Lisa is 51 and is going through menopause and finding it hard to lose weight.
Most of her work is deskbound, but she normally goes for a walk after work as her exercise for the day. She says eating with kids and snacking with her partner are her downfalls: the kids love cheesy, starchy meals, while her partner loves chocolate — which is hard to resist when watching TV on the couch! She says “I lead a double life which involves my partner and his children several days a week, outings with my friends and home alone other nights”.
9am (and 10am) Trim milk coffee.
10.30am 1 cup of wheat flakes, half a sliced banana and trim milk.
1pm Homemade chicken salad
3pm Apple — I try to have fruit mid-afternoon if I can face it
8pm Medium sirloin steak, vegetable stir-fry, 2 beers (I switched from wine to beer recently to reduce alcohol intake)
9pm 1 more beer while watching TV
Nadia Lim’s nutrition quick fix
Women tend to put on more weight in their 40s and 50s. One of the main reasons is simply lower levels of physical activity, however age as well as dropping levels of the hormone oestrogen (which occurs during menopause) also cause a drop in metabolic rate. Hormonal changes can cause a shift in body composition resulting in more weight being distributed around your tummy, so any weight you do gain is often more noticeable. For these reasons, the recommended daily intake (RDI) for calories for women in their 50s is lower, however the RDI for vitamins and minerals stays roughly the same. This means nutrient-dense foods are particularly important — your diet appears to be nutrient-dense with lean protein, vegetables, fruit and whole grains, however where you could easily cut down on calories is the alcohol, and make sure you keep up a good level of exercise.
