What happens to your body when you turn 40.
What is andropause
This was an interesting topic of discussion recently in our house because of a instagram poll I put out where almost 60% of voters expressed that they had indeed accidentally urinated during a training session.
To my surprise, there were lots of men in that group too, and although not completely related to menopause, it made me wonder whether men too often experience the issues that women face as we age, they just didn’t talk about it.
Women see it before they even experience it.
As a female growing up, I always knew that at some point in time I would have to have to experience menopause. As girls, we see what our mothers go through, so its a part of life that is totally normal. But its not until you approach your 40’s, it begins to sink in, and you realise your body is changing much sooner than you were expecting.
So what really happens to men and women as we grow older?
As we approach our 40’s and 50’s, our bodies really start to slow down, but can we really blame our hormones for the long list of problems that come with aging? Yes and no.
Can’t live without them, can’t live with them.
Regardless of gender, the production of sex hormones begin to decline as we age - testosterone, estrogen and pogesterone - but that might not be all the reasons why we begin to put on weight and then struggle to lose it. Like anything in life, in order to run a fair test, you have to look at all the factors involved, and some of those might not be directly causing weight gain but might have a great impact on it.
Did someone say “adulting”?
When looking at an individual that wants to lose weight or improve sports performance, you have to consider their biosocialpsycho factors. We aren’t just talking about what they eat and how they train. We need to consider what else is going on in their lives.
Perhaps they have grown kids that have left the nest to go off to university, or maybe they have aging parents to care for. Its not simply a case of waking up in the morning and feeling like your joints are a little more achy than they were 10 years ago, there is really much more to consider than that.
SHHHH it, with your judgementalness please.
So while you could argue that following a nutritional plan could still work for a 45 year old the same way it does for a 25 year old, quite frankly suggesting this and not even considering all the struggles that come with growing up and adulting would be enough to make anyone want to throw a nutrition plan across the room.
Just like when its the time of the month for women - any food cravings can often take over our bodies and make us reach for that bar of chocolate - a sudden drop in hormones can result in weight gain leave us feeling confused, frustrated, emotional and down right angry.
This. is. normal.
Take heart, there is a way out. I can tell you right now, training hard 6 days a week is not the answer. Nothing could be further from it. It’s taken me years of frustration to work this out. If you follow my blogs and my social media content, you’ll know by now that I am a big believer of the self care approach. I’m not suggesting you sit around on the sofa more and move less.
Train smarter, not harder.
Know when to push and when to rest. It doesn’t have to be all about going hard all the time. Make time for recovery.
I’ll give you an example. I’ve landed myself the hard job of coaching a very stubborn man in his mid 40’s. He trains 6 days a week, lifts heavy, does high intensity work, is also a loving and responsible dad to two kids, but has recently found himself constantly in pain, not sleeping well, unable to hit previous personal best scores.
Full disclosure, I am actually talking about my husband.
Love him to the moon and back of course, but man oh man, the guy is stubborn.
Struggling to slow down is what I like to call the Sir Tom Jones effect, no offence Sir Tom, we really are big fans in this house, but there comes a time when you have to accept your body is changing, and you have to adapt to those changes. Like Sir Tom, allowing his grey roots to come through and adopting a more mature erm…. *awkward cough* dress sense worked really well for him. We applaud you for that Sir Tom!
If you want to train like an athlete you have to be smart like one.
As masters athletes we have to adapt our training and be even more vigilant of any new injuries if we want to continue to perform better.
So, how do to navigate the impending reality of menopause and andropause (yup, apparently there is also a name for the male version too).
Eat better, rest more, have clearer intentions in your goals and prioritise those goals.
Here are a few things you can do to prepare for those changes:
Stringently track your training progress. Any new movements should be followed by detailed note-taking and a 48 hour revisit of those muscle groups looked at to see if there is any pain. Note your perceived rate of exertion and see if that score changes and whether there is any irritation to any muscle groups.
Menopause and andropause can often result in periods of body changes; new inflammations, digestive irritation or fatigue may occur. Taking notes on these symptoms to catch out any patterns related to any particular new habits or food groups will make it easier to find the culprit. What doesn’t serve you can go.
More accessory work. I cannot stress this enough. Gone are those days when we can walk into a gym and throw heavy weights or go straight into a hill sprint without repercussions. Stretch, do mobility work, practice yoga. Get your body warm before going ham.
Eat quality food and practice good hydration tecniques.
Practice good bedtime routines.
Speak to a health professional about any concerns you may have. Don’t keep it to yourself.
Take notes, sleep, repeat.
Practicing journalling all of your training sessions and any pain that may follow and/or improvements in personal best scores are a great way of tracking progress.
Once we have all the information we need, then we can start to formulate a better nutrition plan, because without the right information, going into a macro plan is like shooting in the dark. Anyone can reach their body goals with the right plan and aproach, you just also have to consider all the curve balls life throws at you.
The main takeaway is this…
You can be any age and still reach your body goals, you just have to have a plan that suits you. You might be pre-menopausal or in the thick of it, it doesnt matter. It might just be a little more challenging that’s all.
This isn’t to say that the laws of thermogenesis no longer exist and that going into deficits won’t work, it just means you have more hurdles to cross, but if you had the right information, you can plan things out better. Being prepared for those hurdles is going to give you a better chance of success.
As always I am here for a chat if anyone wants to get in touch with me. Use the comment box below or email me and I can see what I can do for you.
