July 14, 2025 • 57 mins
Most women are handed a prescription or a supplement when menopause hits — but what if the real foundation for feeling better starts with small, everyday changes?
In this episode, Dr. Olga Morton, a physician trained in lifestyle medicine, shares the six evidence-based pillars she uses to help women navigate menopause with less overwhelm and more clarity: a mostly plant-based diet, movement, stress relief, better sleep, stronger relationships, and reducing what works against your hormones.
We dive into:
- Why an 86% reduction in hot flashes was linked to plant-based eating
- The truth about caffeine and sleep sabotage
- How progesterone affects your brain’s calming chemistry
- Why loneliness can be as harmful as smoking
- And how strength training (done your way) helps protect your bones
Most importantly, Dr. Morton centers the conversation around self-compassion. “When women start giving themselves permission to care for themselves, everything shifts.”
This isn’t about perfection or overhauling your life overnight. It’s about choosing one change that feels doable — and letting that momentum grow.
👉 Get Dr. Morton’s free tools at drolgamorton.com
I would love to hear from you! What did you think of the episode? Share it with me :)
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hi there and welcome back to the Real Food Stories
podcast.
I am your host, heather Carey,and today's episode is such an
important one.
I had the pleasure of speakingwith Dr Olga Morton, who is not
only a practicing physician butalso has specialty training in
something called lifestylemedicine, and if you've never
(00:23):
heard of that before, you're notalone, but you're going to want
to stick around for thisconversation.
In a world where so many womenare told to jump straight to
supplements or medications orhormone therapy, dr Morton
offers a refreshing,evidence-based approach that
starts with what we can actuallycontrol in our day-to-day lives
(00:46):
, and we covered her six coreareas that she focuses on with
her patients Eating a mostlyplant-based, healthy diet,
moving your body regularly,managing stress in a realistic
way, getting enough high-qualitysleep, building strong,
(01:07):
supportive relationships andcutting back on the things that
work against us like alcohol,tobacco and yes, even caffeine
for some people.
I know that one is hard to hear.
This is one of those grounding,empowering conversations that
reminds us that the foundationsreally do matter and that health
(01:28):
doesn't have to feel sooverwhelming when we start with
what's doable and what feelskind and compassionate for us.
So let's dive in with myconversation with Dr Olga Morton
.
Dive in with my conversationwith Dr Olga Morton.
Olga Morton is a medical doctorwith additional training as a
(01:50):
lifestyle medicine physician.
After years of helping chronicdisease patients using
conventional medicine, sherealized that medication and
surgery alone are not the wholesolution.
Through her continuingeducation in lifestyle medicine,
she discovered that often smalllifestyle changes could indeed
be more powerful and longerlasting than pills.
(02:10):
Today she offers her patients amore holistic approach to
wellness and more recently, olgahas been using her expertise
for the treatment of menopausalsymptoms.
Her mission is to empower womenwith effective lifestyle
changes so they can thrivethrough menopause, with or
without medication.
So, hi, olga, welcome to RealFood Stories.
(02:33):
It's always so nice to get theperspective from the medical
community on menopause andhealth, and I'm also intrigued
with the fact that you helpwomen with the other very
important aspects of healththrough lifestyle changes that
are not part of conventionalmedicine right Just throwing
(02:56):
pills or hormones at you.
So let's start with your ownjourney with midlife and
menopause and your path topracticing more lifestyle-based
medicine.
Speaker 2 (03:09):
Yes, thank you so much for having me, heather,
it's lovely to speak to you.
Yes, I mean about me, I guess.
First of all, I'm a mom ofthree boys, so I've got teens
and preteens, and so life isbusy.
Lots of plates are spinning allat once.
And so life is busy, lots ofplates are spinning all at once.
(03:29):
And early on in my career I alsodid a PhD, a doctorate degree,
on in autoimmunity and molecularcellular biology, and that was
after my medical degree.
And so, and the thesis wasfocusing on finding novel
treatments that would beblocking inflammatory pathways,
that would essentially then beused for treatment of autoimmune
conditions, inflammatoryconditions like rheumatoid
(03:51):
arthritis.
And although the research wasfascinating, I quickly realized
most of these drugs, they couldbe effective, but then they
always had side effects.
And so even then I thought,well, there must be a different
way to approach those illnessesor to treat those, manage those
better.
And when I went back toclinical practice again, I was
(04:15):
working as a family physician inthe States, I guess, or in
North America, you would call itgeneral practitioner in Britain
and Scotland and very quickly,quickly again, I realized that
we are great at treating acuteconditions.
Let's say, somebody had abroken leg.
We're great at fixing that, butif you've got something like
type 2 diabetes, high bloodpressure, high cholesterol,
(04:38):
autoimmune conditions, we arenot good at managing those.
And if we do, then we havereally usually strong drugs that
would help to manage thesymptoms, but they will often
have again significant sideeffects.
And I was getting reallyfrustrated because I found
myself writing more and moreprescriptions and signing them
(04:59):
every single day, thinking theremust be a different way to do
this.
And I think that naturalcuriosity, also from the
doctorate degree, led me on thepath of lifestyle medicine when
I just realized, wow, this iswhat we need, because, if you
look at it, there's so muchresearch on this that nutrition
is important, exercise isimportant, stress management,
(05:21):
social connections, reducingtoxic load and those are
essentially the six pillars oflifestyle medicine, including
sleep.
And so I signed the diploma andI'm board certified by the
international board of lifestylemedicine in conjunction with
BSLM, the British Society ofLifestyle Medicine, and I did
that in 2019 and I've neverlooked back because that just
(05:46):
opened new horizons for me andnew approaches to manage these
chronic illnesses.
And then, when I was seeingagain women who would come to me
women in midlife and I wasgoing through midlife changes
myself Again.
That's, you know, therealization that we need to talk
about lifestyle changes towomen in midlife too.
(06:08):
And you know, I have to admitthat I'm very humbled by the
fact that I had two doctoratedegrees, one in autoimmunity or
molecular cellular biology andthen one in medicine, and I knew
nothing about nutrition, andhow bizarre is that.
I think this is changing now,but um, and I think most of um
(06:30):
at least western universitieshad would have the same
curriculum where nutrition maybewould get, if you're lucky, a
few hours.
And and that's about it,because mostly we are studying
pharmacology and the effect ofdrugs and the mechanism of
medication, how it basically, inmy opinion, it doesn't always.
(06:53):
It doesn't cure or doesn'treverse the illness.
It often maybe alleviates thesymptoms, and I think we need to
go deeper than that.
We need to look at root causesof the symptoms.
And I think we need to godeeper than that.
We need to look at root causes,all the issues.
And lifestyle medicine, to meat least, is the foundation of
that, yeah, that's such a goodpoint.
Speaker 1 (07:13):
I mean, I think that here in the United States, I
mean there's no training.
I think, just like you, very,very little training for medical
doctors around nutrition, and Ijustify this sometimes that you
can't be good at everything,right.
I mean, so you're an expert atmedications and acute illnesses
(07:37):
and that's what nutritionistslike myself are for, but on the
other hand, these things, allthese lifestyle things, matter
so much when it comes to illness.
So the fact, like a lot of thetalk, is that most gynecologists
, most doctors, do not get anytraining whatsoever in menopause
(08:13):
.
Education Is that?
Did you have that experience aswell?
Speaker 2 (08:19):
I did have training and through my specialty
training as well, we diddefinitely cover menopause.
Um, what we maybe didn't coveragain, what are the non-medical
treatments for menopause?
And mostly, at least in the inbritain, the first line would be
, um, your antidepressants, orssris, that are licensed for
(08:42):
depression, anxiety, but alsofor perimenopausal, menopausal
symptoms linked to mood changes,even the vasomotor, you know,
hot flashes, night sweats, and Iremember that as a trainee,
thinking about it.
Well, how I mean this woman isnot depressed, like why are we
giving her antidepressants?
You know, and I quite rightly,would you know understand why
(09:04):
some women would not want that.
Because they would be saying,and I'm a woman myself going
through this and I sympathizewith them, and so I think the
training is definitely there.
But what I do find it's verymedication HRT nowadays again
oriented.
So it's focused mostly onhormone replacement therapy,
(09:24):
which we know can be lifechanging for some women.
It could be very helpful.
But then what I'm seeing in mypractice, and that's what led me
again to rethink the menopauseapproach, is when women would
come to me and would say well,dr Olga, I've tried HRT and I've
tried the pills and the patchesand the gel and the pill
(09:47):
combination and the marina coiland my brain fog is still there,
or I still can't sleep, or I'mstill tired, and so on and so on
.
And so some of the symptoms,like hot flashes, night sweats,
might have improved, but a lotof those what we call them, the
soft symptoms, the memorychanges and they were still
(10:10):
there.
And this is when I realized, andthere was this aha moment,
because, also, I knew thosewomen and I knew how stressed
they were and I knew they didn'thave time to look after
themselves and I knew thatnutrition probably was the last
thing on their list.
And then, quite often inBritain, this subject or topic
(10:31):
of alcohol is always avoided,and we know that with regular
alcohol intake, your hot flushes, night sweats, will be more
pronounced, so all those thingshad to be covered to it will be
more pronounced.
So all those things had to becovered.
And and I felt reallyfrustrated because within the 10
to 15 minute consultation timethat we have here, it was really
(10:53):
difficult to do that.
And, again, I really wanted totell all these women that this
is what we need to focus on too.
You know, and and that's why Istarted um, this online program,
I call it menopause withlifestyle, because I felt this
is the platform that I couldtalk about it um more in detail.
We can have a deeper dive into,into all these aspects of
(11:16):
lifestyle and and women found itso helpful because they felt
finally listened to, because,again, 10-15 minutes to come, a
menopause it's so difficult.
And then, of course, it allowedus to look more into every
woman's individual situation andtry then to tailor the changes
(11:38):
that would be a applicable tothis woman but also feasible,
because it's something thatneeds to fit around our
lifestyle.
Women in midlife are busy.
Speaker 1 (11:50):
Yeah, very true, they are very busy, right, you got a
lot of things going on, I mean,even just for yourself.
Right, you're going into themenopause transition and you
still have three boys at home,which I imagine keeps you
extremely busy, and you haveyour career and right, and we
have a lot going on.
(12:10):
Or maybe you have aging parentsand there's just a lot.
I mean it's the busiest time, Ithink, of our entire lives and
then we have to deal with themenopause transition and all
that goes along with that.
So, going back to the SSRIs,which is antidepressant.
So I know that for me, my doctor, when I went for the first time
(12:32):
to talk about hormones orhormone replacement or just any
menopause symptoms, the firstthing that my doctor suggested
was for me to go on an SSRI,which is an antidepressant,
which I thought was kind ofcrazy.
I'm not depressed, I didn't wantto make the commitment to such
a strong medication and therewas no talk about hormones but
(12:58):
she was pushing theantidepressant and no talk about
other lifestyle modifications.
So the lack of, I think,education for some doctors, at
least here in the United States,just seems it's getting, I
think, better now.
