The Perimenopause Project
“For perimenopausal and menopausal women,” she said. “Choosing to drink is choosing not to sleep.” Then she repeated the statement for the male podcast host just so he’d understand. I was listening to Dr. Mary Claire Haver on The Huberman Lab podcast. Just another installment in my latest quest to understand all things getting older.
Got it. Don’t drink. I decided to put the advice into practice that night when my parents came for dinner. I offered my dad a Stowe Cider Mountain Glow (my favorite) and my mom a glass of white wine. I poured myself a glass of water. We ate a delicious dinner on the patio as the sun set on a clear blue sky, the kind of late summer perfection that all New Englanders relish. Winter is coming, but THIS, can you believe THIS weather?! September does it every time.
That night I fell into a deep restful sleep, that is, until 2:21 AM when my nine-year-old came into my room, his wimpers waking me from my alcohol-less slumber. His bones ached, he said. Growing pains. He couldn’t sleep. I let him take my place in bed, massaged his little calves with the sore muscle lotion I keep on my bedside for my plantar fasciitis-prone feet (another hidden gem of perimenopause I’ve learned), then carried his sleepy body back up the stairs to his bed.
A glass of wine would have been more fun.
Lately, I’ve been cramming all the popular perimenopause info in all forms from experts like Dr. Stacy Sims, Dr. Mary Claire Haver, Julie Starett, Dr. Sarah E. Hill among others. I like Dr. Stacy Sims’ research and advice on this topic because I consider myself an athlete, and according to Dr. Sims’ definition of an athlete as someone who “exercises on purpose,” you should too. I’m constantly encouraging the women I coach to see themselves as athletes. The intermittent fasting recommendations dolled out by some menopause experts don’t apply to active women, meaning exercising multiple times a week with intention. (This is a topic for another day.)
I’m seeking out more information on perimenopause, not because I’m experiencing wild symptoms, but because I’d like to get ahead of the curve of change, be proactive instead of reactive. I’m far enough into my forties that I’ve likely entered the continuum of the hard-to-define period of change. This increased interest has coincided (or been precipitated by) a massive shift in my running life and identity.
For several decades, I’ve identified as a runner (my blog used to be called “Run Far Girl” and I had the appropriate corresponding social media handles). I wrote articles about running, built a business around running, shaped my life and subsequently my family’s life around running and racing. Since 2012, all of my training has been aimed at performance. I wanted to get faster, win races, perform better.
But over the past few years, my interest in performance has shifted. Don’t get me wrong, my competitive spirit will never die, but my desire to train in a way necessary to keep performing at the level I’ve always pushed myself to perform at has waned. I just don’t want to perform anymore. I’ve said perform a lot. The redundancy is intentional. My life, for a very, very long time has been oriented around performance of all kinds.
So at the beginning of August, I took control of my training and decided to experiment. I wanted to shift to training for perimenopause instead of performance. I was curious: If I follow all the perimenopause training recommendations, what will happen to my body and mind?
We’re still learning so much about the recommendations for perimenopausal and menopausal women when it comes to exercise. If you happen to follow any related hashtags on social media then you’re bombarded with tips to lift heavy, polarize training, skip alcohol, add creatine. It’s a lot coming at us really fast. A recent New York Times article written by my friend, Christine Yu, the author of the book Up to Speed, tried to decipher some of the recommendations. She breaks things down beautifully and is even doing a deeper dive on her Substack of the material that didn’t make the cut for the article (pesky word counts!).
Before we get into the specifics of how my training and nutrition are changing, I should say, I’ve gone into this with eyes wide open: I know that I’m forsaking running performance in this project. I’m under no illusion that I will come out of this ready for a new PR. I’ve decided that I’m not aiming to be the fittest and fastest I can be for my age. I’m aiming to shake things up in a way that is totally new and different to see how this training (which is likely training I can sustain for years to come) feels. How do I feel about losing running fitness? How do I feel about a day without running? How do I feel when I build a training program around strength instead of running? How does it feel to not be pushing toward performance?
This experiment is as much about my mental reaction as it is about my physical response, especially since running has for a long time been integral to my identity. Change is difficult, but is sometimes made easier when we intentionally embrace it instead of fighting it. This experiment is that for me.
