Why am I not losing weight?

[VeepVeep]

I'm fairly petit, almost 50, on HRT and have a small waist and good upper arms...but in the past few years, fat has laid down on my ass, I have a small bulge stomach wise and my legs are not as thin as I'd like.

I work out about 3/4 times a week. 45 min sessions of either boxing, weights, a class which mixes up the two, and HITT. I do yoga for about 20 mins 3 x week or more.

I eat small portions except on days like today when I had a big roast and a couple of glasses of wine. I rarely drink.

Yet, I don't seem to shift any weight. And I KNOW muscle weighs more, but the bits of my body that were fatter are still fatter.

I feel miserable about it today.

I'd say 90% of the training for weight loss is done with your knife and fork.

I'm in a similar position. I know I eat too much.

@E20mom - you made me laugh out loud

It's true.

But I really don't feel I eat a lot. I don't gain, really. I just don't lose

Do you actually weigh more now than 10 yrs ago?
Your body shape changes with aging. I'm not sure if you're more than 2% fatter or just a very different shape you don't like.

I do actually weigh more than 10 years ago. I weigh about 10-12 more. I did have a baby 8 years ago and then go into early menopause.

I just can't seem to shift that last half stone. I'd like a smaller bum, to be honest.

I think the only way to know for sure that you aren't eating too much is to track everything you eat or drink accurately

I’m the same as you OP. I’m nearly 40 and I don’t really gain weight but have plateaued at 3 or 4 kilos heavier than I’d like to be - all on my tummy and arse.

I do a fair amount of exercise and thought that I ate very moderately. But then I started tracking everything I ate on My Fitness Pal and I was really surprised and shocked at how much I was actually consuming. Although I eat healthily my portion sizes were too big for my needs. Like, if I was having a chickpea curry and rice, I’d serve myself probably three times more rice than I ought to have. It’s basically one calorie per gram of cooked brown rice and I would easily eat 250-300g of brown rice with a curry. That’s 300 calories before you even add the actual curry. Add in half a plain naan bread? Hardly extravagant but that’s another 190 calories!! And then maybe a couple of squares of dark choc after, again, not gluttonous by any stretch, but that’s another 150 calories. In my mind i felt I was eating very healthily and virtuously but in fact I was eating a 700 - 1000 calorie dinner most nights. And that’s not even counting breakfast, lunch (sandwich? Hello 500 calories), a latte or cappuccino and a couple of biscuits (hello another 500 calories). You’re over 2,000 calories easily and you haven’t really eaten all that much.

Start tracking your eating habits and see if that makes a difference.

I think I'd be inclined to do less intense cardio but for longer e.g. long bike ride, swim or run. BUT if you enjoy those classes then you must take that into account - no good doing something you don't enjoy, you'll just be miserable.

You're not shifting weight because you are eating the exact same number of calories that you are burning - it's the first law of thermodynamics.

Swimming is great for all over toning. Running will shrink your ass!

Agree with other posters that you need to look at what you're eating. There's a saying ' you can't outrun a bad diet' and it's true! Maybe start off keeping a good diary for a few weeks?

Get my fitness pal and weigh and log what you eat and you might find you eat more than you think

Ugh at that first law of thermodynamics quote that gets chucked around here.

It’s not strictly true in such easy terms. How our bodies deal with certain foods at certain times is complex and the menopause does affect that.

OP you are healthy, you eat well, exercise well, have treats in moderation and enjoy them.

Make peace with your bum. It doesn’t define you. Enjoy your life and be fit and healthy.

It's mad how quickly food adds up.. I eat very healthily, no junk or takeaways, no carbs like pasta rice potatoes bread etc, just meat vegetables and salads etc. Even that quickly adds up.

I absolutely love bread and butter. So I can eat two or three super healthy meals a day but then have two huge slices of homemade wholemeal bread with loads of butter. I daren't put that into my fitness pal :-D but I'll imagine its behind my failure to lose weight!

Age and hormones is playing havoc with my metabolism too I feel your pain. I exercise 5x a week, fittest I’ve been for years but mid-40s on HRT and feel like I have to eat half my calories to lose a lb but look at a biscuit and zap I gain it back. Reducing carbs has helped but I like cake too much too so I have to accept my shape.

Go on 5:2 or 16:8 to reduce your calories. There's no other way.

Are you eating enough and the right stuff for all the exercise you do? If check that first.

Thank you all so much. It's really helpful.

I do think a) I should track foods. I really don't eat a lot but I'm aware that nuts calories can add up. b) I really do think that menopause and age plays a key part.

Yesterday I read on the Ketogenic Diet Doctor's site that keto (low carbs, high fat) has not necessarily proven to work on women in menopausal years. Possibly because of the high protein? So the advice is to go easy - as in be mindful of calories, even from fat - go low protein and low carbs (which makes for even more boring existence) and then introduce intermittent fasting. Possibly 16:8. This seemed to work for one woman.

I know I have to make peace with my ass! But it's hard. It's hard to work so hard at being fit, strong and - excuse my vanity - 'good' - and for it to be SO hard.

I'm dying to know why DavidClark's post got deleted!

It is frustrating to know that I can really exercise a lot - A LOT - with the right amount of cardio and strength to make me feel really fit and to tone me - it doesn't really help with losing weight? That it all comes down to food. I

Menopause certainly plays a huge role. I am nearing my 50s and I used to be able to drop a kg or two very easily when noticing my jeans were getting tight. Now, it involves eating enormously less.

Sadly, yes it comes down to food. Working out at the gym is great for your health, to have a nice toned body, but you have to cut food if you want to lose.

And don't go nut on nuts!!