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“Women are not small men.”

Menopause is having its moment. The world is finally dusting out the carpets of which this mountain of a topic was swept under. Femtech solutions abound and the exercise science community is realizing that females need their own datasets. Shocking.

Some men are also refreshingly waking up to the notion that they need to become aware of this topic rather than archaically compartmentalizing it as “women’s issues.” At least if they want the respect of the women in their lives (and learn strategies for household harmony!).

With more understanding of this life stage (from peri-to-post, mid-40s to mid 50s) what is being revealed is a hidden potential to be harnessed.

Take a 5 minute break….

INSIGHT (what we need)

Not have to be a dreaded day – but a powerful season of change.  

We had a social revolution the last time women gained independence over their menstrual and reproductive cycles. There’s another one around the corner as women gain control of transitioning out of their reproductive years. Cycle and mood tracking apps, targeted therapies and symptom alleviators are not only helping women feel a sense of normalcy, but also optimizing performance during this transitional period of life. And it’s only going to be better. 🙌

Over the past 5 years alone, we’ve had a slew of celebrities and high-profile women starstruck us in reality by opening up about their vulnerable experiences with this transformational age. More visibility, education, and funding is going to explode this sector in the coming years as populations of aging women step into this phase of life with a sense of real empowerment. 

Female-focused innovation is shifting scientific research.
Alongside the universal boon in adjusting behavior according to our physiology, big players like Oura, Whoop, and Apple will eventually get on board with the notion that more than 50% of their users require more nuanced data. As they catch up, femtech innovations will be pairing with them to make training, recovery and fueling easier for women as her physiology changes.

Educational sites like Gennev offers assessments and resources to equip women with care knowledge and Rosy helps her understand shifts in her libido and sexual responses. Then there are the symptom management devices that offer a plethora of support for those signature symptoms like hot flashes, night sweats, sleeplessness and consequential moods. Everything from nutritional supplements, and mood enhancers, to cooling mattresses and pelvic floor strengtheners: VC’s are finally clamoring onto this long-overdue opportunity. Market projections look to reach $24.4 billion by 2030 (data by Grand View Research) from about $18 billion today. 

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Leaders in society during her non-reproductive years.
Though I love a good innovation – its important not to get ahead of ourselves and forget to see the forest from the trees: Why did humans, one of a few species, evolve with a long post-menopausal life?

Today’s prevailing “Grandmother Hypothesis” comes from observing one of the other mammals that also have nonproductive females in their society: killer whales. With the wisdom of years, they guide their pod to the best salmon. Neither frail nor apprehensive, they are leaders of their communities by serving as food producers, caring for young, and keeping bullish males in check. So this theory suggests that the evolutionary advantage of having older, non-reproductive females is to increase the survival – and success – of the species. This extended period of life after reproduction allows for knowledge transmission, social bonding, and support within family groups. 

Feeling fully embodied in her power.
What might that mean nowadays, with women having fewer (or no) children with more resources? Perhaps that surplus energy which was used in the past to help families survive can now be used in other ways.

Could the common ‘shutting down’ be more of a reckoning of one’s lack of purpose and harnessed as a stage of opening up – and roaring.  🦁

I am not downplaying the physiological angst that comes with this transition. Only to acknowledge we need to take a wider scope on the inherent gifts of this stage of life rather than getting caught up in symptom management. If we zoom backwards, the male-dominated medical community relegated non-reproductive women essentially as castrates. Or worse, crazy. Fertility became the beacon of femininity. This is changing – but we have a lot of undoing when it comes to the cultural tropes that accompanied a long history of casting aside older women and her under researched ails.

If we zoom forwards with new knowledge, what is opening up is a window of seeing these prime female years as a transition from child-bearing to leader-birthing. Part of that transition will be in leveraging her physiology so she can say with energy-backed honesty: “I am woman, hear me roar”. 

