Advice for keeping off the weight in menopause

Hi there ChillGill,
I tried the 5:2 and it worked after a fashion but I 'cheated' on it after a while and it wasn't brilliant for me. I've put on loads of weight over the years and felt horribly unhealthy. I was in the obese category! After several attempts to lose weight, I joined Slimming World in January with my daughter. We both joined online as it's cheaper and we didn't want to go to a group. I've found it works really well for me and though i'm not losing vast amounts, since Jan I've lost 1 1/2 stone which has meant I'm a couple of dress sizes lower. I am now 'overweight' rather than obese. Happy about that but still lots more to lose. I am concerned about heart health, blood pressure and cholesterol as well - don't want to get age/weight related conditions which shorten my life. I am eating very healthily but I do weaken sometimes. It's never a straight downward path - it zigzags! I've bought the recipe books which are really good - yummy food that my OH and any visitors, grandchildren etc can eat too, so it's win-win. I don't crave biscuits or sweets any more - mostly - and I've got into the habit of having plenty of fruit and raw veg on hand to snack on. And we're advised to drink loads of water throughout the day.

Exercise - I don't do nearly enough! I know I need to remedy this, but for now I'm focusing on healthy eating and getting rid of excess weight and blubber. I've joined a Facebook slimming world support group which is extremely supportive and helpful, so for me, that's money well spent.

I'd recommend looking online at various weight loss schemes but go for one which encourages you to cook real food and establish healthier eating patterns rather than anything gimmicky. Hope that helps!

I changed my eating habits for life rather than going on a diet. I also took up running.

I too put on weight at the menopause after always previously having my weight where it ought to be.

I couldn't understand why because I retired early and we bought a large old house and garden, both in need of renovation and I went from an office job to 8 hours a day of non-stop garden and house renovation. I was trying at the same time to stop my weight gain.

Three years ago I did the 5:2 and lost 2 stone. The secret for me was limiting myself to 1200 on non-fast days, but relaxing that when away out with friends etc.

I think the real problem is that our bodies become more efficient after the menopause and we need fewer calories per day. Once I had lost the weight, I did what Leticia recommends. I adjusted my eating habits, fewer calories as a whole, but compensated for by eating more fruit and veg.

I have always been a very active person walking a lot, swimming and, with a big garden and growing most of our fruit and veg, a lot of gardening. You can get plenty of exercise with out having to do anything formal.

I have kept the weight off now for 3 years.

Like Leticia I think you just have to accept that dieting isn't going to work. Once you start putting on weight & can no longer lose it reasonably easily, as when younger, you have to change to eating smaller meals, and no snacks, for life. It's depressing to realise this to start with, but after a while it becomes the norm, and easier to stick with. I save my breakfast for mid-morning toast with coffee, and therefore it feels like having a daily treat. I have a very light lunch because I've had a late breakfast, then an early, very simple, evening meal. Because I don't have much will-power I allow myself as much fruit as I like at any time of the day or evening. This works for me and has to be the way I eat for ever. I have managed to get down to below the upper end of my BMI, and reckon that being a bit more nimble & flexible, and able to cut my toenails etc, is worth the effort.

chillgill have a look at the www.NHS Choices website for a research based complete healthy eating and exercise plan. I gave up on SW after a long time and now do this (using www.myfitnesspal to keep a food and exercise diary) and it works.

Hi. I through menopause now and decided that it was time to take some fairly drastic action, once and for all, having been a typical 'yo-yoer' for most of my adult life!! I've changed my eating habits using the 'Blood Sugar Diet' - Michael Mosely - and since January have shed 4st 4lbs. I'm aiming for a 6 stone loss but it's not a hard way of eating to follow, in face, we're really enjoying the recipes as a family. Still haven't cracked the exercise bit but walking is so much easier and enjoyable ... I too can cut my toenails again!!! All the best.

