As a woman ages, metabolic processes slow down, hormonal changes occur, and physical activity decreases. All this leads to the formation of subcutaneous fat deposits and, as a result, excess weight. Fat is deposited not only on the stomach and legs, but also on internal organs, vessel walls, etc. As a result, a host of concomitant age-related diseases arise, and the risk of heart attack and stroke increases. The problem is especially acute during menopause.
It is then that many begin to look for effective methods on how to lose weight after 50 years for a woman and at the same time maintain health.
Myths that prevent you from losing weight
A very popular question is “How to lose weight after 50?”
“Starting Monday I’ll get up in the morning and start doing exercises, but for now I’ll relax in front of the TV,” most people think. However, Monday comes, then Tuesday, and plans are postponed until next week.
Sociologists have already studied this problem sufficiently; let us present the most typical formulations from it:
- Household matters. Health problems. There is no energy or time for physical education.
- A vicious circle: work - home - car. An outlet - once a week: at the dacha or if you are invited to visit.
- There is always not enough money, free time is spent on part-time jobs. My head is full of this.
Agree, none of them even hint at how to lose weight after 50. On the contrary, with such attitudes you can only gain extra pounds. But excess weight worsens both performance and health...
In the meantime, we want to offer 8 steps to overcome this obstacle.
Is it realistic to lose weight after 50?
Due to a slow metabolism, the process of losing weight is difficult, and strict dietary restrictions can only worsen the situation. Therefore, in this difficult matter, it is better to seek help from specialists in the field of weight loss, who can help adjust eating behavior and establish a mode of moderate exercise, paying special attention to the psychological mood. But there are still some general tips:
- extreme methods of losing weight will not bring any benefit, they will only harm, they should be abandoned;
- it makes sense to switch to fractional meals;
- it is necessary to observe the drinking regime and drink the daily amount of water, which is calculated individually;
- Don’t rush to give up your favorite foods right away; it’s better to remove them from your diet gradually;
- the diet should be balanced according to BJU (proteins, fats, carbohydrates);
- have dinner no later than seven o'clock in the evening, because... then metabolic processes slow down.
Diet menu for women
Nutrition on a diet that involves consuming 1500 kcal per day involves increasing the number of meals to 5, with 2 of them being main meals and three being snacks. Consider the structure of meals:
- Breakfast. The total calorie content should be approximately 500 calories. The food is predominantly carbohydrate, but rich in fiber: 100 grams of buckwheat or rice porridge with raisins and nuts, washed down with 150 ml of kefir or yogurt.
- Second breakfast - 200 calories, which contains 1-2 pieces of fruit and a handful of nuts. You can wash it down with unsweetened green tea or juice if you ate nuts.
- Dinner. The total calorie content is 400. It includes: Baked, boiled, steamed meat (beef, chicken white meat) or fish (hake, pollock, cod).
- Vegetable side dish or vegetable soup in light broth without potatoes.
- Vegetables fruits.
- Cottage cheese, boiled eggs or a piece of meat.
To summarize what has been said above, let us point out a typical mistake: having started counting calories, representatives of the fair sex think that they understand how to lose weight after 50 years of age for a woman. The advice of those who have walked this path, however, indicates the unacceptability of food not included in the diet. And this is fundamentally important, even if its calorie content falls within the one and a half thousand mark.
Even a harmless couple of sandwiches can create an imbalance. After all, once in the stomach, in addition to 700 calories, they leave a feeling of unsatisfaction, and also “reward” the body with poorly digestible fats. Much healthier - a piece of meat, cottage cheese, fish; the proteins contained in them will add energy to the muscles. Therefore, instead of a couple of sandwiches, it is better to drink a glass of full-fat kefir.
How to lose weight during menopause using folk remedies?
Some people believe in miraculous folk remedies. It is difficult to judge whether they are effective. But those that do not harm health can be tested in practice.
Among the most popular:
- Freshly squeezed celery juice. In addition to the drink, it is recommended to use raw celery itself.
- Tea with grated ginger root. Ginger is brewed as a stand-alone potion or added to prepared tea.
- Cabbage juice.
- Infusion of cherry leaves and linden flowers. Equal amounts of ingredients are poured with boiling water and the mixture is allowed to brew for two hours.
- Pineapple with grapefruit juice. Experts do not recommend using this remedy for people suffering from high stomach acidity.
It is better to start a weight loss program with herbal teas; if the result is noticeable, then you can add vegetable or fruit drinks.
Slimming belly
The abdomen is the most problematic area for most men and women. However, some people who are losing weight make the mistake of creating a workout schedule that exclusively includes exercises for the abdominal muscles. This should not be done under any circumstances. They are effective only in combination with the impact on other problem areas. Otherwise, the abs will become stronger, and their massive muscles will distort the silhouette of the waist.
The following exercises are suitable for losing belly fat:
- "Twisting" Starting position: lie on the mat, hands behind your head, legs bent at the knees. As you inhale, the head reaches toward your knees, and as you exhale, you return to the starting position.
- "Reverse twist" The starting position is the same. As you inhale, your head rises, but your knees move towards it.
- "Lifting the torso." Starting position: lying on the mat, legs crossed behind the head. As you inhale, the body rises, hands touching the toes.
- "Leg Raise" Starting position: lie on the mat, arms spread out to the sides and up. As you inhale, your legs rise and touch your toes to the floor behind your head.
