What exactly is the non-diet approach to Menopause and why is it important?
If you’ve been following me for a while you’ll know that I’m a big advocate of the non-diet approach to Menopause.
It all started because of my four children. I wanted to be a role model by showing them there was another way to be healthy in this world.
Especially for my daughter.
When this photo was taken my daughter was dancing! Ballet, jazz, modern expressive, she wanted to do it all and she was very competitive.
This is when she first became aware that ballet dancers had a certain “look” that the adjudicators preferred.
Not long after it became evident that the dance world could be a dangerous place for those dancers who believe they don’t have the “look.”
A few of the girls at my daughter’s dance school developed eating disorders in the process of striving for this “look”.
The average age of onset of an eating disorder is just 11 years old.
But it’s not just young girls who develop eating disorders, it can affect all ages and genders, and it's especially prevalent during perimenopause and menopause.
Almost one in four (24%) of women experiencing an eating disorder in Australia each year are aged between 40-59 and the transition plays a big role.
As a personal trainer, I have a big responsibility to “do no harm” when it comes to helping women with the Menopause transition.
The number one predictor for developing an eating disorder is going on a weight loss diet.
But it’s not just the risk of an eating disorder, dieting can lead to poor physical and mental health, and it doesn’t work long-term.
Within 2-5 years of going on a weight loss diet, 90-95% have gained the weight back and two-thirds will end up heavier. Other side effects include fatigue, poor concentration, irritability, weakness, hair loss, nutritional deficiencies, low mood, depression, preoccupation with food, low self-esteem & self-worth, decreased metabolism and weight cycling.
Here’s the clincher, dieting during menopause will make your symptoms worse.
Your fatigue, brain fog, sleep changes, and mood swings are way more severe, and as your estrogen levels decrease, your metabolism slows down which makes losing weight harder and weight gain inevitable. This coupled with the normal side effects of dieting means you are likely to gain even more weight, have heightened menopause symptoms, put extra stress on your already stressed-out body and increase your risk even further of developing an eating disorder.
That’s why I do not recommend restricting food groups, counting calories or any of the other popular weight loss methods being touted for menopause.
Instead, I encourage my clients to adopt a non-diet, mindful and intuitive eating approach.
The non-diet approach to Menopause
1. Explore different movement options that make you feel good in your body.
Exercise because it makes you feel good, not just because it makes you look good. Exercise should be enjoyable not a chore. Listen to your body and choose the exercise that you enjoy. The more you enjoy it and focus on how it makes you feel, the more motivated you will be to do it consistently.
2. Eat intuitively
Intuitive Eating is about eating from a self-care approach, rather than self-punishment. It will help you tune in to your body and learn what foods make you feel and perform best.
During the transition, it’s more important than ever to tune into and listen to the signals your body is sending you. Ask yourself- What foods stabilise your energy levels over a longer period of time? What foods give you an energy spike but then cause you to crash afterwards?
Eating intuitively is about nourishing your body the best you can.
3. Reduce Stress
Mid-life can be an extremely stressful time. You may be working long hours, running a household, looking after children, caring for elderly parents, or all of the above!
Getting enough sleep, spending time in nature, connecting and having fun with loved ones will all help you reduce stress.
4. Be kind to yourself.
Developing self-compassion for your changing hormones and changing body is integral to being able to let go of all the shoulds and should-nots, thus allowing a new deep trust in yourself.
After all, only you truly know how you are feeling in your body from day to day and what foods and exercise feel right for you.
Being kind to yourself in a culture that is all about staying as thin as possible, busy, pushing through and doing more and more may feel like a radical act, but it will definitely be worth it!
Wrap up
How many diets have you been on? Did they work for you?
If the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result, why would you expect another diet to work now?
When we reach the menopause transition, diet culture tries to convince us that we need to stay small to remain relevant, desirable and worthy of love, respect and success.
As a 55 year-old woman, I know how the media’s obsession with women’s bodies and putting celebrities in their 50s such as Jennifer Aniston, Nicole Kidman and Jennifer Lopez on a pedestal can make us all feel that we’re not trying hard enough to conform to these unrealistic beauty standards.
However, we must recognise that we are being played by the multi-billion dollar companies that pay for this type of messaging.
It would be very easy for me as a personal trainer and nutrition coach to market and sell weight loss to line my own pockets. However, I know first-hand that dieting causes way more harm than good, which is why the anti-diet approach is so important during menopause.
I’m not here to try and rain on your Dietland parade. I promise.
I’m here to tell you the real scientific (not so sexy) facts and show you that there is another way so that you can make informed decisions on what is best for you.
Fi
P.S If you would like to learn more about the non-diet approach and if it's right for you, let’s chat!