Intermittent fasting helps me but I do it within the day IYSWIM. So apart from tea and coffee with a bit of milk throughout the day, and occasionally a little fruit at breakfast time, I typically don't eat anything else until the evening, when I have a good sized meal. It helps that I have a fairly demanding job and normally work through the lunch hour. I have lost a couple of dress sizes and feel better too. And I'm 60, four years past menopause.

lots of helpful advice above, but as well as diet try doing exercises specifically for the waist/abdominal area; situps, twists, crunches. If you can't get to a gym or exercise class, there are lots of videos online. Just make sure you warm up first, don't go straight into a new or difficult exercise, and do stretch afterwards.

The Stone Age Diet worked brilliantly for me. I was put on it because I had a low blood sugar problem and was getting dizziness and fainting. It removed that problem and I also found I lost weight (from 11 3/4 stone to 9 stone), and felt much healthier. So I have stayed on it. You don't feel hungry on it, but you do have to cut out certain things. However, I have a treat once a week, such as chocolate cheesecake, and on special occasions eat what I like.

www.drmyhill.co.uk/wiki/Stone_Age_Diet_-_this_is_a_diet_which_we_all_should_follow

I'm bang smack in the middle of ideal BMI after 2 years of my fitness pal. I do a little jogging - but not in public and some yoga for toning and other than that it's walking about 12,000 steps a day and staying on my maintenance calories. I too have found the only way to hit that target and still be able to eat with the family is to skip breakfast and/or lunch or keep them extremely light - I found a bit of toast for breakfast and a 2 slice sandwich for lunch didn't leave me enough calories to eat the normal evening meal with the family. My husband and son won't eat steamed chicken or salads - they have physical jobs so I have to join them in meat pies or roasts. They are both wonderfully trim with no effort - I can stay that way only with a lot of self denial - still 2 years of being a size 8-10 at 60, instead of a size 16 with no energy - and weight heading constantly upwards.

I know I'll get shot down in flames here! For me, although I hate it, weight gain is almost inevitable after menopause. And yet society bombards us with the message that it's wrong and should be reversed. Everywhere you look there are slimming clubs, diet advice and threats about the perils of being too heavy. Are women really meant to spend the rest of their lives trying to control their weight? Isn't it rather like asking pre-pubescent teenagers to try to stop their bodies from developing? I am short, just 5'0, and I weigh about 62 kg. Not ideal and as I said, I don't like it, but then do don't like my height either.

Don't go on a diet, just eat healthy and perhaps a bit less than you used to. However, if you do need some help I find Slimming World is good, it isn't a diet as such, it's a healthy eating plan and it really works, I've just lost a stone and a half on it. I still have a way to go but I'm getting there, walking also helps, lovely walks in the countryside if at all possible.

Antonia, women aren't 'meant' to do anything but some of us don't want to put on weight, it isn't healthy to be overweight.

No snacking between meals ...smaller portions ( amazing how plates seem to get larger) and a lot more activity than prior to menopause. I read somewhere years ago that women who don"t have children are less inclined to weight gain after the menopause than women who do. I think that is quite true ...as two family members are still nice and slim (no children) while the rest of us struggle and can be a bit envious of their trim figures. Diets don"t appeal to me..I would rather cut my portions down and do extra gardening and walking. Think diets may work for some people who persevere with them all the time ..but if you stop them your"e back with weight again. As you age whether male or female your body changes as your metabolism slows down , part of the ageing process unfortunately.

As weight gain seems to be very common leading up to and after the menopause, is it sensible to think it must be hormone and changed metabolism related.
Do you still gain weight if taking HRT? any one out there had hormone tests and the doctor has helped with replacement therapy. As an eat anything person and not gain weight prior to the menopause I find my doctors guarded attitude of what do you expect at your age disheartening to say the least.

Everyone is amazingly different, so what works for someone does not necessarily work for you. What works for you will be found through trial and error. Research has shown that exercise has a smaller effect on weight loss than actually eating less. However, exercise has a very profound effect on health, which is why it becomes essential as we age. Yes, our metabolic rate slows at menopause, and fat is deposited in a different pattern: it is simply part of aging. Michael Mosely's dietary suggestions are easily incorporated for the whole family and for the rest of your life, because it is proper food.