Features of diet preparation
To lose excess weight and belly fat, it is important to use more plant-based products when creating your diet.
Vegetable dishes, fresh fruits and herbs should make up at least half of the total menu.
Basic Rules:
- transition to fractional meals;
- drink water half an hour after eating;
- a single serving should not exceed 300 g;
- train yourself to chew food slowly and thoroughly;
- the diet must contain animal protein;
- use vitamin and mineral complexes;
- minimize the amount of sweet and salty foods;
- legumes should not be consumed together with dairy products, despite the fact that fermented milk products go well with cereals or fruits.
The main meal should take place during the daytime, so that the body has time to absorb food before the end of the day.
Prohibited Products
When losing weight, it is better to give up:
- sweets, baked goods, because they are reflected in folds and extra centimeters on the body;
- from salt in large quantities, as it promotes the retention of excess fluid;
- fatty and fried foods, due to which cholesterol plaques form on the blood vessels.
In addition, hurry up to give up smoking and alcoholic beverages, because all this helps slow down your metabolism. Without giving up bad habits and developing correct eating behavior, you cannot get the figure of your dreams - any specialist will tell you this.
Slimming legs
In order for the skin of the legs to gain elasticity and their volume to lose extra centimeters, the following exercises may be useful:
- Leg forward lunges (front of buttocks and thighs).
- Lying down, spread your legs to the sides (inner thighs).
- Lying down, the legs alternately rise up (the front of the thighs).
- Lying down, legs raised up. The feet move like pedaling a bicycle (front and inner thighs).
- Lying down, legs raised up. Cross movements, like scissors (front and inner thighs).
- Standing, fixing the position of the body with your hand. Longitudinal alternating swings of the legs.
- Standing, fixing the position of the body with your hand. Transverse alternating leg swings.
Exercises that help you lose weight on your thighs include:
- "Triangle pose" from yoga.
- Squats with feet shoulder-width apart and toes pointed.
- Lying on your side. The upper leg is raised and fixed. Swing the lower leg with a small amplitude.
- Standing on all fours, alternately swing your legs back.
For the buttock muscles it is recommended:
- Sitting on the edge of the table, raise your legs, bending your knees. Hold an object (for example, a book) between your knees for one minute.
- Kneel on the mat. Alternately sit on the floor to the left and right of your feet.
- Lying down, pull your knee up and fix it with your hands at the top point.
Prevention of excess weight after 50
You can lose those hated pounds and get rid of the folds on your stomach at any age, but you will have to try: change your eating habits, monitor physical activity, and count the calories in your meals.
Valuable tips:
- A positive attitude is important. Continue to love yourself and take care of your appearance at all stages of life. Make yourself happy with fashionable clothes, chatting with friends, and going for walks. Lead an active lifestyle and devote more time to your hobbies. All this will help maintain a good mood, which is necessary to achieve any goal.
- Consider a balanced, nutritious diet. Under no circumstances should you rush to go on a mono-diet that exhausts your body. Start creating the right diet, which will include proteins, fats and carbohydrates. Do not forget about additional intake of vitamin and mineral complexes;
- Physical exercise. With age, energy consumption becomes less. More and more often I want to sit in front of my favorite TV series. Thus, muscle fibers are gradually replaced by fat deposits. Don't be lazy to start every morning with exercise. Try to travel less by car or bus; it is better to walk the extra stop. Just take a walk more often, because a walk, for example, on a warm summer evening is not only useful, but also very pleasant.
Feel free to simplify the exercises
How to lose weight after 50 years? The answer would be incomplete without mentioning the importance of common sense. In particular, you should not force physical activity, as this can lead to injuries and deterioration of health.
If an untrained body adapts to the training process for a long time, it is advisable to apply some restrictions on physical activity at the introductory stage:
- brisk walking or jogging instead of running and jumping;
- leg swings are performed with an amplitude convenient for a person, but slowly;
- pauses should be taken between exercises;
- when exercising with weights, super series are not performed;
- After physical activity you should rest.
Having adapted to lighter cyclic loads, you can then move on to standard ones.
Causes of excess weight at 50 years old
In the sixth decade, the production of estrogen in the female body is inhibited, and this is a colossal hormonal load. Therefore, at this age it is much more difficult to lose weight.
Thanks to the production of sex hormones, a woman manages to maintain youth and maintain the elasticity and firmness of her skin. Hormones take part in the processes of metabolism, the breakdown of fat reserves and the absorption of nutritional components.
During the period when estrogen production ceases, the body attempts to prevent estrogen deficiency by increasing lipid reserves, which remain folded at the waist and hips. Therefore, the woman begins to recover rapidly.
Other reasons that contribute to excess weight gain include:
- poor nutrition;
- reduction of active physical activity;
- latent form of diseases;
- individual response of the body to taking certain medications.
A sudden weight gain is an undoubted reason to contact doctors, who can really identify the cause of sudden obesity by prescribing the necessary tests or examinations.
Move more
This cliché advice really works. Excess weight is gained when calorie intake is higher than calorie expenditure. Leaves when lower. Simple habits will not harm your health and will help you burn 25-50% more calories:
- Do not use the elevator;
- Get off 1-2 stops earlier;
- Do simple exercises or yoga exercises daily;
- End the evening with a half-hour walk.
The best solution is to go to the gym. However, in adulthood, the supervision of a trainer is necessary, since the body is more difficult to tolerate stress.