Modern Female Biohacking

As a perimenopausal woman I have an added layer of biohacking that is focused on my health as a middle aged woman.  Ouch, that hurts to say aloud, but it’s true because my reproductive organs dictate this, not me.

Aside from all that I do for longevity notated in an earlier posTS, I want to call out a few specific biohacking focuses to help women in their 30s, 40’s and 50’s to help smooth out the transition from perimenopause to menopause.

Here are the main areas of focus for women starting in your mid 30s but meaning even more as you turn the corner into your 40s.

Strength Training 💪 

As women age it is harder to maintain muscle mass let alone add muscle therefore strength training is important to a woman’s fitness routine.  I’ve been doing a program called Faster Way to Fat Loss that is an all encompassing program focused on women and pushes us to lift heavy to gain muscle.  It also has a robust program to teach about macros, water intake and intermittent fasting that all tie into overall health.

Source: ChatGPT

Studies show that starting around age 30 to 35, women who do not regularly strength train, lift weights, lose roughly 3% to 5% of their muscle mass per decade. This translates to losing roughly 4 to 6 pounds of muscle every ten years!  Then this accelerates dramatically by the time a woman gets to the age 60, the rate of muscle loss can jump to 1% to 2% per year.  This is why regular strength training is paramount to healthy aging.

Why do women lose muscle mass as they age? 

Estrogen plays a critical role in muscle building and repair. When estrogen begins to drop during perimenopause, the body is naturally signalled to slow down its maintenance and repair capabilities. 

And it’s not just for aesthetics.  Muscles help regulate glucose, hormones, mitochondrial health, brain function and bone density. All critical for health and wellness.

Hormone Management 😀

This is the big guy!  Our hormones, like testosterone and progesterone, start to decrease as early as our mid 30’s.  But hormone management is more robust and optimizes a hand full of hormone types like:

• Estrogen

• Progesterone

• Testosterone

• Cortisol

• Thyroid function

• Insulin sensitivity

Getting a good read on hormones takes regular, proactive bloodwork to see trends over time to understand your benchmarks. By doing this, you can develop a customized hormone strategy specifically designed for YOUR unique physiology. Utilizing bioidentical hormones, which are crafted to perfectly mimic your natural chemical and structural makeup, is the gold standard for modern hormone replacement therapy.

I enjoy Function Health to get routine bloodwork and OWN my data in a nice online portal, with trends of biomarkers that are easy to access and share with my doctors.  Plus, it highlights areas that are out of range, what it means and how to balance it with supplements and diet.

Visible Aging 👄 (vanity) 

An example seasonal approach to skin care

Vanity! The sagging skin, fine lines and wrinkles that we fight but can totally slow down.  Having a regular appointment for a facial and seasonal laser treatments can make a huge impact on skin laxity and maintaining collagen.  Microneedling is also a friendly go-to to help build collagen and there are a number of serums you can add on for additional benefits while your pores are open like salmon sperm, stem cells, etc.  

Having a quality skincare routine is also paramount to keeping skin nourished.  My favorite these days is Young Goose, but I also like Allies of Skin, Revision, Obagi and others that have NAD+ added into it.

Good news!  Biohacking and wellness activities have a symbiotic relationship with aging as many modalities benefit the skin, muscle tone, posture and more. 

Nervous System Regulation

A significant number women exist in a state of chronic sympathetic activation, they are essentially always "on."  Over time, chronic stress sets in and accelerates biological aging through:

• Elevated cortisol

• Increased inflammation

• Poor sleep

• Hormonal dysregulation

• Cellular breakdown

When I get my annual bloodwork these are the biomarkers I am less familiar with but I know are out of whack and need attention.  The nervous system is emerging as one of the most important longevity frontiers.

Practices like meditation, cold exposure and getting outside will help regulate your nervous system and slow down the aging process that we all seek. If you have access to stem cell therapy, that is another incredible way to improve inflammatory markers and cellular health.

Mitochondrial Health 

Who here has brain fog?  ME!!!  This is a tell tale sign of aging and perimenopause and is so frustrating.  I constantly have holes in my sentences and have to reroute mid-stream of talking to fill the hole with a word I can actually think of to get my point across.  Mitochondria produce energy within our cells.  And man, do we have tired cells due to slowing mitochondria.  When the mitochondrial function deteriorates, women often experience:

• Fatigue

• Brain fog

• Reduced recovery

• Hormonal instability

• Declining metabolic flexibility

Sound familiar?   Brain fog is extremely common in women 40+.  ChatGPT summarized ~60-70% of women transitioning to menopause experience brain fog!

Source: ChatGPT

How can you strengthen your mitochondrial health with accessible wellness activities?

• Zone 2 cardio

• Sauna

• Cold plunge

• Red light therapy

• Get quality sleep (This is an issue in itself!)

• Nutrition

• stem cell therapy
  

Aging doesn’t have to be terrible.  We have modalities to lessen the pain and literally change our cellular age which equates to longevity.  I am maximizing my wellness routine to do just this!

Live Young!