to ask how you lost your menopause related weight gain?

Noom. Just obeyed it blindly for 6 months or something and lost about 7kg, then I was on HRT so it stayed off.

@BigDahliaFan Oh and congrats on the weight loss too!

Thanks so much for the ideas. Your evening meals are all things I enjoy, so I'll try these!

one thing I forgot is I bought some almond protein powder and put it in my cereal or drinks, or eat half a can of tuna as a snack, and it does make you feel fuller. However as others have said this is not a fun journey. I miss the days of being 18, very slim, literally living off crisps and Lucozade!!!

Started counting protein & fibre, rather than just calories. Gave myself a weekly step target & I aim for 4 workouts a week.

Search for an online calculator to work out what your TDEE is when you’re at your target weight (set your activity level for sedentary). Mine is 1600, so I aim for 140g of protein & 30g of fibre spread across 3 meals.

Of course, some weeks it all goes to shit and I barely move from the sofa and mainline wine and crisps… but one a good day, I follow the steps above.

@TheNeighboursComplainAboutTheNoisesAbove

About a year to lose a stone and a half - but I've only been doing it sort of 80/20 - so most of the time but not all the time! I could have done it quicker...I've got a party in the summer with lots of people I've not seen in a while and that is inspiring me to pay a bit more attention to it.

Dinner tends to be:

Salmon stirfry - lots of veg, home made sauce and brown rice.
Chicken skewers with home made coleslaw (oil and lime dressing and herbs), small jacket potato, some more veg.
SMoked haddock and small amount of mash with lots of green veg.
Prawn Curry with lots of veg, home made coleslaw, dahl, and a small portion of brown rice.
Fish finger tacos - with cabbage, red pepper, salsa, salad on the side.

I suddenly ballooned and went into peri at 42. Now 49 and back to the weight I was before. What has helped me: HRT (huge enormous help even when I was on the progesterone only, now on progesterone and oestrogen gel). I am pretty sure this is what has helped the most.

Giving up alcohol completely, game changer. Limiting sugar, don't always manage but no sugar in the evening! . Not snacking late.

I can testify that exercise doesn't affect the actual weight as much as HRT and diet. I have always done loads of exercise, and it makes you feel great but during my ballooning phase I was going on 15 k runs and doing HIIT nearly every day, made no difference to weight.

yes same here. It's so depressing.

I have just turned 50. I used to be able to maintain comfortably at about 8 stone 10/12, and now I can't get below 9 stone 4. Which, yunno, isn't life threatening but it's only going to go up!

I drink alcohol, but have massively cut down, I eat healthily and I exercise every day.

It's just something I will have to get to used to I guess because life is too short to be hungry all the time.

Just eat significantly less. I'm on HRT and can lose 1kg a week. I don't eat family meals, just lots of green veg, some avocado, some protein, lots of coffee, lots of water and walking.

You are almost certainly eating more than you should.

It's boring as fuck losing weight, and you should feel like there is no joy in life! But it works, just put your head down.

Exercise is largely irrelevant, though it helps to have some muscle as this burns cals faster.

Can I ask for some examples of your dinners please? By carb, do you mean something like brown rice or wholemeal pasta for example?

Yours is the approach I'm trying to take, after finally accepting I can't carry on eating the way I used to anymore. I have overnight oats with full-fat yoghurt/nuts/seeds/fruit for breakfast, and like you have home-made soups for lunch with beans/lentils - it's surprising just how filling these are - but I'm just a bit stuck with evening meals.

How long did it take you to lose the weight?

Mounjaro.

Remember when you get a dog spayed you are advised to cut food intake by between a quarter and a third. Sadly we are not that different.

Hormone changes will thicken your waist a bit, sadly the rest is down to us.

Oh yes, good point, I avoid pasta and bread now as it gives me heartburn and makes me feel bloated and sluggish.

Why do our bodies change so much with menopause?? It spoils all the good stuff......

Hard to tell which is peri and which is COVID. I am back to pre COVID weight this week after two years of WL drugs. Ryselbus for 18 months and Mounjaro latterly.

And oh yes, I just don't feel like alcohol much anymore. Really not like me, I used to love a gin and tonic after work most nights. Glass of wine with my evening meal a few times a week. A bit more a the weekends. But I definitely just don't have a hankering after it much now at all. When I do drink even a small amoutn it literally makes me feel like I've just ingested a toxin. I feel headachey next day, face is puffy and red, I just feel out of it.

So I think that's my body telling me not to bother.

I think similar's happening with sugar too. I persist with that though 😂But it must be putting the weight on more than it used to, if I'm not even craving it.

Overall, I agree with others in that after menopause we just need less fuel to keep the body going. But as most of us have access to plenty of all types of food whenever we like, there is no conscious effort to make sure that those in our house who are the most naturally hungry get the most. Like maybe would have happened in the old days when money was v tight and there was a large household to feed, with maybe young manual workers or growing teenagers literally ravenous.

Mounjaro. And accepting that I can’t eat even 1200 calories a day and not gain weight.

I gained 1/2 stone on HRT.
Have cut out snacking. I'm a crisp monster so that's been hard!
And I power walk everywhere as well as doing Pilates

Blood pressure tablets and Furosemide. Never had high blood pressure up until I hit menopause, then bang, eating less and less but banging weight on. Not saying that's going to be everyone or even common. I don’t know but be aware of the possibility.

I don't believe in diets as such (WW and SW etc). But I do need to consider what I'm eating now I (think) I'm through the menopause. I always used to be able to eat what I liked without putting any weight on (but I have always noticed that other people seem to eat much more than me before they feel satisfied). But I've always been able to have stuff that was bad for like crisps and bisuits and cakes in as many quantities as i've wanted without too much change to my weight. I have never done regular serious exercise. Don't really weigh myself regularly.
But in the past year I have noticed a real ramping up of the "thickening" around my middle. The excess fat on my buttocks wobbling as I walk around, can't fit into clothes I used to fit in.

It's clearly the hormonal changes of menopause doing it. I've tried to listen to my body as much as I can, as that's what I've done all my life with food intake. Eat when I'm hungry, stop when I'm full. So I've tried to analyse if anything is different now, and I think it is. It's most definitely taking less food for me to feel full, BUT DH and I are putting the same portion sizes out as we always have, through habit. And I don't like leaving food uneaten as it's a waste. So I eat everything on my plate even if the last few mouthfuls are making me feel too stuffed.

So for me, personally, I think I'm going to have to make a conscious effort to reduce portion size. Maybe smaller plates are the answer? Modern dinner plates are HUGE.

😭😭😭

Running and giving up alcohol & sugar

This worked for me but very low carbs - I don't eat pasta, limited bread, very rarely potatoes, just protein and veg, and took up cycling. If I snack now it's nuts, figs, dates etc.

Mounjaro plus cal deficit and low carb, coupled with a lot of exercise.

Keto. It really is just amazing.

My mum has thyroid issues, is 69 and has struggled with losing weight over the last 20 years. She would be sticking to minimal calories and exercising like crazy (not an exaggeration, she did the Camino at 65).

Anyway, a good loss for her on WW or another diet would be 300 grams in a week.

She tried keto for the first time whilst living with me and she lost 6kg in 8 weeks and her arthritis is so much better and she feels amazing.

Keto can be boring and I know people love to hate on it here, but for hormonal issues and belly fat, cutting carbs and sugar is a miracle worker.

I am the same, always could easily manage my weight with gym classes, running and cutting out the snacks. Since 'ive been on HRT its been great for eliminating the hot flashes and sleeping better but is it worth it if I feel so porky and none of my clothes fit? Its depressing :-(