As a woman in your 40’s and 50’s you know all too well that the dieting methods that worked so well for you when you were 20 just don’t seem to be working as well now. It’s easy to overlook the fact that since your body is changing your dieting habits will need to change too.

There are many reasons for this such as changing lifestyle and metabolism. These can make achieving and maintaining your ideal weight more difficult than it once was.

Body Condition

1. As you reach your 40’s your body will lose lean muscle and replace it with fat. Since muscle burns more fat than fat does it means your metabolism will be a lot slower. That makes losing weight harder. Menopause and the hormonal fluctuations that go along with it are another reason your old diet no longer works.

2. As you age it becomes more difficult for your body to burn carbohydrates the way it once did. For many women this is a problem because they are preparing meals for their family who don’t want their food styles to change, even though yours might need to.

Lifestyle

1. As your age increase, it is only natural to reduce physical activities; mostly because you don’t have body fitness to do any extra exercise between or after your daily activities. This lack of exercise can lead to weight gain.

2. As our children grow and leave home and we retire we find ourselves with a lot more free time. Having this extra time can lead to overeating, and/or eating the wrong types of foods.

If you have realized that you can’t depend on the old ways anymore to maintain or lose weight, it is time to make some adjustments on your weight control efforts:

1. Avoid processed and packaged foods at all cost, including diet soda; it contain artificial sweetener which have addiction effects.

2. At middle age, it may be hard to increase physical activity, but you need it in order to maintain a healthy body composition: more lean muscle mass and less body fat, which means better metabolism rate, thus easier to maintain or lose weight. Try simple aerobic exercise such as walking, jogging, or biking.

3. If you have been eat at three big meals up until now, it is time to switch into at least five small meals; large meal will release lots of insulin in the blood and slower your metabolism. With less insulin in the blood, you will burn more calories and this is good if you are trying to lose weight.

4. In your 40’s your metabolism will be slower, no matter what you do, so it’s important to cut your caloric intake. Make sure you cut carbohydrates. Find a diet plan that offers a large variety of fruits and vegetables.

5. Get enough sleep. The old rule of thumb is 8 hours a night for adults though not everyone needs 8 hours. Some people need a little more, some a little less. The important thing is to find how much you need and then make sure you get it.

6. Make sure to keep well hydrated by drinking enough water. It’s also important that you are getting enough fiber and that you cut your fat consumption.

Most women on menopausal period will have weight problem as well. When dealing with this problem, remember that some of your old diet technique will not works due to difference in your condition; the most important things is keep exercising and watch your daily calorie intake.

With those points in mind, visit Stefan Vincent’s “how to select the best diet” at Diets that work and check his list of weight loss program to find one that suit your need.