After the age of 40, your ability to lose weight may become increasingly difficult. However, with the right diet and exercise regimen, you can still lose weight quickly. The key to quick weight loss success, at any age, is consistency in following a precise nutrition and exercise plan.
Burning Excess Calories
To lose weight, you must burn more calories than you consume. To lose 1 lb. of body weight, you have to burn 3,500 more calories than you consume. Because your metabolism slows as you age, burning calories may require extra effort. As women approach menopause, excess weight tends to accumulate, partially because of hormonal shifts in the body. The best method to burn more calories than you take in is a combination of caloric reduction, choosing appropriate foods, aerobic exercise and strength training.
Caloric Intake
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, a 40-year-old woman weighing 150 lbs. with a height of 5 feet, 6 inches needs about 2,000 calories a day. If you are not physically active and are consuming more than this amount of calories a day, you need to eat fewer calories. Choosing smaller portion sizes of a variety of different healthy foods will help you achieve this goal. Be careful, however, not to consume too few calories. If you consume a dangerously low amount of calories, your body's metabolism will decrease in an effort to prevent starvation.
Nutrition
Carbohydrates, protein and unsaturated fats are essential nutrients found in food. Carbohydrates give you energy, protein allows you to build and maintain muscle, and fat helps you absorb nutrients from food. Try to incorporate each of these foods at every meal, but be careful not to consume too many fats. The bulk of your meal should come from carbohydrates and protein with minimal amounts of fat. Try eating chicken or fish baked or grilled in olive oil with a baked potato or sweet potato on the side. Egg whites and low-fat ground turkey or oatmeal with a side of fresh fruit are breakfast options that will fill you up.
Aerobic Activity
Cutting calories alone will not be enough to help you lose 10 lbs. quickly, whether you're over 40 or under 20 years old. Adding an intense exercise regimen will help to burn more calories while boosting your metabolism, enabling your body to burn calories even while you are at rest. Try to perform 30 minutes of walking, jogging, running, swimming or bicycling at least five days a week for best results.
Strength Training
Strength training builds muscle, which requires more calories to maintain. Strength training coupled with consistent aerobic activity will help super-charge your metabolism so that you can burn more calories quickly and efficiently. Training your chest, shoulders, back, arms, legs and abdominal muscles with free weights or weight machines five days a week will help you build muscle and lose body fat quickly. Remember to give each muscle group at least two days of rest between strength training sessions. This can be achieved by working several muscle groups at once.
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