Building Muscle During Menopause: A Protein and Exercise Review

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Building muscle during menopause takes a unique stimulus compared to pre-menopause, and it's also unique during peri- and post-menopause. All that coming up in this episode reviewing what do we need for muscle protein synthesis after 40.

I'm Debra Atkinson. You're listening to Flipping 50. I started this podcast over a decade ago to answer questions about fitness in menopause and beyond before you knew to ask them. The goal: to help accelerate your results with science and the practical application of proven protocols while living your best life. There's no more powerful health influencer in the world than a midlife woman. And it's not just about you, but the 3 generations that you influence. My unique 40-year career, including being a university senior lecturer in kinesiology and industry subject matter expert expert and an international speaker to founder of the first and the only exclusively made-for-menopause-and-beyond fitness membership in the world. Every week I interview experts behind the scenes and the science of optimal hormone-balancing fitness and longevity and share answers to our community's questions so you can have the vitality and the energy that you want, need, and deserve.

Look, it's no secret if you're a woman over 40, and maybe it didn't hit you till over 50 or as you approach 60, but at some point you realized what I used to do that work doesn't work anymore. Building muscle during menopause does take a unique stimulus. We're going to talk today about what that is, and it comes from two sources. No surprise, it's protein and it's resistance training. But it's not just eat more protein because more is a moving target and do strength training. Make sure you're doing that. But how? What are the specifics? How, How much? How often? And the other forgotten tool, how do you recover? I'm going to dive into all of that right now. And of course, there's more than that. We have to ask you. So I am, are you trying to lose weight, gain muscle, prevent osteoporosis, reduce or avoid medications? Do you have adrenal fatigue or long haul? Any of those is going to affect what are your number one priority. And you may have checked too many boxes in those questions and said, yes, I'll have that. Yes, yes. And of course we do want it all. And most of us do want to increase our muscle mass and/or improve our body composition. So if you're a woman over 50 or 60, you may have a hard time still wrapping your mind around, I want to gain lean muscle mass, even though you say it, even though intelligently you're like, I can articulate it. Calculate that. I can understand the science and I can see why we want to do that. However, you were also raised with probably 30, 40, or more years of conditioning about wanting to be smaller. I don't want to gain anything, right? I don't want to build lean muscle mass because mass and gaining are two words that we've been conditioned to want to run from. So I just want to acknowledge that For so many of you and me, we have to deal with that and we have to keep reminding ourselves, no, no, this is what I want. It's absolutely what I want. Because ultimately, if you're trying to reduce fat, reduce visceral, the belly fat deep inside those organs, enhance your longevity and your enjoyment of those years that you're here on the planet longer, you do want lean muscle mass. You do want it. So keep echoing that to yourself. In this episode, I'm going to discuss the research on protein and do a little callback to a fairly recent episode I shared about exercise volume, sharing about what it is we do need to do differently pre-, peri-, and post-menopause, and how sadly, in a recent masterclass I, I've also shared, if you're listening in real time, at the end in the fall of 2024, before, I shared the number of sets required for stimulus for women in post-menopause is much higher than it is for younger women or those even in perimenopause. I'm going to talk about that a little bit. We'll tap also though into recovery. So when we talk protein here, whether it's a post I'm posting on Instagram or it's a podcast, inevitably somebody has an emotional response to it. If you're a vegan, you're vegetarian, you're plant-based, let's just agree, we may disagree. And here's the real ticket for you or for me and for us to put down the weapons. Okay? If it's working for you, you have your ideal body composition, you have strength, you have energy, you have libido, your health is working, your doing great in terms of insulin response. Your insulin sensitivity is great. Yes, in your blood work and cholesterol levels and all of those pieces. But it is a combination of all things. And there may be a temporary priority. This is what I need to focus on. And yet almost all researchers who do advocate plant will say that at 60 or 65, there is a line there. None of us knows when we cross it. An increased