Peri-menopause and belly fat
Mustang_Susie
Posts: 7,045 Member
Hello ladies,
For those of you going thru peri or full menopause, have you noticed a change in your body shape particularly an increase of belly fat?
I am at a weight that would have had me looking slim and trim in my 20's, 30's and even early 40's.
But now I have that little extra stubborn "flab" around my belly.
It affects how my clothes fit especially my pants and it's frustrating.:grumble:
Anyone else?
Have you found any "cures" besides a million crunches?
I do try to work out 2-3 times a week doing BodyStep & BodyPump at the Y.
Thanks,
Sue
For those of you going thru peri or full menopause, have you noticed a change in your body shape particularly an increase of belly fat?
I am at a weight that would have had me looking slim and trim in my 20's, 30's and even early 40's.
But now I have that little extra stubborn "flab" around my belly.
It affects how my clothes fit especially my pants and it's frustrating.:grumble:
Anyone else?
Have you found any "cures" besides a million crunches?
I do try to work out 2-3 times a week doing BodyStep & BodyPump at the Y.
Thanks,
Sue
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Replies
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On my second year post menopause...heck yeah i gained weight during menopause! Then I read "The Menopause Makeover"... Great read. I lost 45 pounds in 2011. I now, at age 54, weigh less than I did at age 19,. I wore a junior size 13 jean then, now i wear a size 6.
Another great book to read is "Ballet Beautiful"... I now am into barre 3, lots of walking .0 -
On my second year post menopause...heck yeah i gained weight during menopause! Then I read "The Menopause Makeover"... Great read. I lost 45 pounds in 2011. I now, at age 54, weigh less than I did at age 19,. I wore a junior size 13 jean then, now i wear a size 6.
Another great book to read is "Ballet Beautiful"... I now am into barre 3, lots of walking .
Thanks for the info and inspiration 0 -
Thanks for the book recommendation pkw58. I feel your pain susan66. I was kicked into menopause after radiation and immediately gained lots of weight on top of a lot of other weight. Now i'm fighting all of it and exhaustion. My OBGYN said that alcohol, while not bad overall, adds to weight around the middle. Trying to cut it out completely and see if it makes a difference.0
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Yes! I used to have a waist. Not a tiny waist but SOME waist. Menopause filled me all in around the middle, and last time I lost weight I lost all of it from my booty. Not a hot look! I have a good frame, I'm generally well-proportioned. If I can just lose 20 pounds I'll be back in my nice clothes and feeling chic again.0
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Forget peri-menopause, I am IN menopause!:explode: And yes, my stomach, which used to be flat, is flat no more. I have a small paunch. Mind you, since I've lost weight, it's much smaller, but it is there. I guess if you work out hard you can change the shape of your body to a degree, but I just don't feel the need to have the body of a 20 year old anymore, even if I could. Even with a flatter stomach, there are wrinkles that were never there before. So I've decided to embrace my body as it is because the most important thing for me is being healthy.
I exercise to keep strong, but I'm not going to kill myself. The goal (at least for me) is to enjoy life and not sweat the small stuff! Best of luck to all in reaching your goals.:flowerforyou: 0 -
Ah yes. The dreaded buddha belly.
I HATE it.
I too am IN menopause.
I am roughly the same weight, but MAN my clothes don't fit the same.
I really think menopause causes insulin resistance. :sad: :explode:
:mad: 0 -
Ooh! Thanks for the suggestions!On my second year post menopause...heck yeah i gained weight during menopause! Then I read "The Menopause Makeover"... Great read. I lost 45 pounds in 2011. I now, at age 54, weigh less than I did at age 19,. I wore a junior size 13 jean then, now i wear a size 6.
Another great book to read is "Ballet Beautiful"... I now am into barre 3, lots of walking .0 -
I just googled the book. It looks good. What sorts of information does it have? I'm going to order it from amazon...used. Wish they had it on kindle...EDIT: just found it on kindle!On my second year post menopause...heck yeah i gained weight during menopause! Then I read "The Menopause Makeover"... Great read. I lost 45 pounds in 2011. I now, at age 54, weigh less than I did at age 19,. I wore a junior size 13 jean then, now i wear a size 6.
Another great book to read is "Ballet Beautiful"... I now am into barre 3, lots of walking .0 -
Thanks for the book suggestion and thanks OP for this thread!!!!!!!!! I HATE THE BELLY FAT! I am in peri right now and my belly is just HERE! I have never had a belly like this. I am not at my highest weight, yet my belly is bigger.0
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Ah yes. The dreaded buddha belly.
I HATE it.
I too am IN menopause.
I am roughly the same weight, but MAN my clothes don't fit the same.
