June 20, 2025 • 9 mins
How Does Menopause Affect Metabolism And Weight Gain?
The mystery of menopausal weight gain frustrates countless women who haven't changed their diet or exercise routines yet watch the numbers climb on their scales. This eye-opening conversation with licensed nutritionist Catina Wilson finally explains why—and more importantly, what to do about it.
When estrogen levels decline during menopause, it triggers a fundamental shift in how women's bodies distribute fat. That hormone once directed fat storage to hips and thighs (supporting potential pregnancy), but its decrease means fat now accumulates around the waist instead. This visceral fat isn't just cosmetically frustrating—it's metabolically active and linked to increased health risks. Combined with the natural slowing of metabolism that comes with age, menopausal women face what Catina calls "a double whammy" effect.
The solution might surprise you. While many women double down on cardio workouts during this life stage, strength training actually becomes far more critical. Muscle tissue burns calories constantly (even during sleep), while cardio only burns calories during the activity itself. Building and maintaining muscle through regular strength training, along with consuming protein at every meal, helps counteract the metabolic slowdown.
Ready to transform your approach? Visit Atlwellnessclinic.com for a free consultation and discover strategies tailored to your menopausal journey.
To learn more about Atlanta Wellness Clinic visit:
https://www.ATLWellnessClinic.com
Atlanta Wellness Clinic
1827 Powers Ferry Rd. SE, Bldg 1 STE 250
Atlanta, Georgia 30339
770-726-8978
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:04):
welcome to the Atlanta Wellness Clinic podcast
hosted by licensed nutritionistand clinic owner, katina Wilson.
We're here to kickstart yourweight loss journey because,
let's be honest, the only thingwe want gaining weight is our
wallets from medical weight lossand nutrition coaching to body
contouring.
We help metro atlanta women getreal results to body contouring
(00:25):
.
We help Metro Atlanta women getreal results.
Speaker 2 (00:27):
Let's dive in.
We are talking about a hottopic today.
Menopause brings more than hotflashes.
It can change how your bodyburns calories.
Let's talk about the hormonalshift that slows metabolism and
what you can do about it.
Welcome back everyone.
I'm Millie M, co-host producer,back in the studio with
licensed nutritionist and clinicowner, katina Wilson.
(00:48):
Katina, how are you?
Speaker 3 (00:50):
I'm well, I'm well.
Speaker 2 (00:51):
How are you I am doing well Excited to dive into
this one today.
Ladies who are in perimenopauseor currently going through
menopause would like to know howdoes menopause affect
metabolism and weight gain?
Speaker 3 (01:03):
Yeah, this is such a hot topic right now with me and
my circle of friends.
You know Menopause,perimenopause.
The reality is is that in thisstage of life it brings on this
significant shift in hormones,particularly with estrogen.
We see a decline with estrogenand estrogen is a really good
(01:26):
hormone within women andspecifically as we start to see
this decrease in estrogen, thefat shifts.
Estrogen is really known asthat hormone that's really there
to help kind of distribute thefat.
Typically women in theiryounger age thicker thighs,
thicker hips, right For thosebabies, exactly right For
(01:47):
carrying those babies.
But as you start to kind oftransition into that next phase,
well, that shift, that decreasein estrogen, we actually start
to see a shift in that fatdistribution as well.
And so now we're becomingthicker in the waist, which is
like not the fat that you wantto have.
So there's that part of it.
And also, as you transition intothis phase of life, your
(02:10):
metabolism starts to decreasemore and more.
So for women that's a doublewhammy right Decrease in
metabolism, decrease in estrogen.
For somebody who eats healthyand they exercise.
All the time you hear fromwomen in this stage of life like
I've not changed anything.
You know, I'm still working outfour or five times a week.
I'm eating healthy, but I'mnoticing that I'm gaining weight
(02:31):
and I don't understand it.
And they're gaining weight intheir waist, or maybe they
traditionally haven't.
