Weight loss: slow and steady or fast?

[Gracemom]

I have been on a year long weight loss journey, but it has been a slow process! I am 44 and it just isn't as easy losing weight as I get older. I had a physical with lab work done, including thyroid, and everything was normal. I have lost 25 pounds in the last year, but I still have 35 pounds to go. I have been exercising consistently, and I am in much better shape now than I have been in my adult life. I am even running! Slowly, but I'm still running! My strength, endurance, flexibility, etc. have all improved greatly. But as I am nearing a year working on my health, I am getting frustrated that I haven't lost more. I did a whole 30, which was so good for me in many ways, and I eat mostly Paleo now. I love the way I feel when I eat that way, but I am struggling to eat that way 100%, even though I know it would help me reach my goals faster.

My question is, do I continue the slow and steady progress? I feel like what I am doing now is a very liveable lifestyle that I can continue indefinitely. I do allow myself off plan meals and treats occasionally, and I do not feel deprived. Or should I ramp up the exercise to more than 3-4 times/week and track my food more carefully to get the weight off faster? I'd really like to reach my goal by next summer. I have to wear shorts in Texas, and my kids live at the pool! (I will wear shorts and swimsuits no matter what my weight is, but I'd like to feel more confident, fit and healthy in them.) Any thoughts appreciated!

[elektra]

Congrats on your weight loss!
Why not step it up? Are you concerned that you would be "messing with a good thing" because you are so dialed in to what you know is a sustainable system, and that you might fall off the wagon and be more prone to temptation if you eat less treats and such? I think if you give stepping it up a shot and see how it goes, you will not go back to square 1 if you have a few bad days. I would try to have confidence in yourself in all that you have accomplished so far, and know that if the "ramp up" doesn't work out, you can still go back to what you are doing now.
I say go for it though.

[pastrygirl]

I can tell you my experience. Once I started lifting weights, I was able to ignore the scale and focus only on size. I thought I had another 20 pounds to lose, but I am now the size I wanted to be when I first set my goals. I know a huge part of it is food and the changes I made there, but a big part of it was also the type of workouts. Cardio does NOTHING for me, other than improve endurance. I don't drop pounds or sizes no matter how much I get my heart rate up. I need to lift weights to see any changes.

For ME, if I were in your shoes, since you seem to have the food thing down, I'd try something different with exercise. I LOVED THIS BOOK: Drop Two Sizes by Rachael Cosgrove. I went down three sizes, but only lost around 12 pounds. I'm not completely sure on the pounds because I wasn't tracking my weight.

[Gracemom]

Congrats on your weight loss!
Why not step it up? Are you concerned that you would be "messing with a good thing" because you are so dialed in to what you know is a sustainable system, and that you might fall off the wagon and be more prone to temptation if you eat less treats and such? I think if you give stepping it up a shot and see how it goes, you will not go back to square 1 if you have a few bad days. I would try to have confidence in yourself in all that you have accomplished so far, and know that if the "ramp up" doesn't work out, you can still go back to what you are doing now.
I say go for it though.

Everything you said makes so much sense! I think that is what I'm afraid of. This is the most successful I have been taking control of my health, and I'm afraid of going back to my old ways. But I truly think I have made lasting changes, so I should let that fear go. As you said, I can always go back to how things have been in case the ramp up is too much for me. Thanks!

[Gracemom]

I can tell you my experience. Once I started lifting weights, I was able to ignore the scale and focus only on size. I thought I had another 20 pounds to lose, but I am now the size I wanted to be when I first set my goals. I know a huge part of it is food and the changes I made there, but a big part of it was also the type of workouts. Cardio does NOTHING for me, other than improve endurance. I don't drop pounds or sizes no matter how much I get my heart rate up. I need to lift weights to see any changes.

For ME, if I were in your shoes, since you seem to have the food thing down, I'd try something different with exercise. I LOVED THIS BOOK: Drop Two Sizes by Rachael Cosgrove. I went down three sizes, but only lost around 12 pounds. I'm not completely sure on the pounds because I wasn't tracking my weight.

Thanks for the recommendation! I love strength training. I will check the book out and see if it recommends something different than what I'm doing. I'm using 10 and 15 pound hand weights now, as well as kettlebells sometimes. I have been doing more cardio because it was my biggest weakness. I feel good about having more cardio endurance as well as more strength. I started out with 5 pound weights, so I need to remember how far I've come already.

[daisysmom]

Read the book "Thinner Next Year". I am in my iPad so I can't link to it. It was written third, after two other excellent books,the second being "Younger Next Year" for women (can't recall exact name). All of these books are excellent IMO, but just read Thinner and think it is very motivating. Basically, I am convinced that cardio does incredible things for our bodies but weight loss is not really one of them for me at 45. Still, we need it for other reasons. Weights are so beneficial too. But for me, to lose the pounds which was my goal too, cutting crappy junk food is necessary almost all of the time.