We're like getting into sort ofmainstream, but it's taken a
(13:22):
long time, and I think you alsomentioned you know that in your
program the individual component, because your menopause
experience is very, veryindividual.
No two women are going throughthe same exact thing, and so
there's all these aspects oflifestyle that I think are
definitely needed, whetheryou're on hormones or not.
(13:45):
Right, absolutely so did you,yeah, and did you decide to
focus on menopause because youwere having a personal
experience going through yourown menopause transition?
Speaker 2 (13:56):
Yes, that obviously also kept me curious, because I
was entering perimenopause.
I was 46 when I noticed myfirst symptoms.
And my first symptoms werenight sweats.
And being a doctor, you reallythink of something the worst,
because you think, gosh, whatdoes that mean?
I've got some underlying blooddisorder, cancer, night sweats.
(14:18):
And then it dawned on me ohright, okay, this is what's
happening.
And then again I knew thatthere must be other things that
we could do to help ourselves.
And alcohol was the first thing, and not that I was drinking
much at all, but even then Inoticed I would have my night
sweats would be a lot worse if Ihad a glass of wine.
(14:38):
And again, I think giving womenthis information is important,
because then a woman can make achoice.
And it's the same withnutrition, I think, telling
women that guess what yournutrition, your what you're
eating, can either feed andnourish your hormones or it can
deplete your hormones.
(14:59):
And it's as simple as that.
And I think for a lot of womenit's.
It's a huge revelation becausenobody told them that.
Yeah, and so on and so on, yeah, I mean food.
Speaker 1 (15:11):
My belief is that there's no food, specific food,
that's going to take away hotflashes or night sweats.
I don't know if you have adifferent opinion on that, but
food definitely matters.
Know if you have a differentopinion on that, but food
definitely matters.
I mean for so many other things, because when we have the
depletion of estrogen, our bonessuffer, our heart, our brains,
(15:34):
skin, right, I mean there's somany things that get compromised
from this lack of estrogen.
And the more we know how tonourish ourselves, the better,
because food counts when itcomes to bone health, to heart
health, to diabetes and on andon.
Speaker 2 (15:52):
Yeah, exactly, and you know there was.
There was a study it's a smallstudy, by Dr Neil Barnard, based
in the States, where theylooked at 38 women and it was an
rct study, um randomizedcontrol study, where it's um,
what they did was they literallyjust took these women who were
(16:13):
on what I call it the standardamerican diet the sad, the sad
diet, the processed food, thepizza, the sausage rolls, um,
the processed yogurt, etc.
Etc.
Chips, and they literally justput them on what I would call it
the whole food, sorry, wholefood, unprocessed diet.
Yeah, and it's.
It was mostly plant-based andthat means that there was a lot
(16:36):
less of the processed stuff,with more of the nuts and seeds
and lentils and legumes andvegetables, and just even that
after 12 weeks led to areduction, 86% reduction, which
is huge in hot flashes and nightsweats.
So you might argue it's asmaller study, a small study and
we need to expand on that, butthat's a good start, again, just
(17:00):
to show that even that can helpyour symptoms and the
mechanisms, again again, areprobably many there.
But even just looking at gutmicrobiome and knowing that the
subfraction of that, theestrobilone that is responsible
for helping the metabolism ofyour hormones is going to be
(17:21):
much richer, much more diversewith the unprocessed whole food
diet.
That's interesting yeah.
Speaker 1 (17:30):
I'd love to.
I'll look into that studybecause that's interesting.
I didn't know of it.
How big was the study?
How many participants were init?
38.
Okay, so that would be great ifthey could do a larger study.
It's worth paying attention toAbsolutely.
I mean.
There's no excuse for eating apoor diet, right?
(17:53):
I mean we know that evenalcohol use smoking.
These can all contribute to hotflashes, right?
Poor processed foods likely.
So the more that you are eatinga better plant-based whole
foods diet, the better.
Speaker 2 (18:13):
I mean, this is a no-brainer.
Speaker 1 (18:15):
What about here in the United States?
Right now, protein is like thehot ticket item is like the hot
ticket item.
Everyone is upping theirprotein and just going crazy for
protein.
And I'm all for, of course.
Protein is an essentialnutrient.
It's a macronutrient.
We need it in our diets and Iam a big proponent of mixing up
(18:40):
our proteins with a combinationof plant-based, because those
are also so full of fiber and somany other nutrients, and
having some animal protein,because the animal's protein is
a really good source of likequick, you know protein, yes,
but what is your feeling on thisprotein craze and are you
(19:03):
having it over there in ScotlandLike we are?
Speaker 2 (19:06):
Yes, I think it's definitely catching up here as
well.
I hear about this a lot and Ithink and I get this asked a lot
as well from my women, myclients and my patients, because
I think the current kind of theguidelines so to say's one gram
of protein per pound of yourideal body weight, which could
(19:30):
be quite a lot, I think, forsome of us if we're not used to
it.
Um, so for me that would beabout, I'll say, 90 gram of
protein and per day, and I justknow that I don't meet that
requirement.
But rather than focusing on theactual number, I would suggest
(19:53):
focusing on having a bit ofprotein in it in each meal.
So, let's say, your first mealof the day rather than it being
the cereal with milk, which,unfortunately, is still the
staple breakfast here inScotland.
Very often you're going tothink okay, how can I actually
have my make my protein?
(20:14):
My first meal of the day bebreakfast or later in the day,
be more around protein, whetherit's plant-based or animal-based
.
And the reason for that, Ithink well, of course, it's the
muscle tissue we need to beaware of, but also that will
lead to less glucose and sugarspikes in your bloodstream,
which again is going to lead toless of the insulin resistance,
(20:37):
which we are more at risk anywayalready in midlife that's just
a given with hormones going down.
And so I think, if we're goingto avoid those sugar spikes with
insulin processed carbs thatare easily converted into sugar
in your bloodstream, havingthose constant up and downs and
which makes us more tired, lessfeeling, less energy, I think
(21:01):
that's where I think the proteinis important.
And so and I think again, beingpractical, rather than counting
the grams which I don't I don'tcount my calories either, and I
always tell my women I don'twant them to be, I don't, I
don't count my calories either,and I always tell my women I
don't want them to be againobsessed about counting calories
(21:23):
and exactly weighing theirprotein, but it's more of a
practical, realistic approach.
With every meal that you'rehaving, you ask yourself where's
my protein?
And then you're right.
I think I'm a proponent of moreof a ketobiotic diet rather
than keto diet.
So we need the good amount offiber, we need veg, we need
greens Again, folic aciddeficiency here is unfortunately
(21:46):
big because we just don't eatenough greens and I think the
combination of those two as youmentioned already that fiber
again is going to feed yourmicrobiome and it's going to
give you the diversity and willhelp again to metabolize your
hormones, whether you are on HRTor not, hormone replacement
therapy or not, because even ifyou have your own hormones, it's
(22:08):
still going to get you.
You'll get more out of itbasically.
Speaker 1 (22:12):
Protein has become here the star and I am kind of
wondering, like, what happenedto fiber?
I mean, fiber is such a that'sthe nutrient that I think people
here at least, are verydeficient in and really need to
focus on.
So if you eat plant-basedproteins right, and I tell
because everyone's so focused ongetting chicken and eggs and
(22:34):
protein powder and protein barsand, and but plant-based
proteins have the, the beautifulcombination of both.
right, they're full of beans arefull of fiber, full of protein
and 100 100 yeah, my favorite ishemp seed.
Speaker 2 (22:51):
Did you know that hemp seed is a?
It's full of protein.
It's 33 grams of protein per100 gram of hemp seed.
Okay, and called organic hempseeds are fantastic um addition
to any salad any morning, youknow if you're eating porridge
or cereal, and just even on itsown as a snack, I love it
(23:11):
because it's full of fiber aswell.
And then you've got youromega-3.
I mean it's, it's a win-winsituation here.
So, and I agree with you, Ithink what I see, the flip side
of that protein craze,especially if it's animal-based
protein, is that we, we getconstipated, and especially, yes
, and the protein powders,because they're mostly whey
(23:32):
protein powders.
And quite often you ask womenlike do you know what whey is?
They don't.
Yeah, they don't realize it's abyproduct of the dairy industry
, etc.
Etc.
Quite often not of a greatquality, and again, it's all
down to educating women, sittingdown with them and saying,
right, where else can we getmore and better quality protein
(23:54):
for you?
Right, yeah.
Speaker 1 (23:56):
I mean, protein powders are processed food yes,
you think about it and theyusually have sweeteners or other
ingredients that I don'tpersonally love.
I understand when people justreally can't get enough protein,
but I think, like you said, ifwe are focusing on our three
meals and just making sure wehave a good source of quality
(24:20):
protein and maybe and then asnack and have a protein there
too, we should be just fine yes,absolutely.
Speaker 2 (24:29):
and then even broccoli has protein.
Okay, not much, but there'sstill protein in the broccoli,
right, and so lentils are afantastic source of protein.
I think it's 18 gram of proteinper 100 gram in lentils versus
22 gram in chicken.
So 18 versus 22, it's not muchof a difference, to be honest.
So you can get great sources ofprotein from plants.
(24:53):
And yes, you're right, I thinkwe're so obsessed about the
protein.
But then in the West, fiber isthe big issue.
I think only about 3% of us inthe West actually meet the fiber
requirement per day, which isabout 45, 50 gram.
We don't eat enough fiber.
Speaker 1 (25:09):
Yeah, my prediction is that after the protein craze
settles down a little bit, it'sgoing to become the fiber craze.
There's always something right.
One thing at a moment, and thenback to seeds.
I love seeds so much.
I always tell people I mean Iusually make a jar of just
(25:29):
different mixed seeds hemp seeds, chia seeds, flax seeds,
pumpkin seeds and then I justput a couple tablespoons in my
oatmeal or just to add, you know, have some extra protein.
But I mean protein, fiber,healthy fats right, it's all in
there.
So those are just the best, Ithink, one of the best sources
(25:50):
of just whole foods that you canhave.
Yeah, agreed, let's shift for asecond and talk about sleep,
because I know that this is justthe number one complaint of so
many women going throughmenopause, and I know, for me,
all the hormones in the worldare not necessarily fixing my
(26:10):
sleep.
I mean they can.
Definitely.
Hormones can help with nightsweats, right, which then might
keep you up, and that's a help.
But sleep is complicated, right, and it is one of those
lifestyle components that's soincredibly important for us.
We cannot minimize our sleepand the importance of it to our
(26:34):
health, right?
What do you think our sleep andthe importance of it to our
health right.
What do you think about sleepand the importance?
Speaker 2 (26:39):
yeah, a hundred percent.
I think sleep is tricky becausein perimenopause you've got
your night sweats and hotflashes to deal with.
That's going to disrupt yoursleep.
And then, equally um, withreduced progesterone, and that's
a funny thing.
Again, we focus so much onestrogen, we talk about
menopause, but progesterone alsois declining and I think we
(27:03):
feel the decline of progesteroneprobably a lot earlier because
it starts declining from a muchhigher kind of level compared to
estrogen.
