I’m 36 and I’ve gone from 173lbs to 186lbs in a 2 year span. I’m just trying to figure out how this happened because I hike everyday for a couple of miles. If anything I feel I’m healthier and in better shape. I don’t think it’s muscle gain and even if it was it’s not 13lbs. I hate to think how much weight I’d gain if I didn’t hike everyday.
As far as eating I do notice that I still eat whatever, eat fast, and always finish my entire meal. I’ve always been skinny and had a high metabolism. Maybe I just took my metabolism for granted but still I’m active so I don’t know how I’m getting fatter. It’s certainly a wake up call.
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When you stop growing up you need less calories to function and as we age the amount needed slowly decrease over the years, but most people tend to eat the same amount all their life regardless, that’s what lead people to gain weight.
I’m not regularly active, pretty much sedentary, I’m 33 and still weight the same at when I was 12 (age at which I finished growing up). I eat around 1500 calories per day. (500 per meal) In most restaurant I only eat half my plate and bring the other half home to eat the next day. I used to run 5 km in 30 min, and it was making me burn only 200 calories or so. It’s not a lot, the equivalent of 2 tiny cookies perhaps. People often overestimate the calories they burn with activities and underestimate the calories they eat in a meal.
Your metabolism will slowly start to drop in your 60s. If you’re gaining weight it’s because you’re eating more. 13 pounds in 2 years is about 60 extra calories a day.
Weight gain and loss is solely a function of calorie intake. Most metabolic rates vary only slightly, all things being equal, and metabolism only starts to lessen in active people in their 60s.
If you’re gaining weight, it’s because you’re consuming too much.
As long as calories in > calories out, you gain weight. You’re apparently doing that. Mathing it out, by about ~~125~~ 60 calories a day (13 lbs. x 3,500 calories in one pound of fat / 365 days * 2 years). That’s about one half banana more a day.
There was a big meta-analysis a year or two ago that showed that metabolism stays on a plateau from about 20 to 70.
Who knows what changed in your equation. Could be anything. But you have the scale as a tool and can change it back.
I found that packaging was lying to me and 2000-2200 calories a day is too much for me, if I want to be fit and relatively lean. I need 1800 a day, max.
I’m six two 210 and have quite a bit of muscle and workout really hard with weights 2-3 times a week and assumed I needed at least the base 2000. I think a lot of folks are likely similar and over eating on the poor advice of what they say we need.
You’re eating too much (too many calories that is). Look at your diet.
Studies have pretty effectively shown that metabolism isn’t slowing like we thought until far later in life. Now there could be other environmental facts because I’ve also seen research that similar caloric loads didn’t lead to obesity in like the 70s/80s vs today. But it’s far more likely it’s activity level then and now.
Cardio increases appetite a lot and burns relatively few calories. Weight lifting at least for me was the inverse where I couldn’t seem to eat enough and recomped my body pretty rapidly through large compound lifts primarily. I’d be hungry, but I was also clearly losing fat and gaining muscle which required more energy just to sustain.
We also tend to not drink enough water. It’s easy to forget for me, anyway. My body just doesn’t work great when I’m dehydrated including wanting a ton more food.
I’m 6’ tall, 39 and 187ish. Feels like a fairly normal, not chubby body at this point. I have had a few years of health issues so haven’t been weight lifting. I hope to get back to it soon, I imagine it’ll drop some pounds pretty quick… though giving up cookies definitely would too.
Do you count calories, remember your body is quite an efficient machine, even as active as you are, your body will adjust accordingly to take in only the amount of calories needed to perform those tasks if done enough times. And start putting those extra calories into fat.
And yes, your metabolism will slow down, but thats not a bad thing, its just an age thing, again, start keeping track of your calories. 90% of body composition is in the diet, only 10% in exercise.
Only if you don’t keep on top of it. You can exercise daily and eat 100% healthy food, but if you just eat a little too much each day, you’ll slowly put on weight.
It’s way easier to eat less than hike and run more!
It can, especially if you aren’t avoiding junk/fast food.
I slowly put on weight after covid, going from 67kg in October 2019 to 81kg in June 2023. I’m now back down to 67kg. I wasn’t exercising significantly less, but was definitely eating more. As a result though, over the last few years a big difference was I wasn’t always out of energy. Getting my weight down to 67, I’m. Freaking tired and hungry all the time.
I did notice as I got a more sedentary job I started to gain weight. I had to adjust to eating less.
It sure does! All it takes is not modifying your diet as your metabolism slows down due to aging. You can exercise the same amount all you want, you can’t outrun your fork.
On top of that, even removing one small activity from the routine can really highlight this,
Last summer I was unemployed and in between applications and waiting for the phone to ring, I would drive to the nearby lake (about 5km from my apartment) and kayak for an hour at *least* 4-5 times per week.
This summer I was so swamped with two jobs I didn’t have the chance to make it out to the lake even once! On top of that, I still need to spot-repair the hull form damage on my last day of kayaking the previous year. A whole summer of not kayaking 4-5 hours per week resulting in weight gain creeping on me. Gained 15lbs!
