If you are 60 or more, overweight, and you tried once or twice to lose some weight, you certainly know how difficult it is. At this age our body already works on a slower metabolism, not to mention the different medical conditions that may be of great impact on our exercising attempts. Knee-, joint-, hip-, back pain and certain age-related medical conditions-these all can stop us from working out the way we’d like to, or we used to.
Overweight After 60-Is It Still Possible to Shred the Pounds?
Yes, it is! Weight loss at old age might be harder than at earlier stages of life, but it is certainly not impossible. However, you may need to implement more changes into your overall lifestyle.
We all need to understand our body, so we can work with it towards our goal to lose weight.
But, let’s focus on our eating first. Our body, when it comes to energy, basically functions similar to a car battery. It uses up only the necessary amount and accumulates the left-over energy (the fuel, i.e. food) for the time when it will be needed. It prepares to survive the periods of lack of food, storing reserves. That’s how we put weight on.
Later on, either when it’s needed, and when the body feels there is enough food supply, it will release energy, if needed even from the storage. That’s how we lose weight.
So, eating much less and moving much more is the key? Well, yes and no. If you overdo with cutting back on your eating, your metabolism is going to slow down even more, as your body switch into a surviving mode, preserving every bit of energy it can for later and you end up not losing any weight. As a matter of fact, you should eat
The opposite then? Eating much more, tricking our body into a state of abundance, so it starts to release energy from reserves? Not quite that one, either.
So, How to Lose Weight After 60 Then, the Right Way?
First, understand types of food you eat and need to eat in order to maintain a healthy nutrition
Carbohydrates, proteins, fat, vitamins, minerals… Carbs are bad-that’s what we often hear, but, it’s them who provide energy, especially for the brain and the nervous system. They also are the fire on which your stored fat will burn. It is extremely important however which of the two types of carbs you eat. Simple carbs (sugar, corn syrup, fructose, fruit juice…) are broken down by enzymes quickly, causing an instant energy surplus, which will then be stored as a reserve, in form of fat.
Complex carbs (fiber as fruits, vegetables, nuts, beans, whole grains and starch as cereal without added sugar, whole wheat bread, brown rice, oats, peas, corn…) on the other hand are being broken slowly, providing a more steady supply of energy. This way it is being more used up than stored and you will burn calories more efficiently. Your goal is to keep your blood sugar levels steady throughout the day. You can always check the glycemic index of fruits and veggies and choose those with lower index.
Proteins: Besides fat and water, your body is made up almost entirely of protein, as it is the main component of muscles, bones, organs, skin, nails… The consumed protein is broke down into amino acids, which are used to build muscles and organs, to make hormones and antibodies, to be stored as fat, and to be burned as energy. Without an adequate protein intake, your body will break down existing muscle tissue and use it for energy, so you can’t maintain muscle mass while losing weight and can’t keep your metabolism running at full speed.
You should aim to have lean protein in every meal, to keep your hunger under control and maintain and build the lean muscle mass for a healthy weight loss. The reason why you should be very careful with proteins high in saturated fat (beef, pork, bacon, fatty meat, lamb, processed meat products, cheese, whole milk, creams, lard, butter…) is that excess protein will also be stored into body fat just as easily as most carbohydrates. Still, at this age you should be eating 0.35oz (10 grams) of protein for every 22 pounds (10kg) of your weight.
You’ll want to choose proteins low in saturated fat (poultry-deskinned, oily fish, nuts, avocado, beans, tofu and soy in general, low- or fat-free dairy products, canola oil, olive oil, sesame oil, peanut oil and butter…) These are higher in mono- and polyunsaturated, healthy fat. You do not want to completely cut out fat, as they are still of essential importance to your health, helping some of your body’s functions. You just here as well need to choose the right, healthy type to replace by them the unhealthy ones you might have been eating so far.
