If you’re finding you’re gaining weight during perimenopause or menopause, you’re not alone. It’s common for women to experience unwanted weight gain despite no changes in diet or exercise regime. The Menopause Diet 5 Day Plan To Lose Weight has been put together to support healthy weight loss and target symptoms with quality nutrition.
In Eve Biology's consumer trials, menopausal and perimenopausal women lost an average of 5.3lbs using replacement shakes 5 days a week.
Menopause Diet 5 Day Plan Overview
The menopause diet 5 day plan to lose weight is based on replacing breakfast and lunch with meal replacements 5 days a week and using high protein, low carb nutritious dinner recipes written by a nutritionist which the whole family can enjoy.
Weekends you take a break from shakes and eat 3 healthy, balanced meals a day. You can even have a few treats - just make sure you're getting some activity in. A typical week would look like this
Day 1 - Monday
- Breakfast - Vanilla shake with a caffeine free espresso shot
- Lunch - Chocolate and Vanilla shake.
- Dinner - Healthy Cottage Pie
Healthy Cottage Pie
The ultimate comfort food but a super healthy version! Can be made in advance and suitable for freezing.
Day 2 - Tuesday
- Breakfast - Strawberry shake
- Lunch - Chocolate & Strawberry shake
- Dinner - Herb Encrusted Salmon
- Snack - Oat cake with peanut butter
Pistachio and Herb Crusted Salmon
We all need more omega 3 in our diet. Salmon is an excellent source of protein and healthy fats and can be served with mixed greens.
Day 3 - Wednesday
- Breakfast - Chocolate shake with half banana
- Lunch - Vanilla shake with flaxseeds and raspberries
- Snack - Protein flapjack
- Dinner - Garlic & Herb Stuffed Chicken Breast
Garlic & Herb Stuffed Chicken
This is so easy to make but so delicious and packed with metabolism boosting protein. Serve with vegetables or a selection of salads depending on the season.
Day 4 - Thursday
- Breakfast - Vanilla Shake with Turmeric
- Lunch - Strawberry shake with berries
- Dinner - Courgetti Bolognaise
- Snack - 2 x Nut clusters
Courgetti Bolognaise
Served with spiralised courgette instead of the traditional spaghetti, dramatically cutting down the carbs and calories.
Day 5 - Friday
- Breakfast - Vanilla shake with oat milk
- Lunch - Chocolate & Strawberry shake
- Dinner - Lamb Tagine
- Snack - 2 x Protein balls
Lamb Tagine
A super easy crowd pleaser, cooked low and slow with fresh herbs. Try with cauliflower rice instead of sous cows to keep carbs lower.
Staying Active
Hormonal changes can affect your bone health, sleep and stress levels. Natural, age related changes in body composition mean women lose muscle mass which can affect how your body burns energy and weight management.
When it comes to weight management staying active is really important too. Brisk walks and longer, slower walks throughout the week and weekend are recommended for aerobic exercise.
If you can add some weight bearing exercises ( even if it's just body weight) to increase and tone your muscles, even better. A big plus with regular exercise - even just walking, is it can improve sleep quality, prevent weight gain and help to manage stress levels. Perfect for a menopause diet.
Eve Biology Meal Replacements
We make sure you're getting essential nutrients, vitamins and minerals in the right quantities to support you at this stage of life. We've balanced generous amounts of Vitamin d, Vitamin C, Calcium, Iron, Folic Acid, Zinc and brain boosting B vitamins.
Plant proteins include Pea protein and Faba Bean Protein to support your metabolism, satiate your appetite and help you to maintain muscle mass.
Eve meal replacements are made to the European Food Safety Standards criteria for 'meal replacements for weight control' which means they meet a set criteria which has been proven to support weight management using scientific evidence.
Clinically proven prebiotic fibre helps to increase your gut microbiome to support your digestion, hormone regulation and gut health
Eve Biology menopause 5 day plan includes a Monday to Friday regime and healthy, high protein, low carb dinners. Weekends, you take a break from shakes and enjoy lunches and breakfasts with friends and family.
Menopause Diet Plan Recipes
You'll get 10 nutrient rich recipes written by a nutritionist to use as apart of your menopause diet plan. Nutrient rich foods and delicious meals can also support weight loss. Meal replacement shakes are for breakfast and lunch NOT dinner. Enjoy your food as well.
Sarah Flower, Functional Medicine Nutritionist, specialist in hormone balancing, gut health, weight gain and author of 24 books. She's put together 10 high protein, low carbohydrate dinner recipes for evening and weekends you can enjoy with friends and family.
