Menopause weight redistribution

[Anonymous]

Seriously what can fix this? Have had a BMI of 18.5 all my life and now in early 50s (still menstruating) Gaines 6lbs all on my front/abdomen and waist is gone/look 6m pregnant. WTF my (healthy) eating and exercise patterns have not changed.

[Anonymous]

Get checked for fibroids.

[Anonymous]

Now's the time to make lifestyle changes, now more than ever or it will only get harder. This type of weight gain is the worst kind and the most dangerous for your heart especially. I know you said you eat healthy and work out but that's all relative. My guess is both of those areas can be improved upon. You're going to need to increase protein intake, decrease your intake of processed foods to nearly zero if at all possible. Decrease alcohol consumption, as much as possible. Stop eating after 6pm, no more snacking. Don't eat again until 10am if possible. Snacking messes with your insulin levels which leads to weight gain around your middle, and eating late disrupts your sleep which also leads to weight gain. Lastly start lifting weights 3x's a week. Not those little 5lb dumbbells either. I mean lift heavy. There's a lot of discussion on this topic in this forum already, recently too.

[Anonymous]

You can’t. Realistically, you just can’t. It is the hormone change that happens with age that is the main culprit. So unless you can stop aging, this is inevitable. Your diet and exercise regimen can help, but it wont be a fix. You just have to accept your body wont be the same distribution and shape as it was in your 20-40s.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You can’t. Realistically, you just can’t. It is the hormone change that happens with age that is the main culprit. So unless you can stop aging, this is inevitable. Your diet and exercise regimen can help, but it wont be a fix. You just have to accept your body wont be the same distribution and shape as it was in your 20-40s.

Not true, don't listen to this person ^^^

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You can’t. Realistically, you just can’t. It is the hormone change that happens with age that is the main culprit. So unless you can stop aging, this is inevitable. Your diet and exercise regimen can help, but it wont be a fix. You just have to accept your body wont be the same distribution and shape as it was in your 20-40s.

Not true, don't listen to this person ^^^

No, it IS true. Unless OP wants to engage in disordered eating or disordered exercise, she must accept that some weight redistribution happens to every single female on earth during the perimenopausal/postmenopausal years and unless she wants to mutilate her body will unnecessary surgery that has associated risks including death, she just has to accept that she is entering cronehood and our bodies are different as elder women.

She can still be fit, and strong, and beautiful. But she is not going to have the same exact shaped body at 60 that she had at 40 or 20. Anyone who tries to sell you that, OP, is science illiterate. Period.

[Anonymous]

You can weigh less than you did pre-menopause, and you are STILL going to have more mass in your middle and less on other parts that used to have more muscle. That is a fact.

Your weight distribution is going to change as you age. Gravity is also at play. You can still be active, and eat less to keep from getting pudgy. I can't eat as freely as I used to. I weigh about 3 lbs less than I did when I was 40. But, I still can't comfortably wear the same pants that I wore at 40. That's super annoying. But, it's not a reason to give up.

Changes are going to happen. You can still make the best out of the biological changes and be your best physical self... which is not going to be the same as you were when you were 35. But, be the best 55 you can be.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You can’t. Realistically, you just can’t. It is the hormone change that happens with age that is the main culprit. So unless you can stop aging, this is inevitable. Your diet and exercise regimen can help, but it wont be a fix. You just have to accept your body wont be the same distribution and shape as it was in your 20-40s.

Not true, don't listen to this person ^^^

It really is true. Unfortunately.

Some escape it, or at least the most obvious of it. But it is a fact that your body shape/weight distribution is going to change as you age, unless you're Jennifer Lopez.

[Anonymous]

You need to change the way you exercise. Cut way back on the cardio and start lifting heavy. Up your protein intake and cut the carbs way down. I've had the weight gain too and am finally getting a handle on it. I lost 20lbs at 46 and starting around 52 the weight started to shift and I've gained a lot of it back.

There are lots of books about these changes. I highly recommend NEXT LEVEL by Dr. Stacy Simms and Selene Yeager. The book is geared towards serious marathoners/triathletes but the information about the types of exercise and eating is spot on.

[Anonymous]

I had a similar issue - actually lost 3 pounds over the summer but my waist was up 2 inches. During my well woman - my obgyn said my cervix felt 5 months pregnant - it was a fibroid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You can weigh less than you did pre-menopause, and you are STILL going to have more mass in your middle and less on other parts that used to have more muscle. That is a fact.

