What If My Body Isn't Something I Need to Fix? with Lisa Congdon (Episode 300)

Hit Play Not Pause

November 11, 2026 ∙ 77 mins
Episode 332

About

Artist, author, and gravel racer Lisa Congdon is back for the first time in more than three years, and a lot has happened. She had both knees replaced seven weeks apart, raced the Unbound 50 five months later, and got her power numbers back. Then she decided to stop chasing them. Lisa talks about her 2026 goals, "chase adventure instead of power numbers" and "stop hating your body," and about the five-day, 270-mile Tour of the Giants bikepacking trip that put both goals to the test. Lisa opens up about the years she spent restricting carbs to stay small, gaining weight once she started fueling properly, and the secret fight with her body that followed. She also shares what it's like to manage hot flashes without hormone therapy after estrogen-receptor-positive breast cancer, why cycling pulls her out of hormonal low points, and why saying your shame out loud is the first step to letting it go. Finally, we dive into the menopause industrial complex, GLP-1 pressure, and the joy of having a body that can do more at 58 than it ever has.

Lisa Congdon is an internationally known, award-winning fine artist, illustrator, and writer based in Portland, Oregon. She is self-taught, started making art in her thirties, and has written ten books, including Art, Inc. and Find Your Artistic Voice. Her clients include the Library of Congress, the U.S. Postal Service, MoMA, REI Co-op, Brooks Running, and Velocio Cycling Apparel. She found cycling in her fifties and now races gravel as a masters athlete, rides centuries, and bikepacks, and much of her art work is in the cycling industry. A breast cancer survivor, Lisa writes candidly on her Substack about being a menopausal endurance athlete, fueling, and making peace with her body.

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Information

Podcast

Hit Play Not Pause

Episode

332

Date

November 11, 2026

Length

77 mins
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  • Active Release Techniques, Massage & Musculoskeletal Health in Menopause with Jan Wanklyn, LMT (Episode 250)

    Our ligaments, tendons, and overall musculoskeletal system can take a real hit during the menopause transition, making injuries more frequent and recovery slower. Too often, practitioners still overlook common issues like tendinopathies—leaving women to live with unnecessary pain before getting an accurate diagnosis and effective treatment. This week’s guest, former pro triathlete and licensed massage […]

  • Smart Glucose Management for Active Midlife Women with Liz McKinney, CNS, LDN (Episode 249)

    Grazing. Chronic stress. Poor sleep. Rushed meals. Sitting for long hours. Underfueled workouts. Estrogen decline. There’s a lot more behind our fasting glucose and A1C than how many carbs we eat. This week we return to one of the most consistently requested topics: blood sugar meaning and management with Liz McKinney, CNS, LDN. We explore […]

  • Precision Menopause Care: The Right Hormones for the Right Goals with Lauren Streicher, MD (Episode 248)

    We asked for your big questions on hormone therapy–and an avalanche ensued! This week, after 5+ years of Hit Play Not Pause, we’re doing a level set on hormone therapy. This week’s guest, nationally-recognized menopause expert Lauren Streicher, MD, digs into hormone therapy research, what it tells us and what it doesn’t, why formulations matter, […]

  • The Secrets to Going Further Than You Think You Can with Serena Bishop Gordon (Episode 247)

    At 46, professional off-road cyclist and coach Serena Bishop Gordon has redefined what she thought was possible—physically, mentally, and emotionally. From second place at this year’s Unbound XL (360 miles in 22:19:56 hours) to multiple podiums at Oregon Trail Gravel Grinder, Serena shares how she’s learned to let go of limits, release outcomes, and lean […]

  • Get in the Ring with Perimenopause with Jessica D’Abrosca (Episode 246)

    When amateur boxer Jessica D’Abrosca entered perimenopause, she didn’t know what hit her. The exhaustion. The night sweats. The joint pain. She felt like she was unraveling. Then she found our community and studied up on this new opponent perimenopause and its hormonal haymakers and learned how she could fight back with training, diet, and […]

  • Make Stress Your Superpower in Midlife and Menopause with Sharon Horesh Bergquist, MD (Episode 245)

    We’re told stress (looking at you cortisol) is the enemy in midlife—but that’s too simple. In the right dose (and with real recovery), stress is good medicine that builds resilience and makes us stronger, in sport, at work, and in life. In this episode, we dive into the “stress that helps” with Dr. Sharon Horesh […]

  • What Millennials Need to Know About Menopause with Lauren Tetenbaum, LCSW (Episode 244)

    The next wave of menopausal women is here. Millennials (born 1981–1996)—with the oldest now 44—are marching into the transition. And no, they’re not “all set.” They’re still running into poor care, confusion about hormone therapy, and real mental-health turbulence. Many are also rolling straight from postpartum into perimenopause—stacking new physical and emotional challenges. This week’s […]

  • No Ego, All Engine: The Midlife Advantage in Multi-Day Racing with Kim Beckinsale & Alina McMaster (Episode 243)

    Kim Beckinsale and Alina McMaster, both in their mid-50s, race with Mountain Designs Wild Women, along with their teammates Cass Kimlin and Del Lloyd, who are both over 40. The team made history last year by becoming the first all-female team to win the 450 km Legend Expedition Race along Australia’s Great Ocean Road, finishing […]

