I Found "The Best Diet for Women Over 50" to Lose Weight
Susan Niebergall is an online fitness coach, personal trainer, and strength coach and the owner of Susan Niebergall Fitness. In a recent viral video, she gets candid about what it takes to lose weight over 50. "Let's talk about what the absolute best diet is for women over 50. Go grab your coffee, sit down with me, and we're gonna chat all about what I think is going to be the very best diet for all of you over 50. Let's go," she says.
It's Never Too Late to Lose Weight
Susan wants to "set the record straight" about the things women over 50 can be doing in terms of diet, "and what are those things and how we can make the changes that we wanna make," she says. "The very first thing out of the gate that I think needs to be said and that you need to believe is that, first of all, it's never too late. It is never too late for you to make any change that you want to make. Whether that's losing weight, building muscle, or changing your job, it doesn't matter. It's never too late."
There Were a Lot of Misleading Trends
"One thing I think we all need to consider here is we all grew up in weird times," she says, explaining that most people her age have "seen everything" when it comes to diet trends. "We've probably been there, done that. " She references the "fat makes you fat phase" craze and the "everything was non-fat" trend. "We grew up thinking sugar and fruit was bad for us, that that was going to make us fat. I mean, with all of this in our heads playing in our heads, it's no wonder we're all kind of wondering what the heck are we supposed to do. It's so confusing, and that leads us to always searching for what's the best, what's the best diet?"
There is No "Best" Diet Aside From Sustainability
"I wanna start off by saying there is no best diet. The best diet is what you can do and what you can sustain over time. That's what the best diet is. And we're gonna talk about what comprises the best diet for each one of us because the characteristics are going to be very, very, very similar," she says.
There Is No "Sexy" Way to Lose Weight
"The one thing about weight loss that I've seen over the decades is that people try to have these 'sexy sells.' They're trying to bring you into this advertising with nothing of substance to give you," she says, explaining that there is no sexy way to lose weight. "We've seen so many products and methods out there that are trying to guarantee you that you can lose a lot of weight in a short period of time."
What Works When You Are Younger, Won't Work After 50
"The bottom line here is that there's nothing sexy about losing weight after the age of 50. What works for someone who's younger than 50 is going to work for someone who's over 50. That's the bottom line," she says.
You Can Still Lose Weight After 50 with Health Issues
"Sometimes people are diagnosed with conditions by their doctor that are gonna make losing weight a little bit harder for them. I think that happens all the time. You see people that go and get diagnosed with PCOS, for instance, or a hypothyroid, meaning your thyroid is low. You can be diagnosed with those. Those are physical conditions that will make losing weight harder," she says. "It doesn't mean you can't lose weight. It means that you're probably gonna have to buckle down a little bit harder. And if those conditions can be treated, then it's probably not gonna be quite as hard as it would've been if they were left untreated. So, the point here is that even with diagnosed conditions, you can still lose weight after the age of 50 or before the age of 50. Age is irrelevant."
You Need to Make Effort
"What is more relevant is the effort that you actually put into losing weight. As we get older, we often assume we can't lose weight because it's our age because it's our metabolism, because it's menopause or it's something that was me for however many years," she continues, admitting that she "fell" for that. "I assumed that my lack of weight loss success was because of menopause. My metabolism has slowed all the rest. I go get the blood checked. Everything's fine. So then I had to start taking responsibility for what I was doing."
She Believes That It Has Less to Do with a Slower Metabolism and More with Being "Looser" in Terms of Diet and Exercise
"Over the course of decades, we have just lost handles on everything. We've lost a handle on our nutrition, not over a year or two, but over decades of time, we're just looser with our nutrition. We're not training as much. We've lost some muscle mass, a little bit here and there. You know, we're driving our kids everywhere. Our lives are put on hold in a way because of our kids' lives. And we've just gradually lost a grip on things over time. That's why we've put on weight," she claims.
Menopause Can Make Things More Challenging, But You Are Still in Control
"Menopause and symptoms of menopause can make dealing with weight loss a little bit more challenging. But it doesn't mean that we can't lose weight. And I think the one thing that we need to believe here, which is super important, is that you are in control. And if there's one thing that I want you to leave here with today, it is that you are in control of losing weight after the age of 50. And if you're younger than that, you're still in control, too. We have always been in control. We have to now take control, and let's talk about what that's gonna look like," she says.
She Points Out That "Healthy" and "Clean" Foods Can Have a Lot of Calories
"So often when people talk to me about their nutrition, they talk about how they eat healthy and how they eat clean. And I think those are both great things to do. I believe that we put too much stock in those to the point where we ignore the amount of healthy foods that we're eating and the amount of cleaner foods that we're eating. And that's the issue. Healthy foods have calories, too. Make no mistake about it. I mean, a donut has calories, but you know what, an avocado has calories too," she points out.
You Also Need to Take "Bites" and "Tastes" Into Accounts
"The other thing tied to all of this is that we don't keep track of the little bites and tastes and nibbles that we have throughout the course of a day. We lose sight of those very, very, very quickly. And those add up," she continues.
And, Don't Overlook Weekends
"We also maybe don't necessarily pay as much attention to what we're doing on the weekends as we did during the week. Maybe we're a little bit more aware of what we're eating during the week, but then a weekend comes, and we're out running around, and we're just a little loosey-goosey. That's where so many of us, and I say us because I was that person, have gone wrong. So we need to pull in the reins," she says.
Get Into a Calorie Deficit
"This is basically where it's gonna start for all of us. We need to tighten our nutrition up. We're going to get into a calorie deficit. And you hear that term all the time. And basically, you want to eat less than your body needs because that's the only way you are gonna lose weight," she says.
