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Your best life after 40 - living with purpose and vibrant health. Empowering you with a holistic approach: nourishing foods, herbal remedies, and self-care to reduce overwhelm, manage your weight, and enjoy vibrant health in your 40's, 50's, and beyond.

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weight loss after 40

6 Things to Avoid When You Are Trying to Lose Weight After 40

7:52 am by Seeking Joyful Simplicity 2 Comments

Are you fighting a losing battle against hormones, a slowing metabolism, and difficulty maintaining your weight? 6 things to avoid when you are trying to lose weight after 40. 

 

Losing Weight After 40

Are you fighting a losing battle against hormones, a slowing metabolism, and difficulty maintaining your weight? New challenges require a new approach, and here are 6 things to avoid when you are trying to lose weight after 40.

1. Avoid skipping meals – Take advantage of the “thermic effect”

As our metabolism begins slowing down during our forties, we need fewer calories. Skipping meals only causes the body to burn fewer calories. Eating smaller meals more frequently can actually help increase the amount of calories you burn through something called the “thermic effect of food”.

The digestive system requires a significant amount of energy to process food, and includes the muscles lining the stomach, small, and large intestines which move food along. The liver is considered the most metabolically active organ in the body, and combined with the other digestive organs like the pancreas, stomach, gall bladder and intestines, uses a lot of calories.

Eating small, frequent, well-balanced meals and snacks can keep your body burning calories, your appetite under control, and your blood sugar balanced.

2. Avoid diet foods

Low fat, low carb, and gluten-free still have calories, and many contain ingredients that can do more harm than good. Keep in mind, the goal of the food industry is to sell us their products. Anything packaged with a label promoting something as “good for us” is usually just a processed food disguised as a health food.

Stick with real, whole foods as much as possible.

3. Avoid counting calories

Counting calories is not a sustainable way to live, can make you a little crazy-obsessive, and doesn’t help you learn to find the balance you need to maintain a healthy weight. Experiment and find the right balance of protein, healthy fats, combined with plenty of vegetables and small amounts of fruit and grains.

How to lose weight after 40. Are you fighting a losing battle against hormones, a slowing metabolism, and difficulty maintaining your weight? 6 things to avoid when you are trying to lose weight after 40. Are you fighting a losing battle against hormones, a slowing metabolism, and difficulty maintaining your weight? 6 things to avoid when you are trying to lose weight after 40. 

4. Avoid strict rules

Strict diets rarely work in the long run, and healthy eating includes eating foods that bring us pleasure. Find a balance that works for you, something like  90% healthy foods with 10% for pleasure. Choose nutrient-rich foods that support your health and give you energy. Of course, don’t eat broccoli if you absolutely hate it, find a variety of healthy alternatives, prepared in a way you enjoy. The other 10% of your choices can be simply for pleasure. Once weight loss goal is reached, try an 80/20 approach.

5. Let go of the “All or Nothing” mentality

Come on, you know what I am talking about. We have all over-indulged in the last meal just before we started a new diet, or, when we go off our eating plan we say to ourselves, “Oh well, I blew my diet, so I might as well keep on eating.”

Going down this road can be difficult on our self-esteem at best, and lead to binge-eating at worst. Let’s agree not to do this to ourselves, okay?

6. Let go of the guilt

Along the lines of dieting and the all-or-nothing attitude, we can really beat ourselves up when things don’t go according to plan (when do things ever go according to plan?!). We are hard enough on ourselves, so let’s let go of the guilt, shall we?

When we do make poor choices, let it go. Let’s show some grace and compassion for ourselves. To be successful at weight loss after 40, we may need to Change Our Relationship With Food.

As we get older, losing weight is harder than ever. What we really need is a Holistic Approach to Weight Loss after 40.

 

What are your thoughts? What do you struggle with when trying to eat healthy and manage your weight?

~ Michelle

Filed Under: Health and Wellness Tagged With: losing weight after 40, weight loss after 40

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Hello and welcome! Seeking Joyful Simplicity is about creating space in your life for the things that matter most - abundant health, joy, and contentment. With a holistic approach focused on self-reflection, simple foods, and herbal support, I offer a practical approach to living with purpose and vibrant health. Want to learn more? Start here…

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Disclaimer and Disclosure

The information provided here is not intended to replace professional medical advice and care. It is simply my perspective for you to consider as you make good choices for you and your family’s health. The use of herbs is a time-honored approach to strengthening the body and maintaining health. Herbs, however, can trigger side effects and can interact with other herbs, supplements, or medications. For these reasons, you should take herbs with care. The information provided has not been evaluated by the FDA and is not meant to diagnose any disease, nor is it intended to treat, cure, or prevent any disease. Seek the support and care of a physician and/or complementary care practitioner you trust, and above all, listen to and trust in yourself. Be well!

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