How to lose weight in your 40’s when the force is against you sounds like something right out of Star Wars.
But it’s actually a problem that women deal with right here on earth.
Today’s Q&A is from a conversation that I had with a friend of mine name Jennah. Jennah has always carried 10 to 15 extra pounds since she has been an adult. It probably has something to do with the fact that she loves to bake. Butter is her best friend.
She is in her 40’s now and she really wants to get control of her weight. She feels that no matter what she does she is over 40 and can’t lose weight. She is really frustrated and downright discouraged and does not know what else to do.
- Remember: Your focus determines your reality.
– Qui-Gon Jinn
It’s so easy to become very negative when you are constantly trying to lose weight and nothing works. So I gave her my standard pep talk. Having a positive outlook is very important to your weight loss progress.
If you believe that you can’t lose weight then no matter what you try to do, you will never be able to achieve your goal. On the other hand, having a positive outlook can make all the difference. Even if you tried a method that does not work you can look at it as, a learning experience.
2) Tell Me Why
Please tell me why you want to lose weight and no I am not trying to be nosy Jennah but the why is important.
To know your why makes it that much easier to become a weight loss Jedi. For example, if you’re just losing weight just for the sake of losing weight.
When times get tuff and you want to give up. Without a solid why to keep you going you’re more likely to quit. On the other hand, let’s say that you’re getting married within the next couple of months and the dress you want to wear is too small.
You’re going to have to lose some weight so you can wear it on your special day. Now if you try losing weight and you hit a rough patch (which we all do) you are more likely to be successful because you have a tangible goal you are working towards. But even if you don’t have one I’ll be in your Obi-Wan Kenobi to your Luke Skywalker and help you stay on track.
3) If You Fail To Plan, You Plan To Fail
This is probably one of the most used phrases but it is so true. To be successful with weight loss it starts with a plan. I know this is the last thing you want to hear, Jennah but it is probably one of the most important steps.
Without it, you ’re likely to fall back into old habits.
Part 1-— Remove all the unhealthy foods from your home. If it’s old throw it out if it does not, donate it. From now on only eat a low fat, low sodium, and no sugar plant-based, unprocessed diet.
This is when she rolled her eyes at me.
Part 2-– If you can’t stick to a plant-based diet, try a low-fat vegetarian diet. Since we’re best friends I’ll give you a break by adding cold water fish once a week.
Part 3–Beverages— Includes unsweetened tea, fruit smoothies, water, and coconut water. You can pretty much forget about all other beverages. Part 4– Desserts— fruit only. But email me because I have 2 frozen fruit recipes that are excellent and will get you over the hump.
4) Meal Plan
One of the challenging things to do when it comes to weight loss is portion control. Weight loss starts in the kitchen and without a plan failure is imminent. There are 3 aspects of the meal plan: List, Plan, and Prep.
Part 1—Make a list of all the meals you like that you can eat.
Try to incorporate meals that are interchangeable for example Spanish rice, black beans and corn can and a salad can easily turn into a burrito or burrito bowl with low salt corn tortilla chips.
Part 2-— Plan out your breakfast, lunch and dinner meals a week at a time. This will keep you from spending time trying to figure out what you’re going to eat each day and staring at your pantry for hours.
Part 3-– Prep your meals ahead of time. For example, you can make a big pot of navy bean soup portion it out into a container. What you don’t eat now you can freeze the rest and take it down as needed. But knowing your family and the way you cook there won’t be any leftovers.
5) Exercise Plan
Exercise 3 to 5 times a week. Since you don’t have a gym membership don’t go out and get a new one. Wait until you have been exercising for one year before you even consider it. By then you will know what type of exercises you like to do. Walking is excellent and Leslie Sansone has a few Youtube videos. There are several programs like Pilates, Yoga and Tai Chi.
I think you are more of a yoga kind of women. But try all three and see what works best for you. Once you have been working out consistently for 3 months you can bump up the intensity. Try aerobics and light weight training. When you graduate from that then try Tabata and HIIT.
6) Journaling and Meditation
I told Jennah that this is a very important step now it can be annoying at times but it can be helpful in the long run. Jennah tried different methods to lose weight.
I asked if she could tell me why they did not work and she had no answer. Then I went into my shpell about the importance of journaling and meditation. Daily journaling is a way to track your overall progress.
Record your thoughts and feelings. This will allow you to see if there are any patterns or triggers. By journaling, you will know if there are any additional things that are contributing to the weight gain.
If you are having writer’s block instead of staring at a blank page write 5 things you are grateful for in your life. Meditate every day. Since she is a new meditator I told her to start out with 1-5 minutes of meditation. A good book to read is Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert.
Just hold the butter, salt and caramel on the popcorn. Then gradually increase the time once you get used to it. Meditation helps with relaxation and of course using the force.
7) Hit Your Goal
Now listen Jennah once you reach your goal you can’t go back to your old way of eating. I’m going to have to sit down with you and come up with a maintenance plan that will keep you at your target weight. The good news is that it does include a cheat day.
The bad news is that it does not include sugar refined foods and processed cards. You can come over one day and raid my recipe files for vegan and vegetarian low fat, low salt, whole grain and dessert dishes. Keep up the exercise, the journaling and meditation.
In no time you will become part of the losing weight after 40 success stories club.
—————-Look Better and Feel Better
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