Perimenopause Weight Gain and Preservatives

If this is your first time to the blog, I have been talking about how learning to eat intuitively can help lose weight and keep it off. Perimenaopause is one of the times in our lives where a lot of big changes in our body begin to happen and therefore we experience uncomfortable symptoms associated with those changes. Remember adolescence?

One symptom you may not be too happy about is unwanted weight gain. I asked you in a previous post to work on your mind-body connection. To pay attention to how you feel before, during and after you eat. Your body is smart and it is a good idea to get in-tune with it. Many people eat out of habit, instead of really learning and knowing the type and amount of food their body requires.

Now that you are in perimenopause, you need to change your eating patterns and habits if they are not working for you anymore.

Today I will tell you one of my secrets on how to

LOSE UNWATNED FAT AROUND YOUR WAIST AND STAY LEAN

Our food is so full of chemicals and additives. What do you think those are doing inside of of you? What does your body do with all the chemicals you are putting into it? The additives, colorings, etc that are in packaged foods, fast foods and various drinks are not recognized by our body. They are not food so our body cannot utilize them.

Q.   It if cannot use them, what does it do with them?

A.   Most likely our body stores them in fat

The toxins and chemicals get stored in liquid (water retention) and tissue (our fat). The more chemicals you take in, the more fat and liquid your body needs to store them in. Especially if they are not being properly eliminated from your body. If your digestion is not working that well then you are not getting rid of many toxins and chemicals. The more chemicals you take in, the more fat your body needs to store the waste. Think of it as toxic waste - YUCK!

My challenge to you is to read ALL food and drink labels. When you are shopping for foods - read the labels. If you are buying produce - try to buy organic and definiately non-GMO (non-genetically modified). Even look at organic canned foods. They may be grown organic but when they are packaged, preservatives, chemicals, colorings, etc are added to them.

My body is very sensitive to preservatives, chemicals and colorings contained in food, drinks, candy, etc. I get bad headaches, my muscles tense up and I have flu symptoms. So I can tell if a restaurant has has put them in/on their food or used boughten sauces with preservatives in them. I have to ask and tell them I have an allergy and then they let me know if what they are serving has additives in it. Most cases - yes it does. Especially big chain restaurants.

I am also sensitive to dairy and wheat. I usually stay away from anything with gluten in it.

Many women going through perimenopause and menopause develop sensitivities to wheat and dairy. The symptoms may not be dramatic but once you learn to pay attention to how you feel after you eat, you will become aware of what agrees with you and what does not.

I haven't always been this sensitive...but then again, the food that was available was not as full as the "junk" that is is now either.

Wheat and dairy are NOT what they used to be.

When you are reading labels, if you notice your favorite foods or drinks contain chemical preservatives - don't eat or drink them. Will this be hard? Probably, but think of this. Would you drink Mr Clean? Would you add it to your salad? No! That may be extreme but some of the things added to foods and drinks are not that far off the hazardos chemicals we use to clean with.

When I became aware that it was the chemicals and preservatives that were giving me the whopping headaches and horrible symptoms, I stayed away from them. Pain is a great teacher.

What a difference!! No water retention, no puffiness, headaches, sinus problems and most of all - NO EXTRA FAT AROUND MY WASTE!

If you are wondering how you can tell what the preservatives are on a label you are reading. GOOGLE IT. Google the words you don't know (the chemical names). Be careful to notice if the site you are led to is the company that produces the preservative. They will tell you it is fine. Look at the source. You are what you eat and if you are trying to lose weight or maintain the weight you are now, then you MUST be aware of what you are eating.

It is not just how much but "what". I can eat a lot of veggies and fruit and be fine but I know that "light" or "diet" salad dressings, crackers, cookies, etc. contain "empty" calories, "junk" that is not food. No sugar added products could have chemical sweeteners, fillers, preservatives, additives, colorings. They are NOT real food and most of all NOT good for you at all!

They will NOT supply the body with any nutrition - so why eat them? Why treat your body like a toxic waste dumping ground!

They will not satisfy your hunger for long. They may even cause cravings. Because they are not FOOD your body can use so your body is still starving for nutrients. It wants food - so you will feel hungry. If you body does not receive the proper nutrition it needs to function, you will not be provided with energy, your metabolism will slow down and you will compromise your immune system.

Begin to read labels. You will be absolutely SHOCKED!!

I'd love to hear your comments and any questions you may have.

Intuitive Eating for Weight Loss Part 2

Me doing yoga on Hornby Island, BC - it was so beautiful!

In my last post I asked you to pay attention to how you feel physically, emotionally and mentally after you eat.

