Motivation

I'd like to start this thread specifically for women who are 50 or over.

As a 53 year-old woman, myself, I am finding new challenges, unexpected difficulties and wonderful insights on my path to getting to and maintaining my health, weight and body shape.

What seemed to work for me as little as five years ago doesn't work quite the same anymore. My body doesn't seem to respond to what I consider healthy eating habits and good workout schedules as it even in my middle to late 40s'.

SO, I am would to hear from those out there who are finding themselves in situations. OR NOT, maybe you can enlighten the rest of us as to how you keep your shape, or how you're getting into better shape and a healthier overall lifestyle.

Hopefully this will be the start of something wonderful, educational, funny-offer up jokes anecdotes, whatever!

LET'S GET STARTED!

I was 205 last year.  I seem to be bouncing around in the upper 180s now.  Can't seem to make any progress.  I would be thrilled to see 170.  My clothes keep getting looser, so I guess I can't complain too much.  Its annoying though.  I have never worked this hard to lose weight before and had much better results.

Double post

geez clharr, you really are in a slump.  :(  either that's muscle or maybe you need to change things you are eating & how you are exercising.  up & down amounts of both.

and if you eat mostly fruits, eat mostly veges...  and if you are mostly walking, try mostly exercising instead.

they are just examples, but it sounds like some kind of change in both would help.  i believe i asked before & you are eating enough, so that can't be it...  and you are eating enough fats, right?

do you ever splurge?  sometimes a splurge now & then helps too.

I think it is a combo of muscle and not enough control on the calories.  I eat too little Tuesday - Thursday because my schedule just does not have time for a real dinner in it, and then eat too much on weekends because all planning and control goes out the window then.   I am trying to improve my weekends.  That should get me back to losing.

Welcome ohio45 - Although I only want to lose about 8 pounds now (was 12) something that helped me start to lose - might help you - started keeping carbs at 45-49%, got a pedometer and make sure I get at least 10,000 steps (although I am shooting for over 12,000 a day becaue 10 was my starting avg) and increasing protein - I strive for 30% but never quite get there. And LOL as a few know on here I swear by mowing the grass LOL it takes me 1.5 hours and I mow about 3x a week. That's when my weight started moving down quicker LOL

clharr - could you make ahead some things for Tues - thurs so you have ready made things at hand to eat. Weekends can be hard - I just keep satying to myself I'm not gaining that wt back I lost. I try to stick to the same eating schedule on the weekends - 6 mini meals - I find I don't overindulge if I do that. And I agree with snow - have a splurge day now and then. I really try to mix up my calories - mostly I stay between 1200-1300 but I get days where I'll have 1500 too. At first I thought that would make me gain but it hasn't! Less isn't always better

My weekends are always turning into splurge days.  One long (Friday night - Sunday night) splurge day.  I need to work on getting it down to a single splurge meal.  Yes, I think that saying that I don't want to gain back what I lost over the week is the right idea.  I just have to keep that in mind.  That can be my goal for this weekend.

The Tues., Wed., Thurs., night problem is Boot Camp.  It is at 7:00.  I get home from work around 5:30, so I eat a little, but I can't eat much before a big exercise session or I will be sick.  I get back home after 8:00 and I am just not very hungry.  I also can't eat too much before going to bed or I can't sleep.  So dinner just doesn't happen.  I usually manage to stay above 1200 calories because I try to eat more during the day, so it isn't too bad.

 

i don't know.  it seems to me that eating less on 3 days in a row would be working.  maybe when you splurge it's just a little too much.

it sounds like you're doing it backwards though.  LOL  when you workout the most, you're not eating & that's when you should be eating...

i gotta think about this.  any other ideas?!

clharr - What's that saying " Eat like a king for breakfast, a prince for lunch and a pauper for dinner" guess we should say queen and princess LOL Maybe that would help on exercise days. I know how that is - I used to go late too and eating was a problem. - can't eat before cause you get sick and really at 8pm not very hungry. What about a protein shake  after with milk and maybe add a banana or other fruit. Now I go right after school but it's not a class I do my own thing lifting and cardio - liked the class but not the hour it was held. I do better to go after work before I can change my mind LOL

Cold and rainy here today  guess that means hit the gym after work.

