AIBU to ask if you have ever managed to transform your figure?

[Quitelikeit]

Hello

Looking for advice

Im in my 40s and about a stone overweight - my arms have a dreadful cellulite/pucker type of appearance just down from my arm pits

The top of my inner thighs have extra fat and my tummy also pops out (plus my jaw line has vanished)

I have decided to start daily walks but where to start with weights? I’m overwhelmed with the options

Should I do yoga or Pilates? And how many times a week?

What made the biggest difference to your body?

My hair is thinning too 😫

All tips and advice appreciated

Eating less makes most difference.

One of my friends (50+) has amazing upper arms. She does 40 lengths (breaststroke) twice a week.

I do Pilates at home with a Youtube women I love, hiking and I downloaded the Fitbod app for weights sessions 3 times a week.

That's great you're doing CG - I do that plus run, nothing extreme but around 20km a week.

I have and more than once.
In my 40s weights and cardio 4-5 times a week and restricting calories.
In my 50s cutting out refined carbs and weight training.
Both times I had an about 1.5 stone to lose. First time I did it myself with Weight Watchers and the second I did a Body Transformation type programme. I was v toned and slim both times.

As Covid hit I was in the best shape of my life. I’m now older and it is so hard to lose weight. I would go down the GLP-1 route but I know as soon as I stop taking it it’ll pile back on plus I’m worried about long term side effects. Now I know why older women eat like birds. So bloody depressing.

I have completely changed my body (well, I am still an hourglass)

I have always exercised a lot. I have always swam about 2 hours a week, and walked about 90 minutes a day, with frequent walking holidays doing 10-15 miles a day. This alone did not change my body

About 18 months ago I started doing Body Pump. You do have to go for it though and progress your weights. I often hit failure. I notice women who have been doing it the same amount of time as me, they only have tiny weights on the barbell and they are not changing shape.

Every week I do 1x body pump heavy, 1x normal body pump, athletic pilates and reformer pilates. As I said above, I keep increasing my weights to failure point.

I have noticed a lot of changes in my body. I used to have really fat arms, now, they are normal sized but look mostly muscular/toned with a very small amount of bingo wings, my shoulders look defined. I have a pert and curvy bottom, small waist, my legs are lean and toned, just a tiny bit of wobble on my inner thighs, really subtle cellulite if I really try to jiggle my leg.

I am 50 years old, and spent the summer in little shorts and vest, looking toned and tanned and feeling really body confident.

Change is possible, but you really have to put the work in. I work really hard at my exercise!

I avoid UPFs 98% of the time, cook pretty much everything from scratch except for bread products that I only eat occasionally e.g. some wraps, the odd sourdough loaf, bit of a bagel habit. I eat plenty of protein but I'm not tracking.

I can now do full push ups! I could never do full push ups all my life, but now at age 50, I can do it for the first time

Swimming is great for all round toning, if you like it.
Weights made a more significant difference to my muscle tone after 40. Try different classes. I agree pilates feels more impactfull than yoga. A good quick walk (30-40 mins), is great for an all round boost, posture, legs etc.
The most important thing is to find things you genuinely like! Good luck OP.

I cut out carbs lost 3k pretty much immediately now doing low carbs so under 30g of bread or potatoes a day but as much protein and veg as I want - lost a futher 4kg and nearly back into my bmi and can feel a hip bone for the first time in years! This has been over 12 weeks and has been steady gradual weight loss

Yes! Size 8 to 12-14 simply by having dc and not having a spare moment ever. To get back to my normal, I had to find the time. I do the following. I don't have time for my love of cross country running, plus I'm older now.

Drink lots of water. I already don't drink alcohol much if ever.
No sugar in drinks, no fizzy drinks
Less potatoes and bread.
Lots of walking, at least an hour a day split into chunks, dogs, little errands. Walking or slow jog up a proper hill a couple of times a week.
Pilates. Amazing. I do mari Windsor flat abs pilates. 20 mins a day. Transformative!