The point of this is to get in touch with your body. Your body will let you know if it is "happy" or not. You will then become aware if your body is receiving the proper nutrients. You may also gain insight into your thoughts and feelings regarding food. You may attach a lot of guilt to eating. Maybe you are not even hungry when you eat. You may realize that a food you thought you loved doesn't make you feel good when you eat it.

When you are on a diet or trying to lose weight and you crave a food you don't think you should eat, you stop yourself from eating it. Why this fails is that you end up eating more "junky" foods to make up for the one thing you are craving but did not eat. In most cases it would be better to eat a little of what you are craving so that you do not eat a lot of food trying to get rid of the craving.

In most cases, the foods you end up eating (to avoid eating the one you crave) are full of empty calories and probably do not have a lot of good nutritional value to them. So basically, they are added calories that you didn't want and you didn't need and now you will consume more calories by actually eating what you were craving. In the end you have consumed more calories than if you would have just eaten what you craved in the first place.

I know myself, I have periods when I crave either fat, salt or chocolate. When I really, really crave something that is not good for me, I buy a small version of it or choose a healthier version of what I am craving. If I am craving fat and salt, I like to have vegetable tempura. The vegetable tempura satisfies my fat craving and the light soya sauce satisfies my salt craving. This is what I do when a celery stick just doesn't cut it.

When I crave chocolate - I eat it. I make my own chocolate treats with raw cacao powder, which is extremely healthy, so I don't feel bad about consuming chocolate. I also don't eat a lot at once. When you are really craving chocolate it is best to buy a small amount and eat it. You can buy small amounts in the bulk section of a grocery store, but I do suggest eating raw chocolate or buying organic chocolate. Go to a health food store and buy a small bar of organic chocolate. Dark is best.

Think about why you eat what you eat

Why do you want that food item? Do you really want it or has it become a habit to eat it, even if you do not really crave it? Are you eating because you are bored?

Like I mentioned, if you are about to eat something that is unhealthy for you, ask yourself:

• Why do I want it?
• Could I find something healthier to eat that will satisfy that craving?
• Could I find a healthier alternative of the item I am craving?
• Am I eating out of boredom?
• Am I thirsty? (often this is the case)
• How will I feel after I eat the unhealthy snack?
• How will I feel if I choose something healthier to eat?

You do not need to continue with a bad habit. YOU CAN REPLACE IT WITH A BETTER food choice. Even if at first it is not the best food choice, as long as it is better. Then next time you have a craving, choose something better than before. Take steps to continually choose better foods. As long as you are moving forward and not backwards you WILL feel good about your choices.

Steps to take:

• Continue to monitor how you are feeling (physically, emotionally and mentally) before you eat, while you are eating and after you eat
• Try not to eat a bunch of empty calories or junk to avoid eating a little of something that you crave
• Notice if you are eating out of habit or boredom

In my next post I will share more steps to guide you closer to eating intuitively so you can lose unwanted weight and feel more energized and healthy. Whether you are in perimenopause, pre-perimenopause, menopause or post-menopause, intuitive eating will help you feel more energized, stay healthier, lose weight and assist in balancing your moods.

Let me know how you satisfy your craving for something "bad".....

Perimenopause & Intuitive Eating for Weight Loss

When I started gaining weight during perimenopause it made me stop and think. I was not eating differently than I had done in th past, so why was I gaining weight now? I found out it was a combination of hormone imbalance, my metabolism slowing down and the fact that I was less active than I had been before.

I had to change something. I HAD TO LOOK AT

What, When and Why I was eating

We need to eat to survive, but eating patterns ARE a habit. The habit part is what we have to look at. I had been very active and was weight training a lot in my 30's and early 40's. Now in my mid 40's past injuries had caught up with me and I had to decrease my activity level, but I had not changed my eating habits. I was focused on healing my body and not what I was eating. BIG MISTAKE! When I was very active, I was eating a lot of food. My body needed the food and I burned the calories; I could pretty much eat anything. Even though my activity level greatly decreased, my eating habits had not changed. I was therefore, gaining weight; unwanted weight. Weight was gathering around my mid section - front and back!

As we all know, habits can be hard to break. I HAD TO LOOK AT

what I ate, when I was eating it, how much I was eating and why

In the next few posts I will discuss intiuitive eating and how it helped me lose weight and feel so much better! It is something that everyone should be doing because if you are able to learn how to intuitively eat, no matter what happens in your life, you will be prepared and YOU WILL adjust your eating habits naturally, it won't be an effort. The first thing I want you to do is:

After you eat a meal or any food, notice how you feel physically, emotionally and mentally

Physically:
How does your stomach feel after you eat? Do you feel light or heavy? Do you feel like there is a big lump of dough sitting in the pit of your stomach? Do you feel like the food is stuck somewhere or unable to move through you? Do you feel really tired and lethargic? Do you feel satisfied with what you ate? Do you feel good and not stuffed and bloated?

