Your health is one of the things that you can’t ignore at any age. Maintaining a healthy lifestyle starts with maintaining a healthy body. But many of us fail to handle the temptation of fast foods, drinks, and artificial sugars, so we fall into unhealthy diet habits.
We become so addicted to sugars and comfort foods and forget about our health and body mass. Sooner or later, we might end up facing health issues such as weight gain, diabetes, blood pressure, heart problems, muscle loss, etc.
Losing weight becomes harder in the 30s for both men and women. You can’t just jump onto an exercise program or start a diet and expect to shed pounds immediately. At this age most of us become super busy handling our family and professional lives. We become so busy that we start to ignore our health and weight.
According to many doctors, losing weight becomes harder as we age because as we age, the ability to build muscles and burn fat decreases. Contrary to popular opinion, weight loss is not impossible. Many people believe it is near impossible for them and that’s just not true. With a little discipline and a healthy lifestyle, anyone can achieve their desired body weight.
In this article, we are going to look at some of the ways to lose weight once you hit your 30s.
Add More Protein to Your Breakfast:
Human bodies tend to develop slower metabolism as they age. One way to control this problem is by building more muscle mass by choosing the right food groups. We start to develop muscle mass once we start consuming more protein. Your aim should be to consume at least 20-30 grams of it per meal. As we know, breakfast is the most important meal of the day. So adding foods such as eggs, milk, lean meat, nuts, yogurt to your breakfast can be extremely beneficial for your health.
Get inspiration for your breakfast with our meal planner.
Eat Every Few Hours & Reduce Artificial Sweeteners:
Our metabolism starts to drop by 1-2% each decade after the age of 25. So having a mini-meal every 2-3 hours is really important to fight it back. Our metabolism starts to function when we eat because we have to digest and absorb the food. So eating multiple meals per day helps our metabolism. That’s why doctors recommend having multiple meals per day instead of two or three big meals.
According to multiple reports, consuming too many artificial sweeteners can increase our sweet cravings, belly fat, and calorie intake. When we consume something that tastes sweet, our brains start to think of getting more calories. As there are no calories in artificial sweeteners, we want calories from somewhere else. This means we actually end up consuming extra foods to satisfy the body’s desire for additional calories.
Reduce Alcohol & Drink More Water:
We just need a small excuse to drink alcohol especially, when we reach our 30s. It’s not really surprising that after a busy day or weekend, everyone wants to relax with their friends with a glass of wine or beer. However, alcohol adds extra calories into the body without any nutritional value – so called empty calories. So instead of drinking 4-5 glasses every night, cut that down to 2-3 glasses per week. By doing this, you can still enjoy all your weekends and lose weight at the same time.
Less alcohol consumption and more water intake are some of the simplest ways to lose body weight no matter how old you are. If you are over the age of 30, you should definitely consider drinking more water. Because it helps to digest food and improves our metabolism. Men should drink 3-4 litres and women should drink 2-3 litres of water per day. Water also helps to keep our kidneys in a good shape, increases energy, improves skin complexion, and more. And the best part is it just comes out of the tap so it’s always available and basically free.
Lift More Weights and Exercise:
Like a diet, weightlifting, strength training, and resistance training are important but it is more important to do them regularly. When it comes to weight loss, weight training and cardiovascular exercise are a must. As we discussed earlier, we start to lose muscles as we age. And people who don’t exercise properly on a regular basis tend to lose muscle mass even faster. To avoid that you have to exercise on a regular basis and lift weight at least 2-3 times per week. This kind of exercise is really important when you are trying to lose weight. Join a gym, try a spin class or just get outside for a walk.
Try Fasting Occasionally for Weight Loss:
Fasting occasionally can be beneficial for people who are in their 30s compared to older people. As we age, we can develop many diseases like diabetes , thyroid, blood pressure, heart disease and other health conditions. Fasting changes how your body processes food and can help us lose fat. But you should not confuse fasting with starving. Fasting helps you lose body weight while starving can make your body weak and slow down the weight loss process. Always speak to a professional for advice before making a radical change to your diet.
Sleep 6-7 Hours (or more) Regularly & Try to Live a Happy Life:
Are you getting at least 6-7 hours of sleep every night? If you don’t sleep properly, it is going to affect your weight loss progress. Without proper sleep, you will feel tired all day and lose motivation to exercise and willpower to avoid comfort foods. Also, proper sleep helps to relax your body muscles and improves the overall condition of your brain and body.
The best way of managing your weight is to stay positive. Stress is one of the biggest reasons for weight gain. Make sure to have fun with your family and friends whenever you find the opportunity. Also, don’t let your weight loss journey affect your daily life. Try to make it a fun part of your life instead of a never-ending burden. Being positive towards your life has the best weight loss results.
Losing weight in your 30s: Conclusion
A lot of us start to gain weight in their 30s due to irregular lifestyles, bad eating habits, and prioritising their professional lives over their health. Shedding pounds is a long-term process. So the sooner you start, the better it will be. Setting a goal to lose weight is an important step in living a safe and healthy life. It’s never too late to start these weight loss efforts. In our 30s and beyond, our health and wellness gets difficult to maintain but that doesn’t mean changes are impossible. What many struggle with regardless of their age is realising there’s a problem and making a commitment to start. Just take this step first.
