If you’ve ever tried to lose weight during menopause, chances are you’ve heard about the calorie deficit in menopause, which is the idea that eating fewer calories than you burn is the key to fat loss. And technically, yes, that’s still true.
But here’s the real issue: a calorie deficit works differently for women in menopause.
And that’s what no one is telling you.
After 40, your hormones shift. Your metabolism slows. Your stress response changes. That means the old tricks, like skipping meals, doing endless cardio, or living off salad, don’t just stop working… they can actually make things worse.
That’s why in this article, we’re going to break down how to lose weight while in menopause the right way—without giving up your favourite foods, and without wrecking your hormones.
At Trinity we’ve helped over 7,000 women lose weight through perimenopause and menopause using this exact approach, and we’re going to show you how.
The Truth About Calorie Deficit Over 40
At its core, fat loss requires a calorie deficit. That part hasn’t changed. But how you create that calorie deficit in menopause matters more than ever.
In your 20s, you could skip a few meals or do an extra spin class and drop a few pounds. But during menopause, your body becomes more sensitive to stress. That includes physical stress (like extreme workouts or undereating) and emotional stress (like work, family, or lack of sleep).
When your stress hormone cortisol stays high which is something that happens more easily in perimenopause and menopause then your body starts storing fat, particularly around your belly. It also breaks down muscle and slows your metabolism.
That means if you create a calorie deficit the wrong way, which is easily done by eating too little or exercising too hard then you can actually gain fat and lose muscle. It’s the opposite of what you want.
The right approach is creating a gentle calorie deficit that supports your hormones, doesn’t overwhelm your system, and is easy to stick to.
What To Do Alongside a Calorie Deficit In Menopause
If you’ve been stuck thinking “I just need to eat less”, this might feel like a relief.
This is not to say that a calorie deficit won’t work, it just won’t work on it’s own and you need to be smart about how you go about your deficit.
Weight loss in menopause isn’t about punishing yourself or cutting out entire food groups. It’s about working smarter by balancing your nutrition, your exercise, and your stress response. A calorie deficit in menopause works when it’s part of a wider approach.
Women who succeed at losing weight during the menopause years do two things right:
- They follow a balanced eating plan that supports their hormones and puts them in a slight, sustainable calorie deficit.
- They do the right kind of exercise—not endless cardio, but strength-focused training that builds lean muscle and protects their metabolism.
How To Sustainably Lose Weight With a Calorie Deficit In Menopause
1. Balance Your Hormones
Cortisol is your body’s main stress hormone. It’s not a villain. In fact, it’s essential for energy and alertness. But during menopause, your cortisol response becomes more sensitive and less regulated, because oestrogen (which once buffered stress) is in decline.
The reason this matters in weight loss: when cortisol is too high for too long, it signals your body to store fat, especially around the midsection. It also leads to cravings, poor sleep, and breakdown of muscle tissue.
Most women are unknowingly keeping cortisol high by:
- Eating too little (1200 calorie diets)
- Exercising too intensely (HIIT, extreme cardio)
- Not getting enough sleep
- Living in a state of chronic busyness or emotional stress
The solution? Lower the overall stress load on your body.
This includes choosing calming forms of movement like walking, doing Low Impact Strength Training (LIST) instead of HIIT, and eating enough food to nourish your body while still maintaining a calorie deficit.
2. Focus on Strength Training
Many women over 40 turn to cardio to lose weight because that’s what worked for them before. Running, spinning, or back-to-back fitness classes used to burn calories fast.
But in menopause, this strategy becomes ineffective, and often counterproductive.
Here’s why:
- Cardio burns calories, but it doesn’t build muscle. Muscle is key to maintaining a fast metabolism, especially when hormonal changes are working against you.
- High-intensity cardio raises cortisol, increasing stress and encouraging your body to store fat, not burn it.
- Overdoing cardio increases injury risk, particularly with declining oestrogen, which protects joints and connective tissue.
Instead, the most effective exercise plan for menopause weight loss is strength training 2–3 times per week, using weights that challenge you. This builds lean muscle, improves bone density, and boosts resting metabolism.
Pair this with daily walking (5,000–10,000 steps) to stay active, burn calories, and improve insulin sensitivity without stressing the body.
3. Consider the WADS Method
When it comes to fat loss, most women are told to “cut out” certain foods entirely.
And while it’s true that some foods can make things harder during menopause, we don’t believe in banning anything completely.
Instead, we teach a method called WADS, which stands for wheat, alcohol, dairy, and sugar.
These foods aren’t bad. In fact, they can absolutely be part of a healthy diet. But for many women over 40, regularly eating too much of them can lead to poor blood sugar control, higher levels of inflammation, increased bloating, and stronger cravings.
These issues are all amplified during menopause, when your hormones are already shifting and your metabolism is naturally slowing down.
The solution isn’t to go cold turkey forever. It’s to become more mindful of how these foods affect you personally, and adjust accordingly.
How to Apply This:
- Many of our clients start by going WADS-free for 1–2 weeks as a reset. During this time, they often notice their energy improves, cravings calm down, and bloating reduces significantly. From there, they reintroduce foods slowly and notice what feels good and what doesn’t.
- Keep added sugar to a minimum by reading labels and choosing natural sources like fruit when you need something sweet.
- Swap wheat for whole grains like quinoa or brown rice.
- Limit alcohol to one or two nights per week, and opt for lower-sugar choices.
- Choose dairy-free alternatives when possible, especially if you notice bloating or skin issues.
