Any Forty-Somethings out there who are struggling?

[Repo]

You are not alone.... and to top it off.....I injured my knee in December and just now started back running.....the weigt is just not dropping off like it used to.....I've been off fried foods since January, very limited white flour and processed foods....but I really super bad crave sweets...dark chocolates and fruit

[Janis]

I am 48.

What you are concerned with and suffering from has been a very common theme of late. Here are several previous threads, which may be of some use to you.

Am I just getting old?
Help, my body has shifted...menopause?
Need Advise from Cathlete's HELP!!

I'll be a broken record. I seem to be saying this a lot -

There is no one magic recipe or perfect solution. We are all different, with different chemistry, and as you pointed out, different genetics. Aspects of some dietary programs may work for you, while other aspects may not. Same is true with exercise; some people need high intensity effort while others become depleted by it.

The key here is to discover what works for you.

Like you, I cannot go carbohydrate free. I, too, lose energy and become lethargic, and I’ve discovered I also start to become a little –uh – too fragile, emotional, and overly sensitive. Our bodies and brains need carbohydrates for fuel, for repair, and for hormone productions.

It is worthwhile logging your calories and your macro’s on a nutrition tracking website to see where you are at with your energy in and energy out.

I attempt to keep my carbs and protein fairly balanced. I feel best when the ratio is close to 2:1...carbs to protein. What does this look like. 4 oz of protein with 50 grams of carbohydrate. I eat a good quality fat at each meal, 10 grams is about the right amount for me. (I just stumbled across this blog – that was informative – and echoes my experience: Serotonin and the Carbohydrate to Protein Ratio – 180 Degree Health) I had a good laugh when I realized, just now, that my total ratios usually are very close to Sear's "Zone."

Much to my dismay I felt a lot better when I stopped running. I was becoming too depleted by long, sustained runs. I do a lot more weight lifting and a moderate amount of medium intensity cardio.

Finding that perfect balance is an ongoing puzzle. For example, if everything else stays the same – energy in/energy out – and I make a little change like I eat too many nuts or don’t take the dogs for a walk - the scale goes up.

But here are specifics for what is working for me (broken record, again):

I’ve had to eliminate – by exhaustive personal trial and error – the following foods:
Cow Dairy
Sugar in all forms – including fresh fruit, dried fruit, agave nectar
Corn
Legumes, especially peanuts
Grains (wheat –especially white flour, gluten grains...and lately even brown rice, but YMMV*)
Coffee and black tea

---what does that leave? ----
Veggies, eggs, and potato for breakfast
Veggies, salmon and sweet potato (yam) for lunch
Large green salad, protein of some variety for dinner
And Bowl of oatmeal at bedtime (to which I add 1 tsp coconut oil, ground flax seed, cocoa powder and stevia)

I hope this helps you on your personal journey.

Report back your own findings when you have the time. I know I'd like to hear what you've discovered.




(*YMMV- your mileage may vary)

[ReneePruitt]

Janis I love how you gave example of whhat you do eat and when. That looks doable!

[geomom]

I am 49 and perimenopausal. I have been able to lose that last dreaded 10 lbs recently just by logging my food. Really. I was eating too much. Once I started honestly logging, I dropped that weight really fast and it has been pretty easy to maintain.

That said, I eat reasonably "clean". I do, however, eat sugar (not so much while I was losing) and tons of carbs. But they are clean carbs, i.e. brown rice, quinoa, whole wheat flour, stuff like that. I'm in the camp of I just don't feel good if I don't eat carbs.

It is hard to realize how much I cannot eat if I want to maintain my new weight. 1800 calories or less a day, which isn't really that much food. I was pretty naughty over Memorial Day weekend and have just had to fight back. It's a constant process. I was probably eating closer to 1500 calories a day when I was losing. That does not include exercise calories. Every now and then I will have a day where I blow it out on calories (like over Memorial Day), but just get back on track right away. The key is to string together "good" days and space out the "bad" ones!

[stmirli]

Thanks, Janis. About 3 years ago, I was laid off and had much time to devote to fitness and health. I joined a gym and took 1-3 classes daily and ate close to a vegetarian diet. I dropped 20 pounds in 6 months.
Once I started working full-time, I did not have the time to devote to this plan, and over three years I gained 30 pounds. I know I got to where I wanted to be before, and can get there again, but in such a short period of time, I can see that it is harder to get the same results.
I eat a clean diet, mostly veggies, lentils, quinoa, no dairy, sugar or white stuff, only ww bread, and lean proteins like buffalo, fish and chicken breast. I take black cohosh for hot flashes, but have a lousy two days when I get my period. I am close to incapacitated.
I now have more free time and am concentrating on daily workouts with Cathe, and yoga for flexibility. It is pretty amazing how quickly your body remembers the way it used to move, and I have only had one day of such soreness that I had to take the next day off. Variety and challenging workouts are best for me because I truly have to push myself to exercise. Staying fit and healthy through this aging process requires much dedication and hard work.

[aveggiegirl]

This is depressing.

[Janis]

Originally Posted by stmirli

Staying fit and healthy through this aging process requires much dedication and hard work.

Indeed!

However, as you pointed out, "It is pretty amazing how quickly your body remembers the way it used to move" and I'll add, the body also seems to have a remarkable (and miraculous) ability to heal itself.

I, too, am doing more yoga, and since I am doing less depleting forms of exercise, I feel more sustained by food. This combination of yoga and requiring fewer calories, I think, just might be the "Fountain of Youth" we have all been questing for.

Like Geomom, 1500kcal seems to be the gradually lose number, and too many days above 1800kcal seems to be the gradually gain number.

This is true for me too, "Variety and challenging workouts are best for me..." not so much because I have to push myself to exercise, but because if I become bored or complacent lethargy sets in. I am always obsessively planning my rotations, months in advance, to keep the tendrils of lethargy at bay.

What is great about this forum, and others like it, is we can become encouraged and inspired by others, and know that we are not alone in our fight against lethargy, complacency, and the signs of aging.

[geomom]

[QUOTE]This is depressing[QUOTE]

My post was meant to be encouraging, not depressing! Hey, I LOST the DREADED LAST 10 during perimenopause! That's good news, it can be done and wasn't really that difficult once I put the science (calories in/calories out) behind the process.

Throw in a Cathe workout most days and really, not that hard, just watch the calories.

It is a tiny bit depressing to realize the small amount of food your body truly needs, but it's totally doable and most days I eat a treat which I try to keep in the realm of anti-oxidant dark chocolate or a fruity something-or-other, but still delicious!

[fit44]

ITA with Geomom! I think there are some pretty inspiring examples in this thread. It's not depressing at all.
My only regret... I wish I would have started the Paleo lifestyle in my 20's. I have more energy now than ever. I'm turning 50 this August and I wear a size 2/4 my abs are flat and defined. Best part is that I do not feel like I'm starving to death!! I don't count calories, but I do watch my fruit intake. I eat a ton of fresh veggies everyday.

[ReneePruitt]

Originally Posted by aveggiegirl

This is depressing.

Lambo!! Yes it is! But wow what can u do? I have to laugh to keep from crying.