Maximizing Hormones, Physique & Running Through Perimenopause

Most symptoms we're dealing with as active women and runners aren’t random at all, but are instead clues our body is trying to give us.
In this episode, Louise, a multi-award-winning women's integrative health practitioner, shares three powerful lessons from her own health journey and client experiences that every woman should know, especially during perimenopause. 
She explains how hormone shifts can impact everything from medical testing accuracy to inflammation, fat loss resistance, stress sensitivity, and even unexpected symptoms like canker sores. One key insight is the importance of timing medical screenings, such as breast MRIs, with your menstrual cycle to improve accuracy. Another is the complex relationship between estrogen, histamine, and hormone replacement therapy, and how individual genetics can influence reactions.
Louise also highlights how stress, calorie restriction, and hormonal fluctuations can trigger symptoms that seem unrelated, and offers practical strategies to manage acute issues while still addressing root causes like gut health and hormone balance.
This episode is a reminder that women’s health is highly individualized. 
Understanding your unique physiology, tracking patterns, and using targeted strategies can help you feel more in control, improve performance, and support long-term health through every stage of life.
Explore my "All About Gut Health" and other masterclasses here: https://www.breakingthroughwellness.com/store 
Link to my FullScript where you can see curated best supplement picks and save 20%: https://us.fullscript.com/welcome/breakingthroughwellness/store-start 
Learn and level up with my free nutrition guide and award-winning Badass Breakthrough Academy to thrive through perimenopause with less stress: https://www.breakingthroughwellness.com/
Take advantage of our podcast listener discount and save 20% off all of Kion’s science-backed clean products. Code "LOUISE" saves on all future orders: : https://www.getkion.com/pages/maximizing 
Episode Highlights:
(0:00) Intro
(3:05) Three important women’s health lessons
(6:15) Missed eligibility for early breast screening
(9:46) Hormones affecting MRI and mammogram accuracy
(13:09) Best timing for breast imaging in cycle
(15:10) Hormone optimization and HRT considerations
(19:01) Estrogen patch reaction case study
(21:58) Estrogen, histamine, and mast cell connection
(27:14) Managing histamine overload and recovery
(35:24) Stress sensitivity during perimenopause explained
(40:00) Hormones, stress, and canker sore triggers
(42:49) Gut health and autoimmune connections
(46:39) L-lysine for acute outbreak management
(51:08) Symptom relief vs root cause approach
(52:19) Upcoming resources and listener updates
(54:15) Outro

Tune in weekly to "Maximizing Hormones, Physique, and Running Through Perimenopause" for our simple female-specific science-based revolution. Let's unlock our best with less stress!

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Often, the reason we feel tired, stuck, or frustrated in our training, fitness, and health as active women and runners has nothing to do with willpower and everything to do with under-fueling relative to our female body's energy and support needs.
In this powerful conversation, host Louise Valentine, one of the world's leading exercise physiologists and women's integrative health practitioners specializing in active women and recreational runners, sits down with Dr. Megan Hellner to unpack how active women, especially runners over 35, unknowingly fall into Relative Energy Deficiency in Sport (RED-S) and disordered eating patterns. They explain why always eating “clean” or following strict food rules that eliminate nourishing foods can disrupt hormones, damage health, and limit performance.
You will learn how fear of carbs, diet culture, misleading marketing, and social media trends quietly drain our energy and resilience. Dr. Hellner shares why RED-S can affect women of all body sizes, how to recognize early warning signs, and when mental health support matters. Together, they emphasize returning to simple, evidence-based fueling, honoring food preferences to keep a sense of joy and balance in life, and building flexibility around eating.
This episode reminds you that food is not the enemy. When you fuel well and in alignment with your female body's needs, it recovers better, performs stronger, and supports long-term vibrant health. If you want to run, train, and live with confidence through perimenopause and beyond, this conversation offers clarity, relief, and practical direction.
Find a Practical Early Risk RED-S Screening Checklist here: https://www.breakingthroughwellness.com/blog/a-practical-red-s-early-risk-self-screen-checklist 
Learn more about Dr. Megan & colleagues virtual eating disorder clinic: www.AthleatMD.com
Dr. Megan Hellner’s Email: [email protected] 
Learn & level up with my free nutrition guide and award-winning Badass Breakthrough Academy to thrive through perimenopause with less stress: https://www.breakingthroughwellness.com/
 Link to our FullScript where you can see curated best supplement picks & save 20%: https://us.fullscript.com/welcome/breakingthroughwellness/store-start 
Take advantage of our podcast listener discount and save 20% off all of Kion’s science-backed clean products. Code "LOUISE" saves on all future orders: https://www.getkion.com/pages/maximizing 
Episode Highlights:
(0:00) Intro
(3:07) Introducing Dr. Megan Hellner and AthleatMD
(8:17) Longevity over chasing PRs
(10:08) Why athletes struggle with food relationships
(18:17) Female-specific research and hormone changes
(21:13) Fear of carbs and missing the basics
(25:02) What RED-S really means
(27:46) Why endurance athletes are most at risk
(29:04) RED-S affects all body types
(32:23) RED-S vs. eating disorders
(34:20) Weight restoration and recovery
(41:50) Diet culture and macro traps
(45:

