Maintaining a healthy lifestyle through a balanced diet, regular physical activity, proper sleep, and stress modification can help with managing and reversing hormonal weight gain and decreasing the associated health risks that may result if it is not addressed.
Exercises to fight hormonal belly fat
Shepherd suggests trying high-intensity interval training (HIIT) and “short bursts of exercise” to rev up your metabolism and lose weight. Just be mindful of how much you're exercising.
To regain the estrogen balance, the body starts converting all energy sources into fat, which leads to weight-gain, especially in the abdomen area. This is compounded by the fact that with age, metabolism and the ability to exercise also reduces.
And changes in these hormones can sometimes result in unexpected — and uncontrollable — weight gain. A few examples include: Estrogen shifts. During menopause, a decrease in estrogen is linked to lower muscle mass and increased fat stores for women, usually around the midsection.
Recent studies show that menopausal women on hormone therapy tend to have less body fat, especially visceral belly fat. Because estrogen affects how your body distributes fat, low estrogen levels can contribute to gaining fat in your belly area.
A combination of diet and exercise may help symptoms. A person can perform exercises that burn fat, such as running, walking, and other aerobic activity. Reducing the calories a person consumes can also help.
Eat a healthy diet: Eating a low-fat, high-fiber diet with very little processed sugar can make it easier for your liver to process estrogen. Limit your alcohol intake: Eliminating alcohol or drinking in moderation can help your liver break down estrogen. Reduce your exposure to synthetic xenoestrogens.
Exercise regularly.
Research suggests that exercise can help to reduce high estrogen levels. Premenopausal women who engage in aerobic exercise for five hours a week or more saw their estrogen levels drop by nearly 19%. Cardio exercise helps the body break estrogen down and flush away any excess.
Magnesium Key Role in Sex Hormone Production
Magnesium has been shown in many studies to be a regulating mineral. If your estrogen levels are too high or too low, then magnesium can help bring them back to stable levels, which will positively impact testosterone and progesterone.
Many people say that changing estrogen levels affect their weight, particularly around menopause. A fall in estradiol, an estrogen hormone, may lead to weight gain or difficulty losing weight. Some forms of estrogen are linked with how the body controls weight gain.
Estrogen dominance causes several issues in the body, but most women will find that it can be extremely difficult, and almost impossible, to lose weight as a result of estrogen dominance. Estrogen dominance causes fat gain, water retention, and bloating, and puts women at a higher risk for obesity.
The hormone leptin is produced by fat cells and is secreted into our bloodstream. Leptin reduces a person's appetite by acting on specific centres of their brain to reduce their urge to eat. It also seems to control how the body manages its store of body fat.
Maintaining a healthy lifestyle through a balanced diet, regular physical activity, proper sleep, and stress modification can help with managing and reversing hormonal weight gain and decreasing the associated health risks that may result if it is not addressed.
Many women notice an increase in belly fat as they get older even if they don't gain weight. This is likely due to a lower level of estrogen because estrogen seems to have an effect on where fat is located in the body. Genes can contribute to an individual's chances of being overweight or obese too.
“It is possible to overcome hormonal changes, particularly in women with perimenopausal belly fat or menopausal weight gain,” explains Registered Dietician, Lon Ben-Asher from the Pritikin Center. When Lon works with guests at the Pritikin Center he helps them understand how to easily identify a low-calorie dense food.
Bloating, or swelling due to a buildup of fluid in the tissues can cause weight gain. This may be due to menstruation, heart or kidney failure, preeclampsia, or medicines you take. A rapid weight gain may be a sign of dangerous fluid retention. If you quit smoking, you might gain weight.
Estrogen causes a typical female fat distribution pattern in breasts, buttocks, and thighs, as well as its more feminizing effects. During the reproductive years, women get additional fat deposition in the pelvis, buttocks, thighs, and breasts to provide an energy source for eventual pregnancy and lactation.
Some evidence suggests that estrogen hormone therapy increases a woman's resting metabolic rate. This might help slow weight gain. Lack of estrogen may also cause the body to use starches and blood sugar less effectively, which would increase fat storage and make it harder to lose weight.
Estrogen levels that are too high or too low can cause weight gain. High levels of estrogen in the body can irritate the cells that produce insulin in your body, making you insulin resistant and blood sugar levels rise, leading to weight gain. Low levels of estrogen can also cause a very stubborn type of weight gain.