7 ways you're accidentally making midlife weight-loss harder

Menopause is enough of a curveball without accidentally making it harder for yourself. But that's exactly what many women do without even realising. 

You're not doing it on purpose. You're just trying to hold everything together. And yet some of the everyday habits that feel harmless (or even helpful) could be cranking up your symptoms and making it even harder to lose weight as a woman over 40.

If you’re feeling tired but wired, constantly craving sugar, or stuck in a cycle of bloating, mood swings and bad sleep, here are seven sneaky culprits that might be making things worse.

Habits impacting midlife weight-loss

1. Skipping breakfast  

You’re not hungry in the morning. Or you’re trying to “be good” and push through till lunch. Or you’re deep into your 16:8 fasting routine because someone on Instagram said it worked wonders.

But here’s the thing – in midlife, skipping breakfast can backfire. Anything longer than a 14-hour fast might start to increase cortisol, tank your energy, and trigger blood sugar chaos (which then affects your mood, sleep, and cravings later in the day). If you want to fast, it’s far better to bring your evening meal earlier than pushing your breakfast later. 

And if you’re skipping it because you’re busy and frazzled? Same problem. Your body’s already in a stressy state – it doesn’t need another reason to release more cortisol.

You don’t have to have a three-course feast at 7am. But something protein-rich – like eggs, Greek yoghurt with seeds, or a smoothie with nut butter – can go a long way to stabilise things.

2. Not eating enough  

You have probably already worked out that cutting calories hasn’t brought the same success as it once did. You expertly practise the drill: cut the snacks, shrink the portions, “be good”. But eating too little – especially too little protein and healthy fat – is a fast track to feeling rubbish in menopause.

There’s also that persistent myth that if you just eat 500 fewer calories a day – 3500 fewer a week – you’ll lose exactly one pound. Sounds neat, doesn’t it? Shame it’s not true.

This ‘fact’ has been trotted out by health professionals and diet plans for decades, but no one actually knows where it came from. Obesity researcher Zoe Harcombe famously went digging – asking organisations, trawling the literature – and couldn’t find a shred of evidence to back it up.  

Why does it matter? Because it gives women false expectations. You think, “Right, I’ve eaten less, so I should have lost a pound.” And when you haven’t, you blame yourself, eat even less, and end up trapped in a cycle of under-fuelling and frustration.

Not eating enough also keeps your body in a low-grade stress state – and spoiler alert: more cortisol is the last thing you need. Plus, protein is the building block for everything from your muscles to your mood. It's essential for dopamine and serotonin production – the feel-good brain chemicals that tend to nosedive in midlife. And fat? That’s what your hormones are made from.

If your energy crashes mid-morning, or you’re ravenous by 5pm and raiding the snack drawer, chances are you’re not eating enough earlier in the day.

3. Doing too much cardio

You’re being “good” and getting your workouts in. Go you. But if your go-to routine involves high-intensity everything – spin, circuits, fast running – and you’re constantly exhausted, your exercise might be working against you.

In perimenopause and menopause, your body becomes more sensitive to stress – and yes, over-exercising is a stressor. When cortisol’s already high, piling on intense workouts can make symptoms like sleep problems, bloating, and low mood worse.

You don’t have to ditch movement – far from it. But it’s time to train smarter, not harder. Think strength training, walking, Pilates, and maybe (brace yourself) taking a rest day. Now is the time to move beyond exercising to burn through calories. Now you want to be strengthening muscle, building bone, getting some steps in and staying flexible.

4. Using wine as your wind-down strategy

Glass of wine while making dinner? Another to help you sleep? It feels like a treat. A coping mechanism. Something that gets you through.

But alcohol’s doing more damage than you think – especially in menopause. It disrupts your sleep (even if it helps you fall asleep), messes with most people’s blood sugar, and contributes to inflammation and weight gain.

And while it might feel like the only way to take the edge off, it actually upsets your mood long-term – spiking anxiety and affecting your ability to cope. You may not believe me; after all, I’m telling you the opposite of what the multi-million-pound alcohol industry is telling you. They have a vested interest – and boy do they tell a compelling story – that alcohol is glamorous, fun and leads to more happy moments. It doesn’t, and maybe you’re starting – like many midlife women - to doubt how well Uncle Pinot Grigiot is serving you. 

No one’s saying you can’t enjoy a glass now and then. But if it’s your nightly lifeline, it might be time to rethink the habit.

5. Late-night scrolling and calling it self-care

You tell yourself it’s harmless. You just need a bit of time to decompress. You’re not really addicted to your phone, right?

But the blue light from screens suppresses melatonin – the hormone that tells your body it’s time to sleep. Add in the dopamine hit from every scroll, and you’ve got a recipe for restless sleep and a wired brain.

Plus, dopamine is a daytime hormone – it’s meant to motivate you, get you going, help you feel energised. A big dopamine spike at 11pm confuses your body and makes it harder to wind down.

If you need a bedtime ritual, try something genuinely relaxing: reading a book, stretching, a hot bath, or even just five minutes of doing nothing. (Yes, that’s allowed.)

6. Not sleeping enough  

You wake up tired, drag yourself through the day, promise you’ll have an early night – and then it’s suddenly midnight again. You’re wired and overtired. And on it goes.

Poor sleep is a massive menopause symptom driver. It messes with your blood sugar, increases cravings, makes your mood crashy, and messes with appetite-regulating hormones like leptin and ghrelin.

Even one night of bad sleep can throw everything off. And when it becomes the norm, it’s no wonder you feel rubbish.

Sleep needs to be protected like it’s sacred. Think consistent bedtimes, screens off at least an hour before sleep, and magnesium-rich foods like leafy greens, nuts, and seeds. Boring? Maybe. Life-changing? Absolutely.

7. Winging it because you're “too busy”  

Your schedule’s full and you’re doing the best you can but, without a plan – for meals, for rest, for self-care – you’re constantly reacting instead of responding. This is how you end up inhaling a bag of crisps at 4pm, skipping proper meals, working late again, and collapsing into bed with your mind racing.

You don’t need a military-style routine but consider that not-planning is a false economy. Thinking ahead – even just a little bit – can make a huge difference to how experience your life. Plan your meals (even just the rough idea) so you know, not just what the family will eat for the evening meal but what you will have for breakfast and lunch. Block out time to rest. Decide when you’re having an early night and stick to it like it’s a non-negotiable meeting. If it's not in the diary, it's probably not going to to happen, right?

If you want to lose weight in midlife and have a better menopause, the easiest place to start is to focus first on what you can stop doing. I'm not talking about massive life overhauls but small shifts that can make a big difference. You don’t have to get it perfect. Just pick one thing and start there.