A Way to Lose Weight Some rules to achieve weight loss

February 25, 2026

Discover the inspiring story of how one person lost five stone.

As age creeps up on us so do the pounds. How to lose weight and which diet is best seems to be a constant conundrum for the best results.

Weight loss jabs have become particularly popular, but side effects are still a matter of debate and then when you stop how do you maintain your new weight.

Alison Cork was ashamed how she looked aged 57 weighing 13st 7lbs and was close to being clinically obese. She signed up to a gym and was told that no amount of exercise would make a difference unless she cut out the 80 – 90% carbs she was eating.

She was told to enter every item of food and drink she consumed on an app and focus on proteins – chicken, fish or dairy – some healthy carbs, leafy greens and vegetables – and no more than 1,500 calories a day.

She documented how she lost 5st in her book Fit and Fabulous Over 50 and here are her golden rules.

Download an app to help you

It has been important for her to track her food intake from the beginning. She uses MyFitnessPal (among other available apps) on her phone to log everything she eats and drinks. The app calculates calories and breaks them down into carbohydrates, protein and fat. She also records her daily steps, exercise and weight, which she monitors weekly.

Carbs are not off the menu …
Carbohydrates are an essential source of energy for the body and brain, but eating more than needed can lead to fat storage. She opts for whole carbohydrates found in vegetables, fruits and pulses rather than refined options.

… but avoid beige food
Beige foods such as cakes, pastries, biscuits and white bread are often highly processed and high in sugar. Instead, she focuses on “eating the rainbow” by including a variety of colourful fruits and vegetables for a broader range of nutrients.

Eat more protein than you think you need

Protein is especially important for women over 50. It supports muscle, strength and metabolism while helping control appetite. She aims for around 0.35g of protein per pound of body weight daily. At 8st 5lb, that equals about 41g per day.

If she wants to lose weight, she increases her intake to 1g of protein per pound of body weight per day. Good sources include chicken, lean red meat, fish, eggs, Greek yoghurt and legumes.

She also keeps a selection of whey protein powders on hand to use in baking or mixed into dairy foods. In addition, she likes PBfit peanut butter powder, which contains significantly less fat and fewer calories than traditional peanut butter while offering a comparable amount of protein. She adds it to yoghurt and incorporates it into cooking for an extra protein boost.

The drink has to go
Much as she enjoys a glass of wine, she recognises that alcohol contains sugar and empty calories. To lose weight, she believes it has to be cut out. She stopped buying alcohol and no longer keeps it at home, knowing she needed to break the habit completely. There are plenty of low-calorie and alcohol-free alternatives available. Four years on, she occasionally has a glass of red wine or champagne — at most twice a month — but generally prefers the growing range of alcohol-free options, particularly low-sugar, low-calorie prosecco-style drinks such as Think Wine.

Take photos before you start
Before she began, her gym trainers took “before” photos she initially felt too self-conscious to share. Now, she finds them motivating. Looking back reminds her how far she has come since 57 and reinforces that dramatic change is possible — even within 18 months. It also helps her show others that it is never too late to transform their health.

Ramp up your daily steps
Walking has significantly improved her fitness. She averages between 15,000 and 20,000 steps a day, including walking to and from the gym three times a week and heading out for 90-minute walks on other days, regardless of the weather. It has become such an integral part of her routine that she sold her car and now walks wherever she can.

Lift heavy weights
She believes reshaping the body, particularly for women, requires progressively heavier weight training. She began with bodyweight exercises to perfect her technique under a trainer’s guidance but quickly moved beyond very light dumbbells. The key, she says, is to start with a manageable weight for the prescribed repetitions and gradually increase it. For home workouts, she recommends a dumbbell starter kit (3kg, 4kg and 6kg), a yoga mat and resistance bands with handles. She points out that women in their seventies and eighties lift weights — proof that age is no barrier.

Vary the exercises
Her trainer, Harry Purvis, advised alternating between two upper- and lower-body sessions each week. She typically performs three sets of 12 repetitions per exercise, focusing on compound movements that work multiple muscle groups at once. Her routine includes split squats, deadlifts, goblet squats, single-arm rows, shoulder presses, lateral raises, wall sits and hip thrusts.

Aim to be good 80 per cent of the time
She focuses on consistency rather than perfection. She still tracks her food daily, maintains her step count, follows her diet plan and weighs in weekly. Planning meals in advance helps her stay on track.

However, she allows for flexibility. Occasional slip-ups happen, but she believes being consistent 80 per cent of the time is enough for long-term success — without guilt over the odd treat.

When you’ve lost the weight, find out how to keep it off.