My friends and I often say that after you turn 50, losing weight becomes a full-time job. It’s something that takes time, energy and a tremendous amount of focus. All of our easy weight loss tricks that worked right away in the past, now have no impact on the scale at all. As a consequence, we find ourselves chasing one diet trend after another in pursuit of the magic pill that continually evades us.
Well, look no further, I have found the 4 key principles that will help. And they aren’t what you would think.
- Figure out your body
You are unique. Your body is unique. The diet plan that works like a charm for your friend may do nothing except confuse and frustrate you. You and your friends can compare diet notes, but don’t assume that one particular diet will work for all of you equally.
Several years ago I decided that I should become a vegan. I knew a few vegans who were slim and they all raved about how they lost tons of weight after going vegan. I read books, watched videos, discovered vegan restaurants and bought vegan cookbooks. I thought I was doing everything right. But after six months I was constantly hungry and 12 pounds heavier.
I put fish and poultry back in my diet and almost instantly the constant hunger stopped and I started dropping those extra pounds. I decided that despite the many advantages to being a vegan, I would not try that again. It may be the weight loss solution for some women, but it had the opposite effect on me. I’ve made peace with that. I now eat my fair share of salmon or chicken everyday, I’m not hungry all the time and the scale is not inching up.
So, take the time to really figure out what works for you. Journal your food intake and document your body’s response. It may take a while, but it will be time well spent. Then, don’t be afraid to buck the system and toss out the dieting rules that everyone swears by. You may find that your body and mind thrive best by following a different course. You do you!
2. Know and respect your triggers
I make weekly trips to a fabulous Amish Market about 30 minutes from my house that sells the most delicious pound cake I have ever tasted. They bake it fresh all day at the market and often put it on the shelves warm, straight from the oven. I love that pound cake. But the truth is, if I buy that cake every week, I will eat it everyday and eventually my clothes will no longer fit.
That pound cake is a trigger for me and I have come to realize that it simply can’t find its way into my cart every week. I have not banned it completely, but it is much better for me not to be tempted by its presence in my house on a regular basis. It takes too much energy to put up such a high level of resistance to it on a daily basis in my own home. Of course, I enjoy the pound cake over the holidays and when I have guests for dinner. But other than that, that trigger stays with the Amish.
Your trigger may not be pound cake. Maybe it’s cashews, a certain candy bar or potato chips. You know what it is. Do yourself a favor and stop buying your triggers. You will find that keeping your triggers out of your house for the most part will improve your mood and your waistline.
3. Go to Sleep
You will not be able to lose weight if you are constantly exhausted. Period, end of story. Actually, being in a state of exhaustion is detrimental to most things you would like to accomplish in life. But weight loss in particular, is nearly impossible when you are living your life tired.
Whenever I need to stay up extra late at night trying to meet a deadline, I know that I am at high risk for overeating. The later it gets, the less resistant I am to the cookies, candy and other snacks calling to me from the pantry. I start to believe that eating food, sugary snacks in particular, will give me energy and keep me awake. Wrong! That infusion of sugar works only for a moment but then I start to crash again and need more sugar to recharge. Not a good cycle to be in for maintaining my weight.
What’s more, the next day I am tired, cranky, less efficient and more prone to being careless with my food choices. I am certain there are scientific reasons that sleep is important for weight control having to do with cortisol levels and stress, but for my purposes, being tired takes me off my A Game. That’s all I need to know.
4. Get off the Couch
The global pandemic has made this tip hard for some of us to follow. Doing everything from home means we aren’t burning the calories we normally would commuting to our offices, going to church or even shopping at the grocery store. It also has put us in close proximity of our refrigerators all day, everyday.
That is why we must be intentional about exercising. Whether you walk on your treadmill, ride your Peloton, stream a workout video on your computer, or jog around your block, you must do something daily that gets you out of your chair. Exercising not only benefits your body, but it does wonders for your mind too.
That’s it. Those are my keys to staying trim. If you have any tips that have worked for you, let me know.
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