  • The Overlooked Epidemic: Fibroids in Women’s Health with Taraneh Shirazian, MD (Episode 242)

    Eighty percent of us will develop fibroids by age 50–making them an epidemic nobody talks about. Tennis legend Venus Williams, 45, has recently spoken up about the debilitating pain, fatigue, and heavy bleeding she suffered with due to fibroids for literally decades. This week we talk with the doctor who finally helped her find relief, […]

  • Psychedelics 101 for Menopause: Myths, Mechanisms, Must-Knows Grace Blest-Hopley, PhD (Episode 241)

    Buckle up for a trip (pun intended) into the midlife brain. This week we sit down with neuroscientist Dr. Grace Blest-Hopley to connect the dots between cannabinoids, psychedelics, trauma, and the menopause transition. We cover CBD/THC for sleep, anxiety, pain, and inflammation; how the endocannabinoid system works, and how psychedelics like psilocybin act on serotonin […]

  • Breaking the Skinny Spell: Body Image, Building Muscle, and Midlife Resilience with Anne Marie Chaker (Episode 240)

    Growing up in sport, this week’s guest was often told her body wasn’t “right”—too muscular, not tall enough, never thin enough—and those messages followed her into adulthood through the pressures of work, marriage, motherhood, and loss. Her turning point came in a hotel gym, where she discovered the power of fueling well, eating enough protein, […]

  • You're Never Too Old to Be Young Again: Chasing 100 Miles at Age 65 with Diane Grim (Episode 239)

    At 65, Diane Grim was the oldest woman competing at the Western States 100–widely considered one of the toughest organized trail runs in the United States–this year. It was her first ever 100 miler and she didn’t even start running till she was in her 50s, but as she says, every mile, every step is […]

  • Own Your Mountain: Menopause, Resilience & Summiting Mount Everest with Jeannette McGill (Episode 238)

    She did it. At 10:06 a.m. on May 24th, two-time guest Jeannette McGill stood on top of the world. Jeannette, 52, summited Mount Everest after three years of navigating hot flashes, heavy, erratic periods, joint pain, stubborn injuries, brain fog, and maybe most difficult of all for a high altitude mountaineer–newfound fear that made tasks […]

  • Why the Calories In/Calories Out Equation Can Fail Women with Jody Dushay, MD (Episode 237)

    How many times have we heard that weight loss and maintenance is simply “calories in, calories out?” Well, the equation may be rooted in thermodynamics, but the reality is biology, history, hormones, and a whole lot more. This week, endocrinologist and Harvard obesity researcher Dr. Jody Dushay breaks down why this concept is far more […]

  • Why Hybrid Training Rules for Peri & Menopausal Women with Alyssa Olenick, PhD (Replay)

    For the longest time, endurance athletes avoided the weight room, afraid unwanted muscles would weigh them down, while strength athletes all but kicked cardio to the curb. Now we know that no matter if you’re running an ultra or competing in a CrossFit competition, the right blend of cardio and strength is the secret sauce […]

  • Menopause and Fat Loss with Bill Campbell, PhD (Replay)

    This episode originally dropped on February 12, 2025. Bill Campbell, PhD, has spent his entire career as a fat loss researcher. So when his wife hit menopause and wanted help with body composition changes, he thought it would be easy. Spoiler alert: It was not. Which made him realize his field had a lot to […]

  • It's Tour de France Femmes Time!

    We’re sharing this episode of Feisty’s weekly women’s sports show, called The Feist, because we thought you’d enjoy this preview of the Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift. Even if you already know everything about cycling, we’re sure you’ll find something you don’t know in today’s episode. And be sure to subscribe and follow The […]

  • Outrunning Assumptions: How to Get Faster in Midlife and Menopause with Jen Temperley (Episode 236)

    When things start to feel “off” in midlife, it’s easy to blame perimenopause. It’s easy to accept the advice to slow down—or to internalize the idea that age automatically means decline. But this week’s guest, Jen Temperley, isn’t buying it. A lifelong triathlete, Jen has faced her share of challenges: unexplained fatigue, weight gain, gut […]

  • Mistakes, Menopause, & Second Winds with Marion Jones (Episode 235)

    Former track and field Olympic champion Marion Jones, who lost her record-breaking 5 medals and served prison time in a high profile doping scandal, thought that her hardest days were behind her. And in that realm, they certainly are. But now she’s facing a challenge she never saw coming: perimenopause. This week, Marion opens up […]

  • Brave Enough to Be Real: Honest Talk About Menopause, Midlife, and Athletics with Christine D'Ercole (Episode 234)

    Feisty favorite Peloton Instructor Christine D’Ercole is back on the show this week for a candid conversation about how she’s managing a high profile athletic career while also in the throes of perimenopause. Through her ups–winning three more National titles since we last spoke–and her downs–peeing herself in the gym as she struggles with pelvic […]

  • Running, Resilience, and Reinvention with Dena Lewis (Episode 233)

