Weight Loss During Perimenopause - what actually helps

If you’ve hit your 40s or 50s and suddenly feel like your body has changed overnight, you’re not alone.

In this candid conversation, Dr Nikki (The Female Health Doctor) chats with Pippa, a Women’s Midlife Coach and nutrition coach specialising in fat loss for women, about why weight, energy and body confidence can feel so much harder in perimenopause and menopause – and what actually helps.

Pippa shares her own story of lifelong weight struggles, a brutal perimenopause, and how lifting weights, understanding her biology, and practising “imperfect action” completely changed her relationship with food, movement and her body.

Table of Contents

In this episode we talk about:

Pippa’s journey from corporate life to women’s midlife coach
Why “eat less, move more” stops working the way it did in your 20s
What really happens to metabolism, fat storage and insulin resistance in midlife
The “unsexy basics” that move the needle: food, sleep, movement, nervous system regulation
Emotional vs physical hunger – and why you are not weak for wanting biscuits
Practical ideas for busy women:
- Walking after meals
- Simple high-protein, high-fibre meals
- Managing evening snacking and kids’ leftovers
How to build habits the Atomic Habits way (tiny 1% changes, not all-or-nothing plans)
Why lifting weights is essential for women in their 40s, 50s, 60s and beyond
The truth about weight-loss injections (Wegovy, Mounjaro etc.) and why you still need to do the work
Making peace with your midlife body and focusing on strength, independence and quality of life
How coaching and accountability can help you feel like your favourite version of yourself – not your 20-year-old self

Timestamps

00:00 – Meet Pippa: from lifelong weight struggles to women’s midlife coach
02:30 – Why HRT is only one piece of the midlife health puzzle
04:00 – “Eat less, move more” vs the reality of perimenopause
06:00 – Stress, nervous system overload and why women in midlife feel so “fried”
08:30 – Midlife body changes, insulin resistance & simple movement hacks
10:30 – Lifting weights, sarcopenia and staying independent as you age
13:00 – Emotional eating, “head hunger” vs “tummy hunger”
16:00 – Kids, leftovers, chaotic evenings & realistic food strategies
20:00 – Step counts, home working and building movement in stages
23:30 – Habits, confidence and why “messy action” still works
27:00 – Weight-loss injections: pros, cons & what no one tells you
32:00 – Grieving your 20-year-old body & what really matters at your funeral
35:00 – Body gratitude: learning to see what your legs (and body) do for you
38:00 – Quality of life, longevity and why it’s never too late to start lifting
41:00 – How to connect with Pippa & ways to work with her

(Timestamps are approximate.)

Connect with Pippa

Instagram: search for “I am that Pippa” (@iamthatpippa)
Coaching: 1:1 and group programmes for women in midlife
Free resources: email list & free Facebook community – links in her Instagram bio

If something in this episode resonated with you, send Pippa a DM on Instagram – she loves supporting women through this transition.