And so, yes, absolutely,heading into this phase of life,
or being in this phase of life,we do tend to see that weight
gain, unfortunately, life orbeing in this phase of life, we
do tend to see that weight gain,unfortunately, so that lowering
of estrogen.
Speaker 2 (02:50):
that doesn't necessarily mean there's an
increase in testosterone,because men tend to lose weight
fast.
It's not fair, but they do.
Speaker 3 (02:55):
And it's not necessarily because of the
testosterone right.
Men tend to lose weight fasterbecause they tend to have more
muscle than women, right?
So we've talked about thisbefore in one of our earlier
podcasts around the importanceof lifting weights and
maintaining that muscle, orbuilding that muscle.
In this phase of life for women, transitioning, the type of
(03:16):
exercise that you do is going tobe critically important.
Women, we tend to want to geton the treadmill, do the
aerobics classes, the Zumbaclasses.
You know we really want tofocus on the cardio and cardio
absolutely is important, right?
Never will hear me say thatcardio is not important, but in
this phase of life we reallyprobably should start to pivot a
little bit more and do moremuscle building.
(03:38):
So, whether it's strengthtraining or body weight bearing
type exercises, building thatmuscle, and the reason building
that muscle is important isbecause muscle burns more
calories than fat.
You could start to build somemuscle.
You could be sleeping and it'sjust burning 24 hours a day when
you're doing cardio.
You're burning when you'redoing the cardio and only when
(03:58):
you're doing the cardio right,and so, again, it's good for
that fat burning.
But if you want to burncalories throughout, really
starting to build and maintainthat muscle is going to be
critically important, and that'sthe benefit that men have,
because they tend to have moremuscle than women.
Speaker 2 (04:12):
Okay, that makes a lot of sense, and I think more
women need to know about gainingthat muscle and just imagine
how proud of themselves they'llbe as they get stronger they can
see it.
Speaker 3 (04:23):
Yes, I don't need help.
You know, I got my you know 25,30 pound bag at the airport.
And nice gentleman I'm like.
No, I got this.
I can just pick it up and liftit up and they're like, wow,
she's really strong.
And so, yeah, it does feel goodwhen you can, when you can pick
up heavy things and you're notfeeling frail and you're feeling
strong and you're looking fitand you're tight.
You know, yes, building thatmuscle is so important.
(04:45):
And lifting weights I'm a bigproponent of that.
And body weight exercises I'm abig proponent of that.
That protein you need to makesure you have it with every meal
, right?
Because that's going to helpyou also maintain and build that
muscle as well.
Speaker 2 (04:59):
So talk to us about the loss of estrogen and how
that affects insulin sensitivity.
Speaker 3 (05:13):
The loss of estrogen.
I think, again, where it'sgoing to impact women the most
is definitely from an insulinresistance standpoint, but I
think the biggest change withthe loss of estrogen, again,
it's more because of the fatdistribution.
Right, estrogen really is thathormone that is driving how much
fat and where the fat is goingto live within our bodies and
women.
The reason we have more of thatestrogen is for what you said
(05:35):
earlier.
Right, it's for carrying thosebabies, right?
So we need that more so thanmen.
Men have it, but they obviouslydon't have as much of it.
But we need that for, and as wetransition to this phase, the
older we get, the less we needto be able to carry babies, and
so that's why we see thatdecline.
And so, again, with that dropin estrogen, what we see is the
(05:56):
accumulation of fat in placeswhere we don't traditionally see
.
That fat, and the fat aroundyour waist, that belly fat, that
visceral fat, is some of thehardest fat to lose, right?
So, yes, very much, so, verymuch so.
Ask a woman again, who's youknow, who's on a diet.
She's lifting, she's exercisinglike crazy.
(06:16):
She hasn't necessarily changedanything and she's reducing her
calories.
But at this age, when it startsto accumulate around the waist,
it becomes harder and harder.
It's not impossible, but itcertainly is harder fat to lose.
