Surviving perimenopause and beyond…

Did you feel like you had your weight and health under control, then Perimenopause hit? 

Well, you are not alone!

After a lifetime of battling weight and digestion issues, I finally hit a period in my life where I had found something that worked for me.  I had stopped the yoyo dieting, extreme exercising, and found nutrition and body movement that worked for my body.  

Clean eating, specific foods, and smaller widows of time for eating was my saviour when it came to nutrition.  Instead of the excessive exercise sessions I had swopped it for walking.   My body absolutely loved my new lifestyle and my weight naturally fell to where it needed to be and stayed there.  My digestion issues subsided, and it felt like my body had reset itself after years of instability.  My sleep pattern was at the best it had ever been, and my energy levels were unreal.

In the last year I have seen some changes happening in my body.  I have gained weight, mainly around my mid-section, my energy levels and moods are all over the place and my digestion issues are back again.   My whole body just seems out of sync.

To be honest I was in denial for the first few months regarding what could be causing these issues.  But the reality is that with all the changes and symptoms I am seeing, combined with my age, all is pointing to the perimenopause.

I felt angry, frustrated, and confused due to my lack of preparation for this stage in my life.  The next thought that came to mind was about what steps I would need to take next. I had already spent what felt like a lifetime getting my body in a good place after the years of yoyo dieting.  Now here I am again in another phase of my life, faced with another battle with my body. 

The difference this time is that the first question that popped into my head was ‘How can I help my body through this transition in a healthy way?’   This question set me off on the quest to research and come up with a plan for me and my body.

Changes happening in your body.

So, what are the changes that are creating this imbalance in my body.  There are a few to contend with so buckle up and take this all in!

Oestrogen level changes – During this transition our oestrogen levels are all over the place and affect insulin resistance in the body.  Due to this you may start to feel a lot more tired, when we are tired, we reach for energy boosting foods which are generally in the form of carbohydrates and sugar.

Ghrelin levels – Ghrelin is a hormone your stomach produces and releases. It lets you brain know that you are hungry and ready to eat.  This hunger-stimulating hormone increase during perimenopause, which is the reason many women find themselves frequently hungry during this phase.

Leptin Levels – The leptin levels which promote a sense of fullness also decrease during this phase of your life.  Leading to a feeling of not feeling full or satisfied after eating.

Sleep disruptions – Lack of sleep due to hot flushes, anxiety, aches and pains, and night sweats will create the additional cravings and need to drink more coffee. 

Cortisol levels changes – Additionally, if you are in a period of your life where you are extremely stressed this will trigger an increase in cortisol.  Cortisol is a stress hormone which is also known to cause weight gain. 

Looking at all these changes that are going on in my body it is no wonder my body is out of sync.   Not only that but it gives me some comfort knowing that feeling out of sort and not feeling like myself is due to these changes.  After some additional research I have now come up with a plan as to what I am going to do next.

What to do next

Now I know what is happening in my body I can tackle the issues head on and get myself to a better place.  Here are some of the areas that I am going to make changes in:

• Fill up with vegetables, fruit, nuts, seeds, pulses, and legumes – This is to increase the fibre in your diet.   This increase in fibre slows down the blood sugar release, which in turn helps with the metabolic conditions and insulin resistance.  This little tweak in nutrition could assist with the weight gain issues we see as our bodies are going through this change.

• eat more protein – Using protein as a fuel rather than carbohydrates is one benefit of this change in your diet.  Protein also regulates the blood sugar levels and will therefore also make you feel fuller.  Additionally, when you eat protein, you have less of the spikes and slumps in the day.

• Eat good fats- During the phase in our lives our hormone production is a lot lower.  Consuming good fats like avocado, olive oil, coconut oil, fatty fish (salmon, sardines, and maceral), seeds, nuts and full fat yogurt will help with hormone production.  We need to have a certain amount of fat in our diet to produce hormones, so this change in our diet will be a big benefit to our bodies.

• Cut back on caffeine – If you are struggling with sleep then a reduction in caffeine will help.  Additionally, caffeine raises the heart rate so does not do us any favours when suffering with hot flushes.

• Exercise in the morning – Working out in the morning can jumpstart your metabolism and boost energy levels.  If you suffer with sleep, then working out at night after work may result in you having difficulty settling down and getting to sleep.

• Intermittent fasting – During the window of time when you are not eating your body is given the opportunity to heal itself.  This process is called autophagy.  A lot of people have found that there are improvements to their insulin sensitivity in the process.   Not only this but it helps with weight loss and maintenance.   As these are two areas of common concern during this phase, it is one of the approaches you can try and see how your individual body responds to it.

• Keep a check on processed food intake – It is not possible to cut out everything like your favourite chocolate, desserts, or ready-made.  We need to live a little, so it is more about having more wholesome and pure food and a small amount of processed foods.

There are already a few things from this list that I am actively doing or including in my diet.  But I believe with some additional tweaks and tracking how I feel daily, could get me some positive results.

It just goes to show that just when you think that everything is in balance it can be thrown out of sync again.  A woman’s body can be so complex due to the changes our bodies go though at different stages in our lives.  Then to top it all off we must be mindful and educated enough to know how different foods, and ingredients affect our bodies.  Even this is different for every person and there is no one rule for everyone. 

It is so important to bare all of this in mind when we are trying to lose weight or get our bodies to a heathier place.  The secret really is to gain the knowledge about how our own bodies work, start listening and tweaking our diets and body movements as we go.  Above all else, get out of the mindset that we are all the same and that what works for one will work for you too.

Watch this space for any update….