I do callenetics too. A few times a week, using the book.

Also- ballet barre. Bought ballet shoes. Use kitchen sides as a barre and do it every morning or after washing up.

Also go to a hi rox thing. I'm crap but it's brilliant and everyone is really nice to me despite my not fitting in:)

I stand up straight, always watch my posture, try not to wear baggy clothes, look after myself now, not wait. Its not a race, its a mindset.

I do like cake, but a little bit of the best favourite cake I make myself, as can see the amount of sugar. Also eat very healthily, no processed foods.

Caroline Girvan is great - I don’t doubt doing a full series of hers is the best way to do it, but it doesn’t work for me in terms of fitting in the other exercise I want to do so I’ve taken the approach of finding a few workouts of hers I like - two upper and two lower and combining an upper and a lower into a full body workout and doing those on two different days of the week (so say Tuesday doing one upper and lower body workout and then Thursday doing a different upper and lower body workout). I then do cardio at the gym two days and do a long run another day and have two rest days.

For me, the CG tones and has helped with muscle and this combined with the long run means I can eat a decent amount without putting on weight. I’ve definitely noticed a difference in my body shape and tone and feel in better shape at 49 than I have for years.

I know loads of people are evangelical about lifting heavy but I fear for my pelvic floor and have a bad back so am sticking with lighter weights.

Re HRT I found the progesterone bloat settled and I found testosterone really helped with muscle tone and less body fat (to the degree I had to cut down as I was looking a bit too lean).

Upping protein helps too as it leaves you feeling full on less calories if you have lean / low fat protein.

Good luck!

Pilates will change your shape if you do it properly. Most of the people who do it at my gym aren't in proper alignment so won't see results. IME you need to be in a very small class with hands on correction or understand the principles of contrology to see the full physical results. Doing Pilates properly is really challenging, mentally and physically.

I lost 10kg in about 8 months by;
attending PT sessions to do strength training 3 times a week
short run (I can’t do more than 4/5k!) maybe twice a week
big changes to my diet- cut down on carbs and portion sizes but allowed myself indulgences at the weekend

Consistency (exercise and diet) and expecting it to take time.

I have at 2 points in my life. It took about 18m to 2 yrs.

Can I join?

I totally agree with this, it’s been really transformational for my core strength. But you need to use correct form, and importantly find a great instructor.

I am 45 and have become much fitter and leaner in the last 18 months. For the first time in my life I have visible abs, and I’m really toned. I’m 5”2 and weigh 49 kg. I actually only lost a few kilos but have dropped a whole dress size as my shape has changed so much.

Keys for me:

Diet is critical. High protein, and counting calories. Meal planning has been key to being able to stick to this consistently.

Hiring a PT to show me how to lift weights so I had some confidence to do it in my own in the gym. I’ve seen much better results from 3 x weightlifting sessions a week than I ever did from 3 x cardio sessions.

Pilates - I do mat Pilates, and I can now beat my personal trainer in ab exercises!

Yes. You need to tone your muscles and lose body fat.

1. change your diet. Mediterranean diet is best - lots of veg and pulses, lean protein, olive oil, nuts, seeds and low amounts of high carb food such a potatoes and bread
2. You need a strength routine. Either book in with a personal trainer or find an online class. I like Yogabody (it’s not really Yoga despite the name)
3. make sure you stretch too. The options in point 2 cover that but it is often worth going to Pilates or yoga once a week too .

For motivation, consider signing up to a challenge. Eg a running race or even a triathlon. I signed for a 10K race running past all the main sights of central London. I was much more overweight than you and it really focussed my mind on the goal.

I’m late 50s.

Proper Pilates with a good teacher makes a big difference, I only go once a week but it’s an hour and really very intense. I notice the difference over the summer break ….

Isign up to 3 pt gym sessions a week and go to 2. It’s weights in a class that’s supportive to older women (massive cold fans for menopausal women). If I go to 3 I notice more of a difference. I don’t particularly enjoy it but don’t hate it.

