September 8, 2009
Perimenopause Weight Gain
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 weight off while going through perimenopause. Perimenopause is the time all the big changes in our body begin to happen and therefore we experiences the unwanted symptoms. One such symptom is unwanted weight gain.
I asked you to work on the mind-body connection. Pay attention to how you feel before, during and after you have eaten something. Your body is pretty smart and it is good to get in-tune with it. We tend to eat out of habit, instead of really learning and knowing the type and amount of food that our body needs.
Now that we are in perimenopause, we need to change our eating patterns and habits if they are not working for us anymore.
Today I will tell you one of my secrets on how to:
LOSE UNWANTED FAT AROUND YOUR WAIST AND STAY LEAN
Our food nowadays is so full of chemicals and additives. What do you think those are doing inside of us? What does our body do with all the chemicals we putting into it? The additives, colorings, etc that are in packaged foods, fast food and various drinks are not recognized by our body. They are not really food so our body cannot use them.
Q. If it cannot use them, what does it do with them?
A. Most likely our body stores them in fat.
It stores them in liquid (water retention) and in tissues (our fat is great for this). The more chemicals you take in, the more fat and liquid your body needs to store them. Especially if they are not being properly eliminated from our body. If our digestion is not working that well (This is all in simple terms of course). The more chemicals you put in – the more fat your body needs to store the waste. Think of it as toxic waste.
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 definitely non-GMO (non-genetically modified). Even look at organic canned foods. Lots of time they are grown organic but when packaged, preservatives, chemicals and even colorings can be added to them.
I have a sensitivity to preservatives, chemicals and colorings contained in food, drink, candy, etc. I also stay away from gluten, almost all dairy, wheat, oats, etc.
Many women going through perimenopause and menopause develop sensitivities to wheat and diary. The symptoms may not be dramatic but once you learn to pay attention to how you feel after you eat, you will notice what agrees with you and what does not.
I wasn’t always like this…..the food that was available was not as full of “junk” as it 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 know we need to stay away from.
Once I became aware that I had reactions to these chemicals, I had to avoid them. 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. Be careful to notice if the site you are on is the company that produces that chemical or puts it in the food. They of course would claim it to be safe. Notice where the information is coming from.
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 lots of veggies and fruit (a lot of food) and be fine but I know that “light” or “diet” salad dressings, crackers, cookies, etc. contain “empty” calories, “junk” that is not food and chemical sweeteners, fillers, preservatives, additives and colorings. They are not real food. My body cannot use them. They do not supply the body with any nutrition – therefore the body is starving. You will feel hungry because your body did not receive enough “good food” or “good nutrition”. It did not receive the building blocks that it needs to function properly, provide you with energy, keep your metabolism going and sustain a great immune system.
Begin to read labels. You will be shocked!!
I’d love to hear your comments and any questions you may have.