    Like many women, Dena Lewis planned on “fighting through” menopause. She thought she could outrun, out-nutrition, and out-supplement menopause. Menopause–which came swiftly through surgery–had other ideas. Through mood swings, soaking night sweats, hair loss, and a relentless barrage of symptoms, Dena did keep running–10+ miles a day–but she also sought hormone therapy that made the […]

  • Welcome to The Feist – Your Favorite Sports with Your Feistiest Friends

    Welcome to The Feist — your favorite sports, with your feistiest friends. Hosted by Sara Gross and Kelly O’Mara, Feisty’s newest podcast is here to celebrate the unstoppable rise of women’s sports. Every week they’ll cover what you need to know in women’s sports: from running to basketball to everything in between. The Feist will […]

  • Pelvic Floor Facts Every Active Menopausal Woman Should Know with Ingrid Harm-Ernandes, PT (Episode 232)

    Pelvic floor disorders can wreak havoc on your well-being, especially as a woman who wants to run, jump, hike, bike, and otherwise enjoy an active life. Unfortunately, pelvic floor dysfunction is extremely common, with about half of us experiencing urinary incontinence alone (let alone painful sex, constipation, prolapse, and so forth). But we don’t have […]

  • Menopause After Paralysis: Hormones, Catheters and Competition with Edie Perkins (Episode 231)

    Edie Perkins was a 46-year-old elite runner and cyclist when a catastrophic accident left her paralyzed from the chest down—just as she was entering menopause. In this candid conversation, Edie reveals how her hormonal changes intersected with her spinal cord injury recovery, leaving her with misdiagnosed UTIs, sheet-soaking night sweats she blamed on her injury, […]

  • Bone Health, HRT & the Invisible Impacts of Menopause with Nicole Oh (Episode 230)

    “The person who wins is often the one who is fending off the menopause the best!” Those were words of advice a fellow competitor once gave this week’s guest, physiotherapist and competitive cyclist Nicole Oh. That would be something Nicole would come to learn firsthand just a few short years later, as she found herself […]

  • Why Education is Everything at Feisty Media

    Over the past eight years, Feisty Media has grown into a go-to resource for women’s health and performance education. In this special episode, Feisty CEO Sara Gross and Hit Play Not Pause host Selene Yeager reflect on how Feisty’s content has evolved to meet the real-life needs of active women. From menopause and nutrition to […]

  • Hormones & Heavy Lifts: The Menopause Blueprint with Holly Rilinger (Episode 229)

    When some of the biggest names in menopause medicine want to learn to lift heavy, they turn to this week’s guest, Nike Master Trainer and midlife fitness advocate Holly Rilinger, founder of the LIFTED Method. Because Holly gets it. She’s been through her own journey with damaging diet culture, body image issues, and a challenging […]

  • Running a Record-Setting 366 Marathons at 55 with Hilde Dosogne (Episode 228)

    At the start of 2024, 55-year-old ultrarunner Hilde Dosogne set out to achieve the female World Record for the most consecutive days to run a marathon distance run by completing a marathon every day for a year. On December 31st of last year, she clocked her 366th 26.2 mile run (it was a leap year, […]

  • Mind Over Midlife: Brain Health Tips for Midlife with Therese Huston, PhD (Episode 227)

    As estrogen drops, our midlife brains go through a lot of changes. The activity in our dopamine network declines, which can leave us going from highly motivated to “meh.” We can experience bigger cortisol spikes and have elevated levels of the stress hormone longer. We can end up feeling constantly stressed out and in a […]

  • Midlife Fueling 101: Essential Sports Nutrition Advice for Peri & Postmenopausal Women with Kristen Arnold, MS, RDN, CSSD (Episode 226)

    Muscle and bone loss. Inflammation. Bloating, diarrhea, and other GI issues. Peri and postmenopausal active women can face myriad training and performance challenges. But the good news is that a lot of them can be helped with proper nutrition practices. This week we dive into the basics on how to fuel your active midlife body, […]

  • Learning to Thrive: A Runner’s Midlife Reinvention with Megan Eastwood (Episode 225)

    This week’s guest ultrarunner Megan Eastwood is a portrait of perseverance. She’s lived through trauma, battled eating disorders, and been flattened by perimenopause. Through it all, she’s learned, grown, evolved, and ultimately thrived. Now 55 and postmenopausal, Megan is out in nature every week, running, climbing, skiing, snowboarding, kayaking, basically anything she can do outdoors. […]

  • Respinning Menopause: Movement, Mindset & Midlife with Maria Luque, PhD (Episode 224)

    Active and athletic women can be hit hard by the menopause transition. Many of us have become accustomed to our bodies responding in a predictable way to our training and nutrition, only to have that sense of control slip away during the menopause transition. That can leave us feeling desperate for solutions–and vulnerable to predatory […]

  • The Fast Lane After 40: Perimenopause Training Tips with Marissa Axell (Episode 223)

    Perimenopause can blindside us in unexpected ways. Fatigue hit this week’s guest, elite cyclist and coach Marissa Axell, so hard she thought she had cancer. Now the creator of the Cycling Success System wants everyone to know what can happen during this phase of life, and importantly what active women can do to counteract it. […]

  • Underwear, Estrogen & Ultras with Lauren Puretz, DO (episode 222)

