MENOPAUSE & WEIGHT GAIN, WHAT YOUR DOCTOR ISN'T TELLING YOU

For decades, women have been told that weight gain is just a normal part of menopause—something we have to accept as our metabolism slows down and our hormones shift. Let's just bust that myth right now, weight gain in menopause is not inevitable. What’s really happening isn’t a metabolism malfunction—it’s a hormonal imbalance. And when you address the imbalance, your body stops fighting against you and starts working with you again.

As women transition into perimenopause and menopause, the hormonal landscape shifts dramatically. Estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone levels decline, while stress hormones like cortisol often remain elevated due to poor sleep, stress, and restrictive dieting. When hormones are out of balance, the body struggles to regulate weight, energy, mood, sleep and even digestion.

Symptoms of this imbalance can include: Increased belly fat, even if diet and exercise haven’t changed, cravings for sugar and processed carbs, sluggish metabolism and low energy, mood swings, anxiety, and depression, poor sleep and night sweats, hot flashes, bloating, gas, and digestive discomfort, brain fog and forgetfulness, joint pain and inflammation. And these are just a few of the most common.

Sound familiar? These signs are a distress-call that your body is full of inflammation and out of balance. And when it comes to weight, the last thing your body needs is for you to deprive it of nutrients, aka diet/eat less. Let's face it, nothing thrives in a deficit.

The weight loss industry loves to target menopausal women with quick fixes—pills, patches, drops, and hormone replacement therapies (HRT) that promise to melt belly fat. But here’s the truth: if these worked, you wouldn’t still be searching for answers. Even for those women who do find relief using HRT, without addressing the inflammation and gut issues, it's still making your body struggle to come into balance.

Low-calorie diets? They slow your metabolism and signal to your body that it’s in survival mode, making it burn muscle and hold on to fat. Endless cardio? It raises cortisol, which leads to more belly fat storage.

Weight loss medications? They suppress appetite and trick your body into thinking it doesn’t need nourishment, leading to muscle loss, insulin resistance and even more metabolic damage.

None of these quick fixes restore balance. And until your hormones, gut, and metabolism are supported properly, your body will keep fighting against you.

So, if weight gain in menopause isn’t inevitable, and diets aren’t the answer, what is? The key is restoring balance in the body, not fighting against it. That means focusing on nourishment, not restriction and addressing the root cause. Using food to create hormonal imbalance and stabilize blood sugar, along with clean foods to optimize gut health, and reduce inflammation is what will get you the results you want today and be able to keep them long term.

One of the biggest mistakes I see women make is not eating enough or going too long between meals. When you don’t fuel your body consistently, blood sugar crashes, cortisol spikes, your body burns muscle and fat storage kicks into high gear. Eat every 3-4 hours to keep blood sugar stable. Focus on protein at every meal to preserve muscle and balance hormones. Don’t fear healthy fats—your brain and hormones need them!

Protein is non-negotiable in menopause. Without enough, muscle mass declines, metabolism slows, and cravings skyrocket.

Aim for 20-30g of protein per meal. Include sources like grass-fed beef, chicken, eggs, fish, and plant-based proteins like hemp, chia, spirulina. Start your day with a protein-rich breakfast to set the tone for balanced blood sugar all day long

Chronic inflammation makes it nearly impossible to lose weight, especially belly fat. The good news? You can bring inflammation down naturally by changing what you eat and how you support your body.

Cut out or at least minimize inflammatory foods like gluten, soy, dairy, alcohol, sugar, processed seed oils, and artificial sweeteners. Increase omega-3 fats from salmon, flaxseeds, and walnuts. Eat more leafy greens, cruciferous veggies, and berries for antioxidants. Manage stress with deep breathing, quality sleep and practice self care.

Your gut health directly impacts estrogen, metabolism, inflammation, and fat storage. When your gut is out of balance, so are your hormones. Consider addking fermented foods like sauerkraut, kimchi, and kefir. Eat unprocessed fiber-rich foods to feed good gut bacteria. Ditch that Fibre 1 bar it's not your friend. Avoid processed foods, they disrupt the gut microbiome. Stay hydrated to support digestion and detoxification

Weight gain in menopause isn’t about a broken metabolism or aging—it’s about the length of time you've been doing things that don't serve your body and cause disruption in hormones and balance. The more you fight against your body with restriction, over-exercising, or quick fixes, the more it resists. But when you nourish it the right way, everything starts to shift. You’ll stop craving sugar. Your belly will start to shrink. Brain fog will lift. Energy will return, you'll sleep better and you’ll wake up feeling like you again.

To learn more about using food to create hormonal balance, watch my FREE video.