" We use protein as it helps to boost metabolism and it also helps us build more muscle. Carbs increase insulin ( all carbohydrates break down to glucose), insulin is a fat storage hormone but also dramatically affects leptin and ghrelin so when we lower carbs, especially avoiding processed foods and inflammatory seed oils, we balance the other hormones."
Sarah's recipes include tweaks to increase or decrease protein levels, calories and carbohydrates depending on your needs or preferences. Postmenopausal women need to make sure they're getting adequate protein.
Why is this a 5 Day weight loss diet?
It's a 5 Day Diet Plan To Lose Weight because we developed Eve Biology to work with a typical working week making managing meal timing easier. This approach offers structure Monday to Friday when schedules are more predictable making it easier to maintain a weight loss plan when it comes to managing meal timing.
By allowing more flexibility on weekends with a simple balanced diet, the plan accommodates social engagements and family time. This makes your dietary regime less restrictive and more sustainable in the long term. Better for your overall health.
Eating a mediterranean style diet which includes healthy nutritious food and enjoy fruits and vegetables is encouraged as there is some evidence this diet can alleviate some menopausal symptoms.
Dietary fat such as dairy products and olive oil are allowed on your diet plan as well as fish, lean proteins and whole grains. Weekends you're allowed a few treats as long as you keep up with your physical activity.
You can enjoy the shakes on weekends if you wish, but the 5 day recommendation is about finding a practical, enjoyable rhythm you can sustain until you reach your healthy weight loss goals.
Why 50% of women gain weight during menopause
There are a few things happening during menopause which can cause midlife weight gain . While menopause itself is not the cause of midlife weight gain, women's bodies change as their hormone levels fall resulting in both physical symptoms like night sweats and cognitive symptoms which can make losing weight more difficult.
While replacing hormones can help with managing menopausal symptoms half of women gain weight. The average weight increase is around 1.5 pounds or 0.7 kilograms per year culminating in an average 10kg weight gain between perimenopause and menopause.
Some of this extra weight can be attributed to the challenges of mid life, symptoms caused by hormone changes such as hot flashes and mood swings can make weight loss harder.
Body fat can increase
Hormonal changes mean the ovaries oestrogen ( estrogen) levels fluctuate in perimenopause then steadily decline which means ovulation no longer takes place and periods stop which is menopause.
The body then relies on backup supplies of a type of oestrogen produced by the adrenal glands and fat cells called estrone to make up the shortfall. If the adrenal glands aren’t producing estrone, if they are too busy producing stress hormones, the body relies more heavily on fat for hormones. This means more weight during menopause.
You have less muscle mass
When menopause starts, the body produces less testosterone. This drop in testosterone can cause your metabolism to slow down which means it takes longer for your body to burn fat. This can also causes a decrease in muscle mass which burns more calories than fat and lead to weight gain.
Excess sugar and cortisol can increase fat
For many women an increase in anxiety, and stress levels are common during hormonal upheaval as well as menopausal symptoms like hot flashes and mood swings. Many menopausal women turn to food or alcohol for comfort when stressed. A healthy diet and nutrient dense foods are often neglected in favour of refined carbohydrates, fried foods, something high in fat or sugary foods which raises blood sugar.
Too much sugar in the blood can't be stored by the liver to be used as energy and is stored as fat which can contribute to a thicker waste and unwanted pounds.
Not only that, but midlife stress causes cortisol levels to rise, and cortisol can directly related to an increase in belly fat.
Poor sleep quality
Poor sleep quality, difficulty in falling asleep or staying asleep is another of the most debilitating menopause symptoms and can last past menopause. Sleep helps to balance your blood sugar and appetite hormones leptin and ghrelin. Many women find when they're tired they're a lot less motivated to exercise which can lead to weight gain.
Your eating habits can change
Not getting enough sleep can make you change your usual eating habits and mess up your body clock. When energy levels are low your body can physically make feel hungrier and it's likely fruits and vegetables or balanced meals with lean protein won't be your first go to!
Studies show you'll choose bigger portion sizes - we get it - you're human. But, of course, this can also have a knock-on effect on your weight.
How long does menopause weight gain last?
If you've noticed weight gain, you may be wondering if it's temporary. While I'd possible that your weight gain may only last a short time, it's not uncommon for it to persist. Symptoms of menopause like sleep disrupting night sweats and nocturia can continue for up to 8 years from your last period.
One thing to remember is the way your body works is affected by hormone levels and the tactics you’ve used in the past to lose weight, probably wont yield the same results as they used to.
Supporting hormones with healthy foods is one way to try to take control. A registered dietician can also help if you're not sure what you should be eating. Brown rice, whole grains and mixed greens doesn't have to be as bland as they sound!