I find that I have had to cut quantity as I age (67), and I minimise all carbohydrates: potatoes, pasta, breads, rice, ie starchy foods, except oats (see below). I also try to limit sugars only to vegetables and fruit, and not too much fruit. Vegetables and fruit supply almost all my carbohydrate needs. However, if I am going to have a particularly active day, as I do do a lot of exercise; or I have difficulties managing blood sugar levels, ie I find myself getting exceptionally tired and irritable at any time; I have oatmeal for breakfast, and oatcakes with meals or snacks, as oats have a fairly low glycaemic index. Good luck!

I don't consider Slimming World a diet as such. For me it's now a way of life. No silly gimmicky products, just healthy food cooked from scratch, simple ingredients, limit fat, refined carbs and sugar but don't cut it out completely unless you want to. Plenty of fresh veggies and fruit and lots of water - and that's more or less it.
Personally I prefer not to have artificial sweeteners and wean myself off sweetened foods rather than substitute them with low-cal alternatives. I no longer have the urge to pig out all the time and my eating habits have changed for the better overall, though holidays and celebrations are usually exceptions.

I'm not as active as I should be, but I do gardening and walk when I can and do a few limbering-up/stretching exercises now and then to keep supple. I'm working on doing more and I think it's important to do far more in order to keep mobile, flexible and retain body strength, preventing muscle atrophy. I think it's best to take a holistic approach to health - not simply in terms of weight loss. Still a work in progress for me but I'm getting there and you will too

I can only speak for me but HRT and swimming. Now I have a dog so I walk for an hour and a half everyday. I am not skinny but I only eat 2 meals a day and my lunch is very small. Usually one slice of bread and fruit. Obviously there are times I eat more but sticking to the same things most days you know what works. It means I don't lose weight but maintain my weigh.

I went through the menopause at 47 and am now 62 and although I think I have changed shape I still weigh pretty much the same now as I did then. I was 7st 2oz when I was 17 and I'm still 7st, although if I pig out too much I can go up a few pounds and then I will cut back till I am back down to around 7st again. I honestly don't think exercise does much to get your weight down, although it does keep you fit and gets you toned. I do hula hoop and for the first time since the menopause I've actually got my waist back, which is good! I really think it's all about what you eat and just realising that metabolism does slow down with age and you just have to eat less all the time and not follow all these fad diets as they are hard to follow long term. That's my view on it anyway!

My Fitness Pal (MFP) works well once you have mastered how to log calories and food you consume during the day. I seem to have reached a plateau with my weight loss and am beginning to think that I need to accept that my natural body weight is now half a stone heavier than before the menopause. Anyway I don't think that it suits older women to be too thin - it tends to age them. However that is just my opinion. My sister (she lives in France) is doing this with me and that's good motivation to keep going. We check each other's MFP diaries, share recipes, etc. You can also import onto the MFP app any recipes you use and it will work out calories for you. You can aso scan barcodes in and it will show you the calorie and nutritional values.

For me, I just started eating a balanced diet at each meal without giving anything up...apart from biscuits/cakes...and it has worked for me. Lost 1.5 stone at the start and I have remained at this for nearly 3 years. I don't want to lose any further weight, so I have the odd biscuit to balance it...that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it!! Hoorah!

Antonia you are hardly overweight so you are doing something right
I weigh at least 3 stone overweight and this as happened gradually since the menopause (which I had early at 47)
In the past when I have gained weight I increased walking but this has not worked this time so I joined Boogie bounce!
It is not easy far from it I cannot form words for at least ten minutes when it has finished but the weight is slowly coming off and I am toning up too!
Slimming world did not really work for me as I was not disaplined enough.

disciplined*

Estrogen levels drop... waist goes thicker. Lower metabolism. Laws of nature.

I am OK with not having a girly figure now, but I have a decent shape, am not overweight and exercise with a lot of walking. I look at old pics of myself and just sigh... I had my day, and the young things of today will be just like me someday in the future unless they go for liposuction all the time. I do NOT want to end up tucked and stuffed like Sharon Osborne. Too high a price to pay, financially and emotionally.

The middle waist fat does have to be watched because of the risks of disease, diabetes, heart disease, stroke, high blood pressure some cancers.