Your weight distribution is going to change as you age. Gravity is also at play. You can still be active, and eat less to keep from getting pudgy. I can't eat as freely as I used to. I weigh about 3 lbs less than I did when I was 40. But, I still can't comfortably wear the same pants that I wore at 40. That's super annoying. But, it's not a reason to give up.

Changes are going to happen. You can still make the best out of the biological changes and be your best physical self... which is not going to be the same as you were when you were 35. But, be the best 55 you can be.

Yep. Even disordered eating and obsessive exercise won’t change it.

[Anonymous]

OP, after menopause it gets harder, insulin resistance increases when estrogen drops. Good to be on top of it as you are and start making changes now, not so much for appearance but for health.

Increasing whole food protein to 30g+ per meal and decreasing carbs (esp sugar and alcohol) was helpful to me. I switched to eating 2 full meals a day w/o snacks instead of grazing.

Work on retaining/adding muscle mass, it is very metabolically protective. Abdominal weight gain is a health risk for all the things associated with IR - NAFLD, diabetes, heart disease, mood disorders and Alzheimer's. The greater the muscle mass in the 50s, the lower the risk of dementia.

I had been a runner but joined a gym and had a trainer set up a bodyweight routine for me to do at home. Adding muscle also strengthens bones, also important as we age. My goals are strength and flexibility and I have seen improvement with consistent efforts.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Now's the time to make lifestyle changes, now more than ever or it will only get harder. This type of weight gain is the worst kind and the most dangerous for your heart especially. I know you said you eat healthy and work out but that's all relative. My guess is both of those areas can be improved upon. You're going to need to increase protein intake, decrease your intake of processed foods to nearly zero if at all possible. Decrease alcohol consumption, as much as possible. Stop eating after 6pm, no more snacking. Don't eat again until 10am if possible. Snacking messes with your insulin levels which leads to weight gain around your middle, and eating late disrupts your sleep which also leads to weight gain. Lastly start lifting weights 3x's a week. Not those little 5lb dumbbells either. I mean lift heavy. There's a lot of discussion on this topic in this forum already, recently too.

You are dangerously wrong. Your whole post screams of a serious disorder.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You need to change the way you exercise. Cut way back on the cardio and start lifting heavy. Up your protein intake and cut the carbs way down. I've had the weight gain too and am finally getting a handle on it. I lost 20lbs at 46 and starting around 52 the weight started to shift and I've gained a lot of it back.

There are lots of books about these changes. I highly recommend NEXT LEVEL by Dr. Stacy Simms and Selene Yeager. The book is geared towards serious marathoners/triathletes but the information about the types of exercise and eating is spot on.

Agree with this. Stop the cardio (or really lower it), and start lifting weights for hypertrophy.

While the redistribution of where I gain is still abdomen, I’ve been able to eat more food each day and feel fit.

And it’s not disordered.

You won’t look like your thirties, but you will look healthy, and most importantly you will protect against bone loss with the weight lifting.

But adjustable dumbbells, one barbell, and a bench. That’s an all you need for a full body workout. Start with body weight movements.

You can download and app like Caliber. You tell it the equipment you have and it will set up the exercises for you. It won’t tell you how much to lift, that is up to you and how much you feel you can. Start with body weight, then use the dumbbells and barbell.

Lift for hypertrophy, meaning, fewer sets, more weight.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You can’t. Realistically, you just can’t. It is the hormone change that happens with age that is the main culprit. So unless you can stop aging, this is inevitable. Your diet and exercise regimen can help, but it wont be a fix. You just have to accept your body wont be the same distribution and shape as it was in your 20-40s.

Not true, don't listen to this person ^^^

It really is true. Unfortunately.

Some escape it, or at least the most obvious of it. But it is a fact that your body shape/weight distribution is going to change as you age, unless you're Jennifer Lopez.

If you see non-staged photos- rando pap ones even J-Lo has a bit of a pooch now. Don’t get me wrong- still looks great. The difference is celebs get it sucked out or tummy tucked eventually.

I am a serious athlete, not in menopause. At 53, I also had 5 pounds mysteriously pop up—and all around my belly button. Nobody else notices and you can’t see a pooch in yoga pants or t-shirts but it’s there.

I already eat healthy and workout 6 days a week (and a few days of heavy barbell weights, squats, etc). I added more protein. People are telling me recently I look so strong-but it’s still there