need for animal protein does exist. And, you know, I push back on that just a little bit and say, why do we wait until we need that? Because we've already lost it and now we're chasing it. Why not lay down the foundation sooner and earlier? And yes, look at our inflammation look at the CRP, the A1C, look at our— how's our liver and how our kidney functions doing, you know, look at all of the pieces and look at triglycerides and cholesterol. By the way, just got another test back. I test pretty frequently because I'm testing all the things I'm doing and sharing with you right here openly. My triglycerides are in a very healthy range. The challenge for me is my LDL is not at a great range. My HDL is in a great range, so my total is okay because the ratio is okay. How do we improve LDL? You can't do it with exercise. Fiber is one of the best ways to do so. And part of LDL may be heredity. What we have to remember, you and I, if that's true, it's thanks, Mom. But what about the other 80 to 90% that is epigenetics, our lifestyle habits? What can we do there? So let's dive in. That was a side route. Let's go back on track. Protein consumption recommendations. So here we go. Not talking about animal or plant protein. I'm just going to give you the recommendations. All right. We'll tie to some other episodes that may be of interest to you. Protein consumption recommendations. Any time we talk about this, it frequently meets significant pushback, including this. The fact that the RDAs, recommended daily allowances, is still 0.8 grams per kilogram of body weight a day, which, just to give you some relevance, if you are a 150-pound woman, that would be around 55 grams of protein. Yeah, right. So for some of us, that's really scaring us because it's really low. It is factual that that is still the recommendation. At least that is the low end of the range. So let me explain how that range was derived. And you can look this up as easily as me, but I'm handing it to you right here or whispering it in your ear if you're out on a walk. The reason for that recommendation is important for us to understand and come back to. That's the amount that science has determined we need to maintain what's called nitrogen balance. That prevents deficiencies in sedentary women. Now, first of all, that was a mouthful. Prevent deficiency. So it's not necessarily helping you optimize, right? It's preventing deficiency. It's kind of like preventing disease. What do we have to have in order to prevent disease? But I don't know about you. I don't wanna just be on the other side of the fence. I wanna be like far into the yard over here. But also, are you a sedentary woman? And I would say for the most of you, hello, if you are, welcome. But most of you are trying to maintain some activity level. You're trying to be more active. You're doing some things. You're trying to figure out what is the quota, what is the dose of exercise that I need and the activity level that I need. So this doesn't pertain to you as much. But that nitrogen balance, and enough to prevent deficiency in sedentary women, is not enough to help you build muscle. It's not enough to help you be stronger. The older you and I are, we have more increased anabolic resistance. That is the harder it is for us to maintain our muscle, but also to gain it even harder. We need more stimulus for muscle protein synthesis. That is the thing. If we trigger muscle protein synthesis, we're going to be able to gain lean muscle mass. So the question is, how do we do that? Protein is one way. Resistance training is the other. More emerging research indicates that this amount, that 0.8 grams per kilogram, may no longer be an appropriate recommendation. Meaning not just may not be an appropriate recommendation for you if you're 40 or 50 or you're 60, but it may not be appropriate for anyone who actually wants to thrive. So that statement that, that amount may no longer be appropriate recommendation was the conclusion of a 2020 systematic review, a meta-analysis, meaning it looked at a lot of studies, collective data addressing the protein needs of people who are exercising and/or trying to lose weight. So that's probably you. Everybody listening is one or the other. You may be trying to lose weight. Maybe you're not exercising, but know you need to start. Maybe you are exercising in any way, shape, or form., it may not meet your needs. Researchers in this 2020 study concluded, quote unquote, the RDA for protein of 0.8 grams per kilogram per day may no longer be an appropriate recommendation. So in addition, I want to throw out this as a, you know, there is more emerging research that is confirming this is the case. This is absolutely the case. In an interview with Bill Phillips, PhD, in May of 2024, it went live in the What, When, and Why to Exercise for Women 40 and Over 2.0. It was the summit I hosted. He shared his primary research focus shifting to that of midlife women, but something he already knew. He could