Fitness and Health at 40

Today, I’m 20 pounds heavier than I was in my early twenties.  And I’m happy about it!  I’m stronger and healthier both mentally and physically than I’ve ever been.  I wish I could go back and tell my twenty-something self that you won’t find happiness in a size or a number.  That you’re running toward an unreachable goal because you’re allowing your mind to play tricks on you.  But I had to learn this lesson by living through it.  I had to go through the negative self talk loop and the body image issues to get to the healthy-and-in-love-with-my-body place I’m in today.   Call me crazy, as I’m certainly not a health expert, a fitness guru or any kind of medical professional, but I believe the main key to health and fitness at any age is loving your body as it is today, right now, in this moment.  Not when you lose the weight.  Not when you get back into your skinny jeans.  Not when you finally finish your first marathon or you complete a certain number of spin classes.  Today, in this moment, right now, just as you are ~ loving your body ~ that’s the ticket!

I’ve gotten a few requests from readers for a fitness, diet and overall health post, so today I’m dishing about all the things in the wellness arena.  Taking care of your mind and body is so important at any age, but now at 40 I’m realizing how vital it is to so many aspects of life. From my energy level and mood to a good nights sleep, what I eat and how I move my body are all related.

Let’s Talk About Food

You are what you eat.  This is truth.  I believe it was Hippocrates that said, “Let thy food be thy medicine.”  From a health perspective, I’ve experienced first hand the benefits of eating gluten-free as it relates to my Hashimoto’s thyroid issues.

That being said, I also believe diets are dumb.  There I said it.  Hate me if you want, but you all know it’s true.  Taste buds were created by God for a reason.  You, me, we all deserve to eat really yummy food.  And sometimes the super yummy stuff isn’t the “healthiest”.

I’ve been following a mostly whole foods based way of eating for almost a decade now.  Lots of veggies, lean protein, limited dairy, not a lot of processed or packaged foods.  But I also eat cookies and cakes and brownies, because what even is life without the occasional dessert?!  Moderation is key.  I don’t count calories, but in the last few months I’ve started tracking my macronutrients.  I’ll talk more about that later in this post, but using the My Fitness Pal app has been really eye opening for me.  I realized two things when I first started using it ~ 1. I wasn’t feeding my body enough protein.  and 2. I was unintentionally eating way too low carb.

Protein is important for building muscle, and my number one personal promise to myself for 2019 is to get strong.  So fueling my body with the right amount of protein is super important.  And while I know keto and low carb diets are super on trend right now, staying in a very low carbohydrate place for an extended period of time is not great for anyone with thyroid issues.  Google this and talk to your doctors about it, low carb is not a great fit for everyone.

Intermittent Fasting

I did this off and on last year and definitely noticed the energy boost that intermittent fasting provided.  So in January I decided to make this a lifestyle thing, and not only is my energy level way up but I’m also sleeping better at night as well.  My sugar cravings have also been curbed big time since I’ve been on the intermittent fasting bandwagon.

Intermittent fasting is basically when you eat within an 8 hour window and then fast (i.e. don’t eat but you can drink all the water you want) for 16 hours.  You can also have coffee during your fasting window, so long as you stay under 50 calories.  I haven’t used cream in my coffee for years now, so using a splash of coconut milk and stevia is perfect for me.  Intermittent fasting sounds a lot harder than it actually is.  Your body gets used it pretty quickly.  And the biggest thing this has done for me apart from the energy boost, better sleep and curbed sugar cravings, is cut out the pointless calories I used to consume while watching tv at night.

I Hate Exercise

Yep, I just said that out loud.  This is my truth.

I don’t enjoy working out.  I never have.  But I do it anyway.  I just force myself to get out there and get it done.  Rather than making it a goal, I call it a promise because I feel like I’m letting myself down when I don’t fulfill my promises.  And I’ve promised myself that I will do some form of exercise at least 4 times a week.  Because I want to build muscle this year and really tone up, I lift weights two to three times a week.  And I’ve actually found, that lifting feels like a lot less of a chore than other forms of workouts.

You may remember at the beginning of the year when I mentioned that I was in the market to hire a trainer to assist me with my “get strong” promise.  Well, I ended up hiring a health and fitness coach (I’ll get to more about that in a minute), and she laid out a plan for me, so I don’t even have to think about what to do when I go to the gym.

I love having a gym checklist because it takes all the thinking and/or guess work out of the equation, so I can just get in and get out – and get ‘er done!

Cardio Motivation

The thing I loathe the most is cardio.  So I’ve purposefully categorized certain tv shows and podcasts as my “cardio motivation”.  And I only allow myself to watch/listen to them if I’m working out.  This one little rule has made a world of difference for me!  I won’t go so far as to say I look forward to my cardio workouts now, but it does motivate me ~ and that counts for something.

Workout Rewards

Who doesn’t love a prize or a reward?!  The other way I self-motivate is by rewarding my workouts.  So if I’ve hit all my workouts in a week I put $20 in a special reward fund.  And then I treat myself to something I wouldn’t normally do.  Two weeks ago I went in for a 60 minute massage with my workout reward money.  And I’ve already scheduled a facial for next month…..that I have to earn by hitting my workouts.

I think my best advice with regard to exercise for anyone who just doesn’t like to do it is to take some time to self-reflect on what you do and don’t like about working out.  Get to know yourself and figure out what will keep you motivated.  Do you need a partner to keep you accountable?  Would some cardio motivation via a tv show or podcast help?  Cash reward?  😉  You gotta do what you gotta do, and staying active is so good for both the mind and the body!

Getting My Mind Right

I started this post by saying that I believe loving your body as it is today is the key to a healthy lifestyle.  And I want to take a minute now to expand on that.  Loving your body today doesn’t mean you don’t have fitness goals.  It means you don’t allow yourself to engage in negative self talk about your body.  It’s  about appreciating how your body serves you and what it’s capable of doing.

I got made fun of in high school for having a big bootie.  And those years of ridicule left a mark on me.  And while those teenagers poking fun were in the wrong, I realized that as an adult I needed to take ownership of how I allowed those years of ridicule to affect me.  It’s easier said than done.  And I definitely don’t want to diminish the ill effects of hateful remarks, but I do want to empower those that have been on the receiving end of mean words about your body ~ you have within you an amazing power to force those remarks to bounce.  Those words don’t get to stick with you.  Those hateful words don’t get to define you.  

How much of what you think about your body is based on what society says your body should be?

Society changes its standards of beauty all the time.  It’s not your job to conform.  Show up in the world as you are!   You are wonderfully and beautifully made.  That’s the truth!  Own it!

My Health & Nutrition Coach

I mentioned earlier that this year I’ve started working with a health coach.  Working with Loren has made a world of difference for me in terms of fulfilling my “get strong” promise to myself for 2019.   I’ve learned a ton about nutrition and fitness since I started working with her!   She’s an amazing coach that is so encouraging and supportive.  Her program is incredible!  It’s not a one size fits all approach at all, which I really love.  It’s completely tailored to your own specific goals, whether you’re looking to shed some pounds, you’re wanting to tone up and build muscle or you’re just wanting to find a healthy living lifestyle that is easy to maintain.  This is a lifestyle program; not a diet program.  And it’s all about encouraging people to be the healthiest versions of themselves.  I’ve really enjoyed it and am looking forward to continuing on my “get strong” journey.

In speaking about how much I don’t like working out……the other thing that does slightly help me to get into a better frame of mind regarding exercise is cute activewear. 😉  My favorite, affordable brands are the Joy Lab and Champion line at Target.

Ok, so tell me, what works for you?  How do you stay motivated to work out and eat healthy?