Men may not think this blog is relevant to them.. oh, but it is! The more you can empathize and offer a helping hand to a woman through these suggestions that can make this stage a better one, you can practically adopt the red cape and become Superman.
While there are over 30 menopause symptoms, they vary from woman to woman as no two women are alike, and neither is their journey through menopause. From various levels of terrible hot flashes to stubborn muffin-top belly fat, there’s also the challenge to get a good night’s sleep, or being challenged with a foggy brain – it’s all very infuriating. However, helping clarify what may be going on with most women, and what can help.. could lead to some game-changer practices to apply:
Ladies..
Regarding exercise, if you have been successful with Endurance exercises it may help to know why that’s not achieving the same results as before.. it’s far more effective to now focus on high-intensity interval training exercises (HIIT) with a heart rate north of 150 BPM (that is, if your doctor approves and it is done safely) and try to get this in 3 x per week. We are also losing muscle and bone density as we age and go through menopause, and it takes longer to build it back so do try strength training – but not with minor weights.. focus on safely lifting heavier weights slowly. This can help with strengthening your joints as well as improving bone density. Try heavy weight lifting 2 x per week.
Eating habits are also key: it’s time to cut back on carbs, double up on protein, and eat earlier in the day. Here’s why – during menopause a woman’s ovaries stop producing estrogen and progesterone.. but estrogen is how we move sugar from the bloodstream to the muscles and liver. Without estrogen, sugar has a harder time moving through, and more easily turns to fat. Our body burns carbs before it burns fat, therefore if we consume less carbs, our body will have less of those to burn before turning to fat to burn for energy! To maintain muscle and bone density, we need more protein than ever, so double up on protein because your body really needs a continuous supply of those amino acids now. Note to self: the very worst thing you can do in menopause – and actually once you’re over 50 – is to eat a heavy dinner with lots of carbs (bread/rice/pasta/potatoes/sugar, etc) then sit on a couch to watch TV.. so try to eat at least 70% of your meals & snacks before dinner during the day, during hours when you are more active. If you can cease to eat anything at all after 8:00 pm, you may see a big difference!
To explore a 6 week program that personalizes your diet and fitness plan, this is where we learned about the information above, and where you can learn more too.