- Consider using the 80/20 rule, which means eating nourishing, whole foods 80% of the time, and enjoying treats the other 20% without guilt. This creates balance and sustainability, not perfection and pressure.
“Since joining Trinity I’ve lost around 10 inches and now I’m much more aware of food, I’d never counted a calorie in my life so that was new to me, but I gave it a go and actually I think that’s the biggest thing that I’ve sort of got so far is just that awareness of what I’m putting in my body, how much cups of coffee can eat into your calorie intake.”
– Catherine Muirhead (52), Trinity Client
4. Finding the Right Amount to Eat
One of the biggest myths in weight loss is that eating less equals better results. This mindset can actually work against you, especially once you’re in your 40s and beyond.
When you chronically under-eat (even if it’s accidental), your body perceives it as stress. This raises cortisol levels, which can lead to stubborn fat around the belly, poor sleep, and increased cravings.
Eating too little also slows your metabolism down over time. Your body starts conserving energy, making it even harder to lose weight, even though you’re eating less.
Studies have shown that most women need is not another diet, instead they need a proper structure that fuels their body with the right amount of food for their current age, activity level, and hormones.
At Trinity, we help women calculate a personalised calorie target that’s high enough to keep energy, mood, and metabolism strong, while still being low enough to gently drive fat loss. It’s not a starvation diet—it’s smart, sustainable nutrition tailored to where you are in life.
5. Controlling Hunger with Protein & Fibre
One of the most frustrating parts of weight loss during menopause is constantly feeling hungry, or craving sugar, wine, or starchy carbs.
The root cause? Most meals are missing the key nutrients that control hunger.
We coach our clients to build their meals around three essentials: protein, fibre, and healthy fats, with the right amount of complex carbohydrates to support energy.
- Lean Protein: Protein is your best friend for fat loss over 40. It helps build and maintain lean muscle—which is crucial, as muscle naturally declines with age. More muscle means a faster metabolism, better tone, and improved strength. Protein also slows digestion and keeps you full for hours, which means fewer cravings and better portion control.
- Fibre: Fibre supports digestion, balances blood sugar, and feeds your good gut bacteria. All of this helps reduce cravings, improve energy, and support long-term health. Fibre comes mainly from vegetables, fruits, legumes, and whole grains.
- Healthy Fats: Fats like olive oil, avocado, and nuts are essential for hormone production and help meals feel satisfying. They also slow the absorption of carbohydrates, helping you avoid energy crashes.
- Complex Carbohydrates: These are carbs that haven’t been stripped of their fibre—like oats, brown rice, lentils, and sweet potatoes. They provide long-lasting energy and keep blood sugar steady, especially important if you’re feeling tired, moody, or foggy.
Rather than eliminating carbs (which can backfire and lead to bingeing), we teach how to choose the right carbs and balance them with the other components above.
Here’s an example of a balanced meal:
- Grilled chicken breast (protein)
- Roasted sweet potatoes (complex carb)
- A big side of mixed vegetables like broccoli, carrots, and spinach (fibre)
- A drizzle of olive oil or a few sliced almonds (healthy fat)
When you eat meals like this consistently, you’re not just staying in a calorie deficit—you’re staying satisfied within it. That’s the key to making this work long term. For more meal ideas, take a look here.
“Breaking the sugar habit was hard. Consistent encouragement and re-education from Rebecca and Laura helped me to control what sugar I consume rather than it controlling me. Especially regarding replacing sleep with sugar. I no longer believe myself to be a sugar-holic and I’ve lost 3 dress sizes, so many people have noticed my change in appearance. I have my life back and I’m happy!”
– Hayley Jackson (47), Trinity Client
You Don’t Have to Cook Everything from Scratch
Let’s face it. You’re busy.
Between work, family, and everything else on your plate, the idea of prepping every meal from scratch sounds great in theory—but in practice? It’s just not happening.
The good news is: You don’t need to live in the kitchen to eat well.
One of the things we teach at Trinity is how to build flexible routines that work with real life. That includes using shortcuts and ready-made options that save time without compromising your results.
Things like:
- Buying pre-cooked chicken or prawns from the supermarket
- Using microwaveable wholegrains and frozen vegetables
- Batch cooking once or twice a week and rotating those meals
- Choosing healthier ready meals that still meet your protein and fibre goals
These options make it easier to stick to your plan even when life gets hectic. And when your routine feels doable—not overwhelming—you’re far more likely to stay consistent. That consistency is what gets results.
Final Thoughts: Why Trinity Works When Nothing Else Has
The truth is, most weight loss advice simply doesn’t work for women in midlife.
It’s either based on what worked for younger women with faster metabolisms, or it ignores the massive hormonal shifts happening in menopause.
At Trinity, we do things differently. We’ve built our entire programme around the unique needs of women over 40. From our nutrition targets to our workouts to the way we coach, everything is designed with menopause in mind.
We don’t hand out generic plans or throw you into a group and leave you to it. Instead, we give you 1-1 coaching, personal accountability, and expert guidance to help you lose weight, feel great, and finally take back control of your body.
Our clients don’t just lose weight—they gain energy, confidence, and a plan that works for life. That’s why we have a 97% success rate.
If you’re ready to stop guessing and start seeing real results, we’re here to help.
What You Get with Trinity’s Coaching:
- Personalised nutrition targets that reflect your stage of life
- Simple, flexible meal plans (no counting calories or banning foods)
- Low-Impact Strength Training workouts tailored for women over 40
- 1-1 support from expert coaches who specialise in menopause
- Weekly check-ins and progress tracking
- Access to a private support community of like-minded women
