Oh no!  The dreaded subject most women shudder to think about until the inevitable is upon them! Why this tendency to go into denial when we know the time will inevitably come? The subject of menopause is fraught with misconceptions and fears, most of which involve the gaining of weight, so it's about time we looked at it. This is not going to be an educational piece; rather, it's intended to provide a heads up, helping you prepare so you avoid the menopausal bloat that might just thwart all of your weight loss achievements during this glorious stage of life. A bit of knowledge will also help my male readers understand and support their better half with greater sensitivity. 
 
First, let's just put it out there and whine a little.  After 35-45 years of living with the blessing of monthly menstruation, you now find yourself in a different and oh-so-humorous time of life when your body starts throwing curve balls. After you finally begin getting it together, understanding how to lose weight and maintain the loss, you are now faced with a brand new set of rules. This set is even harder to comprehend than the first set; however, it is crucial that you understand them because if you aren't aware that the game has changed, you're bound to strike out!
 
Unfortunately, we are all going to have to deal with menopause and the bane of menopausal existence: water retention.  Granted, there are many, many, perimenopausal and menopausal symptoms that are uncomfortable, to say the least, but I think that most of us would be able to handle them with equanimity...if it weren't for the weight gain!  The root of the weight gain? I call it The Menopausal Bloat (TMB), given the look that comes over us during those years. When TMB takes hold, our body feels like a sponge in need of squeezing, or a balloon in need of popping. 
 
In my experience, there comes a point in the menopausal journey when you begin to suffer TMB more frequently and severely than before, and this is what I want to talk about. If suffering through night sweats, hot flashes, heart palpitations, and many other lovely symptoms would help us lose weight, I think we could handle them, maybe even look forward to some built in weight loss help in our aging years; but, the horrid bloat? That's what pushes us over the edge. If it's any consolation, my theory says that our body stores all of this water to protect us from the severe dehydration that would result from the perspiration associated with hot flashes, and the night sweats. If you think about it, while they are annoying, those night sweats are a clever way of keeping us from boiling alive!
 
As far as your weight is concerned, what is the danger posed by extraordinary water retention? First of all, don't let it get you down! It is not impossible to lose weight during this period of time; you simply have to make some very important decisions about how you want to get through the next few years. Will you resign yourself to TMB? I mean, you could always say, "Who cares!  It's just water. When it goes away, so will the weight."  Or will you put on your big girl pants and recommit to getting back down to your normal size?
 
So, how can you maneuver through this most difficult time of emotional tumult and TMB? First, when water retention is off the charts, please do not even consider consuming anything containing salt. Ever!  At this time in your life, that bag of chips or can of soup might as well have a skull and crossbones on the label; that's how poisonous sodium is to your weight loss goal! Next, you have to adhere to the strictest code of conduct when it comes to your food. One unrestrained long weekend could do you in for the long haul.
 
Next, if you want to eliminate the majority of your symptoms, stop eating anything made with sugar.  Sugar actually creates most of your symptoms, especially the night sweats and hot flashes.  Additionally, caffeine contributes mightily to your symptoms. Keep in mind that a small cup of coffee from the local coffee shop contains much more caffeine than that which drips from the home brewer. Check out Kicking It! for more about caffeine. In short, at a time like this, coffee and sugar will turn you into an emotional basket case. 
 
Let me share what menopause did to one of my clients. Sheila was spurred to action when her doctor told her she had to do something if she wanted to see her children grow up.  She was frightened enough to get started, and everything I taught her made such perfect sense that she lost over 100 pounds very fast. As you might know, I do not advocate losing quickly; if it comes off too fast, you might not learn how to change the bad habits that led to trouble in the first place.  That being said, Sheila continued to come to me after reaching her goal, and she was having no problem maintaining.  Then... something changed. Although she continued to enjoy the same healthy foods she had been eating for years, her body began to metabolize it differently.  She began retaining a lot more water and was feeling the beginnings of TMB.  She then realized that her cycle was off, and suddenly all that she knew to be true about the workings of her body was no longer a fact of life.
 
Then the night sweats and hot flashes began, and she had a whopping 10 months period free. She was very excited that menopause wasn't turning out to be as bad as she had expected.  However, after the 10 months, her periods returned, and it became more and more difficult to maintain her weight. I could see that she was getting tired of the long fight, especially after losing so much and so efficiently.  By this point, my virtual weight loss expert could do nothing but watch the number on her scale climb.
 
And so, the water retention and the emotional ups and downs and the beginning of some sugar binges began to take their toll. By the time the scale was up 10 pounds, Sheila was feeling very dejected. I tried to get her to understand what was going on with her body, but she was inconsolable.  Eventually, she stopped coming to see me and would not return my calls. My heart broke for her, knowing she was facing one of the greatest challenges ever, and doing it alone.  I have said many times before that once on the journey, always on the journey.  There is no giving up; the only option is to move through and adjust to the changes that life throws your way.  I hope Sheila reads this and reaches out, just as I hope that all of you with a similar story will come to see that when the rules change, change rules, and you have to adapt!
 