    We’ve got a grab-bag of gynecological goodness for you this week, as we sat down with elite ultrarunner, gynecologist, and Paradis pro ambassador Dr. Lauren Puretz. We dive into her running life, including how she navigates elite ultra training with two kids and a medical practice; the common gynecological issues she helps peri and menopausal […]

  • The Nervous System, Hormones & Trauma with Paula Rastrick (Episode 221)

    If you’ve ever felt like your mood has a mind of its own during PMS, pregnancy, or perimenopause, you already know that hormones like estrogen and progesterone don’t just affect your body — they shape your entire sense of well-being. And if you’ve lived with trauma or neurodivergence, like ADHD, you also know how reactive […]

  • Why Toughing Out Perimenopause Isn’t the Answer Carrie Tollefson (Episode 220)

    Many women, like this week’s guest Olympian runner and broadcaster Carrie Tollefson, suffer through perimenopause for far too long because they know they’re tough and they can handle things. But you don’t need to suffer, and you shouldn’t just tough it out. You can get back to feeling better and living more fully by getting […]

  • Menopausal Hormone Therapy: Managing Side Effects with Carla DiGirolamo, MD, PhD (Episode 219)

    Women go on hormone therapy to manage peri/menopause symptoms and feel better. But sometimes to their surprise, they feel worse. Or some symptoms go away while others pop up. That’s because of the hormones! We have hormone receptors all over our body and whenever we switch up the signals they’re receiving, whether through the menopause […]

  • Building Strength & Pushing Limits after 40 with Steph Gaudreau (Episode 218)

    Many of us have spent a lifetime trying to shrink ourselves. We grew up being told you could never be too thin. As athletes, especially in endurance sports, smaller, lighter, faster was the ethos of the day. That is changing as we see athletes, especially women, discover that being fueled and strong yields even better […]

  • The Forgotten Athletes: Why Midlife Women Deserve Better Science with Kelly McNulty, PhD (Episode 217)

    Women have been left on the sidelines when it comes to sport and exercise research. Research finds a measly 6% of studies in the field have exclusively focused on women. That’s bad. But for menopausal women, it’s worse. Of that 6%, menopausal women account for only 9% of total study participants, with only 16% of […]

  • How 40+ Fitness Happens with Hailey Babcock (Episode 216)

    Lots of experts have training and nutrition advice for midlife and menopausal women that is grounded in scientific evidence. Yet, the advice doesn’t always agree…and doesn’t necessarily work the same for everyone. That’s because, while there are general guidelines that are helpful for many women, in the end, we are all scientific studies of one, […]

  • Is It Burnt Toast? Or is it Menopause? with Andrea Donsky (Episode 215)

    Phantom smells. Lack of focus. Dizziness. While everyone is talking about hot flashes and night sweats, women know that the transition to menopause brings on tons of signs and symptoms that no one ever talks about. This week’s guest, menopause educator and researcher Andrea Donsky is on a mission to change that. As the co-founder […]

  • Flipping the Script on What’s Possible in Your 50s with Debra Tacium, DMV (Episode 214)

    Veterinary surgeon Debbie Tacium, 55, wanted to flip the script of my menopause. After suffering pain, loss of coordination, weakness, and changes in body composition during perimenopause, she went back to the sport she loved most in life–gymnastics. She wanted to use it to bring herself back to herself and remember what it was like […]

  • Menopause and Fat Loss with Bill Campbell, PhD (Episode 213)

    Bill Campbell, PhD, has spent his entire career as a fat loss researcher. So when his wife hit menopause and wanted help with body composition changes, he thought it would be easy. Spoiler alert: It was not. Which made him realize his field had a lot to learn, especially about active women whose bodies change […]

  • Injuries, Setbacks & MIA Motivation: Overcoming the Challenges of Running Through Perimenopause with Normi Coto, PhD (Episode 212)

    Running through the menopause transition can be challenging. If you feel like throwing in the towel sometimes, you’re not alone. This week’s guest, distance runner and blogger at runandbebrave.com has faced it all: injuries, setbacks, poor sleep, fatigue, vanishing motivation, hot flashes, and all the joint pain that accompanies the musculoskeletal syndrome of menopause. Through […]

  • Menopause Research Review: Hormone Testing & Therapeutic Levels with Dr. Carla DiGirolamo (Episode 211)

    Welcome to Menopause Research Review! Now that menopause has hit the mainstream, we’re swimming in a steady stream of studies, which is great and can also be overwhelming. So for 2025, we’re introducing a regular segment called Menopause Research Review where we break down key research as it comes out with resident reproductive endocrinologist and […]

  • Why You Can Probably Worry Less About Blood Sugar with Nicola Guess, RD, MPH, PhD (Episode 210)

    Spikes, crashes, excursions, and elevated numbers. Blood sugar is on a lot of active midlife women’s minds. But what do we really know about what this all means…and what it doesn’t, especially when it comes to long term health? This week’s guest Oxford nutrition scientist and globally recognized type 2 diabetes expert Dr. Nicola Guess […]

  • Turn Your Raw Emotions into Personal Power with Aimee Anaya Everett (Episode 209)

