Category Archives: Weight Loss

Weight Loss During Menopause: My Personal Journey

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Back in 2011, I had a hysterectomy to bid farewell to those troublesome fibroids. As a bonus, I finally got that flat stomach I had always wanted. It was a major achievement, considering I’ve battled with my weight for as long as I can consciously remember. Finally, the scale went below 200 pounds.

Fast forward to January 2016. My weight had ballooned up to about 228 pounds and I decided to start weight training with Champion Body Builder Damion Daniel.

That year, I worked out at an intensity that I did not know I was capable of. That, coupled with mindful eating, resulted in me getting again to under 200 pounds, but this time, with a lot of muscles so I looked smaller. Alongside my workouts, I paid more attention to what I ate. Damion had this rule: no carbs after 6 p.m. So, for lunch, I focused on protein, veggies, and sometimes indulged in a delicious complex carb like sweet potato or black beans…or both.

Since late 2022, my weight has again crept up. Apparently, I am not alone. Sigh. Turns out, weight gain during menopause is a common thing. Our bodies go through all sorts of changes – lean body mass decreases, body fat increases, and it becomes tougher to shed those pounds during menopause. However, I am told that weight gain during menopause is not inevitable and can be managed with the right lifestyle choices, including a healthy diet and regular physical activity. The physical activity it not an issue for me as I work out regularly. And my diet is healthy during the day and up to the salad that I usually have for dinner.

A typical breakfast – Sardines with special low carb bread
A typical lunch – protein with salad
A typical dinner

So even though in 2016 I used to eat carbs at lunch and lose weight, 7 years later, I can’t lose weight even though I have been eating lower carbs. But if I really analyze what has happened, I can identify two differences. In 2016, I used to get a lot more sleep than I am getting now. Also, since 2020, I’ve been working longer hours, and it’s taken a toll on my evening food choices, after the usual salad. Stress and fatigue make it all too easy to reach for some nuts, a spoon of peanut butter, a pack of plantain chips (why do I even buy them? Ugh, the struggle is real.) I wrote about these challenges in more detail in this post in March 2023.

One thing is real…..during menopause, I cannot slack off and take my foot off the weight loss gas. In 2016, a typical breakfast was steel cut oats, with ripe banana, and I lost weight effortlessly. I just have to get over that what worked for me in 2016, will not lead to weight loss during menopause.

I won’t be starting another “What I ate today” series because, let’s face it, I can’t keep up with that. Instead, I’ll keep experimenting with different approaches. It’s all about finding what works for me, whether it’s tweaking my diet, trying new workouts, or finding creative ways to manage stress and get some quality sleep. I am aiming to be a healthy weight in 2026. Can I do it? Can I stop disappointing myself, by prioritizing me instead of others? Check back to read how I am doing on my weight loss journey during menopause.

Getting my finances in order: It’s not too late!

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Emergency fund, passive income, active income, side hustle, stocks, dividends……these were financial terms that I didn’t become acquainted with until I was over 40. That age is significant because you see, my money habits were shaped by what I thought would have been happening around that age.

Let’s go back to when I was around 17 years old. I was speaking with a male friend (not a boyfriend) who was about 22 years old at the time. I can’t recall what we were talking about, but it eventually led to me ask him if he was getting married. His response stuck with me. He said he was not planning to get married because he didn’t think he would live past 40. And so I said to myself, ok, perhaps I won’t live past 40 either. I know. It’s weird, but that thought followed me around for the next 23 years. Every pain, in my mind, was a terminal illness. Imagine my “disappointment” when the test results always came back negative. I know. I know. It’s weird.

Fast forward to my 40th birthday and I started to plan a big fete to celebrate, half thinking “will I be around for it?” In the week leading up to the fete, a friend of mine who had been invited to the fete, passed away. She was younger than me. When the year ended, I thought to myself “maybe it [death] will come a year later.” Writing this now, I am thinking how silly that thought pattern was. But it was my truth, at the time.

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What I ate today: March 9, 2023

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My eating window closed at 8 pm, with 140g cashews out of a 150g pack I got as a gift. Since we shouldn’t look a gift horse in the mouth, I said “hee haw, heère we go cashews.” Yeah….it was that kind of day.

As usual, it started out with a good breakfast around 6:30 am: sardines, egg, cream cheese, solomon gundy, likkle mayo, avocado and low carb bread. And of course, coffee.

By 12:30 pm, I was hungry. Had chicken broth and 2 chicken thighs. Got home around 5 pm, cleaned the house a bit, exercised then had a tuna salad.

And then the demons came out…..

What I ate today: March 7, 2023

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7 a.m. Breakfast: 2 scrambled eggs, 2 pieces bacon, seasoning, likkle cheese, Jamaican callaloo, low carb bread and coffee

12 pm 1 bag of peanuts. That was a reflex action, when the guy came up to the office and asked if I wanted nuts.

12:30 pm: 3 french fries. That was another relex action as I walked by a colleague’s desk and saw my hand dipping into her fries! Ugh. I was pissed at myseld, so went and brewed a cup of coffee. Coffee makes everything better.

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What I ate today: March 6, 2023

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Woke up late (after the alarm went off, I set it for another hour).

First up, warm water and 1/2 lemon. Then sardines with Solomon Gundy, little mayo, avocado and low carb bread I bake myself. Here is the recipe for the darker one and here is the one for the lighter one. I will gradually reduce the portion. Coffee of course, with a splash of unsweetened coconut milk and heavy cream, plus unsweetened Jouvay cocoa powder. This was about 8:40 a.m.

