EP 97: Fitness After 40: Your Most-Asked Questions Answered

0:00Hello, welcome back to Becoming Her, Fitter, Better, and Stronger Over 40. I'm your hosting coach, Shauna. I'm 47, a wife, a boy mom, and a fitness and nutrition coach helping women over 40 become their best. Welcome or welcome back. A few days ago, I put up a question box on my Instagram, on YouTube, and I asked the women inside my current challenge what they wanted to learn about, the questions that they had. I got some questions about loose skin, cellulite, fat loss, calorie deficits, supplements, and so much more. Hopefully today you walk away knowing more, feeling inspired and motivated to attack your goals.

0:33Because my goal with this podcast is to do just that, to inspire, to educate, to help you feel like reaching your fitness goals after 40 is possible. I think there's so much information out there that it can make it feel overwhelming. and sometimes you feel like maybe it isn't possible, but I'm here to simplify the process, to really cut through all of the noise and really give you the tools and the knowledge and the know-how to reach your goals. I know it's possible. I have done it. I've helped hundreds of women do the same. And so that's my goal with my content, with my podcast, with this YouTube channel, with my memberships, my coaching, all of it, is that I help you become her, that best version of you.

1:18Without further ado, let's dive into those questions. Grab your favorite drink or coffee and let's get into it. First question is, I am down 38 pounds, but I have bat wings and a belly pooch. Will building muscle push out my loose skin? So first of all, I just want to say congratulations. Losing 38 pounds is a huge accomplishment, so please don't let loose skin take that away from all the hard work that you've done. Loose skin and remaining body fat can sometimes look similar and sometimes it can be a combination of both. Lower belly in particular is one of the last places that we lose belly fat.

1:51So what looks like loose skin might not be loose skin entirely. There could be a small stubborn layer of body fat that just needs a little bit more time. Now if you do have loose skin, how much your skin will tighten is going to depend on your age, your genetics, how long the skin will stretch, how much weight you've lost, how quickly that you lost it and your skin's natural elasticity. I had my first son at age 39. He was over nine pounds. My belly got pretty big and so I still have loose skin there but it has improved with time and by adding muscle and that's the first thing I want to talk about.

2:25You know building muscle can definitely improve how an area looks. Adding muscle to things like your abs, your arms, your glutes or legs gives the skin a firmer look and creates more shape. There's even some research that shows resistance training can improve skin elasticity and thickness. But I also want to be real here, muscle cannot tighten or remove excess amounts of skin. It will help fill it out and replace that space with, you know, some structure underneath, but it's not going to eliminate it. And if there is a situation where that loose skin is causing discomfort or other issues, that might be something that you want to talk about with your doctor.

3:02But my advice would be to continue to strength train, eat enough protein, and then give your body some time to see how it responds before deciding that this is your permanent body. Sometimes we just need a little bit more time with fat loss with building muscle so that we can improve our physique a little bit. And then those problem areas might improve and that loose skin will get better too. Now question number two is how can I improve cellulite? And this is such a popular question and something that is common for women. Most of us have cellulite. Most of us want to get rid of it. The big thing that I want to tell you is that it's normal and most of us have it.

3:37And if you have it, you probably won't get rid of all of it, but there are some things you can do to improve it. So cellulite is created by the way our skin, body fat, and connective tissue are structured. Women are more likely to have it because of differences in connective tissue hormones and the way that we store body fat. Can you improve the appearance? For sure. Definitely. Will you get rid of all of it? Probably not, but you can dramatically improve it with the right plan. And just like with loose skin, muscle is going to be your saving grace here. So building muscle creates a firmer foundation underneath the skin.

4:12If you have body fat to lose, losing that body fat will also help to reduce cellulite. But becoming leaner doesn't guarantee that that cellulite will disappear. This is evidenced by women that might be very lean but still do have cellulite because it simply isn't just a body fat issue. Things like hydration, massage, dry brushing, those are things that can temporarily improve how the skin looks, but it doesn't necessarily permanently change the structure underneath it. So the biggest thing that you can do to help cellulite is to train to build muscles, so train your legs, your glutes, take care of your health, and stop using perfectly posed pictures on social media as a standard that you're trying to meet with your own body.

