Menopause Reimagined with Andrea Donsky
Welcome to Morphus!
We created Morphus to spark change in the conversation around perimenopause and menopause wellness, to bring together women seeking support and information, and to provide research-backed supplements for women in perimenopause and menopause. As Health Experts with over 23 years of experience as wellness educators, we bring you expert insights on perimenopause and menopause, along with the latest evidence-based scientific research.
Our goals are to help you navigate this time in your life, empower you to take charge of your health, and arm you with the resources and education to make the right decisions for yourself and your changing body.
Our name was inspired by the symbolism of butterflies, which represent beauty, transformation, and hope. Morphus combines the words "metamorphosis" + "us" (Morph/us) to represent the transformation we are all going through.
Andrea Donsky & Randy Boyer
Co-Founders, Morphus, Inc.
Menopause Reimagined with Andrea Donsky
Ep #203: Perimenopause Weight Gain and the 17 Reasons Why
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You're eating the same. Moving the same. But the scale is climbing and your belly is suddenly hard as a rock!
Andrea Donsky, nutritionist, author of the bestseller Nourishing Menopause: Powerful Nutrition & Lifestyle Strategies to Feel Your Best, 7x published menopause researcher, and co-founder of wearemorphus.com, has been there. At 46, she was 20 pounds heavier than she'd been before perimenopause, and she was a nutritionist who had been teaching healthy living for decades. She still couldn't figure it out, and she blamed herself.
In this solo episode, she has the conversation she wishes someone had had with her back in 2016. This episode isn't another lecture about calories but rather an honest explanation of what actually shifts in your body during perimenopause and menopause, and what you can do about it.
What you'll learn:
- Why you're gaining weight in perimenopause when you haven't changed a thing about how you eat.
- What changing estrogen has to do with where your body stores fat, and why it lands on your midsection.
- Why "eat less, exercise more" is the wrong advice for women in this stage of life.
- How sleep, muscle loss, stress, insulin resistance, inflammation, and gut health all quietly feed into weight gain.
- What Andrea's B.A.L.A.N.C.E. Blueprint approach to eating actually covers and how it works.
- And why "not recognizing yourself" in the mirror is grief, not vanity.
Chapters:
0:00 Eating the Same, Exercising the Same, Still Gaining Weight
1:50 20 Pounds Heavier at 46: Andrea's Own Weight Gain Story
2:35 The 17 Reasons We Gain Weight in Perimenopause and Menopause
3:49 Estrogen, Belly Fat, and Why Your Jeans Don't Fit Anymore
4:34 It's Not Vanity, It's Grief: Not Recognizing Your Own Body
5:16 Gen X, Diet Culture, and the 2016 Video That Made Her Face It
7:28 Sleep, Muscle Loss, Insulin Resistance, and Menopause Belly
8:14 Why "Eat Less, Exercise More" Fails Women in Midlife
8:57 The B.A.L.A.N.C.E. Blueprint: What You Can Actually Do About It
9:50 You're Allowed to Want to Lose Weight and Still Have Compassion For Yourself
Get Andrea's book here: "Nourishing Menopause: Powerful Nutrition & Lifestyle Strategies to Feel Your Best." (Simon & Schuster, May 5, 2026)
U.S. & Europe: https://amzn.to/4rFj7jk
Canada: https://amzn.to/4r2IDz3
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Morphus: Menopause Reimagined
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DISCLAIMER: This is not medical advice. Always consult your healthcare provider. This podcast contains affiliate links; Morphus may earn a commission. Thank you for your support.