Tune in weekly to "Maximizing Hormones, Physique, and Running Through Perimenopause" for our simple female-specific science-based revolution. Let's unlock our best with less stress!

I'd love to connect!
Email 💬 [email protected]

Instagram 📷
https://www.instagram.com/breakingthroughwellness

Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/BreakingThroughWellness

Unfortunately, many of the ways we've been taught to train, eat, and “push through” as females who love to feel, look, and run our best are working against our best health, hormones, and longevity in vibrant active living.
In this episode, Louise speaks directly to driven, active women who want to feel strong, lean, energized, and confident through perimenopause and beyond. 
As a multi award-winning women's integrative health practitioner, top trainer, and exercise physiologist she explains why many traditional fitness, running, and nutrition approaches, including fasting, intentional or unintentional underfueling, traditional best practice dietetic recommendations, and high-volume training, can quietly damage our best health, hormones, body composition, bone health, and recovery.
Drawing from her own eye-opening journey and 23 years of coaching female runners, ambitious athletes, and everyday wellness-minded fitness lovers, Louise shares why fueling to support your female physiology, managing stress, and training in hormone-aware ways are essential for long-term health and performance. She breaks down how cortisol, under-eating, fad diets, and outdated male-based training methods contribute to fatigue, injuries, belly fat, performance decline, and frustrating symptoms many women accept as “normal.”
You will learn why perfection is not the goal, how to build sustainable habits, and how small daily choices can protect your best hormones, strength, performance, and longevity. 
This episode is a powerful reminder that you deserve to thrive, not just survive, in this phase of life.
Learn & level up with my free nutrition guide and award-winning Badass Breakthrough Academy to thrive through perimenopause with less stress: https://www.breakingthroughwellness.com/
Link to our FullScript where you can see curated best supplement picks & save 20%: https://us.fullscript.com/welcome/breakingthroughwellness/store-start 
Take advantage of our podcast listener discount and save 20% off all of Kion’s science-backed clean products. Code "LOUISE" saves on all future orders: : https://www.getkion.com/pages/maximizing 
Episode Highlights:
(0:00) Intro
(5:05) Building a strong fueling foundation
(7:19) “Adult boundaries” and realistic balance
(8:41) Alcohol, recovery, and fat loss
(11:55) Food, training, and hormone production
(13:55) Rebuilding bone and hormonal health
(16:11) Why group fitness and high-volume running fall short
(17:24) Stress, cortisol, and burnout patterns
(21:50) Simplifying supplements and going back to basics
(24:08) The dangers of outdated training methods
(32:12) Underfueling, hunger hormones, and RED-S
(38:30) Understanding your personal stress tipping point
(40:34) Timing nutrition for hormone support
(43:16) Osteoporosis and advocating for your health
(49:49) How to train and thrive long-term
(53:26) Why fasting is devastating for active women
(1:00:03) Outro

Tune in weekly to "Maximizing Hormones, Physique, and Running Through Perimenopause" for our simple female-specific science-based revolution. Let's unlock our best with less stress!

I'd love to connect!
Email 💬 [email protected]

