Eating For Health

We have all seen frail, elderly people who have seemed to have lost a lot of muscle.   But did you know that you start losing muscle long before you become elderly?   Studies have found that after the age of 30, yes 30, you begin to lose about 3-8% of your muscle mass per decade.   This loss accelerates after the age of 60.   Environmental Nutrition (April 2024) has a great article, “Preserving Muscle is a Key Part of Healthy Aging”.   But this information isn’t just for the elderly but for anyone who wants to preserve muscle mass.    What is sarcopenia? Sarcopenia is a fancy name for losing muscle and muscle strength as we age.   Building muscle requires your body to make muscle protein.   Unfortunately, our body’s ability to make muscle protein declines as we age.   Sarcopenia is more common in people over 60 and it affects both men and women.   Studies estimate about 5-13% of people over 60 have sarcopenia and up to “50%...

Last week we talked about people who start off on a diet, lose weight and then seem to stop losing.   Why?   I noted that SparkPeople had an interesting article on “8 Reasons Why You’re Not Losing Weight” written by a personal trainer.   We covered 4 of these reasons last week and this week we cover the personal trainer’s other 4 reasons.     Reasons for Not Losing Weight –   based on SparkPeople and good nutrition advice from a registered dietitian. 5.        Y ou are not being consistent –you need consistency to establish good habits. You start out strong, sticking to your diet and exercise routine.   Then you step on the scale and haven’t lost the weight you wanted and you fall into the trap of going off the diet and skipping the gym.   You say, “What’s the point?”   to justify going off the diet and exercise regimen.   Or you have that one dessert and then say you’ve ruined your diet and stop ...

      Many people start off on a diet, lose weight and then seem to stop losing.   Why?   SparkPeople had an interesting article on “8 Reasons Why You’re Not Losing Weight” written by a personal trainer.   She said it is one of the most common questions she is asked.   She noted that those on a diet may thing they are doing “everything right” but still plateau.   So why are there no changes on the bathroom scale?   This week we’ll review 4 of the reasons and next week continue with the other 4 reasons.          Reasons for Not Losing Weight –   based on SparkPeople's 8 Reasons Why You're Not Losing Weight and good nutrition advice from a registered dietitian.   You are eating back the calories you burn. Yes, working out is great but then eating everything in sight when you get home, is not so great for weight loss.   When I first started a spinning class, I would come home and be e...