If we’re feeling sapped of strength or gaining fat despite no change to our daily diet, menopause could be the culprit. Here’s what can be done about it.
Fiona White had recently completed a marathon when she noticed changes in her body. She hadn’t eaten any differently but her shape had changed and stomach appeared to be holding more fat. Her workouts also felt lacklustre, like she had lost all of the strength and power that had carried her through the 26.2 miles. ‘I didn’t really think of these changes as symptoms of menopause, especially as my GP didn’t seem certain. But, aged 50, my body was changing and my diet and exercise weren’t working like they used to. I became so exasperated,’ she says.
Fiona is far from alone in her confusion about her changing body. While menopause is typically associated with hot flushes and irregular periods, it’s also characterised by a loss of muscle and an increase in body fat. These changes to our body composition – the ratio and distribution of fat and muscle throughout the body – affect so much more than how we look. It can have longer-term implications for our health, energy, fitness and quality of life. But the shift doesn’t have to be a one-way ticket to poor health. There’s plenty we can do to rebalance the body and feel stronger than ever in our second half.
Short-changed
Most of the bodily changes we see during menopause are to do with declining levels of hormones. ‘We have estrogen receptors in nearly every cell in our body, from our brain down to our fat tissue,’ says Dr Sarah Berry, an associate professor at King’s College London and nutrition researcher for the personalised nutrition platform Zoe. ‘The hormone controls where we deposit our fat, so when we have higher levels of estrogen as pre-menopausal women, fat is directed to our hips. After menopause, when estrogen levels drop, we develop more fat around our abdominal area.’
This change matters. Adipose tissue – which is fat around the stomach – is more likely to be linked with inflammation and ill health. ‘Fat gained around the middle is associated with more negative health outcomes than fat gained elsewhere in the body,’ explains Emma Bardwell, a nutritionist and founder of the menopause education community The M Collective. ‘A waist circumference of 90cm or more in women comes with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease and metabolic syndrome, which puts you at an increased risk of diabetes and stroke.’
Like Fiona, we may find that our usual diet or workout routine just isn’t shifting fat like it u