I really think menopause causes insulin resistance. :sad: :explode: :mad:
I have had episodes where my blood sugar just plummets within a matter of minutes and I am not diabetic.
I know peri messes with hormones, insulin etc. etc.
Stinks!:grumble:0 -
On my second year post menopause...heck yeah i gained weight during menopause! Then I read "The Menopause Makeover"... Great read. I lost 45 pounds in 2011. I now, at age 54, weigh less than I did at age 19,. I wore a junior size 13 jean then, now i wear a size 6.
Another great book to read is "Ballet Beautiful"... I now am into barre 3, lots of walking .
Thanks for the info and inspiration
Yes! Thank you!!!! I have been looking for something with ballet! This is perfect!0 -
OP: I always had a tiny waist...even when I was heavier, my waist always looked slim and flat. Now even when I am at a lower weight, I still struggle with a thicker waist. It also seems to be the first place that I gain now.:sad:
D0 -
OP: I always had a tiny waist...even when I was heavier, my waist always looked slim and flat. Now even when I am at a lower weight, I still struggle with a thicker waist. It also seems to be the first place that I gain now.:sad:
D
Double waaahh... :sad: :sad:0 -
Exactly, and just like in my youth when I'd skip meals (I don't now) that insulin crash makes me lash out at folks (and by folks I mean poor ole Vince!)Ah yes. The dreaded buddha belly.
I HATE it.
I too am IN menopause.
I am roughly the same weight, but MAN my clothes don't fit the same.
I really think menopause causes insulin resistance. :sad: :explode: :mad:
I have had episodes where my blood sugar just plummets within a matter of minutes and I am not diabetic.
I know peri messes with hormones, insulin etc. etc.
Stinks!:grumble:0 -
I just googled the book. It looks good. What sorts of information does it have? I'm going to order it from amazon...used. Wish they had it on kindle...EDIT: just found it on kindle!On my second year post menopause...heck yeah i gained weight during menopause! Then I read "The Menopause Makeover"... Great read. I lost 45 pounds in 2011. I now, at age 54, weigh less than I did at age 19,. I wore a junior size 13 jean then, now i wear a size 6.
Another great book to read is "Ballet Beautiful"... I now am into barre 3, lots of walking .
I found the book on my iPad too 0 -
So I started the book "menopause makeover" and had a question:
The author (who writes well and is a hoot!) says
Have others seen that? for me THAT was the most recent sign!IRREGULAR PERIODS This is probably the first symptom you noticed. When you begin to go through menopause, your periods start to get a bit unpredictable. You may notice spotting, heavier or lighter bleeding and your periods may be longer or shorter.
Jonekos, Staness (2012-04-01). The Menopause Makeover (Kindle Locations 331-333). Harlequin Enterprises. Kindle Edition.
for ME it started with dizziness, crankiness, night sweats, and then weight "shifts", then hot flashes, and THEN my period went goofy.
I was 24 days like clock work (including night sweats the three nights before my period started at 5am on day 24) until the last year.0 -
So I started the book "menopause makeover" and had a question:
The author (who writes well and is a hoot!) says
Have others seen that? for me THAT was the most recent sign!IRREGULAR PERIODS This is probably the first symptom you noticed. When you begin to go through menopause, your periods start to get a bit unpredictable. You may notice spotting, heavier or lighter bleeding and your periods may be longer or shorter.
Jonekos, Staness (2012-04-01). The Menopause Makeover (Kindle Locations 331-333). Harlequin Enterprises. Kindle Edition.
for ME it started with dizziness, crankiness, night sweats, and then weight "shifts", then hot flashes, and THEN my period went goofy.
I was 24 days like clock work (including night sweats the three nights before my period started at 5am on day 24) until the last year.
I would say in general, yes, but...
My symptoms have been all over the board since then with no rhyme or reason, if that helps...
I, too was like clockwork every 28 days with the exact same flow pattern every month.
Then I had a 20 day cycle when I was 36 and then I got pregnant
It seemed like my daughter "re-set" my hormones and for a few years it was back to normal.
Then the year I turned 42, the belly fat came to visit with unpredictable visits by the rest of all the peri symptoms:mad:0 -
Mine the last while have been everywhere.
I've been planning an annual ski trip with friends. Last year at exactly this time: I was at day 60 the day we left. (I remember because I thought I was done. HA)
This year I'm at day 30, with nothing in sight.
Between that there were 30, 50, 13, you name it!0 -
Don't let the dreaded M-word be an excuse!
In July, I saw some photos of me with a huge belly. Hated it!
In August, I saw some more hideous photos of myself, and also saw a terribly high number on the scale.
I'm 51, the mother of three. The first two were twins, then a 9 pounder. In thought my days of flat-ish stomach were way over.
