I'm 54, and one thing that I've noticed as I age is that I eat less. Or, more correctly, need to eat less. Portions that I ate 15 years ago, I just can't fit into my gut anymore, and I still have a weight issue.
And it's really hard to keep the metabolism at a high level- we still run (less though) and try to be active, but it's pretty clear that I'm very much not what I used to be.
So at 40, prepare to eat less. The elderly portions at restaurants are not there by accident.
NOHOME said:gearheadmb said:Beer Baron said:Have you considered sacrificing virgins to the dark gods and bathing in their blood?
I can do that. What's the best way to procure virgins? Do I just post an ad for cheap miata parts and let them come to me?
I guess you could always retain consultants on the subject.
Not to mention better lawyers than she had.
I am 59.95 years old...I went from 220 to 190 over a one year period by mostly watching portions, cutting back on alcohol and drinking a lot more water. Decades ago, a co-worker lost a massive amount of weight. I asked him how. He said "I learned to not confuse hunger with thirst". I adopted this and it worked well as part of my plan.
Unfortunately the holidays have put about 8 lbs back on me, so it's time to get serious again.
gearheadmb said:We have a gym at work I can use. I would prefer to do it on my lunch break which is an hour long, if I can do it without getting too sweaty before returning to work.
That could be perfect.
I like this advice.
ProDarwin said:
My preference is weight training, but really any strength/muscle building training (bodyweight, resistance, etc.) is going to be effective.
I would give the same advice. Don't do cardio unless it's something you do on your off days
I just turned 40. On my off time I like to work in the shop or work around the farm. I've noticed that body is reacting in the normal ways I've always heard about getting older. I cant last as long as I used to doing hard work. I find myself being sore after doing things that didn't use to phase me. I get super sore after hard work like cutting firewood or baling hay. I get tired faster. Body parts hurt for no particular reason.
That's all perfectly normal and a reasonable workout schedule should make all the difference.
So here's my advice.
Plan on 3 days a week to start, maybe 30 minutes a day, and start out light, ease into it. You don't want to overdo it and lose interest. You can start doing a general, all body workout, some chest presses, some curls, some leg machines, keep it simple and learn the process and the equipment. Then break it down into body parts as you get more comfortable. Somebody mentioned compound movements, and that machines aren't ideal, and I agree. But machines are better than nothing, so if that's what you have to work with, take advantage. I have joint pain and can't do bench presses, but I can use the chest press machine. It's not the same, but it's way better than not doing it. I always recommended my friends start out with machines and move to weights as they gained knowledge and conditioning.
I would start with light weight and 2-3 sets of 6-8 reps for a week. As you get in better shape you can play with the sets, reps, or weight to get what works best for you. You should see noticeable results after a month. If you don't, look at your routine, weight, and sets/reps, but my guess is you'll see results. For me, 3 sets was never very effective. No matter what I did with the weight or reps, I always had marginal results, and it took me a couple years to find that out - by accident. Now I do 5 sets of 8-12 and see excellent results. But everybody is different so don't be afraid to experiment... after you start to get in better shape
At 45 I lost 20 lbs (175-155) by eating better and eating less. Very little exercise other than the occasional walk around the block. It's been 1 years now and got down to 152 for a bit, but now I've got several pounds of holiday cheer to take care of.
You don't seem that old or fat to me.
I'm pushing 48 years now, weight has never been a problem but my body composition has changed. My wife is certified in everything that promotes mind body and spiritual health.
After years of not listening to her advice I decided to put my self on a one mile a day challenge. For 30 days I walked, then walked with some short jogs to eventually jogging a mile. This created a habit and proved to myself that it is possible, have since added pushups to the mix in the same way. Started with how many I could comfortably do with good form (10), five reps does not take any time or space, set phone down, 10 pushups, read more GRM, set down, 10 more. I ran my first 5k in many years at 28 minutes, my goal was 30.
I agree with the type of calorie intake, watch sugar and simple carbs, up the fruits and veg. Stay away from boxed foods, eat ingredients or combine them in to delicious meals.
