Total Health in Midlife Episode #211: Menopause & Your Diet

Have you ever wondered if the food you’re eating might actually be making your menopause symptoms worse? Maybe it’s those hot flashes that hit out of nowhere, or the sleepless nights that leave you feeling drained. What if I told you that what’s on your plate could be the key to easing your symptoms? And it’s not about giving up everything you love or following a restrictive diet.

In today’s episode, I’m sharing how you can use nutrition to take control of your body’s changes. I’ll show you how to decode the messages your symptoms are sending and make simple, powerful shifts that actually work. Because here’s the thing. If you’re ignoring these signals, you might be missing out on feeling better than you thought possible.

So, stay with me. This episode could be the turning point that you’ve been waiting for.

Welcome to Total Health and Midlife, the podcast for women embracing the pivotal transformation from the daily grind to the dawn of a new chapter. I’m Elizabeth, your host and fellow traveler on this journey.

As a Life and Health Coach, I am intimately familiar with the changes and challenges we face during this stage. Shifting careers, changing relationships, our new bodies, and redefining goals and needs as we start to look to the future and ask, what do I want?

In this podcast, we’ll explore physical, mental, and emotional wellness, offering insights and strategies to achieve optimal health through these transformative years.

Yes, it’s totally possible.

Join me in this amazing journey of body, mind, and spirit, where we’re not just improving our health, but transforming our entire lives.

Hey everyone, welcome to the total health in midlife podcast. I am your host, Elizabeth Sherman. And today, we are talking about a topic that impacts every single woman. Menopause. Now, let’s be honest, menopause can feel like your body has decided to rewrite the rules without giving you a heads up.

It’s not just hot flashes and mood swings. It’s brain fog, night sweats, joint pain, stubborn weight gain, and feeling like your energy has been just totally tanked. It’s frustrating, it’s exhausting, and it can leave you wondering what the heck is going on with me.

So, I’ve been there. When I hit perimenopause, I thought I had it all figured out until my body threw me a curveball. The rules that I’d followed and studied and committed to for years, suddenly stopped working. I didn’t just want to survive this stage. I actually, wanted to do better. And over time, I actually learned how to do that.

So, here’s what I want you to know. You don’t have to just grit your teeth and get through it. You actually have lots of options. And today, we’re going to talk about how nutrition can help you take control of your symptoms, help you to feel better and reclaim your energy.

So, let’s talk about some of the common symptoms of menopause because let’s face it, they’re not just little annoyances, they can be very disruptive. And what’s worse is they often feel like they come out of nowhere. So, hot flashes are probably the most well-known symptom. One minute you’re fine, and then the next it feels like someone turned on the furnace inside your body.

You’re flushed, you’re sweating, and scrambling to cool off. And then, there are the night sweats. They’re like hot flashes equally, unkind cousin, waking you up, drenched, and forcing you to change the sheets in the middle of the night. It’s gross.

Insomnia often tags along, making it impossible to get a good night’s rest. Even when you’re bone tired, your mind won’t quiet down, or your body just won’t settle. Joint pain can creep in, making everyday movements like climbing stairs, opening jars, or just walking down stairs, or just walking and running, feel harder than they should.

Weight gain is another challenge, especially around your midsection. It’s like your body suddenly rewrote the rules on how it stores fat. And then, there’s brain fog. You lose words mid-sentence or completely forget why you walked into a room. It’s not just frustrating, it can feel completely unsettling.

Mood swings are another big one. You might feel fine one moment, and then burst into tears the next, or find yourself snapping over something like completely minor. It’s like your emotions are on a roller coaster and you didn’t sign up for it. Add in cravings, bloating, and low energy, it can feel like your body is working against you.

Here’s the thing. Menopause comes with over 85 possible symptoms as of today. And no two women experience it exactly the same way. So, your journey might look very different from your sister’s, your mom’s, or your best friend’s. But these symptoms, they’re not just random or something to tough out.

They’re actually messages. They’re your body’s way of saying something that it’s off balance. And while these signals can be frustrating, they’re also an opportunity. They can be a call to action and a chance to listen to your body and figure out what it needs so that you can feel better.

Menopause is personal. And understanding these symptoms is the first step in managing them. When you decode these signals, you’re not just easing discomfort, you’re actually taking back control. And that’s where the power lies.

