How Fasting Affects Metabolic Fitness & Hormonal Balance for Women Over 40

Quick view: Did you know that over 80% of women throughout their lifetime will suffer from hormonal imbalance? In most cases, the hormonal imbalance becomes chronic and leads to other major health-related issues. Today’s post will cover how Fasting can help our metabolic fitness overall and rebalance our hormones naturally. 

What is Hormone Imbalance 

Hormonal imbalance in simple terms is when our bodies are either not producing the right amount of hormones, this could be in the form of an overproduction of hormones known as hyperthyroidism. The underproduction of hormones is known as hypothyroidism, or it is also possible for your hormones to be in proper production but your body is not receiving them. 

I am not a medical professional, I am a normal everyday person just like you who embarked on healing my own hormonal imbalance over 8 years ago now. I saw doctor after doctor, specialist after specialist, who all ran test after test at my request because I refused to accept the idea that I would just suffer with this autoimmune disease and all the horrible side effects and live on medication for the rest of my life. 

I knew if I could find at least one other person who had an autoimmune disease and cured it then damn it I could too! Granted this was back in the day and the internet was not what it is today. But where there is a will there is a way!

What percentage of women have imbalanced hormones?

It is said that over 80% of women in the US suffer from hormonal imbalances throughout their lifetime. The most common reasons triggering hormonal imbalance are menopause, premenopause, pregnancy or post-pregnancy, obesity, and chronic stress or trauma. 

Of course, most of us suffer needlessly having a handful if not all of the symptoms listed below and if this goes on too long before it is corrected it turns into a full-on autoimmune disease. 

For more on Hormonal Imbalance in women and how to fix it read 15 Signs Of Hormone Imbalance That Most Women Ignore.

How Fasting Helps Maintain Metabolic Fitness

The vast majority of people eat throughout the entire 12 hours they are awake, this is a metabolic disaster! Despite the old fitness advice we were indoctrinated with that to be thin and healthy we should eat less, or smaller portions, but eat more often some even suggesting every 2-3 hours. For proof, this constant grazing, eating, and snacking is not working out for humans just look at the stats. It is said that 93.2% of Americans are metabolically unfit. 

Notice it doesn’t say overweight, it says metabolically unfit. Skinny people can still be sick and unhealthy too. The new term for this is “skinny-fat”. 

On the other hand, science has found that Time Restricted Eating (TRE) or fasting is one of the fundamental strategies for staying healthy, and when done properly it can boost and rebalance our hormones. 

Time Restricted Eating (TRE)

Honestly, we did not need science and research to tell us what our ancestor’s lifestyles already showed us. Hunters and gatherers do not eat 3 meals a day plus snacks in between. They would eat when there was food and “fast”, of course, this wasn’t the name for it for them it was not optional when there was no food.

They did not eat bananas year-round unless that was part of the habitat they lived in, in they probably did not eat other foods not found in that habitat. Remember there were no grocery stores. Unlike today where you can eat fruit year around, not seasonally, and get just about anything else your heart desires. 

In his book “Fast This Way” author and long-term mentor of mine Dave Asprey says, 

“The more you mix things up and the more you reject consistency, the stronger and more flexible your cells will be. They will no longer be trained to crave one particular snack or comfort food.”

– DAVE ASPREY

For decades the diet and fitness industry has said weight is all about what you eat, or how much you eat. This is only half true. As important as the foods you choose to eat and the portion size is the time and frequency of your eating. For example, eating right before you go to sleep will mean poor digestion and POOR SLEEP. Poor sleep is the leading factor in obesity and weight gain. See there is much more at play in our overall health than just our diet. 

Eating at the same time every day seems like a win right? But just as Pavlov’s Law showed us this forms a habit, a routine. Then we must wonder if are we really hungry at 5:00 or if have we trained ourselves to eat at 5:00 so we eat at 5:00, hungry or not. 

