The peri/post menopausal years typically bring about some weight gain. This is a multifaceted reaction brought about by the symptoms of the hormonal changes.

The key piece of that sentence is ‘symptom’. The weight gained isn’t because of the hormonal changes directly but because of the indirect symptoms the changes cause.

The symptoms hormonal changes cause are:
➡️ Sleep disturbances
➡️ Loss of muscle mass (this is occurring through adult life)
➡️ Energy changes
➡️ Appetite changes
➡️ Lifestyle changes

Imagine your weight gain is a car driving along. For your weight to go down/reverse you need to back the car up.

➡️ You can’t go from D, Drive to R, Reverse.
➡️ You need to slow down in D, apply the brakes and halt the forward momentum.
➡️ When you’ve come to a halt you can put it in reverse and go backwards…

Ok, the process of losing weight comes from calorie restriction but you need to slow and stop the reasons for the gain as your first task. Only then can you sustainably reverse it and keep reversing it.

Succeeding to your goals requires you to address the causes:
Sleep disturbances:
This one’s personal, you would need to find something that works for you. Maybe melatonin, ashwagandha, magnesium, reduced alcohol intake, improved nutrition quality, reduced stress.

Muscle loss:
Eat more protein & strength train to prevent further muscle loss.

Energy changes:
Improved sleep, improved/adjusted exercise routine / not over training (which is common), reduced alcohol intake, improved nutrition quality, reduced stress.

Appetite changes:
Eating more protein to aid satiation (feeling full), reduce refined carbs in your diet, reduce alcohol and sugars, eat more fiber, eat more non-starchy veggies, drink more water, reduced stress.

Lifestyle changes:
All of the above + increase NEAT, reduce meals out, reduced stress.
All of the above are key for your health to improve
All of the above are needed for the scale to move.
All of the above should be your goals, if you work on the above goals your scale and body will change positively

All of the PLT Nutrition all of our plans enable someone to exceed in this season of life.

PLT Nutrition is a leader in this area of nutrition.

Our Platinum Plan was developed specifically to enable someone to navigate to their goals. With bi-weekly face to face LIVE check-ins and a personalized training plan, it is our premier service.

To purchase a plan or get more information, please click the button!

As we welcome November, we also mark the start of the holiday season, but the holidays are just that, holi-DAYS (not holi-WEEKS)
 
Statistics show that the number one reason for weight gain over the course of the year is holiday and vacation eating.
 
What may happen is that some people could gain about 3lbs around Halloween time, then Thanksgiving rolls around and another 3 - 5lb gain. Before we know it, it's Christmas and well, there's another 3 - 5lbs and let's not forget about New Year's Eve AND Day and 'suddenly' we're seeing the scale top out at about 15lbs heavier than when we entered the holiday season.  Some of us are left scratching our heads thinking "I'm not sure what happened, I didn’t change how I eat!"
 
In many ways that’s true, you don’t have to change the way you eat, you just have to enjoy a few occasions and not manage the weight gain.
 
If you're working with a PLT Nutrition Coach, or  you are someone that manages their weight pretty well, you will have seen how your weight can easily spike from one event…only to quickly come back down when you actively work it lower - this is the key.
 
 If you feel you have experienced this in the past, why not make this the year you change?!
 
The PLT ABC’s are the building blocks of our nutrition plan and can be applied to specific situations giving you a guideline to help you stay focused and working hard despite special occasions like holidays!
 
ACCOUNTABILITY:

• Have a plan in place before the holiday season begins
• If you're working with a PLT coach, talk to them about any specific concerns you might have
• Ensure you have your regular foods prepped and ready in addition to the ‘holiday’ foods so that your eating remains on track 
• Prepare a menu that includes foods that you enjoy and you might want to indulge in moderately
• Decide what you will track and what you won’t (no need to track Thanksgiving dinner, but the eating that follows, including leftovers should be tracked) 

 
BALANCE:

• Look at the holiday week and decide how you will balance your days; you may have 4 parties & 2 big family meals that you will need to plan your day to ensure that you remain on track
• Ensure you're getting your regular exercise in and remaining active
• Be present within yourself each day and be mindful of your intentions and your goals
• Plan to eat a high protein, low fat & carb breakfast, possibly delaying breakfast, on party days. Before heading out, eat a little something, maybe a salad with a little protein so that you are not showing up hungry!
• Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate
• Limit alcohol to 1-2 drinks if at all; sparkling water w/lime is your friend
• Pie & whipped cream OR dinner rolls & butter; plan to choose wisely so you feel satisfied and happy

 
 CONSISTENCY:

• Your plan doesn’t end on Thanksgiving eve and restart on New Year’s Day; stay focused throughout the season 
• Stick to your normal routine except when your routine changes
• A holiday event on Friday evening does not mean the entire week is a blowout
• Exercise daily; NEAT is your best friend!
• Communicate with your coach, a friend, a family member when feeling stressed
• Track as usual, except special holiday meals
• Check in with your coach as scheduled.