    Women are often accused of being “too emotional”, whether it’s PMS, perimenopause, or just plain life. Worse, we’re made to believe those emotions make us weak. What if the opposite were true? What if our emotions were our super power, a force we could channel to give us strength in and out of the gym? […]

  • Why Hybrid Training Rules for Peri & Menopausal Women with Alyssa Olenick, PhD (Episode 208)

    For the longest time, endurance athletes avoided the weight room, afraid unwanted muscles would weigh them down, while strength athletes all but kicked cardio to the curb. Now we know that no matter if you’re running an ultra or competing in a CrossFit competition, the right blend of cardio and strength is the secret sauce […]

  • Sports Supplements for Midlife & Menopausal Women with Kristen Arnold, MS, RDN, CSSD (REBROADCAST)

    Supplements get a bad rap. And to be fair, there is a lot of trash out there. But there are some treasures, too, especially for midlife and menopausal women who often can use some extra help building bone, recovering from injuries, and hitting it hard during training and events. This week we break down the […]

  • Feisty Conversations for a Fueled Future – Let's Get Beyond Diet Culture – Feisty Triathlon

    Here we go again with the bombardment of “New Year, New You” ads and messages to “eat this, not that,” or “do this specific workout for 30 days to get amazing abs.” You know the drill and they’re probably in your feed as we speak.  In this first-of-its kind episode, Feisty Media podcast hosts Kathryn […]

  • Should We All Be On Hormone Therapy? with Professor Susan Davis, AO (REBROADCAST)

    The conversation around hormone therapy for menopausal symptoms is pretty clear. Hormone therapy is the gold standard for treating hot flashes and night sweats and can help with many other common symptoms that come with the menopause transition. It’s very effective and broadly safe. But recently, the conversation has evolved past symptom management and into […]

  • Lifestyle is Important…and Sometimes It’s Not Enough During Menopause with Laurie Marbas, MD (Episode 207)

    A healthy lifestyle doesn’t mean you won’t suffer during peri or postmenopause. Many women are led to believe that if they exercise, eat healthy, and practice all the right lifestyle habits that menopause won’t really affect them. Nothing could be further from the truth. Even if you’re doing “everything right” you can still be blindsided […]

  • Unlock Your Fascia to Go From Stiff to Swift in Menopause with Nicole Armbrust (Episode 206)

    If you’ve ever felt stiff and stuck like the Tin Man in the Wizard of Oz after being left out in the rain; have tight, sore knots that restrict your mobility, or have battled issues like frozen shoulder, this show is for you. We’re learning all about fascia–the unsung connective tissue that holds our muscles […]

  • Preventing & Coming Back from Injury During the Menopause Transition with Julie Sapper (Episode 205)

    Menopause doesn’t mean that you will automatically be slower. It does mean you may have to change the way you train, especially since we don’t bounce back from hard efforts the way we used to, and we’re more vulnerable to injury. This week’s guest knows all about all of that as she recently worked her […]

  • How to Adapt Your Training During the Menopause Transition with Phaedra Kennedy (Episode 204)

    Horrible periods. Crippling anxiety. Weight gain. Rage. Sheet-soaking night sweats. This week’s guest, elite runner, triathlete, and endurance coach, Phaedra Kennedy had all of it, and unfortunately at the time, had no idea it was perimenopause. Because that’s just how it’s been for women. We get the birds and the bees talk as kids, but […]

  • Breathe Better, Perform Better, Live Better through Menopause and Beyond with Erin Carson, CSCS (Episode 203)

    Midlife and the menopause transition can leave us breathless, with stress, rising anxiety, and for some an accelerated decline in lung function. The good news is help is right under your nose–your breath. Many of us think of breathing as something that just happens–so we really don’t think about it at all. But as this […]

  • What to Know About Prediabetes and Menopause with Val Schonberg, RDN, CSSD (Episode 202)

    November is National Diabetes Awareness Month, and many peri- and postmenopausal women have questions. Like why is my fasting blood glucose and/or AIC going up? What role do hormones, diet, exercise, and lifestyle play? What does it mean (and not mean) for my current and future health? So, this week we sat down with midlife […]

  • The Struggles of Premature Menopause with Christy Napolitano Wernau & Jewel Kling, MD, MPH (Episode 201)

    Primary ovarian insufficiency (POI) sends about 4% of women into premature menopause before the age of 40. Yet, the condition is little understood and for those experiencing it, incredibly isolating. This week we talk about the struggles women with premature menopause face with athlete and entrepreneur Christy Napolitano Wernau, who experienced premature menopause at age […]

  • 200!

