To think I can’t improve my body at 40?

[Fatatforty]

I am 5 foot 2, at 25 I was a size 8 and 8 stone. 2 kids later and 40 years old I am 10 and a half stone and a size 14. I am also wobbly, and covered in cellulite with an overhanging stomach. I tried a bikini on for my holiday today and cried. My body just looks so pasty and un toned.

I Am disappointed as for the last 12 weeks I have been going to the gym twice a week and I cannot notice any difference. Do I just need to give it longer? The trainer gave me a routine of leg press, leg abductor, chess press, shoulder press, and i also do 10 minutes on the cross trainer as a warm up and cool down.

Diet wise I have tried slimming world but don’t enjoy all the cooking, and calorie counting but I get hungry and go over every day. I’m starting to feel like this is it for me, am I being unreasonable for thinking it’s just too difficult to get the body I want.

. I am 45
My bmi is approx 29 I reckon
I don't know what the answer is

I’m quite a bit older than you and I think Ive at last finally got it and understand what you have to do. There’s a chap on insta called drjamesdinic who summarises the habits that work. Has changed my body composition in a few months - lots of protein, weights in the gym and consistency are absolutely key. Water, creatine and electrolytes too. It really is possible to change

Ok. Time for the tough love.

The biggest change you need to make is to your mindset. Get on YouTube, search motivational speeches and listen to them on repeat. The message needs to sink in that everything is possible if you put in the work.

Twice a week at the gym is going to do fuck all, and even less so if your diet is shit.
Can you review your daily schedule and identify any windows during which you can exercise. It doesn't have to be at the gym, it can be 20 mins HIIT, an hour walk, 30 mins run.

When you increase your exercise you may naturally (as I've found out), lean more towards food that support your health.

Eating a large amount isn't an issue if you're eating good stuff.

I wouldn't bother with slimming world or calorie counting because you're still going to find an excuse to eat the mars bar because it's "within your calorie count" for the day.

Give yourself 30 days to start. Cut out alcohol, sugar and all junk food and increase exercise to 4 x a week and see where you land.

Half arsing it in the gym twice a week will do absolutely nothing in this situation, except convince yourself that nothing will work.

You have the absolute power to turn this around for yourself OP. You just have to put the work in, change your mindset and focus focus focus.

Disclaimer - I am way bigger but was the same as you.

trainer sounds like they've given you a useless stereotype woman routine from about 20 years ago!

HIIT twice a week and more all round muscle work will help.

Weights! Lots of veg and protein. Lots of sleep.

And a healthy dose of "fuck it". Being healthy and doing something for you is important - what you look like in a bikini isn't.

Gym requires consistency & 3/4 times a week. You cannot outrun a bad diet do that is key. No need for slimming world - just three meals a day & a couple of snacks. Cut down on portion size & stay away from processed foods.

Did SW. Lost weight. Looked good. Whacked the weight back on. So I was only back to my youthful weight a short while… Agree with others that a long term solution to diet / fitness is the only way. It can be done, but done once & for all.

You can definitely improve but don't be comparing yourself to 20 year old you.

Twice a week at the gym is good for you and you'll notice a difference in strength and stamina but it's not enough to tone up if you're not also dieting and doing other exercise.

It really is 90% eating though. Have you thought about fasting? I fast for 20 hours and eat in 4, it is liberating not to have to think about food all the time.

Watching this with interest. I'm in the same boat but am 10 years older.

I agree with weights, you can sculpt your body at any age. You need a weight lifting programme.

I would recommend
Yoga daily
A run 3 times a week or more. Start even with run/walk. Try 2k then 3k , don't aim for 10!
Stop snacking after dinner. Don't eat breakfast. Snack on fruit, nuts, dark chocolate

Also if you fancy a martial art type class, Muay thai is a good one.

Stop trying to have a 20 year old body. It won't happen. What you can be is stronger and fitter and more confident!

I am all of these things! I wear shorter shorts than I wore when I was 30! And I don't actually look in the mirror because I am happy with myself.

I don't count calories. That's a very outmoded concept IMHO. I do make sure I eat well, big variety of plants and plenty of protein. I do time restricted eating according to my cycle so basically days 1-14. And I exercise 6 days a week, 2 strength and 4 cardio. I probably need to drop 1 cardio for 1 flexibility ie yoga.

The key is basically to stop judging yourself and try to embrace a different shaped you. Be strong not thin!

Can you afford PT? If you're not confident at gym, having a PT even for a while to help with weights would be useful.

And get your diet in order, drink water, protein, try to eat 30 different plants a week. good luck

Strokethefurrywall

I like the idea of eating as much as I like but just healthy food. Thank you I will try that. As at the moment I feel like I’m obsessing over what I eat and beating myself up about going over the calories every day.

