For the last couple of months, I’ve been conducting an experiment; well that’s what I decided to call it. Actually, it’s more along the lines of me eating basically whatever non-meat foods I want and not exercising regularly; and I found out something. Number one: that not exercising regularly is pissing me off – as if menopause needed any help. And number two: that I haven’t gained any weight! Yayyy! Well, but then again, I haven’t lost any either (10 pounds and I’ll be happy) which is what I wanted to address.  I think I’ve proven that the 80/20 rule in nutrition and exercise is true.

What the 80/20 rule means in exercise and nutrition is that if you want to lose weight, 80 percent of your efforts should be via nutrition, while 20 percent of your efforts come from exercise.

I haven’t gained any weight in the last couple of months, so nutrition-wise, I’m not too far off the mark. Well since I’m a vegetarian who loves veggies, fruits and light main meals, I’ve got a pretty good foundation. But I love snacks – salty snacks; like this bag of Cheezits I picked up the other morning on the way home from work. And then there was the small bag of trail mix from 7-11, health-IER yes, but still ….

To keep eating well,  I had to make the decision not to eat during my 12 hours at work anymore because the majority of that time is spent sitting. No, I’m not starving myself. I eat a meal when I come home from work, and right before I go into work; and I’ve learned that those two meals are enough. I also learned that my snack cravings are not borne of any real hunger; just an emotional attachment to salty foods. (Okay I’ll work on that one later)

So, with the exception of my salty fixes, I’m eating pretty well, so it’s got to be the 20 percent of exercise (and the salty fixes) that’s holding me back from losing these 10 pounds! I’ll report back on that in another few months since I’m back on my sweat routine again. And let’s not regard that 20 percent as insignificant either. Exercise is not just important for weight loss, it’s important for muscle strength, and for raising metabolism (to keep burning calories after the exercise is done) both of which are EXTREMELY important to the fifty-plus fab ladies of the world, like yours truly.

And that, my dears, illustrates the point of this post. Eating right is the name of the game. It doesn’t have to be perfect – I’m likely not going to give up my salty fixes entirely – but there has to be a balance; a balance between our good and bad food choices, and enough exercise to burn more of what we’re swallowing. Exercising well and then spooning too many fatty-salty-high calorie foods back into our bodies is an effort in futility.

So, I’ll be continuing to step up my exercise regimen, while I keep eating well to get rid of these 10 pounds. Will I cut out my salty fixes? Sounds like a good idea … but no.

I like a balance better.