Next week is Love Your Body Week. Love less. Love longer. Did I mention I lost 80 pounds? And it’s still gone?

Barf.

Actually barf had nothing to do with it, but eating right sure is boring.

If you are thick you probably don’t like what you see in the mirror. Unless you have a photoshopper on retainer.

Although there’s a lot of truth to the old adage that you’re only as old as you feel, the physical effects of aging are just too much to wish away with positive a attitude.

Once you cross over into your 40s, your metabolism naturally slows down, you begin to lose more muscle mass unless maintained, and issues like weight gain can really sneak up on you and leave you completely out of shape by the time you’re pushing into your late 50s and early 60s.

For all the baby boomers out there, healthy diet and exercise should be a top priority in your life, and if it isn’t, you would do well to make the push to get in and stay in better shape.

Here are a few tips to help you stay in shape once you cross the big 5-0.

Gauge Your Body

A lot of us let checkups lapse as we age, leaving us in bad physical condition when we actually try to do something about the weight gain in our latter years. For many, many reasons, none the least of which is heart health, it’s important that you see a physician before you attempt any sort of diet or weight loss regimen.

Reaching an unhealthy heart rate (BPM) can cause complications if you have high cholesterol or a weakened heart, and blood pressure and blood sugar levels should be known and monitored before any physical exertion you’re not used to.

Consider Yourself Retired

Okay, you’ve lived a long life to this point, so now it’s time to cash in on all that junk food you’ve been eating like potato chips, fast food, greasy fried foods, etc.

It was a good run while it lasted, but your body simply doesn’t process fats and carbohydrates like it used to, and at the very least you’ll be looking at excess weight gain unless you monitor your diet and stay active. On the dangerous end of the spectrum, that cholesterol buildup is something none of us want to tempt fate with.

Don’t Touch that Remote

Although your bones and muscles may ache, this isn’t the time of your life to retire to the sofa. This is the time you should be integrating physical activity into your daily life. Even if it’s just a brisk walk every morning and a few sets of curls with some hand weights, make sure that you’re working on your metabolism and your muscles.

You need to thwart muscle and bone loss and you need to keep your metabolism running high.

At Your Leisure

You’re not 20 anymore, so there probably isn’t a hot date you want to impress with a six-pack of abs and arms like Hulk Hogan. So remember here that the idea isn’t to undergo any intensive training regimen.

The idea is simply to maintain good health and high energy levels. If you need to lose weight, then you can push it a little harder. But if you’re just looking to stay healthy, a light, regular routine will work just fine.

Losing weight when you’re over 50 is something that requires a measured pace. Be disciplined in what you eat and how you exercise and you’ll certainly see results – maybe not as fast as a few decades previous, but you’ll still definitely see them.