I got back into 2 pair of pants I couldn't wear a month ago!! YEAH!!!! Really didn't want to buy a whole new wardrobe - not that I don't like to shop but....

Hummm... not sure what happened with this thread, I wasn't getting up dates on my computer when people were posting... so I kind of spaced it off for a while... but I'm b-a-c-k!

OK, bonton, snow, robbie, I feel like a heavy weight weiging in at this thread..... I weigh a whopping 154!  After I had the kids, I weighed 135, but I've given up on weighing that again, especially since I can't seem to drop below 152!  Ugh! I'm 5'6 and according to the metabolic screening that I had in March I should be consuming 1720 for my resting MB. Sounds like a lot more than most of you.  I was eating 1200 to 1300 calories per day, but the trainer told me to up them. AND, I guess the good thing is, I haven't gained, but I haven't lost either, just seem to be holding in there. 

I have two boys: one is 25, the other soon to be 22, both live within 20 miles of me and my husband, so I have all my chicks under my wing so to speak... at least for now.  No daughter in laws and none really in the immediate future, from what I can tell. 

Hope you all have a great weekend.

T

hershy - glad you're back I was wondering where everyone went! Be patient with the calorie thing  - maybe it will just take some time. It took me from Jan until close to the end of April to start losing after slowly increasing my calories. I was only eating 900-1100(reflux and small appetite) and not losing so I started slowly increasing and did gain 4 pounds in the process but I was determined to try to lose this the right way. I'm a nurse and should know better but it was always easy to skip a meal or 2 and drop a few pounds - AFTER 50 that just doesn't work at least not for me and true not the best way to lose weight LOL It's hard to get rid of that mentality that you have to limit calories to lose when actually for me I had to increase my calorie intake! How tall are you? I'm only 5"1" so thus the lower calorie intake now at 1200 -1300 give or take.  I weighed 107 after I had my kids but I will never see that again!! I used to think 118 was too much now I can only hope to get back there!

I'm interested in your metabolic screening - what all did they do and where did you have it done??

My single daughter signed up for eHarmony for a month - on date #2 tomorrow! She said she was gettin in as many as she could in that month! LOL I actually told her if she liked it that I would pay for the year ( it was $200 and she said she wasn't spending that on finding a date!) I do wish she would meet someone nice. Her church is all ppl my age or older so no luck meeting someone there. She's cute, smart -graduated with a 4.0 - and a go getter ...there has to be a nice young man out there for her!

My girls live 65 miles away from us (they live within 8 miles of each other)but that doesn't deter me from running over there! There's no shopping in my small town so I go over there to shop and of course see our grandson and them!

Yes, I can relate to the slow weight loss. 

I'm 5'6, that looks funny in print because ALL of my life I thought I was 5'7, when I went for a recent Dr. apt. they said I was 5'6 1/4, I argued with them, but they showed me the measurement..... Ha! so.... 5'6  

I'm from Iowa.  I had my metabolic screening done in Cedar Rapids at a Hospital/fitness center.  They put a face mask on me.  Once the mask was in place you had to sit in a room for 30 minutes to get the resting rate.  I've heard other people who post at this site say they had to sit for 60 minutes.  Anyway, mine was 30, and you had to breathe through your mouth.  Then they put you on a tread mill.  They started me out with a 6 pace of jogging, then they elevated the tread mill ... I think it was 2% every minute.  They made me stay on the tread mill until they had a good reading.... I don't know maybe 10 minutes.... it wasn't long.  They have a measurement call at V02 max.  I'm going from memory so forgive me if I'm off a little bit here, but I think they said a woman my age should be at a 23(?) mine is 46.3 - very high for a person my age. ( It has something to do about the oxygen use that your body does during exercising etc.- the thing that spurs on your metabolism- anyway, mine is suppose to be very good)   I think they determined my resting heart rate was 53, and I burn 1720 calories at rest, by the time they factor in my office work during the day it bumps to around 2100. Then if you tag on a spin class I usually burn about 600 calories there so I'm at around 2700 calories burned per week day.  I try to attend a spin class 2 times a week, jog, and attend a boot camp for the other 3 days.  I always have at least 5 days of exercise for 60 minutes each morning.  I've been trying to get back to lifting weights and I try to concentrate on upper body 2 days a week, and lower body 2 days a week, but I usually only spend 15-30 minutes lifting weights.  I've been consuming any where from 1720 -2000 calories a day ( it depends on if I worked out that day or not if I consume more than 1720)  Last month when I hit the analysis key for the month I averaged 1800 calories a day.   I've been increasing my calories since March 4th.  I usually have at least a 400 calorie deficit up to 1000 per day.  I don't get why I'm not losing.... but, I'm not discouraged. 

