Losing Weight and Keeping it Off … One Woman’s Success Story

It was about three years ago, at the gym, that I met Gail Green. She was (and is) a bright spark who commanded attention in our daily fitness class as much for her dedication as for her personality, sense of humor and mischievousness. Had we been schoolgirls together, Gail would have charmingly but devilishly been the one giving the teacher a hard time, winning the adoration of the class and the eternal ire of the teacher.   Our fitness instructors were smitten, however, and Gail kept us all laughing amid our grunting and groaning.

Little did we know that Gail was doing a disappearing act by slowly and methodically losing weight. We, in the class, didn’t notice it immediately, since we saw her everyday. But occasional gym-goers would stop her to tell her, “It’s working. You look great.” And then, one day, I noticed that Gail was thin. She had, in fact, lost 35 pounds and, as amazing as that was, has managed to keep it off for several years.

Gail is an ageless woman. She has a youthful spirit, a youthful (and mischievous – that word keeps coming back. Sorry, Gail …) sparkle in her bright blue-green eyes and in her smile.

There are so many things about Gail that defy conventional thought about what a woman past 50 is supposed to do and not supposed to do. From her thick blonde hair that she wears in a pony tail at the gym or cascading to her waist when she’s dressed for other pursuits to her bright red or pink lipsticks to her short skirts and high heels that she wears to – wait for it – church, Gail defies her age and keeps everyone guessing as to what it is. (I know, but I’m not telling even though several people, most notably those of the male persuasion, have tried to get it out of me.)

Conventional wisdom tells us that losing weight is harder to achieve as we age. But Gail has defied that too. Here’s her story and her tips for losing weight and keeping it off …

EverBeautiful: You’ve accomplished what many people hope to achieve. You’ve lost weight and have kept it off for how long now?

Gail Green: I lost it all about a year and a half ago.

EverBeautiful: Wow! How long did it take you to lose the weight?

Gail Green: I went on this thing – it was a pound a week. And it worked out.

EverBeautiful: What thing? What was it?

Gail Green: I just stopped eating junk. I stopped eating bread. No carbs, in other words. And I don’t particularly like pasta. I had to stop eating sweets. I like chocolate. While I was losing, I made some fudge and I put it away in a bag. And I said to myself, “it’s gonna be there. No body’s going to touch it and I’ll have it later.” And it was there for months.

EverBeautiful: I would have never had the willpower to not eat it. I can’t have any temptations in my refrigerator or pantry.

Gail Green: I’ve done all of the diets. Weight Watchers, the ones where you buy the food. They weren’t for me. You can lose weight on all of them, but it didn’t work for me for the long term.

EverBeautiful: What was it then that kicked in for the long term?

Gail Green: It was your mind set. You have to decide that you’re going to lose weight – and you exercise.

EverBeautiful: Getting back to the fudge, because I have to know, did you ever eat it?

Gail Green: Yes, when I lost the weight. Towards the end I would eat a little bit of it, a little at a time.

EverBeautiful: Amazing. I’d have scarfed it all down at once and then wanted more. How much weight did you lose?

Gail Green: Thirty-five pounds.

EverBeautiful: And you’ve kept it off. Do you ever feel sabotaged by people? At a party? Or out with friends? That can be an issue when well-meaning friends want you to indulge with dessert to celebrate something or other.

Gail Green: Not really. I pretty much like being thin a lot more than I liked eating. I like the compliments. I like the clothes.

EverBeautiful:  Honest answer. I love it. How long did it take you to lose it all?

Gail Green: It took a good six months. Sometimes I’d lose a little more or a little less, but usually it was a steady pound a week.

EverBeautiful: What did you eat and, I guess, still eat?

Gail Green: Mostly protein and vegetables. No sauces. Some fats. I never cut off the fat on meat. I stopped using butter because I’d only use butter on bread. I didn’t eat bread anymore. I broiled or pan fried in Pam or diet margarine. I like fish. I still eat this way.

EverBeautiful: Do you have tips of secrets for EverBeautiful.com readers?

Gail Green: When starting a diet, don’t eat sugar or carbs for the first week because that reduces cravings and then it’s easier to resist temptation and cut down on portions.

EverBeautiful: Yeah, but there’s that first week. How do you get through that?

