Getting older is tough…
But I’ve decided not to buy into the hype.
In fact, I’ve put a moratorium on blaming things on my age.
The thing is, I left 39 in the dust five years ago, and I feel stronger and more confident now than I ever have… probably in my whole life.
But despite that, I do have a family history of colon cancer.
As you may already know, my mom died of the disease when she was only 57.
So, a few weeks ago I went for my very first colonoscopy.
It wasn’t pleasant, or fun, but it needed to get done.
Going through that experience really hit home how much I value my health.
And how every single day I make small, seemingly insignificant decisions that will ultimately affect my health as I age.
Truth: I don’t love hospitals.
And I really don’t want to spend more time in one than I absolutely have to.
So each day, I make all my seemingly small food and fitness choices with this perspective in mind.
Right now, at age 44, I’m fortunate to have a body that can take me pretty much anywhere my mind and spirit want to go.
There’s still so much I have yet to do and see, to create and enjoy, and to experience and discover. There’s still so much life I have to live!
I understand that to do all I want to do, I need to keep this BODY of mine in excellent working order.
Maybe I’m being overly optimistic, but I want to continue to have…
A strong, flexible body that can be on the go all day.
A body that’s resilient.
A body that’s relatively pain-free and medication-free.
A body that feels good and looks good in a pair of jeans
A body that has a waistline.
A waistline?
Yes, a waistline… that’s less than 35 inches.
Why?
Because – surprise! – it seems your health risks can be linked to the size of your waistline.
I know this seems to go against what I usually preach.
And it doesn’t change the fact that I’m still a huge proponent of going by how you feel and not using numbers to define you.
BUT this is one number you need to be aware of (not obsess over):
35.
(That number would be 40 for men, in case you’re wondering)
Above 35 inches, not only does your risk of heart disease increase, but so does your risk of diabetes and cancer… no matter what your age.
And this risk climbs with each additional inch.
Now, if you’re over 40 years old like me, you may be looking to blame your waistline on your age.
But the facts show that age doesn’t have much to do with it. In fact…
AGE isn’t responsible for larger waistlines, LIFESTYLE is.
I don’t know if you’ve noticed but you’re probably less active than you were 20 or 30 years ago, and you’re probably exposed to more working lunches and celebrations, and you’re probably not sleeping as well, and you probably have more responsibilities and are more stressed, more busy, and more overwhelmed than ever before in your life.
If any of that sounds familiar, then your lifestyle likely needs some tweaking.
Now you might be thinking: “But, what about my changing hormones, aren’t they the culprit?”
Yes, it’s true your hormones do change, especially into menopause, and your lean muscle does decrease. BUT with the right lifestyle choices they don’t need to destroy your waistline.
And this is GOOD NEWS, ladies!
Although you can’t stop the aging process, you CAN make changes to your lifestyle that can shrink or maintain your waistline at any age.
And here are the best, and maybe not the most obvious, 5 ways to make this happen for you:
1. LET IT GO
Fact: Stress causes your body to store belly fat.
When your stress hormone cortisol is high (which you may or may not be aware of if you’re constantly stressed), then a lot of the energy you’re taking (food) will be stored as fat – especially around the mid-section.
If you want to prevent this from happening, you need to take action to reduce your stress and cultivate calm.
My 3 favorite antidotes to stress: Exercise, breathing, and being outdoors.
Exercise, especially short bursts of intense movement, can really increase your fat burning capacity. So try out some Tabata, or add some short sprints to your regular walk or run. Have fun with it!
Breathe, meditate, or just sit quietly for at least 2 minutes a day. Doing this literally can make your feel so much lighter and can shift the entire course of your day for the better.
Finally, being outdoors, where Mother Nature intended us to be, is extremely restorative and is just so darn natural. Listen to the birds, inhale the fresh air into your lungs, and exhale what’s weighing you down… go ahead, let it go.
2. FORGIVE SOMEONE
Sometimes, despite your best efforts to let go, some stresses need more attention.
Especially those that concern our relationships.
Nothing weighs on us more heavily than the feeling that someone else has wronged us in some way. Or that we have wronged them.
The problem is that when you hold onto this pain, the negative energy it generates barricades itself within us, and causes a constant stress.
If this is pain that you’ve been holding onto for years, you might not even be aware that it’s sitting there.
Remember, that one of the ways your body responds to constant stress is by retaining and putting on belly fat.
But when you forgive that person (or yourself), either to their face or within yourself, then you’re able to let go of the negativity and allow your body to get back to the real work it needs to do.
And I when I say forgive, I don’t mean in the sense of condoning whatever happened. Instead I mean it in the sense of releasing what is now in the past, in favor of moving forward.
Remember that forgiveness isn’t for the benefit one who caused you pain. Forgiveness is for you, so that you can finally release the burden of the weight you’ve been carrying around.
