Hello Everybody,
It is true that a natural weight loss program is suitable for all ages. But is it more suitable for some than for others? Older people begin to lose weight naturally due to muscle wastage. This can be compounded by eating less, as they take less exercise and feel the need for less food. It is a concern, but the degree of concern depends on where they started from. An obese old person is unlikely to fade away due to muscle wastage and, as long as they drink plenty of water to avoid dehydration, eating a little less is no bad thing. Of course, if they are of average weight or under to begin with, they must be careful to monitor their weight in conjunction with their doctor.
So if you are over 70 and overweight what do you do? It depends on how you feel about it. There are some who say there is not much point in doing anything, just take palliative medicine for worn-out joints and heart problems and carry on as before. That seems to me to show an impressive lack of in interest in the quality of life of older people. I would suggest that if you want to lose weight just go ahead and do it.
There are people looking at the effects of natural weight loss programs on older people. Researcher Bret H. Goodpaster has shown that when Seniors diet without exercising they lose more lean muscle, compared with those that do exercise. When they combined weight loss with exercise it nearly completely prevented the loss of lean muscle mass. His study, snappily entitled, Separate and combined effects of exercise training and weight loss on exercise efficiency and substrate oxidation. appears in the Journal of Physiology and is reported in Science Daily.
Bret H. Goodpaster looked at 64 people aged 60-75. The lower age range seems to me a little too low, but that is what he did. They were divided into three groups.
Exercise only.
Diet only.
Exercise plus diet.
We are not told in the report how many people of each age were in each group, or indeed if it was possible to assemble identical groups given the availability of people of various ages. We can only presume that this did not make much difference.
The exercisers could walk on a treadmill or ride a stationary bicycle. Most chose to walk. The dieters reduced their calorie intake to achieve a 10 percent weight loss. The remaining group combined both the daily exercise and the diet. The researchers measured how many calories the participants expended during a set time on a stationary bicycle at the beginning of the experiment and at the end of the four month study period.
The exercise group expended fewer calories at the end and drew more on fat stores as their source of energy.
The diet only group weighed less but calorie expenditure remained the same. Their weight loss resulted from loss of both muscle and fat.
The exercise plus diet group was the most efficient at the end of the experiment, burning fewer calories. They drew more on fat stores as an energy source.
All this just confirms what we already know, that the best way to lose weight is through a combination of a healthy diet and exercise. However it is interesting to find that older people can reduce muscle wastage through regular exercise. So if you are over 70 - or over 60 according to Bret H. Goodpaster - and would like to lose some weight do so. Check with your doctor and then start your natural weight loss program. Eat plenty of fresh fruit, vegetables, lean meat and fish and have a walk for an hour or more each day. That should do it. Enjoy yourself.
See you soon,
Peter Stockwell
22 August 2010
Photo. Radonich Alexandra