Here’s the Problem

You’re in peri-menopause or menopause now, and you’ve put on some weight, especially around your middle. There is ONE thing you can start doing today that you’ve probably been overlooking, but it helps far more than you ever thought.

Story about Emily (49)

• In the last 2 years she has slowly put on a little bit of weight - about 8 pounds total
• She does not like this trend and is afraid that it’s only going to get worse
• She asked me point blank: “what should I do?”
  • I said, “There are so many variables that you can change - make adjustments to your eating habits, and sleep, and stress - but if you’re only going to do one thing, this is what it would be.”
  • The good news this is the EASIEST thing, the simplest thing possible
• After 2 months of only doing this one thing, she dropped 4 pounds and could tell that she had more energy - proof that her metabolism had improved

So, if I’m going to break it down and say the easiest, simplest thing that you can do starting today that will improve your metabolism, impact your body composition, and contribute to your overall is this…

Increase your NEAT:

What is NEAT?

• Non-exercise-activity-thermogenesis
• In plain English, this basically means the amount of your metabolic output or energy you’re expending every day that’s from activity which is not in the form of actual exercise
• This is all the energy that your body has is expending to walk around the house, climb in and out of car, lift and carry groceries, take the dog for a walk, clean the bathroom, get the mail

Why?

• NEAT can improve your metabolic output by as much as 10%
  • I know that doesn’t sound like much, but that can be the difference of about 200-300 calories a day
• One of the most common reasons why women gain weight in midlife is a decrease in physical activity
  • Aging is associated with a decrease in physical activity (PA), which may be subtle and therefore not easily perceived by the individual.12 The decrease in physical activity further compounds the decrease in lean body mass.
  • Among the environmental factors affecting weight in studies of female twins, PA has emerged as the most important.14
  • In a study among women aged 50 to 64 years, only about half reported regular PA, and only one-fourth reported high-intensity exercise.
• Unfortunately, I think so many women see “physical activity” as doing a full workout. And there are so many barriers to doing “workouts” mental and physical
  • So the other option is to be sedentary

How?

• Intentionally build in more non-exercise movement every day
• My mom is turning 70 this year and she is remarkably active
  • Yes, she works out a couple days a week (strength trains)
  • Every day she feeds horses - let me describe the horse feeding process for you
  • Every day she goes and gets the mail - 1/4 mile away (1/2 mile walk round trip)
• Being intentional - Living out here in Idaho in a setting like this forces you to be a more active person, but if you don’t you simply need to be more intentional about it
  • Go for a walk every day, whether or not you worked out
  • Park at the very back of the parking lot at the grocery store
  • Do a stretching routine in the evenings
  • If you have stairs in your house, take them as often as possible
  • Use a device to give yourself a target number of steps
  • Be weird about it if you need to! While everyone is taking the escalator, take the stairs!
  • Purposefully look for ways that you can move more everyday!

Truth

Let me be frank with you: If you are not as trim as you’d like to be, if your metabolism has decreased and you have put on a few pounds in midlife, and find yourself struggling to see a change, you will always struggle if you don’t become a mover.

Try to not view “physical activity” as just doing workouts.

Be someone that moves all day long, that looks for every opportunity to move - that’s your baseline. And then sprinkle in the bouts of higher intensity-more purposeful activity

In real life

We always laugh because my dad cannot sit still. He’s 72, but he still fidgets like my 10 year old. If we go out to eat, he’ll sit long enough to order, and then he’s up walking to bathroom, checking out the property, talking to other people he knows. And then as soon as dinner is done, he’s out walking around the block, checking out the cars in the parking lot.

And this is just one example of my dad, but I have millions others, but he never works out and yet has never battled excess weight. Coincidence? I think not.

And on the flipside, I know men and especially women in midlife that spend their days looking for ways to sit and relax. Just lots of sitting and relaxing, and unfortunately that metabolism is tanking while you’re sitting.

Remember this!

If there’s ONE THING you can remember from today, just remember to Increase your NEAT!

More Resources & Links

Need help getting started! Get Megan’s FREE 5-Day Jumpstart Tips guide!

The Jumpstart 30 Program for Beginners

324. Menopausal Belly Fat & Why It’s Killing You

https://www.mayoclinicproceedings.org/article/S0025-6196(17)30602-X/fulltext

https://www.jadeteta.com/blog/female-belly-fat-stress-menopause-other-causes

Follow Megan on Instagram

Follow Megan on YouTube