3 Habits That May Make Perimenopause Hormone Symptoms Worse

Aug 12

Some habits that seem healthy may not support your body the way you expect during midlife. Coach Erin McDonald shares three common habits to reconsider and simple ways to better support your nutrition, movement, and overall wellness.

You’re eating less. You’re skipping breakfast. You’re squeezing in another cardio workout because you think moving more must be better. So why don’t you feel better?

For women approaching or experiencing perimenopause, some of the habits traditionally marketed as “healthy” may not work the way you expect. Your nutritional needs, recovery, lifestyle, and response to stress can change throughout midlife.

In this episode of Energy Shift With Erin, Coach Erin McDonald discusses three common habits she sees women relying on when they want to lose body fat or feel better: skipping meals, not eating enough fiber, and piling on more cardio.

Her message is refreshingly simple. Doing more isn't always the answer. Sometimes, it’s worth looking at what you’re already doing.

Habit #1: Skipping Meals to Eat Less

Skipping breakfast can seem like an easy way to reduce how much you're eating.

Then comes 3 p.m.

You're starving.

Dinner suddenly doesn't seem like enough, and the pantry starts calling your name later that evening.

Sound familiar?

Erin explains that consistently under-fueling earlier in the day may contribute to the cycle of intense hunger and cravings later.

Rather than automatically cutting another meal, she encourages women to consider whether they're giving their bodies enough nourishment throughout the day.

Rethink Your Breakfast

One of Erin's biggest recommendations is making breakfast substantial rather than relying on coffee alone.

She suggests building breakfast around protein and fiber.

That could look like:

Eggs or egg whites with vegetables
Ground turkey with vegetables and fruit
Make-ahead egg bites
Berries, nuts, and seeds alongside a protein source
Other whole-food combinations containing protein and fiber

Erin discusses aiming for roughly 35 to 45 grams of protein at breakfast in the episode. Individual nutritional needs vary, so specific intake targets should be personalized when necessary.

The bigger takeaway? Don't assume eating as little as possible is automatically better.

Habit #2: Forgetting About Fiber

Protein gets plenty of attention in the wellness world. Fiber deserves a seat at the table too. Fiber contributes to digestive health and regularity, and fiber-rich foods can also help with fullness and overall diet quality.

Erin recommends focusing primarily on whole-food sources, including:

Berries
Vegetables
Beans
Nuts
Seeds
Other fiber-rich plant foods

She discusses a daily target of approximately 25 to 30 grams of whole-food-based fiber during the episode. Rather than obsessing over one nutrient, think about what your plate looks like as a whole.

Are you getting enough protein?

Where is your fiber?

Are most of your meals actually satisfying?

Those questions can be more useful than simply asking, “How can I eat less?”

Habit #3: Trying to Cardio Your Way Out of Everything

Ate more than planned over the weekend? Add cardio.

Want to lose weight? Add cardio.

Not seeing progress? Apparently, the answer is even more cardio.

Erin wants women to reconsider that cycle. Cardio can absolutely have a place in a healthy lifestyle. The issue is assuming that more intense exercise combined with less food will automatically produce better results.

If you're simultaneously restricting food, training intensely, sleeping poorly, and trying to manage the demands of everyday life, adding another punishing workout may not be the solution you're looking for.

Match Your Nutrition to Your Goal

This is where Erin makes an important distinction. Training for an endurance event and intentionally pursuing fat loss are different goals. Someone training for a half marathon, for example, needs appropriate nutrition to support training and performance. Someone focused on changing body composition may structure nutrition and exercise differently. Instead of simply piling on more cardio, Erin encourages women interested in body composition to consider strength training and walking as part of their approach.

Are You Stuck in the Under-Eating and Over-Exercising Loop?

One of the most relatable ideas from Erin's conversation is what she describes as a stress loop.

It can look something like this:

Eat less → exercise more → get extremely hungry → experience cravings → eat more than planned → feel frustrated → restrict again.

Then the cycle starts over. If you've been caught in that pattern, the answer may not be another round of restriction. It may be worth examining whether your current routine is realistic and sustainable.

What About Intermittent Fasting?

Intermittent fasting has become incredibly popular, but Erin distinguishes between prolonged meal skipping and what she calls time-restricted eating.

For example, someone might eat their meals within a consistent daytime window and then finish dinner several hours before bed.

That is different from routinely skipping breakfast and waiting until the afternoon to begin eating. Her broader point is that women should pay attention to how a particular eating pattern affects their energy, hunger, sleep, training, and overall well-being rather than following a wellness trend simply because it works for someone else.

Try This Instead: A Midlife Wellness Reset

You don't need to overhaul your entire life tomorrow. Start by examining these three areas.

1. Eat regular, nourishing meals.
Look at what you're eating earlier in the day, especially breakfast.

2. Put fiber back on your radar.
Add whole-food sources such as vegetables, berries, beans, nuts, and seeds throughout your day.

3. Stop treating cardio like punishment.
Consider whether strength training, walking, adequate recovery, and appropriate nutrition better support your current goals.

The goal isn't perfection. It's creating habits that you can realistically continue.

Quick Self-Check: Are Your “Healthy” Habits Actually Helping?

Ask yourself:

Am I regularly skipping meals?
Is coffee sometimes my entire breakfast?
Do I get enough fiber from whole foods?
Do I become extremely hungry later in the day?
Am I constantly trying to eat less?
Do I add cardio whenever I feel like I've eaten too much?
Am I prioritizing strength training?
Does my nutrition support the amount of exercise I'm doing?
Am I constantly tired despite trying to be “healthy”?

Your answers may reveal that the next step isn't doing more. It might be changing the approach.

Midlife Health Doesn't Have to Mean Fighting Your Body

One of the most frustrating parts of approaching perimenopause is feeling like the strategies that once worked suddenly aren't producing the same results.

That doesn't mean you need to punish your body harder.

Your nutritional needs, recovery, exercise routine, sleep, and overall lifestyle deserve to be considered together.

Start with the basics.

Eat enough nourishing food. Include protein and fiber. Build and maintain muscle. Move your body. Recover.

And if symptoms are persistent, severe, or affecting your quality of life, talk with an appropriate healthcare professional rather than assuming they're simply something you have to tolerate.

🎧 Watch Energy Shift With Erin Conversation 🎧

Want Erin's complete explanation of meal timing, protein, fiber, cardio, strength training, and the habits she sees women struggling with during midlife?