What’s the secret?

Well, unfortunately there is no secret but there is a good chance if you follow a few of the tips I am going to give you here you will start to see dramatic changes in just 3 weeks! So here we go.

My Top 7 Tips For Losing Belly Fat When You Are Over 50

#1 – Cut Calories, But Not Too Drastically.

To decrease body fat you must create a calorie deficit so you are burning more calories than you consume. In our zealous enthusiasm (especially during the first few weeks) we tend to cut down too much, too fast and this will slow down your metabolism and actually encourage you to store more fat. The body thinks you are starving and wants to preserve itself. A 10 % to 15% reduction in calories is all it takes to get into the fat burning mode.

#2 – Eat FIve To Six Small Meals A Day

Small frequent meals, as opposed to the traditional “three Squares” will jack up the metabolic rate and stoke the calorie burning furnace. The more you pracrice this the more fat will gradually leave your body. Keep in mind some of the meals don’t have to be meat, potato and veggies. A meal can be a portable food like yogurt and some almonds.Adapt the habit of doing small “feedings’ throughout the day.

#3 – Reduce Carbohydrate Intake At Night

“No White At Night”- this is one of my mantras. Keep the white starches (flours & sugars) for your morning and lunch meals , while choosing low carb foods( lean protein, nuts, cottage cheese, vegetables) after 6 PM. My clients who are heavy nite eaters tend to skip breakfast because they’re not hungry in the morning and perpetuate this cycle of overeating and gaining weight.

#4 – Eat Fiber With Every Meal

High fiber foods like fruit, vegetables and whole grains fill you up on less calories. They have more nutrition and help you to stabilize blood sugar( feel less hungry) and maintain good digestive health. Get the “F” word in your daily diet and fat will start to melt away. The higher the fiber the faster the fat loss!

#5 – Drink Half Your Body Weight In Ounces Of Water

Water is one of the most important weapons in the battle against belly fat. It acts as an appetite suppressant and aids in the digestion of meals. It helps your body to regulate sodium intake and the absorption of vitamins and minerals. It helps your cells utilize stored fat energy for fuel. If you feel sluggish and tired you may simply be dehydrated. Try doubling your water intake this week and I guarantee you will feel better.

#6 – The More You Cook The Better You Look!

I use this mantra to remind my clients that cooking at home is the best way to control calories and make faster progress in your fat loss goals. I think it’s great to eat out, but despite making good menu choices you are at the mercy of a chef who wants to make his food appealing with extra fat sugars and salt. It is the nature of the beast – so save restaurants meals for special occasions. You’ll not only look better, you’ll be saving lots of money too.

#7 – Exercise Daily

I don’t care what it is – just do something everyday. It doesn’t have to be the gym- gardening, walking, biking, house cleaning, tennis, yoga, swimming or lifting weights or exercise videos at home will get you off your butt and jack up your fat burning metabolism, the worst thing you can do is sit all day! Do the minimum at least 6 days out of seven!

Note: These are time tested strategies that will jump start you efforts to get rid of that belly! Try adding two a week to your schedule ove the next eight weeks and see how much better you will look and feel . It’s not complicated. Remember just take small, baby steps and the larger results will follow over time.

Here Are A Few Proven Strategies For Permanent Fat Loss

#1 – Always Maintain Boundaries And Rules Around Food

The best way to structure your week is “eat clean” 5 days a week. Just determine you will follow the rules of healthy eating at least 80% of the time. This allows room for unexpected and unavoidable poor food choices, restaurant meals, moments of unpreparedness and splurges. Striving for 100% perfection is a set up that never works! My personal rules for weekday eating are : NO SUGAR OR FLOUR PRODUCTS and EVERYTHING IN IT’S MOST NATURAL AND UNPROCESSED STATE WHENEVER POSSIBLE. That’s it. I keep it simple. It’s challenging but workable.