Menopause is a complete transformation and the changes in your body go way beyond what meets the eye. It’s not just about the hot flashes or the mood swings that you might be experiencing. It’s a total recalibration of how your body functions.

During perimenopause, your ovaries start to produce less estrogen and progesterone. This doesn’t just happen overnight, it’s a gradual process that can take years. As those hormone levels drop, your metabolism slows down. You might notice, weight showing up in places that it never did before, particularly around your middle.

And those old tricks like cutting calories and upping your cardio, they just don’t work anymore. They completely stop working. Your body also becomes more sensitive to insulin, meaning it’s harder to process carbs and sugars. That morning bagel or the pasta dinner that used to be no big deal, might now leave you feeling sluggish, or trigger symptoms like bloating, insomnia, hot flashes, and night sweats.

At the same time, muscle mass starts to decrease, which can slow your metabolism even further. Bone density may also decline, increasing the risk of osteoporosis. Even your gut microbiome. The collection of bacteria that helps you digest food and regulate inflammation can shift, impacting how you feel after your meals.

These changes don’t stop at the physical. Your stress response might feel heightened with things that never bothered you before now, triggering anxiety or mood swings. Poor sleep or erasing mind at night can leave you feeling drained and irritable during the day.

And here’s the thing. The nutrition and lifestyle habits that worked for you before in your 20s and 30s might no longer serve your body in this phase of life. It’s not that you’re doing anything wrong. It’s that your body has different needs now. You might need more protein to maintain your muscle mass, more calcium and vitamin D for your bones, and healthier fats to support hormone production.

The workouts that once gave you energy, might need to be gentler or more targeted to work with your body and not against it. And this isn’t about blaming yourself or feeling like you failed. It’s about learning to understand and support the body that you have now.

Menopause is a new chapter, and it requires a different approach. Once you recognize what’s happening and adapt your habits, you can start feeling better and more in control. It’s not about going back to who you were. It’s about embracing this new version of yourself.

When menopause arrives, it’s easy to feel like your body has a mind of its own. Symptoms like hot flashes, night sweats, and cravings can feel relentless and out of your control. Many women believe that this is just something that they have to put up with, or that medication is their only option. But that’s not the whole story.

You actually have more options than you think. And one of the most powerful tools at your disposal is your nutrition. The foods that you eat don’t just fuel your body, they actually send messages to your hormones, to your brain, and to your cells.

During menopause, when your body is particularly sensitive to these signals, what you eat can make a significant difference. Take hot flashes, for example. Have you ever noticed that they’re worse after a glass of wine? That’s because alcohol can dilate blood vessels and trigger a chain reaction that makes you overheat.

Or maybe you’ve had a big bowl of pasta at lunch, and found yourself dragging through the afternoon desperate for sugar or caffeine. That’s not a coincidence. It’s your body responding to blood sugar spikes and crashes.

The good news is that by paying attention to these patterns, you can take back control. You’re not stuck in this hormonal roller coaster. By choosing foods that support your body’s needs, you can ease your symptoms and feel better.

So, let’s clear up a few myths. First, menopausal symptoms aren’t completely unavoidable. While you can’t erase them entirely, you can influence their severity and frequency. Second, medication isn’t the only answer. For many women, simple dietary and lifestyle changes, like balancing blood sugar or reducing inflammatory foods, can make a world of difference.

And finally, menopause doesn’t mean inevitable weight gain. Yes, your body composition is shifting, but by eating in a way that supports your hormones, you can actually manage those changes. This isn’t about cutting out entire food groups or going on a restrictive diet. It’s about tuning into your body and figuring out what works for you.

Maybe you notice that dairy triggers bloating, or that having protein at every meal helps to keep your energy steady. Maybe cutting back on sugar reduces your hot flashes or having a carb rich snack before bed helps you to sleep better.

When you start viewing food as a way to communicate with your body, everything changes. You’re no longer at the mercy of your symptoms. And instead, you’re empowered to make choices that support your health and well being.

Nutrition isn’t a quick fix. It takes time to figure out what works. And there will be trial and error along the way. But the beauty of this approach is that it’s not about deprivation or following someone else’s rules. It’s about discovering what helps you feel good, what reduces your symptoms, and what lets you live the vibrant, energetic life that you deserve.

