Gaining Weight When You Do Everything Right
- Dr. Jackson
- 7 days ago
- 3 min read
If you feel like you’re eating well, exercising regularly, and doing all the right things, yet the scale keeps creeping up, you’re not failing.
This is one of the most common and frustrating complaints among the women I treat. And no, it’s not because of willpower, laziness, or poor discipline.
It’s physiology.
What “Doing Everything Right” Usually Looks Like
Most women who struggle with midlife weight gain are not careless with their health. They are:
Eating fewer calories than they did in their 30s
Exercising more, often with increased cardio
Choosing whole foods and limiting sugar
Trying to manage stress and sleep
Yet their bodies respond differently than they used to.
Why Weight Gain In Midlife Is Different
Hormonal changes during perimenopause and menopause alter how the body regulates:
Insulin sensitivity (how well you process sugar in your body)
Fat storage (especially where fat is stored)
Muscle mass (how we build and re-build muscle tissue)
Cortisol response (our response to stress)
Resting metabolic rate (how we burn calories just at rest)
What worked before often stops working, and pushing harder usually backfires.
The Role Of Hormones In Midife Weight Gain
Estrogen decline promotes increased abdominal fat storage and worsens insulin sensitivity.
Testosterone loss reduces lean muscle mass, lowering metabolic rate.
Progesterone changes affect sleep and stress tolerance, indirectly driving weight gain.
Elevated cortisol from chronic stress and overtraining encourages fat retention.
This is a mismatch between strategy and biology.
Why Eating Less And Exercising More Often Fails
Chronic calorie restriction signals threat to the body.
Excessive cardio raises cortisol.
Inadequate protein accelerates muscle loss.
Poor sleep undermines metabolic regulation.
The result is a slower metabolism that resists further weight loss.
Why The Scale Is The Wrong Metric
Midlife weight gain is often a body composition problem, not a simple weight problem.
Loss of muscle
Increase in visceral fat
Changes in fat distribution
Focusing only on the scale misses the real issue.
What Actually Works In Midlife
Effective strategies focus on:
Preserving and rebuilding muscle
Supporting insulin sensitivity
Improving sleep quality
Reducing chronic stress
Addressing hormonal deficiencies when appropriate
Frequently Asked Questions
Why am I gaining weight even though I eat healthy and exercise? Hormonal shifts, muscle loss, and stress hormones change how your body processes calories in midlife.
Is midlife weight gain inevitable? No. It’s common, but it’s modifiable with the right strategy.
Why does more cardio make things worse? Excess cardio raises cortisol and accelerates muscle loss, both of which promote fat gain.
Should hormones be considered for weight management? In appropriate patients, optimizing hormones can improve metabolism, energy, and body composition.
Listen to Dr Jackson go into detail about this topic! You can hear the full episode on her podcast, Ageless and Outrageous. Be sure to like and follow so you don’t miss an episode!
SCHEDULE YOUR HORMONE CONSULTATION AT FOUNDATIONS AT MAITLAND
At Foundations at Maitland, in Maitland FL, we offer a full range of non-surgical treatments to help you reach your aesthetic, wellness, and sexual goals. Our providers are highly trained and experienced. We are led by our double-board certified surgeon, Dr Kristin Jackson, who has personally developed all treatment protocols and is closely involved in the day-to-day operations of our medical spa. With her extensive training in all non-surgical cosmetic treatments as well as over 20 years of surgical experience, Dr Jackson is uniquely qualified to ensure our medical spa provides you with the highest standards of quality care and safety.
If you are looking for hormone replacement doctors or anti-aging doctors near you, we can help! Contact us today for your complimentary consultation!
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