    We’re celebrating four years and 200 episodes together at Hit Play Not Pause! It’s like we’re finishing up peri/menopause high school and now we’re off to college. Actually, it is a lot like that when you consider how much our knowledge about this pivotal life transition has grown and keeps expanding. So, this week host […]

  • Say Goodbye to Sleepless Nights with Morgan Adams, MSW (Episode 199)

    We don’t have to tell you that menopause can be a real sleep wrecker. Recent research finds that half of women aged 45 to 64 say they experience sleep disruption due to menopause. One of the biggest culprits is hormonally-driven symptoms like night sweats, so hormone therapy can help. But it’s not a guarantee to […]

  • A Candid Conversation About Hormone Therapy with Carla DiGirolamo, MD, PhD (Episode 198)

    The messages we see and hear about hormone therapy are often head spinning, as headlines seemingly say one thing and guidelines say another. Medical experts themselves spend days arguing on Instagram. And women are left wondering how to make the best decisions for their health and well being. We feel it, too. So this week, […]

  • Time to Unlearn the Bullsh*t with Erin Ayala, PhD (Episode 197)

    Female athletes of our generation have been told a lot of bullsh*t stories about what we’re supposed to look like; how much we’re supposed to weigh; what we’re supposed to eat (or more often not eat), and what we should or shouldn’t do in sports and training and life. We’ve lived through diet culture, sport […]

  • It's Time to Unapologetically Invest in You with Natalie Perkins, PhD (Episode 196)

    For literally decades, active women like Natalie Perkins have suffered through night sweats, mood swings, low mojo, injuries, and disruptive symptoms because everyone was scared off hormone therapy by outdated information. Unfortunately, though the tide is turning, it’s been a slow process and millions of women are still suffering for no good reason. That’s why […]

  • Fear and the Quest for Everest in Menopause with Jeannette McGill (Episode 195)

    Frozen with fear. That’s how many active women can find themselves on mountain bike trails, ski slopes, and wherever they recreate as our hormones fluctuate and decline in the menopause transition. That’s something high altitude mountaineer Jeannette McGill knows all too well as she summits some of the tallest mountains in the world and sets […]

  • Navigating Menopause – Creating a Blueprint for Your Future (Episode 194)

    Menopause is a confusing, sometimes isolating time. We have more information than ever, but can still feel in the dark about exactly what’s going on and what we should or maybe shouldn’t be doing about it. To help, Feisty Menopause and Hit Play Not Pause host Selene Yeager have created an 8 week course called […]

  • Hormone Therapy and Breast Cancer Risk with Mindy Goldman, MD (Episode 193)

    Of all the things women worry about when it comes to hormone therapy, breast cancer, for many, tops the list. Our current understanding of breast cancer risk–even among at-risk women–has changed dramatically in recent years and continues to evolve. To fully understand hormone therapy and breast cancer risk, we need to understand that hormone therapy […]

  • Diary of a Gen Xer with Jody Trostler (Episode 192)

    Many of us going through menopause at the moment were the latchkey kids of Generation X, who came of age without a whole lot of supervision and (though it certainly wasn’t all bad!), more than our share of angst, body image issues, eating disorders, and cultural BS about how women were supposed to look and […]

  • Chasing the Olympic Trials Dream at 46 with Gabrielle Rose (Episode 191)

    Many of us grew up with implicit–and sometimes explicit–messages to be small, both in our physical selves and in our power. Now, as we hit midlife, we’re increasingly rejecting those BS limitations and seeing just how powerful we can be. That’s exactly what two-time Olympian Gabrielle Rose did in her mid-40s when she set her […]

  • Dancing in the Face of Menopause, Trauma, and Midlife Challenges with Alexa Uhrich & Mirella Russell, The “House” Wives of Hip Hop (Episode 190)

    Menopause can be challenging. Menopause for women who have been through trauma can be exponentially harder. Few know this better than political refugee and abuse survivor, Mirella Russell, one of the “House Wives” of Hip Hop who found hip hop dance when she was 40 and has used it to bring joy through her grief […]

  • Hormones Got Your Attention? What to Know About ADHD in Menopause Kathleen Nadeau, PhD (Episode 189)

    Women and girls have historically been overlooked when it comes to ADHD. Now experts understand that many girls and women do indeed have ADHD. It just looks different, and estrogen has a big role in how it plays out and in how we treat it, which becomes especially important once we hit the menopause transition. […]

  • Weight Loss Drugs and Active Menopausal Women with Jody Dushay, MD (REBROADCAST)

    The New York Times recently called Ozempic a “new match for menopausal weight gain”. But is it? These drugs can be a godsend for those who need them. But there’s a lot we need to understand. How do they work? How well do they work? Who benefits from them? What are their risks? What impact do […]

  • I Am I Can I Will I Do in Menopause with Christine D’Ercole (REBROADCAST)

    *This episode originally dropped on January 3, 2024* As we roll into a brand new year filled with goals and aspirations, this week’s guest, fan-favorite Peloton Cycling instructor Christine D’Ercole would like to remind us that we are bigger than a smaller pair of pants, and the most powerful thing anyone can say to us […]

  • Skills Coaching for More Fun, Confidence, and Next Level Menopause Performance with Karen Brooks (Episode 188)

    Midlife and menopause can be the perfect time to try something new (like as we talk about this week, mountain biking!…but also surfing, skiing, you name it). It frees you from the endless self comparison that can come after years (even decades) in the same sport and infuses you with the confidence that comes with […]

  • Should We All Be On Hormone Therapy? with Professor Susan Davis, AO (Episode 187)

