Quote:
One study found that women who do work at diet and exercise can stave off weight gain as they enter menopause — and stay healthier, too. The Women's Healthy Lifestyle Project involved more than 500 premenopausal women, half of whom were instructed to follow a reduced-fat, 1,300-calorie-a-day diet and increase their physical activity (to burn 1,000 to 1,500 calories a week through exercise), while the other half did not follow any special intervention.
Results published in the journal Circulation showed that during nearly 4.5 years of follow-up, the women who worked hard at diet and exercise did not gain weight but actually lost an average of .2 pounds. Meanwhile, those in the other group gained an average of 5.2 pounds — roughly a pound a year. The women in the intervention group also were healthier with regard to their blood pressure, cholesterol, and blood levels of glucose and insulin.
While health experts often recommend 30 minutes a day of moderate physical activity to boost health, many endorse much more — 60 to 90 minutes a day — for weight loss.
(my emphasis added)One study found that women who do work at diet and exercise can stave off weight gain as they enter menopause — and stay healthier, too. The Women's Healthy Lifestyle Project involved more than 500 premenopausal women, half of whom were instructed to follow a reduced-fat, 1,300-calorie-a-day diet and increase their physical activity (to burn 1,000 to 1,500 calories a week through exercise), while the other half did not follow any special intervention.
Results published in the journal Circulation showed that during nearly 4.5 years of follow-up, the women who worked hard at diet and exercise did not gain weight but actually lost an average of .2 pounds. Meanwhile, those in the other group gained an average of 5.2 pounds — roughly a pound a year. The women in the intervention group also were healthier with regard to their blood pressure, cholesterol, and blood levels of glucose and insulin.
While health experts often recommend 30 minutes a day of moderate physical activity to boost health, many endorse much more — 60 to 90 minutes a day — for weight loss.
Read the article here: Losing the ‘matronly look’ of menopause
In my experience, those of us going through or post-menopause really do have to work HARD at losing or keeping weight off. But it is possible, as countless success stories here at 3FC can attest, so don't give up! Let me add a huge recommendation for weight training as part of any older woman's exercise routine. It will keep your metabolism elevated so you can eat more calories and still maintain your weight, it will cut down on ab fat (the "menopot" or "menopausal donut"
), help prevent osteoporosis, and keep you small and tight enough to wear your daughter's jeans. 
Since muscle is the calorie burner in our bodies, no wonder our metabolisms slow down! Hopefully it will be something you learn to love over time. 
) are all within healthy ranges and as soon as I hit my goal weight I'm stopping by the old doctor's office just to thumb my nose 
