Weight gain after menopause.

Hi HelenTracy,

A couple of years ago I was really fed up with my shape and size. I've done both SW and WW in the past and both worked for me until I stopped going to meetings, moved house, etc.

I did a lot of research into Fasting diets - namely 5:2 - and went ahead and bought the book and the recipe book. I dropped a couple of dress sizes in 6 weeks and the first couple of weeks were awfully difficult... but there's a really great Facebook group for support and ideas to help you stick to it.

I'm still a happy 12/14 and base my weight gains on how I feel and how my clothes fit. The health benefits of fasting are well-documented too and it helped me avoid over-indulging during the Christmas season that year - though I still thoroughly enjoyed my festive food and drink!

It's not everyone's cup of tea, but it is a very good way to tone up and feel good about yourself. I now eat more sensibly and fast occasionally, more for the detox effect once a month or so.

Good luck and I hope you find something that works for you!

Has anyone tried the 5:2 diet?

Wow! So many lovely replies! I haven't checked this for a day! Will take everything you all say on board, Thank you. Scribbles - I did have a thyroid test a couple of years ago but it might be worth asking for another. I think making a kind of food diary might be a good thing and I'll look for a fitness app too. I'm not obsessed with being really skinny again, I would be over the moon to get back to a 12/14. I'd also quite like to be able to look in the mirror again without going........OH GOD! Also I refuse to give up wine completely!! Some needs to invent low calorie vino!

I am 65 and five years ago I decided I needed to do something about my "shape"...I started eating a balanced healthy diet...reducing biscuits/bread/potatoes and always starting the day with a breakfast. It worked for me and I lost the 21 pounds I needed to lose. Notice I said reducing not cutting out. When my friends saw my results they all dashed off to slimming world and although they have lost the weight, they are slaves to it and worry about what they are eating. I carry on everyday as normal and don't even think about it. If you feel you don't want to eat potatoes, replace it with cauliflower!! A friend of mine to lose weight only ate what she could fit on a tea plate (not piled high!!). I tried this and it actually works and more often than not I do this. I also have a blow out at some point of the week...so all nicely balanced!! Haven't put the 21 pounds back on. Of course our metabolism rates and our general health are all different, so trial and error, but you will get there.

I’ve been going to SW for the past year and have lost just short of 4 stone (I’m 67). The consultant leading the group can make or break it, so it may be worth you trying a different group.

Hi I lost 2 stone by downloading my fitness pal on my phone you can track your weight and keep record of what you are eating and amy exercise. It suggests a daily calorie intake for the weight you want to loose.

I use Skinny Sprinkles to curb my sweet tooth. You can google it. They have a face book page. I cannot cope with white wine since I became menopausal and that helps with the weight. I now enjoy a vodka with diet lemonade. My mum was a size six until she hit menopause.

Try another Slimming World class, that is not what my experience has been. You were unlucky.

Lyndie although I lost, and kept off, 2st after 70 I’m still fat.
Size 16, well over 11st and have shrunk to 4’10”.
My name is Elrel, some days my willpower deserts me and I’m an occasional chocoholic ...

I have down loaded a free app that counts steps and calories too., has a weight graph etc. You can also use it to count calories. I did lose weight when I first had it but it does keep me active and aware of when I have not walked the dog for as long as usual! Might be worth a try, there are lots of different ones about.

Lost 2st with SW in my 70s

Look up your basal metabolic rate - how many calories you need a day at rest - it's surprisingly low!

My weight shot up after having a hysterectomy aged 58. In August this year I went to England to visit my brother. All his family are thin, whereas all mine are overweight. I decided to cut down on sugar, but still have a glass of wine in the evening. It's been slow but I've lost about 10 lbs. Hubby and I used to treat ourselves to cake every afternoon. That's all gone now!

You are not fat at size 16 unless you are 4 feet tall!

