I began peri-menopause in my early 30’s and finally, at about age 40, graduated to full menopause. I have read that when women go into menopause it is much easier to gain belly fat because belly fat in particular produces estrogen (trying to replenish estrogen levels that are no longer produced by the ovaries). Plus, this type of belly fat seems particularly hard to loose.
I began novice linear progression about 4 months ago, and have made pretty good (albeit slow and steady) progress. I was hoping that strength training would help get rid of belly fat, but it doesn’t seem to be the case thus far. I almost seem to be gaining muscle underneath the belly fat, but the fat is not budging.
I think it is more complicated than just restricting calories with menopausal belly fat; I am sure that would work to some degree, but I don’t want to that at the expense of gaining muscle. How do you accomplish both?
Do you have any advice for menopausal women who want to gain muscle, but want to loose that stubborn belly fat?! Or can you point me to any resources that deal with this specific topic?
Thank you!
Shelleevan,
Thanks for the post 
In general, weight gain during menopause occurs secondary to reductions in activity mostly rather than the hormonal change. In fact, hormonal therapy is also associated with increased risk of obesity in some studies- though the majority of the studies suggest it’s weight neutral.
In any case, if you’re not losing weight we would recommend reducing calories. Depending on your situation, e.g. waist circumference, medical history, etc. it may be preferable for you to lose weight from a health standpoint. However, since you’re so new to resistance training, I’d expect you to gain a bit of muscle regardless.
Finally, I would probably recommend moving on from LP to our beginner prescription (https://www.barbellmedicine.com/blog…-prescription/) due to the limitations of LP and an educated guess that this will improve your results.
In general my recommendations:
- Stop LP. Move to different program.
- Eat 1.6 grams of protein per kilogram bodyweight per day
- Reduce calories to produce weight loss
Thank you for taking the time to respond.
Ahh…So yes, I did start HRT about a year and a half ago and gained about 5lbs within a month (no joke!), without any change to diet, exercise, etc. So that is probably the culprit (going by your explanation above about the potential for hormone replacement therapy to cause weight gain).
So, I am actually a generally small person; 5’ 1.5", and before this menopause weight gain, my weight hovered plus or minus around 110lbs. Now it hovers around 115lbs and I am pretty sure that the weight gain all around the waist. My waist circumference is 29.5". How to I compare my height/weight vs. waist circumference to know what is considered normal/high risk?
I have struggled with consistency with LP and had to start over several times due to my back “tweaking”. However, I am now making good progress and my back finally feels good and I am much stronger. I downloaded your beginner prescription about a year ago, but it seemed a little complicated, and so I haven’t used it yet. But I will certainly take a look at it again.
Thank you!
Yea I don’t think that HRT caused the weight gain, as it’s mostly weight neutral. I think it’s more likely that there’s been an alteration in physical activity and/or dietary intake.
For you, I’d aim to have a waist circumference <29".