4:56You know, I used to have a lot of cellulite on my legs, especially, but as I've taken the time to build muscle and lose fat, it has improved dramatically. And I still have cellulite and I probably always will. And that's okay. But building muscle is a game changer. I do have a whole YouTube video about how I transform my legs that I will link below because it goes deeper into more details on how I changed my legs and reduced that cellulite. But please know that it is completely normal and it's okay if you have it. Most women do. And don't judge yourself against photos that are edited or posed or have certain lighting.

5:34Focus on getting stronger, building more muscle, and you will likely improve cellulite. and it's okay if it's not gone 100 % you're still beautiful. On to question number three, what exercises can I do to get rid of back fat? And this is a popular question too, not always about back fat, but it'll, a lot of times I get the question of how do I get rid of fat on my, my, you know, my arms? How do I get rid of belly fat? How do I get rid of fat on my, around my knees? And so I want to be totally upfront and honest about this because there is so much content out there that will say, do this exercise to target fat here.

6:12But I want this sentence to imprint in your brain so that you don't fall victim to any marketing. There is no exercise, no exercise that can target fat loss to a specific area. Point blank period. I wish there were. If there were, trust me, I'd be doing it and I'd be sharing it. But we cannot choose where our bodies lose fat. Training your back will help you build muscles in your back, but it doesn't tell your body to take fat specifically from that area. Overall fat loss happens when you consistently consume fewer calories than your body uses. This is also known as eating in a calorie deficit.

6:47And where the fat comes off first and last largely depends on your genetics and your hormones. But you can use things like rows, pulldowns, pullovers, rear delt exercises, and that's going to help you have a more strong and defined back. And then as you reduce body fat overall through nutrition, you reveal that toned looking back. I want you to think about it this way. You're going to use the gym to build and then you're going to use the kitchen to reveal. While there are no exercises that are going to help you target fat loss, you can help your body look more toned in an area if you are building muscle there and then use your nutrition to support fat loss.

7:23That's how you're going to get that ideal shape. But give your body time. Like I said, you cannot target where your body loses fat. It's going to lose at its own rate, at its own pace. And sometimes people lose in their upper body first or their lower body first or their belly first. Most often that's the last place to lose. But just be patient and understand it is a process. And please do not fall victim to the marketing of do this to burn this away. Fat loss is going to come from nutrition. Like I said, go to the gym to build, use your nutrition to support fat loss and eventually those problem areas will improve, I promise.

8:01Now the next question is, what should I expect during my first calorie deficit? This is a great question and before I get into what to expect, I want to explain a little bit of what a calorie deficit is. Calorie deficit means you are consuming fewer calories than your body uses to maintain itself and that difference forces your body to use stored energy, including body fat, to make up for that difference. That's how fat loss will happen. Now, there are different ways to go about initiating a calorie deficit. You can cut out carbs. You can fast for a certain number of hours. You can only eat clean foods.

8:33Those are ways that you can initiate a deficit because they typically will have you eating less, but they're not the best when it comes to managing fat loss long term. Because if you stall, what do you do? Do you fast longer? Do you low carb harder? And then if you decide that you want to eat three meals a day again, or that you want to include carbs, which by the way, are going to help you grow muscle. How do you add them back in without rebounding? That is why I love tracking calories because it puts you in the driver's seat of being able to know where your numbers are and adjust them based on your goals.

9:03And this is just like managing our finances. You know, if we never looked at what we made versus what we spent, things would get messy real quick. So tracking calories is the same concept. If you're new to tracking, I have an article that breaks down exactly how to start. I will leave that link below. Plus, I have a new membership coming very soon with a macro calculator, meal tracking inside the app, as well as high protein recipes. I'm going to leave the wait list below, but definitely add your name there because it's going to make tracking and staying on point with your nutrition goals so easy and fun.