It's also the most riskiest ofthe fat because we tend to see
people with that visceral fat.
They tend to have more cardiacevents than people who don't,
(06:39):
but it is some of the hardestfat to lose.
Speaker 2 (06:42):
So are there medical treatments that can boost
metabolism in menopausal women?
Speaker 3 (06:47):
Yeah, I think you know the GLP-1s.
I mean, obviously you knowwe're a weight loss clinic and
we offer that.
There have been some greatstudies with GLP-1 medications,
specifically medications liketriseptide, that the studies are
basically showing that, youknow that medication for women
in this phase of life we tend tosee overall reduction in not
(07:08):
only the weight but the body fat, particularly the visceral fat.
So GLP-1 medications arecertainly helpful.
It's going to help decrease thefood noise, so it's going to
help with, you know, emotionaleating.
It's going to make you feelfull longer, you know.
So therefore you're feelingmore satisfied.
You're not, you know,immediately snacking and so it's
just going to increase, youknow, the fat burning of your
(07:33):
body.
So trans appetite is a greatmedication, is one of the GLP-1
medications that, for women inthis phase of life like that, we
like to recommend, that ourdoctors tend to like to to
recommend, I think, other thingsthat they can do beyond, you
know, medication.
We said it earlier get, get inthe gym, Don't be afraid to lift
weight.
You're not going to look like aman.
We just don't carry enoughtestosterone, so we're not going
to be walking around here, youknow, with these huge muscles,
(07:54):
but building that muscle, notonly are you going to feel
stronger, you're going to looktoner and fit, but it's going to
help you just burn thosecalories.
And so I think, at this phaseof life, it's we, as women, we
need to consider more aroundtransitioning from just focusing
strictly on the cardio and tomoving and pivoting more towards
(08:14):
weight-bearing type exerciseslike weightlifting or bodyweight
exercises.
Speaker 2 (08:24):
And then there are various supplements that can
also help with some of thesymptoms of menopause as well.
Great advice.
I'm going to pass it on to myfriends.
I have a friend in particular.
She's always on some type ofmachine, like you said, doing
cardio, and I'm going to suggestto her that she start lifting
weights and getting stronger andbuilding up that muscle.
I will catch you on the nextepisode.
Appreciate all of your soundadvice.
Speaker 3 (08:43):
All right, great advice, thank you.
Speaker 1 (08:48):
That's a wrap on this episode of the Atlanta Wellness
Clinic podcast.
If you're ready to kickstartyour weight loss journey, and
not just your bathroom scale andfrustration, visit
atlwellnesscliniccom or call usat 770-726-8978 for a free
10-minute weight lossconsultation, because the best
(09:10):
time to start was yesterday.
The second best time right now.
See you next time.
welcome to the Atlanta Wellness Clinic podcast
hosted by licensed nutritionistand clinic owner, katina Wilson.
We're here to kickstart yourweight loss journey because,
let's be honest, the only thingwe want gaining weight is our
wallets from medical weight lossand nutrition coaching to body
contouring.
We help metro atlanta women getreal results to body contouring
(00:25):
.
We help Metro Atlanta women getreal results.
Speaker 2 (00:27):
Let's dive in.
We are talking about a hottopic today.
Menopause brings more than hotflashes.
It can change how your bodyburns calories.
Let's talk about the hormonalshift that slows metabolism and
what you can do about it.
Welcome back everyone.
I'm Millie M, co-host producer,back in the studio with
licensed nutritionist and clinicowner, katina Wilson.
(00:48):
Katina, how are you?
Speaker 3 (00:50):
I'm well, I'm well.
Speaker 2 (00:51):
How are you I am doing well Excited to dive into
this one today.
Ladies who are in perimenopauseor currently going through
menopause would like to know howdoes menopause affect
metabolism and weight gain?
Speaker 3 (01:03):
Yeah, this is such a hot topic right now with me and
my circle of friends.
You know Menopause,perimenopause.
