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Did you know menopause can have a significant impact on weight gain or loss?
Many menopausal women find that their weight seems to shift from being carried primarily in their hips and thighs, as it was during childbearing years, towards an increase of fat around the abdomen.
In menopause diets, the focus is working together with your hormones, leading to more successful menopause diets.
Throughout the menopause transition, many women gain between 5 and 10 pounds. While it may not appear to be much, these five pounds might be compounded by future weight gain or past weight loss attempts.
The hormonal changes of menopause might make you more likely to gain weight around your abdomen than around your hips and thighs.
But, hormonal changes alone don’t necessarily cause menopause weight gain.
What is Menopause?
Menopause is a normal stage of a woman’s life when menstruation stops due to hormonal changes in the body.
A woman’s menstrual cycle typically lasts 28 days, and menopause occurs between 45-55 years of age.
Menopausal symptoms may include hot flashes, night sweats, trouble sleeping, menstrual irregularities such as heavy bleeding or spotting, vaginal dryness.
5-Day Weight Loss Diet Plan For Menopause Weight Gain
Menopausal women who exercise regularly and eat a healthy diet can feel better during this transitional time in their lives.
Studies show that meeting these two goals could reduce your risk of having significant menopause weight gain.
If you don’t think you can meet these guidelines perfectly every day, don’t give up.
Make an effort to do your menopause diet plan every day, even if that means just making one healthy choice throughout the day.
1. Be Realistic About Portion Size.
Portion distortion is a problem that many women face in their life. Even if you’re not going through menopause, you may still be afflicted by it.
When it comes to meals, use a cereal bowl rather than a dinner plate, and instead of mindless munching while standing in front of the refrigerator at midnight, snack on fresh fruits.
2. Drink Water Before Every Meal.
It fills you up faster, reduces hunger cravings, and helps manage menopausal symptoms like hot flashes related to fluid loss.
3. Add Protein to Breakfast.
If you want to be healthy, have a good breakfast with protein in it. Eat a light dinner because this is when your body will do the best job of burning calories.
4. Watch Out For Hidden Sugars.
Sugar has been shown to increase menopausal symptoms like hot flashes, mood swings, fatigue, irritability, sleep problems and dryness of vaginal tissues (source).
Also, sugary foods are high in calories so you have to maintain distance from them. Look at the ingredient list on food labels to quickly discover where added sugars are hiding in meals.
To limit menopausal symptoms, menopause dieters should consume no more than six teaspoons of added sugars per day.
5. Eat More Fibre.
Menopausal diets provide plenty of fibre that can help reduce menopausal symptoms like hot flashes and night sweats, regulate bowel movements, lower menopause weight gain risk and control blood sugar levels (which helps prevent diabetes).
Best Foods To Eat During Menopause
Befriend With Fruits and Vegetables
Menopausal women should try to eat a meal that is made up of 80 per cent fruits and vegetables. Again, this doesn’t mean eating them perfectly every day.
Just make an effort to add these healthy foods to your meals as often as you can.
Fatty Fish
Studies show that fish with omega-3 fatty acids can help your mood and brain.
These fats can also help keep blood pressure in check, controlling hot flashes or night sweats.
Fish like salmon is a good source of vitamin D, which is essential for mood and bones.
Protein
Menopause diets should include adequate amounts of protein because it keeps you feeling full for longer.
Beans, nuts and tofu are excellent sources of menopause protein.
Cooling Foods
Start adding cooling foods like apples, bananas, spinach, broccoli, eggs, and green tea, according to Chinese medicine benefit of all these meals is high in vitamins and disease-fighting nutrients.
Water
Drink at least eight glasses of water per day to help your body function better and keep you feeling fuller.
Avoid These Foods During Menopause?
Say No To Caffeine
Caffeine can make menopause symptoms like hot flashes worse for some women (source).
If you’re already having problems with the menopause diet, then it’s best to avoid caffeine.
High-Fat Foods
Menopausal diets should be low in fats because they take longer to digest and increase menopausal symptoms like night sweats and irritability.
Related: Easy Ways To Get Rid of Muffin Top Fat
Alcohol
If you’re experiencing menopausal symptoms such as night sweats, menopause alcohol is not a good idea.
Excess alcohol can irritate menopausal tissues and cause menopausal weight gain.
Conclusion
You can tackle menopause symptoms, menopause weight gain and menopausal weight loss by making wise menopause diet choices.
This doesn’t mean you have to eat bland meals or shop only at menopause specialty stores. Also, you can use Ashwagandha to treat your menopause symptoms.
Research shows that menopausal diets high in protein and low in fat can help menopausal women lose menopause weight, while menopausal diets that emphasize fruits, vegetables and fibre may reduce menopausal symptoms like hot flashes.
Make smart menopausal diet choices in line with your menopause weight management goals by keeping things simple, staying focused on the big picture of overall nutrition, getting in some regular physical activity, meditation and remembering that small changes add up over time.
