{"id":1278,"date":"2018-09-13T06:13:31","date_gmt":"2018-09-13T06:13:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.staging.womenshealthandfitness.com.au\/?p=1278"},"modified":"2020-03-01T06:38:00","modified_gmt":"2020-03-01T06:38:00","slug":"get-ahead-of-middle-age-spread","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.womenshealthandfitness.com.au\/lifestyle\/motivation\/get-ahead-of-middle-age-spread\/","title":{"rendered":"Beat the Midde Age Spread"},"content":{"rendered":"
Biology says thou shalt expand, drop and droop as you age, but there are ways to ward off the middle age spread, writes\u00a0David Goding<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n The middle age spread is as unwanted as ageing itself. In fact, it may well be dreaded more than the\u00a0wrinkles, aching joins and other\u00a0signs of ageing. And for good reason. Not only does a middle age spread affect our appearance, often before our time, but it can also have a major effect on our health and quality of life.<\/p>\n The reason we get a \u2018spread\u2019 in our \u2018middle age\u2019 is largely down to the fact that as we age, levels of hormones that have maintained our muscle mass tend to wane. When we lose muscle mass, we burn less energy and are much more likely to gain weight. The good news is, there\u2019s plenty you can do to prevent the middle age spread, and it doesn\u2019t require running up mountains.<\/p>\n The middle age spread isn\u2019t an acknowledged medical condition, but perhaps it should be. There\u2019s certainly no denying the fact that for many people it\u2019s very real.<\/p>\n \u201cMiddle age spread is a term commonly used to describe the accumulation of fat around the hips, bottom and belly in men and women as they get older and is often associated with decreasing\u00a0core body strength,\u201d says weight loss expert and GP Dr Patricia Bishop.<\/p>\n \u201cIn some people this weight gain may begin in their\u00a0thirties, when they give up regular sport. In others, the weight gain happens after an injury or illness, or when the stresses of work or parenthood cause them to neglect their health and fitness.\u201d<\/p>\n For some women the\u00a0weight gain can begin with pregnancy\u00a0and stay with them until menopause compounds the problem. For others, it can occur far sooner than mid-life.<\/p>\n \u201cThe middle age spread by definition refers to mid life, or our\u00a0forties\u00a0and\u00a0fifties, but unfortunately we\u2019re now seeing it in much younger people as well \u2014 an early age spread,\u201d says Karen Inge, dietitian, weight loss expert and director of the Institute of Health and Fitness.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s certainly a worrying trend.\u201d<\/p>\n There are a number of causes behind the middle age spread, including changing hormones, reduced muscle mass, sedentary behaviour and dietary factors.<\/p>\n \u201cWe start losing muscle naturally from our\u00a0thirties, and from a decrease in muscle mass you get a decrease inresting metabolic rate,\u201d says Inge.<\/p>\n \u201cAlso, women at menopause and post menopause deposit more fat in the abdominal area, so it\u2019s actually a hormonal physiological change which occurs with the reduction of oestrogen. So rather than depositing fat in the lower area and being pear shaped you tend to become more apple shaped.\u201d<\/p>\n And it is this\u00a0abdominal fat\u00a0which is of greatest concern for our health.<\/p>\n \u201cAn apple-shaped body is not a healthy sign,\u201d says Dr Bishop. \u201cExcess weight gain around the abdomen is called central obesity, where fat is deposited around the internal organs, and this is associated with an increased risk of diabetes, cardiovascular disease and cancer.\u201d<\/p>\n Even pre-menopause, an imbalance in your hormones can result in weight gain, directly and indirectly.<\/p>\n \u201cHormone imbalance can cause\u00a0food cravings, depression, fluid retention and lethargy, all of which make it harder to be motivated to exercise and change eating habits,\u201d says Dr Bishop.<\/p>\n The other major factors that contribute towards a middle age spread are our diet and levels of physical activity.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople\u2019s energy expenditure generally decreases as they get older and that in itself means you need less kilojoules to exist,\u201d says Inge. \u201cBut people often keep eating as they always have resulting in an energy surplus that contributes to depositing more fat.\u201d<\/p>\n Even those with a predisposition towards middle-age weight gain can avoid it with the right approach and an understanding of how the body changes as it ages.<\/p>\n \u201cYou can preserve the muscle mass and actually increase muscle because our muscles have memory, so if you are active and keep your physical activity up there\u2019s no reason why you should lose muscle mass. Or you can at least decrease the rate at which it\u2019s lost and preserve the muscle you have,\u201d says Inge.<\/p>\n \u201cThe best way to preserve muscle mass is by being physically active and doing\u00a0strength training.\u201d<\/p>\n Dr Bishop agrees that an early healthy lifestyle approach stands you in good stead for the years to come.<\/p>\n \u201cAny exercise program should start with core body strength training and simple walking,\u201d she says. \u201cOur current western lifestyle encourages inactivity and overconsumption, so we have to learn to move more and eat less, and the earlier this education starts the better.<\/p>\n \u201cChildren at school need not just sports lessons, but lessons in how to maintain life-long fitness \u2014 not just cooking lessons, but how to make different healthy food choices to adjust calorie intake to match calorie needs.\u201d<\/p>\n It\u2019s estimated that we need to cut 200 calories a day from the age of 40 to 45 in order to maintain a healthy weight.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s really a commitment to eating 80 per cent of the time fairly healthy foods, whereby at least half of the food you eat is coming from plant sources, and to being physically active every day,\u201d says Inge.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Your exercise regime should have a good mix of weight-bearing and aerobic exercises. Weight-bearing exercise will help to improve your muscle mass and density while aerobic exercise will help to lose that weight and keep your cardiovascular system and lungs in good shape. Abdominal weight, or your spare tyre, is the type of fat closely linked to many different health problems. So it is best to start losing this as soon as possible to avoid the dire consequences of your dreaded belly fat. Even if your don’t start losing the weight right away, the exercise will do you the world of good!<\/span><\/p>\nWhat is the middle age spread?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\nWhat causes it?<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\nHow can mid-life weight gain be prevented?<\/strong><\/h2>\nWays to beat the middle age spread:<\/strong><\/h2>\n
<\/h2>\n
Combine Weight-Bearing and Aerobic Exercises<\/span><\/i><\/h3>\n