Since September 1, I have lost 34 pounds, more than a pants size, and at least 8 inches off my waist (I never measured before, didn't really want to knoW!).
I also went from being pre-diabetic and my doctor talking about medication, to "no evidence of diabetes" and a really nice email from the same doc.
Everything you need is right here.
It's simple, but not easy.
Use the tools here to calculate you calorie requirements, eat as clean as you can (if it comes out of a box or can and has more than one ingredient, avoid if possible), eat real food! The kind that spoils if you leave it on the counter for a few days- fresh fruits, veggies, etc. Eat whole grains (carbs are not the enemy, but obviously, don't over do it). Eat within your calories, and eat your exercise calories- you've earned them! My diary is open, take a look, and feel free to friend me.
Speaking of exercise, it doesn't have to be complicated. I really haven't done much more than walk the dog. Just get moving! If 10 minutes is all you cna do today, do 10 minutes today and aim for 11 tomorrow. Just move!
My stomach is still a little pouchy, but I have a waist, and my stomach is smaller than my chest measurement. I can actually see my feet when I look down.
I have found the hot flashes and irritability,as well as sleeplessness, are much better if I take my walk most every day (and m,y dog is a lot happier, too).
My body will never be what it was when I was 20 (if I had known then what I had...), but for 51, I'm looking and feeling pretty damn good.
You can do it too! Eat within your calories, eat as clean as you can, and move more than you have been.0 -
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Thank you everyone for your responses so far (even if I didn't comment after your post, I have read each one with interest).
Let's keep chatting 0 -
This is really sad but I have a friend who is not a practicing doctor but went through medical school (she's a psychiatrist) and when I complained to her about my middle getting all filled in with an unattractive spare tire and my *kitten* creeping up my back, she said That's your hormones, they are trying to turn you into a man. :frown:0
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On my second year post menopause...heck yeah i gained weight during menopause! Then I read "The Menopause Makeover"... Great read. I lost 45 pounds in 2011. I now, at age 54, weigh less than I did at age 19,. I wore a junior size 13 jean then, now i wear a size 6.
Another great book to read is "Ballet Beautiful"... I now am into barre 3, lots of walking .
^^^^ Thank you for sharing, I am going to try to get these books because I sure need some help!0 -
I'm going to look for that book! Like others have posted, I have lost weight - no butt and my boobs have gotten smaller (which is fine by me!), but I still don't have much of a waist. I'll never be seen in a bikini, but I would like to have pants that fit both in the hips and in the waist. Right now it seems to be one or the other.0
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This is really sad but I have a friend who is not a practicing doctor but went through medical school (she's a psychiatrist) and when I complained to her about my middle getting all filled in with an unattractive spare tire and my *kitten* creeping up my back, she said That's your hormones, they are trying to turn you into a man. :frown:
Nice!0 -
Thanks to a partial hysterectomy, I slam shifted into menopause 6 years ago. Since then. I've gained 30 pounds - all of it around my middle. I've lost (and gained) about 20 of that back many, many times over the past few years and the last place I would lose inches was my waist. I long for the day that I actually have a waist again.0
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Post menopause and yes, definitely, that belly. Ugh! I know when I lost weight the last time it was reduced considerably but not back to pre-menopause. And I really bloat when I overeat or something doesn't agree with me. I'm an 'apple' to begin with so it's possibly more noticeable than in 'pears.' I'm not sure. On a positive note, I didn't get any other symptoms other than possibly sleep pattern changes. The books sound good. Thanks for sharing.0
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This is all very discouraging : )
I'm 50 and no menopause in sight but do already have plenty of belly fat! Thanks for the tip on the book, I'm going to arm myself with knowledge so that I'll be ready. I hope they have tips on dealing with extra facial hair. Not looking forward to that.
Actually looking forward to getting it started and over with. I'm so done with PMS, monthly crying about anything from 'onstar' commercials to news stories about home run records, periods, and most of all 37 years of horrible cramps!
Sorry, my TOM I get passionate about things.0 -
Bump.0
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This is all very discouraging : )
I'm 50 and no menopause in sight but do already have plenty of belly fat! Thanks for the tip on the book, I'm going to arm myself with knowledge so that I'll be ready. I hope they have tips on dealing with extra facial hair. Not looking forward to that.
Actually looking forward to getting it started and over with. I'm so done with PMS, monthly crying about anything from 'onstar' commercials to news stories about home run records, periods, and most of all 37 years of horrible cramps!
Sorry, my TOM I get passionate about things.
B-complex vitamin and work outs helped with my PMS.
I don't get the physical as bad as the emotional :devil:
My husband likes to disappear during my TOM...0