The reality is is that in thisstage of life it brings on this
significant shift in hormones,particularly with estrogen.
We see a decline with estrogenand estrogen is a really good
(01:26):
hormone within women andspecifically as we start to see
this decrease in estrogen, thefat shifts.
Estrogen is really known asthat hormone that's really there
to help kind of distribute thefat.
Typically women in theiryounger age thicker thighs,
thicker hips, right For thosebabies, exactly right For
(01:47):
carrying those babies.
But as you start to kind oftransition into that next phase,
well, that shift, that decreasein estrogen, we actually start
to see a shift in that fatdistribution as well.
And so now we're becomingthicker in the waist, which is
like not the fat that you wantto have.
So there's that part of it.
And also, as you transition intothis phase of life, your
(02:10):
metabolism starts to decreasemore and more.
So for women that's a doublewhammy right Decrease in
metabolism, decrease in estrogen.
For somebody who eats healthyand they exercise.
All the time you hear fromwomen in this stage of life like
I've not changed anything.
You know, I'm still working outfour or five times a week.
I'm eating healthy, but I'mnoticing that I'm gaining weight
(02:31):
and I don't understand it.
And they're gaining weight intheir waist, or maybe they
traditionally haven't.
And so, yes, absolutely,heading into this phase of life,
or being in this phase of life,we do tend to see that weight
gain, unfortunately, life orbeing in this phase of life, we
do tend to see that weight gain,unfortunately, so that lowering
of estrogen.
Speaker 2 (02:50):
that doesn't necessarily mean there's an
increase in testosterone,because men tend to lose weight
fast.
It's not fair, but they do.
Speaker 3 (02:55):
And it's not necessarily because of the
testosterone right.
Men tend to lose weight fasterbecause they tend to have more
muscle than women, right?
So we've talked about thisbefore in one of our earlier
podcasts around the importanceof lifting weights and
maintaining that muscle, orbuilding that muscle.
In this phase of life for women, transitioning, the type of
(03:16):
exercise that you do is going tobe critically important.
Women, we tend to want to geton the treadmill, do the
aerobics classes, the Zumbaclasses.
You know we really want tofocus on the cardio and cardio
absolutely is important, right?
Never will hear me say thatcardio is not important, but in
this phase of life we reallyprobably should start to pivot a
little bit more and do moremuscle building.
(03:38):
So, whether it's strengthtraining or body weight bearing
type exercises, building thatmuscle, and the reason building
that muscle is important isbecause muscle burns more
calories than fat.
You could start to build somemuscle.
You could be sleeping and it'sjust burning 24 hours a day when
you're doing cardio.
You're burning when you'redoing the cardio and only when
(03:58):
you're doing the cardio right,and so, again, it's good for
that fat burning.
But if you want to burncalories throughout, really
starting to build and maintainthat muscle is going to be
critically important, and that'sthe benefit that men have,
because they tend to have moremuscle than women.
Speaker 2 (04:12):
Okay, that makes a lot of sense, and I think more
women need to know about gainingthat muscle and just imagine
how proud of themselves they'llbe as they get stronger they can
see it.
Speaker 3 (04:23):
Yes, I don't need help.
You know, I got my you know 25,30 pound bag at the airport.
And nice gentleman I'm like.
No, I got this.
I can just pick it up and liftit up and they're like, wow,
she's really strong.
And so, yeah, it does feel goodwhen you can, when you can pick
up heavy things and you're notfeeling frail and you're feeling
strong and you're looking fitand you're tight.
You know, yes, building thatmuscle is so important.
(04:45):
And lifting weights I'm a bigproponent of that.
And body weight exercises I'm abig proponent of that.
That protein you need to makesure you have it with every meal
, right?
Because that's going to helpyou also maintain and build that
muscle as well.
Speaker 2 (04:59):
So talk to us about the loss of estrogen and how
that affects insulin sensitivity.
Speaker 3 (05:13):
The loss of estrogen.