Do you need a menopause diet?
The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence ( NICE) in the UK has updated its guidance on the identification and classification of overweight and obesity. The 2022 updatedNICE guidelines advise you to keep your waist measurement to less than half your height.
If you're over 50 and your waist circumference is over half of your height then this indicates you may benefit from getting to a healthier weight. The menopause diet 5 day plan to lose weight could be perfect for you.
What type of food is included in the menopause diet plan?
The 5 day plan to lose weight ensures you are eating protein regularly and you're getting ENOUGH protein. This includes plant protein like pea protein, chicken and fatty fish like salmon and sardines.
We recommend meals around your shakes are based on a mediterranean type diet which is one of the world's healthiest diets. Great for your overall health it includes whole grains, olive oil, fresh berries, herbed and spiced grilled chicken breast, lean proteins, brown rice, fruits and fresh vegetables like sweet potatoes. We don't want a lot of food with added sugars on the Menopause 5 Day Diet, Your hormone levels may make regulating blood glucose levels harder.
Healthy fats like avocado and dairy products like full fat yogurt are also included. These will help to boost satiety.
What are the calorie guidelines for the diet plan?
A calorie deficit is key to getting your weight down. If your goal is to maintain a lower weight, you should aim to consume less calories than you burn.
This is where the calorie controlled Meal Replacements can really support your plan as they're only 209 calories per meal. This means you can have a hearty evening meal when you feel like it. Weekends we recommend staying to around 1600 calories a day spread over 3 main meals. It's important to integrate daily regular aerobic exercise into your plan as it will help to support your weight loss goals. .
As a rule of thumb, this NHS guide suggests 1800 calories for menopausal women. The NHS recommends that to lose 1lb per week you need to decrease your calorie intake by 500 calories which would give you a goal of 1300 calories a day if you want to get rid of weight gain during menopause. If you're exercise daily and using more energy then you can increase daily calories.
Regular exercise is non negotiable
According to the NHS , regular physical activity and healthy eating with plenty of fruits and vegetables and healthy fats is the best way to increase your body’s ability to burn calories and achieve weight loss and manage weight ongoing.
Fitness goals should focus on aerobic exercises like brisk walking, jogging, cycling, and swimming as these increase your heart rate. Regular physical activity can also help you get better quality sleep.
Strength training and weight lifting can help keep your metabolism in good shape by helping to maintain muscle mass and strengthen bones so it’s a good idea to incorporate it into your exercise routines. Squats, lunges, press ups can be gradually increased over time and contribute to better bone health.
The benefits of weight loss in menopause
Being overweight carries serious risks to women's health which can include type 2 diabetes and heart disease. High blood pressure and higher cholesterol levels also increase your risk to cardiovascular health. Maintaining a healthy weight decreases your risk. A healthy lifestyle and diet helps you to do that.
Fortunately, weight gain during menopause can be tackled. It's probably not going to be as easy as it was when you were in your thirties, but it's definitely do-able.
Menopause Diet Plan Takeaways
To tackle menopausal weight gain, a calorie deficit healthy eating plan which includes using meal replacements and other balanced meals with enough protein and lower carbs can help you reach a healthy weight during menopause.
Evening meals should be made up of anti-inflammatory foods like olive oil, lean proteins, fresh fruits, leafy greens, brown rice, vegetables, whole grains and healthy fats.
Steer away from low nutrition processed foods to boost your essential nutrients which will be better for your overall health. Minimise unhealthy fats to protect your cardiovascular health.
Regular aerobic exercises with reasonable fitness goals should also be part of your weekly routine. Even 20-30 mins daily brisk walking during the week can contribute significantly to weight loss efforts which studies show is one of the most effective stress management techniques.
Walking can help to keep your heart healthy, reduce your blood pressure, help you get a better sleep. Walking outdoors can also help to decrease common menopausal symptoms like anxiety and improve your mood. Have we convinced you it's a good thing yet?
Weight gain is something that affects many women due to hormonal changes. With a good nutritious diet and regular exercise, it’s possible to achieve long term weight control throughout the menopause years and decrease serious health risks.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the easiest diet for menopause?
The easiest diet for menopause is one which supports hormonal regulation and balances nutrition with a calorie deficit goal based on your current weight and activity level.
Do meal replacement diets work?
Provided the meal replacement meets a strict criteria re calories, nutrients and vitamins dictated by the European Food Safety Authority they can claim to help people loss weight or maintain weight after weight loss based on a science based cause and effect link.
Why am I gaining weight on meal replacement shakes?
Some meal replacement shakes contain more than the recommended calories for weight loss or are missing nutrients or vitamin levels which support weight loss.
