Are you exercising regularly, trying to eat well, making an effort to look after yourself, but still not seeing the results you want?
Perhaps you’re doing the same workouts you’ve always done, going to a few classes each week, walking regularly and generally trying to be good, but your body doesn’t seem to be responding in the way it used to. This is super common.
And while getting older def does bring some changes, I don’t believe we should simply accept that we’re destined to lose muscle, gain body fat, feel less energetic and become weaker as the years go by.
But I do think we need to understand what’s happening to our bodies and, more importantly, whether we’re giving them the right stimulus to change.
Here are some of the most common reasons I see women over 40 struggling to get the results they’re working so hard for.
This is probably one of the biggest ones.
You might be going to Pilates, spinning, circuits, walking, running or doing various fitness classes several times a week. All fantastic forms of exercise, but are you actually challenging your muscles enough to make them stronger?
As we get older, we gradually lose muscle mass and strength. This process, known as age-related muscle loss or sarcopenia, can become more noticeable as we move through midlife and beyond.
Muscle is incredibly important. It helps us maintain our strength, mobility, balance, independence and ability to carry out everyday activities. It also plays an important role in how our bodies use and store energy.
If you want a stronger, firmer body, improving your body composition and maintaining muscle should be a priority.
And that means lifting weights. Not just light weights for endless repetitions, but choosing a resistance that challenges you and gradually increasing it as you get stronger.
This links closely to the first point.
Your body is very clever. It adapts to the demands you place on it.
If you’ve been doing the same workout, with the same weights and the same repetitions for months, your body has probably become very efficient at doing it.
That’s not a bad thing, and it will be improving your endurance, but if you want to keep making progress, you need to give your muscles a reason to adapt further.
This is where progressive overload comes in.
It simply means gradually increasing the challenge over time. You could lift a slightly heavier weight, perform an extra repetition, improve your range of movement or make an exercise more challenging.
You don’t need to be lifting enormous weights or constantly pushing yourself to exhaustion. But you do need to be working at a level that challenges you.
If every workout feels exactly the same, it’s worth asking whether you’re giving your body enough reason to change.
Protein becomes increasingly important as we get older, particularly if we’re trying to maintain or build muscle.
As we age, our muscles can become less responsive to the muscle-building effects of protein and exercise. This is sometimes referred to as anabolic resistance.
It doesn’t mean building muscle becomes impossible. It means we need to be a little more intentional about providing our bodies with enough protein and combining that with regular strength training.
A common mistake I see is women having very little protein at breakfast and lunch, then trying to make up for it at dinner.
Try to include a good source of protein at EVERY meal. Think eggs, Greek yoghurt, chicken, fish, lean meat, tofu, beans or lentils.
Protein helps repair and build muscle after training, supports recovery and can also help you feel fuller for longer.
You can exercise brilliantly, but if you’re consistently under-eating protein, you’re making it harder to get the best from your training.
More exercise doesn’t automatically mean better results.
This is particularly important during midlife when work, family responsibilities, stress and changes in sleep can all take their toll.
Your muscles don’t get stronger while you’re doing the workout. Training provides the stimulus, but recovery is when your body repairs and adapts.
If you’re constantly tired, training hard every day, sleeping badly and never allowing yourself to recover, your performance can suffer.
You might find you’re struggling to lift the same weights, feeling unusually fatigued or simply lacking the motivation to train.
You don’t need to stop exercising, but you do need to balance your training with adequate rest, good nutrition and sleep.
Sometimes doing a little less, but doing it consistently and with more purpose, will get you much better results.
This is one that people don’t always like hearing, but it’s important if fat loss is your goal.
You can eat a very healthy diet and still consume more calories than your body needs.
Avocados, nuts, olive oil, granola, smoothies and nut butters are all nutritious foods, but they’re also relatively energy-dense.
As we get older, changes in activity levels, muscle mass and daily routines can mean our energy requirements are different from what they used to be.
If you’re consistently consuming more energy than your body uses, you won’t lose body fat, regardless of how healthy your food choices are.
That doesn’t mean you need to start obsessively counting calories or cutting out foods you enjoy. But it is worth taking an honest look at portion sizes, snacking, drinks/alcohol and those little extras that can add up.
If fat loss is your goal, a modest, sustainable calorie deficit is what matters. It’s worth using a calorie calculator to get a good idea of what your daily intake should be.
Our bodies do change as we get older, and the menopause/perimenopause transition can add another layer to this.
Declining estrogen levels can affect where we tend to store body fat, with many women noticing more fat around their middle. Changes in sleep, mood, appetite and energy can also make it harder to maintain the habits that previously came naturally.
But here’s the important bit: menopause doesn’t make fat loss impossible, and it doesn’t mean strength training stops working.
It may mean you need to be more consistent, pay closer attention to your nutrition and prioritise strength training rather than relying on exercise alone.
You might not get exactly the same results in exactly the same timeframe, but you can absolutely improve your strength, fitness and body composition.
This might be the least exciting reason, but it’s a big one!
It’s easy to get caught up in trying a new workout, following a new diet or starting another fitness challenge, only to lose momentum a few weeks later.
The truth is that meaningful changes in strength, muscle and body composition take time.
You don’t need to train for an hour every day. You don’t need to follow a complicated programme or completely overhaul your life.
You need a realistic routine that you can stick to, that challenges you appropriately and that fits around everything else going on in your life.
Two or three good strength sessions each week, combined with regular movement, enough protein and a sensible approach to nutrition, can make a huge difference over time.
So, what should you take away from all of this?
If you’re over 40 and not seeing the results you want, don’t automatically assume your body has stopped responding & just accept it, or that you need to exercise harder, just look at what you’re actually doing.
Are you strength training regularly? Are your weights challenging enough? Are you progressing? Are you eating enough protein? Are you recovering properly? And are your nutrition habits supporting your goals?
You don’t need to do everything perfectly. But you do need to get the important things right, consistently.
If you need some extra help – that’s what I’m here for – just reach out to me and I will help you achieve your goal.