gals over 50? page 6

[Barb]

I am 54 years old and went primal a year ago in Feb 2010. I was prompted to change my diet because my energy levels were so low and I felt exhausted a lot of the time. I work 12 hours shifts on my feet as an RN at a hospital and I was afraid I wouldn't be able to continue doing my job for too much longer. I have never needed to lose weight and that was not a motivation. But after reading MDA for several months and hearing about how people's energy improved I was willing to take the plunge and do a 30 day trial.

What happened was fairly dramatic at first. My energy levels increased within the first week. I was experiencing satiety after eating meals and feeling SO GOOD. Allowing myself to eat fatty foods was incredibly liberating. It was easy to forgo the treats and sweets people bring in to work because I was finally getting all the fat I wanted.

Even though I did not need to lose weight, I went from 122 to 118 the first month. Losing that extra body fat pushed me into severe menopausal symptoms immediately. I suddenly found I could not sleep at night because I was awakened every 1.5 - 2 hrs by profuse hot flashes......All the great energy I had originally gained went down the drain from sleep deprivation. I started getting depressed and irritable. The solution for me was to start a low dose estrogen patch, a dose low enough so that it hasn't eliminated all hot flashes, but most nights I can sleep through the night.

Part of my primal lifestyle was giving up any chronic cardio type exercise - I switched to walking with some sprints thrown in and strength training. The whole exercise thing is so much more enjoyable and relaxing.

Some stressful life events took place this year for me, the kind of ongoing unrelenting stuff that resulted in me not sleeping very well for several months - the kind where you wake up at 2:00 or 3:00 AM worrying and fretting and get by on 5 hours of sleep night after night.....My appetite was kind of decimated as well. During those months I completely stopped all strength training and sprints. I figured there was no point in adding physical stress to my body when it was already overly challenged by mental and emotional stress. I felt very in tune with my body and just kept eating primal and putting one foot in front of the other.

My life calmed down in January. My weight was down to 115 and I found that this really bothered me (and since when does weighing too little bother a woman in this culture?). I wanted my muscles back!!!! It felt kind of strange to find myself really wanting to gain weight. After 6 months of stress, I knew I had lost lean body mass. I started back in with weight training and body exercises. Despite no training for 6 months, I really had not lost that much strength. Now I find myself having bursts of energy again where I actually felt like sprinting or wake up eager to get on with the "to do" list. There are still plenty of days when I don't feel energetic, but it is getting better.

PB living is a lifestyle, not just a food plan. It has helped me improve my energy and recover from stress. It is not a cure for everything. I still have hormonal headaches and menopausal symptoms. I still need my little estrogen patch to make life bearable. But I am so glad I found it. Life is all around more pleasurable because of eating and living this way. I still need to work at playing more, having more fun, probably less screen time. Always room for improvement!

[Paleonewbee]

I'm still struggling with finding good fat sources. Recently I've been exploring fattier proteins which is an eye-opener since I've only ever looked for lean protein sources. [/QUOTE]

profdjj - I like adding pecans and fatty fish to get my fattier proteins.

[Suzan]

Hi, I'm almost 55, and have been playing on the edges of Primal Blueprint for about a year, lost some weight, gained some back. I got very serious about staying on plan last month. I don't keep a journal here, but I do a blog about it.

In the weeks ahead, I am definitely going to talk about being over 50 and overweight. Please let me know via a comment on my blog if you'd like to tell your story on my blog about being over 50 and overweight and on a low-carb diet. I think that there are many women who could benefit from this. Thanks!
http://suzanrobertson.blogspot.com

[HillsideGina]

I'm 51, new to Paleo. Been on a low-refined-carbs lifestyle for many years.

Skinny wimpy girl all my life - healthy according to my physical exams, but always felt I should have more strength.

Late 40s I started gaining weight for no reason. You know - middle age, pre-menopause and all. I started playing competitive table tennis and took a machine Pilates class, then bought my own machine (reformer). I got too aggressive with my workouts last year and got hip bursitis, which took about 6 months to get completely over. Doc said it was common for athletes. I continued table tennis but laid off the reformer until the bursitis went away.

Between the stubborn weight gain and bursitis, I felt like my body was betraying me, and got angry. I am not going down this path of menopause and aging without a full-frontal assault LOL! And now I have bunions too! Right after buying some really cute and fierce fashionable boots and shoes from Zappos! Gaaaa! What next?

I feel that the bursitis and bunions are related to inflammation, and I want to beat that. Inflammation is really the root of many illnesses, including heart disease.

Anyway, now I am fully on board the Primal eating plan, and back to working out. I want to get in the best shape of my life and stay there. I don't see any reason why I should not get there. I want to age with strong bones, a healthy immune system, good veins, and muscles! I want to wear a bikini this summer! I do!!!

I visit my in-laws in an adult community often, and there are many good role models I see there - people in their 80s swimming and biking and lifting weights daily, staying "vertical" and healthy. I want to age like that, and not the opposite - folks my age and older who have clearly given up on their bodies. If you give up on your body, your mind will go with it I am sure.

