Older women's waists thicken with age primarily due to hormonal shifts (especially declining estrogen during menopause) that cause fat redistribution to the abdomen, coupled with age-related muscle loss, a slower metabolism, and changes in how fat cells form, leading to more visceral fat and a less firm midsection.
Get active. For most healthy adults, the Department of Health and Human Services recommends moderate aerobic activity, such as brisk walking, for at least 150 minutes a week or vigorous aerobic activity, such as jogging, for at least 75 minutes a week. Strength training exercises are recommended at least twice a week.
find that some of the pelvic widening is attributed to hormone-related changes, especially during childbearing years in women. However, both men and women experience a gradual widening of the pelvic bones throughout life. They also hypothesize that much of the widening is remodeling.
Because as we age our body produces less NAD which converts nutrition in the blood into energy for our cells. With this reduction, the carbs you have been eating all your life (glucose) now gets stored in fat cells since you didn't burn it.
We do have high quality evidence underpinning calorie reducing diets with increased exercise, including strength exercise, as the route to achieving long-term (over four years) weight management. Results include both reductions in waist circumference and body fat amongst perimenopausal and menopausal women.
Menopause belly can be reduced through targeted lifestyle changes, including regular exercise, proper nutrition, and hormone management strategies. While hormonal changes are permanent, maintaining muscle mass through resistance training helps combat abdominal fat accumulation.
Probiotics (Targeted Strains)
Your gut microbiome influences estrogen metabolism, inflammation, appetite, and body weight. Certain probiotic strains have been shown to reduce belly fat 10, support digestion, and even positively influence mood, making them relevant during the gut-hormone disruption of perimenopause.
Females tend to gain the most weight during two key periods: emerging adulthood (late teens to mid-20s) when life changes often disrupt habits, and midlife (around ages 45-55) during menopause due to hormonal shifts that decrease muscle and increase abdominal fat, although the rate of gain slows in later decades. While the 20s see significant overall gain, menopause brings distinct body composition changes and fat redistribution, not just scale weight.
People naturally lose muscle after 40, especially women after menopause. Because muscle burns more calories than fat, this can slow down your metabolism and make it harder to shake those stubborn pounds.
Widening of the rib cage is most often related to increased soft tissue volume rather than bone expansion. Weight gain, especially in the form of fat, can cause the area around the ribs to appear broader and more prominent.
7). Figure 7 illustrates the increase in the size of the rib cage in all three dimensions from birth until approximately age 30. After age 30, the rib cage dimensions become more constant, with the anterior-posterior and lateral dimensions increasing slightly from age 30 to 60 and then decreasing after age 60.
Starting between ages 30 and 40, you may find losing weight and exercising more challenging. The exercise you do may not have the same effect as before. It's not necessarily a sign that something is wrong. This weight gain in middle age—known as “middle-age spread”—is a natural consequence of aging.
Often it's not an issue of needing to "lose more fat" it's just simply how your body is built and that's okay. We can't change our bone structure but what we can do is build up certain parts of our body to create the illusion of a smaller waist.
3. How can I flatten my 70-year-old's stomach?
The evidence: Though some animal studies support the idea, I could find no compelling evidence from human studies that drinking extra water helps burn fat as a means to lose excess weight.
Reducing belly fat
You need to limit your calories and eat a healthy meal plan that includes vegetables, fruits, whole grains, beans, nuts, lean meats, poultry, and fish. It's also important to get regular exercise.
Adele's significant weight loss wasn't from a quick fix but a two-year journey combining intense, varied workouts (strength training, Pilates, boxing, hiking, cardio) and lifestyle changes, driven largely by addressing anxiety and improving her mental health, though she also worked with trainers and focused on eating more whole foods while denying specific restrictive diets like intermittent fasting. She described getting "addicted" to exercise, often training multiple times daily, emphasizing getting stronger, not just losing weight.
The 2-2-2 Method is based on three key components: water intake, nutrient-dense fruit and vegetable intake, and regular exercise. Below, we discuss the purpose of each to highlight how they can help you lose weight and improve your health.
No single body part loses fat first. Everyone loses fat from different places initially, depending on a variety of factors. In general, women may lose fat from their legs first, and men may lose fat from their torsos first — but it's highly individual.
The best time to weigh yourself is first thing in the morning after you've gone to the restroom but before you eat or drink anything. The reason for this is that your body has had enough time to digest all the food and drinks you've consumed from the day before all while you were getting your beauty sleep.
You're losing fat and gaining muscle
Simply put, fat takes up more space than muscle but doesn't necessarily weigh less. That net positive change shows up in the way your clothes fit.
Skin changes are among the most visible signs of aging. Evidence of increasing age includes wrinkles and sagging skin. Whitening or graying of the hair is another obvious sign of aging.
Many women, like Oprah, are given systemic estrogen. This can be taken in a pill form, gel, skin patch, spray, or cream to relieve menopausal symptoms. Estrogen HRT has even been shown to reduce the risk of heart disease when taking post menopause – which is one year after your period has stopped entirely.
In Japan, Kampo medicine (Kampo) therapy is often used for patients with general malaise. Patients with menopausal symptoms arising from the loss of ovarian function are often prescribed tailor-made Kampo [4, 5].
Exercise seems to work off belly fat in particular because it reduces circulating levels of insulin —which would otherwise signal the body to hang on to fat—and causes the liver to use up fatty acids, especially those nearby visceral fat deposits, he says.