maintaining fitness after 40

[stephanie62]

Hi Cathe,

I am 43, and in pretty good shape for my age-- but I've gained 15 pounds over the past 2 years, mainly due to stress, working too much in the office, and not exercising regularly. (I was in my best shape from ages 33 - 38.) I eat healthy organic food, and in the past two weeks I've started to eat 6 small meals a day every 3 hours. I just discovered Fit TV and your workout shows. I've been doing the workouts, and I already feel a difference.

Could you make a recommendation on how often I should work out per week-- i.e., 3 days of cardio + 3 days of strength training, 1 day off? Are shorter periods of workouts (30 minutes best?) Should I start off slowly? When can I expect to start noticing a difference in my muscle tone-- and in my abs?

Thanks so much for your time!

Stephanie

 

[Sunshine 1528]

Stephanie -

You might find lots of answers to your questions on the "Open Discussion" board too. There are many out there in similar situations or who have gone through something similar.

 

[lorrayne]

You can also check the Rotations Forum as well. Cathe always posts a new rotation per month.

Hope this helps.
Lorrayne

 

[meredith]

I just have to chime in that I find I need to exercise more as I age. Luckily, I enjoy it so it's not bad, but I am kind of blown away when I see people put in a little 45 min. workout and think that's gonna do it. It won't for me and I find for most of us over 40, it won't. I'm spending about 1.5 - 2 hrs a day, sometimes 3 when I throw in a yoga class (I don't count that as exercise). On Sundays, I swim laps for an hour and do nothing else. That's my off day. Hope this doesn't scare you, but if you want to be lean and muscular, I think you have to step it up as you get to be our age.

 

[candi]

Meredith,

That's not necessarily true for everyone. I am 51 and in very good shape. Not perfect...but I would say excellent. Now, I am no fitness model but I wear a size 4 and that's fine with me.

I workout between 45 minutes to 70 minutes a day and this is working for me. But...I keep my food very clean for the most part which I think has been the big KEY for me.

I can't imagine spending 2-3 hours working out a day! I have a 9 hour a day desk job so for me it would be very life limiting! Also, the older we get, the more our bodies need rest and recovery so as not to injur ourselves. This is all my humble opinion.

 

[Cathe Friedrich]

Hi Stephanie!

Congrat's you are on the right road. You already have the food part of the equation under wraps (for most thats the hardest part) and you are now already experiencing a difference in the exercise department .

How often you should workout will vary per individual. When new to fitness, you should do about three cardio a week at 30 to 45 minutes of low to moderate intensity, and weight train every major muscle group one to two times per week.

As you progress, you will begin to see where your body responds quickly, and then of course where the trouble spots are. At that point you can spend an extra workout (or maybe even two) on those areas and continue to do standard fun challenging workouts for the rest.

When starting you will feel the difference immediately and begin to see results within three weeks. If you are faithful to your eating plan and your workout plan, the results will be very promising and apparent rather quickly as well as continuously.

Good Luck!