Try to understand more than anything else the reason weight gain is so common during this stage of life. If your body is retaining water like nothing you have ever experienced in the past, the bloating will make you feel as if you have enjoyed a night out on the town.  Therefore, if you continue to eat the same moderate portions of clean, healthy foods that you have in the past, you will actually be overeating for the way your body is now running. Therefore, you have to now adjust the amount of food you eat to account for the feeling of fullness TMB causes. You cannot lose weight if you do not feel a little bit hungry when you go to bed. If you feel full and bloated at bedtime, whether as a result of eating or of retaining water, you will not lose. Therefore, you must eat less than you were eating before this all started. I'm sorry, but that's the truth of the matter.
 
In fact, you can't even eat enough to feel just satisfied because that would make you maintain your weight. No! If you go to bed feeling bloated and water filled every night, this will end in weight gain!  It is not fair, but we all have to play by these rules!  If you are constantly feeling bloated, you might at first think the scale registering five to ten pounds more than your regular weight is due to water.  Well, in the very short term, you might be right. However, if you keep seeing five or ten extra pounds when you get on the scale, they will have become actual weight gain.  That's how it begins, and it can throw even the most dedicated, unflappable weight loss expert over the edge. 
 
There is some hope. It's a new lifestyle change to add to your repertoire. From now on, you are going to live a sodium-free life. That's correct. Sodium, be gone! All of it!  You must eat plenty of foods that are natural diuretics, and you should try to somehow break a sweat at least three to five times a week. Diuretics?  Yup: these work- natural diuretics. You might even go to a sauna and sweat it out.  However you do it, you must get that extra water out!  And...one very important thing...you must continue to drink as much water as you possibly can. I know it seems counter-intuitive, but the water you drink will flush out the salt. The more you have, the more your body will release. 

 
Hang in there and keep plugging away. Stay consistent (see Consistency) and reach out whenever you feel you can't take it any longer! We all need to support one another without feeling ashamed. Weight loss is hard; adding menopause to the equation is just plain unfair! But we can do this; we have to. Know that you aren't alone, and don't even think about throwing in the towel! Just step it up a tiny bit and stay the course.  All things come and go. This, too, shall pass! 

Warm Edamame Salad - serves 4 to 6  

 Around 1960 a woman named Frances Moore Lappe wrote a book called, Diet for a Small Planet.  Why am I telling you this?  Well, she is almost solely responsible for the entire country's misunderstanding as to what constitutes a proper protein.  Let me explain, briefly.   

 Lappe wrote that it was necessary to combine vegetable proteins to equal the protein levels in an egg.  This incorrect theory convinced us that vegetable proteins were inferior to animal proteins.  Post publication, many experts reported that her conclusions were misleading and that Lappe placed vegetable proteins in a less favorable light than the truth warranted.   

Nathan Pritikin wrote, "Unfortunately, the book is one of the most misleading documents in the last few years because everybody now thinks food balancing is essential.  [The book] gives the impression that vegetable proteins don't have sufficient percentages of amino acids." Lappe has since recanted her statements in various editions of her book, most recently in 1981, when she stated, "If people are getting enough calories, they are virtually certain of getting enough protein."  She then goes on to explain that vegetable proteins are not only adequate, but also superior to animal proteins.  Unfortunately, her later findings went unnoticed and many people still believe her original theory. 

For the love of proteins...here is a meal chock full of them!  

Enjoy!

What you need :  

2 tbsp. olive oil
4 cups (12 oz) cremini mushrooms, sliced
1- 16 oz package frozen shelled edamame, thawed
1 cup (4 oz) sugar snap peas, sliced in half
1 tsp. fresh ginger, peeled and minced
1/2 cup jarred roasted red bell peppers, cut into 1/2-inch strips
1-8 oz can sliced water chestnuts, drained
1/2 tsp. Sriracha chile sauce  
Coarse salt and black pepper to taste (go light on the salt)
1 tbsp. toasted sesame seeds
2 tsp. rice wine vinegar    

What to do:   

1.  Heat 1 tbsp. oil in a large pan over medium-high heat.  Cook the mushrooms, stirring, until tender, 6 to 8 minutes.  Transfer to a bowl and set aside.
 
2. Add remaining oil to pan.  Cook the edamame, snap peas, and ginger, stirring occasionally, until peas are tender and edamame is bright green, 3 to 5 minutes.  Add the red pepper, chestnuts, Sriracha, and mushrooms and cook, stirring, until heated through.  Season with salt and pepper.  Remove from heat; stir in the toasted sesame seeds and vinegar.
 
Serve hot, or refrigerate and enjoy cold!
 
*Recipe compliments of Whole Living Magazine!