Weight Loss Tips for Senior Citizens

Most people go through a stage in their life where they think they may need to lose some weight. There are others who are told by a doctor they are overweight or obese. The truth is that some people have genetic reasons why they have difficulties losing weight. However, there are always things that can be done to help people with their weight loss journey. These are some of the weight loss tips that you can help your elderly loved one with starting today.

Improving Sleep Quality

One of the things that is needed in order to lose weight is to improve sleep quality. Did you know there are studies that show people who are getting less than 7 hours of sleep per night on average are more likely to be overweight than those who get 7 to 9 hours of sleep most nights. If your elderly loved one isn’t sleeping enough or getting quality sleep, hopefully, you or home care assistance providers can help them out by:

• Helping them to create healthy sleep/bedtime routines
• Encouraging and reminding them to limit caffeine throughout the day, especially in the evening hours
• Helping them to relax as bedtime nears
• Helping them to set up a relaxing, dark bedroom environment (without electronics)

If your elderly loved one can start getting better sleep, it can help to improve their body’s ability to heal and get rid of toxins. When this happens, there is a better chance that your elderly loved one can lose weight and maintain a healthy weight, too.

Calorie Management

Is your elderly loved one currently taking in a lot of calories each day? If you aren’t sure about this and your elderly loved one isn’t great at counting, you might want to hire home care providers to track their calories for a week or so. This way, someone can find out how many calories your elderly loved one takes in each day on average. Then, a diet plan can be put into place to reduce the amount of calories they are getting daily.

Proper Exercise

Another tip that can help your elderly loved one to lose weight is to exercise properly. There are certain exercises that are more aimed at helping people to lose weight such as:

• Weight training
• Use of resistance bands
• Yoga
• Walking
• Hiking

You should take your elderly loved one to their doctor to find out which exercises would be safe for them. Then, you or a home care assistance provider can help your elderly loved one to set up an exercise routine that helps them to lose weight.

Conclusion

These are some of the weight loss tips that can help your elderly loved one to achieve a healthier weight and maintain it. If your elderly loved one isn’t great at sticking to dieting, exercise, or other healthy lifestyle changes, you or senior care providers can help them to do this.

Sources
https://www.cdc.gov/healthyweight/losing_weight/index.html
https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/healthyliving/Nutrition-needs-when-youre-over-65