How Can a 50-Year-Old Woman Lose Weight?

Common knowledge reveals that the metabolism slows down for most people with age. Usually it happens once people hit 30 but it gets a lot more obvious once you’re 50. This translates to extra weight that is hard to lose. Women feel especially frustrated with this, since they feel they’re losing their youthfulness.

It’s true, additional pounds almost always seem to add more years to one’s actual age. Therefore, it’s perfectly understandable if you want to slim down.

It’s also vital to your health. Being overweight after 50 can significantly increase the risk of heart disease and, if conditions like osteoporosis exist, make one more prone to bone fractures. Slimming is thus not only beneficial to your image, but also to your health.

The challenges of losing weight after the age of 50

With age, there are major hormone and metabolism changes – most of these being natural. Women should be aware that these changes are expected and normal, especially once the menopause sets in. As estrogen levels decrease, one may experience less energy; therefore, exercise frequency decreases too and the pounds pile up.

The body assimilated food differently because with age there is a higher risk of disease. Therefore, it needs to be prepared and have enough resources to ensure survival in such times of stress and recovery. This is the main reason why aging people store fat more easily. If you are still overweight and a physician has confirmed it, do not despair. It’s still possible to lose weight without any harm.

Tips for losing weight after you’re 50

You can be slim at any age – just look for the success stories on the web (those that do not promote any weight loss pills).

What it takes is a will to commit to certain changes. This may be harder, since you’ve lived in your own way until 50, but it’s surely doable.

1. Keep your diet and exercise regimen in check.

If you’re working less, you’re tempted to cook more at home and satisfy all your culinary cravings. After all, you didn’t spend time in vain improving your cooking skills. This makes it so easy to pack on pounds and frequently, women don’t even bother to go to the gym at this age. You can’t lose weight if you’re eating much but barely exercising.

2. Count your calories.

With the age of 50 and beyond, out bodies consume a lot less calories. From a requirement of 2,000 a day, you only need 1,500. If you’re the active type however, you may need more than that.

3. Stop making poor food choices

For older generations, food education was vastly different compared to present times. If you got used to a certain diet style, you may have to change it. Fries and steak may not be the best option for you. Make wiser yet still fulfilling choices such as sweet potato, whole grains, beans, legumes, fresh fruit, nuts and seeds. Avoid baked goods and anything loaded with sugar.

4. Don’t skip meals.

This habit signals your metabolism to slow down. When eating more often, you get the opposite effect.

5. Engage in more low intensity exercise

We understand, you may not exactly be willing to sweat at the gym or start doing high intensity sports – especially if you’ve never been the sporty type. The key is to be active as much as you can and it’s not necessary to commit to high intensity exercise.

Simple movement like walking, gardening, climbing stairs, stretching etc. can do a lot of good to you. You may also lift small weights to stay in good shape and tone your musculature.

6. Make better choices when you’re busy

Being busy and always in a hurry can prevent you from eating right. Most people after 50 are keeping very busy, often running a business and doing much for their families as well (children, spouse, aging parents).

Only little time is left to care about one’s diet. When you’re on the run, don’t dial for a pizza. Have some fruit instead or a few tablespoons of nut butter. Skip the morning croissant and drink a smoothie.

7. Do you have any “trigger” foods?

Trigger foods are the ones that always tempt you and you simply can’t stop eating once started. Hormonal changes can be the cause of such cravings. Identify those and avoid having those foods in your home. Don’t “medicate” your bad moods or depression with sweets.

How to calculate your ideal weight over 50 ?

When it comes to calculating your ideal weight, the same rules don’t apply when you are 20, 30 or 50. Sure, there are online calculators that can do this for you, also taking your age into consideration. Those might give you a clue on what would be normal.

Still, the best approach is to go to your physician, who will take into account your habits, your medical history, any present conditions, as well as the genetic factor.

Don’t forget that your height also plays its part in the calculations. An equally important factor is bone density, but that needs to be measured by a specialist. Take your frame into account as well. Women of medium frame are at their best when they have 10% more weight than their small-frame counterparts.

Here is how you determine your frame size: you measure the distance between the two most visible/biggest bones in your elbow. You can find these values online and see where you fit. Also, your wrist circumference can be used to figure out your frame size.

There are many other things you can do to keep your weight in check, like limiting alcohol intake, eating less at social gatherings, opting for a repetitive instead of innovative menu or finding a hobby that does not involve food or bring you near it.

You don’t have to abandon hope and be overweight after 50. If you’ll live to be 100, you need to make sure you’re having a high quality life.

Save