Cathe, your input needed, please!

[lina9496]

Hi All, This comment is in response to 40ish year old women posting about not getting desired results from their workouts and everyone is working out so hard. But one thing no one has addressed is that when one approaches 40, we have more obstacles. Our metabolism naturally decreases so we are burning less calories naturally than we did when we were younger. Subtle changes in hormones occur as one approaches menopause which can happen up to 10 years before you go through menopause. These changes coupled with genetics cause a redistribution of body fat mainly to the abdominal area. Lastly, we naturally lose muscle mass as we get older. So, in order to maintain our muscle mass, we need to add weight training to our workouts. As we get older it is harder to bulk up because we are working at a deficit. We need to add weight training to our routine or step up your weight training to prevent loss and build more lean muscle. Lean muscle mass burns calories at a higher rate. If you haven't tried it already, add an advanced Pilates workout to your routine weekly. Maybe that can be Cathe's next video. Good Luck and work at least one major muscle group per day.
We will sail into menopause looking healthy, lean and young.
Cathe, your opion matters to us. If you get a chance, we'd love to hear your comments. If our workouts are heavy on cardio, is it wise to cut back on cardio and add more resistance training. I know your answer will help all of us in our 40s.
Thanks,
Lina

 

[Cathe Friedrich]

Hi Lina! Thank you for sharing your valuable thoughts. I have not yet read the thread to which you are referring to, however I will say that without a doubt our bodies are faced with greater challenges to keep fit as we age. Right off the bat, osteoporosis (bone loss) is one of the most prominent risk factors for women starting off gradually and as early as 35 and increasing significantly after menopause due to the absence of estrogen. For this reason alone, weight training needs to be a key part of every woman's fitness program.

In response to your question: "If our workouts are heavy on cardio, is it wise to cut back on cardio and add more resistance training. I know your answer will help all of us in our 40s."


Regardless of any age and gender, it is healthiest to do all things in moderation and in balance. Each one of us (male/female/old/young) will bring our own unique circumstances to a situation which in turn will require some individualized tweaking to make a program a better fit. A combo of cardio and resistance training is definitely the way to go, however, depending on each individuals circumstance (ie: age, genetics, fitness level, health profile, pre-existing injuries, etc.), their proportion (ie: intensity, frequency, and duration) will vary some.

I hope this helps