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 Any meal is easily modified to be even healthier. One of the simplest changes I made for our family was to incorporate vegetables into everything. If I am making taco meat I dice carrot, onion, celery and throw in a handful of spinach. It doesn’t affect the taste of a taco, in fact it enhances it. This swap cuts the calories and the fat content of the meat and adds vitamins and minerals from all of the vegetables. If we are eating a simple meal, I like to add a cup of homemade, seasoned, bone broth for the extra protein, collagen and iron, as well as immune boosting properties. Instead of a sandwich I might do a veggie wrap; equally delicious but minus the processed bread and unnecessary carbohydrates. Keep reading if you would like to hear more of the very simple substitutes we’ve made to increase strength, muscle and health.
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Staying motivated to practice self care can be tough at any age. This task may seem especially grueling some days when you’re nearing or over the age of 50, especially for women. Hormones start changing, menopause kicks in and weight gain seems inevitable. Trust me, I’ve been there. All of this coupled with thyroid related autoimmune issues can make it very tough. I am here to tell you though…It is doable. I am 51, 30 pounds lighter than I was during stages of my life and lean muscle. I am strong and feel great over all. I would love to share what works for me. My process has helped myself, my family and a number of other individuals. I made drastic changes 3 years ago and haven’t looked back. Read more to learn a very basic routine I do almost every day to maintain a healthy weight, muscle mass and energy.   Recently I was asked if I actually eat foods that I enjoy…Well, first let me say that I love the way I eat these days. Mostly vegetables and very clean. However, as you see in my photos, on a recent trip to Chicago I enjoyed gluten free deep dish pizza, panini, pasta, loaded salads and even desserts. I absolutely eat food that I enjoy. I love experimenting with food and recipes. I don’t put a ton of time into preparing complex recipes. I do devote a little time, every day, to make a delicious creation. Sure it takes time to transition from ultra processed foods to natural, from the earth, choices. (On side note-my daughter and I have food allergies, which I truly attribute to consuming a heavily processed diet for many years- hence the transition to clean eating.) There are no shortage of books and publications that discuss just this topic. Processed foods and a diet relying on these have led many Americans into a state of constant food allergies and food sensitivities and constant health issues. In fact the allergies may not even be the food itself but the chemicals that now come coupled with that food.
 Food for Weight Loss and Muscle GainWhen I embarked on this journey I had a goal to lose the extra weight and build some muscle. Things have progressed even better than I planned. I was worried, that at 50, it would be much more difficult to get back into shape. It wasn’t. Just remember you have to be persistent. If you have a bad day with diet or exercise - start over the next day, and make that day great. I lost over 20 pounds following this simple workout and meal plan. My daughter lost 17 pounds and other friends and family have had similar results.
Lifestyle sometimes stops us from working out. Shortly after my husband and I married we found that we had put on quite a bit of weight. We were in our late 20’s and really had never had a weight issue or needed to exercise. Married life, bigger meals and desk jobs all contributed to our expanding waistlines. If you want to hear more about how we shaped up and how I am the most fit I’ve ever been, now, over the age of 50…Please keep reading. This is not a paid or sponsored post. I am sharing with you what has worked for me.
This project, many years in the making, started as a -sort of journal- or rather an anecdote of a time in the life of my family. The beginnings of my blog were collected to reference for my children, if in fact my health issues were hereditary. My family had been enduring quite a bit on the health front and quality of life as well as the health of my children became a major concern.
A bit of background knowledge; although I am not an expert in any sort of medical field, I have studied, quite extensively, and worked with a number of professionals from personal trainers and nutritionists to specialists in varying fields of medicine. My focus. On holistic and well being really blossomed during my first pregnancy, 19 years ago. During my visits with my OBGYN I casual mentioned that I was born with Spin Bifida Occulta. My parents always discussed this with me as if there were no issues nor significance to this. I did have surgery at the age of 5 to close a small opening into my spinal column. To my knowledge that w the extent of it. I did not have any medical records which was of concern to my physician (more on this later). I saw a specialist for the duration of my pregnancies to ensure that everything progressed normally. My oldest child had some minor kidney issues. Diet and hydration have eliminated this for her. My second child had severe food allergies and eczema all discovered before the age of 2. During this pregnancy I had hyperthyroidism and nodules growing at an extremely accelerated rate. I had food cravings the entire pregnancy, all of which are food allergies for me now. When my second child was 6 months old I had to undergo a thyroid lobe-ectomy. AT this point I began my own journey of dealing with health issues and new allergies as well as skin conditions that i had never had. I made notes of all of my own health issues. Not only that, I started avidly researching on my own. Visits to the endocrinologist opened my eyes to all of the things that come along with thyroid problems, including extreme obesity. After reflecting on my extended family I was aware of trends. This was all over 15 years ago. We will come back to this in future blog posts, but the treatment and awareness of thyroid conditions have made tremendous advancements in the last decade. Backtracking a bit - After marriage, my husband and I gained quite a bit of weight. We sought the help of a personal trainer, fitness coach, and nutritionist. Within less than a year we completely reformed our lifestyle, including self-care, fitness and diet. We both began to look and feel great. of course with the birth of 2 children and life in general there are ups and downs. However, since then I have known exactly what I need to do to keep myself in shape and feeling great. Throughout my life I have also had a journey of fatigue and low immune function at times, but I know the steps I must take to correct my path even in my fifties and with menopause looming. Going all the way back to my twenties, I was the go-to amongst my friends and family for all things health and wellness. I have countless books and resources. I have served as a resource for immune boosting, spa day tips, eliminating chemicals in the home, fitness routines, recipes, and much more. Nothing changed with children in tow. I carried around a tote bag for a purse with everything one may need for their health. I studied essential oils and herbs. All of this and a pandemic made me focus even more and document everything I could for my family. All of this came to a head after years of struggling with my own health and suddenly having my youngest daughter diagnosed with Grave’s disease and hyperthyroidism that could not be managed with medication. From all that we’ve been through and all the knowledge that I have collected, I have had innumerable request to write it all down, to share my knowledge. So here goes, I am blogging about what I have experienced and learned and what I, and my family are doing today. I hope it helps someone out there. I will tell you there is hope. No matter your ailment; there is a light at the end of the tunnel if you are willing to put in some effort. It’s not as hard as you may think. Keep following me and subscribe for my trials, tribulations and victories. Wishing you health in all things and success in your fitness endeavors!!! © All photos and content belong to SheDo50Too  Hopefully, if you are reading my second post, you are serious about some sort of fitness journey. Maybe you’ve started the challenge of doing a simple plank every day. I hope so! And if this is the case, congratulations! You’re doing it! Stick with it, just do something everyday and gradually build up to more. Some days will be tough. Just tell the little voice in your head that you’re going to do it. This is key. The second piece is to face the foods you’re eating. I am not saying to give anything up- just log it.