And those are the very subtlesymptoms, like that
hypervigilance and anxiety, theirrational anxiety quite often
people say like they don't knowwhere is this coming from and
(27:25):
sleep problems.
And that's because progesteronedoes help regulate GABA and
GABA is a neurotransmitter thatmakes us feel kind of calmer and
relaxed.
So when that is gone and thatextra hypervigilance, and then
we then add on that chronicstress which we are under, most
of us, and that constant chroniccortisol that's running high
(27:48):
there, so added to that it'stricky.
But then I think, yes, hrtmight help to some extent.
But then sleep hygiene andthose again the basics, are
going to be super, superimportant because that will
become non-negotiable, becausewe can't get away with a few
hours of sleep when we're in 20sand 30s and I think
(28:13):
prioritizing it is going to besuper important because it's the
tricky one, I'm fully aware ofit, and it's very hard to fix it
just with a pill.
Because, let's face it again,most sleeping tablets are simply
sedatives.
They make us sleepy but theydon't give us that good quality
(28:36):
of that cyclical sleep, of deepsleep, shallow sleep, etc.
Those cycles that we need andthat's why the sleeping tablets
really don't work.
But that's why, again, focusingon how can we increase our
natural melatonin production andthat's again in response to
daylight and most of us areworking indoors and we don't see
(28:58):
the daylight on a regular basisthat will impact our sleep.
Having late meals at night,insulin spike, which is an enemy
, the enemy of melatonin isagain going to impact on our
sleep later on through the night, and so on and so on.
And when you teach these littlehacks and we talk about little
(29:19):
strategies we can implement, andit does start coming together.
Speaker 1 (29:24):
What do you recommend for people to get more daylight
and when they are working?
You know, maybe they're gettingup and going straight to a job
and then coming home and itmight be dark out and it's just
sometimes impossible toimplement some of these
lifestyle changes.
Speaker 2 (29:45):
Yes, it's tricky, and especially if you live in a
climate like I mean, I'm inScotland, so right now we have a
beautiful weather and when wehave summer the days are really
long, and so I'm lucky, even ifI'm working late, I can come
home and I still catch thedaylight.
And going, for example, afterdinner for a walk is amazing,
because you just tick so manyboxes you get your daylight
(30:06):
exposure.
You start pushing all thatglucose after your dinner back
into your muscles, you get yourred light exposure if it's the
dusk kind of sunlight, again thered light.
If we think about it, we arenature's creatures so we need
that circadian rhythm and sothat light at dusk again signals
(30:30):
our brain.
That's okay, you're safe, youknow, calm down.
So that helps again the thenatural melatonin spike in the
evening.
But then in the winter it'stricky because, yeah, we're
indoors, it's dark and I wouldsay, trying to catch the
daylight, even if it's a cloudyday, whenever you can, for
example, lunchtime walk and evenat my surgery, because you know
(30:53):
it's so busy and you alwaysfeel guilty like, oh, I can't
really afford to go on the walkright now, but you literally
need 10 minutes and before youknow it, your colleagues are
joining you because they realizethat 10 minutes actually gives
them so much more energy for therest of the day.
And then, if you're reallystuck, um, you know, and again,
(31:13):
that lack of daylight can alsoaffect our mood.
So, and again, so many peopleare very sensitive to that and
the seasonal affective disordersad um can again kick in.
So, and there, then there areday lamps that you could, you
could use as well.
That would help to mimic thatdaylight and um, the sad lamps,
(31:34):
or sad lamps, could also be usedas a tool.
Speaker 1 (31:37):
Yeah, I have one of those at home.
I use it just in, like themiddle of deep winter when I but
I do try to get outside as muchas possible, especially in the
winter, because I know howimportant it is and I understand
that feeling of oh, I don'teven have 10 minutes or I feel
bad, I'm working.
But I think we women have tolook at it as a form of
(32:02):
self-care and it's necessary.
I mean, it's just necessarywhen you get outside for 10
minutes, get some sunshine onyour face, get your vitamin D up
.
It's just good for you and youfeeling good is good for
everybody else.
Speaker 2 (32:17):
Yes, it's one of those non-negotiables on my list
.
I would say that's thenon-negotiable.
And obviously we all know aboutthe blue light and the blue
light blockers.
You know putting your devicesaway before bedtime, at least
two hours before bedtime.
But the other one is thenon-negotiable one I would say
(32:37):
is the caffeine.
Again, we don't want to talkabout it quite often because I
mean, I love my coffee but Idon't like what it does to me.
Again, it depends on thequality of the coffee and we can
talk about it.
It's going to be a wholeseparate conversation.
Let's face it it.
You know, some of us don'tmetabolize it quickly enough and
(32:57):
so for some of us it mightstill be in our bloodstream 12
hours later.
So if we are reaching out forthe afternoon, pick me up coffee
at 3 pm, 4 pm.
Um, it might still be.
Half of it might be still inyour bloodstream because
half-life could be 12 hours andthat is a stimulant.
Speaker 1 (33:18):
Yeah.
I'm so sensitive to caffeine.
It's like ridiculous howsensitive I am and I just
actually I was only drinking onecup of tea in the morning and I
, for the last few weeks, havegone no caffeine at all.
Wow, and it's been hard, butit's been good though.
(33:39):
I mean overall it's been.
It's good, I think, for youknow, when I have, even that one
cup of caffeine just sets mybladder into a tailspin, I'm
like in the bathroom 20 times.
So I just wanted to experimentand see, and it's been a few.
It's made a huge difference.
But I do miss it, I really do.
(34:01):
But if I drink something Idon't get anything.
Caffeine after three o'clock, Iam done.
My sleep is done.
I'm like expect me to be up fortwo hours in the middle of the
night, which is just so, andit's funny how some women can
not even notice it and some arejust super sensitive, like
myself.
But yeah, the caffeine is justall different, all different.
Speaker 2 (34:23):
Yeah, and that's why I listen to your body.
And if you're somebody who'scoming to me and saying, look, I
have absolutely no issues withmy sleep and I drink two cups of
coffee, I mean, look at italyand sp.
I mean, they're all drinkingespressos pretty much 24-7.
But again it would beinteresting to see what is their
prevalence of sleep issues inthose countries.
But again, we need to rememberwe are all different.
(34:44):
But if you say to me, look, mysleep is disrupted, I don't know
what's going on.
And then if you then tell me mylast cup of coffee is at 5pm and
I'm having symptoms of what wewould say an overactive bladder,
what do we do?
We suggest treatment,medication.
I think this is where we haveto really start kind of
(35:07):
unpeeling the onion anddiscussing things like well,
coffee is going to be affectingyour bladder, coffee, even if
it's a decaf, because decaf isnever 100% caffeine free.
That's about 30% of it's stillcaffeine.
So we need to remember that aswell.
And if you're one of thosewomen, then we need to have a
conversation and there's waysaround it and maybe have your
(35:30):
coffee decaf first thing in themorning, or at least before
lunchtime, and see how your bodyresponds to that.
Speaker 1 (35:38):
Right, yeah, it just goes.
I think back to thatconversation around alcohol and,
just like these vices that wehave, you know sometimes that I
think as we get older maybe webecome more sensitive to them
and we can't really.
And so you have to weigh outthe consequences.
I mean, what is it?
Is it worth having a couple ofglasses of wine and like waking
(36:00):
up with night sweats in themiddle of the night, I mean, or
is it worth it to maybe back offof alcohol and see how that
makes you feel?
And same with coffee.
Speaker 2 (36:16):
Absolutely.
And then again, all it comesdown to, what does alcohol serve
you as?
What does it mean for you tohave a glass of wine?
Is it, is it to have a goodtime with your friends, to
enhance the taste of your mealat dinnertime, or is it
something that will help youfall asleep every night?
And you need that and you useit as a crutch.
(36:37):
So you know, or this is theonly de-stressor that you can
think of.
And I think that's where theconversation then shifts
completely from you know and I'mnot saying like, don't ever,
ever, drink alcohol.
That's, that's impossible.
I would say some people makethat choice consciously,
absolutely fine, um, but it'smore of a having that
(36:59):
conversation with yourself andand then deciding what would be
the best thing for you,definitely yeah, I mean it.
Speaker 1 (37:10):
Right, some of these habits that we have can get very
complicated because we linkthem to so many emotions.
Right, having a glass of winein the evening or drinking your
morning cup of coffee is veryritualistic, right.
And you have to unlink some ofthose or just or just cultivate
(37:31):
the awareness that yeah wow, Ireally, every time I'm stressed
out, I want to have a glass ofwine, or every time I just feel
a little tired, I'm making a cupof coffee and, yes, you know,
we just have to, yeah, just havethe awareness.
I think around that.
So, yeah, it's, I know theseare all the things that women in
(37:53):
midlife and going throughmenopause have to have to
grapple with, right, yes, yes,yeah.
So I wanted to talk to you alsoabout exercise, because we were
just talking about gettingoutside for a couple minutes a
day and I mean, and again, I'mgoing to just kind of go back to
, like, what's happening here inthe United States, because
(38:14):
right now, weighted vests,strength training, lifting,
heavy I mean these are all veryhot ticket items right now, like
very, you know, hot topics.
And what do you think aboutphysical activity and movement
as far as life?
I mean, I know where?
I'm not even asking if youthink it's a good idea or not.
(38:36):
We know, we know that it's,it's, oh, yeah, necessary and
it's great, and.
Speaker 2 (38:42):
But what do you think about the over emphasis or the
big emphasis right now onstrength training and lifting
and weighted vests, and yeah, Ithink we've gone from having a
lot of talk about cardio andthat kind of um, staying slim
(39:04):
kind of fitness for women whenwe were 20s and 20s and 30s, and
then now we've gone all aboutweights and lifting heavy Again,
like with anything else.
I think the truth is somewherein the middle.
What I see is that either womendon't exercise enough because
(39:30):
let's face it as a society again, we are sedentary or they would
do maybe menopause, yoga orsomething very gentle, which
which is nice, but again, it'sprobably not enough.
Then the other extreme is wherewomen will come and say to me
look, I'm doing my weightlifting five days a week, I'm
doing HIIT training five days aweek and I'm still feeling
miserable.
I'm tired, I'm not losingweight, my joints are, and this
(39:53):
is what I want to say to them.
Okay, let's sit down and have aconversation.
So the reason you're not losingweight is because your body is
in a constant state of stress,stress in the kind of primal
terms, famine, usually, you know, in the olden days let's say
yes, when you know, before wehad the Industrial Revolution
(40:16):
meant that we probably would notget food for a few days.
And so what does the body thinkI'm going to store up on that
fat just in case, and that iswhy you're not losing your
weight, losing weight and so andI think we do definitely need
weight training, because let'seven talk about osteoporosis
again you can have all the HRT,all your estrogen in the world
(40:39):
and the calcium supplements andthe vitamin D supplements, but
if those bones are not put undera bit of pressure, just even
from your own body weight andI'm talking your own body weight
squats, because it's verydifficult to injure yourself
with your own body weight,because the body is really
clever, you know thebiomechanics will be absolutely
(41:00):
fine and sorted.
