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Rebuild Muscle and Relieve Aches During Menopause

Did you know that women have a higher fat mass than men for reproductive functions? Once the body goes through menopause, muscle mass and strength deplete due to falling oestrogen levels, which women have less of than men to begin with.

Many women then struggle with menopause and muscle twitches as well as aches and pains due to this and struggle to figure out how to reduce these issues.

This is why building muscle strength as early as possible and then maintaining it throughout menopause and beyond is so important, not to mention having more muscle mass helps burn calories faster and reduces the risk of falls, fractures cardiovascular and breathing problems.

This article will cover muscle and joint pain in menopause and how you can build your muscle mass and muscle strength during menopause.

Jump there now:

• Does Menopause Affect Your Muscles?
• Does Menopause Cause Aching Muscles and Joints?
• How Do You Stop Menopause Body Aches?
• How Can I Rebuild My Muscles During Menopause?
• Supplements to Improve Muscle Gain
• End Note

Does Menopause Affect Your Muscles?

One of the biggest symptoms of menopause is a loss of skeletal muscle mass.

It’s been found that having an oestrogen deficiency alters microRNA signalling in skeletal muscle, which may have flow-on effects that lead to a loss of muscle mass.

During menopause, the body begins to slow down its production of the hormone, oestrogen. Oestrogen is needed for cartilage, or the connective tissues in joints, as well to help replace bone. It is also needed for skeletal muscle mass and strength.

This is why menopause joint and muscle pain is so common, although these symptoms may be related to something different, too.

Nearly 40 per cent of women between 45 and 65 experience joint aches, and this is why oestrogen and muscle mass are such important topics to cover and consider as you go through menopause.

The change in our skeletal muscle can also affect our pelvic floor muscles, further exacerbated due to childbirth or a chronic history of coughing or constipation. This can lead to incontinence during menopause.

Further Reading: All About Menopause

Does Menopause Cause Aching Muscles and Joints?

A little bit more on menopause and muscles:

The loss of oestrogen during menopause can affect joints and the tissues that connect our skeleton, ultimately causing muscle aches, pains and stiffness. This drop in oestrogen can also lead to a rise in cortisol, the body’s stress hormone, which can increase stress, tension and the body’s sensitivity to pain.

Menopause also leads to a fall in progesterone, which can lead to muscle tension and stress.

This is also why during menopause, women are more likely to get osteoarthritis (wear and tear in the joints) and rheumatoid arthritis (an autoimmune disease), where the immune system attacks the cells lining the joints mistakenly, making them swollen and painful.

How Do You Stop Menopause Body Aches?

A common menopausal treatment, after speaking with your doctor, is HRT, or hormone replacement therapy, where they add oestrogen back into the body to help combat muscle deterioration.

Other ways to help with menopause and muscle pain include:

• Weight control: Regular exercise and maintaining a healthy weight can help muscle build up and reduce musculoskeletal pain by relieving stress on the joints.
• Fixing your posture: Pay attention to posture, such as by not staying in the same posture all day at home or work.
• Reducing stress: Reducing stress and improving symptoms of anxiety and depression and help ease inflammation in the body and may help with aches and pains.
• Sleep: Sleep helps muscles recover and eases inflammation.
• Yoga/Pilates: Yoga and Pilates are great exercises to relax the body and improve flexibility, helping ease muscle aches.
• Medications: Painkillers like paracetamol and anti-inflammatory gels and medications like ibugel and ibuprofen may help ease aches and pains.
• Magnesium: Make sure your magnesium levels are adequate as this mineral is needed for muscle function and relaxation, with a magnesium deficiency linked to osteoporosis and inflammation.

A Singaporean study also found that 80 per cent of elderly Singaporeans who are at risk of malnutrition have low muscle mass. This sheds light on the need to ensure you maintain your vitamin and mineral levels and eat a balanced and diverse diet to help improve your muscles.

Further Reading: Can NMN Help With Menopause?

How Can I Rebuild My Muscles During Menopause?

The best way to minimise the impacts of menopause on muscles is by exercising.

Combine resistance training and moderate-impact weight-bearing exercises to help improve and then maintain bone density, muscle mass and strength.

You can do this by using machines at the gym, using the weights at the gym or purchasing some weights to keep at home, by using resistance bands or even by using your body weight. If you’re new to working out, consider doing a few sessions with a personal trainer to help teach you how to use equipment and to learn techniques to safely build muscle as you age.

Make sure to build the intensity of your strength training and weights as your body adapts, too! Also, do full-body exercises that work multiple muscles at once and aim to improve your technique (this is where a personal trainer can help) over improving your weight threshold first.

Some beginner strength training exercises you can do at home include:

• Push-ups
• Step-ups
• Planks
• Floor back extension

The World Health Organisation (WHO) recommends adults complete 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise per week, as well as two to three resistance training sessions, which equates to about 30 minutes of exercise per day.

Try building a menopause exercise plan with your personal trainer to help keep you motivated!

Can You Build Muscle After Menopause? Yes, it’s possible to gain muscle after menopause, the same way that you would at any other point in your life.

Building muscle as you get older has a magnitude of benefits, including:

• Slowing osteoporosis
• Improving joint flexibility
• Improving your balance
• Weight control
• Improving your metabolism
• Reducing arthritis symptoms
• Improving your posture
• Preventing or controlling back pain, arthritis, diabetes and depression
• Improving sleep
• Improving self-confidence

Supplements to Improve Muscle Gain

To support muscle gain during menopause, pairing supplements with resistance training and a balanced diet can be helpful.

First of all, here are some key points for muscle gain:

1. Eat more calories than you burn.
2. Consume more protein than your body breaks down.
3. Follow a challenging exercise routine.

Supplements for menopause muscle pain and that may help in your muscle gain efforts include:

• Creatine: Naturally found in the body, creatine boosts muscle energy and strength. It's especially beneficial for women during menopause due to lower natural creatine stores. It helps increase muscle size and strength and may even improve bone density, mood and sleep.
• Protein Supplements: If you struggle to get enough protein from food, supplements like whey, casein or plant-based proteins (soy, pea) can help. Protein is essential for muscle growth, although in women, this depends on physical activity, and active people should aim for 0.6 to 0.9 grams of protein per pound of body weight.
• Beta-Alanine: This amino acid may reduce fatigue and improve workout performance. While research is mixed, it might help with muscle gain during intense exercise programs.
• HMB (Beta-hydroxy beta-methylbutyrate): Helps reduce muscle breakdown, particularly effective for beginners or those increasing their workout intensity.
• Collagen: Mostly benefits joint health rather than muscle growth. It may be useful for older adults, but it’s less effective in younger, premenopausal women.
• CoQ10: An antioxidant that may aid muscle recovery and reduce inflammation, though research is inconclusive.

End Note

If you’re noticing persistent muscle aches, make sure to see a doctor as they can help you diagnose any conditions you may have. Make sure to speak to your doctor before you add any supplements to your routine, too, to ensure nothing you take interferes with any medical conditions or other medications you may have or take.

You can also try out Xandro Lab’s Magnesium Glycinate 500mg to maintain magnesium levels throughout menopause, which may help prevent osteoporosis and improve inflammation, sleep and insomnia symptoms, mood and stress.

You can also try taking Xandro Lab’s POM-Q10 to experience pomegranate’s benefits in reducing menopausal symptoms!

Stay informed about your body with Xandro’s blogs!