Bodies Don’t Change; Eating and Exercise Habits Do

By Lorra Garrick | Last updated 03/25

“Bodies change” is a popular excuse for adopting eating habits that lead to obesity and avoiding or stopping exercise which contributes to excess weight.

However, there is some truth to the addage, “bodies change.” That’s coming up shortly.

“Bodies change” doesn’t mean that you can’t keep a good figure well into middle age and even beyond.

It does mean that there are certain visible signs of aging that are impossible to prevent, such as crinkly skin, age spots, hair loss, grey hair, loss of height and increased visibility of “spider” veins.

Other age related changes in appearance include a “growing” nose, elongated ears and more visible lower teeth.

But as far as the physique? You can actually retain a pretty goodlooking body far into middle age and beyond. You just have to work hard for it.

What contributes a LOT to body change?

A change in eating and exercise habits will do far more to alter one’s appearance than will the natural “changes” that occur as time marches on in adulthood – especially if the time frame is from the early 20s to the late 30s.

And yes, when women justify significant weight gain by saying “bodies change,” they are almost always in their 40s, even 30s — at least the ones on Instagram and TikTok.

Now, when these women on Instagram and TikTok say “change,” they’re referring to size and how things, from an aesthetics standpoint, are “put together,” or the “package.”

They’re not referring to health, blood work, bone density, coronary arteries, bags under the eyes or some new grey hairs.

It’s all physique talk. Or we can call it body talk. Keep in mind that tummy stretch marks and some “crepe papering” behind the upper legs will come no matter what a woman does as far as working out and eating healthfully.

But these types of cosmetic presentations don’t affect the actual shape and composition of a body.

A body with these so-called flaws can still sport abdominal definition, a firm butt, legs beautifully sculpted by muscle, arms that look tight and strong with no “bat wings,” and well-defined shoulders.

A 50-year-old man can still have a hardbody despite aged-looking skin on his forearms.

Faces and necks change much more than do bodies when one commits to serious strength training and other forms of exercise. Freepik

Now, earlier, I said there was some truth to the addage.

And it’s this: If a person has never done any strength training, or, did it for a brief time but then quit, then when they’re around 30, they’ll begin losing precious muscle mass. This is the start of a big change in their body’s appearance (and health).

The body will begin to lose muscle mass at a rate of approximately 3 to 8% per decade in the absence of strength training.

On average this equates to five pounds of muscle tissue every 10 years.
So by age 50, a woman will have lost 10 pounds of muscle. That’s a lot.
It’ll be replaced by fat, and by 50, her body compositon (and appearance) will be markedly changed — even if she’s the same dress size!
Take a look at the comparison pictures below to better understand how a woman can have the same body weight but look very different with a healthier body composition.

Less muscle mass = a slower resting metabolic rate, because muscle is the body’s metabolic furnace. So with less muscle, you’ll gain more fat (but not necessarily look “fat”).

This decline in muscle accelerates after the age of 60.

On average, people who’ve never done any form of resistance training – enough to build lean vital muscle — lose around five pounds of muscle per decade — can’t say it enough.

This loss is known as sarcopenia and will be exacerbated by low protein intake.

Research from the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (Clark et al, 2014) shows that a sedentary lifestyle contributes to muscle loss.

This research is plentiful and can easily be found with simple googling; it’s a hardcore fact that if you don’t build muscle (and I don’t mean to competitive bodybuilder proportions) in young adulthood, and you continue avoiding weight workouts, your body will really begin showing this in middle age.

If by then, such an individual is still pretty much the same clothing size, this doesn’t mean they’ll look the same as they did at 25.

They’ll have less muscle (less muscle weight) and more fat (more fat weight), which for some people, causes a net bodyweight gain of around zero pounds. In others, they noticeably get bigger over time.

Those who stay about the same size or body weight will look flabby and “soft.”

They’ll have a paunch and/or love handles. There will be some sagging.

In other individuals, the lack of strength training will result in a noticeable and steady body size gain over the years, so that by the time they’re well into middle age, they’re overweight, maybe even obese (at least 20% over their ideal weight).