Emotionally:
Do you feel drained of energy, or full of energy and ready to go? Do you have a sense of well-being? Do you feel happy and healthy after you eat? Do you feel guilty for what you just ate? Are you frustrated because you ate something you probably should not have? Do you feel happy you are moving in the right direction by eating something that is supplying your body with good nutrition?

Mentally:
Is your mind feeling foggy? Are you having a hard time concentrating? Do you just want to find a place to lie down and take a nap? Do you feel clear-headed, ready to take on the tasks of your day? Do you feel like you can handle anything and feel positive about yourself and your life? Are you disappointed because you made a bad food choice and will beat yourself up for the rest of the day?

Start to become aware of how you feel after you eat. You need to develop that mind-body connection. I promise you it will make ALL the difference.

Practice this and I will post more about this very important topic later.

Wheat and Dairy Free Snacks

Last entry I promised that I would give you a recipe for some almond and hemp milk and a healthy mini-muffin recipe.

I am sure most of you know how many calories there are in the muffins and treats you get at coffee shops. They contain lots of sugar and fat. Maybe that is why they taste so good? They also do not contain many actual "healthy" ingredients.

If you are trying to get off wheat and dairy - which is a good idea - then here are some recipes that can help the transition.

Almond Milk

• 1 cup of soaked organic raw almonds (these are sometimes called "natural" almonds). They have not been roasted or salted. Soak these overnight in filtered water.
• 3 cups of filtered water
• 1 tsp of pure vanilla
• Honey or agave nector added to taste
• a pinch of cinnamon (optional)

You will need a blender for this. Add the water first, then the rest of ingredients. If you don't have a really powerful blender then you might want to cut up the almonds first. Blend until mixture is well mixed. You will still see small chunks of almonds (probably). Pour the almond milk through a very fine strainer or cheesecloth (a nut bag is great if you have one). The liquid that comes through the strainer or cheesecloth is the almond milk.

You can make chocolate milk by adding organic cocoa or cacao powder (raw chocolate and very healthy for you!). You may want to add some more sweetener or some dates when blending the almond milk with the cocoa or cacao powder. Do this in your blender.

Hemp Milk
You will do the same as above except use hemp hearts and water, vanilla and sweetener.

• 2 tbsp of hemp hearts
• 2 cups of water
• 1/2 tsp of vanilla
• Sweetener to taste

Blend together in blender. You can also then add cocoa or cacao powder to this also. You don't really need to strain it. You may want to do a smaller batch using 1 tbsp hemp hearts and 1 cup of water.

Healthy Mini-Muffins

• 2 cups of flour of choice (Kamut, spelt, ground almonds, etc. or combine a few)
• 1 egg or oil (I like grape seed oil)
• Madjool dates chopped up (3 or 4, depends on how much you like them)
• Soaked nuts (walnuts, chopped almonds, pecans, etc)
• Sunflower and pumpkin seeds
• Cinnamon, nutmet, salt (all to taste)
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp vanilla
• Sweetener of your choice and to taste (careful - if you use dates or raisins you do not need much  honey or sweetener)

Mix all the dry ingredients in a bowl. Add dats and mix. Add egg or oil and vanilla and mix. You want the batter to be the consistency of muffin batter so add almond milk (or another liquid) to make the batter the proper thickness.

You don have to worry too much about measuring the ingredients. If you have baked before you know what muffin batter is supposed to look like. It is runnier than cookie batter but still thick. It is hard to screw this up unless you add too much liquid and it gets too runny or you add too many nuts and seeds and the muffins do not stick together. If too much liquid, add more dry ingredients.

Pour mixture into mini-muffin tins. You can also make this thick and try making cookies. I have done both. Every time I used to make these they turned out a bit different. Write down the ingredients and how much you use and you will know what you need to adjust for next batch.

You can really add anything to this recipe once you have the base.

Let me know how they turn out!

Remember - these are healthier than the ones you buy at a coffee shop but eating 5 at a time is probably still too much. You will notice they are quite filling if you have a lot of healthy nutritional ingredients in them.

Enjoy!

Losing Weight During Perimenopause

The 2 things you can start to do to lose fat around your waist

If you are in your 40's (or even late 30's) you may be experiencing a slight weight gain, maybe it is gathering around your waist. That is where it arrived on me. I have small hips and my waist is not really defined to begin with so when the weight started coming on around my waist, it was really noticeable.