[Cricket]

Hi! I didn't see this post before. I will be (ahhh) 57 next week. (I can't believe it!!) I was diagnosed with hypoglycemia in August. I think I've had it for 40 years but in the last year, I started feeling worse and worse. I felt down and depressed for no reason. I decided to go to a new dr since all my old dr would say was...it's your age! I am 10 years post menopausal, thank goodness. Anyway I got lucky. The dr I went to was very understanding and actually listened to me. She said...I think you might be hypoglycemic! We did blood tests and waited but in the meantime, I cut out all simple carbs and especially sugar and sweets cold turkey after doing some research. WOW! Talk about the carb flu. My legs and arms ached so bad for 3 or 4 days, I thought I was dying but little by little I felt better. One reason the dr knew what was wrong with me was that she's hypoglycemic too! She told me to stick to a high protein diet and watch the carbs. It's been a trial and error but I lost almost 10 lbs the first week and it seemed like it all came off my stomach which was the place I had always had trouble losing. I also by now have had to give up all grains as I discovered they would really spike my sugar! I saw Primal Blueprint on Amazon. I bought it and was amazed by the grain info and a lot of other things. It's been about 6 weeks and since I was already doing pretty much a primal diet anyway, it's been pretty easy to stay on. My niece is also trying this. The only two problems I've had to deal with have been constipation which I upped my dietary fat for and I seem to get tired more on occasion. Ok...that's my long winded story. There is actually alot more to it but I love this site! It's great for information!

[HBarrett]

Latecomer to thread -- 63 yrs. old, primal since July. All went well (inches lost, if not too many pounds) till October when my body dried out and I got the first yeast and urinary tract infections I'd had in decades. It seems I'd gone too low in carbs. Tweaked PB with a few more safe starches and felt better. Gained 5 lbs. and am now testing a few ideas:

1) Even the sugar in coffee or lemonade is too much.
2) I can't eat all the fat I want -- above a certain point, calories count. In fact, I need to watch food portions even of PB foods.
3) Am resuming a pilates class along with tai chi practice -- my aging metabolism is so slow I need to move as much as I can.

I liked what you guys wrote about expectations. Having gone through a learning curve, I'm now just thrilled with any improvement and the whole process is much more fun.

Holly

[Paleonewbee]

I'm the same way Holly. I'm 52, been post menapausal since 45. have to watch what I eat even eating primal. And zero sugar. It triggers something in my body that turns my metabloism OFF and stops my weight loss efforts. And exercise - no matter how much I hate it - helps both the metabolism and my cravings for sugar.

[Dabblertante]

I'm 61 years old. Technically within acceptable weight but the last few years have been discovering unpleasant rolls and wiggles. I have always been fairly active and years of competitive volleyball & whatever else has led me to have shoulder, neck, knee & feet problems. Diagnosed with hypothyroidism, Reynaud's & some arthritis over the last ten years. Was getting really bummed because I was tired, seemed like every work out created more problems. Had to quit VB when I was 52. Can't run. Anyway, since Aleve wasn't working anymore, a DR prescribed a muscle relaxant and better NSAID. That sure improved my quality of life and I could workout again and perform the duties of my sometimes strenuous job without duress. Well, 2 weeks ago I happened across MDA, downloaded the Primal Fitness book, began the program & downloaded the book! The workout makes sense to me & am at the begining of most exercises. Can't even begin to do a pull up and do a wall squat holding the position as long as I can instead of sliding up and down (ouch!) I do the sprint on a stationary bike. I lost about 5 # already. Belly bloat pretty much gone. I am hoping to get strong & healthy & possibly stop the arthritis rx. Sure would like to see these extra rolls gone! Does skin shrink at my age? I have a concern about my bowels though. Since I've stopped eating my daily beans or oatmeal I'm kind of constipated.

[inquisitiveone]

I'll be 50 this fall, and am postmenopausal since 43 or so. I'm only one month in to my primal adventure, and I think I may still be consuming too much fruit and dairy, but I'm seeing positive results. Best of all, I'm feeling good about the changes I'm making in my life.

@Dabblertante: welcome! My understanding is that skin can shrink. Factors influencing whether it will (and by how much) include genetics, how quickly one loses weight, and how well one cares for one's skin. I've read that coconut oil can help rejuvenate skin, and keep it supple, which should help it bounce back as one loses weight. Regarding the bowel issue, sometimes a significant change in one's diet is enough to trigger constipation. Maybe drinking more water will help with it; eating vegetables—especially leafy greens—will help offset the absence of beans and oatmeal.

[Sharonll]

I love all you primal folks, but I wanna read a journal of someone over 50!! A female. To see what you all have accomplished later in life! We can do it!

I'm 55, been primal since August 2009, and have lost 50 pounds. I have a blog over at http://middlinplus.com, which also contains a link to my journal here on MDA.