    The conversation around hormone therapy for menopausal symptoms is pretty clear. Hormone therapy is the gold standard for treating hot flashes and night sweats and can help with many other common symptoms that come with the menopause transition. It’s very effective and broadly safe. But recently, the conversation has evolved past symptom management and into […]

  • Find a Doctor Who Will Listen! with Erin Ferguson (Episode 186)

    Boy, oh boy, we women can really struggle to find good medical care–especially when we hit the menopause transition. And this week’s guest Erin Ferguson has experienced that firsthand. Erin went through multiple gynecological complications, surgeries, and hormonally-driven symptoms, including panic attacks, anxiety, weight gain, painful periods, severely disrupted sleep, hot flashes, night sweats, and […]

  • Working Through Menopausal Grief with Kathryn Wilder, PhD (Episode 185)

    Nearly every one of us will go through some mourning with the changes that come with menopause. Even if we go on hormone therapy, which can help a ton, there is some loss that comes at this time. A loss of our reproductive selves. A loss of speed in our sport. A loss of our […]

  • Return to Play Post Gynecological Surgery without Prolapse, Pain, or Peeing Yourself with Jocelyn Wallace, PT, DPT (episode 184)

    Gynecological surgeries are extremely common. More 600,000 women get a hysterectomy each year in the US alone, and more than one-third of women will have had one by age 60. And often a woman is told that she’s “good to go” after a few weeks, when in reality, when it comes to her sport, she’s […]

  • Sports Supplements for Midlife & Menopausal Women with Kristen Arnold, MS, RDN, CSSD (Episode 183)

    Supplements get a bad rap. And to be fair, there is a lot of trash out there. But there are some treasures, too, especially for midlife and menopausal women who often can use some extra help building bone, recovering from injuries, and hitting it hard during training and events. This week we break down the […]

  • What’s Inside Your Coronary Arteries? with Anita Vadria, MS, PA-C (Episode 182)

    Menopause and age raise our cardiovascular disease risk. Athletes and highly active people also tend to have a higher prevalence of coronary artery calcium and atherosclerotic plaque (though it tends to be the benign kind). But what does that all mean? How can we know what’s really going on in those coronary arteries of ours? […]

  • Midlife Potential, Performance, and Promise with Rebecca Rusch, Kristi Mohn, and Selene Yeager (Episode 181)

    This week we bring you a special live show from UNBOUND Gravel in Emporia, KS, where we sat down with two legends in the sport of gravel cycling, UNBOUND Gravel co-founder Kristi Mohn and seven time world champion Rebecca Rusch to have an open, honest conversation about midlife and menopause, how we view things today, […]

  • Nutritional Supplements for Active Menopausal Women with Katie Linville, MS, RDN (Episode 180)

    As active menopausal women, we get outright bombarded with ads for nutritional supplements. But what do we really need? This week, we take it down to brass tacks and hit the basics with registered dietitian nutritionist Katie Linville. We break it down on what we should know about calcium, vitamin D, magnesium, iron, and the […]

  • Jumping into an Adventurous Midlife with Shawn Brokemond (Episode 179)

    We talk a lot about the importance of lifting heavy for our muscle, bone, brain, and heart health. But that’s just the beginning! Being stronger makes us feel more capable and opens the door to all kinds of new adventures that we might not otherwise try because we have more confidence in what our bodies […]

  • Don't Let the Old Woman In with Sal Edwards (Episode 178)

    Sally “Sal” Edwards, now 76, is a pioneer in women’s sports. She qualified for the first women’s marathon Olympic Trials in 1983 and is one of the original founders of USA Triathlon. She also brought heart rate and zone training to the mainstream. For 22 years, Sal served as the national spokeswoman for the Danskin […]

  • Race Weight, Body Image & Performance with Marni Sumbal, MS, RD, CSSD (Episode 177)

    Be smaller. Be lighter. For our entire lives those messages have been drilled into us from every angle, including very often from those in our sports. We hear we need to be at “race weight.” We’re shown “idealized” images of what female athletes “should” look like. It’s all incredibly damaging, especially as we hit menopause […]

  • Postural Restoration & Pelvic Floor Therapy During Menopause with Hayley Kava PT, MPT, PRC (Episode 176)

    If there’s anything we’ve learned, it’s pelvic floor health is a whole lot more than doing Kegel exercises. In fact, sometimes Kegels are the last thing you need. This week we look at pelvic floor health through the lens of Postural Restoration with pelvic floor physical therapist and Postural Restoration Certified (PRC) practitioner Hayley Kava, […]

  • Opportunities of a Life Time with Sarah Max (Episode 175)

    At 49, this week’s guest Sarah Max is the oldest rider in the Life Time Grand Prix, the biggest, hardest gravel and mountain bike race series on the planet. That was something Sarah didn’t always want to talk about. She didn’t want to be defined by her age and didn’t always love the attention it […]

  • The Many Facets of Menopausal Brain Health with Dr. Sarah McKay (Episode 174)

    Women’s brains are finally getting the research attention they deserve! While we sort out the role hormones play in our current and future cognitive health, it’s important to remember that estrogen is just one player in a lifelong host of factors impacting your brain, including education, intellectual engagement, diet and nutrition, exercise and fitness, hearing […]