Essential fat, i.e. essential fatty acids, as their name says are essential for the body to function, but, our body can’t produce them, so it is essential that we consume them regularly. Omega 3, omega 6, and omega 9 fatty acids can be found in fish and shellfish, flax seed and its oil, olive oil, soy oil, canola oil, chia seeds, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, leafy vegetables, walnuts…
Water, as you know, makes around 60% of your body. It is literally everywhere, in each and every cell, helps regulate the body temperature, helps with digestion, keeps the body tissues moist, protect the spinal cord, and it acts as a lubricant and cushion for the joints, helps to flush out waste, lowers your appetite, is inevitable for burning off fat from food and drink intake, as well as from stored fat. So, whether just trying to balance your diet, or trying to lose weight (and especially then), you’ll want to have an adequate water (liquid) intake at all times. How much is that? Opinions slightly defer on that, but if you keep it around 0.033 l per kg of your body weight, you’ll be OK. If your weight is 80 kg, you’ll want to have 2.64 l of fluid intake per day. If you are exercising, this quantity should rise according to the intensity of your exercise.
Minerals and vitamins are equally important, whether you try to lose weight or not. At older age even more. According to the International Osteoporosis Foundation, Osteoporosis is estimated to affect 200 million women worldwide – approximately one-tenth of women aged 60, one-fifth of women aged 70, two-fifths of women aged 80 and two-thirds of women aged 90. Worldwide, osteoporosis causes more than 8.9 million fractures annually, resulting in an osteoporotic fracture every 3 seconds. Another estimation is that 1 in 3 women over the age of 50 years and 1 in 5 men will experience osteoporotic fractures in their lifetime. So, no wonder we emphasize the importance to include calcium, i.e. dairy products, sardines, green leafy vegetables (such as broccoli, cabbage and spinach), soy beans and tofu to help your body maintain bone density.
Another important element is iron, which is important because your body needs it to make the protein hemoglobin. Without hemoglobin your red blood cells can’t carry oxygen from your lungs to the rest of your body. A good source of iron are broccoli, spinach, kale, turnip greens, collards, potatoes with the skin, mushrooms, legumes, concentrated tomato, dried apricots, dried figs, raisins, prunes, and prune juice, nuts…
Vitamin D is an essential vitamin for everyone, to help develop and maintain healthy bones, teeth and muscles. Unfortunately, as we age, our body is less and less capable of producing it, even if we spend time out in the sun. Some food will contain small amounts of vitamin D, like fresh and tinned oily fish (salmon, mackerel, sardines…), eggs and meat. However, our needs are usually greater than that, so, the best you can do is choose a supplement with 10 micro grams of vitamin D, at least for the non-summer months, when we can’t possibly be exposed to sun of adequate intensity.
Hopefully, you are by now equipped with enough knowledge to start planning your meals. As of the size of your portions, the recommended number of servings you should have:
-Six servings:
- 1 slice of bread, preferably whole grain
- 1 small to medium-sized potato
- 1/2 small to medium-sized sweet potato
- 3 tbsp of cooked brown rice, or whole wheat pasta
-Five or more servings:
- 1 slice of large fruit (melon, pineapple…)
- Half of a big sized fruit (grapefruit, avocado…)
- 1 medium-sized piece of fruit ( apple, small banana, pear, orange…) OR
- 2 small sized fruits ( 2 kiwis, 2 apricots, 2 plums…)
- 1 cup (250ml) of grapes, cherries or berries
- ~80g (3 heaped tablespoons) of cooked fruit or vegetables
- 20g of dried fruit
- as much as you like of fresh green vegetables
-Three servings:
- 1/3 pint (200ml) of milk, low fat
- half a cup (125 ml) of yogurt, preferably Greek style, low fat
- one third cup (80 g) low fat cottage cheese
- 1 oz (30g) of lower fat mature cheese
- 3/4 cup of milky pudding (custard, rice pudding, semolina, tapioca…) Remember to keep your sugar intake very low-include these rarely, better cook pudding yourself and use Stevia as a sweetener.
