Sleep and burn fat? Sounds like horizontal running to me.
Gaining weight?
Get some sleep!
At first glance this sounds a lot like a promise of getting a runners physique while Netflix and chilling…but if for anything else, I decided to give this one a further look and was happy to see the science support the claim.
The menopause transition has long been associated with all sorts of negativity, most notably terms like “menopot”, and the “mental pause” - many of which we need to eradicate because as studied at the MayoClinic on women 40-64, weight gain, irritability and anxiety were stronger indicators of a negative menopause transition than hot flashes and night sweats.
In line with the above, weight gain during the menopause transition has enough of us wondering what the heck is going on. As many women tell me, its as if overnight their weight shifts and they notice a flesh blanket settle onto their bodies where there never used to be, most notably around the mid section. I am not a fan of the body change, but less so of any gimmicky trend that is proliferated through the socials as click bait.
Ok seriously - it’s no surprise, but with the changes in hormones we see a change in body composition and it’s one of the many reason my patients talk to me about their health. So what’s happening actually..??
we lose muscle mass and gain fat.
Grrreat.
In this analysis in 2019 of the landmark study on women in SWAN (Study of Women’s Health Across the Nation), it was shown that lean muscle mass is lost and fat gain doubles throughout the menopause transition up until 2 years after our menopause date.
Basically we lose muscle and gain fat and it isn’t equal. Hence the softness and proverbial flesh blanket we feel that envelops us as if overnight.
What then, is the deal with sleep? I am all for easy and love me my “television exercises” hello foam roller for my back and shoulder stretch that take minimal effort, so now you are telling me that sleep affects our mid section belly fat (aka visceral fat)? Hellooooo let me in on the answers.
To best simulate menopause, in this study, pre-menaupasl women were asked to come into the clinic and were tested over 5 nights. Once they got their baselines, for 3 nights the women were put to bed one hour earlier, but woken up periodically in the night with an alarm to welcome them to menopausal sleep (for a total time of 9 hours, but simulated 8 hours of sleep due to being disturbed and woken up). The wake up calls had me snickering as they aren’t nearly as bothersome as night sweats or the case of the midnight gremlins, but it did simulate the interrupted sleep patterns as stayed ethical since spraying them with a firehose of anxiety would likely not have been accepted by the ethics board.
They also gave 1/2 the group Leuprolide which is a drug that temporarily surpresses estrogen - not unlike what happens to women as they move to menopause and estrogen declines. In the end both the broken/fragmented sleep and the reduction in estrogen had an effect on the fat burning that occurred at rest indicating that it wasn’t just hormonal in nature, but the quality of the sleep was an issue.
All this to say,
the length of the sleep wasn’t the issue. The quality was. Being woken up in the night by hot flashes, anxiety, racing thoughts or otherwise can have a total affect over our metabolism and our ability to manage our weight.
Ok. Great. So now what? I don’t have great sleep and I can see the body changes racing at me.
Ok…I Get It. Sleep is one component of things we want to look at, but it is a doozy. Stay with me.
Middle of the night. The panic attack sets in and the mental house is on fire. There is a churning in the stomach and you have a burning need to fold all the laundry only to get up, settle into the stew of the feelings and wait for the sun to rise. Wired and tired you go through your day desperate for sleep but the next night it’s as if that gorgeous deep sleep mocks you by keeping itself hidden behind 2 hours of shut eye. A daily sleep practice
Sleep is a whole study onto itself, thankfully there are things we can do right away.
Bedtime Routine
Our bodies are creatures of habit (even if you don’t think you are). Going to bed and waking at the same time every day has a way of helping our bodies to adjust to a regular routine. A cool room helps to induce a deeper sleep. Keep it dark and wear cooler clothes to bed and keep the bedroom for sleeping and sex. Stop eating 2 hours before bed (don’t deprive yourself, there are no hard rules), and limit any screen time.
Some sleep studies have suggested to patients that they delay sleep for 1-2 hours so that they are really tired and help to reset the circadian clock.
It’s basic info - but it works!
Breathing practices
Since the length of the sleep isn’t the issue but quality is, this speaks to our ability to relax ourselves before bed time (and I might add during the day too). Nope…this doesn’t mean I fly Zen through my day either, but becoming aware of the stress hormones spiking, taking time to say no to what doesn’t serve us and managing stress so we don’t come careening into the end of the day hoping that the OFF switch happens the moment we hit the pillow can go a long way in helping with the architecture of our sleep.
Practicing breathing into our diaphragm is very helpful, Put your hand on your stomach, breath in through your nose, and then breath slowly out through pursed lips (like breathing out of a straw). This slowing down of our breathing system helps to temper down our nervous system and helps to bring about that sense and feeling of calm.
Having my patients do this regularly and they often report back being able to handle their days and nights easier than before.
Cognitive Behavioural Therapy
Science has shown that CBT has had beneficial effects for those suffering from hot flashes and night sweats at night. Working with a recognized therapist helps to calm the nervous system and allow us to get back into our rest and digest Parasympathetic state. In the study mentioned above, CBT had a better result that sleep delay in remission of menopause symptoms.
I have found in practice that when addressing the whole person and working on mindset practices, there has also been an improvement in reported quality of sleep. In our fast paced world, those who have taken the space and time to cultivate a space and practice of slowing down have had results in helping with the crazy and somewhat chaotic feelings and symptoms that arise with menopause.
Ok great, but the middle of the night chaos..what then?
I never thought in the beginning of my career I’d talk as much about breathing and mindfulness as I do now. Back then I put it firmly in the woo woo camp. I am now a convert.
Future thinking and pas perseverating has our minds everywhere but here and now. In the middle of the night, I have found it helpful to quell a busy mind back to calm by focusing on sensations - like a warm and soft blanket, wind rustling the leaves, a fan if one is on. Patients have told me audible books on story time mode have helped, or soothing background music or white noise also helps.
So voila friends.
Slowing down is indeed one of the answers to help us speed up and in this case trim our waistlines. As this is a topic of great concern for many, I will also take the moment here to plug that sleep is the moment in time where our bodies repair, our minds and brains are on self clean. Sleep is a glorious thing.
Take your sleep in hand.
Stop Playing Small.
xoxo
Karin