How do women over 60 get in shape?

[Shelley]

Hi all!  I am starting this thread to help all the ladies from our old forum get started up again over here in the new place.  Hope you all find this thread.  Getting in shape after 60 has its own challenges especially when you have lost muscle, have slowed metabolism and hormone changes.  How are you getting and staying fit?  What s working for you?  

[offthewall]

Wish I could walk more!  Am limited in how much it is comfortable for me to walk (am 73 with 2 bionic hips) - but I do try to get 6,000 steps in each day. Also chair yoga 1x week and tried pool exercise class last week (that almost did me in!!).  Will go again but will tell instructor that I will have to bug out after 40 minutes.  Am making progress on NuStep at gym (recumbant machine) - and have gone up 4 resistance levels in less than 2 months.  Weight still coming down very slowly - wish there were not so many social meals this summer!!  I I do pick healthy choices - but the calories are still much more than my home meals - and then I am hungry for next 2 days after restaurant meal. Oh well.. this exercise and healthy eating is for rest of my life - not just a few months.

[ams_go]

I am new at this too, I will be 63 this year and am at the heaviest weight in my life.  Need to lose weight and move more.  I am looking forward to being able to post that I actually logged 10,000 steps in one day.  I will take it slow and steady to protect against injury and will come back to this site often for encouragemnet to keep going.

[ChiMom]

You've taken the first step. Start with short walks and gradually add
more. We walk on a parkway so it's more enjoyable then just walking on the
sidewalks. There are beautiful distractions with trees, squirrels, birds
and we see are regular co walkers. That helps.Karen

[ams_go]

over 6000 steps today, getting there slow but sure...feeling good

[ChiMom]

Good job. That's an excellant start. Keep up the good job,

[cdpatches]

how sweet it is to get better every day - started out just like you - now my goal is 'over' 15,000 and my brain is saying keep on walking - take the long way - park farther away - keep the feet moving - 

[Shirleigh]

Hi Willie,

I can certainly relate to your situation being that I weigh 280 and everything is painful and a chore. I have been working on my steps but my heel ulcer has opened up again in protest. I am applying a dressing and will keep on. my fitbit One only measures the steps on my right leg which is likely because I use a walker.

Shirleigh 

[JudithF]

Shirleigh

I am sure that you are feeling very discouraged when you can't walk. Have
you tried finding a local class that provides chair yoga, chair Zumba Gold
or Silver Sneakers Classic? All three are designed to get your heart rate
up and get you moving without walking and putting pressure on your feet.

Unfortunately, Fitbit doesn't really track them well so you may have to go
into the app and add exercise to get the calories and active minutes into
your daily log. But don't feel bad about that. Fitbit doesn't measure
weight lifting either so I have to add it. Very discouraging to work your
fanny off with weights and see that you may have 50 steps!

Best wishes to you and hoping that your foot heals so you can get out and
enjoy the summer.

Judith

[alice5402001]

I? been? on the Atkins? diet since? October 2013.? I lost? 10 lbs.? I? stay? at? 130? something, instead of? 140? something.? I? feel? better.? Portishon? control is the most? important? thing to do.

[ChiMom]

That's really good. I've lost 60, but have gained around 7 lately. Too much stress. When we get back from our trip.

Sent from my iPhone

[Cyni]

I am wearing the fitbit flex....can't seem to sustain walking each day.  Tired.  A bit stressed and moving to Orlando in 10 days....I am thinking of reducing my steps for a bit so as not to overwhelm myself.  Any ideas?  I am  just getting started, need to drop 80 pounds. Any feedback?

[rubygirl]

Try not to look at the big picture. Just take it a day at a time. I get overwhelmed too.


Sent from my iPad

[mom23sons]

I agree with Rubygirl--Just because you don't meet the daily goal you have set doesn't mean you need to change it. Just try to increase your steps taken each day, even if it is not close to your goal. When you get comfortable walking a few more steps each day, it will be much easier. Don't concentrate on the final number for now, just try to increase each day. Walking does help reduce my stress. I find it a message I need to get up and walk and breathe deeply--amazing how much better I feel after! You can do it, hang in there! Stay positive. 

[TikiPaka]

I'm going to be 61 this year and I've found that just stepping and making better food choices has helped me the most.  I've lost almost 20 lbs since I've starting walking again and I feel 100% better.  My goal was to get to the weight I was on my wedding day and I've only got 5 lbs to go.  This fitbit is the best thing ever.  Love, love love it..  It helps me set new goals for myself and I love the fact that it's a constant challenge to do better, day by day..  I beleive walking alone is the best thing ever to lose weight and to get back in shape..  My next challenge is to do more with weights etc to build and firm/tone muscles..  I'm at a desk job all day long and I step before, during and after work.. Every step counts and the numbers just keep going up..  Just dont give up, a few more steps each day will put you on the right path to a better you..  And know right off the bat, that you are worth the effort..  Keep stepping! 

