I am a small framed woman and noticed that I was putting on a few extra pounds. I’ve never been over 110 lbs and the last time I went to the doctor I was at 121 lbs. For those of you who lke to keep small you know how badly those extra 10 lbs can make you feel! I’ve never had to diet, and have had the same workout routine for years, but getting older…
Well, I started drinking protein shakes for breakfast, salads for lunch and sensible suppers before 7pm. I’ve lost about 15 lbs over a 6 week period and feel great! I’d like to be less strict on myself now but I’m scared if I stop eating so stictly I will gain it back.
What’s the best way to maintain weight without having to work out excessively and constantly watch what goes in?
Thanks!
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Weight balance is a simple equation: if you eat the same amount of calories that you burn, your weight shouldn’t change. Start off by estimating how many calories you burn per day using the calorie calculator http://www.straighthealth.com/pages/tools/caloriecalclb.html . This is the amount of calories you should also be eating everyday.
Beginners Guide to Dieting – http://straighthealth.com/pages/guides/begdieting.html
The best way to keep weight off is to make sure your base metabolic rate isn’t slipping. Dieting can cause that to happen. Age and inactivity can also cause that to happen.
Eating well is not only a good way to keep weight off, but it will also help you avoid disease and will slow down the aging process.
That said, exercise is more and more important as you age. It keeps your cardio vascular system healthy and in menopausal and post menopausal women it helps you avoid bone loss . . . you remain active and will be healthier for it.
BUT, that doesn’t mean you need to become an exercise freak!!
Most people, who eat a healthy diet, do just fine with reasonable exercise from home, such as a 15 to 30 minute brisk walk 3 times a week.
You might also look into a light Pilates routine, which can be learned in your home (via a DVD) and requires a mat and maybe a stability ball. The stability ball is a fantastic and fun exercise tool and cost about $20, and you simply can’t believe what you can do with this silly thing. Here’s a link to some easy, fun, and effective exercises: http://exercise.about.com/cs/abs/l/bl_core.htm
I hope this helps. Exercise can actually be fun and it is a great stress reliever. But it’s also one of the BEST ways to stay young and healthy.
There is a great website called sparkpeople.com. It’s like ediets, but it’s free. It’s a great website that offers a meal plan that suits your body type and gives you exercises to do daily and also has a way for you to count your calories and fat. I love the support it gives and it is so easy to keep track of. The exercises are simple and effective. They are all floor exercises. You can do them with or without weights. It tells you what you need to do to lose the weight. They have a chat forum that you can go to when you are discouraged and find some great stories and support there.
Hi Tina! I love small framed women. lol haha I had a g/f long time ago, very small frame body. She was very short, about 4’11″ tall, small frame, very petite, very sexy too! Just walk at the park for about 1 hour M-F and you will definitely get in shape. Also enrolled in a gym. Get on that lifecycle, it helps to be flexible, like plastic woman. Cut the yard everyday, take your dog a walk to the park or something. Hope this helps. You can write to me anytime, I am your wonderful down to earth friend.