Reaching menopause often feels like going through a second puberty. You experience wild fluctuations in your hormones with symptoms that aren’t all that unfamiliar. When you start having hot flashes, mood swings and fatigue, you know that perimenopause is here. Perimenopause is the stage before menopause that can last anywhere from a few months to a few years. During this time, your estrogen and progesterone levels fall out of sync, which can lead to the aforementioned symptoms, as well as trouble managing weight.
When menopause begins, many women experience weight gain, especially around the abdomen. Estrogen and progesterone help determine where excess weight will sit, so as levels of each hormone get lower, fat ends up in new places. Metabolism can also slow down as the hormones lose the balance they had before menopause. Natural aging is also an important factor.
Aside from hormone imbalances, the natural aging process leads to a decrease in muscle mass. When your muscle mass decreases, you naturally burn fewer calories. While weight loss is not as simple as “calories in, calories out,” the amount of calories you burn always has an impact on your weight. It’s also natural to slow down as we age, and lifestyle factors like lack of sleep and living a sedentary lifestyle also slow down your metabolism.
Aside from hormones and the natural aging process, genetics have an impact on menopausal weight gain. If you have a family history of women gaining weight during menopause, there’s a high chance that it will happen to you, as well. Lifestyle changes are the only real way to combat the genetic aspects of weight gain.
Now that you know what causes menopausal weight gain, you may wonder what can be done to combat it. Regular exercise and strength training can help you rebuild some of the muscle mass your body naturally loses during this process. Maintaining a healthy diet can help you avoid gaining a significant amount of weight.
By managing your stress levels, you can create better balance in your life, which will make it easier to stick to your weight loss goals. What’s more important than ever is setting achievable weight loss goals, including non-scale victories to help you feel a sense of accomplishment along the way.
Sometimes, it feels like no matter what you do, you can’t lose the weight. If menopausal weight gain has put you into the obese weight range, and you have experienced health problems due to the weight gain, surgical weight loss could be the solution. Talk to your doctor about weight loss options, and if you think it’s time to pursue surgical weight loss, schedule a consultation. It’s all about getting on the path to better health.
Dr. Hodges highly recommends patients attend monthly support group meetings. The meetings are led by Dr. Collins Hodges, both a licensed clinical psychologist and someone who has had bariatric surgery himself. The support groups are offered on the first Monday of every month from 6:30pm – 7:15pm CST via an online GoToMeeting. The meetings are open to the public, and there is no charge to attend.
