Has anyone improved their menopausal symptoms ( without HRT ) by exercise?

[Appalonia]

My Dr won't prescribe me because I have high cholesterol. I'm not particularly overweight, at the higher end of a normal BMI. I think the high cholesterol is the familial kind, all my family have it. I've accepted that I can't get HRT and the thing in most concerned about is bone density ( and general decline in fitness and energy ). I've just paid for a year at my local gym and plan to go 3/4 times a week doing body balance, Zumba, swimming, using the machines in the gym.

I wondered what exercise you've found to be beneficial and if you think it's protective of things like osteoporosis or other menopause symptoms? An any particular exercise that is important to do?

Also, if you're not on HRT, are there any supplements that you are taking that you think are beneficial? Thanks for any thoughts or advice.

I'm no medic but I'd ask someone else.

I can understand high blood pressure being an issue. I've got high triglycerides which I'm working on, but I'm on hrt and have been for a while. I've not been taken off it. My BP is medicated (genetics again!!). BMI is 27. I'm 5ft 3" so considered overweight.

Definitely get a second opinion. Or, if it’s an option, try Newson Health (private). They were great for me.

Get second opinion on the HRT. I found i had to do gentler exercises such as stretching, weights, yoga not the ponding exercises like running & zumba as they hurt my feet and legs. Im still not convinced that HRT helps my bones (perhaps damage already done to knees & hips) or just wear and tear but certainly feel better on HRT

I’m doing a lot more strength training rather than cardio but I’d consult a qualified PT first.

Your GP sounds out of date and wrong @Appalonia

High cholesterol is not a contraindication to HRT according to the British Heart Foundation. In fact many types of modern HRT are beneficial to blood lipids and reduce high cholesterol
.
From the British Heart Foundation

www.bhf.org.uk/informationsupport/support/women-with-a-heart-condition/menopause-and-heart-disease#:~:text=The%20earlier%20HRT%20is%20started,if%20you%20have%20high%20cholesterol.

The earlier HRT is started, the more effective it is at protecting your heart and reducing your risk of coronary heart disease. It's thought that HRT can have a positive effect on your cholesterol levels, however some types of HRT can increase your cholesterol levels. Talk to your doctor if you have high cholesterol.

The older types of HRT that were tablets may have increased clot risk but things have moved on. Transdermal HRT - patches, gel and natural micronised progesterone don't.

In any case, why is your GP not treating your high cholesterol with statins to reduce it?

You should see another GP or a menopause gynaecologist .

I'm very reluctant to take statins tbh.

If you are reluctant to take statins (I was) then I hope you are managing your diet like a demon. I agreed with my GP that I would try to reduce cholesterol levels through diet, and if it didn't work I would go on statins. I have managed to lower my cholesterol to a range she is comfortable with and we are good. BUT I don't eat any red meat ever, I never eat cheese, I rarely eat dairy, and I am very careful about fat consumption. It's not for everyone. My mother (same as me) chose statins because she wanted a "normal" life.

In terms of HRT: I have tried it for a bit but didn't get on with it. (As PP said, it is not contra-indicted at all, although it can have an impact on cholesterol, sometimes in the right direction; but transdermal HRT shouldn't affect it.)

My mum has severe osteoporosis so it's a concern. I lift weights once a week and I run at least three times a week, and I stretch most days. I REALLY feel it when I don't. In terms of staving of osteoporosis, weight bearing exercise is the most important, but seeing as I have high risk for heart disease, I also prioritise the cardio.

In terms of supplements / life style stuff: it depends on what your most bothersome symptoms are. For hot flushes I find avoiding alcohol completely and sugar mostly really helps. For anxiety and sleep issues I meditate (badly) and use Calm. I feel like it's not helping, but when I stop I can see it really is helping. Exercise really helps with the anxiety too (and the cholesterol stuff). Eat a high fibre diet. Read The Menopause Manifesto (or listen to it on audible). For joint stuff I am currently experimenting with collagen, although the jury is out. Lots of people take magnesium but I think my diet is quite high in magnesium anyway and even the gentlest stuff gives me stomach issues.

It's a case of experimenting and keeping an eye on yourself. Good luck OP.

Why? If you aren't, is your GP monitoring your cholesterol regularly?
You can try using plant sterols in foods like Benecol.
And eating masses of fibre.

In terms of staving of osteoporosis, weight bearing exercise is the most important, but seeing as I have high risk for heart disease, I also prioritise the cardio.

@Abthdust Weight bearing exercise is important but it's not enough on its own for anyone at high risk with a family history. Bone loss post menopause can be up to 5% a year for 5 years then it slows down a bit. Exercise alone can't replace that loss.

If you have a parent with osteoporosis you are at increased risk.
You should already have had a DEXA scan to see how your bones are. This ought to be offered by the NHS through your GP as you have a family history .

Insist on a DEXA scan so you at least know where you are- you GP ought to have been on the ball with this when you tried/ stopped HRT. It's very bad 'doctoring' that they've not done this for you.

Sorry to derail OPs post a little but thank you @JinglingSpringbells. I had a DEXA in 2020 (3 years post meno; was "normal" but don't have the numbers) as soon as the severity of my mother's osteoporosis became evident (and have finally succeeded in getting my sister to do the same, and hers is also "normal" at age 60).

Does NHS do follow-up DEXAs? I'm assuming not and instead just doing everything I can lifestyle wise. (My mum's lifestyle was terrible -- avoided dairy her whole life, anorexia as a young woman, smoked, no weight bearing exercise at all.) My GP in 2020 was dismissive of HRT for prevention (because I wasn't particularly symptomatic otherwise), and I am now at 54 way more than 5 years post meno. I tried HRT because of anxiety symptoms and because of preventative osteo and heart health stuff, but I really didn't like it. I know I could go back to experiment with different types of HRT but it's hard to figure out the cost / benefit balance.

BTW always appreciate your posts on the meno boards. You are doing a lot here to help educate.

I used to go to the gym with a woman in her mid-60s who did a lot of serious running but was having to cut back due to osteoporosis. She was taking medication for it, can’t remember what exactly. There was a PT there who ran small classes to teach about proper weight lifting. After some months of him pushing us (could have been three, could have been eight, I can’t remember) she came in and announced she’d been taken off the drugs as her latest bone scan had shown such improvement that she no longer needed them. She said her doctor put it down to the heavy weight training this PT was making us do. Should emphasise we were there voluntarily and weights were heavy for each of us, so he wasn’t making her do inappropriate weights, just way heavier than she’d have contemplated without him pushing us.