So I’m just saying it… I’ve told a few people… but putting it into the universe seems appropriate.  I’m in menopause. 

Like, For Real, Men-O-Pause!  Actually I think its actually Post Menopause now that I’m learning Moore.

Yes, I know, you knew that 5 years ago when I first said it after going through Triple Positive Breast Cancer.  But I didn’t believe it really affected me.  Breast Cancer treatments were over, I figured I could get back to mostly normal despite the Dr having a super serious talk when she said she needed to put me in deep menopause and fast.  I really didn’t think this would be the part that affected me more than literally a year of chemo…

I mean, hot flashes, joint pain, low libido, some weight gain- its all manageable.  I mean my low dose Paxil helps the hot flashes, my daily turmeric eliminates my joint pain and the libido thing, its manageable and improving overall.  The weight, well although it started kinda quick, it slowed and plateaued, so I figured it was controlled because I eat healthy and work out a lot.  

Weight gain has probably been the worst of it, I remember after starting the Lupron shots in May 2017, then the Arimidex at the end of May 2017… then having my Oophorectomy in December 2017… I started to notice this 1lb per month weight gain that just wasn’t easily coming off.  I just thought it was a quick fluctuation, I was struggling to get my speed of running back up but I knew it would take time and training.  That pound per month went on for at least 7 months.  Then it stopped.  And then the next year I added on a few more that weren’t budging.  My doctor said it was typical to see a 7-10lb increase with these meds and this transition. 

The pandemic came and everyone was mentally stressed for what has literally been 2 years!  I bought the book Roar by Stacy Sims about 1.5 years ago and really started learning about athletic women’s health in a way I never imagined.  I paid attention to the menopause section and took advice from it, thinking of better foods to be choosing to fuel myself.  

Then this January after Christmas I kinda just let go of dieting and decided I needed a break from the strictness of it.  Thinking maybe that would stimulate my body to lose quick anything I gained plus more when I restarted healthier choices. 

Um.
That didn’t work.  It backfired. Now I have another 5lbs that won’t budge.
My energy is decreasing, and I’m honestly just tired of long races. 

My last half marathon was in Salt Lake City 5 weeks ago.  And although I figured out the magnesium portion to keep me from cramping, I was worn out. 

So now I’m buckling down and listening to podcasts from Hit Play Not Pause as well as following their facebook page regularly.  Stacy Sims put out a new book with Selene Yeager (the woman who runs the Hit Play Not Pause groups/podcasts).  There was an early release YouTube video from their Summit that was released with pre-orders.  

I’m now officially understanding, I am in MENOPAUSE.  People think I look younger than I am.  But my body is acting 10-15 years older than I am.  And that’s hard to grasp around your friends who are your age that you are on a different body track than them.  It’s a matter of accepting it.  And that’s what blogging and talking about this is … me accepting.  Me understanding that my body has different needs than I have been giving it. 

Take-aways I have found thus far from my readings…

-Menopausal education is often based towards women who aren’t active.  There’s not a lot of education by Drs on active women in menopause. 
-Belly fat is part of menopause
-Eat more often and more protein.  I should be getting 177g Carbs, 136g protein, 71g fat, and at least 1500 calories daily. 
-Coffee and Red wine are good for my gut (I liked that so I had to add it)
-Feed your gut with foods that stimulate good microbes, not the bad. 
-Decrease sugar.. it increases inflammation.
-No Gels for Workouts.  Those were formulated for men.  Bloks are ok.  
-Work outs should be short and intense.  
-Weight lifting and HIIT are the best workout options. 
-If you do a long workout, your body needs to recover longer than it needed before.  
-Longer cardio days will bring on more body inflammation.
-Sleep more
-Estrogen and Progesterone controlled so many more things than realized and not having them means that modifications are in order.
-Women in Menopause do not do as well with intermittent fasting due to insulin sensitivity.  Men however do do well with intermittent fasting. 
-Just like girls start puberty first and the boys start a few years later, menopause is the same.  
-Women start much earlier on age-related changes than men do.
-Menopause is a super short time.  Peri Menopause is quite a bit longer and Post Menopause lasts a very long time.