Now that I have your attention…. Does this sound like you? Have you tried losing weight but haven’t been successful, especially now that you are forty something. You’ve tried the latest fad diets with some success, but eventually the weight comes back and then some. As a woman over forty it is harder for you to lose weight and keep it off. Correct? So, because of this special challenge, you’ve declared that diets don’t work.
Most diets are tailored for short term results and should not be sustained for extended periods of time. Any diet that forces you to change your current eating habits and restrict your caloric intake, will cause a reduction in weight. Initially, this weight reduction may only be water weight depending on the structure of the diet. Because of the special dietary needs of a woman, especially those over forty, a diet should specifically address those needs. This is why most fad diets will not work efficiently for you. There is always an exception to the rule, but once a woman turns forty, her body is gearing up for “the change”. But don’t give up, it is not your fault, “Mother Nature” is to blame. Or is she?.
Mother nature is partially to blame because a women goes through some unique changes once she reaches that forty year mark. "Doctor’s say a woman is peri-menopausal at the age of forty, menopausal at fifty-one. And we all have heard the many stories of women going through “The Change”. They often experience hot flashes, mood swings, weight gain, night sweats, decreased libido and more." (“Women at the change” by Madonna Sophia Compton, M.A)
For the most part, “Mother Nature“ is the reason you are struggling to lose weight. However, “the fact of the matter is, most women don’t “get fat” as they age because they have lost interest in their bodies or their men. At this time of life there is a redistribution of weight and the weight gain is often around the waist and thighs, resulting in the disappearing waistline syndrome. Unexplained weight gain may be a function of hypothyrodism, rather than aging; the weight gain and shift in body fat is due to metabolic changes. To undergo extreme dieting in an attempt to recover a lost waistline may not only be a useless exercise; it may not even be healthy.” (Madonna Sophia Compton, M.A)
So, what does this mean for women over forty? All this means is that you have to work with “Mother Nature” in order to overcome the obstacles that she has now put in front of you. If you want to lose weight, feel great and look fabulous at forty, you are gonna have to educate yourself about women’s health after forty. As a woman over forty, I have begun to educate myself about the challenges I will have to overcome if I want to be fit and healthy. I also know that my fitness concerns are going to be very different from when I was in my twenties and thirties. Each of us will have unique and individual challenges to overcome that will test our resolve to be lean, fit and healthy. What you have to do is take control of your health in a way that is unique to your fitness level, overall health, and food choices.
This is my reason for Kandie’s Health & Fitness Project. It is a 24 week project that gently eases you into healthy weight loss and helps you to maintain a more plant based nutritious eating plan (diet) and lifestyle. This project will emphasize health and fitness for women forty and over, but it can be followed by anyone interested in achieving long-term sustainable weight loss in an easy and sensible way. This is not a diet. For most people, the word diet has a negative connotation and it is synonymous with deprivation and restrictions. This project is a way to cleverly trick you into changing bad unhealthy eating habits into healthy eating habits without feeling deprived.
The goal for this project is to provide a step by step action plan that can be easily followed by anyone who wants to lose weight the healthy way. This is not a quick results plan that guarantees you will lose weight fast. It will be designed as a plan that can be customized to an individual’s preferences and goals. The project is not only to educate you on just health and fitness challenges for women but as a systematic approach to a healthier lifestyle. Because, most people don’t know exactly where to start or how to start changing their unhealthy habits, this project will provide a starting point.
If you are a woman over forty like myself and have also been looking for an easy to follow weight loss system that addresses your special needs please feel free to follow along with Kandie’s Health & Fitness Project. My next post will give the details on what the project will involve. I plan to start November 4, 2012 therefore, if you follow along with me, we will be looking awesome before summer.
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