One of the most amazing stories of forgiveness I’ve ever read, and I highly recommend, is the account of a woman who survived the Rwandan genocide in the nineties. Her name is Immaculée Ilibagiza and her book is called “Left to Tell.”
3. REVAMP YOUR SELF-TALK
It may not seem obvious to you, but your thoughts really do create your life… in fact they’re powerful enough to change your body chemistry, believe it or not.
(If you’re interested in learning more about the science of epigenetics, I recommend one of my favorite books, “The Biology of Belief” by Bruce Lipton).
So, if I had to pick just one thing that’s holding my clients back from achieving their weight loss goals, it’s NEGATIVE self-talk.
You know what I mean… “I’m never going to be fit, it’s just not in my genes”, “I look terrible in this dress!”, “I’m so disgusting”, “I’ll never be able to do that”…
The thing is that you may not be tuning into this inner dialogue that’s constantly playing… and you can’t fix what you can’t see (or aren’t aware of)!
So what happens is that food usually gets the blame, because it’s something we can see.
Yes, overeating may be responsible for the size of your waistline, but negative self-talk is what guides the food to your mouth. It’s the brains of the operation.
So, a good starting point would be to just become aware of what your self-talk is saying about you.
For more about how to change your self-talk, check out my recent blog post “Would You Talk to Your Best Friend This Way? Lose Your Inner Bully In Just 4 Steps.”
4. FIND NEW WAYS TO CELEBRATE AND SOCIALIZE
Confession time: I’m really fed up with food being the star attraction of every celebration and outing.
Food has become the main event and, honestly, this constant obsession with food is a huge villain in our waistline stry. (Alcohol is a very close second… sorry).
Have you noticed that almost every special (and not so special) occasion is centered around food: Birthdays, anniversaries, holidays, Fridays, working lunches, meetings, outings with friends, dates, weddings, baptisms, funerals, …
I don’t know about you, but I’m ready for a change.
I’m tired of that gross, bloated feeling in my stomach after an evening of sitting and feasting.
As much as I love to eat a good meal, and enjoy a glass of wine, there have got to be other ways of celebrating and socializing that don’t involve stuffing my belly.
What about walking and talking? Or watching a sunset or sunrise? Or going to a yoga class? Or visiting a museum? Or going to the beach or pool? Or a sleigh ride? Or planting a tree? Or taking in a concert or a play? Or…
Are you with me??
Last year I had one of my best birthdays ever, hiking up Mont Tremblant with 30 incredible people. Yes, there was food afterwards, but the day was all about the hike and being with great friends.
If we could take the spotlight off of food and shine it onto something more active, we might just be able to tighten our belts another hole or two.
5. CUT THE CRAP
Think of the most basic, natural form of a food.
It comes directly from a plant, a tree, or an animal, right?
This is REAL food.
So, when food comes from a bag, box, or colorful package, chances are that it’s not REAL food. It’s processed food.
CRAP, in other words.
Problem is, most of us like crap.
It tastes good. That’s because it’s engineered with just the right amount of sugar (sweetness), salt, and fat to make us want more.
Crap is also much more easily stored as fat in your body. This is because your body doesn’t need to work as hard to digest it.
Be aware: The big food industry is taking you for a ride… A roller coaster ride.
If you’re serious about getting rid of belly fat, then begin by throwing out the crap.
Get back to basics.
Simple. But I know it’s not easy.
______________________________________________________________
I believe staying healthy and fit as we age is very possible.
In fact, there are hundreds, and even thousands of examples out there of other people who are getting it done.
(If you want some actual examples of older people who are crushing it, check out one of my previous posts “Do you ever let your age get to you?“)
It all begins with a conscious decision and small, daily actions to back it up.
Just start with a simple question.
Ask yourself what you want more:
A temporary fix, or long-term health and fitness?
Personally, I’m in this for the long-term.
I want to keep running, and doing adventure races, and trying triathlons, and keeping my balance on one leg, and even touching my toes.
And I’d even love to do these things with my grand-children one day!
What do you want for yourself?
If you want to be healthy and continue moving and grooving well into your later years, like I do, then join me for a free webinar “5 Steps to Streamline Your Waistline (… after 39)“ on Wednesday May 17th at 1pm.
With this webinar, I want to get you psyched to about your body, and inspired to move and do more than you believed you were capable of.
I’ll be sharing much more on my ideas for getting lean and gaining strength into your later years, as well as give you examples of other women who have done it and are still doing it.
Getting older can be great… but getting older, stronger, and leaner can be awewsome.
If you can’t make it to the live webinar, don’t worry! It will be recorded, so if you’re signed up I’ll send you the recording.
Can’t wait to “see” you there!
Keep moving forward,
Debbie
P.S. Yes, I will be doing a Facebook Live post on Monday, May 8th at noon… I’ve got more to say about this and my upcoming webinar!
P.P.S. If you didn’t yet sign up for my free webinar of May 17th, here’s the link. See you then!