67 - Why Am I So Hungry? How Perimenopause Changes Your Appetite

So this week, the tip is stop trying to make your meals as small as possible and start trying to make them satisfying.

So when we're trying to manage your weight or your health, nutrition is really important.

And as females, I think culturally we are conditioned, how can I cut as many calories, which I prefer energy, the word energy, how can I cut as much energy out of this? and make it as tiny and small as possible.

That backfires every time, okay? So instead of asking yourself, how can I make this as few calories as possible? What I want you to start asking yourself is, what can I put into this meal that will actually help me feel satisfied? So of course, I will say, start with protein and get those amino acids in your body.

Then eat loads of vegetables and fruits, okay? And then have a little bit of fat in there, and just make sure you're actually getting enough food to call it a meal, all right? Because if your breakfast is coffee and one egg white bite, and your lunch is a tiny little salad or a protein bar, and then you're spending the entire afternoon trying not to eat...

You only find yourself at the pantry at 5 a.m. staring there, and the problem is not your willpower.

The problem is what you've eaten the whole day.

So get enough satisfying food on your plate and see how that works for you, okay? So now that actually leads us perfectly into today's conversation, which is why am I so hungry? So if you're a woman in your 40s or 30s, for me, perimenopause started in my 30s, Or maybe you're lucky and you're really late starting perimenopause, closer to 50.

Whatever that is, although I'm not sure that's luck.

But okay, different conversation.

I digress.

I do that a lot.

You might be thinking about food more than you used to.

You may be finishing a meal and don't feel satisfied.

Or maybe you're out in the afternoon and you're like really craving and they've gotten stronger.

Or maybe you're kind of just sort of always... thinking about food and like, I just ate.

Why am I looking for food again? And the frustrating part is I think women tend to punish themselves and you start wondering, well, did I lose my discipline? And maybe you need to eat less and try harder and have more willpower.

But there's something that probably you're not thinking about.

And that is hunger is not just willpower.

Hunger is also biology.

It's your body's physiology.

Your gut, your brain, your hormones are constantly talking to each other to help them determine when you're hungry, when you've had enough, when it's time to stop eating.

And one of those hormones involved in that whole conversation is estrogen.

So when estrogen starts to leave the building and act crazy, it's like reminds me of toddlers.

That conversation about hunger and satiety and food volume, it changes too, okay? That conversation for your body changes.