How typical is it that when we do lose weight, it often comes off our boobs and not the areas we want..Like the abs and arse.
Personally, when I was younger, not that long ago, I was really petrified of approaching these scary years, and I was scared shitless of what it would do to my body. So, I never talked about it.
Now…having experienced many symptoms of perimenopause, and being of an age where…”the change” is happening, I am embracing menopause and wanting to share with women that it doesn’t have to be the enemy! It’s ok! Your life will NOT end here, and you are still one sexy, sassy, desirable woman!I really believed that I would lose all my appeal when I hit menopause. Now I KNOW that’s absolute BS, and I want to encourage other women that this is the case.
Your hormonal balance or probably imbalance will determine where body fat is stored on the body, and trying to lose body fat from these stubborn areas is sometimes like getting blood out of a stone!
If your cortisol levels are high, then you are probably storing weight around your tummy.
If you suffer estrogen dominance, then the fat goes straight to your hips and thighs.. And I’m afraid to say, unless these hormonal imbalances are corrected, and homeostasis can occur… Fat loss in those areas will remain a pain in the arse!
One of the most distressing and common symptoms for the majority of women is weight gain due to changes in hormone balance: progesterone, testosterone and estrogen decrease and androgen increases.
These changes affect a woman’s body and how it burns and uses calories, in turn affecting its ability to lose fat.
In fact, research shows that 95 percent of menopausal women who diet will regain as much as two-thirds of the weight they lose within one year of completing a diet program, and almost all of it within five years.
Women can expect to gain 5-10 kg’s, or 2 dress sizes larger. Really?
Many menopausal women become frustrated, discouraged, annoyed, and angry as they gain the weight, and are being told by their medical advisors that “it is normal so just accept it.” Seriously…..
After working with over many women in the last 20 years of being a fitness and health professional, I have seen some misconceptions and myths that women have been told, and have believed that has hindered their success in getting through these “challenging “years!
The good news is …THEY ARE NOT TRUE!.
There is a way to get your body back. Trust me, I have seen it and I have experienced it.
Here are a few of the biggest myths I come across all the time from women I work with who have been struggling with their own weight, their fitness and health and the way the feel about themselves.
- Myth: “If I starve myself, I won’t gain weight during menopause.”
The good news is that…That is RUBBISH!
With nine out of 10 women gaining weight during menopause, I’ve heard my share from desperate women going through the “change”. What women fail to realize is that their body chemistry, hormones and the way these hormones affect the body completely changes, so that the old ways of staying in shape simply putting weight on instead of losing it, as metabolism slows to defend against what feels to your body like starvation. You must eat often to lose weight, as ridiculous as that sounds.
But we as women need to know WHAT, WHEN and HOW much to eat in order to increase metabolic rate and burn body fat. Small amounts of food at frequent intervals rather than three big meals a day will help regulate blood sugar, burn calories, melt fat and get you a slimmer, fitter, lighter body.
- Myth: “I can avoid the menopausal muffin top if I work my butt off doing lots and lots of cardio!!!”
There may be nothing like an intense, sweaty workout to make you feel on top of your game, but it won’t help you shed the fat or lose the weight on the scales.
Long duration cardio like running endless kilometres or doing too many constant spin and group fitness classes, although great for cardiovascular conditioning and feeling great — burn more sugars than fat, doing nothing for weight loss.
To burn the fat, you need a combination of weight training, to increase muscle mass (increasing metabolism) and a range of moderate- HIIT cardiovascular activity, this is where the group fitness classes come into play. They work together with the weight sessions. Combat, Pump, Step, Grit and RPM, as well as the walks, shorter jogs and bike rides are all extremely beneficial cardio activities that are a perfect match for individual weight sessions on the gym floor or at home.
3. Myth: “Menopause only happens when you have given up on life, only happens to old ladies with grey hair, tweed skirts and no desire for to be sexy again”
We can’t blame hormones in the food for this one. Part of it is your mother’s fault! With 99 percent certainty, women go through menopause at exactly the same age their mothers did. However with our lifestyles these modern days being rather more stressful than what our mothers probably experienced, the effect this stress, both environmental and physical has definitely increased the incidence of menopause at a younger age. Women in their early 40’s are experiencing premenopausal and menopausal symptoms are going through the “change” along with the weight gain, the uncomfortable night sweats, the feelings of tiredness and general overwhelm and having trouble being in their own skin. Menopause DOES NOT mean we have to dye our hair purple, get fat, wear tweed skirts and shut up shop so to speak!
- Myth: “Menopause has done me in. I’ll never get my body back. I’m Fat, frumpy and look disgusting”
There’s nothing like menopause to wreak havoc on a perfectly good body. From extra pounds to muffin tops, hot flashes to hair loss, it’s no wonder women get depressed. Through understanding how food, diet and exercise affect the menopausal woman, symptoms can be mitigated and the damage reversed. The trick: understanding metabolic mechanisms and then manipulating them. The right proportion of protein to carbs, the amount of fat intake and revving up fat-burning movement will all help to regulate blood sugar and burn calories. Armed with information specific to menopause weight control, women will no longer ask, ”Why is it that the older I am, the more I exercise and the less I eat, the fatter I get?”
The bottom line is that menopause doesn’t have to snatch your body and replace it with an unhealthier one; you can get your body back by understanding what is happening and applying common sense and do-able actions.
Myth # 5: Find out exactly what your hormonal levels are. Either a blood test or a salvia test will give you the results so that you know the facts and can make a plan!
Estradiol, Estriol & Estrone (the estrogens), Progesterone, Testosterone, DHEA, Cortisol and Melatonin each play a critical role in your body. As you get older and your hormone levels shift, the delicate balance required to keep you at the peak of health is upset. Now there is a solution. A simple, cost effective saliva test will give you an accurate profile of your hormone levels allowing you, if necessary, to make adjustments with natural hormone supplementation. The good news is that we are retiring earlier and living longer. But, there are changes taking place inside our bodies that we can’t see.
At the cellular level, our hormone production begins to decline as we approach middle age. Slowly, almost imperceptibly, we begin to see the effects of this hormonal shift. We may start to notice things like decreased energy, mood swings, memory trouble, a decrease in sexual energy and desire, thinning hair, weight gain, and the list goes on. In response to our concerns about how we age, the medical community has focused its attention on the link between the age-dependent decline of certain hormones and the quality of life we enjoy.
Using a salvia kit will specifically measure your estrogen, progesterone, cortisol as well testosterone levels if required.
Low levels or imbalances in these hormones in women can cause problems such as PMT, bloating, abdominal cramps, headaches, mood swings, low libido, foggy brain, infertility, endometriosis, amenorrhea, fatigue, depression, fibroids & painful breasts.
So there you go…now you have these 5 myths under your belt, isn’t it time to action them?
If you are like me, whenI make a decision, I just want to get stuck in and sort the problem out.
I am offering a free strategy session to the first 10 people who contact me through the link below.
http://bit.ly/2sgS9Uc
Look good, feel great and be totally amazing
Love Chrissie
CMx