And then push-ups for the upperbody strength Start small,
start with that, because youneed a little bit of, basically,
pressure on your bones.
It was this experiment in abiosphere too, in Arizona, I
don't know if you're aware of itwhere they created this covered
(41:21):
area with perfect conditionsfor trees and the humidity and
oxygen levels, et cetera, etcetera, and the trees were
growing.
But then, after a certain time,they noticed scientists noticed
they were falling down and theycouldn't understand what was
going on.
And then they realized, huh,there's no wind.
How interesting.
And so, yeah, and the rootswere really shallow, although
(41:42):
the trees looked so healthy.
But because we're not put underthat stress of the wind, where
the roots had to develop, andthen also the trees are really
good at kind of connecting theroots with each other, and so
that's the same thing with ourbones.
So, if we're going to bepumping all the nutrients but
not really exercising our bones,jumping is also really good for
(42:05):
that, you know kind of stomping, and so that's basically that's
what it is.
So, and ideally again, in the,the ideal world, you want to
vary a little.
You want to do, maybe, yourweight training a couple of
times a week.
You want to do a bit of cardio,high intensity interval
training, hiit training, becausethat's a really good aerobic
(42:26):
exercise, and you do probablywant a bit of yoga, pilates to
stretch those muscles thatyou've been working and stretch
the fascia and stretch the softtissue again.
Let's face it, we are stiff, wesit a lot, we're hunched
forward most of the day, and Ithink that usually gives really
(42:51):
good results because it's a muchmore balanced way of exercising
and movement in general.
And then, of course, it dependson your work.
Some people already are doingtheir cardio at work because
they're on their feet all day.
Yeah, and maybe all they needwas just to is just to add a bit
of weight training and maybestretching yeah, and I also want
to emphasize that doing thingsthat you enjoy.
Speaker 1 (43:14):
I always tell this to my clients.
I mean, make sure that you likeit and that, yes, it's not
something that you feel likeit's just another chore on your
to-do list, but something thatyou enjoy.
If you enjoy lifting weightsand weight training, great good.
Or you know, find or findsomething similar but that you
that you like to do yes, butalso, I think I think also be
(43:39):
open-minded.
Speaker 2 (43:40):
uh, because, for example, I mean even personally
myself, I, um, I tried to doweights, I think, when I was
younger, and I think probably itwas my fault, potentially the
instructor didn't explain how todo it safely, so I pulled my
back and at that time I thoughtthat that's not for me, really I
don't want to do it, you know,and you get scared because you
don't want to get an injury.
(44:00):
But thankfully I revisited itand thankfully, this time the
instructor was fantastic and so,and that feeling of being able
to lift weights and I don't liftheavy, I would say maximum, you
know eight, ten kilograms andwhat in each hand, but even that
gives me that feeling that youknow I'm stronger, I can feel
(44:23):
that I'm stronger.
And also, remember, yourmuscles are calorie burning
machines, so we need to havehave a good, strong muscle and
the muscle wasting,unfortunately, is happening as
we get older and that is why,again, the weight training needs
to come in, maybe not fivetimes a week, but once or twice
a week Usually.
I think that's a good start.
Speaker 1 (44:44):
Yeah, no, that's actually a good point to
remember is that the more muscleyou have, the faster and better
, more efficient your metabolismis and the more you're burning
calories, and so it becomesreally important as we get older
because we become lessefficient at burning calories,
(45:06):
unfortunately that, knowing thatwe are social, I think,
especially in this time of life,going through the menopause
(45:31):
transition, women need community.
We need to know that we're notalone.
I mean, I know, when I firstwas going through perimenopause
I don't know if you felt thesame I felt so alone in the
experience because nobody wastalking about it.
My friends weren't talkingabout it, it was a secret.
No one got education onmenopause.
There was like no education.
(45:51):
I was like just feeling my wayin the dark kind of, and even my
doctors were not educating me.
So it was just a really lonelyexperience for a while and I
think there's so much confusionand then out on the internet,
social media, all that, there'sjust people preying on your
vulnerabilities, I think, inmenopause.
(46:12):
So I think it can be verylonely.
So what do you feel about justthis?
Having community and buildingour emotional resilience and,
you know, just having theimportance of relationships at
this time?
Speaker 2 (46:29):
Yes, I think the menopause conversation went from
being hush-hush to now acomplete opposite.
It's a bit of a jungle out there, I think there's so much much
jungle that's a good way todescribe it, and I mean I
sometimes feel confused andsometimes you, you listen to
somebody and you follow thatperson and they and some of the
(46:50):
stuff they would say is true, iscorrect, you think, yeah, okay,
okay, and then suddenly they'llcome up with something
completely wild and you think,hang on a minute, you know, is
that, is that the case?
So I think, yeah, it's goodthat we are talking about it a
hundred percent.
That's, that's huge, um, butyes, we, I guess we have to in
terms of the finding information, we have to be maybe slightly
(47:13):
more careful and maybe, you know, looking at other aspects of
speak to your doctor as well Imean doctors, I think, are
getting more education on thisbut also find your tribe, find
your circle of friends.
I think loneliness and feelingisolated again is huge.
(47:38):
I think it's now likened tobeing as harmful as 15
cigarettes a day and of smoking,and so, and I think women can
find it hard, as you said, youknow we have so many
responsibilities and we oftenput ourselves last because we
are taking care of our family,our children, our elderly
parents, we have a career, umand so, and then also having
(48:03):
that time for yourself, you know, I, I say to women, slot that
in that, that time in yourcalendar and that way either you
do nothing or you're meetingyour friend for a cup of tea or
coffee, because it's not luxury,it's your moment of self-care,
almost like self-preservation,because you need it, because you
can't run on empty.
(48:23):
That running on adrenaline thatwas in 20s, 30s is not going to
work anymore.
And so and I think that's howit starts and then, yes, have
the open conversation.
If you have friends who aregoing through the same, I mean
even better, have openconversations with them, share
your stories, and sometimes ashared burden is half a burden.
(48:46):
And then you realize that, oh,I'm not alone.
So the women I work with um werun it as a small group, so we
have about five women in thegroup um and some women, I think
, are a little bit apprehensiveof working in the group um and
some women, I think, are alittle bit apprehensive of
working in the group becausethey think that one-to-one you
know program is better, it isgood.
But then I think what they'veall said to me wow, I really
(49:10):
enjoy the community and they allbecame really good friends
because they realized what theythought were they were suffering
with and they were the onlyperson having this issue.
They realized other women aregoing through the same and
suddenly, oh wow, I'm not theodd one out here.
And then you know, before youknow it, they are sharing their
(49:32):
stories.
They are actually giving eachother advice because somebody
might have found a solution orthey were worried that there was
no solution.
Suddenly there is one, and so Ithink that's very, very
important for women.
Speaker 1 (49:47):
Yes, I agree that's a great point that I think women
are used to just like kind ofsuffering and silence.
Right, and it's not comfortablesometimes for women to be in
groups and to have to bevulnerable and talk about your
feelings or your symptoms.
But once you can break pastthat it can be an incredible
(50:09):
experience.
So I agree with that.
Talked about healthy eating,our sleep, our stress, our
physical activity, controllingwhat you call excess like and
caffeine, and and managing ourrelationships and not being in
isolation.
And if you had to pick one ofthese to focus on now, like you
(50:32):
know, if, if a woman came to youand she wanted to, you know,
just start what one would be themost important to you as far as
, like, working, you know, inthe menopause realm.
Speaker 2 (50:44):
Yes, well, all of those are important.
That's why they're allimportant.
Speaker 1 (50:49):
I know that, yes, I know.
I'm like saying the questionout loud.
I'm like, obviously, all ofthem are so important.
Speaker 2 (50:56):
But you're right, if I were to pick one, I think that
would be your self-care andyour mindset, and I'll tell you
why.
Because when women come to me,they are desperate and they have
been suffering in silence andthey don't afford to do this, or
there's no time to look aftermyself, or this is just an
(51:25):
indulgence.
I should just have to get onwith it.
And I think, giving that womanpermission and saying you
deserve this, you know you needto now to start looking after
yourself.
And it starts here in our headto stop feeling guilty about it.
And suddenly, when that shifthappens in your mind, suddenly
(51:50):
things start changing and womenfeel lighter and women feel
right.
And now I'm going to think moreabout what I'm eating every day.
What is nourishing me, what isnourishing my soul, what is it
that I've always wanted to do?
I used to love doing, forexample, and I haven't had the
time to do, be it painting,joining the choir.
(52:12):
One woman said to me she wantedto go back gardening because
she felt like it was all in theback burner.
And I think once they have thatpermission and with a bit of
guidance, they'll be off andsuddenly you can see, it's like
the domino effect, the rippleeffect of the changes that start
(52:33):
happening, and it's wonderfulto see that.
Speaker 1 (52:36):
I agree with you 100% .
I think that none of this canhappen until you make your
self-care the number onepriority.
And that means being very kindto yourself, right, knowing that
this can be a hard journey,being very self-compassionate.
If you are just going to beatyourself up and feel like you
(53:02):
have to go on another kind ofdiet or regimen or you have to
go exercise, it's never going towork.
It doesn't work.
I've seen it too many timeswith clients.
But if you come at it withcompassion and self-kindness,
these things become important.
Right, eating well becomes veryimportant because you know
(53:24):
you're nourishing yourself.
Or exercising becomes importantbecause just helping you, and
on and on.
Speaker 2 (53:30):
So I I agree with you yeah, and then and then start
small.
Don't get overwhelmed.
Don't get, you know,overwhelmed with all the things
you have to change at once.
No, you don't.
So pick one thing, pick that,something that you're
comfortable with, and then youwill notice, aha, suddenly I
have more energy.
Now I can start doing somethingelse.
(53:53):
Now I can add on exercise tothat.
Or now I I started leaving myphone outside my bedroom because
I realized that two hours oftime before my bed is crucial
for me to wind down.
I'm doing something much calmer, something that doesn't involve
the devices and long to-dolists and so on and so on.
Speaker 1 (54:15):
Right, it's a marathon, not a sprint, right?
Yeah, olga, thank you so muchfor speaking to me today about
this and love your differentlifestyle changes and that women
all women can make.
How do women get in touch withyou?
Speaker 2 (54:35):
I've got loads of free resources as well, so check
out my website.
It's drolgamortoncom.
Very, um, very easy.
Just my name anddrolgamortoncom.
I do have a weekly newsletterthat comes out every friday,
where I would, um, promise youI'll promise you keep it short
(54:56):
and sweet and just really,because nobody has the time to
read long emails but it'ssomething literally just to give
you practical advice and tipsand also to keep you motivated
and give you a little nudge inthe right direction from time to
time.
And I do have a free ebook youcould download from our website.
Again covers exactly what we'rejust talking about, but you
(55:18):
could print it out and almostuse it as a workbook where you
can go through the questionsyourself and see what you can
change, so you can actuallystart making changes today.