already say that the single simplest way to support fat loss and optimize body composition would be, okay, don't change your calories at all. Forget that you're hearing I need a calorie deficit. Forget you're also hearing I need a calorie surplus. What if you don't change them at all, but you increase the amount of those calories coming from protein? If you did that, That is the easiest way to support fat loss and optimize body composition. Easy peasy. And a little less, I think, threatening for some of us who get nervous when we add calories or think surplus. Are you kidding me? I'm trying to lose weight. And yet, seriously, I've seen that over and over. Women who've been in a deficit for years years actually have to do that in order to boost their metabolism again. So in another meta-analysis— and remember what that stands for, that means the researchers didn't actually conduct primary research, what they did is looked at this study and that study and this study and this experiment, pulled them all together, so that's a lot of subjects over time— it concluded that adults should be taking nearly twice that amount. So twice the 0.8, meaning 1.5 grams per kilogram of body weight, if they want to maintain and/or augment muscle strength along with resistance training. So note, I would add this for women who are smaller in stature, in size, you're petite, you're— you've always been on the lower weight scale and maybe skinny fat, maybe you're small and still carry— it's puffy, you're feeling that way. But if you are small and you carry very little reserves, say you get sick and you lose weight and now you're, you know, you're down 3 to 5 pounds, much of that potentially could be related to muscle and strength. It almost always comes out that way. You wanna be aware that an increase in protein need, even if you're not highly active or trying to lose weight, is in your best interest for longevity, for aging really well. Ultimately, we want to avoid muscle loss, strength loss, and power loss that reduces your desire to be active. Your energy level goes down, and that increases your risk of falls, will deteriorate your strength, your power, your balance, your agility, your reaction skills, and increases your risk of disease over time. So no matter whether you're trying to lose weight or you're trying to avoid getting frail and fragile, We all need to focus on our protein needs for active women specifically. And again, I think that's probably you if you're listening to this right now, whether you're competing, you're active athletically, or you're just intentionally exercising 3 or more times a week for the purpose of achieving fitness or reduce fatness. The 2023 International Society of Sports Nutrition position stand recommends that at least that amount, 1.5 grams per kilogram of body weight, and maybe even more. With this statement, daily protein intake should fall within the mid to upper ranges of current sports nutrition guidelines, which are 1.4 to 2.2 grams per kilogram per day for women at all stages of menstrual function. So it doesn't matter if you're premenopause, your period, or your post. Or you are a contraceptive user, with protein doses evenly distributed 3 or 4 hours throughout the day. So as you have a meal, you have protein, you elevate that muscle protein synthesis. And in your mind's eye, if you can see going uphill on a bicycle, you have stimulated it. You're up here at the top, and it will gradually fall over time. You're going to need more to bring it back up if you have a really big bolus or dose, if you will, of protein in a meal, you may then need a smaller amount. So you have a really big high protein breakfast, and please do, because it's really great for your blood sugar for the day. And now your second meal, we know this, that concurrent meals, the meal after the one where you did really well, you will make better choices mentally, you will make better choices and have fewer cravings. So you're in much more control than if you starve yourself or fast potentially. So at that next meal, maybe you don't need quite as high amount because you just are coming down a little bit. We need a little bit more bump and you're there. So there are a lot of positive ways to do this muscle protein synthesis and get a dose throughout the day. This research isn't new. I've shared this before and this was again 2023. So last year I think it was early fall, late summer, and Dr. Stacy Stimps, who many of you are familiar with, was among these experts doing this analysis and changing the position stand so that it was more inclusive of women's needs in sports, not, not simply all genders and all ages, but literally taking into account where are we with hormonal stimulus and or the need for something else to take over. So there is something to note. And whenever there's a range given, so I read this range to you, 1.4 to 2.2. You know, there's always a problem with a range. So let's say I'm hiring somebody for a job and we say that