You have more power than you realize. The first step is listening to your body and letting food become part of the solution. Let’s explore how to make that happen.

First, I need to clear up a common misunderstanding. Making dietary changes during menopause isn’t about going on a quote unquote, ‘diet.’ Dieting, as we’ve all come to know it, is about rules and restrictions. Don’t eat this. Cut out that. Count every single calorie. It feels like punishment, and most of the time it doesn’t work.

A health first approach is the opposite of that. It’s not about following someone else’s rules. It’s about learning what your body needs and making choices that help you to feel better. It’s empowering. It’s not restrictive.

So, here’s an example. Imagine you love having a glass of wine in the evening. A traditional diet might tell you to stop drinking altogether. But that doesn’t address why you might choose to limit wine. In a health first approach, you’d notice that after a glass of wine, you tend to wake up in the middle of the night soaked in sweat.

Now, you have information. You can ask yourself, ‘is the wine worth it tonight?’ Sometimes the answer might be yes. Other times, it might not be. Either way, you are the one making the decision. This approach is all about connecting the dots.

You’re not just told what to eat or to avoid. You’re learning to understand how your choices affect how you feel. You’re paying attention to how certain foods impact your energy, your mood, your sleep, or your symptoms.

Let’s take sugar as another example. After indulging in a sugary treat, you might notice that you feel jittery, and then sluggish. Or maybe your hot flashes flare up later in that day. That doesn’t mean that you can never have sugar again.

But knowing how it impacts you, lets you decide when and how to include it in a way that works for you and your body. Certain foods can trigger or alleviate symptoms. For instance, high carb meals without enough protein or fiber can cause blood sugar spikes, leading to energy crashes and mood swings.

On the other hand, eating balanced meals with protein, healthy fats, and whole grains can help stabilize your blood sugar and keep you feeling steady. Some women find that dairy causes bloating while others don’t notice a problem at all.

Alcohol might intensify hot flashes for one woman but have no effect on another. This is why a health first approach is so critically important because menopause is personal, and your body’s responses are unique.

Here’s the beauty of this mindset. It shifts the focus from ‘I can’t eat this’ to ‘I’m choosing what helps me feel good.’ That’s a huge difference. Instead of feeling deprived, you feel in control. Instead of blindly following the rules, you’re building a toolbox of strategies that work for your unique body.

This isn’t about perfect eating, it’s about progress. It’s about feeling good in your body. Managing your symptoms and giving yourself the energy and balance that you deserve. You’re in the driver’s seat. And every choice that you make is an opportunity to feel better. That’s what a health first approach is all about.

Your body is constantly talking to you, especially during menopause. Those hot flashes, mood swings, and cravings aren’t just random. They’re your body’s way of communicating. When you start paying attention to these signals, you can begin to understand what your body is asking for and make changes that truly help. This first step is awareness.

So, start noticing how your symptoms connect to what you’re doing, what you’re eating, how you’re moving, how you’re sleeping, or how stressed you’re feeling. Keeping a journal can be a fantastic tool. Write down what you eat, when you eat it, how you feel afterwards, and when your symptoms show up. Over time, patterns will emerge, and you’ll start to be able to connect the dots.

For example, let’s say that you often wake up drenched in sweat in the middle of the night. When you look back at your journal, you might notice it happens more frequently on nights when you have wine with dinner, or certain carbohydrates. Or maybe you notice that an afternoon latte leaves you feeling anxious or jittery. Or that sugary snacks in the evening lead to tossing and turning all night.

These aren’t just coincidences. They’re your body responding to specific inputs. Hot flashes are a big one for many women. They’re often triggered by things like alcohol, caffeine, or spicy foods. But the triggers vary from person to person. One woman might find her hot flashes are worse after wine, while another notices that they’re more frequent on days when she skips meals, and her blood sugar drops.

Next, let’s talk about fatigue. If you’re feeling wiped out by midafternoon, it’s worth looking at what you ate for breakfast and lunch. Was it a sugary cereal or a carb heavy meal without much protein or fiber? Those foods can lead to blood sugar spikes and crashes, leaving you feeling drained.

On the other hand, starting your day with something like eggs and avocado, or a smoothie with protein and greens might give you more consistent energy. Even brain fog can have dietary connections. Some women find that too many processed carbs leave them feeling mentally sluggish. While others notice an improvement in clarity when they include more omega 3 rich foods like salmon or walnuts in their diet.

