If you have experienced menopause and weight frustrations, you're probably thinking . . .what mystery . . . I know weight is harder to manage once menopause hits!
Before I turned 40 this topic was not nearly as important for me as it was for my clients. Well now I am 42 and even though I have tried to deny it . . . I am experiencing peri-menopause symptoms. I'll spare you those details but I definitely have experienced more difficulty keeping my weight down. I have gained 5-10 lbs over past year, which seems to all have settled in my belly.
It's not just about trying to keep up healthy eating and exercise anymore. I have to work even harder at it now.
So . . . I have decided to look at this as a positive and get even more serious about eating healthier to prevent diabetes. And I will make a point of learning all I can about menopause as it relates to nutrition, weight, and diabetes. Then I will pass it on to all of you women looking for the same answers I am!
An article published last week by the North American Menopause Society discussed exercise, weight gain and menopause. After reviewing this article I came away with 3 conclusions:
1. Estrogen does regulate body weight in women and low estrogen appears to increase food intake, decrease spontaneous physical activity, and lower metabolic rate.
2. We go through menopause during a time when we are experiencing body changes due to age as well. One of these changes is that we lose muscle mass. That means our resting metabolic rate, the rate of burning calories just sitting goes down!
3. As we age we also have a decline in VO2 max, which means for the same exercise we used to do, we are going to burn less calories.
What can we do to prevent weight gain during this time of life? My logic tells me I have to . . .
1. Make sure I am not eating more without realizing it and maybe even eat a little less now.
2. Add strength training to my exercise routine to help minimize the loss of muscle mass
3. Exercise for a longer time . . . maybe instead of 30 minutes I better increase to 40 minutes on the treadmill.
There are also nutrients we need to make sure we are getting at this stage of life. Stay tuned to future posts for more info!
If you have thoughts or would like to share your experience with weight management and menopause please comment or email me!!
When your hormones are out of balance eveything we have in our bodies to fight the weight that is gained as a result of menopause do not function as well, making it difficult to to lose weight.
Posted by: Bio Identical Hormone Specialist | August 18, 2009 at 11:11 PM