the job is offered and there is a range of $15 to $25 an hour. Well, the applicant is thinking $25. I'm thinking $15, right? I mean, isn't that the way, way it would be ideal for all of us? So a range gets kind of sticky. You may be thinking, oh, if I hit at least 1.4, at least I'm good and I get enough. But still, depending on where you are, I want you to realize that, you know, let's say you're playing football or watching a football game. It's not like you get the same points if you land on the 10-yard line versus when you cross the goal line. The ballpark is not necessarily good enough if you don't reach a threshold.. And whether we're referring to exercise, to muscle fatigue or breathlessness, or to protein intake that's dosed regularly throughout the day, you may be falling just short enough not to see the results that you want or think you deserve. So for women premenopause, it requires less stimulus for— than for women in postmenopause. Because that woman premenopause has estrogen, she has higher levels of estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone, all in some way contributing to the support of the muscle, but estrogen being the number one for women. So postmenopausal women with the most hormonal decline and the most advanced age contributing to anabolic resistance. Definition of anabolic resistance is that inability to gain lean muscle. I've heard someone say recently that happens to older women, and I'm like, no, it started in your 30s. You just didn't notice it if you weren't lifting heavy weights, if you weren't eating high protein, if you were dieting, depriving yourself, trying to eat less or go low fat. And, you know, all the things— exercising cardio but not doing the other things. It, it definitely started in your 30s. But it's not too late. So that said, when it's recommended that there are at least 2 total body resistance training sessions a week, that's the minimum. It's the minimum stimulus for lean muscle. That recommendation, that minimum, though, may best serve you if you are a woman in perimenopause going through a real roller coaster. So you're really experiencing fatigue or night sweats or hot flashes or things that are making your stress level and your perception of it, the negative effects of stress get worse. It also may be women who could be in perimenopause, but with adrenal fatigue or long haul, and that could be a 20-something, it could be a 70-something. Those who are time restricted or time constricted, you don't have enough time the way it is, twice weekly may make it mentally for you. I can do that. Whereas somebody says you need 4 days a week, or I spent 5 days a week at the gym. Sometimes some of us are like, I'm out. You know, I could never do that. So it's not even worth my time. Potentially, this is where we go. Not saying this is totally true, but we say, well, I can't possibly do 4 or 5 times a week, so I'm not going to do any. That's also probably not a great marriage. You know, we want to encourage you to get started, to start anywhere, to develop a habit. Something is better than nothing. We know this from years and decades of science that coming off the couch to get even low to moderately active increases your longevity, increases your, your energy levels, decreases your risk of diseases. And, you know, it's important to realize that, yes, this is true. However, we're able right now to get much more specific than we ever were. In how do we help postmenopausal women, how do we help perimenopausal women maintain their muscle, decrease or avoid body fat specifically deposited around the midsection, that visceral fat that is deadly. And the, the fourth reason that the minimum might be viable is those who have a requirement for a longer recovery period. Now, it is true that the more fit you are, you will probably have a shorter recovery time required than when you're just beginning and you're, you're just starting. You'll need a little longer recovery then. However, is unique no matter what age, what gender, even Olympic athletes. They've mentioned this many times, so bear with me if you've heard it, but Olympic athletes, let's say the gymnasts, you know, at the 2024 Olympics, you know, they may all practice for hours in the gym. They all may eat fairly similar, rest fairly similar, but some of them may require more recovery before they are ready to come back into the gym and do another really hard workout. And the variation is so great that a study that I talked about, I stumbled across and I can't quote the journal, probably 10 or 12 years ago, showed that taking teammates of similar fitness status and putting them through a rigorous workout, the recovery was so different. And this is almost unbelievable, anywhere from 1 day to 180 days. It's like half a year, right? Because the damage was greater in certain people. You know, our, our enzymes, our recovery ability is different no matter who you are. It is not always and only an indication of your fitness level