Eating habits have changed significantly over the last 50 years. While three meals a day used to be standard, the average adult now eats about six times a day. Some adults eat up to 15 times in 24 hours.

This fact and the worsening obesity epidemic in Western cultures have led scientists to study this phenomenon. Some nutrition experts have found that not giving our bodies long enough breaks between meals is unhealthy for us.

Two Primary Energy Sources – Glucose vs Ketones

Our bodies use two primary energy sources. One is glucose the other is ketones. You may be familiar with the Keto diet as it has gained a lot of popularity. The reason so many have seen such amazing results on the Keto diet (ps scroll down to see how to start keto the right way and the easiest way to reach your weight loss goals using the Custome Keto Meal Planner) is the process known as ketosis is when our bodies are burning fat for fuel vs glucose. When our bodies use glucose for energy what is happening, in a nutshell, is our bodies storing fat and burning glucose which spikes insulin. 

Ideally, our bodies should be able to do both processes seamlessly. However, because of the highly refined and processed foods, the high sugar and carb consumption, and inflammation our bodies are becoming insulin sensitive. When there is insulin sensitivity the body then has a very hard time properly using glucose and goes into fat-storing mode. Exactly what we do not want it to do. 

Time Restricted Eating (TRE) or intermittent fasting can help our bodies lower the stress level of constantly working to digest food. When paired with a clean Ketogenic diet (dairy-free keto) this reduces inflammation, puts our bodies into fat-burning mode for energy (ketosis), and allows our bodies to only digest food 2 times per day. 

Kind of a trifecta for getting our hormones back in balance, our weight back to where it needs to be, and bonus our lives don’t revolve around food anymore breaking both the habit of eating and the addictions to foods that cause insulin spikes and inflammation! 

Benefits of Time Restricted Eating (TRE) / Intermittent Fasting

Further, studies have shown that intermittent fasting can fight certain diseases. For example, animal studies have supported fasting benefits for diabetes, cancer, and neurodegenerative conditions like Alzheimer’s. The main reason for this is the reduction of inflammation.

Inflammation is at the core of every disease and health issue we face. Poor sleep, is likely you also have inflammation, obesity there is definitely causes inflammation, cancer – inflammation, heart disease – inflammation, and autoimmune disease – inflammation.

I think you are getting the point here.

Top 13 Benefits of Intermittent Fasting / TRE Benefits 

• Support weight loss / healthy weight maintenance
• Help support gut health & digestion
• Reduced inflammation
• Lower risk of disease (cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, heart disease, diabetes)
• Mental health: memory, focus, mood & wellbeing
• Induce autophagy–the body’s ability to clean and rejuvenate cells 
• Reduce your risk for chronic diseases
• Better sleep
• Improve insulin sensitivity
• Boost metabolism
• Increase endurance & energy
• Enhance cognitive function
• Lengthen your lifespan

The key rules of TRE are that your eating window should be shorter than 12 hours, shoot for 6-8 hours, and no eating within three hours prior to bedtime. No eating 3 hours prior to waking up. No coffee or caffeine after 2:00 pm, and no alcohol within 3-4 hours of bedtime. 

Fast Like a Girl: A Women’s Guide to Using the Healing Power of Fasting to Burn Fat, Boost Energy, and Balance Hormones

In the book, “Fast Like a Girl: A Woman’s Guide to Using the Healing Power of Fasting to Burn Fat, Boost Energy, and Balance Hormones” Dr. Mindy Pelz, reviews how time-restricted eating (TRE) can improve your health and balance your sex hormones. In general, I believe TRE is one of the most foundational strategies to stay healthy, but the devil’s in the details, and Pelz will tease out some of those here.

In her book, “Fast Like a Girl,” Dr. Pelz describes six different fasts, ranging from 13 to 72 hours, all of which have been tested on millions of people. She suggests thinking of fasts as “switches,” where the longer you stay in a fasted state, the more healing is allowed to take place in your body.