9:36Now back to getting into a calorie deficit. The first step is we want to figure out what your current maintenance level of calories are. So maintenance is the amount of calories that you eat to maintain your current body weight. And instead of immediately slashing your calories, I want you to track what you are currently eating while tracking your weight. So if you are maintaining your weight, track how many calories you're eating, and that's typically what your maintenance level of calories is. That's going to give you a starting point based on your real habits and your real data. This is what I do with my clients.

10:07You can also use a calculator too, but your real data is usually the most accurate. Now once you have an idea of what your maintenance calories are, create a moderate deficit by reducing them by 300 to 500 calories per day. So if you are maintaining at 2 ,000 calories, you want to go to about 1 ,700 and see how you do there. Now you don't want to create the largest deficit that you can handle. You want to use the smallest effective dose possible when it comes to fat loss so that you still have energy to train, recover, and live your life. From there, protein and strength training become major priorities because we don't want to simply lose weight.

10:44We want to lose body fat while preserving as much muscle as possible. Continue following a structured strength training program and keep your protein high. I generally recommend spreading protein throughout the day rather than trying to squeeze it into one to two meals. So 30 to 50 grams three times a day is a great goal. Also, I want you to build most of your meals around nutrient-dense foods. So things like fruits, vegetables, lean proteins, whole grains will provide more food volume, and that's going to help you feel fuller while you're eating less. And that really helps with adherence. And that's what we want too, because fat loss can take time.

11:18So we want to make sure this is a sustainable deficit. And that doesn't mean that every food has to be super clean or perfect, or that you can never eat something you enjoy. But it means that when calories are lower, choosing foods with higher protein amounts, higher fiber, and more volume makes the deficit much easier to sustain. Now, should you feel hungry during a deficit? Yes, sometimes. A little hunger is actually normal and is a good sign that you're actually in a deficit. But we don't need to panic every time we feel a little bit of hunger or think that we should never experience it. But that hunger should be manageable.

11:52You shouldn't feel like you're starving all day, thinking about food every single second, or feeling like you could binge at any moment. If that's happening, then your deficit might be too aggressive or your meals might not be filling enough. So work on high protein, high fiber, and make sure that your cardio is not spiking hunger. This is why I love strength training and walking because those are going to help preserve and build lean muscle and they're going to increase your activity without spiking your hunger. So now initially you're going to see a fast drop in the scale, which is normal, and some of that could be body fat, but a lot of it's going to be water, glycogen, and just less food volume moving through your digestive system.

12:31After the first couple of weeks, weight loss will usually slow down and become less linear. You're going to likely see some fluctuations, and that's completely normal. So it's going to fluctuate from sodium, carbohydrates, digestion, sleep, stress, muscle soreness, hormones, your cycle. Higher weigh-in doesn't mean you've gained body fat. One thing I want you to remember is that the scale does not just weigh body fat. It measures everything in your body, lean muscle tissue, bone, you know, fat, but also water. And water makes up the majority of our bodies and that fluctuates for so many different reasons.

13:04This is why I suggest weighing in daily and then tracking the trends. Look at the trend over time. You're likely going to see fluctuations day to day, but if you are in a consistent calorie deficit with those fluctuations, you're going to notice that it's trending down over time. Other thing I suggest doing is taking photos. So every two to four weeks, take photos front, side, and back, track your waist measurements, and pay attention to how your clothes are fitting. You might have weeks where the scale doesn't really move a lot, but you might notice your photos look very different or the waist on your pants is starting to become a little bit loose.

13:37And so those are all good signs that things are happening. Now, a reasonable rate of fat loss is anywhere from a half a pound to a pound a week, although that's going to depend on your starting size, how much body fat you have to lose. Research has shown that slower rates of fat loss, especially for people who are on the leaner side, are better when we're talking about preserving lean muscle tissue. In your deficit too, you're going to learn a lot about portions, meal planning, tracking, and managing weekends and social events. You know, you're not going to do everything perfectly. One high calorie meal is not going to ruin your deficit, just like one healthy meal isn't going to give you overnight results.

