For some women, peri-menopause can be a welcoming stage of their life when you truly come into your own power, but the process of getting there can be rocky.

Menopause describes the first day after having no periods for a consecutive 12 months. Peri-menopause however, is the time when symptoms such as

• changes in the menstrual cycle and flow
• hot flushes and night sweats
• insomnia and fatigue
• depression / anxiety
• low libido
• PMS

95% of women experience menopausal symptoms between the age 44-56 with an average age of 49. (1)

As oestrogen production reduces you may look at life through a slightly different lens, seeing relationships and your life in a different way. Acknowledging all the times you put others first before yourself and caring for others when you needed to care for yourself.

This is why it is so important to work with your body and embrace the change, develop self awareness and kindness towards yourself and realise you can put yourself first sometimes, without feeling guilt.

During the ages 35-45 women are prone to weight gain, and by the time we reach peri menopause, most of us are carrying excess weight and thats a problem. Excess weight not only increases the risk of diabetes and heart disease but encourages your body to become oestrogen dominant as your fat cells produce their own oestrogen. (2)

When your body stores more Oestrogen than it needs during peri-menopause this can cause havoc on the opposing hormone Progesterone. The combination of excess oestrogen and low progesterone has many effects on our body. Sodium is easily retained which increases water retention. This causes many women to feel ‘puffy’. Other symptoms of oestrogen dominance can be sore and tender breasts, mood fluctuation, low motivation, irritability, headaches and weight gain, especially around the middle.

Our diet can play a huge part to prevent Oestrogen dominance. Healthy fats such as olive oil, nuts, seeds, oily fish and avocados manufacture hormones and help break down excess stored fat, so a good balance of healthy fats as part of your overall diet is important.

Reducing simple carbohydrates such as white breads, pastries, cakes, biscuits, white pasta, sweets, chocolate and highly processed foods will have a huge positive impact. Not only will reducing these types of carbohydrate reduce blood sugar level spikes and insulin levels which promotes weight gain, but every 1g of carbohydrate holds onto 3g of water within the body which can result in feeling ‘puffy’. (3)

How can resistance training benefit menopause?

Resistance training (also known as strength training or weight training) is the use of body weight or external weight to add resistance to a muscular contraction to build the strength, anaerobic endurance and size of skeletal muscles. During menopause bone density decreases which can lead to osteopenia resulting in the disease osteoporosis. Osteoporosis is the weakening of bone making you more prone to breaks and injury. Along with reduction of bone density, muscle mass also declines. Resistance Training helps to prevent muscle mass from decreasing which has a positive impact on joint stability, body tone and bone density.

Why resistance training and menopause go hand in hand

Not only does resistance training help bone density and muscle mass it also has a positive impact on our mental health. First of all, to train, you are putting yourself first, putting your health first and doing something that will have a positive impact on your life. Prioritising this is such a beneficial and positive step.

Exercise stimulates the brain which releases endorphins. Endorphins are a type of neurotransmitter, or chemical messenger. They help relieve pain and stress. Endorphins are only one of many neurotransmitters released when you exercise. Exercise releases dopamine, norepinephrine, and serotonin too, these brain chemicals play an important part in regulating your mood.

So, where is a good place to start?

Aim for:

x2 resistance sessions per week

working with 2-4 sets per exercise, in the rep range of 8-15

6-10 exercises targeting all major muscle groups

lifting at least 60% of your maximum capacity

Seeking help from a fitness professional, such as a personal trainer to build confidence around resistance training as well as learning the fundamentals around health and fitness could be a good place to start. 

Please also take a look at our wide range of Woman's Health products. 

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CREAMY TOMATO PASTA

INGREDIENTS

serves 2

140g Really Healthy Red Lentil Pasta

1 can chopped tomatoes

1 onion

1 garlic clove

1 tsp basil

1tsp oregano

1tsp chilli flakes

salt and pepper

1tbsp nutritional yeast

2 handfuls cashew nuts

METHOD

Blend together, tomatoes, cashews, onion, garlic, basil, oregano, chilli flakes, nutritional yeast and salt and pepper until a smooth creamy sauce.