INSPIRATION (what we want)

Women Are Not Small Men: performance-focused programs teaching women how to work with their unique physiology at different life stages, shift the destructive narrative of menopause, and elevate women in research, science and sport. 
(by Dr. Stacy Sims)

Core Principles:

• Perimenopausal years leading up to menopause require different strategies.

• Estrogen (essentially women’s testosterone) declines so we manage stressors differently.

• Periods can be ergogenic aids (performance enhancers) rather than hindrances.

• External stressors need to create the adaptations that previous hormone levels used to signal for any change. 

• Women need even more periodized training (synced to cycles) on top of progression.

Below are some actionable strategies for perimenopausal women extracted from Dr. Stacy Sims’ programs. Dive deeper into the science-behind here. 

Lift Heavy Shit, No Zone 2: compound strength training (3-5 rep range with muscle under longer tension with decentric load) adding ancillary plyometrics to burn out muscle and build balance with power – 4x per week to shift body composition. Get rid of any Zone 2 training as that has the opposite effect in women by increasing cortisol and having limited mitochondrial adaptation. 

Sprint Intervals, Slow Shuffles: post-strength sets go full gas 20-30 sec high intensity intervals with full 120 sec recovery. Stop speed walking and invoke the parasympathetic response with 100% nasal breathing with frequent strolls, especially before meals to shift into rest & digest. 

Less Fasting, Pre-Fuel: no benefits for females to train fasted because she’s adapted to clear blood glucose faster and is naturally prone to more systemic inflammation. Pre-fuel workouts to prevent muscle catabolism and rely mostly on exercise for cellular autophagy. Fasting windows limited to day-time restricted eating (according to circadian rhythm) and calorie restriction (instead of strict intermittent fasting windows).

More Protein, Smart Caffeine: women need 1.5-2g of protein per kg (ideally 40 grams of protein per meal) being more anabolically resistant and losing muscle mass quickly leading up to menopause. Pre-and-post workout fuel within 20-30 minutes if possible to grow beyond maintenance. Caffeine spikes cortisol and hinders nutrient absorption – so use around meals to prevent excess stressors that affect energy to exercise.

Cycle-Dependent Activity: Highest intensity (strength & cardio) mid follicular phase (2 weeks), Technique & Recovery focus around bleed phase (1 week), build intensity minus cardio in luteal phase leading up to bleed (1 week). Staying consistent across all 4 weeks would be counterproductive to gains due to excess stress on the system.

Ditch Wearables (for now): wearables are not picking up female hormones cycles and therefore, often give false readings. All the algorithms were written by men and provided by men. They don’t take into account cycle phases to give accurate readings (Ie. progesterone increasing to stimulate sympathetic drive can cause HRV to be all over the place).

INNOVATION (what we wish for)

Mazan Lab: an adaptive training program dedicated to the science and culture of building powerful women through menopausal years. 

Women sensing first signs of perimenopause join this society-and-science-forward initiative to train for the ~10 years as her body goes through transition. With the goal of “developing her power” (and redefining society’s relationship from conquest-to-compassion) this community of practice works on a woman’s physical, mental and spiritual reshaping while offering her data securely and anonymously to the evolving scientific literature.  

• Membership includes secured individual diagnostics, adaptive training prescriptions, personalized coaching, and community circles. 

• Joining as a symbol of one’s commitment to personal growth, social contribution, and the advancement of female flourishing science. 

• Designed with a whole-human approach to examine a woman’s daily choices, responses to changes, and relationship to “power.”

• Each member’s pathway is designed around her vision of her most powerful version of self in society – at any scope and scale. Whether that is being an awesome godmother or disrupting in industry. 

• Performance programs based on the latest research in the evolving field of female exercise science to build the strongest body and mind she has ever had. 

• Top advisors in science and spirituality sit on the board and host monthly moon-side chats with the community. 

• Members are in the driver’s seat with ability to pause her programs at any time and have full control of her choices. 

• Member-owned and funded by a consortium of the top wearable tech firms who purchase anonymous data on female performance metrics.