new BMI is really getting me down

[Flabuary]

It’s 25.5. The highest it’s ever been and I hate it. I’ve had 4 DC so I did always have a mum-tum, but now it’s just horrible.
im 43, 5’1 and 9stone 9. Is this weight/bmi too low for any sort of weight loss medication?
having the DC means my lifestyle isn’t as I’d like it to be. I can’t really exercise as I have arthritis in my ankle, I try and make meals from scratch as much as I can.
thanks for reading. I just don’t want to feel so self conscious any more

Oh OP, I'm in the same boat. I have had 4 kids in the last 8 years too and I'm now 40. My bmi is 27 . I was always a healthy weight. I've bought a walking pad and I am eating healthier but I'm finding it so hard to shift it. I've only lost 4 pounds in the last 6 weeks. I still feel so chunky round my hips and shoulders. I had hoped I'd have lost a stone by now. It's a slow process. I think it's harder due to my age. Previously I easily lost weight after each baby.

It would be good to find an exercise that you can do that is possible with ankle problem (swimming, cycling, yoga etc?). It'll make you feel good and is healthy.

For modest weight loss, skip breakfast. 16:8 style fast. It's pretty easy and the only challenge is morning hunger, especially at the start. You've probably got to feel that anyway to lose weight. Eat reasonably and avoid crap food - you might be doing that already.

This is so true. I've always had a massive appetite. Even as a little girl I seemed to eat more than grown men! I realised in my 40s that I needed less food. Luckily for me my appetite seemed to naturally reduce so it was easy to reduce calories. If I continued to eat like I used to eat, I would be very overweight now.

Another vote for intermittent fasting - I’ve been steadily losing pregnancy weight using 16:8 and eating in a more considered way, and this feels very sustainable. In the past I’ve also done periods of the 5:2 diet which has been extremely effective for weight loss.

Stealth boast right? 😀

When I hit my forties I realised that I absolutely did not need to eat as much. I've always been slim but when you get to a certain age your calorie intake needs to be cut.

It's your muscle mass reducing and thus reducing how many calories you need. Do more strengthening.

This is what I need to do. Are kettlebell workouts good? I'm 52 and peri.

This annoys me so much. People who aren't obese and can't be arsed to put a bit of effort and work into losing some weight.
I'm 213lbs and 5ft 8in I need to lose 4 stone and I would love to take the easy way out and buy some weight loss jabs (I say easy as I have no underlying health issues). But it's too expensive.
I've been counting calories on my fitness pal and trying to walk for an hour and doing 20 mins of hiit/cardio or weights 5 days a week.
I'm slowly chipping away and started at 220lbs so it's a work in progress.
I've read a lot about these injections and to be honest you lose the same amount of weight (on average) as you would doing what I'm doing.
It's just laziness and you won't drop loads of weight in a week.

Can you explain what the 16:8 is please? I think it's my diet, I definitely keep within 1200 cals but too much of that is chocolate 🙈

16/8 is a type of intermittent fasting. You eat during an 8 hour window each day and then fast for 16 hours. For example, I eat between 11am and 7pm but you can choose whatever hours suit you.
Some people do 16/8 and calorie counting or low carb. I don't - I only chose 16/8 so I wouldn't have to calorie count or diet!
I eat what I want but I generally like healthy food. I eat lots of fruit and veg and make everything from scratch. However, if I want fish and chips or chocolate or whatever, I'll have them.

I completely agree. Healthy bmi can vary and often we have our own personal right weight. I look better when I'm at the top end of healthy bmi but I looked ill when I was at them bottom of healthy bmi. Didn't suit me at all

Cut your wine down to 3 eves a week
Find 10 mins a day to do crunches / sit ups / planks. Won’t spot-burn belly fat but will help keep your shape.

Make one other healthier eating adjustment.

Then after a week introduce another healthy adjustment.

The flab creeps up by stealth, you can banish it at the same rate without misery. In fact, congratulate yourself on your healthy care for yourself, and feel good.

