Older Women and Weight Loss

Women gain weight as they age. I’ve heard that my whole life and, having spent my teens, twenties and thirties as a stick figure, I now find it to be true. I never had to worry about weight loss. I ate whatever I wanted and exercised to put on muscle, not take off fat. Alas, those days are gone, gone, gone. Now that I need to lose a few pounds, I am at a loss as to how to do it. I read and write enough about women’s fitness to know that fad diets don’t work. It’s a question of calories and exercise. Basic fact: Consume more calories than you expend and you’re gonna gain weight. So, is it more difficult for women to lose weight – and keep it off – especially as they age?

A new study from the University of Pittsburgh Department of Health and Physical Activity says yes, it is. Researchers found that, while it’s easy to lose weight in the initial stages of a diet, it’s increasingly difficult to keep it off in the long-term, especially for post-menopausal women. The study, published in the September 2012 issue of the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, finds that some behaviors that work initially become more and more difficult to maintain in the long run.

(Did you really need science to tell you that at the beginning of a diet you can easily resist that slice of chocolate cheesecake but, as the weeks wear on, that cheesecake looms large until it’s all but impossible to resist? I didn’t think so, although perhaps knowing why it’s difficult to maintain weight loss may help us maintain motivation.)

Lead investigator Bethany Barone Gibbs, Ph.D., says, “Not only does motivation decrease after you start losing weight, there are physiological changes, including a decreased resting metabolic rate. Appetite-related hormones increase. Researchers studying the brain are now finding that you have enhanced rewards and increased motivation to eat when you’ve lost weight.”

That last sentence is a kick in the ass. And I am living proof of its veracity. I’ll start a diet with all the motivation in the world, drop a few pounds thanks to my decreased caloric intake and increased physical activity and then …

And then, I lose my motivation and devour every edible object that enters my visual field and, voila, my net weight loss is wiped out. What’s a woman to do?

The study followed 508 overweight, menopausal women who were assigned to two groups: a Lifestyle Change group and a Health Education group. The former met regularly with exercise physiologists, nutritionists and psychologists throughout the course of the 48 month study and were encouraged to reduce caloric intake and fats and to increase physical activity and consumption of fruits and vegetables. The latter group was offered seminars on women’s health in general, but not specifically on weight loss.

Four months into the study, researchers found that behaviors associated with weight loss included consuming less sugar (by cutting down on desserts and sugar-sweetened beverages), reducing consumption of fried foods and preparing meals at home.

But it was a different story at four years when many of the participants fell off the fried foods and sugar wagons. Says Dr. Barone Gibbs, “People are so motivated when they start a weight loss program. You can say, ‘I’m never going to eat another piece of pie,’ and you see the pounds coming off.” But that’s not always easy to maintain. Yet, some of the women were successful at losing weight and maintaining the weight loss. What did they do differently?

At four years into the study, eating more fruits and vegetables and eating less meat and cheese emerged as additional important predictors for long-term weight loss.

So, even if you “cheat” with an occasional crab cake or slice of chocolate cake, you can maintain weight lost at the start of your diet if you include fruits and vegetables and cut down on meat and cheese. Says Dr. Barone Gibbs, “Eating fruits and vegetables may not make as big a difference in your caloric intake. But that small change can build up and give you a better long-term result, because it’s not as hard to do as giving up French fries forever.” She adds, “If the goal is to reduce the burden of obesity, the focus must be on long-term strategies because changes in eating behaviors only associated with short-term weight loss are likely to be ineffective and unsustainable.”

The takeaway – While decreased consumption of desserts, sugared-beverages and fried foods results in short and long term weight loss and maintenance, eating more fruits and vegetables and eating less meat and cheese may improve long term weight loss and maintenance.

I want to know, however, where that leaves me – a fruit and vegetable eating vegetarian. It must be the cheese. And chocolate. And eating in restaurants 3 or more times a week. And I can’t forget the pasta, the pizza, the yummy cream puffs from the incredible Choux Factory in NYC (try them, but just once); the cheesy popcorn that I fool myself into thinking is a healthy snack; my obsession with jelly beans, especially the black ones and doughnuts of any variety, except strawberry.

Ok, so I know what I have to do to lose and maintain weight loss. Now I just have to do it. Forever.

Have you been successful at losing weight and keeping it off? If so, leave a comment in the section below and tell us how you did it. And, even if you’ve been unsuccessful, leave a comment and tell us your diet pitfalls.

Read about one EverBeautiful woman’s weight loss success story here.

Read my review of The 17-Day Diet, a plan that actually worked for me, here.

And, one more thing, please don’t attack me for writing a story about losing weight. I am not passing judgment on anyone’s appearance. If you want to lose weight and think that will make you feel better about your appearance and general health, that’s your call. If you don’t want to lose weight and are happy with your appearance and general health, your call again. I’m just here to bring you the news, not to judge anyone’s appearance. (And yes, this rant is brought to you by someone who attacked me for being judgmental against overweight women, something regular readers of EverBeautiful.com will find untrue and laughable.)