And due to the absence of strength training, they’ll not only be overweight but, again, flabby or doughy in appearance.

So all of this, then, is an example of “bodies change.”

However, the type of changes described here DO NOT HAVE TO HAPPEN.

Check out the images below of older women and men who have preserved a firm, fit looking body through exercise (obviously) and presumably mindful consumption of mostly healthful foods.

Based on her face, this woman is clearly well into middle age. Yet look at those arms, shoulders and chest! She may be “too muscular” for some women, but let’s face it: She has no bat wings and none of that flab that so many women complain about as they get older. Which would you rather have? Shutterstock/Lestertair

This comparison speaks for itself.

Sharon Smith is 71 in this photo. Many times she has been in the gym at the same time as myself. I can honestly say that I never observed her spending “all day” in the gym. What sets her body apart from other elderly-age women is the absolute intensity of her workouts. She’d be in and out in less than 90 minutes, but when she did a set, she put all her might into it.

If men can retain a buff build into old age, women can too! Shutterstock/Straight 8 Photography

Habits Change, Not Just Bodies

For anyone who thinks that their body, after spending many years in adulthood, has changed due to uncontrollable factors, things way beyond their control, they need to ask themselves some questions.

• Over the years, have your eating habits gotten worse?

• Over time, have you simply gotten into the habit of eating larger portions and more ultra-processed foods?

• Have you replaced mindful eating with mindless eating?

• Has your increased food intake been the result of stressors such as a hostile workplace environment or family life?

• Perhaps having several kids has encouraged a higher food intake due to cooking more food, eating the leftovers, being tempted by a lot of snacks in the house?

• Did you used to do gym workouts but quit soon after marriage or having your first or second child?

Physiques don’t magically “change” for nothing. They can change quite dramatically in response to altered eating and exercise habits.

And the change can even be in the reverse direction, as in a woman who’s had a flabby body all her sedentary life, but then takes up kickass weight training workouts and a healthier, more mindful diet.

Over time, her mushy plump body becomes tighter and more defined as she gains lean muscle mass and sheds excess fat.

This can easily happen in her 40s, even 50s and 60s.

I also want to point out that gaining muscle (and thus losing fat) doesn’t necessarily require conventional gym workouts.

Any weight-bearing activity — when done consistently — will increase muscle and metabolism.

A fine example is rock-wall climbing. I swear, climbers have among the best physiques. Visit a climbing gym and look at the older women who’ve been climbing for years. You’ll be stunned.

This middle age woman has preserved a very toned body. Freepik

People Who Work Out But See No Changes

If this describes you, you’re not working out hard enough.

I’ve always seen women at the gym, month after month, using the same light-weight resistance, be it on a machine or with a pair of dumbbells.

They look exactly the same six months, even a year, later. There’s nothing complicated to understand here; they are simply not working out hard enough.

To change your body composition and achieve a leaner, more athletic appearance, light weights alone won’t be enough.

While light resistance most definitely can improve endurance and overall health, this approach won’t provide the intensity needed to trigger the muscle growth and fat loss that’s required to retain a fit toned body as the years go by.

Progressive resistance — gradually increasing the weight you lift over time — is super key to building firm, toned muscle – and this muscle will literally eat up stored body fat to merely sustain its existence as long as you keep training.

As you challenge your muscles with heavier loads, they adapt by growing stronger and more defined.

This increase in muscle mass not only shapes your body, giving you a leaner look, but also boosts your metabolism, even during sleep. As mentioned, muscle is the body’s metabolic furnace.

Muscle tissue burns more calories (needs more fuel for sustenance) than fat tissue yet takes up less space than fat.

Without progressive resistance, your muscles won’t be sufficiently stimulated to grow, leaving you with less noticeable changes in body composition.

Training with progressively heavier weights encourages hypertrophy, or muscle growth, which is essential for achieving the appearance you dream of – an appearance that can be preserved for MANY years.