They say it gets harder and harder to lose weight as you age: your metabolism slows down and your ability to burn fat becomes increasingly difficult. But don't tell that to now 88-year-old Jessica Slaughter. She is the woman who struggled with obesity for much of her life lost 120 pounds by walking back and forth in her one-bedroom apartment every day.
Every morning, Slaughter, of St. Louis, Missouri, walks 3,000 steps back and forth between her living room and kitchen before starting her day, according to KSDK.
Her decision to make strides toward a healthier weight came when she was in her 70s, when a doctor told her she was pre-diabetic.
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"Even as a kid in Mississippi, I was always the fattest kid in the class. I got teased a lot," Slaughter said. "I didn't know how to stop eating. Fried chicken. Bacon and eggs. Desserts, like cakes and pies."
According to Business Insider, after the doctor's appointment, Slaughter stopped eating meat, and then she started her daily walks in her apartment.
Her granddaughter suggested she track her steps with a Fitbit, and now she's up to 3,000 every morning.
Since starting her health journey, Slaughter has lost 120 pounds, and wants to encourage other elderly people to get up and move.
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"I just want seniors to know just because we've gotten a certain age, we don't have to stop living," Slaughter told KSDK. "I want to tell them that there's a better way of life if they choose."
Ten thousand steps is a common goal when people want to move more. But, according to fitness experts, it’s important to...
... assess your personal baseline before setting a benchmark. Track your steps for two days during the week and one day on the weekend to figure out your average daily step count. If you’re at 5,000, you may want to increase it to 7,000 and then keep going up from there at every plateau.
If you have an active job, you might already be walking plenty of steps throughout the day. In that case, experts suggest increasing your pace or adding intervals to increase the calorie burn which helps you see a definite change in your body.
