Menopause brings vital hormonal changes in the body accompanied with a number of physical and emotional problems popularly known as symptoms of menopause. Amongst these, Weight gain is the most common concern for premenopausal and menopausal women. These women mostly gather fat around the belly area which really gives a woman an unpleasant look. It is a natural desire of every woman to look smart so this unwanted fat keeps them worried.
Fortunately, there are ways to keep this unwanted weight away. However, before learning how to lose weight after menopause, it is important that you know the reasons of menopause and weight gain.
Weight Gain after Menopause
Hormonal changes are not the only reason for weight gain. There are other physiological and physical elements which lead to weight gain in menopausal years. Menopause or perimenopause is often the time when a woman is through with her responsibilities. Her children are grown up living their own lives. She is financially stable and leading a carefree life. This results in extra weight gain. On the contrary, this may be a difficult period for some women, loss of some family members or financial difficulties. This stress again results in weight gain.
With the age, there is a decrease in the muscle mass, which is replaced with fat. This also causes a weight gain. In the menopausal age women are comparatively less active than the younger women. This is also one of the reasons for them to put on weight. In this age it is also difficult for them to do some tough exercises to get rid of their extra weight.
Tips to Lose Weight after Menopause
Losing weight after menopause is not impracticable but it requires a lot of efforts and determination. Below are the few tips for this;
Reduce Calorie Intake
With the age, your body needs lesser calories. You need to re adjust your diet to reduce intake of calories. As a thumb rule, you should consume 15% less calories than your previous diet. This will not make any bad effect upon your body as these extra calories is no more required by your body. So, one way to lose weight after menopause is by changing over to a low calorie diet.
Eat Healthy Food
With the growing age your body systems including your digestive system is becoming more sensitive. You must therefore avoid unhealthy food which may result in accumulation of fat. Instead you must only eat food which is easily digestible and completely turns into energy.
Increase Physical Activity
Women at menopausal age tend to be less active, which results in weight gain. Your must include some sort of activity in your life and be regular with it. Swimming, jogging in the park and yoga are some activities which will help you to lose fat after menopause and to stay smart thereafter. Few other activities such as water aerobics and dancing can also help you to reduce calories and stay fit. As a matter of fact you may not get your shape back which you had before menopause, so it is better for you to concentrate upon a healthy living than getting your shape back.
Individualized Hormone Replacement Therapy
Although there has been an ongoing debate on side effects of HRT, no one can refuse its advantages. As it restores the reduced levels of hormones, therapy using small quantities of bioidentical hormones is the most preferred one nowadays. Being bioidentical in nature, they are smoothly absorbed by the body than their synthetic versions. For more information on Bioidentical Hormones, read this hub.