Weight is singularly a function of your Calories in and your Calories out. If you’re active enough to consume the amount of Calories you do, you won’t gain weight. If you burn less Calories than you consume, slowly, over time, you’ll gain weight until the energy required to sustain your body matches what you’re consuming. As you get heavier, it takes more to just keep your body running. So, if you’re concerned about weight gain, be conscious of how much of what you’re eating, and what you truly need to sustain yourself. I’m a 1500 Calorie a day person, as I’m rather sedentary. I run 2-3x a week for a few miles, but that only burns like 250 or so Calories a run. I find many people really underestimate the amount of Calories different exercises burn, and the amount of food energy they actually consume. Maintaining an appropriate diet is what keeps me in a normal weight range. There are plenty of subs around that’ll help you find great, filling meals for low Calorie budgets.
Edit : Spelling
Calories. Find out what your TDEE is 14-30 days , the longer the more accurate.
Plot out the data how you like. Graph/table or other and you can sorta just extrapolate from there.
it might even be a certain food or habit you picked up recently that caused the weight gain.
Weight gain is more about diet than being active. Exercise is essential for your health, but if you want to lose or even maintain weight, you need to count calories. Metabolism slow down with age.
Yes weight gain creeps up on you. Like shit where did those ten pounds come from.
I think your problem is that you are vastly over estimating how hard you are exercising. Hiking a couple miles? You mean a walk? Unless you are pushing the pace uphill continuously you aren’t working out hard enough
I don’t like counting calories eaten and calories burnt. Not because it doesn’t work, it does. But because it’s is really really hard to be accurate. You have spent the last couple years in a caloric surplus.
Workout harder. Cut some crap out of your diet.
But don’t lose the walks. They keep you sane.
Man I inherited some wacky genes. If I’m not careful I lose weight. I have to actively make sure I eat enough. I know it sounds like a brag but I wish I had to worry about keeping weight off. I guess we always want the opposite from what we are. I got it from my dad. He’s the same. He didn’t start putting on weight till he was about 65. My mom and my wife hate us for that. Cake at 10 pm before bed? No problem. Lol.
Calories in, calories out.
Monitor your intake and watch what you eat.
Food is what matters most.
The way that you gain weight is by ignoring the factors that lead to weight gain. So if you are doing any of the following:
– not counting calories/carefully watching what you eat
– not working out regularly
– not getting enough steps in each day
If you’re mindful about what you eat (and how much), working out regularly, and getting in enough steps, then you will lose/maintain whatever weight you want.
> I still eat whatever, eat fast, and always finish my entire meal.
Consider controlling your meat portions and not eating “whatever” compared to a balanced, healthy diet. I plan on doing the same myself…
Two miles is not a hike, more of a stroll. If you want to maintain/lose weight you would need to hike way further than that as well as eating less.
[lord I didn’t even eat the chip!](https://youtu.be/jVsdvElYcRg?si=oRawpuXyP_2Si2It)
. If you are weight training and doing cardio 3-4x a week, it is easy to maintain weight.
My original career dream was to be a dietitian and I studied toward being one (things didn’t go as planned). It’s complicated when you get down to it.
Calories in vs. calories out is a good rule of thumb to follow. It’s thermodynamics after all! And while there are some medical conditions that can make the mileage vary a bit on this, If you don’t have those then it’s a solid rule to take into consideration.
Your metabolic rate is how much energy your body needs to sustain itself day-to-day. “Slow/fast” metabolism is a mega misleading faux-pas. It’s an insanely detrimental blunder. It’s like saying the speed of a car depends on how much the gas tank can hold. The more muscle you have, the more body mass you have, the more active you are, the more energy your body will need to sustain itself, and vice-versa. **Your metabolic rate doesn’t dictate your weight. Your weight (in part) dictates your metabolic rate**. If you have concerns about the actual speed of your *digestion*, that’s called gastroparesis and you get to go eat a radioactive egg! They’re yummy.
Just stick to as much actual whole food as you can and keep exercising. No perfect diet exists, just do what’s realistic for you. Pound for pound, processed food is impossibly, unnaturally calorie-dense. It’s less food and more calories. Whole foods and home-cooked meals are more food and less calories. And more nutritious. And more fiber. And lower glycemic index (usually)
If you’re interested, check out what the glycemic index is and how our body deals with low and high glycemic index foods!
Also weightlifting and building muscle is underrated for weight loss. You’re doin’ great.
Yes, at 45, I really only eat two meals a day. I have coffee with creamer in the morning but my first meal isn’t till around 11, sometimes even 1pm, and I rarely eat after 5pm, unless you count ice cream. 🙂
Then again, I also stopped drinking alcohol at 40, so I know that helped my metabolism as well.
Same thing happened to me when I turned 40. I’m meticulous about tracking my weight. Doc kept saying it was juts because I was getting old and that’s what happens. I worked out more, ate less, and stilled the scale creeped up. Kept pushing the doctor and he finally ordered the right tests and it game back I have Hypothyroidism, which was the cause. Got on thyroid medication and weight went back down and energy came back.
I saw the title of the post and immediately thought yes absolutely. When you add stress, depression, lack of time, kids, age, over working to having issues with your thyroid and lower test levels can mess with weight gain…
But reading the actual post, 13 pounds in 2 years? You’re concerned about 13 pounds in 2 years? I can see if it was 13lbs in a month, 2 months… 2 years? You’re trolling people with this post.