Three Simple Ways to Lose Weight when Menopause is in Full Swing

I want to be very clear here.

The main culprit of weight gain is the result of lifestyle and nutrition habits.

Sometimes we can slack off as we get a bit older, and let’s be honest — we are more time-poor than ever.

Ordering ready-made meals and sacrificing exercise to lay on the couch and watch movies instead can add up over time.

Soon enough, that fat around our abdominals can start to accumulate and become worse as we transition towards Menopause.

Our metabolism slows down; muscle mass declines, yet we don’t make the alterations to our diet to factor in these changes.

When we have a problem with energy input and output, the weight becomes harder to shift.

If you consider these three simple lifestyle changes, weight gain won’t be a massive contributor to your menopausal symptoms.

Although Menopause is not exactly easy to cope with, we can help our body out a bit by feeding it the right foods and making an effort to be physically active in the right way.

Menopause shouldn’t stop you from leading a healthy & active lifestyle.

As annoying and uncomfortable as it is, think of it as a slight alteration that may need a bit of attention until things settle down.

This life-changing factor should encourage you to make a more significant effort, giving you the gift of confidence and boundless energy.

Let’s get to work

One: Think of ways to become more active

This could be as simple as standing more often — when you would be sitting.

Let me give you some examples that you probably don’t believe make a difference in 24 hours — but do:

• Stand up when you are waiting for your coffee
• Stand up when you are working (get a standing desk)
• When you take public transport, don’t head straight for a seat — stand up
• Walk to and from work, or walk to your destination instead of catching an Uber or driving.

It surprises me how little emphasis people put on incidental activity!

It’s one of the drivers towards losing those extra few pounds of stubborn fat.

Our bodies aren’t built for vigorous activity all the time — but little things like this can make a massive difference over a lifetime.

Spend time every other day doing a form of exercise you love

Why?

• It keeps our metabolism going.
• It helps to use up the calories we’ve consumed
• It keeps our energy levels high.

Try it out for yourself, and write down each extra activity you do every day — and watch your results start to magnify.

Don’t slack off — do this daily.

Two: Keep an eye on your carbs

Even though I exercise and can justify eating carbs, I would rather eat more carbohydrates through dense vegetables.

Why? Because they contain so much more fibre, they keep me full for more extended periods and provide my good gut bacteria with lots of food.

A healthy gut means a healthy, lean body that absorbs the nutrients from your food every day.

One trick in making carbs like rice and potatoes a lower-carb loading and more like a prebiotic for your gut is doing the following.

• Boil, steam or bake your potatoes
• Boil or steam your rice
• Allow them to cool, then place them in the fridge overnight
• Re-heat and then eat — that’s it!

This makes your carbs resistant to starch.

Regular starches are broken down into glucose and absorbed.

That leaves your body susceptible to a blood glucose rise after eating them.

On the other hand, resistant starch passes through the intestines without breaking down through the body.

Why should you care about this?

Well, a reduction in blood sugar after a meal helps improve your insulin sensitivity.

In addition, this is an excellent weight-loss method and happens to be super handy if you want to build muscle.

So you are putting your body in the right environment for weight loss and management over the long term.

Three: Keep tabs on when you eat — and only eat when you are hungry

It’s so easy to start snacking, and then it’s hard to stop!

Once we develop a habit -say, when we chew something, our body begins to implement a little routine.

That can trigger us towards eating at that particular time, although we aren’t entirely hungry.

This frustrating habit is so easy to develop yet hard to eliminate.

At first, it takes a bit of effort — but you will not get yourself into this habit unless you only eat when you are genuinely hungry.

When that moment arises, first, drink two glasses of water and wait.

If you are still feeling hungry, go ahead and have something to satisfy your hunger.

A great strategy to think about is eating during an 8–12 hour window only and then stopping until you start up the next day.

You could call this intermittent fasting.

It’s a great alternative if you find yourself snacking and eating far too much.

It’s a great strategy to use as a long term lifestyle habit -and it will become relatively easy after a while.

I like to explain it in this way — find out whether you are most hungry — in the mornings or evenings.

Then, cut out the meal you don’t enjoy eating (because you aren’t hungry).

For example, most people prefer to skip breakfast because it can seem like an inconvenience.

I prefer to cut out dinner as I can’t sleep well after eating food.

However, we all have a natural circadian rhythm, and the more we stick to it, the better our success rate will have in achieving our weight loss goals.

Key Takeaways

These three points are super simple and effective, and you might be surprised why I didn’t add lifting weights to the mix.

Lifting weights is essential for maintaining muscle mass, boosting your metabolism and changing your body confidence levels.

We have to start with the basics of weight loss — no matter what kind of hormonal shifts are happening in your life.

Diet is the absolute key, and so is the habit of becoming more active.

If you can start tuning into these three points first, making them part of your life — then adding some exercise will magnify your results.

Starting slowly with the fundamentals of habit and body composition is the most important thing.

Let me know what you have been doing to help ease your menopausal symptoms

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