12 Minutes Of Brutally Honest Fat Loss Advice (Over 40)

Ever feel like losing fat after 40 keeps getting harder no matter what you try?

After over 25 years as a fat loss coach and more than a decade of fat loss ups and downs of my own, I've discovered that it's actually simpler than you think. But that doesn't mean it's easy. So, I'm going to share the reality of fat loss over 40 so you can stop ignoring all the distractions and focus on what actually works.

Embrace Discomfort for Results

Just a little warning that I might upset some people with what I'm going to say in this video, but if you're ready for some straight talk, you'll appreciate what I'm going to share.

You need to embrace some discomfort. If you're trying to lose fat, there will be times when you'll be hungry. It's actually a sign that your calorie deficit is working.

And to lose fat successfully, there will be times when you feel like having a particular food, but you'll have to turn it down. Because if you keep giving in all the time to the slightest temptation, you won't make any progress. If you do what you've always done, you'll get what you've always gotten. So, something needs to change.

Your habits, some of your routines, and that process can be hard and not particularly fun all the time. But I encourage you to be boring. Many people would consider what I eat boring. It's the same lean protein, vegetables, fruit, nuts, potatoes, sweet potatoes, rice, Greek yogurt, and cheese all the time, but there's also some ice cream and chocolate in there, which I'll tell you more about later.

Create Simple, Sustainable Food Routines

It's a way of eating that's enjoyable for me. And with my clients, I always start with what they like to eat.

🎁 I call it The Food Freedom List and it's in the Lean and Strong 40+ plan that you can get FREE HERE.

Fat loss is actually easier when you stick to the same foods over and over.

Your life is already busy and complicated enough. If you're constantly trying to decide what you're going to eat, it makes the process harder and you're more likely to give up.

Once you've reached your goal, or at least you've gotten comfortable with your general structure, you can play around a bit more within a certain range. But remember, you can't maintain your weight on a different diet than the diet you used to lose fat in the first place.

Choose a Long-Term Nutrition Strategy

You need to choose a way of eating that works for you long term.

I've heard people say, "I'm going to do keto for a few months to lose weight and then I'll stop." Um, so what's the plan for afterwards? Do you just go back to the way you were eating before?

Because if you do, you'll just gain that fat back eventually. It's the same as doing a 30-day challenge to get rid of certain foods temporarily. You might get some initial results, but what are you going to do afterwards? So, it's important to choose a method of fat loss that you can sustain.

Don't even think of it as a diet.

Create a way of eating that helps you lose fat, but is also enjoyable for you. If you can't stick to the plan without undue suffering, the plan isn't right for you, and it'll only give you temporary results. So, whatever nutrition plan you come up with, it needs to include your favorite foods, including your favorite treat foods.

Include Treats Without Derailing Progress

For me, that's the ice cream and chocolate, which I have pretty much every day right now, in small quantities, of course. But it's taken me a lot of time to get to this point. Following my plan feels easy now, but it might not be that way for you yet. What's easy for a lean person might not be easy for you at this point.

Everything feels hard when it's new, but after a while, you adapt and your idea of easy is different. And honestly, losing fat initially is much harder than maintaining your fat loss. You just have to get through the hard part. That's where having support, like from a coach, can help you push through.

Own Your Choices (Even Socially)

Now, I haven't had alcohol since New Year's. I've been doing it to help reduce my acid reflux, and I don't find it particularly hard. I don't have a lot of social occasions that feel like they require alcohol. And even when I've hung out with friends over the last few months, I didn't drink even when everyone else around me was, I don't really care what people think about that.

It's my choice and I don't feel the need to defend it. And that's an important way of thinking because you need to feel secure in your choices.

Right now in North America, about 60% of people are overweight or obese. For people over 40, it's estimated to be somewhere between 60 and 70%.

Most people do not eat well. Most people do not exercise enough. If you follow the crowd and do what everyone else is doing, you're going to have those same results. I've had digestive issues, IBS, and GERD for over 25 years.

Navigate Social Pressure and Environment

During that time, I've tried so many diets to try to find out what works. That often meant skipping certain foods when going out at parties or during holidays. My mom got to the point where she would ask, "What are you eating now?" whenever I came to visit her. And I know it's been frustrating for her to try to keep up.

But I had to do what I had to do. And I stopped apologizing for doing something that I knew was good for me. Think about the people that influence you. Does your spouse encourage you to have certain foods with them, healthy or not so healthy?

Do you go to family events and get pressured to eat certain things? Make sure you try Auntie Linda's fruit cake. She put a lot of work into it, and you'll hurt her feelings if you don't. If you feel pressure from your family to eat a certain way, you're not alone.

I found that the success of my clients often depends on how supportive their spouse and their family is of their fat loss goals. If your environment isn't supportive, you have to build the willingness to hold your ground and do what's right for you while still keeping it polite, then you'll find your fat loss success. So, be unapologetic. You don't owe anyone an explanation for your choices.

Stand Apart From the Average

But the majority of people are too influenced by others. And most people, as you've already heard, aren't active and lean. So unless you surround yourself with healthy fitness buffs, you'll need to stand on your own. You'll be that guy or that woman who stands out for eating healthy and exercising regularly.

