The struggle is real!
I’m sure I don’t need to tell you that most women over 50 fail to lose weight, and many more fail to keep off the weight if they eventually do.
When I speak about weight loss, it’s not just about fitting effortlessly into a pair of your favourite jeans (although that’s a great plus)!
It’s also about your health, your energy and the power to live your best, healthiest quality of life in this next chapter.
It’s about being able to take beautiful trips and to have the energy, strength and stamina to visit every site imaginable. Rome’s cobble stones won’t trip you up, or cause knee pain. No way!
It’s about having the strength to lift your grandkids high into the sky or to play with them on the ground and then lift yourself back up effortlessly when it’s time to get up.
It’s about having the energy to dance the night away at your son’s wedding, even after a day of knocking off all of the items on your accomplished to-do list.
It’s weight loss, but it’s so much more; am I right?
Even knowing all of these amazing benefits that exercise and healthy nutrition provide, most women still fail to achieve these results. Even when they’re working out.
So why isn’t your workout working!? What’s the real issue?
After coaching women over 50 for almost 14 years. I can confidently tell you that it’s not age that prevents women from getting their body back, their health back, a slimmer waist and more strength and energy.
It boils down to something much more simple.
Exercise and the type of exercise strategies you must do dramatically shift over 50. It’s not just about strapping on a pair of running shoes and going for a run or walk while eating less. Nope.
It’s about the quality of your workout. It literally boils down to the type of workout you do.
I want to share this information with you today.
I’ve also created a FREE quality workout that I’ll guide you through to ensure you’re checking off all of the boxes to get your body back, to fit effortlessly into those jeans, or to have the energy and health to enjoy family and friends, special moments and fabulous trips. Visit: aliciajoneshealthyliving.com/quality or click the image below
Here Are the 2 Big Reasons a Workout Doesn’t Get Results.
1. There’s a Focus ONLY on Cardio
The most popular exercises that I see given to women over 50 are walking, zumba classes, aquafit and yoga.
I think those are all great activities that make you feel good and keep you moving (all movement matters), but if weight loss and strength are even remotely part of your goals, then these activities aren’t helping much.
On top of it, I see very well intentioned women who aren’t losing weight or who aren’t feeling firmer try to increase the amount of time they walk, the amount of steps they do and still don’t get the results they’re after.
They either give in to the idea that their body is just supposed to be that way, or they stop trying.
The reality is, it’s not about how long you exercise. It’s all about the type of exercise you do for the specific results you’re after.
The take home message:
If you love your cardio, keep it, but especially over 50, you’ve got to add weights into your workout routine.
This increases your lean muscle (without bulking up) and this is what burns fat, even at rest.
Also, if a strong body and strong bones are goals too, then weights are the best exercise you need to do to get you those fabulous results.
2. There’s not enough effort, or TOO MUCH!
Whether you are indeed lifting weights, or whether you’re walking, or taking fitness classes, all too often women come to me frustrated because no matter how many more steps they do, how much high intensity intervals they try to accomplish and how many more classes they try to squeeze in each week, they continue to gain weight instead of lose it.
It usually boils down to the fact that they’re not putting in enough effort, or they’re putting in way too much.
I know this sounds complicated, but it’s actually simple to figure out.
The simple rule is,
You should leave your workout knowing you’ve done something without feeling sore and achy for days afterwards.
If you go for a walk, and immediately after your walk, you do hours of housework… you probably didn’t do enough
If you lift weights while speaking to a friend, and you could continue for the length of a walk without wanting to put those weights down… you haven’t done enough.
On the flip side, you’ve done too much if:
- You do an intense cardio session, and you’re so depleted that it’s zapped your energy for hours after you’re done, or you immediately need a nap.
- You’ve done a weight training program but for days afterwards you can barely lift your arms
I go over exactly how to know how much weight you need to lift to know you’ve found that sweet spot to get results without doing too much in my new program Over Fifty Fit & Fabulous but for now, the main takeaway is:
- Add weights into your workout
- Make sure you’ve found that sweet spot where you’re not exercising too hard, or not enough
So, let’s put these two strategies into practice.
In order to make sure you’ve checked off both of these boxes above, I’ve created a FREE quick workout that guides you to that sweet spot to maximize fat loss, increase strength and enhance your quality of life.
To get your FREE workout, visit: aliciajoneshealthyliving.com/quality or click the image below
