7 Menopause Weight Gain Facts To Avoid
7 Menopause Weight Gain Facts to Avoid
How menopause impacts weight gain
During the perimenopause phase, your estrogen levels begin to fluctuate.
Your body starts looking for a replacement to estrogen and finds one in fat, which produces estrone, the weakest version of the three types of estrogen.
Your body deposits this fat very easily, especially in the dreaded midsection.
From puberty until perimenopause, women usually store fat on their hips and thighs as subcutaneous fat and although it can be hard to lose, this type of fat does not increase the risk of disease very much.
A recent Healthline article notes the following:
It’s estimated that women gain about 1–2 kgs during the perimenopausal transition.
Early-stage of perimenopause
In the early stage of perimenopause, the ovaries can often produce high amounts of estrogen, due to erratic feedback signals between the ovaries, the hypothalamus, and the pituitary gland.
Later stage of perimenopause
In the later stage of perimenopause, as the menstrual cycles become more irregular, the ovaries produce very little estrogen.
Menopause stage
During the menopause stage, even less estrogen is produced.
Causes of menopause weight gain
Hormonal changes are not the only cause of menopause weight gain.
Other menopause weight gain factors:
Muscle mass often diminishes with age, while fat increases.
Losing muscle mass causes your metabolism to slow down, making it more challenging to maintain a healthy weight.
A diet full of nervous system trigger foods
Coffee, fizzy drinks, and alcohol as well as high salt and sugar foods will agitate your nervous system, compounding the problem.
Not enough daily relaxation
This will give your nervous system the break that it actually needs.
Just take 30 minutes with no cell phone, television, or talking to anyone.
Studies have shown, that just doing 30 minutes of proper relaxation reduces cortisol levels considerably.
Not eating well & often enough
Cutting back on calories will not help at all.
You need to fool the body into thinking that plenty of food is available.
Have a good high protein diet and cut down on carbs.
Have loads of vegetables, some fruit, and nuts.
Remember to snack as well; you want the body to think that there is plenty of food around and it doesn’t need to panic.
Not getting enough high-quality sleep
Low-quality sleep can lead to weight gain, affecting body fat composition, energy expenditure, and appetite hormones.
Getting a sufficient amount of restful sleep can help to reduce menopausal weight gain.
Lack of exercise
This is really important during menopause to keep your joints mobile and your muscles strong.
However, doing hour-long very intense exercise only once or twice a week, will not do the trick.
It will be much more beneficial, to just keep active every single day, as consistency is the key.
Alternatively, short bursts of high-intensity interval training will get much better results.
Genetic factors can also play a part in menopause weight gain.
The risk of menopause weight gain
Many of the risks of menopause weight gain are already well known and include:
- Breathing problems
- Heart and blood vessel disease
- Type 2 diabetes
- Increased risk of various types of cancer, including breast, colon and endometrial cancers
Sources
mayoclinic.org – menopause and weight gain stop the middle age spread
medicalnewstoday.com – best ways to lose weight during menopause
mayoclinic.com – belly fat in women