I was getting very burned out with this whole thing a while ago, but I feel good, and for the most part, my clothes fit.I would just like to drop some of the fat off my body.  I tend to cary a lot of body fat.  I think what bothers me the most is... I've done everything your are suppose to do to acheive my goal, but I have stalled out.  I did the screening, I eat right, I exercise, I've enlisted the help of a trainer, etc. etc. 

Oh well, that's enough about me.

Have a good day!

T

 

i hear you about the slow or non exsistent loss. It is frustrating when you seem to do everything "right" and still don't have success. I've always exercised and watched what I ate. It has to be our age and hormones is all I can figure. I was exercising 5x a week, lifting 2x and doing cardio at least 3x a week - which 20 years ago I only went 2x a week and ate way more junk food!  Now that golf season is here I won't do cardio but I still lift. Everyone says  if I ate like you I'd be a thin as a rail yet I'm up about 8 pounds above my norm - do I have one any more??

It would be interesting to know what my true BMR is. I really don't think my body requires a lot of calories because I've never had a big appetite nor been able to eat large meals. My hubby is always saying it's not because of what you eat or the amount of exercise you do, then what is it?? Same for all of us I think. But I'm healthy and fit so I guess I shouldn't complain LOL

In a golf tournament tomorrow - supposed to be in the 50's and might rain - ugh

Hershy, I shrank too! I was 5'6" and now I'm 5'5". Did they measure your body fat percent? Mine is right around 30% and I'd like to get it down below 25%. I know for a fact that in my 20's I weighed 150 and was below 25% fat. Now, at approximately the same weight, I have a lot more fat.

I finally broke the 150 barrier! The scale said 147.5 this morning. Woohoo, I'm back in the 140s! I think the spin class and extra cardio workouts during lunch have done it, not to mention trying harder to resist bad snacks at the office. Hmmm, less calories, more exercise .....

I got some Greek style yogurt at Trader Joes. The nonfat version (small container) has 110 calories and 14 grams of protein, and that's the flavored kind!! The plain has 120 calories per CUP and 22 grams protein. I plan to be eating a lot more of this stuff.

Oh, my husband also shrank an inch to 1.5 inches. I think it's just what we do at this age.

clharr, I'll be curious to see what your weight does, because seesaw-ing your calories is supposed to be one of the most effective ways to lose.

Hope everybody is having a great weekend!

Alice

Congrats Moonduster!!!it's so encouraging when that scale breaks a barrier. Mine actually did that too for a day ( went from 123.8 to 122.4 - day after mowing the grass was probably dehydrated LOL-  and back to 123.8) LOL but went back up the next but I'm still down 4 pounds. I eat Greek yogurt - the plain kind - and I add some walnuts and craisins or strawberries and blueberries , drizzle with honey or add a Splenda - I actually like it and I'm a very picky eater! LOL It's a good source of protein for me. I packed a container today and took it in my lunch bag to the golf tournament I was in - so I wouldn't eat junk! Ate it at the turn along with a SB protein bar