-Two servings:
- Meat and poultry: 2–3oz (60–90g) of meat, cooked
- Fish: 4 oz (120g) of cooked fish
- Eggs: 2 eggs (120g)
- Lentils: 2oz (60g) raw
- Pulses, beans: 3–4oz (90–120g)
- Nuts: 2oz (60g) of unsalted nuts
- Nut butters, oils: 1oz (30g) peanut-, almond butter, olive oil….
Now that we understand the basics of a healthy nutrition, it’s left to say metabolism at our 60s is a lot slower, so you can’t afford to have very long breaks between meals, otherwise it will slow down even more and, instead of losing weight, you’ll end up gaining it. It certainly does not mean you should eat constantly throughout the day, but also shouldn’t exceed much the 3-hour break, nutritionists say. You shouldn’t delay the morning breakfast for longer than about an hour after getting up. And you should have your coffee only after breakfast. The best schedule is to have your lunch at the middle of your day, two and a half-three hours earlier and later a snack, two and a half-three hours earlier and later breakfast and dinner, so that you have three plus two eating
We All Want to Lose Weight Fast-But Is It the Best Approach?
We all kind of know losing weight fast is not the healthiest way of doing it, but, still, most of us want it. It might have been an option at our 20s or 30s, but at our 60s, unless you are a professional athlete, the likelihood is that it isn’t an option anymore. Your goal, anyway, should be a quality eating and quality moving and then the weight should gradually come off.
Combining physical activity and a healthy diet is the best way to lose weight and maintain it on a healthy level, at any age and especially at an older age. If you have not been regularly working out for a long time, but starting it now, after a considerable pause or ever at all, it is wise to ask your doctor for an opinion on it. He might provide you with some very good advice on how to start, considering your health issues, if any. If not, it is still better to start slowly, best by walking, not too long distances. Maybe two-three sequences of 10-15 minutes per day. You can add a few more minutes or a couple of steps every day. As you gain strength you will be able to add exercising to your routine walking.
You can replace walking by swimming, consider running if you are fit enough, rowing, biking, or using an elliptical machine. When you can already walk the famous 10000 steps without greater discomfort (or equivalent in other activities), you will be able to perform some exercises, as well. You may designate days for walking and interchangeably days for exercise. Also, you need a day of rest, when your body can recover. Be sure to include some strength training also, twice a week. This is to build up your muscle mass, which deteriorates with age, and, very important, to improve bones density.
In short, all you have to do to be on the right path for losing weight after 60 are basically some changes which you should gradually introduce, so that you do not feel them as a punishment, but a slight adjustment. That said, you should still feel a medium level of discomfort while working out. That way you know it is working.
A Few More Advice on Changes to Be Introduced to Your Diet
- Pack your plate half with veggies, a quarter with proteins and a quarter with starchy food.
- Aim for at least five portions of different-colored fruit and vegetables each day, fresh, frozen or canned (without added sugar). A portion is roughly the amount you can fit in the palm of your hand.
- Do not cut out fat! They are important for your body and for you to feel less hunger and cravings. Do replace, however, solid fat with unsaturated oils when cooking and keep it in small quantities.
- Whenever you can, replace red fatty meat with white, lean and try to fry less it, but broil or grill more. Beans, peas and lentils are good alternatives to meat, as they’re very low in fat, but high in fiber, protein, vitamins and minerals.
- Include twice a week fish into your diet, one of those salmon or mackerel.
- Try to cut back salt, to no more than 6g per day. Use more pepper, herbs and spices instead.
- Do not forget that milk and dairy products are important sources of calcium for your bones, vitamins A, D and B12, protein and fat, too. Consume them regularly, but go for the non- or at least low-fat dairy products instead of full-fat versions.
- Try to determine in advance the amount you’ll eat. Eating from a casserole for 5 can mislead you in the size of one portion.
- Avoid all kinds of sugary drinks, sodas, concentrated juices and alcoholic drinks as much as it is possible.
- Avoid unnecessary nibbling between meals.
- Keep track of your water intake.
A Few Tips to Help Your Weight Loss Even If Not Exactly Dieting
- Try parking farther away from wherever you go to burn a few extra calories.
- Choose stairs over the elevator.