Here is a sample day:

• Breakfast- 6 egg whites, spinach and low fat cheese, black beans or berries.
• Snack- 100 calories of nuts, or apple/pears with 1 TBS peanut butter
• Lunch – Sesame grilled chicken breast and a sweet potato with cinnamon
• Snack- Low fat cheese and fruit
• Dinner- Barley soup, Grilled fish, green vegetable and greek yogurt for dessert.
• Snack- Cottage cheese or protein drink

#2 – Think “More Taste Less Waist”

Be creative and adventurous in your food choices. Think ABUNDANCE NOT DEPRIVATION. I strive to make the usual boring “diet food” choices more interesting by making substitutions for the usual chicken breast, brown rice, broccoli and fruit combos. I use buffalo, pork tenderloin and wild salmon for protein. I rotate starchy carbs through barley, Quinoa, steel cut oats, purple sweet potatoes, butternut squash. Produce -fresh or frozen -opens up a whole world for tasting and exploration. I love collards, kale, swiss chard, purple cauliflower and jicama. Fruit in season from a farm stand is always a treat, especially in spring and summer

#3 – Know Your Food Triggers

Some of us have unavoidable overeating problems around certain foods for various reasons that are both physiological and psychological in nature. It’s best to avoid them altogether or create alternatives . I have a great big sweet tooth and love cookies and milk. I NEVER BRING THEM IN MY HOUSE. If I want a cookie on my splurge day, I go to starbucks or a sit down dessert place and have it. Don’t kid yourself about willpower. THINK HISTORICALLY NOT CALORICALLY! Let your personal history be your guide.

#4 – Develop Mantras

I have some personally motivating things I say to myself to remind me about my goal of staying lean. I have used these with clients over the years and they seem to help.

• “Eat a salad as big as your head everyday”
• “Green is lean- white is light”
• Losing weight is no big deal with protein and fiber at every meal
• I taste everything and finish nothing
• I follow the rule of HALF- I eat half of the indulgent snack.
• The rule of 1/4 – I always leave a quarter portion on my plate- I can have more later
• Is what I am about to eat going to move me towards my goal or away from my goal?
• If it’s in the house it’s in your mouth

#5 – Portion Control

No amount of healthy food can trump portion size and calories when it comes to losing and maintaining fat loss. I teach portions, do food label lessons and show examples of typical servings right from the start with all my clients. It’s crucial to learn the calories and the quantities needed to keep from over eating and thwarting your efforts.

#6 – Do Damage Control When You Backslide Or Fall Off Your Plan

Do what you can after the binge or indulgence – eat less 100 calories less at your next 5 meals and add 15-20 minutes of extra exercise. Accept that it happens and you will have a way to avoid it in the future.

#7 – Adapt And Adjust To Situations, People, Places And Things That Sabotage Your Eating Plan

It’s unavoidable- your best laid plans can be ruined by parties, restaurants, well meaning friends, vacations, and holidays. Accept it and have a plan – If plan A doesn’t work go to plan B and if that doesn’t work be prepared for plan C, D or E! Do whatever it takes!

#8 – Don’t Allow Emotions, Feelings Or Moods To Rule Your World

We all have good days, bad days and lots of neutral “in between” days. Once you know all moods and feelings are temporary ( like the weather) you have mastery over your reaction to them. You simply acknowledge them and accept them and move on. Do what you know you need to do – whether you feel like it or not!

Overeating to soothe your moods only perpetuates an unhealthy cycle of dependence and weight gain. Exercise has been shown to alter moods with in 30 minutes and to relieve symptoms of depression the same as Prozac. Keep your goal top of mind and realize everything is temporary and will pass with time.

These are some of the many nuggets of wisdom I hope will be helpful to you as you practice living a healthy and lean lifestyle. Your best life is lived in a place where you feel you are comfortably challenged and growing. I hope the advice in this blog gives you the courage to make the changes you know you need to make and to live your life in a body you can be proud of into your 50’s 60’s and beyond.

Cake by Kanko

Control Portions For Sustained Weight Loss

Portion sizes were much smaller in the past than they are today- (remember when a large soda wasn’t a half gallon?) With today’s portions sizes it’s easy to lose track of how much you are eating. To lose the weight the bottom line is controlling portions. In recent research suggests that portion control is the biggest predictor of successful weight loss. Control portions by learning to read nutrition labels, carefully measure out servings, eat a single helping, use smaller serving plates and resist the urge to clean your plate.