The Changes
I’ve distilled the firehose of information I’ve been consuming into a few key principles that I’ve been applying to my training over the past two months. Many of these principles, like polarizing training and lifting heavy, I’ve been doing for quite some time now. Some of the changes I’ve made are a little more subtle.
Before this experiment, I was running 35-40 miles a week. Training on the ElliptiGO for 2-3 hours a week and strength training for 15-20 minutes 2-3 times a week. It all works out to about 90 minutes of training six days a week and a longer session (up to 3 hours) on the weekends.
Here are the changes I’ve made:
Reduce Zone 2 work. This equates to less mileage (almost half of what I was doing before).
Increasing rest between sprints and intervals. I’m doing a lot more walking, standing or pacing rest between hill sprints and intervals. I’m allowing myself to fully recover so I can hit higher intensities.
Increasing frequency and duration of strength training. Instead of 15-20 minute sessions, I’m strength training for 30-45 minutes, still with as heavy weights as I can manage (or have available).
Plyo 2-3x week. These plyo sessions are 10-15 minutes long and have been a small change that has had big results.
Increased after-meal movement. When my schedule allows it, I’ve been trying to walk for 10-20 minutes after each meal as a way to regulate insulin response after a meal. Estrogen is a key factor in improving insulin sensitivity, as estrogen decreases during menopause women are at risk of becoming increasingly insulin-resistant (and therefore at higher risk for all the chronic illnesses associated with insulin resistance). A post-meal walk is low-hanging fruit in regulating blood sugar.
When it comes to nutrition, I’ve made a few adjustments too…
Tracking protein. Tracking food is always a little tricky, but I wanted to see if I really was getting 130-140g of protein daily. This is based on the recommendation of 1.7-2.4 grams per kg of body weight. It turns out I’m usually about 30-40g shy of that, so I’ve been supplementing with Momentous Grass Fed Whey Protein mixed with their Creatine (more on that below) and water. It’s what I have immediately after a workout and gives me a boost of 20g of complete protein.
Consistent Creatine supplementation. I’ve dabbled with creatine over the past year, taking it sporadically when I remember. I’m taking 5g every other day.
Alcohol. I honestly haven’t changed this that much. I have one or two drinks every one to two weeks. I’m not a frequent drinker, and as I mentioned before my sleep can be disrupted by other things. Maybe this will be a factor once the kids move out. Who knows? If I feel like a Stowe Cider Mountain Glow, I have a Stowe Cider Mountain Glow.
Want to learn more about Training as a Master? Watch my conversation with Dr. Stacy Sims.
The Results:
I’m six weeks into this experiment and have noticed a few differences. Here are the results so far:
I’m more relaxed about training. Missing or changing workouts doesn’t produce a low level of anxiety that I’m somehow “messing up my training.” I’m not training for performance, so there’s no pressure.
I feel significantly stronger all over. Carrying my 9 year-old-up the stairs in the middle of the night ‘aint no thang. I feel stronger and more “solid” than I ever have before.
I’m relishing my runs. I love them more now than ever. I’ve stopped listening to audiobooks and podcasts while running because I just want to “be in the moment” and enjoy the outdoors and the roads I run down.
Body composition change. I’ve noticed a slight body composition change towards more lean muscle mass all over.
I have more energy. This is likely a result of a training load reduction: I’ve gone from 90 minutes per day to about 60 minutes per day. But overall, I don’t feel like my body is shutting down at 7:45 pm. And aside from the week I was sick, I’m waking up before my alarm feeling rested and ready.
Faster hill sprints by 3-5 seconds. This is likely due to increased rest and the benefits of plyo for explosive power.
I feel free. I have this “free” feeling that I’m not doing this “for” anything but myself and my own health and well-being.
There are a lot of mixed messages out there when it comes to what to do and what not to do in perimenopause. But the underlying message I’ve heard from almost every expert is that EVERY BODY IS DIFFERENT. Because the symptoms of menopause are unique to each person, the approach should also be, which is why experimenting on yourself is the only real way to find out what makes you feel physically and mentally your best, despite the changes.
I’ve committed to this experiment through the end of the year and we’ll see how I feel in a few months. Personal “projects” like this on are interesting to me and exciting, the novelty of this new training program has yet to wear off and I’m excited to find out how I change both physically and mentally in the next few months. I’ll keep you posted.
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