Menopause is the time when women tend to develop menopausal belly fat. Fat has accumulated in other parts of the body for most of a woman’s life, but during menopause, abdominal fat settles in the midsection. Even women with no weight problems in the past are likely to have some extra belly fat during menopause as they go through “the change.”
Since lean muscle mass decreases during menopause, body fat increases, significantly changing body composition. Instead of accumulating in the usual places, such as the hips, arms, or legs, menopausal abdominal fat finds its way to the stomach region.
Changing hormone levels in a woman’s body are to blame for this change in body composition. The male hormone, androgen, (present in women to a lesser extent), strikes a delicate balancing act with the natural amount of estrogen in a woman’s body. The ratios change as estrogen begins to decline, creating all sorts of complications for the woman going through menopause. It is this change that is related to the appearance of abdominal fat in menopause.
Visceral fat is abdominal fat from menopause that sits behind the abdominal muscle wall and surrounds the body’s organs. The fat that you can retain when you grab onto the fleshy parts of your body is called subcutaneous fat, and it stays just below the surface of your skin. These are two very different types of fat. Visceral fat is much more dangerous to health and causes cardiovascular problems and type 2 diabetes, among other things.
Removing visceral fat from the body is very important, and good news, it’s actually easier to remove than subcutaneous fat! Visceral fat reacts well to exercise and dietary measures, and melts more easily and quickly than subcutaneous fat. Researchers have found that women who exercise infrequently or not at all tend to have at least a 9% increase in abdominal fat during menopause, while women who exercise regularly experience little or no increase, and even lose fat viscerally, depending on the frequency and extent of the applied effort. .
Subcutaneous fat is more difficult to lose, so women may not think their efforts are working. But this thinking is wrong. Removing visceral fat from the body will ultimately improve health and fitness and prevent unwanted diseases that often come with age.
How to lose belly fat during menopause
1) 30-minute sessions of cardiovascular exercises such as swimming, walking, yoga, cycling and/or other similar exercises should be done at least 3 times a week. Resistance training is also recommended.
2) Watch what you eat. Dieting, in the traditional sense, is not a good idea, as the body will go into “starvation mode” and slow down the metabolism, thus defeating the purpose. Instead, choose healthier foods. Limit refined sugars, white flours and drink plenty of water.
Many of the natural foods you can eat will also contain phytoestrogens, which will help alleviate many of the unpleasant side effects of menopause.
