Middle aged spread is a part of hitting forty but just how far does it have to spread? Well the answer is not very if you focus on your health related fitness and take care to follow healthy eating guidelines.

Middle aged spread women

In our 40s women go through something called “peri-menopause” – like a test menopause before hitting the real thing! – and the estrogen in our body is already on the decline. Add that to raised insulin levels and a decrease in thyroid levels which will slow down metabolism and you can see why weight gain so easily happens to so many women.  If you, like me, spent your 30s raising children then chances are you might be out
of the habit of any kind of regular exercise routine and it will take some planning to reintroduce it into your life because this will be the number one factor that will help us feel better about life in general and most importantly about our body.

Middle aged spread men

Paul Williams of the Ernest Orlando Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab) investigated the question of whether vigorous exercise can prevent weight gain with age. Williams found that in middle-aged men, waist-line expansion is almost a force of nature.  source: Berkeley Lab

Of course those who exercise regularly AND adopt healthy eating guidelines will be in a better position than those who continue to live a sedentary lifestyle and that is important to remember. One person who may not totally agree with Earnest Orlando Lawrence is Jon Benson who was over 40 when he went on a campaign to reduce his huge belly gut and get fit – and he looks pretty amazing. You can see his before and after
pictures click here

http://www.fitover40.com/go/fatblastin

Of course there are always exceptions to the rule and middle aged spread while it will affect the majority of us may not come to us all although having a middle age body will! If you, like me, were not spared then there are things that you can do to make your life better so that as you age you enjoy being fabulous, fit and over forty!

It seems that middle age women go through something called “peri-menopause” – like a test menopause before hitting the real thing! Plus our thyroid levels go down and insulin up which causes weight gain. All of this activity also slows down our metabolism which helps the weight pile on. There are so many reasons why we gain weight as middle age women – not that I am making an excuse of course but it all contributes to the mix.

So is there hope! Well of course – exercise is a major plus for us and it is the solution to so many other problems that I really don’t know why it isn’t made legal for our own health and sanity because let’s face it after a hard day at work then coming home to family chores and responsibilities sometimes exercise takes a back seat.

There is a great video about middle aged spread that you can watch at the end of this article. Click the link ===> middle age fitness <===