and your conditioning level. So it's important to realize that if you're somebody who takes the longer recovery period and you get it in addition to the stimulus that you need,, you will have a higher fitness level doing that than exercising more frequently. That is a hard cookie to swallow. And so I'm going to say it again. If you are somebody who does require uniquely a slightly longer, greater recovery period and you get it in addition to the workouts that give you adequate stimulus, your fitness level will increase compared to if you simply did workouts on the same schedule as someone who did not require as much recovery as you. And over time, if we looked at like a specific week or a specific month, that might mean you do a couple fewer workouts in order to still be of higher fitness level. And it's an interesting perspective because what have we always thought, at least here in the United States, More is better. The more frequently I get hard workouts, the better I will be. It is not necessarily true. So use those smart scales, use your heart rate variability numbers, look at your scores. Are you as ready for that workout as you should or could be? Is it optimal for you? So I went for a walk yesterday. At the beginning of that, I saw my score was zero. Now I have seen on that thing +6. So I know I'm not— this is not a day when I should do a really hard or intense workout. So it was just a walk. It was an hour walk. And, you know, depending on who you are, you're a beginner, an hour walk could throw you under the bus on a recovery day. It wouldn't be for you. But for somebody used to lifting heavy, doing high-intensity interval training and having a history as an endurance athlete, you know, going for an hour walk is a recovery day. So you've got to all be relative to you within the workouts that you do those 2 times a week or even more. There has to be adequate volume achieved with the number of muscle groups that you're taxing, major groups, not the baby ones, the number of sets that you do and the weight that you're doing so that you're achieving muscular fatigue. And someone asked me, very recently, how many repetitions did you do? And what I said in answer was, it's none of your business, but for you it would depend, because I'm currently doing a lot of 5 sets of 5 repetitions to focus on bone density. Should I potentially some days do 6 to 8? Sets. Yes, you know, and I had recently done that, but my time doesn't permit me to do that a lot. And my disdain, you know, my feelings of I don't want to go because it's such a time investment and an energy investment that I would become more reluctant to do it because I run a business with two arms. We, we work with fitness and health professionals, training them how to be menopause fitness specialists. We have a very busy and active and thriving community within our customers who are themselves wanting to improve their fitness or fatness or body composition and longevity. I'm busy. And so I don't have that time, and many of you are in the same boat. If it got too, too big, too much, we would potentially be more likely to not do, and that's not a good place. You've gotta find that sweet spot for yourself. So twice weekly may be appropriate for you if you're in menopause, perimenopause, struggling with adrenal fatigue, long haul, you're time constricted, or you have a need for a longer recovery period. But for postmenopausal women, you're no longer in perimenopause. Ideally, adrenal fatigue is no longer a thing. It still could be, by the way., but you may also then be retired, have a little bit more time, and unless other conditions exist for you, the need for stimulus is greater post-menopause. So if the range, for instance, for high-intensity interval training is 2 to 4 times per week, post-menopausal women wanna aim for 4, not necessarily starting out, by the way, but if 2 times weekly is not enough to stimulate lean muscle or improve body composition, assuming there's adequate protein consumption, right? And assuming your sleep and your stress are in a positive state. Postmenopausal women may need to increase the volume of sets and/or days per week of resistance training. The biggest obstacle to exercise for almost everyone is time. For women in midlife or menopause, the second obstacle with time is recovery. It's not the time invested in the exercise, but it's are you giving yourself time for recovery. So an aging muscle needs more stimulus to overload it. However, it also needs greater recovery. We're not as resilient— that muscle, the ligaments, the tendons, connective tissue— is not as resilient as when we were young. Even if we're taking collagen, we're doing peptides, we're taking in the protein, we're doing a longer warm-up and cool-down and taking care of ourselves in that way, we still are micro-tearing every time we exercise, and we need the recovery in order to overcome it. Recovery includes time between sessions, additional stress load— is that too much? You