Bones, Balance & Burpees: Staying Fit Through Menopause

Ramadan done, Eid celebrated, Vacation finished, and I had to get back to my routine life. After such a long break, I decided to renew my gym membership. As I finished my work for the day, I put on my gym clothes, packed my gym shoes, water and a protein bar for post workout energy refill. I walked to the reception desk at the gym, all enthusiastic and motivated, only to be stalled for almost 25 mins at the reception by another lady (in her mid-thirties) signing up as a new member and clarifying many doubts before she could commit. Looking at her demeanor, I understood that she was a beginner. I have been a gym enthusiast since my late twenties so I can spot one when I see one. After waiting patiently, the curiosity in my brain opened the door to my ears and I decided to eve’s drop. She enquired how many PT sessions she would get? does she have access to steam sauna? Can she get fresh towels at the counter? She kept emphasizing to work on her abs and spot correct her thighs only and kept on stressing that she didn’t want to put on muscle bulk and look like hulk or WWF wrestlers. She was against any kind of weightlifting or strength training for the fact that she felt those are for men only.

Now ladies, here’s the thing about our body- bones and muscles specifically- they are extremely interdependent. Out of the three types of muscles, the skeletal muscles and the bones work together as one unit. We are scared to lift weights for fear of bulking up. So, we end up only doing cardio and a bit of aerobics. While those are good for general circulation and heart health, it doesn’t do much for Musculo-skeletal health. It can be done only by strength training or weight bearing exercises or resistance training.

Resistance training includes exercises that improve the strength and endurance of your muscles. This means that your muscles are contracting against a form of resistance. This could be a weight, a step, or fitness band.

Strength training with the regular push n’ pull and against- gravity movements of the muscles, challenge our body to improve bone strength. While peak bone mass is typically reached between 25 to 30 years of age, the efficiency of our body to absorb calcium keeps decreasing overtime. Strength training helps slowing down bone loss, which is more evident especially in women during menopausal changes. Studies show that women who exercise regularly can reduce their risk of post-menopausal osteoporosis.

Resistance training also helps us maintain our muscle mass and makes general body make-up steadier and more balanced. Muscles have a beautiful way of making themselves stronger by squeezing and creating small wear and tear. Recovery helps them to heal and grow stronger.

Although it’s important to consume calcium to maintain bone health and magnesium for muscles, calcium depletion is not completely in your control. But what we can do here is to slow down depletion and improve muscle strength.

This doesn’t mean you need to hit the Gym right away. You may start with simple things like climbing stairs instead of taking an elevator, and yoga daily. Treks or hikes or a good round of cycling if you enjoy outdoors. For other times, you may invest in a few dumbbells and resistance bands. YouTube is full of exercises videos using body weight – like squats, pushups, burpees, mountain climbers, lunges and so on.

The idea is to just build a habit, slowly but steadily. A little effort now is going to help you a long way. Combine exercises with your already set routine. It could be squats after waking up, pushups just before shower, lunges during lunch breaks. You have a whole canvas to imagine. If you are someone organized, set an alarm, arrange your workout clothes and shoes in a visible place so you are all intentional about it next morning.

Let’s pump it up and I like how Nike says, “Just do it.”

About the blogger: 

Dr. Tabassum Inamdar is a dynamic Homeopath, a passionate artist, and an adventurer in life. She writes a series of blogs related to health and wellness. A sketch artist since childhood, she loves authoring stories and poetry. She continues life’s adventure by trekking, Sky diving, or Marshalling at Formula 1 tracks. You may stalk her @doctabu (IG) or say hello @tabu.inamdar (FB)