[Rubes]

I will be 65 next month.  I'm finding walking 10 minutes every hour to music at a pretty fast clip works well for me.  I'm diabetic, so I have to watch carb intake closely.  Have osteoporosis and take Forteo for that.  Found a workout on Amazon.com by Susie Hathaway with little handweights designed to help strengthen the bones.  45 minute workout and she recommends doing it twice weekly.  It seems to me that it is a whole program for me - watching diet, walking 60 to 80 minutes daily in 10 minute increments (at my desk at work once an hour), osteoporosis workout 2 to 3 times weekly.  I have lost from 153 to 139 and have about 6 more pounds to go.  Hard at this age and with diabetes as well.  But I know whatever I do to lose the weight has to be something I can continue for a lifetime.  If I stop what it took to lose it, it will come right back.  Lifestyle change!  But I feel better when I do the right things.  Just one day at a time.....

[Glickstar]

Hi Rubes,

I like your idea of walking in 10 minute increments.  I've been doing one 25-30 minute walk every day with dog, plus parking far away from any destination, plus 2-3 very strenuous yoga classes a week.  I'm 74 but still have a lot of muscle and have been doing yoga for 25 years..  I think if I add only 3 of those 10-minute walks, it will speed things up a lot, get me up to an hour or so a day plus all the odds and ends of walking around. I do notice though that Fitbit does not put walking into the "very active" (green) category until you've been walking for a while.  If you look at the calorie graph, you'll see that short walks are all in the yellow "active" range, while longer ones show a series of green bars bracketed on both sides by yellow.  I think the idea is that after a warmup period you get your heart rate up and sustain it there for a while, and maybe break a sweat, which uses more calories per step, or per minute.

 Even though I am only about 15 pounds overweight, those body fat calculators have me at 37% fat, which puts me in the obese range. I'm not obese, though, it's just that all the fat is around my middle and the rest of me is really quite lean (except for a big bust, which I've always had),and they base their conclusions largely on the waist to hip ratio, so I have big waist and small hips so the ratio is very high. I think I should probably not obsess about these arcane measuring tools and just get myself down to my goal weight. I'm doing it in increments: my first goal is 140 (I've lost 4.5 pounds towards that, down from 150 on June 23), and then my plan is to maintain at that weight for a few weeks and then try for 135, and maybe after that 130. Then I will be only 2 or 3 pounds over what I weighed in my twenties. I'm only 5'3" now, down from 5'4 and a half when I was young. I'm fortunate to be in very good health and able to walk a lot and exercise.

[TikiPaka]

Submitted content: Sorry, but when I'm at work they have blocks on my computer. I'll have to check this out when I'm at home.. 😞

[Rubes]

Hi Glickstar,

Sounds like you have taken really good care of yourself!  I think you are right about not obsessing.  The most important thing is to be healthy and feel good.  I've decided that it will take however long it takes for me to lose down to where I want to be and that I have to be able to continue whatever I do to lose it after I am at my goal weight.  I was between 118 and 125 until I reached my forties and became diabetic, but I know I won't get back down to that weight again.  My "younger" sister who has been a RN for 20 years told me that women seem to fare better as they get "older" if they carry a little extra weight.  She has worked in hospitals as well as nursing homes and hospice, so there may be something to it.  I would like to maintain around 135 lbs.  I feel good there.  Keep up the good work!

[Char-K]

Hi Shelley,

I just turned 70 last week.  I started my fitness program December 26, 2013.  I had arthritis in the knees and type 2 diabetes, hypo thyroid and it was difficult to walk.  I didn't like how I looked or felt and I was developing more medical problems related to the high blood sugar.  I see a doctor once a month (bariatric specialist) and I started walking most days of the week (at least 5 days) in addition to the improved food choices.  At my age starchy carbohydrates are my enemy.  In fact they played a larger role in my high blood sugar than sweets.  It's the bread & potatoes I love far more than sweets!  

I use the 'Map My Walk' app on my iPhone, and I initially used the 'Lose It' app as well to monitor food choices and calories.  Then in March I bought my FitBit Flex.  And that really motivated me.  I use the FitBit logs on my computer for more than tracking my miles and steps.  Because of the medical issues, I log my blood pressure, blood sugar, A1c for the diabetes.  

I have lost 42 pounds and I love the Flex.  I didn't think I could lose weight after age 60 with the medical issues, but I have totally reversed my type 2 diabetes since my program begain.  

You can do it!

Char

[Glickstar]

Wow  Char that is really impressive!!  Good for you.  It is so much harder to lose weight as you get older, even without health issues, because of the slowed metabolism and loss of height.  For a long time I thought I could lose 10 pounds in a month, which I had done several times when I was younger.  I would lose a few, gain it back, get discouraged, etc. etc.  The Fitbit has really showed me how to do it (much less than 10 pounds a month, more like 2 or 3), and I am now on a steady and successful weight loss and conditioning track.  I know I am going to reach my goals in a few months, and I'm not in a hurry, just focusing on the process of maintaining that calorie deficit every day.

 By the way, the new dashboard (as of today,I think it is) has some new tiles that show your deficit at the current moment and other new stats.  You have to add these tiles manually by clicking on the little symbol on the left that looks like a set of squares (tiles, I suppose it's meant to represent).  Then you click on the ones you want to add to your dashboard, press done, and they'll appear on the dashboard.