of food/calories as three meals a day, just spread out into six smaller meals will keep your metabolism running evenly instead of doing those spikes that make you crave ice cream.


BTW - if you want something sweet and don't want to indulge in ice cream try this, frozen fruit (I like blueberries) and just a little bit of soy milk, stir it up and the frozen fruit will semi freeze the soy, ends up like yummy soft serve ice cream.

[Tonya]

Try eliminating all sugar and white food for a couple of weeks and see if you notice any changes.

[Zen]

I only weigh 102-103 at 5'1-1/2", so losing more weight would require depriving myself more than I am willing to (giving up my nightly glass of wine, or occasional dark chocolate...) or working out/training a lot more than I really have time for with my job and life. I already do some form of exercise every day, even if I only have time for thirty minutes.

I'm 5'2" and weigh about 135. I do have a belly but I would not describe myself as fat. I can't imagine someone my height weighing in the neighborhood of 100 pounds yet describing herself the way you do. You don't need to lose weight. You should build muscle.

I do weight and core training on the stability ball. I rarely use weight machines, most of my lifting is done on the ball and with relatively light weights. You can do this in thirty minutes a day.

[emily_in_nc]

I'm 5'2" and weigh about 135. I do have a belly but I would not describe myself as fat. I can't imagine someone my height weighing in the neighborhood of 100 pounds yet describing herself the way you do. You don't need to lose weight. You should build muscle.

I do weight and core training on the stability ball. I rarely use weight machines, most of my lifting is done on the ball and with relatively light weights. You can do this in thirty minutes a day.

It is possible to not weigh a lot and still be overfat, though, based on bodyfat percentage.

I do lift weights - light dumbbells (8-12 lbs. depending on the muscle group) and do weight machines, though lately I've been lucky to get to the gym 1-2 times a week for a lifting session, just barely enough time to maintain. However, another often overlooked factor in differences in weight among people of the same height is bone structure. My wrists are like tiny little bird wrists; I have narrow little hips (the boney part, that is!), etc. I have very slim ankles. I'd wager my wrists are a lot smaller than yours as they are smaller than most women I know.

But I do know that I could use more muscle. It seems hard to put on and maintain muscle in my mid 40s, harder than it used to be. One reason: I suspect my testosterone levels are pretty low (they tend to fall in women around menopause).

Emily

[Susan126]

BTW - if you want something sweet and don't want to indulge in ice cream try this, frozen fruit (I like blueberries) and just a little bit of soy milk, stir it up and the frozen fruit will semi freeze the soy, ends up like yummy soft serve ice cream.

Oh yummy that does sound gooood! I'll have to try it for sure. Thanks Queen!

[Zen]

But I do know that I could use more muscle. It seems hard to put on and maintain muscle in my mid 40s, harder than it used to be. One reason: I suspect my testosterone levels are pretty low (they tend to fall in women around menopause).

My 50th bday is nipping me on the a$$. I didn't start lifting until I was 42.

See that belly? (Lycra is your friend)
You can do it.

[sundial]

susan,
its menopause and it just plain sucks.
i always have had a totally flat stomach and now i got a "pooch." and love handles. i gained 20 pounds in the last couple years and i totally cannot lose them.

You know, after I had my history wrecked, I contined to lose weight. I thought, at last I've got this weight thing licked. Well, not 6 months later my weight just skyrocketed. I was still on the same diet and I ended up gaining 20 lbs. So that tells me hormonal changes do affect weight and weight loss.

I joined a weight loss program and I would lose *maybe* 3/4-1 lb a week.

[emily_in_nc]

My 50th bday is nipping me on the a$$. I didn't start lifting until I was 42.

See that belly? (Lycra is your friend)
You can do it.

Yeah, you're definitely more muscular than me - great arms/shoulders!

I started lifting at 39, but I've never gotten that much muscle definition, and now I have even less. When I am lifting, I always think I look pretty muscular in the mirror, when the muscles are actually working, but then I look at my arms later, and they just look kinda slender, not very well defined. I definitely need to lift more -- we've been so busy this summer with buying a sailboat that I've kinda slacked on that -- I always tend I do more in the winter (when no one can even check out my arms! )

Emily

P.S. You can see photos of my on my blog below just to reassure you that I am not an anorexic with a severely distorted body image. I may not weight a lot, but I am definitely still curvy, including the pooch over the top of my underwear....

[netoll]

I have the solution to the bulge, pilates! I am 55 and started pilates classes on machine (not mat) about a year ago and am absolutely amazed at how it has transformed my body in less than a year. I have always been athletic, running, etc. but wanted a firmer mid section. I have never had abs this tight and firm in my life.
I just started biking a month ago. As I was riding the first weekend, I positioned my mid section as we do in pilates class, ribs to hips. This means pulling your ab muscles down into your hips keeping your core tight. It removes tension from your shoulders and positions your body so your legs are doing the work while your core keeps your body in control. When I finish riding, I feel as if I have not only worked out my legs but also my abs. Pilates also forces your body to use it's muscles not the joints which saves you from injury.
I would appreciate any advice you all can give me regarding biking as a newbie. I love biking and received great info from the bike shop where I bought my bike but I need a woman's input now. I could use advice on biking in the winter in Atlanta, training, clothing, shoes, good areas to ride (so far I only ride the Silver Comet), anything.
Thanks!!!

[kelownagirl]

Netoll - so I am curious to know if you were able to lose that lovely covering of fat as well with pilates? I have pretty good abs now but the fat covering it makes them hard to see....