Use This Formula for Calorie Deficit
To get into a calorie deficit, she suggests using this formula. "Take your goal weight, what you want to weigh. You don't have to overanalyze what you think you want to weigh. And multiply that by 12, that number that you get, that's the number of calories you wanna aim for every single day," she says.
Some Days You Will Be Over, and Some Under
"Now, some days you're gonna be really great, and you're gonna get really close to it. You're gonna be under it. Some days may not be great. We're not talking about perfection; we're just talking about how, most of the time, you hit around that number of calories," she explains.
Eat Enough Protein
She also stresses the importance of eating "adequate protein," which is a game changer. "Protein is something that many of us never really thought a lot about until we've gotten older. And it's a game changer because it's gonna help maintain our muscle mass. It's gonna help us grow muscle mass. And as we get older, this is crucial. Protein is the number one macronutrient that we all need to make sure we address protein," she says.
Here's the Formula for Protein
As for protein, "take your goal weight in pounds and multiply it by one. That's pretty easy math; we can all do that. That's the amount of protein in grams that you should consume every single day. That's what you aim for. It may sound like a lot on the surface, but you need to practice that," she says.
Plan Your Meals
You also need to practice planning out your meals. "It's all about planning, learning as you go. And it's trial and error. You know, you eat some things, and you get 25 grams of protein. Maybe next time, I will eat a little bit more. You're gonna get 35 grams of protein. That's how you practice it," she says.
And You Need to Lift Weights
You also need strength training. "I'm an advocate for strength training. You don't ever have to love it, but I do think you do need to include it in your life at some point in time to some degree because if you don't, you will lose strength. And as you get older, that's the last thing you wanna lose because you wanna go into your later years being able to move, being able to get up off a chair, being able to pick something up off the ground, holding your grandkids, whatever it is you wanna be able to do all that strength training is going to ensure that you can do all that for as long as possible."
You Should Also Walk
She also recommends "moving every day," calling it vital. "Anyone can walk; you can walk in your house, and you can walk outside. It doesn't matter where you walk but try to get movement in every single day. Your heart's gonna appreciate it. Your joints are gonna appreciate it, and your mind is going to appreciate it. It's going to be one of the most healthy things you can do. And to help with your weight loss and to help with getting your protein and, and it's just gonna help with everything. Movement every day is crucial."
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The Magic Formula: Calorie Deficit + Protein + Strength Training + Movement
"Calorie deficit, protein, strength training, and movement, that's your magic formula," she says. "That's the best diet for women over 50."
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Plus, Consistency
"We need to add two caveats to this diet," she says. The first is consistency, "meaning you need to be on top of that at least 80% of the time, if not more. You don't have to be perfect, but 80, 85% if you can hit your numbers and be consistent with your training and be consistent with your movement, you're gonna see results. Everyone is going to see results."
Track Your Consistency
The issue with consistency is that some people don't realize they are inconsistent. "We think we're being more consistent than we are. Track it. Use a calendar. Get a monthly calendar to track every single day that you hit your calories, you hit your protein, you hit your workout, or your movement. Put a big red X on there, or whatever symbol you wanna use every day that you don't hit one of those. Put a big black circle or whatever you wanna use. You'll get a quick visual right away on how consistent you're actually being. And this is eye-opening for so many people. We think we're being more consistent than we are. I encourage you to try that method with a calendar and see how consistent you are actually being," she says.
And, Be in a Calorie Deficit Not Just the Mindset
"I wanna address one more thing. I think this is really important to differentiate the difference between being in a calorie deficit versus being in a calorie deficit mindset," she continues. "So often people tell me, I have been tracking my calories, I've been hitting my numbers, I've been doing this, I'm not losing weight. And when we talk about it, we start picking it apart a little bit and figuring out, well, they are tracking things, but it's getting a little loose on the weekends. They're not tracking the licks or the taste of the bites as much as they thought."
Make Sure You Are Consistent on Weekends
"And then the weekend comes, and it's kind of looser than what they had hoped, that kind of thing. But yet they feel like they're always in a calorie deficit, and they're always not succeeding. Remember, it's one thing to be thinking about being in the deficit all the time. If you could be going out on the weekend and thinking about it, I would be in a deficit. I should be doing this, thinking about being in a deficit, but you're not actually in a deficit. I think that's the biggest issue," she says.
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Being in a Calorie Deficit Means You Are Losing Weight
"If you, if you're telling me you've been in a calorie deficit for two years, I'll tell you no, you haven't been in a calorie deficit for two years. You've been in a calorie deficit mindset for two years. Because let's face it, if you were in a calorie deficit for two years, you'd be losing weight. I mean, there'd be very little left of you. Probably the difference between being in the mindset and actually being in a deficit day in and day out, two very, very different things. And becoming aware of that difference can be where things turn around for you," she says.
This Is the Full Package
The "package" of the best diet? Calorie deficit, protein, strength training, moving, and "the importance of consistency."
Also, Be Patient
She also stresses the importance of "patience" in this process. "We probably don't talk about that enough, but we need to be patient with this process. And we also touched on that very important part about being in a calorie deficit mindset versus being in an actual calorie deficit. And the difference thereof to get yourself on track to fix all of this," she explained.
And Remember: You Are in Control
"You need to believe that you are in control of this because you are you. This is great news here. You control everything," she says. "The decisions you make will determine your outcome. And that's the best news anyone could ever have. You actually are in control of what happens, whether you're 30 years old or 60 years old. You control what happens. You add all the other things that we talked about with that."
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This Will Work for You
"And that, that is your diet. That is the best diet for women over 50," she says, concluding the video. "And whether you're over 50 or under 50, it doesn't matter. This is gonna work for you. So have at it." And if you enjoyed this article, take advantage of these 20 Superfoods for People Over 50.