And yes, I also do run freemaster classes, which are online
, which you can join, and if youcan't because of the different
time zones, you can alwaysregister and watch the replay,
(55:40):
which a lot of my clients do.
So there's lots of differentways of still connecting with me
and working with me, if you'reinterested.
Speaker 1 (55:48):
Okay, fantastic.
Well, I will put all thoselinks in the show notes and so
people can find you that way.
Thank you so much for talkingtoday.
I appreciate it and you'redoing great things.
Speaker 2 (56:01):
And thank you for having me.
It was a pleasure.
Hi there and welcome back to the Real Food Stories
podcast.
I am your host, heather Carey,and today's episode is such an
important one.
I had the pleasure of speakingwith Dr Olga Morton, who is not
only a practicing physician butalso has specialty training in
something called lifestylemedicine, and if you've never
(00:23):
heard of that before, you're notalone, but you're going to want
to stick around for thisconversation.
In a world where so many womenare told to jump straight to
supplements or medications orhormone therapy, dr Morton
offers a refreshing,evidence-based approach that
starts with what we can actuallycontrol in our day-to-day lives
(00:46):
, and we covered her six coreareas that she focuses on with
her patients Eating a mostlyplant-based, healthy diet,
moving your body regularly,managing stress in a realistic
way, getting enough high-qualitysleep, building strong,
(01:07):
supportive relationships andcutting back on the things that
work against us like alcohol,tobacco and yes, even caffeine
for some people.
I know that one is hard to hear.
This is one of those grounding,empowering conversations that
reminds us that the foundationsreally do matter and that health
(01:28):
doesn't have to feel sooverwhelming when we start with
what's doable and what feelskind and compassionate for us.
So let's dive in with myconversation with Dr Olga Morton
.
Dive in with my conversationwith Dr Olga Morton.
Olga Morton is a medical doctorwith additional training as a
(01:50):
lifestyle medicine physician.
After years of helping chronicdisease patients using
conventional medicine, sherealized that medication and
surgery alone are not the wholesolution.
Through her continuingeducation in lifestyle medicine,
she discovered that often smalllifestyle changes could indeed
be more powerful and longerlasting than pills.
(02:10):
Today she offers her patients amore holistic approach to
wellness and more recently, olgahas been using her expertise
for the treatment of menopausalsymptoms.
Her mission is to empower womenwith effective lifestyle
changes so they can thrivethrough menopause, with or
without medication.
So, hi, olga, welcome to RealFood Stories.
(02:33):
It's always so nice to get theperspective from the medical
community on menopause andhealth, and I'm also intrigued
with the fact that you helpwomen with the other very
important aspects of healththrough lifestyle changes that
are not part of conventionalmedicine right Just throwing
(02:56):
pills or hormones at you.
So let's start with your ownjourney with midlife and
menopause and your path topracticing more lifestyle-based
medicine.
Speaker 2 (03:09):
Yes, thank you so much for having me, heather,
it's lovely to speak to you.
Yes, I mean about me, I guess.
First of all, I'm a mom ofthree boys, so I've got teens
and preteens, and so life isbusy.
Lots of plates are spinning allat once.
And so life is busy, lots ofplates are spinning all at once.
(03:29):
And early on in my career I alsodid a PhD, a doctorate degree,
on in autoimmunity and molecularcellular biology, and that was
after my medical degree.
And so, and the thesis wasfocusing on finding novel
treatments that would beblocking inflammatory pathways,
that would essentially then beused for treatment of autoimmune
conditions, inflammatoryconditions like rheumatoid
(03:51):
arthritis.
And although the research wasfascinating, I quickly realized
most of these drugs, they couldbe effective, but then they
always had side effects.
And so even then I thought,well, there must be a different
way to approach those illnessesor to treat those, manage those
better.
And when I went back toclinical practice again, I was
(04:15):
working as a family physician inthe States, I guess, or in
North America, you would call itgeneral practitioner in Britain
and Scotland and very quickly,quickly again, I realized that
we are great at treating acuteconditions.
Let's say, somebody had abroken leg.
We're great at fixing that, butif you've got something like
type 2 diabetes, high bloodpressure, high cholesterol,
(04:38):
autoimmune conditions, we arenot good at managing those.
And if we do, then we havereally usually strong drugs that
would help to manage thesymptoms, but they will often
have again significant sideeffects.
And I was getting reallyfrustrated because I found
myself writing more and moreprescriptions and signing them
(04:59):
every single day, thinking theremust be a different way to do
this.
And I think that naturalcuriosity, also from the
doctorate degree, led me on thepath of lifestyle medicine when
I just realized, wow, this iswhat we need, because, if you
look at it, there's so muchresearch on this that nutrition
is important, exercise isimportant, stress management,
(05:21):
social connections, reducingtoxic load and those are
essentially the six pillars oflifestyle medicine, including
sleep.
And so I signed the diploma andI'm board certified by the
international board of lifestylemedicine in conjunction with
BSLM, the British Society ofLifestyle Medicine, and I did
that in 2019 and I've neverlooked back because that just
(05:46):
opened new horizons for me andnew approaches to manage these
chronic illnesses.
And then, when I was seeingagain women who would come to me
women in midlife and I wasgoing through midlife changes
myself Again.
That's, you know, therealization that we need to talk
about lifestyle changes towomen in midlife too.
(06:08):
And you know, I have to admitthat I'm very humbled by the
fact that I had two doctoratedegrees, one in autoimmunity or
molecular cellular biology andthen one in medicine, and I knew
nothing about nutrition, andhow bizarre is that.
I think this is changing now,but um, and I think most of um
(06:30):
at least western universitieshad would have the same
curriculum where nutrition maybewould get, if you're lucky, a
few hours.
And and that's about it,because mostly we are studying
pharmacology and the effect ofdrugs and the mechanism of
medication, how it basically, inmy opinion, it doesn't always.
(06:53):
It doesn't cure or doesn'treverse the illness.
It often maybe alleviates thesymptoms, and I think we need to
go deeper than that.
We need to look at root causesof the symptoms.
And I think we need to godeeper than that.
We need to look at root causes,all the issues.
And lifestyle medicine, to meat least, is the foundation of
that, yeah, that's such a goodpoint.
Speaker 1 (07:13):
I mean, I think that here in the United States, I
mean there's no training.
I think, just like you, very,very little training for medical
doctors around nutrition, and Ijustify this sometimes that you
can't be good at everything,right.
I mean, so you're an expert atmedications and acute illnesses
(07:37):
and that's what nutritionistslike myself are for, but on the
other hand, these things, allthese lifestyle things, matter
so much when it comes to illness.
So the fact, like a lot of thetalk, is that most gynecologists
, most doctors, do not get anytraining whatsoever in menopause
(08:13):
.
Education Is that?
Did you have that experience aswell?
Speaker 2 (08:19):
I did have training and through my specialty
training as well, we diddefinitely cover menopause.
Um, what we maybe didn't coveragain, what are the non-medical
treatments for menopause?
And mostly, at least in the inbritain, the first line would be
, um, your antidepressants, orssris, that are licensed for
(08:42):
depression, anxiety, but alsofor perimenopausal, menopausal
symptoms linked to mood changes,even the vasomotor, you know,
hot flashes, night sweats, and Iremember that as a trainee,
thinking about it.
Well, how I mean this woman isnot depressed, like why are we
giving her antidepressants?
You know, and I quite rightly,would you know understand why
(09:04):
some women would not want that.
Because they would be saying,and I'm a woman myself going
through this and I sympathizewith them, and so I think the
training is definitely there.
But what I do find it's verymedication HRT nowadays again
oriented.
So it's focused mostly onhormone replacement therapy,
(09:24):
which we know can be lifechanging for some women.
It could be very helpful.
But then what I'm seeing in mypractice, and that's what led me
again to rethink the menopauseapproach, is when women would
come to me and would say well,dr Olga, I've tried HRT and I've
tried the pills and the patchesand the gel and the pill
(09:47):
combination and the marina coiland my brain fog is still there,
or I still can't sleep, or I'mstill tired, and so on and so on
.
And so some of the symptoms,like hot flashes, night sweats,
might have improved, but a lotof those what we call them, the
soft symptoms, the memorychanges and they were still
(10:10):
there.
And this is when I realized, andthere was this aha moment,
because, also, I knew thosewomen and I knew how stressed
they were and I knew they didn'thave time to look after
themselves and I knew thatnutrition probably was the last
thing on their list.
And then, quite often inBritain, this subject or topic
(10:31):
of alcohol is always avoided,and we know that with regular
alcohol intake, your hot flushes, night sweats, will be more
pronounced, so all those thingshad to be covered to it will be
more pronounced.
So all those things had to becovered.
And and I felt reallyfrustrated because within the 10
to 15 minute consultation timethat we have here, it was really
(10:53):
difficult to do that.
And, again, I really wanted totell all these women that this
is what we need to focus on too.
You know, and and that's why Istarted um, this online program,
I call it menopause withlifestyle, because I felt this
is the platform that I couldtalk about it um more in detail.
We can have a deeper dive into,into all these aspects of
(11:16):
lifestyle and and women found itso helpful because they felt
finally listened to, because,again, 10-15 minutes to come, a
menopause it's so difficult.
And then, of course, it allowedus to look more into every
woman's individual situation andtry then to tailor the changes
(11:38):
that would be a applicable tothis woman but also feasible,
because it's something thatneeds to fit around our
lifestyle.
Women in midlife are busy.
Speaker 1 (11:50):
Yeah, very true, they are very busy, right, you got a
lot of things going on, I mean,even just for yourself.
Right, you're going into themenopause transition and you
still have three boys at home,which I imagine keeps you
extremely busy, and you haveyour career and right, and we
have a lot going on.
(12:10):
Or maybe you have aging parentsand there's just a lot.
I mean it's the busiest time, Ithink, of our entire lives and
then we have to deal with themenopause transition and all
that goes along with that.
So, going back to the SSRIs,which is antidepressant.
So I know that for me, my doctor, when I went for the first time
(12:32):
to talk about hormones orhormone replacement or just any
menopause symptoms, the firstthing that my doctor suggested
was for me to go on an SSRI,which is an antidepressant,
which I thought was kind ofcrazy.
I'm not depressed, I didn't wantto make the commitment to such
a strong medication and therewas no talk about hormones but
(12:58):
she was pushing theantidepressant and no talk about
other lifestyle modifications.
So the lack of, I think,education for some doctors, at
least here in the United States,just seems it's getting, I
think, better now.
We're like getting into sort ofmainstream, but it's taken a
(13:22):
long time, and I think you alsomentioned you know that in your
program the individual component, because your menopause
experience is very, veryindividual.
No two women are going throughthe same exact thing, and so
there's all these aspects oflifestyle that I think are
definitely needed, whetheryou're on hormones or not.
(13:45):
Right, absolutely so did you,yeah, and did you decide to
focus on menopause because youwere having a personal
experience going through yourown menopause transition?
Speaker 2 (13:56):
Yes, that obviously also kept me curious, because I
was entering perimenopause.