The Importance of Protein

It is important when dipping into fasting to remember to get the right amount of protein. 30 grams is a good baseline for most of us but there are protein calculators to show you based on your age, gender, and weight the correct amount of protein for you.

Dr. Pelz reminds us, “Women, especially women over 40, do not want to be on calorie restriction. When you eat, you want to eat, and you want to eat protein.” Women over 40 which is right around menopause (or premenopausal) already start to decline in many hormones and in bone dissent making it vital to keep your protein up!

Here is my favorite protein powder and it is packed with the superfood desiccated organ (don’t worry you cannot taste it, but girl you NEED IT!!).

PS If you are dairy-free/dairy-sensitive like my son & I are this is isolated meaning the dairy that causes us issues has been removed. Neither of us has any issue with this one, and yes I have my kiddos (ages 11 & 14) take this 2-3 times per week.

What happens when a woman’s hormones are out of balance?

Hormones and Weight Gain and Hormonal Imbalance Diet are great next reads if you are suffering from hormonal weight gain or have had difficulties losing weight and want to see if it might be a hormonal imbalance issue and how to fix it. 

Related Posts to read next on this topic: 

How to Heal Autoimmune Diseases Naturally

Hormonal Imbalance Diet

Estrogen Dominance

If Weight Loss with Hormonal Imbalance Using Fasting you Have to Get Your Food Right

Odds are pretty good that if you have gained weight and not been able to easily lose it, or have been overweight for more than a year then there is a hormonal imbalance involved. Regarding the question of whether being overweight or obese causes a hormonal imbalance or does hormonal imbalance cause obesity the simple answer is yes!

It doesn’t really matter which came first if you have one the other is soon to follow. 

The best diet for hormonal weight gain in my own personal experience, and in helping so many heal their hormones as well is hands down the Clean Keto Diet. 

Clean Keto is essentially the keto diet minus the dairy and avoiding highly refined processed foods I like to call Frankin’ Foods. Foods that are not real, are cooked up in a lab somewhere using God only knows what, and they are made to last on the shelf for years and be highly addicting so that you buy more. 

When I started Keto almost six years ago it was the school of hard knocks for me. I spent months researching and meal planning trying to figure it all out myself. Now, I can recommend to you the Custom Keto Meal Planner for weight loss as the big red easy button to start Keto. 

Custom Keto Meal Planner quizzes you on your taste buds and weight loss goals and then formulates the perfect done-for-you meal plan to fit your needs. It even emails you the weekly shopping list for less than a dinner out with friends (it’s under $40 per month).

Hormonal Harmony Supplement

If you are really serious about hormonal weight loss you can combine the keto diet with the right supplements to give you a boost right out of the gate.

Hormonal Harmony HB-5 is an all-in-one supplement to support resetting your hormones. Formulated with all-natural ingredients and is essentially a multivitamin for your hormones. 

For my full review and in-depth research on this supplement check out this post next Hormonal Harmony Supplement Review

Conclusion

The benefits and science behind intermittent fasting or Time-Restricted Eating (TRE) impact our overall metabolic fitness, boost healthy hormones, and help with weight loss, improved sleep, reduction of inflammation, and the list of positive benefits to fasting goes on and on. If you have never tried intermittent fasting this is something that easily fits into anyone’s lifestyle.

I started fasting 8+ years ago when I started Keto to help heal my hormones. I still fast to this day normally eating within an 8-hour window eating two meals, some days 3 with no snacking. I find for my body this works best for my body (age 40). However, my husband (46 years old) is on more of a 6-hour feeding window and has been for the last 7+ years, and that works great for him.

We have to remember all of our bodies are different and that men and women are different. Fasting is not a one-size-fits-all, but no matter the time frame you choose limiting your eating to 3 hours after you wake up and not eating 3 hours before bed, no snacking in between will help everyone’s body as science has proven.

For more information on finding out how fasting can fit into your lifestyle check out the books mentioned in the post above (also linked below).

I am curious have you ever tried intermittent fasting before?

Let me know in the comments below.