To wonder how you keep your size 6/8/10 figure after 30?

[snarted]

I feel like to do this I would have to really restrict myself food wise and keep to a strict gym regime. Any tips?

Stevie69

It depends what "eat all you want is" some people are quite capable of eating all they want but naturally (or consciously) make healthier/smarter choices, don't binge etc. I think we have loss sense of what is "normal" with eating.

Re appetite, I mean I'm satisfied by what I eat, it's what I want to eat, and although I'm hungry before a meal I don't ever feel deprived or like I shouldn't eat when I want to. If that's what being thin cost then I wouldn't bother. I do sometimes 'slide' a bit-eg last trimester of PG I really got into sweets, and quietly trained myself out of that afterwards-that's about habit, though, rather than need.

Re genetics, what I mean is I gain weight more slowly and lose weight more easily than others who eat/exercise the same. There might be other factors, but there is definitely a background tendency for me to be thin.

I am 56, size 10, my teenage daughter tells her friends I have a 6 pack ( partly true)

Exercise is paramount.

38, size 6 (although I’m only 5 foot). I think I may be lucky with a good metabolism, don’t do the gym, or diets, I don’t eat very healthy, but I have a small appetite. I’ll probably find myself in an early grave! Slim doesn’t mean healthy.

What does an endorphine rush feel like LuMarie?
I exercise 3 x per week (HIT) but never get one. Didnt get it with running either.

Just come back from the lido. Most women looked gross. But there were some stunners too. I have to not easy sugar to be slim. The moment I start on the sugar, I start piling on the pounds.

I exercise 4 times a week and am generally active. Eat and drink what I want but in moderation. I'm size 10 and age 49.

I'm 51, have been the same weight and size since I can remember. I've never been able to eat massive meals, ie three courses piled high and am a real nibbler. Today so far, All Bran with skimmed milk (I really do prefer), biscuit, crackers & cheese, salad, fresh pineapple and yogurt, 2 rich tea biscuits. They'll be more fruit. It's warm here so something like tuna & egg with salad, coleslaw for me. If I fancy something this evening, chocolate!! This sounds quite a lot on the surface, but there's quite a few lower calorie options (not deliberate, through choice). Exercise wise today, cut the grass, active hour at work moving things around and 20 minute walk to work. Exercise I might choose to do later, cycle.

Now I'm still the same size, but over the last eight months have put on six pounds which has coincided with the perimenopause hitting, it's not due to eating more, less exercise. I guess I'm at the turning point though and need to keep on eye on those biscuits and chocolate.

Definitely genetics, I'm closing in on 40 & still an 8 or 10. I have a terrible diet & don't exercise, definitely the most unfit & unhealthy of my friends yet the thinnest - pure luck!!

60s, size 10. Don't sit down very much, walk almost everywhere including up and down lots of hills.

By genetics I mean

• I have a naturally small appetite
• I lose weight easily and rapidly when stressed or busy
• I have to really make an effort to overcome my natural appetite to put on weight

Same as my Mum

Sorry, there are no shortcuts. Sensible diet, regular weight-bearing exercise, adequate rest and recovery, consistency!

At 26 I fell into 2 years of depression and piled on weight. When my GP told me I was clinically obese, it was a slap in the face and I have never looked back.

I am careful with what I eat but enjoy my food, I pump serious iron, I make sure I get enough sleep whenever I can (essential to prevent weight gain but I do have a baby), I don't drink alcohol (never have done so not a sacrifice admittedly). I have maintained my weight/dress size at 6-8 (I am short but curvy so this is not skinny for me) throughout my 30s with minor fluctuations.

It is hard work but is essential to my mental and physical health and wellbeing.

I’m in my early 40’s and am a size 8...I walk A LOT (absolute minimum a day is 10,000 steps) but do no formal exercise....

I am slightly lighter than I was pre kids - I now have 4 including a baby...I am more careful with my diet than I was in my 20’s and 30’s but do still eat pretty much what I want. I try not to eat starch in the evenings though and not snack too much but I do eat sweets etc...

I also drink a glass of wine most days but don’t drink beer/spirits etc...

I'm 37 this year and an 8/10. I'm bigger than I was in my 20s but still slim. I naturally don't eat a lot per meal and don't snack, but also have the genes of my dads side of the family who are all slender. It's part luck, part eating well, part not drinking much booze, and part being active.

Genes. My mother's family were all thin. I seem to have the same genes.

Early 60s. I got significantly heavier post-menopause - before that, even up to mid 50s - I was fine but I am very active and don't eat a massive amount anyway.

For the last few years I have to work much harder to lose the weight gain and keep down to a size 8/10 - I am still pretty active but I am also VERY careful about what I eat - low carbs has been a god-send.

I’m 53 and size 10. I eat normally. But I don’t snack and rarely eat puddings or cakes. I also took up running 5 years ago. The hardest issue is the menopause which has added a layer of fat all over.

I got to 41 had a mid life crisis and decided to start running and did the couch to 5k. I joined slimming world too, gave up slimming world two years ago and carried on running I’m the fittest and slimmest I’ve ever been now at nearly 46 than in all my adult life.

I lost the genetic lottery somewhat catastrophically, so to keep myself a size 8/10 in my 30s requires a lot of bloody hard work.

Cycling 4x per week (we're talking fast, hard cycling here not leisurely).
Bodyweight training 6x per week.
No alcohol.
Lots of veg and water.
No meat except fish.
Generally a good/balanced diet all round with an eye on portion sizes.

It takes a while to get into new habits and routines but it gets easier and feels more normal the longer you stick with it. In a way, I'm glad now that I'm not a naturally slim person. it's forced me to be as healthy and physically fit/strong as I can be.

Slimming World

Mid thirties (nearly late ones).
Size 10,sometimes 8 in trousers sometimes larger on top though as I lift and my shoulders are built.
Weights. Two 'treat' days where I'll eat out/not watch what I eat. Most days the earliest I'll eat is 12pm. Some days I go until 4pm. If I feel that weight coming on I 5:2. Lots of stir fries/salads. At an advantage for not having a sweet tooth but I certainly don't have a fast metabolism.

I had a very slim aunt and she said the trick is to always stop eating before you feel full.

If you consistently eat a lot, it will take a lot to make you feel full, but you can shrink your stomach by eating less little by little.

I don't really believe in genetics wrt weight - other than say inherited hypothyroid or PCOS - i.e. medical issues that directly affect weight etc. It's more about portion size, food type, food/exercise ratio and whether people comfort eat or not. How much your family tended to eat growing up has an impact.

My sis and I used to be exactly the same size. In our 40s she's a size 12 and I'm still a size 8. She does a huge amount of exercise as she lives in the country, has two dogs, three children, but she eats much bigger portion sizes, she's quite a foodie, likes her wine etc.

My mother was very skinny through her 20s (weighed 7.5 stone.) but put on weight a she got older and is now a size 16. She also loves her food.

I just don't care about food quite so much that's why I'm thinner. That's all it comes down to.