Pay Attention To Everything You Eat

Many people turn to food when they are bored or stressed out. Always ask my self, “Am I hungry?” – and if you’re not why are you headed for the pantry or fridge? Are you really motivated by hunger or are you bored, stressed out, sad or tired? Emotional eating can wreak havoc on a well planned weight management program. Keeping a food log and jotting down what you are feeling will help you identify emotions, monitor your food intake and hold yourself accountable.

Know Your Weight To Maintain Your Fat Loss

It’s also important to know how much you weigh. While it’s not advisable to become obsessive, people who maintain their weight loss do so by periodically checking themselves on the scale at least once a week. This way they are able to identify small changes and take appropriate and corrective action.

Turn Off The Television

Time spent watching TV is usually time spent being completely sedentary. You are burning a minimum amount of calories while eating maximum calorie snacks.Most people are mindless consuming high fat and high carbohydrate foods in quantities beyond what their bodies need. The successful losers on the national weight loss registry control list report no more than 10 hours of TV in a week.

Exercise Regularly To Keep The Weight Off

Fitness is a key to losing weight and keeping pounds off. 94% of the participants in the Weight Control registry did so by increasing their rate of physical activity. Most report walking at least an hour each day. For those that kept the weight off, exercise is crucial. This was evident because the participants who dropped out of the fitness programs ended up putting the pounds back on.

Why?

Because as you lose weight you lose muscle mass (unless you are strength training) and this also slows down the metabolism and makes it difficult to keep the weight off. Although cardiovascular exercise is important for burning calories, even more important is to do resistance strength training to help you preserve calorie burning lean muscle tissue which is the key to a high metabolism

Delicious meal by yomi955

The Secret: Eat More Fiber

Researchers at Brigham Young university followed the eating habits of 252 middle aged women for nearly two years and found that those who increased their fiber intake lost the most weight. Those who decreased their fiber generally gained weight. The Scientists boiled down their findings into a single weight loss formula – boosting fiber by 8 grams for every 1000 calories consumed, results in losing about 5 pounds. This is without consciously counting calories or portions.

While it helps you feel full because of it’s bulk it has virtually no calories and passes through the digestive track helping to keep the colon clean and healthy. So you can eat more without getting fat.

If you fill up on high fiber, you crowd out less healthy foods ( highly processed starches, fats and sugary treats). Try it for yourself. If you are consuming 2000 calories a day aim to increase your fiber by 16 grams. These four food will get you started and help you feel fuller longer:

• Rasberries 1 cup = 8 grams of fiber. Toss these in a cup on fat free yogurt for a great snack.
• Chickpeas 3/4 cup = 8 grams Toss these in a salad of arugula, roasted red peppers, tuna and artichokes for a quick Italian antipasto salad.
• Strawberries 1 cup =3 grams Chop them up and sprinkle with splenda or brown sugar and serve over angel food cake with a touch of fat free reddi-whip.
• Green Beans 1 cup = 4 grams fiber Cook frozen whole beans in the microwave then toss with a 1/4 cup of blue cheese and 1/4 cup of Walnuts.

These are just a few of the hundreds of foods you can enjoy that won’t pack on the pounds. Start reading labels for fiber grams or look non labeled foods up on www.Nutritiondata.com

Strawberries from clairity

Set Realistic Goals

Say no to extreme diets, miracle fat loss pills, and magic food fads. Create sustainable habits that can last a lifetime. Start where you are and make gradual changes. Take pride in your progress, learn as you go and most important, take slip-ups and setbacks in stride. Every failure is a lesson and feedback in what doesn’t work for you. You cannot fail, you can only learn and grow.

Pay Attention To The Details

Notice when you are triggered to overeat or skip workouts. Observe the impact certain foods have on your energy, digestion and water retention. Start reading labels on everything you buy to determine if there are hidden sugars, corn syrup, trans fat or chemical ingredients.

Say No To Big Portions

Keep in mind the average adult stomach has about a one quart capacity, so eating huge platter size meals makes no sense. Overstuffing also leaves you feeling groggy, impedes digestion, and gives your body more calories than it can use at one time. If you have a big appetite start with a giant green vegetable salad or a bowl of vegetable soup.