- Introduce a food diary for the first period, where you’ll write down everything you ate. You’ll be surprised.
- Enjoy a good dance to your music.
- Invite a friend for a walk through the park, instead of talking by phone.
- Or walk while talking on the phone.
- Stop eating in front of the TV.
- Use the commercial break to stand up, stretch and get out to the kitchen for another glass of water.
- Get rid of ready bought snacks and make your own from veggies and fruits.
- Try using a smaller plate with your smaller portions. You’ll have a feeling of having more.
- Stop wearing shapeless, baggie clothes and aim for well-tailored ones. You’ll feel better.
So, finally, that’s my vision on how to best lose weight after 60.
If you have different experience or have some questions, I’d love to read about it in the comments and help you out with answers.
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Hey,
This is a very important article and one I think my Dad would be very interested in.
I have forwarded your article on to him and advised him to comment. If he has any questions then he will get in touch.
Thank you for sharing and keep up the great work on your site.
All the best,
Tom
Thank you for reading it Tom, and for forwarding it to someone who could actually benefit from it!
I’m looking forward to hear from him, should he have questions, or just share his experience!
Thanks!
Great information on how to lose weight naturally and still remain healthy. The idea of losing weight fast can deprive your body of nutrients which is counterproductive as it affects your health. It’s no surprise that a person puts back the weight they’ve lost in no time.Losing weight this way is difficult to maintain and can impact your health overtime. Losing weight the healthy way is a better option. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you for reading and evaluating it! I myself tried many years ago the fast weight loss, so I have a first-hand experience on the bed side of it. That’s why I advocate the healthier approach, for everyone, but especially for the elderly, as for them, it can bring even more benefits.
This is fabulous information, I really like the detailing on every aspect. I also feel keeping ourselves hydrated is very important. Sometimes, thirst masks itself as hunger. As you get older, you may not be as quick to notice when you’re thirsty, It is said that you should get 64 ounces of water a day. You can drink it or get part of it from foods that are naturally rich in water, such as cucumbers and tomatoes. If you’re not sure if you’re getting enough water, check your urine: It should be pale yellow.
Hello Satz, thank you for the great comment full of additional info. You are right, underhydration is one of the most common mistakes older people can do. They either don’t feel the need to drink, or do not feel thirsty, or they think they are having enough if they have a bowl of soup and so on. However, it is very important to be hydrated, at any age, and especially when older. Even mild dehydration can impact the brain’s ability to function to its full potential. Drinking enough water on the other hand helps biological processes in the body, can lower the heart rate, speed up the recovery from a physical activity and prevent illnesses. And yes, you can always tell by the color of the urine if you are underhydrated-it will get a deep amber shade which will go away as soon as you balance the liquid intake.
That was a good and very informative article, not only for elder people, but for everyone. Healthy eating habits, is something that we should adopt at a young age.
You are absolutely right-we should! But, as we know, it happens very rarely and most of us grow up with bed eating habits, which are only fortified by almost everything around us as we grow and grow older. At some point we usually become aware of the need for a change and then a helping hand, even if in a form of an article is more than welcome. At least, that’s what I’d like to believe.
Wow, what a complete system to help all people, especially seniors, lose weight. I have been finding more and more reasons to keep oily fish in my diet. Thanks for the great info. I love that you provided even meal ideas.
Thank you for stopping by and reading it through. It is a very wise decision to have oily fish in your diet, as it is loaded with vitamin D, protein, some B vitamins and selenium, but most of all it is a rich source of omega-3 fatty acids, which are the good type, good for your health.
When someone is only starting to implement changes into diet, the biggest concern is not always the overall change, but the question: What exactly and how much of it to still be on the safe side. That’s what I tried to address-hopefully it will help someone.