You’ve kept up with your plank. Congratulations! You started out with a few seconds every day and worked your way to 30 seconds and maybe even a minute. Keep doing this every day. When you finish the plank, go to a wall or a counter, and do a pushup. If you can do it on the floor, even better. Do at least 1, but more if you can. Do as many pushups as you can without straining. each week, add a pushup onto the set. These two things will strengthen your core. This is the basis for for everything to come. Keep following me for more. Please comment or send me questions. I love hearing from readers.Wishing you health in all things and success in your fitness endeavors!!!
I created this blog to help others like myself. I’m a wife and mom, over the age of 50. I have struggled with weight gain and loss, sleep problems and nutritional issues off and on since my tween years. When my daughter started struggling with her health, and the age of 50 was looming for me; I decided I was going to gain control. I decided the my age was not going to define or shape me. I started talking with my friends and learned so many were going through very similar stages in life. I learned so many have no idea of where to begin with making a positive change, and most do not believe they have the time. Over the years I have worked with nutritionists and personal trainers, joined gyms and had workout buddies. Things have come and gone. Starting this journey, I quickly learned with a little determination, drive, and focus that fitness and overall health is more easily attainable than we often think. Even if doing it by oneself. This time I really wanted to do this on my own. If I were to succeed or fail, I wanted it to be the only judge. (I have been consistent now since 2019). I started everything, quite literally, with a plank. I was reading about the plank challenge and thought, “How hard could it be?” Well, I quickly learned it was very hard. I started by struggling with a 30 second plank and made up my mind -that day- I was seeing this journey through. I did a single 30 second plank every day for a week and each day it became a little easier. By the time I built my way up to a full minute of planking I had created a new habit. Not just the plank but the habit of consciously thinking about my health and fitness every day - if even only for a minute. This is a huge step in the right direction for anyone embarking on a fitness journey, no matter your age or physical condition. Just do something and stick with it every day. Experts say that if an individual creates a habit and manages to do it for 30 days, this habit is very easy to maintain. The plank worked for me and it worked for my daughter too. Our next step was adding a few sit-ups/crunches and squats ( We started with 10 of each, and gradually added on) to get more of a full body boost. We were able to do all of this in less than 5 minutes each day in the beginning. This short time made it very doable and an encouraging, in the beginning especially. There were no excuse. We all have 5 minutes a day. After a few weeks and seeing some results, just from the minor change, we decided to start focusing on our nutrition. We downloaded the My Fitness Pal App on our smartphones and started tracking everything. I really like this app because you can scan labels and input simple things, then all of the nutritional information populates. When setting up the app you answer some questions about your health and your goals. The app populates everything you need to do: How many calories to consume daily, as well as the proper proportion of carbs, fiber, sugar, fat and protein. We started mainly focused on our caloric intake and then moved to balancing it all..More about this topic to follow in my future posts. . So…my suggestion since you are here reading my blog, is start with a plank. Do it for 30 seconds every day and when you’re ready go for a minute. Once you get there, and can do a minute for a few days, add on 10 sit-ups/ crunches and 10 ballet style plea squats. We will dive deeper in future posts, but this is a very doable start if you’re just beginning. If you can’t do a plank on the ground, do it against a wall in the beginning. Stand about 2 feet back and lean forward pressing your weight forward, try to tighten your core. I am not a healthcare provider or expert. Everyone has different bodies and thus different result may occur. As an individual, I am simply sharing my journey, I can not be accountable for your results. You must seek advice from your healthcare provider when starting any new health and fitness habits. Additionally, health conditions and nutrition all factor in. That being said, I am happy to help and encourage where I may. Please share comments and questions. I love chatting with others on a similar journey. Keep following me for more of what I, and my family have done and where we are now in our journey. You can find me on Instagram at SheDo50Too. I plan to post helpful videos, and recipes as well. Good luck on your quest for good health! (Photo notes: This is me doing a plank recently, I had no intention of sharing any of my journey and did not document all of my before and after). Keep following and I will find some before pictures to share so that viewers can see my progress. I am over twenty pounds lighter than where I once was, and my physique is lean and muscular at this point. I have helped friends and family get there too and I am hoping to help even more. *I am not paid at this time or sponsored for anything contained in this post. I am simply sharing what I actually do. 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