Oh wow, that sounds really good. Might give it a try, thank you 😊

If you are able to, then getting a health MOT at the GPs can be very helpful. Thyroid, insulin resistance, high testosterone, high glucose can all contribute towards weight gain and make it harder to lose weight. Knowing can help make choices regarding diet that make it easier to lose weight, if for example you are insulin resistant then carbs are going to be the bane of your diet and will need to be reduced (not eliminated) and changed to more complex varieties avoiding things like white bread and potatoes. It can also guide exercise decisions, a brisk 20 min walk after a meal means better break down of glucose so it's less likely to be stored as fat for example.

I’m in the same boat. Just in the overweight category but in reality a 2 stone weight gain from the weight I was and it’s not comfortable for me. I also have high cholesterol now. None of my clothes fit anymore and I don’t know how to dress my changing body shape.

Dieting is hard when you have to cook for the rest of the family too and when I do diet the weight is not coming off as easy as it has done on previous years. I struggle to walk as much I used to due to work and child commitments. Let me know if you find a solution that works for you!

@Flabuary (that is a mean username to inflict on yourself btw!), I could have written your post!

My BMI six weeks ago, was 24.9.

I was up two stone since about 2021

I was always slim.

I am tall so two stone was not massively apparent.

I've had to work my Arse off for six weeks to lose about 12lbs.

I realised this isn't a singular thing (it's not the morning latte, or one muffin or some once-a-day addition, it was overall bad eating habits creep that got me to two stone overweight.

In another year or two, it woukd have been three stone, etc.

The whole thing needed overhauling, not the exclusion of one thing.

If you're like me, it's a hard realisation that eating habits are just gone way out the window and bad (subtle, not overtly crap, but not good) habits are slowly winning over.

It's a good time to change it now.

Two stone isn't easy to lose.

But I was driven mad by being unable to stop the slow increase. I am currently on a diet, and I'll never go back to being this size again.

I've always been underweight until I hit perimeno. It was a shock to suddenly discover that I could no longer eat what I wanted.
I bought a treadmill and walk a few miles on it every day. This has helped keep my weight stable, and my mental health has improved.I also bought a Garmin watch, which tells me to move if I've been too immobile. 😂Funnily enough, it works for me.

I would not do that - a lot of traditional weight loss advice (which a lot of people still dish out) is actually bad advice - e.g. processed low fat products, artificial sweeteners etc.

i would go for smaller portion sizes and get rid of any junk. No chocolate bars, biscuits, crisps, sweetened drinks, flavoured yoghurts, etc.

The OP has literally just said she has a lot of fat around her waist. Surely you must be aware that’s not healthy.

Yet more neuroticism imo, sorry.

It's really not neurotic.

The only way to lose weight is to cut calories. Eat more protein, less carbs. Skip dinner if you can, that helped me to lose weight in the past very quickly (I was only drinking water and herbal teas without sugar after 18:00). But depends what time you go to bed.

Exercise doesn’t burn that much calories but helps to feel good and give nice shape to the body, so maybe swimming or walking would suit you?
If weather allows, try to walk everyday as much as you can - I did it in the evenings instead of dinner, so it was easier not to be tempted to have food. In about a week you’ll get used to it. Have some motivational photos on your phone, fridge, around the house.

I don’t know your diet but definitely recommend cutting out fizzy drinks, sweet shop juices, smoothies, alcohol, crisps, etc.

Also weight is just a number. More important is to have muscles, flexibility and strength. Sometimes being too slim makes skin go saggy. So definitely try to have good fats and protein.

I know a woman who is getting weight loss injections. She is overweight but not obese, so perhaps it is possible to get the treatment even with slightly high BMI. I think it’s about £200/month. She said she feels good and doesn’t have much appetite. It’s up to you. I personally prefer changing lifestyle and walking than injections.

Good luck!

I'm early 50s and weigh 12:12:7 and my muscle mass is 8:0

Is that good? It's data from my WiFi scales, but I have no idea of that's good.