I am actually lucky and only work mornings so I have about 2 hours free Monday to Friday where I could exercise before I pick the kids up. Although school holidays I have no free time at all as I work and then pick up from childcare.

I don’t really enjoy the gym, I have thought about swimming every day after work as my gym has a pool, or walking for an hour each day, but I’m not sure that will give me results, as I keep hearing weight training is the most important thing to do. But I don’t enjoy it at all.

You've spent 15 years gradually putting on 2.5 stone.

You cannot expect it to fall off in 12 weeks.

I'm 44 with 3 kids. I kick box twice a week and weight lift twice a week. On top of that I run round with the kids lots! BMI 29 and size 10.

Be patient.

You absolutely can, but it'll take longer than twelve weeks. The thing is, most of the posts in here will be people telling you how to make yourself smaller. If that's what you want, you need to diet, and move more..

What I would strongly encourage though is whether you want to feel better, fitter, stronger, have more energy, and look different. The latter is less about just dieting, and more about eating well, building muscle, increasing your metabolism, and slowly losing body fat. That will give you what most people think of as a 'toned' look. It is also far more sustainable in the long run, and the benefits you feel tend to be motivational than just looking in the mirror. Doing so requires strength training and fuelling your body, not trying to burn off calories by jumping around your living room. If you want any advice on this route, come join 'the weights room'! Plenty of forty somethings and older who have made big changes

The standout line for me is "don't enjoy all the cooking". I remember a friend who did slimming world summarised it roughly as "you can eat really well on it if you cook from scratch, but if we were cooking like that we wouldn't need to be there in the first place".

As a PP said it's 90% diet. For most people, you have to cook to be/remain a healthy weight and limit very processed convenience foods.

CatandSpoon I had thought about yoga or Pilates plus a daily walk or swim. I think I would enjoy that more than the gym.

Your height and pre/post 2 kids weight are pretty much exactly the same as I was.

I spent around 9 months going to the gym 2-3 times a week to do strength training plus 10minutes cardio.

After 9 months I felt deflated that I still looked wobbly. So I finally took my diet seriously, started tracking calories, and lost over 1st.

Hiding under all that fat was 12 months worth of muscle. I now look better than I did at 25, although I weight more I'm toned and have definition.

Basically you won't see the benefits of the strength training unless you loose some of the fat that's covering up the muscle.

If you actually swim swim i.e. with goggles, at a decent clip, preferably not just breast stroke, then swimming is worthwhile exercise.

As with all things, moderation is key. My stance is that the best sort of exercise is exercise I want to do (to be clear I'm still fat... I'm just also now at least fit).

So I got pretty into swimming (>10km a week) and it damaged my shoulder. But now I mix and match: sometimes yoga, sometimes pilates, sometimes swimming, sometimes weights, sometimes I go for a bike ride, sometimes a walk, sometimes I play tennis.

It's not a training schedule that will have me running marathons. But it does keep me moving which for me is the most important thing.

Sadly, having spent the last 3 or 4 years getting pretty fit has in no way shape or form helped me lose weight. I am, however, a lot denser than when I started which I guess is a good start.

Shite.
You totally can but you need to stick at it.ive been going for 1 year now and only just I'm getting to a point where I'm happier with how I look. But I noticed how much better I felt and easier things were much sooner.

I made small changes gradually. Was training once per week, then 2, then 3 times. Now I manage 3-5 times a week, running or weight training or a combo.

I also made a point of drinking more water, eating more protein and just generally being more mindful of what I eat. I don't diet, I have days of cake and chips but it's a long term balance not a 'I must shift 4 lbs in 1 week'.

Don't quit. Keep going. 12 weeks isn't really long
It will reward you in the long run and you've been doing it so far so maybe you need to change diet or increase the intensity of your training. The good thing is you started, now you just have to keep at it.

I'm older than you and the amount of comments I've had in the last couple of months about how strong and fit I look makes me feel really self-conscious. But the best bit is I feel it, and it's given me so much confidence. And I haven't even started yet.

Don't be discouraged! You can do it, it just takes time.

Main thing is diet

Focus on that

kegofcoffee

That is really interesting! Thank you!

Bollocks to that!! You're never going to have the body of a 20 year old again but you can be strong and fit. I'm 45 and in better shape when I was younger but it takes years rather than weeks to get there.

Lots of veg and lean protein in diet. Use my fitness pal if you need to lose some weight and up the exercise. A PT is great if you can afford it.

Build muscle and get strong rather than skinny! You can do it but you have to persevere and not expect instant results