These patterns are unique to you. And that’s why decoding your body’s signals is so powerful. You’re learning to read the clues that your body gives you and using that information to make choices that help you to feel your best.

This isn’t about being perfect or never having treats again. It’s about understanding the cause and effect. If you know that certain foods or habits worsen your symptoms, you can decide when and how to indulge. Maybe you still have that glass of wine, but you pair it with plenty of water and avoid it on nights that you need a solid sleep.

The more you tune into your body, the more control you feel. It’s not about following someone else’s rules. It’s about becoming the expert on what works for you. And that knowledge is huge when it comes to feeling your best. Once you know what your body needs, you can make decisions that empower you to feel good every single day.

So, let’s be real here. Generic diets and cookie cutter exercise plans can be frustrating, especially during menopause. They promise big results, but often leave you feeling like you failed when they don’t work. The truth is those one size fits all solutions aren’t designed for your unique body or your specific needs.

Menopause is a deeply personal experience. Your symptoms, your lifestyle, and your health history are different from anyone else’s. Your best friend might swear by intermittent fasting, but when you try it, you’re left feeling irritable and exhausted. Or you might attempt a menopause friendly workout program, only to find it leaves your joints aching and your energy depleted.

It’s not you that’s failing. It’s the plan that’s not tailored to you and your body. These generic programs often ignore critical factors. They don’t consider your hormonal shifts, your sensitivity to certain foods, or how stress and sleep affect your body. They don’t take into account your medical history, your activity level, or even what you enjoy eating and doing.

That’s why they fall short. For instance, one woman might struggle with night sweats triggered by certain foods, while another might experience them due to stress or poor sleep. One might need more protein to maintain muscle mass, while the other might need to focus on reducing carbs to stabilize her blood sugar.

A personalized approach looks at the whole picture. It starts with understanding your symptoms, what triggers them, and what eases them. It factors in your lifestyle, your preferences, and your goals. It’s flexible, adapting as your needs change. And most importantly, it puts you in control.

When you tailor your nutrition and exercise to your unique body, everything shifts. You’re no longer following someone else’s rules or forcing yourself into a plan that doesn’t fit. Instead, you’re making choices that work for you, choices that support your body, ease your symptoms, and help you to feel better.

This isn’t about perfection or doing it all at once. It’s about listening to your body, experimenting with what works, and building habits that feel sustainable. A personalized approach empowers you to navigate menopause on your terms. Giving you the tools to not just manage symptoms, but to actually thrive. You are not a one size fits all woman. Your health journey shouldn’t be either.

Menopause can feel overwhelming. The symptoms, the changes, the conflicting advice. It’s a lot to handle on your own. And that’s where coaching can help. Having a guide who understands, what you’re going through can make all of the difference.

Coaching isn’t about handing you a pre made plan saying, ‘here follow this.’ It’s about working with someone who listens, who helps you to figure out what works for you, and a good coach knows that menopause isn’t a one size fits all journey. They’re there to help you understand your body’s signals, troubleshoot challenges, and create strategies that fit your life.

One of the biggest benefits of coaching is personalization. A coach can help you connect the dots between your symptoms and your habits. Like identifying how late night snacks might be disrupting your sleep or how your morning coffee could be making your anxiety worse. They’ll guide you in making small manageable changes that build up to big results.

Coaching also provides accountability. Let’s face it. Making changes is hard, especially when life gets busy or overwhelming. Having someone check in, encourage you, and celebrate your wins, keeps you on track, even when motivation dips. And then, there’s the emotional support. Menopause isn’t just physical, it’s emotional too.

A coach provides a safe space to talk about the challenges that you’re facing without judgment. They’re there to remind you that you’re not alone, and that what you’re experiencing is normal, and that there’s a path forward.

I want to share a few stories. So, first, Sarah was struggling with night sweats and hot flashes so severe that they disrupted her sleep and left her feeling just exhausted. Together, we identified wine as a trigger. By adjusting when and how often she drank wine, she reduced her symptoms by 70 percent and started sleeping better almost immediately. Additionally, her anxiety was dramatically reduced.

