I’ve always had “a fast metabolism”. I say this with quotation marks because I believe the lie people tell themselves that some people have a fast metabolism and some don’t is incorrect. I have always been active. I literally don’t stop moving from the moment I open my eyes in the morning until I am back in bed reading before I sleep. People who were the age I am now would tell my younger self “your weight will catch up to you” and it still hasn’t. Sure my weight fluctuates, when I eat a lot, train less, gain more, and visa versa. But the thing that has stayed consistent is that I am constantly active.
I have a theory that your weight doesn’t just magically get heavier when you’re older because that’s just the way its supposed to go. You do grow but then you stop growing. Early to mid-twenties, I think it’s fair to say you’re probably not going to get any taller and your weight will only change now based on calories. As a generalisation anyway…
My theory is that people just stop moving as much as when they’re younger. Think about it. In school, whether you liked to exercise or not, you’re forced to do sports at least once a week. You have to walk from class to class every hour, bus stops to and from school, to the library, etc. Gosh, even going to the bathroom during class sometimes was a trek depending on what block you’re in. Sure there’s intervals of sitting down a heap but when you’re an adult and if you’ve taken the path of someone who sits at a desk all day long, you’re probably not getting those forced walks in at every hour and you’re definitely not getting a mandatory shuttle run in once in a while. Your bathroom is probably only a couple metres away and the kitchen is surely a lot closer than recommended. There’s something to that.
Its all calories in versus calories out right? It all comes back to people just not wanting to take control of their own lives and not wanting to hold themselves accountable. Its so easy to just say “oh i’m not one of those body types” or “everyone in my family is big”. Its easy to just accept the easy way out but then you complain about health and your looks and overall vitality. First and foremost, you have to want to put the effort in. And all that effort pays off. People who don’t exercise think its a vain thing, something that only contributes to the way you look. That is part of it, sure. But your lifestyle is probably the biggest contributing factor to your wellbeing. When your body feels good, your mind feels good, you’re less emotional, you’re more confident and slowly all the external factors get easier to combat. There’s also nothing wrong with wanting to look good. If it makes you feel happy, that happiness with show, it’ll be contagious and you’ll be someone people actually want to be around.
So no, you’re not getting fat because you’re getting older. You’re just not moving as much as you did when you were a kid or teen. And maybe you didn’t move much then either so you have a lot more catch up to do but that’s okay. Better now then never, right?
Optimal health = optimal life.
Also don’t weigh yourself if you don’t need to. I hit the biggest weight my scales had ever seen in my life only a couple months ago and I felt strong and great. My weight is getting back down now and I look and feel the same. The numbers don’t matter, they are a tool and sometimes a guide for progress but what matters most is what you can see and how that makes you feel. That short spout of exercise no one ever wants to do until they’re done doing it, is always worth it. Nothing beats feeling comfortable in your own skin.