At least an hour a day of moderate to intense exercise, such as brisk walking, bicycling or swimming, is necessary for women to prevent weight gain as they age. That’s the conclusion of a new study that was published today in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Researchers at Harvard’s Brigham and Women’s Hospital followed 34,000 middle-aged women for 13 years: they were not dieting and were at a normal weight (their body mass index did not exceed 25) when they began the study. On average, these women gained about six pounds during the course of the study. But those who reported that they exercised 60 minutes daily were able to maintain their normal weight throughout the study.
This piece of news is being reported in major news outlets today as if a cure for cancer was discovered. Menopausal weight gain is a problem, to be sure. But was a 13-year study necessary to conclude that we need to exercise more as our metabolisms slow down? I wonder if women would choose exercise over a spa treatment if they had an extra hour to spare every day.
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Agreed! I dont know about the women in the study (or anyone else for that matter) but I have recently managed to budge some really stubborn belly/hip/thigh weight – not much, just under 10 pounds – by exercising 4-5 hours a week (combo of cardio and weight and interval) AND AND AND!! by cutting calorie intake and making sure the calories i was ingesting were fully nutritional (as well as anti-estrogenic)…(They dont mention that in the study do they?) I used to be able to drop off a couple of pounds easily by say…not eating bread for a week…no more!!! But it CAN be done.. I learned much from sites like this…the sensible ones! and read some really excellent books regarding how to combat the onslaught of estrogens in our food and environment that are making us all fat/ter…and yes, I would much rather have done it by taking a nice massage and a sauna!
Pepper- thanks for your comment. You’re right. As a friend of mine once put it – losing weight in your 50s is like chiseling cement. I finally dropped the extra pounds too. Like you, under 10 lbs, but what a difference it makes. I feel so much better. It took a significant cut in calories and a lot more exercise. In the end it’s worth the effort, isn’t it?
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I have been reading about this today. An hour a day doesn’t seem too much to invest in health especially if you feel better too. I am encouraged by your post and the comments. I think I am going to try and find that hour somewhere.
Go for it Izzy! I used Exercise tv (on demand and online – i have my laptop hooked up to my tv), there’s also a daily routine online at WarriorXfit.com, a jump rope, some hand weights and a yoga mat. Get yourself a big variety to keep it interesting each day…pilates to yoga to masses of lunges and squats! I went really hard at it for 2 weeks while cutting calories to the most valuable nutrition (& giving up a few favorite things like red wine and bread for that time). It budged some weight, I felt better, stronger with more stamina, looked better and was able to motivate to the next 2 weeks…its getting that jump start on it and seeing some results that is the initial goal..after that you crave it ’cause it works! Good luck!
Hi Pepper – Thanks for your good advice – Exercise TV and WarriorXFit are great resources. The important thing, as you said, was to just get started and to keep it interesting. See my blogpost in January on other “wallet-friendly” resources for exercising. http://www.menopausetheblog.com/2010/01/26/a-wallet-friendly-approach-to-fitness/#more-717
The media is starting to scare me more and more. I mean, is this really a story? I remember an article a few weeks ago about a study which said that men think about sex more than women. I mean come on, what’s next?
I’m doing the best I can with cardio 2-3 times a week (40 minutes; working on 25 mintues of that as-hard-as-I-can-go) (really takes PUSHING) and strength conditioning 2 days, and walking as much as possible. I work full time and just don’t have the energy for any more than this – does ANY 50-year old menopausal woman? Are you guys serious? I’m also working on overeating issues (mostly at night and mostly emotional – bored, nervous stuff) – I am so curious if it is possible to lose weight now. I was never overweight til my late 40’s. So discouraged and looking for hope. <–ha, sounds ridiculous – really, I'm fine and basically happy but don't want to be a dumpy middle aged lady! But I'm not sure I want to pay the price (lots of exercise; boring, tiny amounts of food) to lose a pound here and a pound there!
Hi Lori – Thanks for your comment. I had the same weight gain problem – after years of maintaining a trim weight, I put on the pounds, and within a really short time. It was scary. I finally shed the xtra pounds when I eliminated a lot of foods (like wheat and dairy) and basically cut down the calorie count. And I exercised a lot.
Thanks for your comments Wendy. I’ve sort of been avoiding dairy lately – and carbs. Find that dairy makes me pflegm-y (TMI?) and some of it, once I start, I can’t stop (cheese). Carbs I know just make me bloated and are so unnecessary – many of them. So I’ll keep working on all this.
Just took my measuresments to see how they compare to those I took a year or so ago – and see how my waist is. Hmmmm
I agree with you Wendy. My body really changed after eliminating hormone based products, gluten, white flours and sugars. I also have found that weight training is imperative to maintaining muscle mass.
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