Another client, Maria, felt stuck with weight gain and insomnia. We worked on balancing her meals with protein and fiber, which not only stabilized her blood sugar, but also helped her sleep more soundly. And within weeks, her energy returned. And she started to feel like herself again.

Jenny came to me feeling lost in constant brain fog and joint pain. After we pinpointed certain foods that were causing inflammation and optimized her nutrition intake, her clarity and focus improved dramatically, and she was able to start running again.

Now, each of these women had unique challenges and their solutions were just as individual. That’s the power of coaching. It’s not about one answer for everyone. It’s about finding your answers. Navigating menopause isn’t something that you have to do alone.

Coaching gives you the tools, the guidance, and the support that you need to move through this phase of life with confidence and clarity. It’s about more than just managing symptoms. You deserve to feel empowered and capable. And coaching can help you to get there.

Menopause often feels like something’s happening to you. A storm of symptoms you just have to endure. But here’s the truth. You have more power than you think. The key lies in understanding your symptoms not as random annoyances, but as valuable messages from your body. Hot flashes, mood swings, cravings. These are your body’s way of communicating that something is out of balance.

Instead of fighting against them, what if you leaned in and listened? What if You saw these symptoms as clues guiding you towards what your body needs. Take fatigue, for example. It might not just be a sign of aging. It could be your body’s telling you that it needs better fuel.

Maybe a breakfast loaded with protein and healthy fats to keep your energy steady, while sugary snacks leave you crashing by midafternoon. That’s actionable information. Or consider those night sweats. They’re not just an inconvenience. They’re often triggered by specific factors like alcohol, caffeine, or even stress.

When you start to identify what makes them worse, you gain the power to make choices that help you to sleep better. Every symptom that you experience is a signal. When you decode those signals, you’re no longer at the mercy of your hormones. You’re in the driver’s seat. You’re making informed decisions based on your body’s unique needs, not following someone else’s plan or rules.

So, this isn’t about perfection or eliminating every symptom forever. It’s about building a toolbox of strategies that help you to feel better. It’s about small, consistent changes that give you more energy, sleep better, and fewer disruptions to your day.

And the best part is that it’s not about restriction. It’s about nourishment. It’s about being good to your body, choosing foods, habits, and routines that support you. It’s about making choices that align with how you want to feel. Not just how you’re supposed to look or what you’re told that you should eat. You have the ability to influence how you feel every single day.

By paying attention to your body’s signals and responding with care, you’re not just surviving menopause. You’re actually thriving through it. And this is your opportunity to reconnect with your body, to take control, and to create a life that feels good from the inside out.

Today, we’ve covered a lot about navigating menopause and how nutrition can be a powerful tool to manage your symptoms. The key takeaway is this, ‘your symptoms aren’t just random or inevitable, they’re messages from your body.’ And when you start to decode those signals, you gain the power to make choices that truly support you.

We talked about how your body changes during menopause and why those old habits might not work anymore. We explored how nutrition can influence everything from hot flashes to mood swings, and why a health first approach is far more empowering than restrictive dieting. And we emphasized the importance of understanding your unique needs instead of relying on one size fits all solutions.

Menopause isn’t something that you have to endure or go through alone. You have the ability to take control, to make informed choices, and to feel better in this stage of life. If you’re feeling overwhelmed, unsure of where to start, or just ready for some extra support. Coaching with me can help. I’ve worked with thousands of women guiding them to decode their symptoms, build strategies that fit their lives, and thrive through menopause and beyond.

If that sounds like something that you’d like to explore, I would love to help you too. Schedule an ‘I know what to do, I’m just not doing it’ strategy call at elizabethsherman.com/call. And that link will also be in the show notes. Let’s figure out what works for you.

Remember, this isn’t about perfection. It’s about progress. You don’t have to have it all figured out and you don’t have to do it alone. Let me help you take this journey and figure it out.

Thank you for joining me today. That’s all I have for you. I’ll see you next week. Bye-bye.

Thank you for tuning in today. Now, if you enjoy the podcast and are ready to take the next step in addressing your health concerns, I would love to invite you to schedule an I Know What To Do, I’m Just Not Doing It strategy call.

In this 60 minute session, we will explore what’s holding you back and create a personalized action plan. You will gain clarity, support, and practical steps to move you forward. Visit elizabethsherman.com/call to book your call now. You can transform your health and I would love to be there to help.