Ive lost weight but that’s is diet, more fibre, protein and veg.

there’s a lot to be said for picking something, anything, you like and sticking at it.

@BoxOfCats - well done! This is really encouraging. I’m the same height as you and my target weight (weight I look best at due to my small frame) is your current weight. I’m currently the heaviest I’ve ever been (not by a lot, but a few pounds makes a huge difference). Do you have any tips? How many calories do you aim for each day? I already eat mainly whole foods, prioritising fibre & protein. I walk lots and lift dumbbells at home.

As your bmi is knocking on 27 you would be eligible for weight loss drugs especially with peri, if you chose to go that route.

i did, also got serious in the gym, weights and cardio, and it is a total transformation

Combination of running and lifting weights. If you do one without the other it’s nowhere near as effective. Nothing burns as many calories as running but the issue is loads of people go for a run then eat the calories back because it makes you hungry. Lifting continues to burn after the fact so is great and it obviously helps tone your body. Some also do Pilates or yoga on top but I’ve never got into those in a meaningful way.

I thought your BMI had to be 40+ to be eligible? People just lie and say they’re bigger than they are to buy them online. A BMI of 27 is only just overweight.

Thanks! I feel better than ever have in my life.

I track how many calories I burn per day via my smartwatch, which is about 1700 per day. I’m currently aiming to maintain my weight, so eat at a slight calorie deficit during the week then might go for a meal out at the weekend.

Things that have worked well for me:

Relentless consistency when it comes to food. Plan ahead, figure out a daily blueprint that works for you and stick to it. I usually go for high volume, so I’ll prioritise protein and then bulk it out with a lot of non-starchy low cal veg which keeps me full. Once I started tracking what I was eating I realised I was having way too many carbs! I still have carbs, just not nearly as much. I bring breakfast, lunch and snacks to work with me, even if we have catered meetings I bring and eat my own food.

I schedule my workouts in my diary a week ahead, so that I never miss them.

Lifting progressively heavier over time. I actually started out doing BodyPump classes which are high rep, low weight but saw a step change in results once I learned how to lift heavier weights with fewer reps.

If you have time to do 1-3 classes/ hours in the gym a week I would definitely choose strength training/ lifting weights. Go to a women’s gym or find a PT or ask in the local gym about someone showing you what to do and then once a month asking again as you increase weights & they can check on your form etc.

If you have more time than this I’d add a reformer Pilates. Often expensive but worth it.

If you have a 5th hour or more, I’d spend it walking.

This is how I’ve changed my shape and gone from chubby size 12-14 to a toned and compact size 10. Arms are still a work in progress because I think for me this is where I stored fat even when I was super slim in my 20s.

I was hoping for suggestions other than jabs. OP, did you want info on jabs?

The only natural way to change your body composition is weightlifting. It's got so many benefits for women. I've transformed my figure with several years of consistent heavy lifting and tbh my face is also completely transformed. In my late 30s and look and feel the best I've ever felt. I always exercised, but never took weights that seriously. It's not a quick fix, you need to build up and push to make small gains (either reps or weights up) consistently. You also need to eat enough protein (I went low carb too). Pilates etc will not change your body shape, the only way is to either build muscle, or lose lots of weight (which is achieved with diet obvs) pilates and gym classes with do neither. But if you enjoy it it's great as a complimentary activity.

I am 46 and do Body pump classes (weights) at least twice a week, plus yoga if time allows and one cardio class.
Healthy diet for life.
Cook loads of veg and fruit everyday. But still have small amounts of choc etc, I don't 'ban' anything, just try to be balanced.
Weights are the thing that have made the most difference. I've been doing weight classes for 3 years now, and they have changed my shape considerably.
I no longer have a sticky out belly which I had for years after my kids.
But it's slow and steady for sure.
I also approach it from a mental health viewpoint, it makes me feel so much better.
The gym is a social too and the body shape is a nice bonus.
Good luck 👍