Weight gain

The truth is that there is a whole list of things that can impact your weight – before you’ve put anything into your mouth or jumped on the treadmill this morning. Factors that can impact your weight during menopause include:

• Changes in the female hormones – oestrogen and FSH (follicle stimulating hormone) – can both impact your mentalism, causing weight gain.
• Getting older – it is natural as we age, for our metabolism to slow down and our body shape to expand. It requires a careful adjustment of lifestyle and eating habits to ensure we stay in tune with the changes in our bodies as we age naturally.
• Genetics – sometimes the genes you are dealt in life don’t make it easy to maintain a slim physique. Your genetics can influence where and how much fat you store.
• Insulin resistance – as our hormones fluctuate during menopause, the cells in our bodies may struggle to take up sugar from the bloodstream as they become insulin resistant, leading to that energy being stored as fat. This makes you feel tired and hungry (because your cells aren’t using your energy properly) and then you eat a bit more… And it becomes a vicious cycle!
• Cortisol increases – we learnt about the link between stress and cortisol as part of dealing with anxiety during menopause. Cortisol levels naturally increase with age – but other symptoms during menopause can also increase stress levels such as depression, mood swings, life changes, and the general stress of going through menopause unsupported. Consistently high levels of cortisol can lead to insulin resistance – which we now know can cause weight gain.
• Poor sleep – another common menopause-related symptom, can also contribute to weight gain. Poor sleep can disrupt our hormones, increase cortisol, and cause disruptions to our natural hunger signals leading to over-eating… and weight gain. So getting a good night sleep is an essential part of managing your weight during menopause. [yah right, good night sleep during menopause… we must be dreaming!]

So in summary, weight gain is a complex thing – impacted by a multitude of factors, some of which may be out of your direct control. The focus needs to be on doing what you can to manage the habits and actions that are in your control and being kind to yourself.

Here are a couple of things that you can do to help manage weight gain during menopause.

• Managing what you eat: There is no ideal diet that works for everyone. It will take some trial and error until you find what works for you. And by “works for you,” we mean a long-term eating plan that you can maintain. Long-term quick fixes for weight loss do not exist either. Here are a couple of eating plans that science has shown are proven to work in the long term:
  • Mediterranean diet: largely plant-based, with limited meat and dairy products, lots of good fats, low/no sugars and processed foods.
  • Keto diet: the emphasis on high-fat animal products in this diet make it hard to sustain over the long term for most people, and the limited plant-based foods can be problematic as you might not get enough vitamins, minerals and fibre.
  • Low carb diet: a more moderate form of the keto diet, that includes moderate amounts of fresh fruit and vegetables. A low carb diet may be more sustainable than a keto diet in the long run, and has proven health benefits like lower blood sugar, lower cholesterol and lower blood pressure.
  • Intermittent fasting: There are a number of formulas for intermittent fasting, the one that seems to work best for women in menopause is the 16:8 routine, where you eat for 8 hours and fast for 16 hours. There is strong scientific evidence that incorporating a form of fasting into your lifestyle can have substantive health benefits. If you are just getting started, try a 12:12 routine and slowly build up to 16:8. Or try any of the other established fasting patterns that may suit your lifestyle.
• Mindful eating: Sometimes we eat on autopilot, without really savouring the food we have. Or we stress eat, chomping away at anything we can find in a bid to relieve our emotional stress. Neither are good ways to manage your diet and can lead to overeating. Practising mindful eating means you slow down the eating process; you take note of the textures, tastes and smells of the food you are eating; and you chewing your food properly. Putting your knife and fork down between bites is a great hack to slow you down. And enjoying a bonding moment with a friend, partner or family over your meal can also give you more time to eat mindfully.
• Get active: While exercise doesn’t make up for a bad diet, it is definitely something that will help manage your weight gain. Exercise is great for managing a range of menopause symptoms and the feel-good endorphins released after a great workout are better than any chocolate could make you feel! There is no specific exercise plan you should follow for menopause – just get moving, as often as you can. Including a combination of aerobic (like walking, swimming, cycling) and weight-bearing/resistance exercise can give you an overall stronger body, help manage menopause symptoms, and keep your bones healthy.
• Get quality sleep: We know, getting good sleep during menopause may be something you think is impossible! But getting enough sleep can help you manage your mood and reduce the desire for stress eating. Its also so much harder to make good food choices when we are tired… calling Uber Eats for a quick takeout when you are feeling too tired to cook, can derail your plans. Have a look at some of the things you can do to manage your sleep here.
• Speak to your healthcare provider: If you’ve been eating well, getting regular exercise and the kilo’s still pile on, your healthcare provider may be able to assess if there are other factors that are causing the weight gain. He/she may be able to help you with suitable medication or other interventions.

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Disclaimer: This information is for general educational purposes, and should not be used as a substitute for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment of any health condition or problem.