I was 46 when I noticed myfirst symptoms.
And my first symptoms werenight sweats.
And being a doctor, you reallythink of something the worst,
because you think, gosh, whatdoes that mean?
I've got some underlying blooddisorder, cancer, night sweats.
(14:18):
And then it dawned on me ohright, okay, this is what's
happening.
And then again I knew thatthere must be other things that
we could do to help ourselves.
And alcohol was the first thing, and not that I was drinking
much at all, but even then Inoticed I would have my night
sweats would be a lot worse if Ihad a glass of wine.
(14:38):
And again, I think giving womenthis information is important,
because then a woman can make achoice.
And it's the same withnutrition, I think, telling
women that guess what yournutrition, your what you're
eating, can either feed andnourish your hormones or it can
deplete your hormones.
(14:59):
And it's as simple as that.
And I think for a lot of womenit's.
It's a huge revelation becausenobody told them that.
Yeah, and so on and so on, yeah, I mean food.
Speaker 1 (15:11):
My belief is that there's no food, specific food,
that's going to take away hotflashes or night sweats.
I don't know if you have adifferent opinion on that, but
food definitely matters.
Know if you have a differentopinion on that, but food
definitely matters.
I mean for so many other things, because when we have the
depletion of estrogen, our bonessuffer, our heart, our brains,
(15:34):
skin, right, I mean there's somany things that get compromised
from this lack of estrogen.
And the more we know how tonourish ourselves, the better,
because food counts when itcomes to bone health, to heart
health, to diabetes and on andon.
Speaker 2 (15:52):
Yeah, exactly, and you know there was.
There was a study it's a smallstudy, by Dr Neil Barnard, based
in the States, where theylooked at 38 women and it was an
rct study, um randomizedcontrol study, where it's um,
what they did was they literallyjust took these women who were
(16:13):
on what I call it the standardamerican diet the sad, the sad
diet, the processed food, thepizza, the sausage rolls, um,
the processed yogurt, etc.
Etc.
Chips, and they literally justput them on what I would call it
the whole food, sorry, wholefood, unprocessed diet.
Yeah, and it's.
It was mostly plant-based andthat means that there was a lot
(16:36):
less of the processed stuff,with more of the nuts and seeds
and lentils and legumes andvegetables, and just even that
after 12 weeks led to areduction, 86% reduction, which
is huge in hot flashes and nightsweats.
So you might argue it's asmaller study, a small study and
we need to expand on that, butthat's a good start, again, just
(17:00):
to show that even that can helpyour symptoms and the
mechanisms, again again, areprobably many there.
But even just looking at gutmicrobiome and knowing that the
subfraction of that, theestrobilone that is responsible
for helping the metabolism ofyour hormones is going to be
(17:21):
much richer, much more diversewith the unprocessed whole food
diet.
That's interesting yeah.
Speaker 1 (17:30):
I'd love to.
I'll look into that studybecause that's interesting.
I didn't know of it.
How big was the study?
How many participants were init?
38.
Okay, so that would be great ifthey could do a larger study.
It's worth paying attention toAbsolutely.
I mean.
There's no excuse for eating apoor diet, right?
(17:53):
I mean we know that evenalcohol use smoking.
These can all contribute to hotflashes, right?
Poor processed foods likely.
So the more that you are eatinga better plant-based whole
foods diet, the better.
Speaker 2 (18:13):
I mean, this is a no-brainer.
Speaker 1 (18:15):
What about here in the United States?
Right now, protein is like thehot ticket item is like the hot
ticket item.
Everyone is upping theirprotein and just going crazy for
protein.
And I'm all for, of course.
Protein is an essentialnutrient.
It's a macronutrient.
We need it in our diets and Iam a big proponent of mixing up
(18:40):
our proteins with a combinationof plant-based, because those
are also so full of fiber and somany other nutrients, and
having some animal protein,because the animal's protein is
a really good source of likequick, you know protein, yes,
but what is your feeling on thisprotein craze and are you
(19:03):
having it over there in ScotlandLike we are?
Speaker 2 (19:06):
Yes, I think it's definitely catching up here as
well.
I hear about this a lot and Ithink and I get this asked a lot
as well from my women, myclients and my patients, because
I think the current kind of theguidelines so to say's one gram
of protein per pound of yourideal body weight, which could
(19:30):
be quite a lot, I think, forsome of us if we're not used to
it.
Um, so for me that would beabout, I'll say, 90 gram of
protein and per day, and I justknow that I don't meet that
requirement.
But rather than focusing on theactual number, I would suggest
(19:53):
focusing on having a bit ofprotein in it in each meal.
So, let's say, your first mealof the day rather than it being
the cereal with milk, which,unfortunately, is still the
staple breakfast here inScotland.
Very often you're going tothink okay, how can I actually
have my make my protein?
(20:14):
My first meal of the day bebreakfast or later in the day,
be more around protein, whetherit's plant-based or animal-based
.
And the reason for that, Ithink well, of course, it's the
muscle tissue we need to beaware of, but also that will
lead to less glucose and sugarspikes in your bloodstream,
which again is going to lead toless of the insulin resistance,
(20:37):
which we are more at risk anywayalready in midlife that's just
a given with hormones going down.
And so I think, if we're goingto avoid those sugar spikes with
insulin processed carbs thatare easily converted into sugar
in your bloodstream, havingthose constant up and downs and
which makes us more tired, lessfeeling, less energy, I think
(21:01):
that's where I think the proteinis important.
And so and I think again, beingpractical, rather than counting
the grams which I don't I don'tcount my calories either, and I
always tell my women I don'twant them to be, I don't, I
don't count my calories either,and I always tell my women I
don't want them to be againobsessed about counting calories
(21:23):
and exactly weighing theirprotein, but it's more of a
practical, realistic approach.
With every meal that you'rehaving, you ask yourself where's
my protein?
And then you're right.
I think I'm a proponent of moreof a ketobiotic diet rather
than keto diet.
So we need the good amount offiber, we need veg, we need
greens Again, folic aciddeficiency here is unfortunately
(21:46):
big because we just don't eatenough greens and I think the
combination of those two as youmentioned already that fiber
again is going to feed yourmicrobiome and it's going to
give you the diversity and willhelp again to metabolize your
hormones, whether you are on HRTor not, hormone replacement
therapy or not, because even ifyou have your own hormones, it's
(22:08):
still going to get you.
You'll get more out of itbasically.
Speaker 1 (22:12):
Protein has become here the star and I am kind of
wondering, like, what happenedto fiber?
I mean, fiber is such a that'sthe nutrient that I think people
here at least, are verydeficient in and really need to
focus on.
So if you eat plant-basedproteins right, and I tell
because everyone's so focused ongetting chicken and eggs and
(22:34):
protein powder and protein barsand, and but plant-based
proteins have the, the beautifulcombination of both.
right, they're full of beans arefull of fiber, full of protein
and 100 100 yeah, my favorite ishemp seed.
Speaker 2 (22:51):
Did you know that hemp seed is a?
It's full of protein.
It's 33 grams of protein per100 gram of hemp seed.
Okay, and called organic hempseeds are fantastic um addition
to any salad any morning, youknow if you're eating porridge
or cereal, and just even on itsown as a snack, I love it
(23:11):
because it's full of fiber aswell.
And then you've got youromega-3.
I mean it's, it's a win-winsituation here.
So, and I agree with you, Ithink what I see, the flip side
of that protein craze,especially if it's animal-based
protein, is that we, we getconstipated, and especially, yes
, and the protein powders,because they're mostly whey
(23:32):
protein powders.
And quite often you ask womenlike do you know what whey is?
They don't.
Yeah, they don't realize it's abyproduct of the dairy industry
, etc.
Etc.
Quite often not of a greatquality, and again, it's all
down to educating women, sittingdown with them and saying,
right, where else can we getmore and better quality protein
(23:54):
for you?
Right, yeah.
Speaker 1 (23:56):
I mean, protein powders are processed food yes,
you think about it and theyusually have sweeteners or other
ingredients that I don'tpersonally love.
I understand when people justreally can't get enough protein,
but I think, like you said, ifwe are focusing on our three
meals and just making sure wehave a good source of quality
(24:20):
protein and maybe and then asnack and have a protein there
too, we should be just fine yes,absolutely.
Speaker 2 (24:29):
and then even broccoli has protein.
Okay, not much, but there'sstill protein in the broccoli,
right, and so lentils are afantastic source of protein.
I think it's 18 gram of proteinper 100 gram in lentils versus
22 gram in chicken.
So 18 versus 22, it's not muchof a difference, to be honest.
So you can get great sources ofprotein from plants.
(24:53):
And yes, you're right, I thinkwe're so obsessed about the
protein.
But then in the West, fiber isthe big issue.
I think only about 3% of us inthe West actually meet the fiber
requirement per day, which isabout 45, 50 gram.
We don't eat enough fiber.
Speaker 1 (25:09):
Yeah, my prediction is that after the protein craze
settles down a little bit, it'sgoing to become the fiber craze.
There's always something right.
One thing at a moment, and thenback to seeds.
I love seeds so much.
I always tell people I mean Iusually make a jar of just
(25:29):
different mixed seeds hemp seeds, chia seeds, flax seeds,
pumpkin seeds and then I justput a couple tablespoons in my
oatmeal or just to add, you know, have some extra protein.
But I mean protein, fiber,healthy fats right, it's all in
there.
So those are just the best, Ithink, one of the best sources
(25:50):
of just whole foods that you canhave.
Yeah, agreed, let's shift for asecond and talk about sleep,
because I know that this is justthe number one complaint of so
many women going throughmenopause, and I know, for me,
all the hormones in the worldare not necessarily fixing my
(26:10):
sleep.
I mean they can.
Definitely.
Hormones can help with nightsweats, right, which then might
keep you up, and that's a help.
But sleep is complicated, right, and it is one of those
lifestyle components that's soincredibly important for us.
We cannot minimize our sleepand the importance of it to our
(26:34):
health, right?
What do you think our sleep andthe importance of it to our
health right.
What do you think about sleepand the importance?
Speaker 2 (26:39):
yeah, a hundred percent.
I think sleep is tricky becausein perimenopause you've got
your night sweats and hotflashes to deal with.
That's going to disrupt yoursleep.
And then, equally um, withreduced progesterone, and that's
a funny thing.
Again, we focus so much onestrogen, we talk about
menopause, but progesterone alsois declining and I think we
(27:03):
feel the decline of progesteroneprobably a lot earlier because
it starts declining from a muchhigher kind of level compared to
estrogen.
And those are the very subtlesymptoms, like that
hypervigilance and anxiety, theirrational anxiety quite often
people say like they don't knowwhere is this coming from and
(27:25):
sleep problems.
And that's because progesteronedoes help regulate GABA and
GABA is a neurotransmitter thatmakes us feel kind of calmer and
relaxed.
So when that is gone and thatextra hypervigilance, and then
we then add on that chronicstress which we are under, most
of us, and that constant chroniccortisol that's running high
(27:48):
there, so added to that it'stricky.