Instagram 📷
https://www.instagram.com/breakingthroughwellness

Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/BreakingThroughWellness

What if the symptoms you have been told are “just part of hormonal changes and perimenopause” are actually a misdiagnosed medical condition that's progressively getting worse without being properly addressed?
In this episode of Maximizing Hormones, Physique, and Running Through Perimenopause, Louise Valentine, one of the world’s leading integrative health practitioners and exercise physiologists, sits down with Dr. Ryan Armstrong to break down fibroids, chronic pain, and vascular issues in a way that finally makes sense. Together, they explore why heavy bleeding, chronic fatigue, knee pain, plantar fasciitis, and leg cramping are so common in active women and why they should never be ignored or normalized.
Dr. Ryan explains minimally invasive treatments like uterine fibroid embolization that preserve the uterus while dramatically improving quality of life, often with faster recovery and fewer long-term risks than traditional surgery. Louise adds critical context around hormone balance, nutrition, and strength training, showing how medical care, targeted fitness and lifestyle strategies work best together.
Listeners will walk away with clarity around symptoms to watch for, questions to ask their doctors, and reassurance that there are modern, effective options that do not require extreme or life-altering procedures. This episode is empowering, practical, and especially valuable for women who want to stay active, strong, and pain-free through perimenopause and beyond.
Learn more about Dr. Armstrong’s practice Texas Endovascular at https://texaseva.com/ 
Learn & level up with my free nutrition guide and award-winning Badass Breakthrough Academy to thrive through perimenopause with less stress: https://www.breakingthroughwellness.com/
Link to our FullScript where you can see curated best supplement picks & save 20%: https://us.fullscript.com/welcome/breakingthroughwellness/store-start 
Take advantage of our podcast listener discount and save 20% off all of Kion’s science-backed clean products. Code "LOUISE" saves on all future orders: https://www.getkion.com/pages/maximizing 
Episode Highlights:
(0:00) Intro and natural hormone balance for long-term relief
(3:00) Fibroids explained in simple terms
(6:10) Hormones, inflammation, and injury risk
(12:50) Uterine fibroid embolization explained
(18:11) Risks of hysterectomy and why alternatives matter
(20:38) Innovative treatments for knee pain and plantar fasciitis
(23:29) Venous insufficiency, cramping, and varicose veins
(30:20) Heavy bleeding, anemia, and athletic performance
(32:29) Ablation vs embolization for fibroid care
(36:06) Outro

Tune in weekly to "Maximizing Hormones, Physique, and Running Through Perimenopause" for our simple female-specific science-based revolution. Let's unlock our best with less stress!

I'd love to connect!
Email 💬 [email protected]

Instagram 📷
https://www.instagram.com/breakingthroughwellness

Facebook
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What if the reason running suddenly feels harder has nothing to do with your discipline or aging and everything to do with your hormones and how you support them as they change? 
Many find it shocking that mechanisms of perimenopause typically start as early as our 30s and this tends to be even harder on ambitious females who love to run - but the good news is, YES, we can do something about it!
In this episode, Louise, a leading expert for perimenopausal active women and runners, sits down with Sheri, a lifelong runner and high-achieving professional, to share a real, honest look at navigating perimenopause without burning out or giving up the sport you love. 
Sheri opens up about sudden weight gain, breathing issues, dismissed symptoms, and the frustration of trying fixes that didn’t work.
Together, they break down what actually helped. A bit less mileage, more specific running and strength training, intentional strategic fueling, hydration, and simple yet highly effective cortisol and stress-management habits that fit into real life. Sheri explains how shifting away from “more is better” allowed her to regain energy, lose inches, improve mood, see physique changes, and hit major performance wins, including strong negative splits and new personal records in her 40s!
This conversation is a reminder that perimenopause is not a dead end nor does it have to mean decline. With the right strategy, it can be a powerful reset. If you are a runner who wants to feel strong, clear-headed, and confident again without overcomplicating it, this episode offers practical hope and proof that thriving is still possible.
Watch my free masterclass on Lifewave’s Holistic Patches here:  https://www.breakingthroughwellness.com/lifewave 
Learn & level up with my free nutrition guide and award-winning Badass Breakthrough Academy to thrive through perimenopause with less stress: https://www.breakingthroughwellness.com/
Link to our FullScript where you can see our curated best supplement picks & save 20% off: https://us.fullscript.com/welcome/breakingthroughwellness/store-start 
Take advantage of our podcast listener discount and save 20% off all of Kion’s science-backed clean products. Code "LOUISE" saves on all future orders: https://www.getkion.com/pages/maximizing
Episode Highlights:
(0:00) Intro
(3:20) Introducing Sheri’s perimenopause journey
(7:43) Sudden weight gain and dismissed symptoms
(10:29) Finding clear, usable guidance through podcasts
(14:17) Reducing mileage and training smarter
(15:38) Morning hydration and energy shifts
(17:41) Nutrition tweaks and seed cycling
(23:58) Performance breakthroughs and race PRs
(30:02) Confidence, mindset, and family impact
(34:31) Stress reduction through structure and predictability
(41:56) Symptoms improved through hormone-aligned training
(46:57) Final advice for women navigating perimenopause
(48:38) Outro

Tune in weekly to "Maximizing Hormones, Physique, and Running Through Perimenopause" for our simple female-specific science-based revolution. Let's unlock our best with less stress!

I'd love to connect!
Email 💬 [email protected]

Instagram 📷
https://www.instagram.com/breakingthroughwellness

Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/BreakingThroughWellness