And yeah, that takes guts in an unhealthy world. It also takes courage to admit that fat loss is within your control, but you're not doing what you need to do yet. If you're in your 40s and 50s, the important thing to realize is that it's not your metabolism. There's a common misconception that your metabolism tanks once you get to 40 and losing fat becomes a lot harder.

It’s Not Your Metabolism

Actually, your metabolism is pretty stable throughout the lifespan with a small drop after 60 as long as you maintain your muscle mass.

And the way you do that is through strength training at least twice a week. For people aged 45 to 64, only about 30% of men and 24% of women actually do that, which means that your metabolism doesn't automatically decrease with age. You can do something about it.

But most people don't, and that's the problem. And actually, your metabolism isn't even a big factor in your fat loss success. It's what you do that matters. Cardio needs to be in your plan, too, for both heart health and a little bit of fat loss.

It may not be a lot of calorie burn for a single session, but it still adds up over time. And it helps with your appetite, which is really key for reducing calories. The same goes for daily movement, primarily walking, which very few people do enough of. So, do a clear, honest review of your physical activity.

Be Consistent Seven Days a Week

Are you doing strength training, cardio, and daily movement consistently to lose fat? Most people just aren't doing enough. But even if you're physically active, it's usually your eating habits that are causing you problems because it's likely that you're not eating as well as you think. You might be really good during the week, basically existing on chicken breast and broccoli, but if you don't stay at least moderate on the weekend, you can't sustain the calorie deficit you need to lose fat.

So, make sure that whatever plan you put together for yourself includes physical activity and eating 7 days a week, not just when it's convenient. It takes some work to establish routines and break habits when you feel too busy and overwhelmed by other things. So remember that everyone has challenges to overcome. People who fail at fat loss lean into the negatives, all the things they have against them.

Drop the Excuses and Do the Work

They think to themselves, "I'm too old. I'm too busy. I have a slow metabolism. I have bad genetics."

And they use those things as excuses to not do the work they need to do. They think they're doing it, but on closer inspection, they're actually not, at least not consistently enough or for long enough. I've never had someone come to me for coaching where I couldn't find something that they could improve to get better fat loss results. And believe me, there are people out there who are older than you, busier than you, with slower metabolisms, and with worse genetics that are doing better because they're not letting their limitations stop them.

Everyone Has Limitations

You might look at me and think, "Aw, I wish I had her genetics. Then it would be easy for me like it is for her." And yes, I'm grateful for a lot of things that I've been given genetically. I'm happy to be 5 foot 10 and to have had parents who encouraged me to be active when I was young.

And yet, I spent most of my 20s struggling with my weight and binge eating. And I've already mentioned that I have digestive issues and I have a lot of limitations for what I can eat and how I can eat. It can be incredibly frustrating for me to have to navigate all that. I also have PCOS and I've been jerked around by my hormones my whole life.

I've also had my fair share of injuries: frozen shoulder, Achilles tendonitis, plantar fasciitis, golfer's elbow, tennis elbow, a hamstring tear that took a year to heal, shin splints, multiple thumb sprains, as well as a recent SC shoulder joint injury that caused me to pass out for a couple of minutes and have to go to the ER. But because I've built the right fitness, nutrition, and lifestyle habits over the past couple of decades, I have my tools in place to fix issues as they come up. I get the help I need, and I keep moving forward.

Get Medical Help When You Need It

Now, as a side note, if you're struggling with a medical condition that's making you feel miserable and unable to do the things you need to do for fat loss, talk to your doctor. Get the help you need. Not everything has an easy solution, but having support can make a difference. What I'm trying to say is that we all have some assets and some liabilities.

We each have our specific limitations. I've had clients who had major illnesses and surgeries and some that were cancer survivors. One of my clients many years ago, a woman in her 60s, used to fit in her training with her rounds of chemotherapy. And she never complained.

She would just tell me, "I can't come in that week because I won't be able to get out of bed after chemo." Everyone you see succeeding in anything has overcome something to get there. It's how you respond to your challenges that makes the difference. If you're going to be successful with fat loss and a champion in your life, you need to accept the struggle.

Stop Chasing Hacks

So, stop looking for the magic solution. The fitness industry is always ready with a trendy diet, lifestyle hack, or life-changing workout plan. I know we all want things to be easy. We think if we just try this one little thing, it'll change everything for us.

And we'll have found the magical solution we've been waiting our whole lives for. You might be asking yourself, should I be doing rocking, wearing a weighted vest? Should I be taking creatine? Should I be doing cold plunges?

Those are the wrong questions to ask because none of those things will be the difference maker for fat loss. You don't need any of them. But it's possible that you're convincing yourself if you do them then something will distinctly change for you. It won't.

Proven Principles for Fat Loss and Muscle

You already know how to lose fat. Science consistently shows that a moderate calorie deficit through a slight reduction in calorie intake, increase in protein and fiber, and more physical activity will result in fat loss at any age. But it's going to take longer than you think. Long-term fat loss actually means building muscle and losing fat.

First, if it took you six months to put on that fat, it's probably going to take you at least that long to take it off. And muscle growth, particularly by around your mid-40s, takes even longer. You need to consistently follow a progressive resistance training program and fuel your body properly to add muscle. Most people don't really know what they're doing or they don't push themselves hard enough to make progress.

To learn how to successfully build lean muscle over 40, watch THE VIDEO HERE.

Ivana Chapman