I will second or third what others have said regarding carbs and sugars. I truly believe that I fall into the category of being sensitive to them. I mostly follow a low glycemic index(GI) eating plan and it has been extremely successful for me. I will be 49 this summer. I really try to eat what I would call a low to moderate amount of carbs(100-250grams) in the form of sprouted grain bread, brown rice,beans, other whole grains and rarely whole wheat pastas. I have completely stopped eating white flour or processed anything. My serving sizes are very small of these items like 1/2 cup and perhaps 3 servings of these a day. I also stopped drinking milk and get calcium thru homemade yogurt, and veggies. High quality proteins(meat, eggs,tofu,tempeh,nuts,cottage cheese) and good fats and LOTS of low GI veggies seem to be my friends. I also am a runner and recently ran a half marathon eating this way and I don't see that I miss excess carbs at all. Another thing that helped was to use a calorie counting app like Lose It. This was a great way for me to see my eating habits. It is interesting to see for one's self how those, especially, carb calories really add up. I sometimes will get very repetitive in what I eat, but it is also a very easy way to keep following my plan.

How could I not want to commiserate with someone who feels like her metabolism resembles that of a corpse! I totally relate. I also randomly gain and lose 5 lbs. during the year despite careful eating and regular exercise. This has really only started in the past couple a years as I approach 50 and my periods have become erratic. As I have tried to explain to DH, I only have occasional weight loss windows, which come and go with no relation to anything I can name, and cannot cheat even a bit when they occur. As in suddenly I will notice that my weight has dropped a little and then I start being super strict - not the other way around! The rest of the time I just try to keep things on an even keel and hope things balance out eventually. There is a lot of good advice in the comments and do find weight lifting is very important for not just my weight but my mood. I have been doing kettlebells regularly for about 4 years and also do yoga and other things as the mood strikes. And I avoid refined carbs for the most part but eat lots of fruit and vegetables and healthy fats. Thanks for starting this thread Sarah!

Sarah thanks for starting this thread. Im heading off to bed but will be back to read everyone's comments. I am reluctant to admit it but I have wondered if my recent weight gain over the summer months might be hormone related:( My weight has fluctutated as I have worked through a gluten intolerance but I don't think I can blame that for the recent gain, as it actually caused weight loss... great while it lasted.

I had to really amp up the exercise and that made a big difference. I used to walk/treadmill everyday for 30 minutes but that wasn't cutting it. Now I take an hour long step aerobics class 3x per week.

I'm chiming in to say that you ALL LOOK GREAT!!!

Oh, Sarah. You are so not alone in this. This whole mid-life transition is no picnic. I'm 51 and I've been able to hold my weight in check more or less, but there are definitely times when it spirals upward (that dreaded five pounds!) for no apparent reason. *sigh*

I identify with so many of the posts here. My experience mirrors Shevia's in that my weight seems to have a mind of its own, almost unrelated to how healthy I'm eating or how much I'm exercising. I follow her pattern of having unexplained weight loss windows, where I suddenly lose a few pounds. Then there are also those days when I wake up and feel bloated and pudgy all over for no apparent reason. It's difficult to predict. Carbs and sugar are definite dangers, though. And I do exercise regularly: yoga, weights, running, elliptical. And I do believe it helps.

Like Suz, I weigh almost the same (or even less) than I did ten years ago, but my body carries it much more in the waist/abdomen area. This is one reason I'm so belt-phobic...I feel like belts emphasize the body area that I least want to emphasize. It's so discouraging. I'm finding that I almost have to weigh less overall in order to have my clothes fit the way the did a few years ago. *double sigh*

You've gotten a lot of good advice about eating and exercise here, so I don't have anything to add except my story...and my sympathy. We are all dealing with this to some degree or another, and it's no fun at all.

@sarah: Thanks for the water running tip. I'm not sure if anything like that is offered around here (without joining a specific health club.) I will look into it though because water therapy seems to be a good thing for my particular rehab. Can you give me the short and sweet on peri-menopausal weight loss when you get it all figured out? I'd appreciate that LOL! Good luck.

I forgot to mention my favorite tip. I don't own a scale.

LOL, Kelly, I think the summary so far is: it happens to everyone, it may or may not help to reduce carb/sugar intake, and I have to increase my exercise to some insane amount which means more than the 6x/week I already do exercise! I should probably just stop worrying about it and make peace with my belly fat!

I lost 30 pound over a few months doing a specific cleanse. Full disclosure - I am a distributor so I don't know if I am violating any rules by posting it here but at least I can get you on it for wholesale. PM me if you're interested and if PMing about it is still a violation somebody please let me know & I will not mention it again.

*chortle* I think that pretty well sums it up FWIW, I think you are looking as trim as ever!

Thanks, Kelly, not what the scale says!

I water run on my own, actually, in the pool during "open swim" hours.

Sarah;

Muscle weighs more than fat, so with all your exercise, I'm wondering if at least part of your weight gain is actually in muscle mass? Sistah, I've seen you pull up your shirt to show us how pants fit, and what you've shown is pretty darn enviable!!! Also, I think ALL women get thicker through the middle as they age; you even see this in actresses and celebrities who make a living via their looks and have personal trainers and work out like fiends.

My weight may be the same or similar to what it was a decade or three or four ago, but I'm certainly fluffier and dimensions and their locations have changed. A 23 - 24" waist will never happen again unless I get very, very sick and my weight falls to at least 10 pounds below where it was when I had that waist size and I turn to skin and bones which I definitely wasn't earlier.

So good to read all these, thank you Sarah for posting this. I have recently entered perimenopause. I read "Bombshell" by Suzanne Somers and got on bioidentical hormones to protect my health. Well, I also gained about 7 pounds and they won't come off. I'm only 5'0", and I was already full-figured, so now I'm full-plus.

I don't exercise as much as you (kudos! that is awesome) but I lift weights and do push ups several times a week. I was sprinting regularly but I had a nearly broken ankle in March so that put paid to any notions of running for a while.

What I wanted to say (besides just venting, ha ha) is that the low-carb (or low-on-bad-carbs) diet is still the one that makes me feel the best. I should mention you will experience a 21-day "low carb flu" but once that's over you should have more energy, stamina, no afternoon slump, and sleep better. No more morning breath - that was a fun side-effect!

The hormones also make me feel great. I take testosterone, progesterone, and thyroid. Also lots of lovely supplements. My sex life has improved dramatically. That is a big thing in itself, and a huge ego boost even though I'm looking chubby.

I am certainly a work in progress. I am working on liking myself no matter what, since I'm not really in control. All the best on your journey!

I'm going to do Jessica Smith's Five-Week Summer Shapeup Challenge starting tomorrow. Anybody want to join me? I'll let you know my results in five weeks!

http://jessicasmithtv.com/2013.....enge-plan/