Gail Green: I just don’t eat the bad stuff. I drink a lot of tea or coffee. I don’t drink soda. I’ll lose two or three pounds the first week, easy. I think that’s the biggest secret. When you start the diet it’s super hard because you’re denying yourself. So you just take out the things that are cravings, the sugars and the bread. Just don’t even look at the bread. You know how at a restaurant people say they can’t pass up the bread? It’s just out of my mind.

EverBeautiful: You’re also a gym rat.

Gail Green: Well, I know it’s a combination of giving up food and doing exercise. Because I see so many women at the gym who stay heavy – so I know it’s not just about exercise.

EverBeautiful: I’ve seen photos of you. You were always thin as a younger woman. What contributed to your weight gain to begin with?

Gail Green: Stress and being around food. Cooking for a family contributed to it. I used to make a meal for myself and a meal for my boyfriend. You’re always tasting it and I’d eat the leftovers or taste the leftovers. Having that extra food around contributed to my weight gain. When he left, the stress was gone. I wasn’t cooking for someone else and I said to myself, “What’s happening here? I need to lose weight.” I got that determination and I would say little things like, “What’s to stop you? You’re here alone. You can make your own meals. There’s no reason to eat too much.” I’d give myself pep talks. Being at the gym helped. And then people at the gym would say, “You lost weight. Isn’t that wonderful?” That happened with men and women and that was a great incentive. So then when I went to a party, I’d get the same compliments and it would stop me from eating the sweets there. I’d try to pick out protein and ignore the sugar. When you cut out sugar for three days, you lose your temptation.

EverBeautiful: But you kept it off. So many people lose it and then regain it. How do you keep it off?

Gail Green: I graze. I really don’t eat three big meals. I eat little bits all day. I’ll get a chicken leg, eat some of it and save some for later. I make a big salad every night, enough for a family. Usually I eat my protein and an hour or two later I’ll eat the entire salad. I eat yogurt. That’s my treat during the day. An 80 calorie yogurt.

EverBeautiful: Do you count calories?

Gail Green: No. No counting calories, no points. If I go out to eat at a buffet, I pick the protein and the vegetables and I’ll occasionally have ice cream for a treat. I’m at the point where that satisfies me. I don’t have to eat a lot. I ate more when I was heavier. I never really ate a lot of junk. I never sat down with a bag of potato chips, ever. But I was just eating too much.

EverBeautiful: What about weighing yourself everyday? Many experts say that’s key to weight loss.

Gail Green: No. I weigh myself every three days. Sometimes I think I ate too much and then I weigh myself and I didn’t go up. But if I find that I do, I immediately cut back on my portions. I’ll have to look back and see that maybe I had a wrap sandwich. If I had that, then I won’t have anything else with carbs in it. That usually works.

EverBeautiful: How often do you exercise and what type of exercising do you do?

Gail Green: I exercise every day.  I go to the gym five days a week and I do a lot of walking. I walk anywhere I can walk, instead of driving. It doesn’t make sense to drive when I can walk.

EverBeautiful: Was it harder to lose the weight now than it was when you were younger?

Gail Green: No. I’ve been gaining and losing my whole life so I knew how to diet.  They say as you get older it’ll be harder, but it wasn’t. You just make up your mind and you do it.

EverBeautiful: So you’re really the Nike commercial.

Gail Green: That’s it. You just make up your mind and you do it.

EverBeautiful: What would you tell readers of EverBeautiful.com to do to help them achieve their weight loss goals?

Gail Green: Decide that you want to change your life. You want to feel better; you want to look better. And you go to an exercise program. It’s harder if you do that yourself. It’s easier if you have friends because it’s social. That’s important. You’re gonna go because your friends are going to be there. If you’re at home, you have other reasons not to do it.

EverBeautiful: Do you ever allow yourself a total pig out?

Gail Green: No total pig outs anymore. Semi pig outs – If I go out to eat, I might have more carbs than I like, or a bit of wine. I don’t drink, but will occasionally have a glass of wine – but then the next day, I’ll cut back or exercise more. I think you have to watch it all the time. You can’t just let yourself go – and if you do something wrong, you’ve got to correct it.

EverBeautiful: Thank you, Gail! You’re truly an inspiration.