But then I think, yes, hrtmight help to some extent.
But then sleep hygiene andthose again the basics, are
going to be super, superimportant because that will
become non-negotiable, becausewe can't get away with a few
hours of sleep when we're in 20sand 30s and I think
(28:13):
prioritizing it is going to besuper important because it's the
tricky one, I'm fully aware ofit, and it's very hard to fix it
just with a pill.
Because, let's face it again,most sleeping tablets are simply
sedatives.
They make us sleepy but theydon't give us that good quality
(28:36):
of that cyclical sleep, of deepsleep, shallow sleep, etc.
Those cycles that we need andthat's why the sleeping tablets
really don't work.
But that's why, again, focusingon how can we increase our
natural melatonin production andthat's again in response to
daylight and most of us areworking indoors and we don't see
(28:58):
the daylight on a regular basisthat will impact our sleep.
Having late meals at night,insulin spike, which is an enemy
, the enemy of melatonin isagain going to impact on our
sleep later on through the night, and so on and so on.
And when you teach these littlehacks and we talk about little
(29:19):
strategies we can implement, andit does start coming together.
Speaker 1 (29:24):
What do you recommend for people to get more daylight
and when they are working?
You know, maybe they're gettingup and going straight to a job
and then coming home and itmight be dark out and it's just
sometimes impossible toimplement some of these
lifestyle changes.
Speaker 2 (29:45):
Yes, it's tricky, and especially if you live in a
climate like I mean, I'm inScotland, so right now we have a
beautiful weather and when wehave summer the days are really
long, and so I'm lucky, even ifI'm working late, I can come
home and I still catch thedaylight.
And going, for example, afterdinner for a walk is amazing,
because you just tick so manyboxes you get your daylight
(30:06):
exposure.
You start pushing all thatglucose after your dinner back
into your muscles, you get yourred light exposure if it's the
dusk kind of sunlight, again thered light.
If we think about it, we arenature's creatures so we need
that circadian rhythm and sothat light at dusk again signals
(30:30):
our brain.
That's okay, you're safe, youknow, calm down.
So that helps again the thenatural melatonin spike in the
evening.
But then in the winter it'stricky because, yeah, we're
indoors, it's dark and I wouldsay, trying to catch the
daylight, even if it's a cloudyday, whenever you can, for
example, lunchtime walk and evenat my surgery, because you know
(30:53):
it's so busy and you alwaysfeel guilty like, oh, I can't
really afford to go on the walkright now, but you literally
need 10 minutes and before youknow it, your colleagues are
joining you because they realizethat 10 minutes actually gives
them so much more energy for therest of the day.
And then, if you're reallystuck, um, you know, and again,
(31:13):
that lack of daylight can alsoaffect our mood.
So, and again, so many peopleare very sensitive to that and
the seasonal affective disordersad um can again kick in.
So, and there, then there areday lamps that you could, you
could use as well.
That would help to mimic thatdaylight and um, the sad lamps,
(31:34):
or sad lamps, could also be usedas a tool.
Speaker 1 (31:37):
Yeah, I have one of those at home.
I use it just in, like themiddle of deep winter when I but
I do try to get outside as muchas possible, especially in the
winter, because I know howimportant it is and I understand
that feeling of oh, I don'teven have 10 minutes or I feel
bad, I'm working.
But I think we women have tolook at it as a form of
(32:02):
self-care and it's necessary.
I mean, it's just necessarywhen you get outside for 10
minutes, get some sunshine onyour face, get your vitamin D up
.
It's just good for you and youfeeling good is good for
everybody else.
Speaker 2 (32:17):
Yes, it's one of those non-negotiables on my list
.
I would say that's thenon-negotiable.
And obviously we all know aboutthe blue light and the blue
light blockers.
You know putting your devicesaway before bedtime, at least
two hours before bedtime.
But the other one is thenon-negotiable one I would say
(32:37):
is the caffeine.
Again, we don't want to talkabout it quite often because I
mean, I love my coffee but Idon't like what it does to me.
Again, it depends on thequality of the coffee and we can
talk about it.
It's going to be a wholeseparate conversation.
Let's face it it.
You know, some of us don'tmetabolize it quickly enough and
(32:57):
so for some of us it mightstill be in our bloodstream 12
hours later.
So if we are reaching out forthe afternoon, pick me up coffee
at 3 pm, 4 pm.
Um, it might still be.
Half of it might be still inyour bloodstream because
half-life could be 12 hours andthat is a stimulant.
Speaker 1 (33:18):
Yeah.
I'm so sensitive to caffeine.
It's like ridiculous howsensitive I am and I just
actually I was only drinking onecup of tea in the morning and I
, for the last few weeks, havegone no caffeine at all.
Wow, and it's been hard, butit's been good though.
(33:39):
I mean overall it's been.
It's good, I think, for youknow, when I have, even that one
cup of caffeine just sets mybladder into a tailspin, I'm
like in the bathroom 20 times.
So I just wanted to experimentand see, and it's been a few.
It's made a huge difference.
But I do miss it, I really do.
(34:01):
But if I drink something Idon't get anything.
Caffeine after three o'clock, Iam done.
My sleep is done.
I'm like expect me to be up fortwo hours in the middle of the
night, which is just so, andit's funny how some women can
not even notice it and some arejust super sensitive, like
myself.
But yeah, the caffeine is justall different, all different.
Speaker 2 (34:23):
Yeah, and that's why I listen to your body.
And if you're somebody who'scoming to me and saying, look, I
have absolutely no issues withmy sleep and I drink two cups of
coffee, I mean, look at italyand sp.
I mean, they're all drinkingespressos pretty much 24-7.
But again it would beinteresting to see what is their
prevalence of sleep issues inthose countries.
But again, we need to rememberwe are all different.
(34:44):
But if you say to me, look, mysleep is disrupted, I don't know
what's going on.
And then if you then tell me mylast cup of coffee is at 5pm and
I'm having symptoms of what wewould say an overactive bladder,
what do we do?
We suggest treatment,medication.
I think this is where we haveto really start kind of
(35:07):
unpeeling the onion anddiscussing things like well,
coffee is going to be affectingyour bladder, coffee, even if
it's a decaf, because decaf isnever 100% caffeine free.
That's about 30% of it's stillcaffeine.
So we need to remember that aswell.
And if you're one of thosewomen, then we need to have a
conversation and there's waysaround it and maybe have your
(35:30):
coffee decaf first thing in themorning, or at least before
lunchtime, and see how your bodyresponds to that.
Speaker 1 (35:38):
Right, yeah, it just goes.
I think back to thatconversation around alcohol and,
just like these vices that wehave, you know sometimes that I
think as we get older maybe webecome more sensitive to them
and we can't really.
And so you have to weigh outthe consequences.
I mean, what is it?
Is it worth having a couple ofglasses of wine and like waking
(36:00):
up with night sweats in themiddle of the night, I mean, or
is it worth it to maybe back offof alcohol and see how that
makes you feel?
And same with coffee.
Speaker 2 (36:16):
Absolutely.
And then again, all it comesdown to, what does alcohol serve
you as?
What does it mean for you tohave a glass of wine?
Is it, is it to have a goodtime with your friends, to
enhance the taste of your mealat dinnertime, or is it
something that will help youfall asleep every night?
And you need that and you useit as a crutch.
(36:37):
So you know, or this is theonly de-stressor that you can
think of.
And I think that's where theconversation then shifts
completely from you know and I'mnot saying like, don't ever,
ever, drink alcohol.
That's, that's impossible.
I would say some people makethat choice consciously,
absolutely fine, um, but it'smore of a having that
(36:59):
conversation with yourself andand then deciding what would be
the best thing for you,definitely yeah, I mean it.
Speaker 1 (37:10):
Right, some of these habits that we have can get very
complicated because we linkthem to so many emotions.
Right, having a glass of winein the evening or drinking your
morning cup of coffee is veryritualistic, right.
And you have to unlink some ofthose or just or just cultivate
(37:31):
the awareness that yeah wow, Ireally, every time I'm stressed
out, I want to have a glass ofwine, or every time I just feel
a little tired, I'm making a cupof coffee and, yes, you know,
we just have to, yeah, just havethe awareness.
I think around that.
So, yeah, it's, I know theseare all the things that women in
(37:53):
midlife and going throughmenopause have to have to
grapple with, right, yes, yes,yeah.
So I wanted to talk to you alsoabout exercise, because we were
just talking about gettingoutside for a couple minutes a
day and I mean, and again, I'mgoing to just kind of go back to
, like, what's happening here inthe United States, because
(38:14):
right now, weighted vests,strength training, lifting,
heavy I mean these are all veryhot ticket items right now, like
very, you know, hot topics.
And what do you think aboutphysical activity and movement
as far as life?
I mean, I know where?
I'm not even asking if youthink it's a good idea or not.
(38:36):
We know, we know that it's,it's, oh, yeah, necessary and
it's great, and.
Speaker 2 (38:42):
But what do you think about the over emphasis or the
big emphasis right now onstrength training and lifting
and weighted vests, and yeah, Ithink we've gone from having a
lot of talk about cardio andthat kind of um, staying slim
(39:04):
kind of fitness for women whenwe were 20s and 20s and 30s, and
then now we've gone all aboutweights and lifting heavy Again,
like with anything else.
I think the truth is somewherein the middle.
What I see is that either womendon't exercise enough because
(39:30):
let's face it as a society again, we are sedentary or they would
do maybe menopause, yoga orsomething very gentle, which
which is nice, but again, it'sprobably not enough.
Then the other extreme is wherewomen will come and say to me
look, I'm doing my weightlifting five days a week, I'm
doing HIIT training five days aweek and I'm still feeling
miserable.
I'm tired, I'm not losingweight, my joints are, and this
(39:53):
is what I want to say to them.
Okay, let's sit down and have aconversation.
So the reason you're not losingweight is because your body is
in a constant state of stress,stress in the kind of primal
terms, famine, usually, you know, in the olden days let's say
yes, when you know, before wehad the Industrial Revolution
(40:16):
meant that we probably would notget food for a few days.
And so what does the body thinkI'm going to store up on that
fat just in case, and that iswhy you're not losing your
weight, losing weight and so andI think we do definitely need
weight training, because let'seven talk about osteoporosis
again you can have all the HRT,all your estrogen in the world
(40:39):
and the calcium supplements andthe vitamin D supplements, but
if those bones are not put undera bit of pressure, just even
from your own body weight andI'm talking your own body weight
squats, because it's verydifficult to injure yourself
with your own body weight,because the body is really
clever, you know thebiomechanics will be absolutely
(41:00):
fine and sorted.
And then push-ups for the upperbody strength Start small,
start with that, because youneed a little bit of, basically,
pressure on your bones.
It was this experiment in abiosphere too, in Arizona, I
don't know if you're aware of itwhere they created this covered
(41:21):
area with perfect conditionsfor trees and the humidity and
oxygen levels, et cetera, etcetera, and the trees were
growing.
But then, after a certain time,they noticed scientists noticed
they were falling down and theycouldn't understand what was
going on.
