According to research carried out, most women (and men) gain weight as they age and even more during menopause.

This is because of the hormonal changes that occur during menopause which might make you gain weight around your abdomen in particular. However, lifestyle changes and genetic factors due to aging are also some of the reasons for weight gain.

As we grow older, our rate of metabolism slows down. We become less active than we were during our youthful days. Our muscle mass reduces while fat increases. These are some of the factors that could lead to weight gain as we age and at menopause.

Note however that weight gain at this phase of our lives is NOT inevitable. Our weight can be checked. Not all middle-aged men and women must be fat and round with protruding bellies. There are ways to control our weight if we care about our health and appearance. Here are some of the things you can do to avoid weight gain associated with aging and menopause.

1. Change of diet. It seems the solution to every weight association problem is diet change right?!😂 But it is. What goes from our plates into our bodies determines to a large extent how healthy we are and how we look. It’s that simple! I know most of us are kind of stuck in our ways when it comes to our eating habits. We love what we love. But when you think about the long term benefits of a diet change and a good diet plan, you should be motivated to make the required change.

So when it comes to our diet, here are a few changes required:

  • Reduce your carb intake. The watchword is REDUCE, not AVOID. You need carbs for energy. Your body shouldn’t be made to function without it. You can replace processed carbs with healthier alternatives like potatoes, some wholesome carbs that are high in fiber like green vegetables,oats, brown rice ( I have it in my head that our Ofada rice falls in this category. Perhaps research more about this)etc
  • Reduce the intake of sugars and sugar alternatives.
  • Reduce your intake of alcoholic beverages
  • Reduce the intake of soft drinks.
  • Include more fruits and vegetables into your daily meals. You could replace a meal with either fruits or vegetables. Or a blend of both.
  • Practice intermittent fasting. It helps control cravings and cuts down on hunger.
  • Drink a lot of water. It’s good for your digestive system and your skin.

2. Exercise: Another solution we don’t want to hear but unfortunately we HAVE to hear! Get up and be more active! We’ve got help and our kids doing everything for us. We can’t even get our glass of water or even pick up the TV remote right in front of us! Please stop it! Your body weakens when it does nothing. And the less active we are the less energy we burn. All those accumulated fat just keeps getting stored up in our body with no physical exertion to burn them off! We don’t want that. There are a lot of diseases associated with weight gain. Too numerous to count.

Some folks believe that as you grow older, it’s NORMAL to start to develop diabetes, high blood pressure, arthritis, etc. But it’s not. Those sicknesses happen because of our lifestyle. If you maintain a healthy lifestyle, there’s absolutely no reason for you to develop any age-associated disease.

To improve your physical activity, here are a few suggestion:

  • Schedule a daily walk in your neighborhood.
  • Register at a gym and have an accountability partner that would ensure you remain committed.
  • Join a dance class. Or simply play some youtube videos in your living room and dance.
  • Go swimming.
  • Think of any leisure activities that you love that would help you burn some energy and remain committed to doing such on regular basis.

3. Waist training: Yes. This is my favorite solution and by far the easiest! One major advantage of waist training is that the corset helps burn abdominal fat. I’ve noticed that regardless of weight gain, my waist doesn’t increase. The reason is that I waist train regularly. This has helped to keep my waist at the same size even when I add a bit of weight. Waist training is for everyone. It is not age restrictive neither is it gender restrictive.