I read somewhere last week, a coach explaining their thoughts on the fact that a bigger problem than things like unprocessed foods and inactivity in the world at the moment, is the ‘junk’ nature of the information that surrounds the health and fitness industry. This has never been truer than when looking at menopause health and fitness advice and how we can help ourselves to feel better as we navigate our menopausal years.
If you have read my previous menopause blogs (if not, why not?!), you will know that I have experienced the symptoms of an early menopause previously with ongoing hormonal problems myself. I am not technically menopausal but ladies, I know EXACTLY how you are feeling. The information around women’s health and how your body is changing really is a struggle to navigate.
Not only is the guidance a minefield, this all, of course, comes at a time when you probably feel you have been hit by a bus and it isn’t only affecting you, but also your ability to be the powerhouse woman that you want to be for the family you have around you.
I promise, that while you may feel like it, and your friends of a similar age might be experiencing different symptoms altogether – YOU ARE NOT ALONE. There are so many people that can resonate and understand, myself being one of them – I want to help you to navigate this time and optimise the way that you feel every day to get you back firing on all cylinders.
With every blog post I want to give you some practical take homes and today I want to chat exercise – so, should we be doing it when we feel wiped out anyway? And what is the best way for our bodies to move at this time in our lives?
Well, first things first, the latest research shows us that whether or not we are physically active has little to no bearing on the age at which we might undergo the menopause.
Secondly, what we do know is that physical activity in whichever form you choose, if done correctly can really positively impact our mental health, our mood from day to day and also some physical symptoms of the menopause too.
I know that physical activity can sometimes feel like the absolute last thing you are able to do, other days you might feel on top of the world and I know that often there is no rhyme or reason for that difference, making physical activity difficult to plan into our busy schedules but I need you to be kind to your body and your mind here.
I need you to accept the cards that you have been dealt and with any given day, all I can ask is that you do your best with what you have. One day you might feel fully energised and put full intensity into a fabulous run. The next day you feel flat to the boards and can’t even keep your eyes open at your desk, let alone contemplate that gym class. The next day you might feel great again but between taking one child swimming and the other to football practice, it’s impossible to capitalise on that feeling, so again, we can’t workout. ALL OF THOSE THINGS ARE OKAY.
Being flexible with your workout schedule and the way that you feel is number one here. If you have a gym class planned but all you can fathom is a gentle 10-minute yoga routine in your bedroom then you do that. If you go to the gym class and can’t put the required intensity in to make improvements and leave yourself feeling even more depleted, you may as well have saved that energy for another day where the session might have been more impactful for your health and wellbeing. Not only that but if exercise is going to leave you feeling worse, what’s the likelihood you’re going to keep up a training routine long-term if you grow to really dislike or even resent it? We know by now that sustainable approaches work better long term rather than going hard and then dropping off a cliff.
We need to work on a physical activity routine that is maintainable alongside fuelling our bodies in a similarly sustainable way, NOT just eating less and less because weight loss is harder to achieve these days (I have a blog on this one a couple of months back if this is something you are particularly struggling with).
When we achieve this together, we will start to build lean muscle mass on our gloriously clever bodies, bringing us closer to that ‘toned’ look that many of you come to me wanting to achieve, but also benefitting our bodies health wise in so many other ways at this time in our lives.
Our muscle mass impacts our metabolism (in really simple terms), the more muscle that we can maintain with our nutrition and physical activity practices as we move through this stage of our lives, the more effective we can be at maintaining a higher metabolism so that we can have more of a fighting chance at maintaining a weight at which we feel comfortable and energised.
I know this might all sound pretty daunting, especially if you are potentially new to physical activity but I promise you, you can do more than you realise. Don’t believe me? Let me show you! I promise to prove to you, with a little guidance, you can accomplish more than ever thought you could.
If this article spoke to you in some way I really want to hear from you – I love to chat about this stuff and if you feel you need some further support then I would love to offer you a free consultation where we can chat about your goals, your health as it stands amongst many other things, including how we can set you on the most optimal path for success at this stage of life that, I know, can feel very out of control. I’m just a message away on social media or at annalouisecoaching@outlook.com.
Peace and love for now, A x