Losing weight when your over 50–the basics
There are just so many programs designed to help you lose weight. Some work; some not so much. But the basic element to losing weight and keeping it off is you, your willingness to change.
The foundation of all weight loss programs is for you to burn up more calories that you eat. One problem is that as we age our metabolism slows, meaning we naturally burn less calories. For example, an active 31-year-old man needs about 3,000 daily calories, but an active 50-year-old man needs only about 2,800 calories. So even if you are active, if you continue eating the way you did in your 20s and 30s, you’re going to gain weight. For men that often appears in an ever growing pot belly; for women it’s likely to appear in the hips and the thighs.
To avoid gaining weight over time, you should aim to burn up as many calories through basic metabolic function and physical activity as you take in. To lose weight burn more calories than you take in by combining increased physical activity with eating less calories (easier said than done). To know whether you’re on track, you need to be able to estimate how many calories you need based on your age, gender and level of physical activity. The chart below should give you some basic guidelines:
| Activity Level and Estimated Calories Burned | ||||
| Gender | Age (years) | Sedentary1 | Moderately Active2 | Active3 |
| Female | 19–30 | 2,000 | 2,000-2,200 | 2,400 |
| 31-50 | 1,800 | 2,000 | 2,200 | |
| 51+ | 1,600 | 1,800 | 2,000-2,200 | |
| Male | 19–30 | 2,400 | 2,600-2,800 | 3,000 |
| 31-50 | 2,200 | 2,400-2,600 | 2,800-3,000 | |
| 51+ | 2,200 | 2,200-2,400 | 2,400-2,800 | |
Adapted from American Heart Association
1 Sedentary means you have a lifestyle that includes only the light physical activity associated with typical day-to-day life.
2 Moderately active means you have a lifestyle that includes physical activity equivalent to walking about 1.5 to 3 miles per day at 3 to 4 miles per hour, in addition to the light physical activity associated with typical day-to-day life.
3Active means you have a lifestyle that includes physical activity equivalent to walking more than 3 miles per day at 3 to 4 miles per hour, in addition to the light physical activity associated with typical day-to-day life.weight loss, over 50, 50+, 50plus, weight loss, over 50, 50+, 50plus, weight loss, over 50, 50+, 50plus, weight loss, over 50, 50+, 50plus, weight loss, over 50, 50+, 50plus, health, health, health, health
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