  
The 3 basic approaches to holiday eating:

• Eat the entire table and drink all the alcohol! Start early, like Thanksgiving Eve (if you didn’t start on Halloween) and go through New Year’s Day! Eat with wild abandon, you’ll start that diet soon and be fine (Let's NOT do this!)
• Choose one day out of the week like Thanksgiving Day or Christmas Day or Eve to allow yourself the freedom to eat at will. BUT being mindful that you’d rather not wake up feeling terrible the next day maybe limit alcohol to 1-3 drinks that don’t have 300cal each. Eat less stuffing if you know you want pie; eat raw veggies rather than all the deliciousness on the charcuterie board. Relax, be conversational, enjoy a lovely meal with family and friends knowing that the next day you will get right back on track (Let's DO this!)
• Track your holiday meal as you would any other meal. This is not strongly suggested as it’s not necessary but if you are more comfortable doing so then you absolutely should. In some cases we are attending a holiday event that doesn’t really mean much to us but it’s a commitment we have and we’d just as soon consider it like any other day. Do what works best for you.

 
 Tips & Tricks:

• If you are hosting you are golden! Make everyone’s favorite foods including the things you love that will ensure you don't completely over indulge (veggie platter, fresh fruit to snack on instead of charcuterie yummies)
• Make those same things to take with you if you are invited to someone’s home
• Eat a light but protein focused breakfast
• Hydrate well all day
• Mingle with a water or seltzer in your hand and when you look at the appetizers navigate towards raw veggies and stay away from the cheese etc.
• Talk! A lot! It keeps your mouth busy!
• ‘No thank you’ is all you need to say when Uncle Jim wants to pour you another mug of spiced cider
• Fill your dinner plate with veggies first, then load up on protein and take small servings of starchy carbs
• Eat slowly and relax and enjoy the moment
• Washing dishes is NEAT! (Non-exercise activity thermogenesis) Pitch in and increase your movement after eating instead of hitting the couch!

  
Weight spikes will happen, embrace them as it means you’re enjoying life, but know that you MUST manage your weight back down by tightening up your nutrition for 2,4,8,10 days afterwards - basically however long it takes until the gain has gone!
 
Whether you have a PLT Coach or not, maybe weighing the same on Jan 2nd as you do today IS progress! You avoided the typical 15lb gain!
 
This period isn’t always about losing weight as progress, it can 100% be about maintaining your weight.
 
Don’t put off starting your journey just because of this challenging period. There’s EVERY value starting today, tomorrow - soon - the sooner the better. There is NO reason to put it off.
 
Above all else, smile, have fun, love your family, cherish your friends but remember your goals. We wish you a healthy and happy holiday season and we wish you an epic scale reading on 1/1/223!​

Well, it’s about that time again… Football season is upon us!

Whether you’re a football fan or not, you likely have friends or family who love football. That means you’ve likely spent a Sunday or two (and the occasional Monday night) hanging around certain “football foods” like pizza, wings, and all sorts of yummy, not so calorie-friendly foods.

As we know we definitely do not have to avoid these foods all together. Sometimes you can (and should) eat the pizza! However, if this is becoming every Sunday thing you may find it difficult to hit your goals and stay on plan.
​
Perhaps you can try doing football season a little differently this year.

Here are some healthy swaps that may help you stay on plan:

• Swap pizza for homemade pizza or pizza bites (using lavash bread, pita bread, high-fiber English muffins, low-fat cheeses, a mixture of different lean proteins like chicken or chicken sausage, all the veggies).
• Swap fried chicken wings for baked wings (toss with sauces like G-Hughes sugar-free BBQ sauce, honey mustard, or hot sauce. Dip with low-fat ranch dressing, plain Greek yogurt mixed with ranch seasoning, low-fat blue cheese dressing, cottage cheese).
• Swap chips and dip with veggies and dip (celery, colored peppers, carrots, cucumber, zucchini, broccoli, sugar-snap peas. Dip with plain Greek yogurt, low-fat ranch or seasoned ranch mixed with Greek yogurt).
• Prepare buffalo chicken dip with low-fat or fat-free Greek yogurt and cottage cheese instead of the typical full fat cheese, ranch, blue cheese dressing, and cream cheese. Serve with multi-grain crackers or veggies.
• Prepare spinach and artichoke dip with low-fat or fat-free Greek yogurt instead of mayo & serve with multi-grain crackers or veggies.

​Here are a few more fun and healthy ideas to try:

• Taco station with proteins like lean ground turkey or lean ground beef and tons of different veggie options
• Mini chicken burgers
• Chicken skewers with peppers, onions, zucchini
• Turkey meatballs
• Cowboy caviar
• Homemade guacamole
  
  

As always, having a plan heading into game day will always work out in your favor. Choosing a healthy alternative to help you stay on plan will have you waking up Monday morning feeling fantastic!

Happy football season and may the odds forever be in your team's favor!