know, if you've got lots of emotional stress, potentially your exercise or the recovery needs change as well. And nutrition needs also have to be met, as well as your sleep. For recovery. So what does high protein look like? So let's do this. So if you're walking, you don't have to do math. If you're an active 150-pound postmenopausal woman who wants to improve lean muscle, decrease fat, to reach the upper range of the protein, that would hit 2.2 grams per kilogram of body weight. What does that look like? Well, it comes out to 150 grams per protein or protein for you. So you can see where the recommendation is about 1 gram protein per pound of body weight. The math just will work out that way no matter who you are. So if you are— you weigh 130 pounds, you weigh 180 pounds, that's about where it's going to land you. That could look like 50 grams of protein at 3 meals, could look like 35 to 40 grams of protein, you know, a little higher, a little lower at others, 4 meals a day. And the bump, the, the line tends to be between 30 and 35 grams of protein. I like to suggest for people get 35 because often we will fall just a little bit short. And so you're still there and you're hitting that 30. But if we say 30 and you're falling short, now you're at 25. 5. That may not be enough stimulus in terms of the muscle protein that we need. So in regard to strength training, what does that look like? Those 15-minute weight training sessions are probably not gonna reach adequate volume in a session, adequate number of sets. The only way that might happen is if you're doing just one muscle group a day. So to achieve 5 sets or even 6 to 8, if you said, okay, I'm going to, I'm going to do that, I'm going to try that for a short period of time, or maybe one workout a week, you go a little higher in volume with rest between. So when you're doing that many sets, it's going to take some rest that puts you at a need for about 15 to 20 minutes minimum. That's not even including a warmup and a cooldown. And when we're taxing the muscles in a greater way, we need warm-up and cool-down. So it's really important. That's a single muscle group that we're talking about. And that's an important distinction that, you know, so many of us in our audience want short workouts. Could you create some 20 or 30-minute workouts? Yes, I could. But then what's going to happen 3 to 6 months later is you're going to say, I'm doing it, but I'm not seeing any results. I'm going to say, I know, You can't— we're not getting enough volume. And if you're postmenopausal anyway, so perimenopausal, premenopause, that may serve you okay. The short sessions can help you get started and establish a foundation and a habit. And if you're starting learning good form, that actually may be a good plan for you. Even 30-minute sessions, a little bit longer, can be great for an occasional consistency workout. And I will often do that. I've got to fit it in. I can do, you know, 3 exercises, major muscle groups, compound exercises, and do 4 or maybe 5 sets if I can get that in. I will do that all the time. Twice last week I had to do that. I was at a meditation retreat. We start early, we go late. There was a little delay before they would let us get into the buffet line at lunch. And I'm like, great. Spa gym is right here. I will be right back. I went in and did 15 to 20 minutes, came back, still had time for lunch. It was perfect. But that's what I reserve those kinds of things for. It's not my daily activity. So look at your body composition. Is it changing favorably? Look at your strength. Is it changing favorably? So even a 30-minute session, notice how quickly that evaporates if you include an adequate warmup and a cool down. It's now, you know, 20 minutes at best, 15 potentially. But our young adults, I will say this, and I hate to throw anybody under the bus, they can be trained, they can be educated, they can be smart, school smart. And yet 4-year degrees and basic certifications still do not include this information about building muscle in menopause. In perimenopause and postmenopause and what's the difference. And taking into account, is somebody already struggling with adrenal fatigue? Do you have special conditions? Do you have diverse needs with arthritis or osteoporosis at the same time? They're not getting enough of this. We're at a time right now witnessing OB-GYNs and orthopedic physicians admit they've never received training about women in menopause or the influence of hormones and exercise to even be able to advise them on what to do. Advisor training from a 20 or 30 or 40-something woman showing you what's working for her may or may not work for the goal that you have in the hormone status that you are at. Someone trained solely in nutrition or clinical recommendations for nutrition may not necessarily be up to date on contemporary needs of older women and their hormonal status. We do have to advocate for ourselves. We need to be asking, how recent is this research? Is