I think, again, where it'sgoing to impact women the most
is definitely from an insulinresistance standpoint, but I
think the biggest change withthe loss of estrogen, again,
it's more because of the fatdistribution.
Right, estrogen really is thathormone that is driving how much
fat and where the fat is goingto live within our bodies and
women.
The reason we have more of thatestrogen is for what you said
(05:35):
earlier.
Right, it's for carrying thosebabies, right?
So we need that more so thanmen.
Men have it, but they obviouslydon't have as much of it.
But we need that for, and as wetransition to this phase, the
older we get, the less we needto be able to carry babies, and
so that's why we see thatdecline.
And so, again, with that dropin estrogen, what we see is the
(05:56):
accumulation of fat in placeswhere we don't traditionally see
.
That fat, and the fat aroundyour waist, that belly fat, that
visceral fat, is some of thehardest fat to lose, right?
So, yes, very much, so, verymuch so.
Ask a woman again, who's youknow, who's on a diet.
She's lifting, she's exercisinglike crazy.
(06:16):
She hasn't necessarily changedanything and she's reducing her
calories.
But at this age, when it startsto accumulate around the waist,
it becomes harder and harder.
It's not impossible, but itcertainly is harder fat to lose.
It's also the most riskiest ofthe fat because we tend to see
people with that visceral fat.
They tend to have more cardiacevents than people who don't,
(06:39):
but it is some of the hardestfat to lose.
Speaker 2 (06:42):
So are there medical treatments that can boost
metabolism in menopausal women?
Speaker 3 (06:47):
Yeah, I think you know the GLP-1s.
I mean, obviously you knowwe're a weight loss clinic and
we offer that.
There have been some greatstudies with GLP-1 medications,
specifically medications liketriseptide, that the studies are
basically showing that, youknow that medication for women
in this phase of life we tend tosee overall reduction in not
(07:08):
only the weight but the body fat, particularly the visceral fat.
So GLP-1 medications arecertainly helpful.
It's going to help decrease thefood noise, so it's going to
help with, you know, emotionaleating.
It's going to make you feelfull longer, you know.
So therefore you're feelingmore satisfied.
You're not, you know,immediately snacking and so it's
just going to increase, youknow, the fat burning of your
(07:33):
body.
So trans appetite is a greatmedication, is one of the GLP-1
medications that, for women inthis phase of life like that, we
like to recommend, that ourdoctors tend to like to to
recommend, I think, other thingsthat they can do beyond, you
know, medication.
We said it earlier get, get inthe gym, Don't be afraid to lift
weight.
You're not going to look like aman.
We just don't carry enoughtestosterone, so we're not going
to be walking around here, youknow, with these huge muscles,
(07:54):
but building that muscle, notonly are you going to feel
stronger, you're going to looktoner and fit, but it's going to
help you just burn thosecalories.
And so I think, at this phaseof life, it's we, as women, we
need to consider more aroundtransitioning from just focusing
strictly on the cardio and tomoving and pivoting more towards
(08:14):
weight-bearing type exerciseslike weightlifting or bodyweight
exercises.
Speaker 2 (08:24):
And then there are various supplements that can
also help with some of thesymptoms of menopause as well.
Great advice.
I'm going to pass it on to myfriends.
I have a friend in particular.
She's always on some type ofmachine, like you said, doing
cardio, and I'm going to suggestto her that she start lifting
weights and getting stronger andbuilding up that muscle.
I will catch you on the nextepisode.
Appreciate all of your soundadvice.
Speaker 3 (08:43):
All right, great advice, thank you.
Speaker 1 (08:48):
That's a wrap on this episode of the Atlanta Wellness
Clinic podcast.
If you're ready to kickstartyour weight loss journey, and
not just your bathroom scale andfrustration, visit
atlwellnesscliniccom or call usat 770-726-8978 for a free
10-minute weight lossconsultation, because the best
(09:10):
time to start was yesterday.
The second best time right now.
See you next time.
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