Had a second cup of coffee around 1 p.m., then at about 3:15 p.m. I had 1 baked chicken thigh, a smattering (about 1/8 cup) of some steamed veg (okra and pumpkin) and 1 boiled egg. I had carried avocado but as I was eating so late, and I intended to exercise at about 5:30 p.m., I didn’t want to be full. Well….didn’t reach home until 6:30 p.m.! Here’s why.

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Weighty matters: Battling inner conflicts

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As I barrel to the official retirement age of 60, I find myself still not having a handle on maintaining weight loss. I have had a few good weight loss years – 1983, 1992, 2010, 2016 and 2021 are ones which come to mind. But they are always followed by me slacking off….taking my foot off the gas, and then of course, the weights creeps back on.

Since about November last year, I have been unable to fit into my company-issued uniforms. Truth be told, it was a few months before that…..I was squeezing myself into the ones I had made the seamstress take in. At the time the uniforms were delivered in late 2021, I had been on a really good eating pattern which had led to steady weight loss. I had reached to 199 lbs. So I had asked her to take in 2 of the 3 sets of uniform that were noticeably baggy. “Leave 1 set….just in case.” I guess I know myself.

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Non-Communicable Diseases: An economic AND education problem

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In this Jamaica Observer article, Jamaica’s Minister for Health & Wellness Hon. Dr Christopher Tufton advocates for more focus to be placed on Non-Communicable Diseases (NCDs).

Dr Tufton cited the most recent Jamaica Health and Lifestyle Survey (JHLS III) revealed that one in three Jamaicans has hypertension, one in two is overweight or obese, and one in eight has diabetes.”

This statistic is likely the same for some, and perhaps all, other Caribbean countries.

The article goes on to state that “”The minister contended that this points to an NCD crisis and asserted that “as a matter of urgency, we must drive the NCD agenda forward… we must challenge systems and approaches that do not yield results and be willing to think outside the box”.”

The economic problem is real. The burden placed on healthcare, as well as expenses patients face to treat these preventable (in most cases) diseases is real, and utilizes scarce resources.

What if more of the Ministry’s resources, plus some from the Education Ministry, were used to develop and institute a better education programme to tackle all areas of health and wellness? Education should also include food manufacturers. I heard one CEO of a baking company refer to one of their new products as “healthy.” The nutrition data would prove that to be incorrect, given the amount of sugar it contains.

I harp on education because of my own experience. About 2 decades ago, I was very obese and decided to do something about it. A rigorous exercise programme and modification to my diet, led to a 38 pound weight loss in 8 months. At the time, I was very pleased with that result, but having better educated myself since 2016 about food and its effect on hormones and physiology, I realize I could have lost twice the amount of weight. The mistake was thinking that the big bowl of fruit and low fat yogurt, or oats I was eating for breakfast back then, was healthy. I repeat what I said in the previous paragraph: the nutrition data would prove that to be incorrect, given the amount of sugar it contains.

Steel cut oats with ripe banana and walnuts

So Minister Tufton, let’s have a rethink about an education programme, with a strong nutrition component, to tackle NCDs and get Jamaicans off their medications. And be sure to include educating our doctors and nurses. When I hear stories if some doctors giving their diabetic patients more insulin, rather than directing them to remove from their diet, what causes their glucose levels to rise, then I know that they need education too.

Implementing a sugar tax on companies who manufacture and/or sell unhealthy foods, is for another post.

Old Habits Don’t Go Away Easily

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I just threw away 2 batches of cooked Steel Cut Oats which I had had in the freezer for about 2 years. A few years ago, I used to eat Oats often, especially in 2016 when I was working out like a beast with Caribbean champion body builder, Grenada’s Damion Daniel. See evidence below!

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Shaking off my Friday Night Funk

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“And so what if I just remain fat?”

This was the message which set off alarm bells and caused some to ask “what’s wrong?”

What led me to feel this way and resulted in me turning into the KFC drive-thru?

Work. More specifically, continuously feeling like I am hitting my head against a brick wall for initiatives which will make the employees better.

So I left work Friday pissed, so pissed that the only thing I felt could help me blow off steam was junk. (I paid dearly next day for having eaten the crappy food.). And I felt like I wanted to detach from the world.

After a few messages and calls Friday and Saturday, I did the self talk, dusted myself off and decided not to wallow. The other thing which shifted my perspective was overhearing a conversation between two ladies on Saturday night. 

“[Name of man friend] is always drunk. Drunk every day. He is verbally abusive to me.” 😔

Well, life is not so bad for me then.

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#IntermittentFasting

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Can’t recall how I came across this eating concept. Perhaps it was the “The 8 hour diet” by David Zinczenko, or maybe while surfing.

The first time I tried it a few years ago, I had a headache for the first day. I was a “eat breakfast within 30 minutes of waking” kinda person, from ever since. Back then, I had to have coffee at least, and not black, in order to last out the fasting period after waking. Nowadays, I just have warm water and some green tea without sugar, and I am good until it is time to eat. It is a quick way to get a flat (ish) stomach.

Here is an infographic detailing the benefits and also the schedule one might follow. Give it a try. Intermittent Fasting has been in the news lately. It’s called IF for short.