And then they realized, huh,there's no wind.
How interesting.
And so, yeah, and the rootswere really shallow, although
(41:42):
the trees looked so healthy.
But because we're not put underthat stress of the wind, where
the roots had to develop, andthen also the trees are really
good at kind of connecting theroots with each other, and so
that's the same thing with ourbones.
So, if we're going to bepumping all the nutrients but
not really exercising our bones,jumping is also really good for
(42:05):
that, you know kind of stomping, and so that's basically that's
what it is.
So, and ideally again, in the,the ideal world, you want to
vary a little.
You want to do, maybe, yourweight training a couple of
times a week.
You want to do a bit of cardio,high intensity interval
training, hiit training, becausethat's a really good aerobic
(42:26):
exercise, and you do probablywant a bit of yoga, pilates to
stretch those muscles thatyou've been working and stretch
the fascia and stretch the softtissue again.
Let's face it, we are stiff, wesit a lot, we're hunched
forward most of the day, and Ithink that usually gives really
(42:51):
good results because it's a muchmore balanced way of exercising
and movement in general.
And then, of course, it dependson your work.
Some people already are doingtheir cardio at work because
they're on their feet all day.
Yeah, and maybe all they needwas just to is just to add a bit
of weight training and maybestretching yeah, and I also want
to emphasize that doing thingsthat you enjoy.
Speaker 1 (43:14):
I always tell this to my clients.
I mean, make sure that you likeit and that, yes, it's not
something that you feel likeit's just another chore on your
to-do list, but something thatyou enjoy.
If you enjoy lifting weightsand weight training, great good.
Or you know, find or findsomething similar but that you
that you like to do yes, butalso, I think I think also be
(43:39):
open-minded.
Speaker 2 (43:40):
uh, because, for example, I mean even personally
myself, I, um, I tried to doweights, I think, when I was
younger, and I think probably itwas my fault, potentially the
instructor didn't explain how todo it safely, so I pulled my
back and at that time I thoughtthat that's not for me, really I
don't want to do it, you know,and you get scared because you
don't want to get an injury.
(44:00):
But thankfully I revisited itand thankfully, this time the
instructor was fantastic and so,and that feeling of being able
to lift weights and I don't liftheavy, I would say maximum, you
know eight, ten kilograms andwhat in each hand, but even that
gives me that feeling that youknow I'm stronger, I can feel
(44:23):
that I'm stronger.
And also, remember, yourmuscles are calorie burning
machines, so we need to havehave a good, strong muscle and
the muscle wasting,unfortunately, is happening as
we get older and that is why,again, the weight training needs
to come in, maybe not fivetimes a week, but once or twice
a week Usually.
I think that's a good start.
Speaker 1 (44:44):
Yeah, no, that's actually a good point to
remember is that the more muscleyou have, the faster and better
, more efficient your metabolismis and the more you're burning
calories, and so it becomesreally important as we get older
because we become lessefficient at burning calories,
(45:06):
unfortunately that, knowing thatwe are social, I think,
especially in this time of life,going through the menopause
(45:31):
transition, women need community.
We need to know that we're notalone.
I mean, I know, when I firstwas going through perimenopause
I don't know if you felt thesame I felt so alone in the
experience because nobody wastalking about it.
My friends weren't talkingabout it, it was a secret.
No one got education onmenopause.
There was like no education.
(45:51):
I was like just feeling my wayin the dark kind of, and even my
doctors were not educating me.
So it was just a really lonelyexperience for a while and I
think there's so much confusionand then out on the internet,
social media, all that, there'sjust people preying on your
vulnerabilities, I think, inmenopause.
(46:12):
So I think it can be verylonely.
So what do you feel about justthis?
Having community and buildingour emotional resilience and,
you know, just having theimportance of relationships at
this time?
Speaker 2 (46:29):
Yes, I think the menopause conversation went from
being hush-hush to now acomplete opposite.
It's a bit of a jungle out there, I think there's so much much
jungle that's a good way todescribe it, and I mean I
sometimes feel confused andsometimes you, you listen to
somebody and you follow thatperson and they and some of the
(46:50):
stuff they would say is true, iscorrect, you think, yeah, okay,
okay, and then suddenly they'llcome up with something
completely wild and you think,hang on a minute, you know, is
that, is that the case?
So I think, yeah, it's goodthat we are talking about it a
hundred percent.
That's, that's huge, um, butyes, we, I guess we have to in
terms of the finding information, we have to be maybe slightly
(47:13):
more careful and maybe, you know, looking at other aspects of
speak to your doctor as well Imean doctors, I think, are
getting more education on thisbut also find your tribe, find
your circle of friends.
I think loneliness and feelingisolated again is huge.
(47:38):
I think it's now likened tobeing as harmful as 15
cigarettes a day and of smoking,and so, and I think women can
find it hard, as you said, youknow we have so many
responsibilities and we oftenput ourselves last because we
are taking care of our family,our children, our elderly
parents, we have a career, umand so, and then also having
(48:03):
that time for yourself, you know, I, I say to women, slot that
in that, that time in yourcalendar and that way either you
do nothing or you're meetingyour friend for a cup of tea or
coffee, because it's not luxury,it's your moment of self-care,
almost like self-preservation,because you need it, because you
can't run on empty.
(48:23):
That running on adrenaline thatwas in 20s, 30s is not going to
work anymore.
And so and I think that's howit starts and then, yes, have
the open conversation.
If you have friends who aregoing through the same, I mean
even better, have openconversations with them, share
your stories, and sometimes ashared burden is half a burden.
(48:46):
And then you realize that, oh,I'm not alone.
So the women I work with um werun it as a small group, so we
have about five women in thegroup um and some women, I think
, are a little bit apprehensiveof working in the group um and
some women, I think, are alittle bit apprehensive of
working in the group becausethey think that one-to-one you
know program is better, it isgood.
But then I think what they'veall said to me wow, I really
(49:10):
enjoy the community and they allbecame really good friends
because they realized what theythought were they were suffering
with and they were the onlyperson having this issue.
They realized other women aregoing through the same and
suddenly, oh wow, I'm not theodd one out here.
And then you know, before youknow it, they are sharing their
(49:32):
stories.
They are actually giving eachother advice because somebody
might have found a solution orthey were worried that there was
no solution.
Suddenly there is one, and so Ithink that's very, very
important for women.
Speaker 1 (49:47):
Yes, I agree that's a great point that I think women
are used to just like kind ofsuffering and silence.
Right, and it's not comfortablesometimes for women to be in
groups and to have to bevulnerable and talk about your
feelings or your symptoms.
But once you can break pastthat it can be an incredible
(50:09):
experience.
So I agree with that.
Talked about healthy eating,our sleep, our stress, our
physical activity, controllingwhat you call excess like and
caffeine, and and managing ourrelationships and not being in
isolation.
And if you had to pick one ofthese to focus on now, like you
(50:32):
know, if, if a woman came to youand she wanted to, you know,
just start what one would be themost important to you as far as
, like, working, you know, inthe menopause realm.
Speaker 2 (50:44):
Yes, well, all of those are important.
That's why they're allimportant.
Speaker 1 (50:49):
I know that, yes, I know.
I'm like saying the questionout loud.
I'm like, obviously, all ofthem are so important.
Speaker 2 (50:56):
But you're right, if I were to pick one, I think that
would be your self-care andyour mindset, and I'll tell you
why.
Because when women come to me,they are desperate and they have
been suffering in silence andthey don't afford to do this, or
there's no time to look aftermyself, or this is just an
(51:25):
indulgence.
I should just have to get onwith it.
And I think, giving that womanpermission and saying you
deserve this, you know you needto now to start looking after
yourself.
And it starts here in our headto stop feeling guilty about it.
And suddenly, when that shifthappens in your mind, suddenly
(51:50):
things start changing and womenfeel lighter and women feel
right.
And now I'm going to think moreabout what I'm eating every day.
What is nourishing me, what isnourishing my soul, what is it
that I've always wanted to do?
I used to love doing, forexample, and I haven't had the
time to do, be it painting,joining the choir.
(52:12):
One woman said to me she wantedto go back gardening because
she felt like it was all in theback burner.
And I think once they have thatpermission and with a bit of
guidance, they'll be off andsuddenly you can see, it's like
the domino effect, the rippleeffect of the changes that start
(52:33):
happening, and it's wonderfulto see that.
Speaker 1 (52:36):
I agree with you 100% .
I think that none of this canhappen until you make your
self-care the number onepriority.
And that means being very kindto yourself, right, knowing that
this can be a hard journey,being very self-compassionate.
If you are just going to beatyourself up and feel like you
(53:02):
have to go on another kind ofdiet or regimen or you have to
go exercise, it's never going towork.
It doesn't work.
I've seen it too many timeswith clients.
But if you come at it withcompassion and self-kindness,
these things become important.
Right, eating well becomes veryimportant because you know
(53:24):
you're nourishing yourself.
Or exercising becomes importantbecause just helping you, and
on and on.
Speaker 2 (53:30):
So I I agree with you yeah, and then and then start
small.
Don't get overwhelmed.
Don't get, you know,overwhelmed with all the things
you have to change at once.
No, you don't.
So pick one thing, pick that,something that you're
comfortable with, and then youwill notice, aha, suddenly I
have more energy.
Now I can start doing somethingelse.
(53:53):
Now I can add on exercise tothat.
Or now I I started leaving myphone outside my bedroom because
I realized that two hours oftime before my bed is crucial
for me to wind down.
I'm doing something much calmer, something that doesn't involve
the devices and long to-dolists and so on and so on.
Speaker 1 (54:15):
Right, it's a marathon, not a sprint, right?
Yeah, olga, thank you so muchfor speaking to me today about
this and love your differentlifestyle changes and that women
all women can make.
How do women get in touch withyou?
Speaker 2 (54:35):
I've got loads of free resources as well, so check
out my website.
It's drolgamortoncom.
Very, um, very easy.
Just my name anddrolgamortoncom.
I do have a weekly newsletterthat comes out every friday,
where I would, um, promise youI'll promise you keep it short
(54:56):
and sweet and just really,because nobody has the time to
read long emails but it'ssomething literally just to give
you practical advice and tipsand also to keep you motivated
and give you a little nudge inthe right direction from time to
time.
And I do have a free ebook youcould download from our website.
Again covers exactly what we'rejust talking about, but you
(55:18):
could print it out and almostuse it as a workbook where you
can go through the questionsyourself and see what you can
change, so you can actuallystart making changes today.
And yes, I also do run freemaster classes, which are online
, which you can join, and if youcan't because of the different
time zones, you can alwaysregister and watch the replay,
(55:40):
which a lot of my clients do.
So there's lots of differentways of still connecting with me
and working with me, if you'reinterested.
Speaker 1 (55:48):
Okay, fantastic.
Well, I will put all thoselinks in the show notes and so
people can find you that way.
Thank you so much for talkingtoday.
I appreciate it and you'redoing great things.
Speaker 2 (56:01):
And thank you for having me.
It was a pleasure.
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