this based on women and the difference in the nuance about me and where I'm at right now? So it's coming. We're— it's— we're coming into it because we're demanding it, but it's not here yet. So keep advocating for yourself. To determine your protein and your exercise needs, consider this: your activity level and your goals, your highest goals, your priorities, your current hormone status. And that may or may not be a lab test, you know, or if you talk to someone like one of our Flipping 50 Menopause Fitness Specialists or myself, we can help you know where you're at and what what is going on, you want to take into consideration what you've been doing and the data you've gotten back from that. So whatever your status is now, the habits you've had in these last 3 months to 3 weeks have, have resulted here. 2.2 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight for active or for postmenopausal women. Volume of exercise from sets. It comes from sets sets of major muscle groups will increase with age. So if you have had that 3 sets of 10 stuck in your head, or 3 sets of anything, it's time to increase to 4, maybe to 5, then to 6. And this is over time, this is over weeks and months in order to get you there safely. Watch for master classes, and in upcoming podcasts I'll share how to start increasing your protein. What does that look like, and how to plan a day of protein and condition it for support of optimal muscle protein synthesis and blood sugar control. And I really will welcome your questions, so I would love to have any questions that you've got about protein needs. And really, the conversation I think that we need to have is not about how much protein do you have at lunch and what does that look like and what's a recipe. It is more about what resistance do you have to that. I hear these words frequently. It's so hard to get in all the protein. But often when we unpack that, the hard is between our ears. It's not what's in the refrigerator or what's on the menu to order or what to eat. It is, I can't get my mind around that eating more is actually going to help me achieve the goal that I've thought I've always wanted. So unpack that for yourself. And I'd love you to share the discussion, whether you're seeing this shared in a post on Instagram or on Facebook, or you're responding to an email where I'm sharing this out. What is your real resistance? Is it, you know, the wrapping your mind around it and eating more? And, you know, if you're plant-based, you know, we didn't even touch on the difference between the essential amino acid amount amounts in animal versus plant protein. We didn't go there, but the realization is very clear among those who are advocates of plant-based eating for men and women who are younger, but clear that the distinction is that at least at age 65, definitely, but probably that starts earlier, especially the less active, the less weight training you've done, and the lower your proteins have been prior to this, the need for animal protein goes up considerably. So I hope this was helpful. For those of you who are Prove It to Me girls, I got you. We've got some science, namely science about the protein and the recommendations, and these have been shared before, but we'll put them in this one as well. We'll link to other episodes where I shared a little bit about the volume and the volume requirements, and that was a callback to earlier masterclasses. From this fall. So if you got in on the masterclass, great. If you're missing those, we do one every month. So look for it on the site. We generally have a banner across the top. You'll read it. You are invited. Call this your personal invitation. What are you waiting for?

Let's start Flipping 50 today. Thank you for listening. To listen to a decade of episodes and to get the show notes, visit flipping50.com where you'll be able to find all the previous episodes. And I made it super easy to make the most of your listening time and get exactly what you want to listen to as top priority by getting the top 10 episodes in the areas you most care about, like how much protein do you need, weight loss, and other 3 ultra-important topics we've identified as our community's top 5. There's no more powerful health influencer in the world than you, midlife women.

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Do you have a question for a podcast? A question you'd love to ask, or maybe a story you want to tell? Did you know we have a special group just for podcast question roundups and the answers? My community coaches and I provide answers daily inside of this group, but it's also where I go when I occasionally say, okay, open call for podcast questions, or tell your story. Would you like to be a guest. So if you're looking for a community of women who are also interested in optimizing their health, strengthening their mindset, and looking forward to every new year, join the Flipping 50 Insiders group.

That's Flipping 50 Insiders on Facebook.