My pants were tighter and uncomfortable and I felt bloated and puffy. I was getting "back fat" and love handles which I never really had before. This was happening even though I had not changed my exercise routine or what I was eating.

The fat around my waist came on gradually, but at the same time seemed to accumulate quite fast. It was there and I did not like it. When I sat down I could pinch a big chunk in my fingers and I have never been able to do that before. My friends thought it was funny because I had always been so slim. Believe me, I did not find it funny!

In the past, whenever I gained about 5 lbs, I would insist that I lose that 5 lbs. I would not wait until more sneaked up on me. It would take me only about 2 weeks of watching what I ate and stepping up my cardio and exercise and the 5 extra pounds would be gone. It worked for me. But this time....it was not working! I had to change something.

What did I start with?...

I stopped eating wheat and dairy

As I was doing my research and reading, I read that many women going through perimenopause tend to develop sensitivities to wheat and dairy. I knew I was feeling bloated and sluggish so I gave it a try.

I gave up my healthy muffins made with whole-wheat flour, I stopped eating the cereal with milk and used soy milk for my coffee and tea. (I make my own hemp and almond milk and will share the recipe in a future post. Healthier than soy milk)

I even stopped eating yogurt and frozen yogurt. By doing this I realized that I did have a sensitivity to the wheat and to dairy. I felt so much better and the bloating I was experiencing went away.

Because I stopped eating wheat, I had to make my own snacks without wheat and dairy. I made my own healthy muffins and cookies with wheat-free flours and with lots of healthy ingredients and containing less sugar and oil than anything you can buy. I also made them small and not large like they tend to be at coffee shops.

Along with one or two of my healthy smaller muffins or cookies I would bring a piece fruit. Having the fruit with my muffin or cookie filled me up so I wouldn't consume as many muffins/cookies and I was getting my fruit.

In my next post I will share my almond and hemp milk recipes along with a recipe for the small healthy wheat-free muffins I used to make. You will love them!

Until then - have a fantastic day and think healthy thoughts! I would love to hear your comments on what works or does not work for you. Let's share and help each other!

How Do I Know I Am In Perimenopause?

Weight gain, headaches, fatigue, extreme emotions, memory problems, loss of sex drive, etc... Could this be Perimenopause?

Welcome to my blog!

This is my first post and I am here to share information, my experience and knowledge that I have gathered so far as I journey through Perimenopause.

I am a personal trainer, yoga teacher, post rehab conditioning specialist and I am passionate about nutrition and health. I am 45 years old and started going through Perimenopause about 2 years ago.

When I experience something that affects my health and well-being I jump into it, research it and find out everything I can about it and what I can do. How I can bring myself back to feeling healthy and happy. I loved my 30’s – I’d say that is when I looked and felt my best. The early 40’s were still pretty good. Then, I hit my mid 40’s and some strange things began happening.

I have always been fit, healthy and active. I had tons of energy and my moods were level and I felt as if I was cruising through life and enjoying the ride.

Then…..it happened…. I began feeling more irritable, emotional and I gained weight around my mid-section. I even felt a little depressed at times. My PMS seemed to last the whole month! I felt as if I was going through puberty again. Since my daughter had a crazy 2 years from 13-15 (she is now 20), I remember all to well what she went through and I could actually now relate to the extreme emotions and how little things became HUGE problems! Why was I feeling like this?! It was like adolensence all over again.

What was causing all these feelings, sensations, physical changes? I am far too young for menopause!! I didn’t even think of that being the cause of “whatever” I was experiencing.

Then began the research, I had to figure out a way to handle this. I will NOT let something take control over me. My body and my mind (which is what it felt like). That is when I found out about Perimenopause.

At the same time I was experiencing the symptoms of perimenopause and researching it, I noticed that many of my clients were also having similar issues. I was trying to help them lose weight, tone up, eat better, but they seem to be stuck. What worked for them in the past was not working anymore. I noticed that with myself also. The lack of energy did not help either.

So what did I discover? What worked for me? Even though I was living an active and healthy life, I had to change some things. If what I was doing was not working – I had to make some changes.

Stay tuned to my future posts where I will let you know what worked for me, give you suggestions what could work for you. I have NO weight problem now at all. I don’t really diet, I have just changed how and what I eat. And I love the food - I feel so much better!

I am here to share what has worked for me. You too can keep the weight off, balance your moods, release some stress, be healthier and happier. Stay tuned for my next post!

I will let you know the #1 thing that made the most difference for me.