HOT TAKE: Fasting Is Not for Women in Perimenopause and Menopause
Isn't it enough that women have spent decades navigating the relentless pressure of diet culture? Shouldn't menopause be a time for peace with our bodies? Apparently, no, according to conventional wisdom. Sadly, diet culture is alive and well, even during our midlife. We’re still bombarded with the latest fad that promises to be THE DIET that will finally have us shedding our unwanted pounds.
I understand feeling frustrated by the weight gain that often comes with perimenopause and menopause. It’s a consequence of fluctuating hormones that contribute not just to weight gain, but insomnia and fatigue as well. Some days we feel like we’re trudging through molasses simply trying to get through. Other days, we look in the mirror and see a body we don’t recognize.
It can be easy to find ourselves signing on to yet another fad diet program when we feel like nothing else has worked. We’re tired and we’re at a loss with the unpredictable ride our perimenopausal body is taking us on. In our attempts to lose ten pounds, we seek solace in programs that may not be the best for us.
One approach that has caught some attention in recent years is intermittent fasting. Intermittent fasting is a plan that restricts the timing of when you eat, setting a timeframe within which all meals are consumed - known as the feeding windows. One of the most popular plans is the 16/8, defined as fasting for sixteen hours and eating for eight. This would look like eating between 8 am and 4 pm while abstaining from food and most beverages (often teas or black coffee are allowed) for the remaining sixteen hours of the day. Another approach is to eat normally during the weekdays, and then restrict eating to 500 calories on weekends.
The theory is that fasting forces the body to use fat stores. It also confines people to eating only during certain hours of the day, and as a society that is always reaching for our next snack, that can be a way to restrict calories.
I get asked a lot about intermittent fasting – which is not a diet and is better described as an approach to meal timing. While I understand there are benefits for some, I do have concerns about this strategy for women in perimenopause and menopause.
When I think back to my menopause transition, weight gain was one of my most frustrating symptoms. Despite being a fitness and wellness expert, I couldn’t lose weight. I spent hours on intense cardio sessions at the gym, yet still struggled with a belly that wouldn’t budge and found myself increasingly frustrated by my lack of progress.
Add in exhaustion from raising young children and running on empty because of sleep disruptions (I’m looking at you night sweats and insomnia) and a packed schedule that served everyone but me, and I can’t help but think that adding a restrictive diet that only allowed me to eat at certain times of the day would’ve been like adding fuel to the fire.
I was already exhausted. I was already struggling to manage a behemoth of a schedule. The thought of going to bed hungry and not being able to eat something for hours after I woke up does not sound like self-care.
There have been studies that show the benefits of people using intermittent fasting to help with chronic conditions, particularly high blood pressure in the short term. But three things stand out to me about fasting:
It leaves many hours of the day lacking the fuel we need to power through our day.
It is not sustainable.
It continues the “deprivation dieting” approach that has gotten us where we are - not happy.
One thing that has become abundantly clear during my time as a women’s midlife wellness and fitness expert is the need to fuel our bodies. We’re no longer in those early years of our lives where we could run a mile to drop five pounds and could power through our mornings with just a nonfat latte. Instead, we’re in the busiest times of our lives – often caring for children, parents, and partners while at the height of our careers. These days require that we fuel our bodies at regular intervals so we can continue to show up for ourselves and our families.
Secondly, it is rarely sustainable. Where will you be six months after starting a restrictive diet? Will the weight you’ve lost stay off…or will you end up right back where you started or worse off like over half of dieters? How did you feel during those months of fasting? Were you energized, or were you constantly waiting for the next moment you could eat? Were you stressing out about what and when you could eat again?
Finally, the days of deprivation dieting are over. When we reach our mid 30s, our bodies are already losing muscle and bone mass. We must fuel them with food. When we release our guilt and shame about food we release massive amounts of stress (see ya, cortisol!) and look at each day as an opportunity, not a burden.
If you need direction on how to navigate these perimenopausal and menopausal years, consider joining my Concierge Small Group Wellness program. Here I share my insight on food as fuel, as well as fitness, sleep, stress, and scheduling that will help you make your way through menopause positively and sustainably.
