People who used to be able to eat what they liked but can’t now....

[seethesuninwintertime]

Hello, I’m about to start trying to change the habits of a lifetime.

Until 2nd pregnancy I was 9 stone or less and could eat as I pleased.

Then I hovered just under 10 stone but still felt good about my body.

Now, as I progress through menopause (51) it’s different. My thighs are still slim but my belly........! I have to change a lot and would like some company.

Hello, STSIWT.

I was an eat whatever I wanted type (about 5ft 6in and 8 and a bit stone) but after pregnancy I had an undiagnosed fibroid for several years with accompanying anaemia. Gradually and relentlessly the weight kept coming (I reached just under 12 stone with my knees starting to hurt)
After some surgery which removed the fibroid and helped me rid myself of the anaemia I decided to tackle the extra kilos and was lucky to have a long talk with a friend I respected who convinced me to research carb-restriction (LCHF) as my way forward. It was magnificently effective and I returned to my pre-pregnancy weight.

I’m the same age you are and we seem to have a similar build - my hips have never widened much, even when I was at my heaviest, it was all in the tummy. I found out last year that the changes that had happened post-pregnancy and during illness were permanent - I now put on weight eating things that didn’t seemingly affect me when I was younger. With that realisation I have made many of the shifts in eating habits during the Initial LCHF weight loss journey into forever changes.

My mother, who had gained weight through a thyroid problem witnessed my journey and having seen for herself that I was enjoying my alternative food choices and not suffering with hunger or feeling miserable or deprived, got on board also. She also lost about 3 stone.

I am not sure I would have been successful or if I would be able to stay slim if I still had anaemia (or the massive fibroid) so my own advice would be to check for any underlying problems of this sort and, if you have them, try to get them resolved first.

I really enjoy eating and this has motivated me into becoming good at cooking. However, I generally like putting things together in under 30 minutes. If you decide to join me on the low-carb high-fat route I have lots of ideas on how to tweak old favourites into foods that follow the LCHF “rules”.

Oh yes, my initial fear of a LCHF diet was that I might appear leaner but have lots of deadly secret fat around my liver and other internal organs but I had weekly access to one of those weighing machines you get in gyms that send electric signals through you and it indicated that my internal fat was melting away just as quickly as what I could see. This new way of eating has given me the flattest stomach I’ve ever had, even when I was a teenager [I’ve always been relatively active and never drived but I don’t actually “work out”).
And my knees are doing great now!