Thanks for the very complete reminder of all the things I should be doing and more. I’m sure like many people who are working from home now my daily routine which naturally included 50 minutes of vigorous walking as part of the commute, in addition to walking between building multiple times a day – has now stopped. I have maintained the daily habit of stepping onto the bathroom scale at the same time in the morning and in a similar state of undress so there is no fudging the numbers. In my experience this has proved a vital tool. Now that my weight is steadily just about where I am happy to keep it I can see when the needle starts to edge in the upward direction and I know to cut down on something. Another motivator I found very useful to lose weight was a calendar and pen next to the bathroom scales so I would record the weight every day. I noticed over the years that every time my spouse found a reason to bury the scales somewhere inaccessible, my weight would go up. So this is something I insist on. I feel I have the weight under control. Now it is a question of getting the exercise. Thanks again and best regards, Andy
Thank you for the nice comment! Suddenly not walking briskly an hour a day may quickly show on a body, but it seems you found a good way to prevent it. When trying to loose weight, it is not a good idea to visit the scale each and every morning as it can be frustrating. BUT, when maintaining it, it is a very good habit, as you can react immediately and keep it under control, instead of piling up on weight and then having to deal with a whole lot more, which is always way more difficult to even start with. The record is also a good thing, it can be very motivating. As a matter of fact it is excellent when trying to loose weight as well, only the frequency can’t be more than once a week. Keep the good habit, wish you all the best with it.
Hello, this is a great article and I agree with most of your information, especially about the types of foods that should be eaten.
I have personally once lost 100 pounds, in 6 months, by following a program called Bright Line Eating where you cut out all forms of flour or sugar apart from whole fruit and a few other things that don’t impact the brain the same way. You also structure your meals and plan ahead, which is a bit more challenging for some people.
The founder of the program has a Ph.D. in Brain and Cognitive Sciences, her name is Susan Peirce Thompson. She does say, and this is widely misunderstood. Although exercise has many health benefits, there’s actually little in the way of scientific evidence that it helps people to lose weight.
It uses up more of your willpower (unless you have an established exercise routine) which you need to stay away from the wrong kinds of foods, much more important. You’ll also be lower in energy until your brain adapts to the removal of the sugars and other addictive foods, so exercising might actually make it harder to stay on the plan.
Anyway, keep up the good work. I really enjoyed the article.
Thanks for popping in and reading it! WOW, a hundred pounds in just 6 month, that’s a lot. I’d be very interested in your experience, when did it take place and how have you been doing since then. As for the importance of healthy eating versus exercising in order to loose weight, the winner clearly is healthy eating.The combination of two would be ideal, but all the exercise in the world won’t help you lose weight if your nutrition is out of whack, I totally agree with you on that. And, as I wrote, our body can quickly put itself into survival mode if it feels threatened, either by starving or suddenly too much moving.
So a moderate, graduate approach would be a key, I’d say. We haven’t built up that weight over the night, so we can’t expect it to go over the night either.
That’s right, it does take time. My weight loss started out pretty quick because I had a long way to go. Normally it’s not that fast. I think I lost 30 pounds in the first 35 days or so.
I went off the plan after I got to goal weight, and gradually it increased again. I am back on the plan now, with about 80 pounds to lose this time. I still have a challenge of not wanting to stop eating after my 3 meals are over. But even when I eat extra, I don’t get sick nearly as often as I did. It will slow down the weight loss, but I’m sure the removal of sugar and flour will still cause some weight loss.
It is a huge, extremely fast weight loss, it must have been a difficult work! The thing which always gets us back the lost weight, especially the rapidly lost one, is that we rarely truly understand or accept that our eating habits have to be changed forever, not just until we reach our goal. Most of us can hardly wait to eat again all the food that led us to be overweight. After regain, however, you already know what is ahead of you, so I’m sure, once you reach your healthy weight, you will keep the rest off this time. Here’s to your success Bryce!
Hello there,
This is great. You have useful information for the elderly and losing weight. Many people forget about our elderly, but you have taken the good route. Good job.
Thank you! We are all going to be there some day or we have parents who might make use of this.
This is a great article! I will definitley share this this with others! I’m not quite there yet, but not far away, so I’m sure I can benefit from this also.
Thank you for stopping by and for sharing, as well. I am happy if you could find something useful for yourself here!
All the best!