Quick story, my super health conscious and fit wife also took a 30 day challenge a few years ago, at a local Bootcamp. Daily workouts didn't faze her, what did was the (diet) they required. She had to weigh all of her food and have proper proportions of what she ate. Turns our she needed more protein, less carbs and less and sugar. Her lunches were huge, she was eating a ton of calories. Lots of vegetables, plenty of protein, very little sugar, more fats than one would think. In after 30 days she lost about one pound but 11 inches of body! They took measurements of arm, thigh, belly etc.
Work does not equal a workout, heart rate up for 20 minutes does.
I'm already proud of you, now get too it so you can enjoy the next 40 even more.
Thanks everybody for the tips and encouragement. You are good people.
I'm right there with you. Gained 20lbs over covid and I'm the biggest I've ever been.
I CrossFit and lift 3-4 times a week and man. I can't make this weight go away. It's gonna happen or I'm gonna or trying.
Um, ok here it goes. I'm 52 years old and my wife is 55.
Eat plants. Eat only plants. You will not need to work out.
My wife and I were in the latest edition of the forks over knives magazine.
My wife is a blogger and gies by her maiden name, the magazine assumed it was both of our names, that's why it is Hansen and not my last name.
Ok, now everyone knows I am vegan (takes deep breath)
Here is the article closer up.
Besides what has been said before:
1) drink more water
2) make sure whatever you decide you can make it a daily or weekly routine
3) when you eat, eat. don't eat and watch tv or eat on meetings or whatnot.
YMMV - I'm still fat.
Have an accountabilibuddy. Someone to keep you accountable for exercising or eating right, or both. Makes a difference. I'll echo the "you can't outrun the fork" statement. But, if you do extra physical activity, those couple of beers or Oreo's or slice of pie don't do as much as they could. Portion control allows more leeway in what you can eat.
As you age, you lose muscle mass. Do any kind of weight/resistance training you can to build that back up. Do exercises that work on your balance and flexibility. Don't tell yourself "I can't..." The mental hurdles are the hardest to get over.
-tips from an early 40s fat guy trying to do better for himself
I'm 50, and just into the bottom of "overweight" where I've sat since I was... 35? 6', 190lb. I was 155-160 from 19-35. I don't know how much was age, and how much was that this was shortly after I got into a relationship with my now wife, transitioned from going back to school to full time software developer, had money to eat out...
The last time I made good headway on doing a bit better, the biggest change I made was to stop eating as soon as I was full. I love food, I eat quickly, and I tend to eat whatever I put on my plate, refill it if I'm not noticeably full, and let restaurants pick my portion size (restaurant portion sizes are generally massive).
This relative success (got down steadily and without flailing to about 180; I would say that my ideal is probably 170-175; 160 was *skinny*) came in coordination with a period of consistent exercise. Consistency has always been the hardest part for me. I think there may be vagaries, but a lot of it comes down to running a caloric deficit to lose weight, and it's easy to overestimate how many calories exercise burns. I think exercise is important to feeling good and being healthy, but as noted above, it won't make up for too many calories.
Skipping from weight to aches, the surprise win from that consistency borne out of following a training plan (Systm, formerly Sufferfest, for cycling) was that it came with 3-4 15-minute yoga sessions a week. I had never, ever considered yoga, as it was all too "woo woo" for me. The accompanying sessions were straightforward, did not talk to me about chakras or spirit guides, and I suddenly realized a month in that I was no longer limping and shuffling across the yard when I took the dog out in the morning. I hadn't noticed that I just failed to hurt.
Last item: If you have anything musculoskeletal that's bugging you specifically as opposed to a general achiness, see a physical therapist. They can figure out what's wrong, what exercises will fix it, and you can do them intensively to undo the pain, and then fold them in every now and then as maintenance. I've had pretty good luck with a book called Pain Free by Peter Egoscue, but mostly used it for exercises to un-crick my neck... other stuff I go see someone who knows enough to actually diagnose the underlying issues; it's not always intuitive even if it is logical. I've had shoulder, back, hip flexor stuff that I tried to rest and limp along with for months and a PT was able to sort each out relatively quickly (though certainly not instantly).
Most of my motivation is from my kids and now grand child. I want to keep up with them as long as I can. I do not want to be the grandpa full of excuses I want to be the fun one. My wife is aging very gracefully, I kind of owe it to her also.
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