Menopause’s hormonal changes may cause you to gain weight around your belly rather than your hips and thighs. However, there are many things you can do to fight against menopause weight gain.
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Increase Activity
Exercising on a regular basis is an effective strategy to improve weight loss and general physical wellness.
Many people lose muscle tone as they age, and a loss of muscle tone can lead to an increase in body fat. Exercise is an integral part of building muscle and preventing age-related muscle loss.
Aerobic exercise has been shown in studies to reduce body fat after menopause. Another study discovered that strength exercise three times per week can increase lean body mass and decrease body fat in postmenopausal women. Weight gain associated with menopause tends to cluster around the belly.
Prevent menopause weight gain tip: aerobic exercise and resistance training will help you lose fat and increase your muscle mass. According to research, aiming for at least 150 minutes of exercise every week will significantly improve your overall health and shed some weight caused by menopause.
Control Your Portion
Restaurant portion sizes have risen over the years. People are dining out more, making it harder to determine how much food a person needs per meal and per day. And this could lead to unintentional overeating, which could lead to weight gain.
Understanding the typical serving sizes of certain common foods might help you choose how much to include in a meal. Some typical portions are, for example:
- Rice and pasta – half a cup cooked
- Yogurt or milk – 1 cup
- Fish or meat – 2 to 3 ounces or size of a deck of playing cards
- Bread – 1 slice
- Fruit – one small piece
- Cheese – 2 ounces or the size of a matchbox
Prevent menopause weight gain tip: some additional tips to control your portion:
When eating out, get fewer appetizers and less bread
Measure the snacks, chips out in a bowl cup instead of eating them right out of the bag
Use measuring cups or a kitchen scale to measure the portions
Improve Your Sleeping Routine
Insomnia is a very common symptom of perimenopause, which is the time when women’s bodies prepare to enter their last menstrual cycle. According to the North American Menopause Society, the transition period might span anywhere from four to eight years. All that time spent waking up unrefreshed means you’re probably too tired to go for a workout.
Sleep deprivation has an effect on our appetite hormones, ghrelin, and leptin when you don’t get enough sleep, ghrelin and leptin become dysfunctional, so good luck losing weight if you don’t address that issue.
Prevent menopause weight gain tip: Getting enough sleep will not only help you control your weight, improve your mood but also prevent various diseases such as lung disease, heart disease, liver disease, and even various kinds of cancer. According to the National Sleep Foundation, healthy individuals require 7 to 9 hours of sleep every night. People above the age of 65 should also obtain 7 to 8 hours of sleep every night.
RELATED: 4 Ways To Improve Sleep For Better Health
Reduce Stress
Cortisol, often known as the stress hormone, stimulates the liver to boost blood sugar synthesis and release while also assisting the body in converting fats, proteins, and carbs into usable energy. The hormone changes during menopause can create a lot of stress and mood swings.
Cortisol is generated during stressful moments as part of the body’s “fight or flight” reaction to give your body a natural energy boost. Still, when cortisol levels are persistently elevated due to chronic stress, these same effects may result in insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes.
Prevent menopause weight gain tip: there are a lot of ways to reduce your stress like meditation, hypnosis, yoga, herbal treatments, breathing exercises can also be very beneficial.
Seek Help from Experts
If you have tried all of the above and still struggle with menopause weight gain, seeking medical experts’ help isn’t a bad idea. With the help of experienced healthcare providers, you will be able to find the best solution for your menopause weight gain.
YM specializes in medical weight loss by identifying and treating hormonal abnormalities that can cause weight gain and difficulty reducing weight with traditional methods. When administered by a medical expert, HCG and Lipotropic injections will be essential components of a recovery strategy that will get you to a stable weight and unlock all of the potential benefits of sustaining your weight reduction.
Get SAFE, EFFECTIVE, and CUTTING-EDGE therapies for health optimization at YM. Contact us to schedule your FREE consultation at our four offices in Florida, Ocala, Fruitland Park, and Daytona. 2020 is DONE. Let’s SLAY 2021!
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