I recently turned 65.  Have you noticed how difficult it is to lose weight when you turn 65????   And how easy it is to put it back on!  I guess it is difficult to lose weight at all ages, but my metabolism has slowed down so much that I have to lower my calories to almost nothing in order to lose any weight!  At any rate, I have been traveling some over the past year and I noticed that my weight had started creeping back up.  It was time to go on a diet and lose some weight!

On July 10, 2016 I decided to start my diet to lose 15 lbs.  I weighed in a 195.2 lbs.  That is way too much for me!  So far, I am down to 184. Only four more pounds to go, but the past six weeks have had a lot of ups and downs.  Here is my story!

I normally eat pretty healthy.  In my younger days, after especially after I was divorced, my diet was terrible.  I was one of those people that ate fast food for lunch and dinner most days.  Then I watched one of those documentaries where a guy ate nothing but fast food for a couple of weeks and his health and body chemistry went totally downhill! So I gave up fast food. Just that one thing did improve my health, but the weight gain from that time would put me on a road of a lifetime of dieting.

For some reason, it was much easier to diet in my younger days.  I could take off weight fairly easily back in my 20’s and 30’s.  Now it is a difficult fight.  Some time ago, I read somewhere that our body has a set point.  The body is programmed to to weigh a certain amount based on your normal eating.  What I’ve found is that the body always wants to go back to the higher number.   So the key to maintaining a good weight is to never let it get out of hand in the first place!  But for me, that ship has sailed, so I have to figure out a way to lose these 15 pounds again!!!!

It is amazing how my weight has fluctuated over the years.  In high school, I weighed about 150 lbs.   I could eat just about anything then and never gain a pound.  In college, my weight went up to 170.  I always felt best at that weight.  I kept 170 on my driver’s licence up until my weight got to 190. (Didn’t think I could get away with it anymore at that point).  When I graduated from college and started working in an office, my weight started to increase.  I think it was from going out with the staff to eat lunch every day.  My highest weight ever was 215.  I never want to go there again!

Starting Tuesday, I’ll let you know how I lost the 11 pounds so far at 65 years old, what worked and what didn’t work.  And what comes next!  Stay tuned!