1/29/2016: "You Look Younger"

I stopped by the bowling alley Wednesday night to cheer on my team for an hour or so.  I saw a lot of people that I have not seen for a couple of months.  All of them knew that I had missed so many weeks of bowling because I was recovering from surgery, very few knew what kind of surgery it was.

Several people said, "You look great!" but I think they were half expecting me to look sick or weak.  Not knowing what type of surgery I had, they may have been expecting the worst.  One person looked at me closely, got a kind of puzzled look on his face, and tried to figure out what was different.  Then he proclaimed, "You look younger!"   That made my day.  That is exactly how I feel about the results, I do feel like I look younger.

Let's face it, most middle aged and older women have to deal with an almost guaranteed thickening of their middles.  Once a woman hits menopause, it's incredibly difficult not to gain weight in her belly.  I just pulled this paragraph from an article posted by the Mayo Clinic:

Scientists have long known that lower estrogen levels after menopause can cause fat storage to shift from the hips and thighs to the abdomen. Now, a groundbreaking study, co-authored by the Mayo Clinic, has determined why: Proteins, revved up by the estrogen drop, cause fat cells to store more fat.

The study also revealed a double whammy: These cellular changes also slow down fat-burning by the body.

There it is, in black and white (or in brown and cream, if you are reading this on my blog).  The article goes on to say that while our bodies really do change and it does become difficult not to accumulate belly fat after menopause, it's not a lost cause.  We have to change our habits, though.  We can't keep doing the same thing and expect not to put on belly fat after menopause.  We have to eat less, exercise more.  Eat more high quality calories and fewer crap calories.  Lift weights and build muscle mass.  Get enough sleep.  Drink plenty of water.  Move - a lot.

I have a life-time of maintenance ahead of me.  I'll always have to be careful about what I eat and make sure I exercise regularly, but now that I have had my tummy tucked, waist narrowed, saddle bags sucked out, and boobs lifted, I should be able to maintain my "girlish figure" well into my old age.  Yeah, I'm down with that!

Weight check:  this morning I weighed 152.4.  I'll get to 150, but it will be a slow process.  I think it was two weeks ago when I checked in at 153.4.  I will use the scale as a maintenance tool for the rest of my life.  I will stay below 155 for the rest of my life.  Weighing myself is an important part of the program.  Without the scale I can't really tell if I am eating too much.  It's too easy to gain five or ten pounds just by letting my portion sizes at lunch and dinner get a little larger.  Sometimes I eat a few too many nuts.  The scale doesn't lie.  It lets me know right away when I have started over consuming food.  As frustrating as it can be to have to acknowledge that even the slightest indulgence causes the scale to creep up, I'd rather see it and do something about it when it is just a pound or two than wait for my pants to get tight and realize that I have gained ten pounds.  Yes, I weigh myself every day.  And I will for the rest of my life.

Have a beautiful day!