Welcome back to The Diet Oracle! Today I’m excited to share with you the next installment in A Plan for Success! In this series, I show how everyday people can reach their goals with personalized weight loss strategies and custom meal planning help. From identifying obstacles and establishing a goal to developing individualized tactics and a sample meal plan, I’ll demonstrate step-by-step how to make weight loss a reality, no matter the circumstances!

So without further ado, allow me to introduce you to our fictional friend, Evelyn. I suspect that if you have ever struggled with stubborn pounds, her story will sound all too familiar.

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Evelyn’s Story

Changing Seasons

Ask anyone and they’ll tell you, Evelyn is the heart of her family. She is all at once a daughter, wife, mother, and now one very happy grandma! Between checking in on her aging parents and babysitting the grands a few days per week, Evelyn finds herself as busy as ever.

Life’s theme these days has definitely been all about change, including the big one–menopause. As if adjusting to an empty nest wasn’t enough, going through ‘the change’ has been no walk in the park. Between the hot flashes, brain fog, and raw emotions, Evelyn often wonders who’s driving this crazy train! And, just to add insult to injury, she’s also gained a good 15 pounds seemingly overnight. She can’t really think of anything she’s doing differently, and so figures her metabolism must be yet another casualty of the Big M.

Typical Diet

Evelyn describes her eating habits as ‘pretty normal.’ She’ll have something quick for breakfast, like instant oatmeal or a muffin, alongside a couple cups of coffee with creamer. Lunch varies, but is usually eaten at home. She might make herself a sandwich or warm up leftovers and she always tries to throw in a serving of fruit or veggies for good measure.

Dinner is definitely the most variable meal in her day. Now that the kids have flown the coop and started families of their own, Evelyn and her husband often grab dinner at one of their favorite restaurants or order take-out. Though Evelyn used to love cooking, 25+ years of heavy lifting in the kitchen has left her more than a little burnt out.

While she doesn’t particularly see herself as a snacker, Evelyn confesses to having quite the sweet tooth. She tries to exercise a little restraint, but who is she kidding? By mid-afternoon, she’s ready for chocolate and pretty much any kind will do.

Fitness

Evelyn admits that exercise has slowly gone by the wayside over the last 5 or 10 years. Though she used to be an avid swimmer and enjoyed taking group classes at her neighborhood gym, Evelyn can’t think of the last time she swam a lap. She can feel that she’s gotten weaker over the years and doesn’t like the hit her stamina has taken as a result. Afterall, she’s got grandbabies to chase!

Stubborn Pounds

Evelyn has made a few attempts to lose the weight, but without any real success. She used to have no trouble dieting to keep her weight in check, but that’s all changed, too. It just seems like no matter what she does, the pounds simply will not come off.

Despite these set-backs and frustrations, however, Evelyn is determined to be successful. Aside from the aggravation of pants that won’t zip, recent lab work hasn’t been looking so good either. With a family history of both diabetes and heart disease, she knows she needs to take action now. Ultimately, Evelyn wants to lose those stubborn pounds, regain her strength, and protect her health; fitting into her old swimsuit will just be icing on the cake!

Evelyn’s Obstacles

Goals worth achieving are seldom easy, and Evelyn here is no exception. Though she is motivated and determined to make changes and get results, losing weight is rarely a cake walk. So let’s take a moment to identify the very real obstacles that Evelyn will face on her weight loss journey.

• Despite nearing retirement age, Evelyn’s days are full to the brim. She’s committed to caring for her parents and helping with the grandkids, but often feels worn out by the end of the day and less than motivated to exercise.
• Without an army to cook for, Evelyn and her husband have started eating out multiple times per week. While this is certainly enjoyable, restaurant meals are notoriously high in calories and can make weight loss difficult for even the most dutiful dieter.
• Based on her eating habits, there’s a good chance Evelyn is consuming much more sugar than she realizes and will need to cut back if she is serious about losing weight and improving her health.
• After so many years of cooking for her family, Evelyn has lost the motivation to get back into the kitchen. Any realistic meal plan will have to take this into consideration.
• Over the last decade, Evelyn has let exercise go by the wayside and with it, her fitness. As a result, she has likely lost significant muscle mass.
• While age can and does contribute to less than favorable changes to metabolism, the combination of an increased caloric intake, a decrease in physical activity, and a decrease in metabolically active muscle is most definitely a recipe for weight gain.
• And finally, menopause can certainly add its own challenges to any weight loss effort. In particular, changes in fat distribution, fatigue, mood swings, and possible changes to metabolism can each throw a wrench into even the best of plans. Though frustrating to be sure, these obstacles are not insurmountable and can each be dealt with.

Embrace change!

As Evelyn herself has noted, this season of life is all about change, so what better time to embrace the changes that will improve her health, elevate her wellbeing, and enable her to achieve her goals? It will take commitment and at times, even a stubborn will to succeed, but with the right plan in hand, she can do it!

Next time, we’ll start to piece together the weight loss strategies that will equip Evelyn to reach her goals. And who knows? Perhaps you’ll learn a trick or two that will help you on your own weight loss journey! Thanks for reading and don’t stop chasing down your goals!

If you’d like to read other posts in this series, check them out here!