Heat the sauce on a low heat for 5-10 mins.

Cook the pasta for 5 minutes then drain and mix in with the sauce and enjoy!!

MACROS

per portion-

calories- 400

carbs- 54g

protein- 27.5g

fats- 8g

Source: https://chloeehurd.wixsite.com/nourishingnaturally

As the Zika virus spreads across Latin America and the Caribbean, it is more important than ever to know how to protect yourself.

About one in five people infected with Zika virus will develop symptoms, the most common ones being fever, rash, joint pain, conjunctivitis or red eyes, muscle pain and mild headaches. However, Zika is receiving worldwide attention due to the alarming connection between the virus and microcephaly, a potentially fatal condition in infants.

Aedes aegypti mosquitoes carry Zika Virus

Pyramid Travel Products specialises in advanced travel protection for adventurers, families and outdoor enthusiasts. If you live in or are thinking about travelling to an infected area, we advise taking the following steps:

1. Use DEET based repellents:
DEET has been recognised as an effective repellent against Zika. Our Trek Ultra repellent is made with micro-encapsulated DEET, protecting for up 12 hours from one application!

2. Take a permethrin treated mosquito net:
Essential gear for sleeping at night bite free. Pop-upmosquito nets are available that fit easily over a bed, as well as hanging nets.

3. Cover up with loose, long sleeved clothing in a light coloured fabric: Mosquitoes are attracted to dark clothing.

4. Avoid stagnant or standing water where mosquitoes breed

5. Avoid travelling to Zika affected areas when pregnant:The WHO recommends that pregnant women do not travel to Zika affected areas. If travel is unavoidable to these areas, a repellent of up to 50% DEET should be used by pregnant women, such as Trek 50.

What kind of apple cider vinegar?

Get the good stuff. By “the good stuff,” I mean raw, organic, unpasteurized apple cider vinegar. We’re big fans of Bragg’s apple cider vinegar (pictured at the top).

If you’ve got a good bottle of apple cider vinegar, you should see some strand-like sediment floating at the bottom. No, your vinegar hasn’t gone bad—that gunky-looking stuff at the bottom is the most important part! It’s called “the mother,” and it contains raw enzymes and gut-friendly bacteria that promote healing. In the animated GIF below, you can see what the mother looks like floating around at the bottom of the bottle (I gave it a vigorous shake first so you can see it better).

1. Eat and/or drink it, of course!

Apple cider vinegar lowers glucose levels, and may be helpful for diabetics. It has also been touted as a weight-lossaid, as it is said to help you feel fuller and eat less. The enzymes in apple cider vinegar also promote the growth of healthy bacteria in the gut, and can help regulate candida issues.

How to take apple cider vinegar orally: Mix 1 tablespoon with a cup of water or herbal tea. (Apple cider vinegar is quite strong, and when taken straight can be harsh on the esophagus, so you’ll want to dilute it).

And, of course, apple cider vinegar is a classic salad dressing ingredient, which you can definitely get a little creative with! While olive oil, the most commonly used oil for salad dressing, is not permitted on the therapy, you can mix your ACV with flax oil and lemon or orange juice, and perhaps even whirr it all together in a blender with a clove of garlic and a bit of onion. I even like to just drizzle it on my salad plain!

(Here’s one of our favorite go-to salad dressing recipes with ACV: Triple Citrus Dill Vinaigrette.)

2. Relieve gas, bloating and heartburn

3. Promote alkalinity

4. Non-toxic cleaning spray

Simply mix one part apple cider vinegar to one part water, and put it in a spray bottle. Spray the solution on hard surfaces such as hardwood floors, bathroom tiles, cabinets and countertops, then wipe it off with a rag.

