Common symptoms of menopause:
hot flushes
night sweats
weight gain
mood swings
insomnia
Menopause can also affect your ability to recover after an intense workout. And current research indicates this is more to do with oestrogen levels rather than the symptoms listed above.
Physiological changes with peri menopause and menopause:
Loss in bone density
Loss of lean muscle mass
Slower muscle repair
Increased body fat particularly around belly
Changes in metabolism and hunger / satiety signals
How to maintain performance:
Complete strength and conditioning exercises to maintain muscle mass
High intensity aerobic training is important in reducing body fat and maintaining healthy heart and lungs
Be mindful of overtraining resulting in low energy, high stress cortisol levels. Chronically high cortisol results in weight gain, exhaustion and loss in muscle mass. The answer is rest and recover then slowly rebuild.
Change your diet to include more high quality protein, fat and carbohydrates rather than simple carbohydrates.
Consider whether you need sport nutrition products which are high in fructose, often harder to digest.
Focus on ingesting protein in the 30mins post exercise
Consider vitamin D and calcium supplementation for bone health
Consider pre cooling and pre hydrating strategies
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