14:14What matters most is that you stay consistent over time. And remember, the deficit is temporary and is meant to serve the purpose of losing body fat. This is not a phase that's going to feel balanced. It's not going to be a phase where you have more flexibility. It's going to be where you have to be more dialed in. You're going to have to say no to certain foods or drinks. You're going to have to be planning, prepping, pre-tracking, but it's going to be worth it because it's going to yield the results that you want to and a deficit isn't a place you want to make a lifestyle you want to get in be effective efficient and then get back to maintenance where you have more calories to spend more flexibility that you can have with your lifestyle and practice maintaining that weight but a deficit is where we have to be a little bit more dialed in that's why you want to make sure you're in a good place mentally and physically going into it.

15:08You want to make sure it's a good time of year. A lot of times during the holiday season, like that's not the best time to be in a deficit because you're likely going to be at more events. There's going to be more calorie dense treats around. Now, not saying you can't do it, but set yourself up for success, you know, during a deficit, plan it out, make sure you're ready, make sure you understand, yes, this is going to be a temporary time where I'm going to have to stay a little bit more buttoned up and dialed in, but it's worth it and it's going to get me to the outcome that I want. And then I can practice having a little bit more balance once my calories are back into maintenance and I can have some more flexibility with those.

15:42But going into it with that mindset is going to help your efficiency, your effectiveness, and your outcome. When I'm in a deficit, I prep, I plan, I pre-track, I just execute and make sure that I can get it done. It's going to take time, but I get it done in the most efficient time impossible and then get back to maintenance where it's just a little bit more easy to have balance with things. Now on to question number five, how long should I stay in a deficit? The truth is there is no magical number for how long a deficit should be. It's really going to depend on the person and how much body fat they have to lose.

16:20So someone who has more body fat to lose may need 20 plus weeks whereas someone else might be good with just 12 weeks in a deficit. Then sometimes there's cases where multiple fat loss phases separated by periods of maintenance instead of just trying to gun right through it might be best too. How long you stay in a deficit really depends on your goals, your starting point, the rate of progress, your consistency, and how you're responding physically and mentally. Things to pay attention to in your deficit to know if you should stop are going to be your energy levels, your sleep, your hunger, your mood, your training performance, your recovery, your libido, maybe even thoughts around food.

16:57So if you're constantly exhausted, you're losing strength in the gym, you're sleeping poorly or struggling to adhere, it might be time to take a break even if you haven't reached your ultimate goal. Remember going back into maintenance is just that. You're going to maintain wherever you are and then take a break from that deficit and then return to it when you feel physically, mentally ready or when life just allows for that structure. I also want to make this important point is that sometimes I'll have someone that says I've been in a deficit for six months and I'm not losing. But when we look more closely, maybe that's not consistent deficit for six months.

17:35You know, maybe there's some structure during the week and then on weekends we are having some excess calories that are bringing us closer to maintenance. So we just haven't been in a true deficit long enough to see progress. So before dropping calories lower, take an honest look at consistency. That can sometimes be all that you need to see better progress. More is not more. We just need better execution and then we will see the progress that we want. Now the next question is, how do I go back to maintenance after a calorie deficit? This is a great question. So once you are done with your fat loss phase, if you have lost a significant amount of weight, that means you are a smaller vessel.

18:13So your maintenance level of calories might be different than what it was prior to your deficit. You're going to estimate your new level of maintenance calories. You can do this with a calorie calculator. And then you're going to slowly work your way up to that new maintenance level of calories by adding in 50 to 100 calories per week. All the while, you're going to monitor the scale. You're going to monitor digestion. You're going to let your body acclimate and then slowly work to that new level of calories. Now, you will see some fluctuations in the scale. That is completely normal. That does not mean that you are undoing all of your hard work.

18:49Naturally, as you're taking in more food, that can mean more carbohydrates. Carbohydrates, as in the name, hydrate, will help to hydrate the body. You're going to hold on to some water with those carbs. And they're going to refill your glycogen stores inside your muscles. These are all good things. Plus, you're going to have more food volume at any given moment in your digestive tract. So all that's going to reflect in the scale. Generally speaking, when I have clients that are moving from a deficit into maintenance, we're going to see the scale fluctuate anywhere from, you know, two, four pounds.