Gave up work at beginning of year and determined I'd attend to sustainable health routine, redressing age and lifestyle balance using as much of a "natural" diet as both I and DH found acceptable. I love being back in the kitchen so hasnt been a chore! Daily doses of ACV, ginger and tumeric with balance of fresh fruit/veg and mixing up protein/fibre sources in weekly meal planning resulted in dropping 10lbs and comfy size 12 since spring. We still eat out 2/3 a week and probably have a few too many calories in the vino.. but I now balance better and cook smarter.

I shall follow this post with interest !! I'm struggling with my weight but have started to walk more and have already started to feel the benefits but no weight loss. I'm so pleased to hear that I'm not the only one who can't cope with the slimming world meetings, I only went once and thought "life's too short" . Having said that, I know lots of people who have done really well on their diet

When I retired at 64 I was quite depressed and did a lot of comfort eating. My weight went up to 12 and a half stone. When I saw the family photos of Christmas 2015 I cried! I felt so depressed and ashamed of myself. My son bought me a Fitbit and I gradually worked up to 12,000 steps a day and used the App to log my calories allowing myself 1400a day including wine and crisps! If the weather is bad I dance to Heart 80’s in the kitchen.By my 70th birthday this year I was down to 10 stone 3lbs and am managing to maintain it most of the time. Good luck HelenTracy you can do it!

I'm just the same at 61, I have been doing the 5:2 diet but have only lost about 6lb & that took ages!! I'll pop over to my fitness pal & try that. What really doesn't help is I have a disability and do much less now. I wish they'd show someone with a disability on diet programmes, its harder to exercise with a faulty body.

Think what Teifi said will work, once read Princess Ann only eats a third of what she used to,she seems to maintain her weight.I can do it if I've got a holiday coming up,managed to lose over a stone this year as I was 70 in April OH booked a cruise for it.Was small 16, Now 18?He's just booked another one,so got my diet head on. ?Some model once said. No food tastes as good as slim feels!

Watching post with interest. I could have written the OP post myself. I was size 8 all my life until disability wreaked it's havoc Now I'm a 16 and growing ?

I'm another my fitness pal logger. It is hard work as we get older I heard it said we should eat half the calories we did in our twenties just to stay as we are ... I didn't drink in my 20's!!! So that's ups my calls hugely!!! Anyway I exercise bike additional calorie savings to enable my treats and with a bit of fasting (5x2) I can keep around a size 8/10.

The only way is to eat less and eat sensibly. We started in April this year. No biscuits, cake, puddings unless it is yogurt with fresh fruit. For me, in any one day, either potatoes or one slice of bread, not both on the same day. At least three days a week with masses of veg but no carbs at all. Surprisingly easy when you get used to it and this is the way we eat permanently now. I have reduced from 12:7lbs to 10:6lbs and my husband from 15:10 to 13:01. All my size 16 clothes left the house last week either for recycling or to the charity shop. I am not aiming for size 12 as I think that would be unrealistic at age 73 but I have far more energy now and get a lot more done. We also have a bottle of Prosecco every weekend, bottle contains 6 medium glasses. One each on Fri, Sat and Sun, dry for the rest of the week. I had my first sticky bun from Waitrose last week, it was OK but I seem to have lost my taste for gooey things. We will have most of the Christmas goodies but that is a one off.

Try logging everything you eat on my fitness pal (free) and also look up the calories you need just to live. There is a thread on weightwatchers - have you tried that - I'm 64 and just lost 18 pounds. I eat carefully in the week and yes I do drink wine (or G&T) at the weekend! Also think of the health benefits not just your appearance.

HelenTracy, I'm not trying to be alarmist but, if you're really eating less and still putting on weight for no discernible reason, maybe you should ask your GP for a thyroid function test. I only know about this because a similar thing happened to a friend who went from a size 12 to a 16 despite careful eating and a strenuous exercise programme. She's ok now, a!though she has to take pills daily and has resigned herself to being a 14 forever.

I think you have to decide if you really do want to lose the weight - if you do, it's not a matter of a short-term diet, which won't work now you are older, but a permanent change of eating. You will have to settle for three small meals a day and no extras, for ever. Only you can decide if it's worth it!