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Tips On Losing Weight After 40

Losing weight after 40 presents different challenges than losing weight in your 20's. It is harder to lose fat after 40 because life is busier. It can be a challenge to plan meals and workout when there is little time to spare. Metabolism slows down as people age, making weight loss even harder.

Metabolism is the speed at which calories are burned in order to generate energy for the body. As metabolism slows down, you need fewer calories to maintain your ideal weight. You must either eat less, exercise more, or both to avoid gaining weight.

Eat Better To Lose Weight After Metabolism Slows

In order to lose one pound of body weight, you must eat about 500 less calories each day for a week. One pound is equivalent to 3500 calories. This is a very basic formula to losing weight after 40, 30 or 20. Age doesn't really factor in. In order to lose fat after 40, you simply have to eat less calories than you burn.

The tricky part to losing weight after 40 is the sluggish metabolism you have to deal with. It is harder to eat less than you burn when your body is already cutting the amount of calories it takes to get you through the day. Not only do you have to eat less, you also have to eat less than when you were 20 and trying to lose weight.

Eating smaller more frequent meals will help your body speed metabolism as well. Another important thing to remember is to eat a good breakfast each day. Heartier meals should be eaten at the beginning of the day, not the end. Rule out candy and snacks as well.

Exercise

This makes exercising even more important. Exercising for even just a half-hour each day can burn a significant amount of calories and help speed your metabolism. Not only will exercise help you lose weight after any age, but it will also help your lungs and heart, while reducing your risk of many other diseases as well.

Build Muscle

Include strength training in your attempts to lose weight after your metabolism slows. Lifting weights creates tiny tears in muscles. As the muscles heal they get bigger. And bigger muscles means a faster metabolism because muscles burn about 5 times more calories than fat does. When you increase your muscles and metabolism, you increase your ability to lose weight after 40.

Three to four strength training sessions per week is ideal. Muscles groups need to be rested for at least a day before they are worked again to allow them time to heal.

It is easier to change bad eating habits if you keep a food/weight loss journal. You can keep track of what you eat and when, as well as your strength training, workouts and weigh-ins. It is easier to change patterns if you can see them. It gives you the motivation to keep going.

Losing weight after 40 may be more difficult than it was in younger years, but it is far from impossible. A slowing metabolism does not have to mean all is lost. As long as you stay focused, you'll definitely be slimmer.

The previous article is on Office Exercise.

Other wiki resources: increase metabolism; losing weight; black cohosh