Change Your Life And Your Body Will Follow

Even small steps like drinking more water, walking to work, and refusing to eat while watching TV, can start you in the right direction.

Remember Weight Loss Is Individual

We all have different bodies and different metabolisms. So don’t fret if your best friend is shedding weight at a faster rate than you. Just keep your eyes on the prize – healthy weight loss and whole body vitality that will last into your 90’s! If you are not getting good results from your current efforts seek expertise from a qualified health and nutrition expert.

Stunning Taj Mahal photo by prakhar

Get Over Gym Intimidation

The muscle heads at the squat rack aren’t judging you. “If they see someone out of shape trying their hardest to change, they’ll do what they can to help you” says Harper. So don’t be afraid to ask for a spot or some guidance. Just because these guys are younger than you and in great shape, doesn’t mean they haven’t struggled with exercise and diets.

Fight Through The Pain

Your 50+ neglected body won’t be able to do what it once did with great ease. Start slowly and remember that post exercise soreness means you are making progress. Use this as a motivation to put the past into the present. “You’ll see just how far you have let yourself go, but you’ll know what you are eventually capable of” says Harper

Break Periods Of Discouragement

It’s no secret that support groups work. Online sites like www.biggestloserclub.com, peertrainer.com and the support squad at www.50-plus-fitness.com are huge inspirations for weight loss. Share your story with peers and read how they overcame struggles similar to yours.

Forget Plateaus

Whether you lose weight every week or not, remember that your efforts are improving your overall health- from lowering cholesterol to cutting visceral belly fat. And don’t weigh yourself more than once a week. You’ll just drive yourself nuts.

Fall Down Six Times But Stand Up Seven

The wagon will leave you behind if you fall off. This is especially true after age 50. Now it’s your job to keep chasing it down and continue the journey to your best life in your best body.

Beautiful photo by Hamed Saber

[Eating more salads (and vegetables in general) is a great way to reduce the amount of calories you consume while enjoying a delicious meal and feeling full.]

#1 – Forget Diets – They Don’t Work

Why do we gain weight? It all comes down to calories. It’s eating too much and not exercising that makes us fat. It’s intake equals output. Managing your weight and your health is easy if you decide to make it a lifelong commitment instead of a temporary crash diet.

#2 – Use Self Control

Avoid the “eat everything” diet where you promise to start tomorrow. If you overindulge, just cut back portions the rest of the day by 20% to balance it out (about a 1/4 less food than you normally eat). To cut back on portions use smaller dessert size plates or compartmentalized plates where you can divide protein starch and vegetable visually. This simple change can make a long term difference in maintaining fat loss.

#3 – Undersize me!

Portions of meat poultry fatty fish should be the size of a deck of cards. Eat as many green vegetables as you like and have 2-3 servings of fruit each day. Heavy starches like rice and potatoes should be the size of a half baseball. Be careful with sauces and dressings as they pack on the calories. Instead try new exotic spices or fresh herbs.

#4 – Finish Each Meal When You Are 80% Full

Never fill your stomach always leave some room. Tell yourself you can have more later. Take a break half way through to see if you are still hungry. Most of the time we keep eating because food is available rather than to satisfy hunger.

#5 – Eat Slowly

It takes your brain 10 to 15 minutes to realize what you have eaten. If you eat quickly, by the time your brain the full signal you have already overeaten.

#6 – Water And Veggies Fill You Up

Serve water with every meal to help fill you up.Studies from Dr.Barbara Rolls a nutrition researcher and author of VOLUMETRICS eating advises to start each meal with a big salad or a non cream based vegetable soup. People who begin their meals this way eat less losing more quickly than whose who do not eat soup or salad. It’s a healthy way to get more veggies in your daily eating plan.

#7 – Choose The Right Snacks

Make healthy choices with fruit , veggies, nuts,yogurt and protein bars. Avoid the chips, candy and white starchy carbs, they spike your blood sugar and then cause you to crash and feel hungry a few hours later.

Try to implement just one of these ideas into your plan over the coming week. As you feel comfortable with the changes, add another new healthy habit. Take gradual baby steps toward permanent fat loss and you will find the transition easier and smoother. Slow and steady wins the race!

Delicious photo by rexipe