5. Hair care

Simply mix a tablespoon or two in a glass of water, and rinse your hair with it at the end of your bath. Make sure to rinse it out well afterwards, or your hair might feel a little crunchy.

Don’t worry, the vinegar smell will dissipate once your hair dries, so you don’t have to go around smelling like salad all day (not that that’s a bad thing!).

6. Skin care

You can use apple cider vinegar as an astringent, by soaking a washcloth/cotton pad in diluted ACV and applying it to your face. Or, you can simply dab it right onto blemishes to dry them out and heal them.

It’s amazing how smooth your skin feels after applying ACV, it tightens and plumps it a bit, and can help reduce or minimize the appearance of wrinkles and fine lines.

7. Sunburn relief

8. Deodorant

So, it might sound a little crazy, but you can actually use apple cider vinegar as a natural deodorant! Apple cider vinegar absorbs and neutralizes stinky scents. Simply rub a bit of ACV in your underarms and it will absorb and minimize body odors. The vinegary smell dissipates once it dries.

While I’ve listed 8 uses for apple cider vinegar here, I’ve heard of many other creative uses, including using it as a flea bath for pets and to get rid of warts. I only listed things that I’ve personally tried out for myself, but I can only imagine the vast number of other uses floating around out there!

author: pukka January 30th, 2013 

When we created Pukka’s Three Green Tea and Fairtrade Green Tea Pack we set out to create truly superior tasting green teas. So in order for you to get the best from the hand picked organic varieties of Sencha, Oothu and Suoi Gang, we thought we’d put together a little guide about the art of great green tea making.

Oothu green tea pickers in Tami Nadu, South India

Some people claim not to like green tea! Extraordinary behaviour – but they’re entitled to their opinion. It is however possible that the reason these people don’t enjoy one of the most popular teas in the world is that they’ve been performing one or two green tea faux pas in the tea making process. It’s not as simple as just throwing everything in a mug, oh no. That said, any old mug can do it. Here’s how…

Water temperature

Most people boil the kettle, pop a teabag in a mug and pour away. Itttt-urrrrrrrr. Incorrect answer. When water boils it’s at 100°C, so when the kettle is freshly boiled the water will in fact be too hot for the optimum cup of green tea – and we’re all about optimum today.

The best temperature for Pukka green tea is around 80°C – that’s twenty degrees less than the usual old cuppa. Why, oh why, we hear you cry? Well this is because lots of things in green tea contribute to flavour. Brewing green tea at a lower temperature ensures that the naturally sweet, smooth and complex flavours will not be overpowered by bitter-tasting ones that are released by higher water temperatures.

And the question you’re begging to shout: how do I know the water is 80°C? Well, a thermometer of course. What’s that? You don’t have a thermometer by your kettle, and what’s more, you’re not that interested in doing so as it seems a little excessive for a cuppa?

All right then, why not just decant your freshly boiled water into a Pyrex glass or ceramic jug and let sit for 2 – 3 minutes before using to make your tea. Even if it’s not an exact science, any reduction in heat will aid the deliciousness of your Pukka green tea.

Steep time

Green tea does not require as much of a brew time as your conventional builder’s brew – so no spoons standing up straight, thank you. Too long a steepin’ will result in more bitterness (yes, that bitterness is back again) and in general reduce all those lovely flavours we’ve worked so hard at sourcing from those lovely Fairtrade growers in China, India and Vietnam – you don’t want to upset them, do you?

We recommend 1 – 3 minutes maximum steep time for Pukka Three Green tea. That said, it’s also down to personal preference. Experiment a little with the time to find the right length of brew for your taste buds.

There you go, you’re all briefed and fully education in the art of great green tea making now. Time to pop the kettle one for a nice cup of 80°C tea. Now do you like it?

Fairtrade Green Tea Pack: Mint green, Lemon green, Green tea

Source: Pukka Herbs Blog