It's Gotten Harder to Lose Weight- And Not for the Reasons You Think

[underahedgerow]

111. You've nailed it! Move more, eat less. Enjoy what you do, and when it starts creeping up,

cut back. The walking is THE best thing you can do, and it brings so much joy. I walk my feet to the nubs when I'm working in Paris and enjoy every aching meter of it... some 8-10 kms a day. I love coffee, it's my staple beverage too, sadly, that and water.. I have a cola maybe once a week.

I eat cake. I love cake, my cake! This week it's my banana cake.

I'm limited on the stairs thing, I have a condition with very lax ligaments so I've ruined out all my knee, hip and ankle joints, so while pain is my constant companion, I still keep walking and dope up with ibu when needed. Since I don't drink much at all, I can eat more sweets, lol yay for me!

But yeah, like you said.... I look at least 20 years younger than my 55 year old self. No grey hair, totally natural dark blonde, no wrinkles, not even fine lines. I vigorously avoid the sun with hats and sleeves and sun block, but the age spots on my hands are distressing! I weigh the same as I did when I was 25. I ballooned up during menopause and had to seriously cut back on my 3 meals a day, but thanks to that, I eat better than ever. Never anything from a box, fresh bread (viva la France), never that plastic crap... fruits, veg, greek yogurt, my beloved cake 2-3 times a week... meat 3 times a week. My main meal is lunch, usually limited to no more than 500 calories and dinner is something very small, usually an apple... Apples make the best snacks!

This gives me the opportunity to indulge in a big eating day every couple weeks with no guilt. And like you, when the pants get too tight, I cut back for a couple weeks. I do the 2/5 thing where I eat no more than 500 calories a day 2 days a week. It's good for the gut to starve itself a little bit. Granny Smith apples specifically work well on balancing gut bacteria btw.

Love the gardening, I'm renovating a huge garden for a client these days, with lots of stone work, heavy lifting. It destroys my hands but Arnaca cream is wonderful. I don't rush the lifting, take my time and it all gets done. I'm restoring and rebuilding stone walls and recreating some mucked up stone stairs and paths. I love the physical activity so much....

It's about portion control, isn't it? Gigantic plates covered in masses of food... what for? It's expensive and makes me want to vomit. Gallons of soda? Ugh, that stuff is nasty and rots your insides, whether it's diet or sugar. I don't even drink juice much, it's too sweet... water is life.

A portion of any food should be no bigger than your hand. Each portion should be no more than 100 grams. Lots of beans and rice, I love pasta and cream sauces, tomato sauces, curries, stews, scones, pancakes, crepes, baquettes, cookies, tray bakes, brownies. I eat it all, but I only eat a little! Lots of seafood, love a good scampi! Butter, sugar, eggs, milk, no problem, it's all about the quality of what's going in the belly and how much.