19:20We're going to track every day and track the trends. We may fluctuate two to four pounds in one given direction, but we're more or less staying in that same range. You know, if we are still in a deficit, we're going to fluctuate, but then we're going to see it trending down. If we're exceeding our maintenance calories, we're going to fluctuate, but we're going to see it trending up. So that's kind of how you get to understand where your maintenance level of calories is, and then you can maintain that. So use a calculator, slowly work up to that number, that range, and kind of assess the data as you do that.

19:54Now, something that I want to say and make clear is that maintenance is not where progress ends. It is where you get to now practice maintaining the body you worked hard to achieve. Plus, it's an opportunity to improve your training, your energy, your sleep, and grow more muscle. More often than not, that's more transformative than any deficit will ever be. Now, the next question is after finishing a deficit, how long should I stay at maintenance before doing another cut? There isn't one established waiting period, but generally I recommend at least four to eight weeks where you're taking a break from that deficit, especially if it's been a long period of time, 12 plus weeks.

20:33And also instead of automatically choosing a date for your next deficit, I want you to look at your body and kind of assess where you are mentally. You know, asking yourself things like, how are my hunger levels? Are those kind of regulated? Am I sleeping better? Is my energy better? Is my strength improving in the gym? And am I able to maintain these results without feeling like it's stressful? Losing weight is one skill. Maintaining it is a whole nother skill and you need to know how to do both. I would also ask like is another cut truly what's best for your body? Sometimes women don't need to keep getting smaller.

21:09They think they need more fat loss but it's truly muscle that's going to create the toned and defined shape that they're looking for. My best physique changes have actually come during maintenance seasons, not in a deficit. So don't discredit them. Take time to build. It's going to change your body in ways that a deficit never could. Now question number eight is what supplements are actually worth taking? Supplements should be just that. They should supplement your nutrition or your training or your lifestyle. They cannot replace proper nutrition, proteins, fruits, veggies, sleep, or consistent training, but they can help.

21:44So the first supplement that I generally recommend is creatine monohydrate. It's the most researched supplement available to support strength, training, performance, lean muscle, and new research shows that it is beneficial for cognitive health. For dosing, I would take three to five grams daily. You don't need to load it. Just start taking three to five grams and you don't need a special creatine. There's lots of creatines that market for women, but you don't need a special kind. Just look for creatine monohydrate. The one I use is from Legion and I love it. It's micronized. So it is just finely milled, meaning it's going to mix and digest really well.

22:21And as far as when to take it, it doesn't really matter so long as you're just consistently taking it and take it with a decent amount of water because it helps to pull water into your muscle cells. Creatine can cause the scale to fluctuate, but that's not body fat. It's just water and it actually helps your muscle perform and recover better. Now, the next supplement that I would potentially suggest is a quality whey protein powder. This isn't necessary, but it's a convenient way for you to help reach your protein target if you're having trouble. So if you can't meet your protein needs with food, using a whey protein is perfectly fine.

22:54You can use it in a shake. I add it to my oats. There's lots of ways that you can incorporate it into a meal to help you reach your targets. Now, things that I would not suggest or recommend are things like fat burners, detox teas, or BCAAs. You know, if you're getting enough protein, you do not need branched-chain amino acids in your diet. You're going to have enough just coming from your protein in general. I will leave a guide in the show notes going over all of the supplements I just talked about, what they are beneficial for, and my favorite brand, so you can have a look at that. Now on to our final question.

23:26How long did it take for you to notice significant changes? I get this question often too, and I'm excited to talk about it because I think it's important to have realistic expectations and also to know that it's always worth chasing your goals no matter how long they take. I noticed some smaller changes within the first few months of being consistent with everything. You know, training with a proper program and prioritizing protein, prioritizing getting enough food, sleep, all of the things. But those more noticeable changes took about a year or two before I saw those. And the body that I have now, it was not built in one phase.