And I better NOT shrink LOL I'm only 5'1' to begin with

It was sooooo cold and windy at the tournament - my foursome played bad LOL we ended 5 over NOT good but there were teams worse than us. My playing partner won the 50/50 - $151 too bad it wasn't me! My hubby was in a tournament too but at a different place. We usually golf together but his was an all men's tournament. We had a meal after the tournament so I'm done eating for the day LOL did ok with food choices but splurged on a small piece of carrot cake which was to die for! Hope it doesn't trigger a craving for sweets - they are my downfall at times. Came home and had a big hot cup of coffee - finally getting warmed up. Pretty bad when you have to wear underarmor long underwear, turtleneck & polarfleece to stay warm in May!!!

ohio45- your weather sounds like ours - I live in central PA and it's been bad - cold and wet. You were talking about your pathetic fridge - my daughters were home for Mother's day weekend - 1 watches her wt and exercises the other is able to eat whatever she wants and never exercises LOL - so she was scrounging my cupboards for junk food - only to find none! Next day I went to the store and bought her some goodies and when she left I made her take them home! LOL I just can't have that stuff around.

Hope everyone is having a good weekend!

 

ohio45 - LOL In order to avoid the evening munchies and feeling "guilty" over the carrot cake I ate today,  I walked 45 minutes on my treadmill! LOL My husband is not home tonight - camp thing after his golf tournament. I don't usually snack in the evening but when he's not here I get bored....   

I took golf lessons when my girls were 2 then didn't play again till they were 18! They're 30 now.  Too time consuming when they were little. My husband and I love it. One of my daughters and her husband play, but they have a 2 year old so they don't play often. The 4 of us played on Mother's Day weekend while her twin sister babysat her favorite nephew!

Hey, all, I got back from NYC yesterday, and boy was it tough to get back on an exercise plan. That 2-hour time change twice in 3 days is very disorienting. Good news is: 1) the firm I taught for put me up at the Ritz Carlton (very swank and usually for me un-affordable). I had a view of the harbor and the Statue of Liberty. Way cool. 2) Somehow, I managed to make decent food choices, and weight stayed at 131. Of course, today I have to exercise self control by not "celebrating" that by eating everything in sight.

Moonduster: Hooray for you. Below 150. Intersting for me that you shrank. Explain this: all through high school and college, I was 5'1" and change; then at 30, I became 5'2." I've always been a delayed developer (1st period at 18!), but that's ridiculous.

Hershy: Did you notice that I said I'm 5'2"? Weight is just a number, and has to be considered in context. My body fat is now around 29, but I kept it at 25 most of my pre-menopause life, and this feels huge to me. So, if you're 5'6", you may be skinnier that me, despite the weight difference. We women are so hard on ourselves!

clharr: Hang in there, girl. If your clothes fit looser, that's a better sign than the scale number alone. Muscle weighs more than fat, you know. And, even though it has been excrutiatingly slow, I have moved steadily downwards at 1600 calories a day, with a one day a week "cheat" day. So, be patient with yourself.

ohio45: Your progress has also been steady, even if not as fast as you wished. Glad to see you in our group.

bonton: Did I ever share my three rules for golf. 1st, unlimited mulligans, because nothing psyches you out like a bad t-shot. Second, never take a sand or water penalty. I mean, you already lost a ball or got sandy--that's plenty of penalty. Finally, anything bigger than 10 is too hard to fit on the scorecard. There, doesn't that help?

Gotta go to the store.

robbie - welcome back! and congrats on keeping the same weight! It's hard when you're away so great job! LOL at your rules of golf - when I first started playing I had those and many more LOL but now my handicap is 20 so no mulligans or any of the rules I used to use! LOL I got to be able to play it!

I had no energy today?? Drove over and had lunch with my daughters and 32 month old grandson. Then we strolled the mall for  a while until he got antsy sp/?? I bought a few new things ..did manage to find 2 pair of shorts for golf - it's hard to find them with big enough pockets and I don't like them sitting down on my hips as is the new style LOL not good for golfing. I felt bad he wanted to come to Pap and Mimi's house ...wish I didn't have to work  I could have brought him home!

moonduster -  I hope the scale stayed down for you!

hershy, snow, clharr, longwaytogo - where are you??