  • Younger is Not Better with Caroline Paul (Episode 173)

    Cultural messages glorify youth as the best time of our lives. But that’s not what this week’s guest, Caroline Paul found while researching her wonderful book Tough Broad: From Boogie Boarding to Wing Walking―How Outdoor Adventure Improves Our Lives as We Age. Instead, she found active, adventurous women praising their postmenopausal lives and the enjoyment […]

  • 30 Years of Extreme Endurance with Pam Reed (Episode 172)

    Women’s ultrarunning is on fire right now with powerhouses like recent Barkley Marathons finisher Jasmin Paris, 40, and Lululemon FURTHER 6-day record smasher Camille Herron, 42, showing the world what midlife women can do. This week, we sat down with ultrarunning legend Pam Reed, who broke ground for women in the sport decades ago, winning […]

  • Menopause Metabolism Myths & More with ​​Val Schonberg, RDN, CSSD (Episode 171)

    Your metabolism is broken. You need to stop eating carbs. All weight gain is bad! If you’re a woman in menopause, you’ve been on the receiving end of a steady stream of overwhelmingly negative messages about your midlife body. Many of them are simply not true. That’s why we wanted to have a more nuanced […]

  • Managing Arthritis in Active Peri & Menopausal Women with Ashley Austin, MD (Episode 170)

    Wear and tear on our active joints is inevitable, and the menopause transition can make them more vulnerable. But there are some simple, and often overlooked, ways to support our joint health that include proper nutrition, recovery, strength and mobility practices, footwear and more, which can help us stay active and pain free through and […]

  • Put the O Back in Mojo with Lauren Streicher, MD (Episode 169)

    Women’s sexuality, especially older women’s, is often overlooked or dismissed by the medical system. When men get procedures that may impact their erections, they’re informed. When women get treatments that may affect their ability to have an orgasm? Crickets. Too few women’s doctors talk about women’s sexual satisfaction, including how well their clitoris is responding […]

  • All in Her Head with Elizabeth Comen, MD (Episode 168)

    From being burned as witches to being barred from attending medical school, from being dismissed as hysterical to well, just being dismissed, from being shamed to being sexualized, the medical system has a long, sordid history in how it treats women and women’s health. And those toxic roots still poison the waters we have to […]

  • What the Heck is Up with Cholesterol During Menopause? with Samia Mora, MD, MHS (Episode 167)

    We wrap up heart health awareness month with one topic that comes up a whole lot in our community–cholesterol. We hear from scores of athletic, active women who have had perfectly fine lipid levels their whole lives only to see them shoot up, often dramatically, at menopause. If you’re one, you’re not alone. This week […]

  • Cardiovascular Disease & Brain Aging During Menopause with Rebecca Thurston, PhD (Episode 166)

    For years, hot flashes and night sweats (aka vasomotor symptoms) were considered just a “bothersome” part of being a menopausal woman: we were to wear layers, buy a fan, and soldier on. Then researchers started making some troubling connections between vasomotor symptoms and chronic disease. This week’s guest, Dr. Rebecca Thurston, is one of those […]

  • Vulvovaginal Health & Comfort for Life with Rochelle Bernstein, MD (Episode 165)

    Whether you run, lift, or ride (and especially if you ride), an otherwise great workout can be wrecked by a painful vulva. And lots of issues can crop up during and beyond the menopause transition that can cause pain, discomfort, and even damage to your vulva and vaginal tissues. We address them all this week […]

  • A Beautiful Work in Progress in Perimenopause with Mirna Valerio (Episode 164)

    Mirna Valerio, aka the Mirnavator, has never shied away from adversity. As a Black woman in a larger body who is also an ultrarunner, she’s endured her share of harassment and ridicule, both online and in real life. But despite some people trying to put her down, she’s devoted her life to lifting others up, […]

  • Ditching Diets for Good with Pam Moore (Episode 163)

    As women who’ve grown up steeped in diet culture, we often give away our agency to books, apps, and strict food rules rather than trusting ourselves to know what to eat and what our bodies need. During menopause, when our bodies are changing, we can doubledown on those rules, making life harder. This week we […]

  • Regaining Power in Perimenopause with Jill Patterson (Episode 162)

    As active, athletic women, we know ourselves better than anyone. We know our pace, our power, and our mindset for training and competing. Perimenopause can make all of that change out of the blue. It can rob us of our confidence and knock us off our game, just when we feel like we’re really hitting […]

  • Weight Loss Drugs and Active Menopausal Women with Jody Dushay, MD (Episode 161)

    The New York Times recently called Ozempic a “new match for menopausal weight gain”. But is it? These drugs can be a godsend for those who need them. But there’s a lot we need to understand. How do they work? How well do they work? Who benefits from them? What are their risks? What impact […]

  • Women Need Earlier Perimenopausal Care with Nina Coslov (Episode 160)

    Most women don’t expect menopause symptoms to start until age 50. Neither do many of their healthcare providers. That’s a problem because, as this week’s guest Nina Coslov’s research shows, women can actually start experiencing symptoms associated with menopause during their late reproductive years before their periods become noticeably irregular and they’re officially in perimenopause. […]

  • I Am I Can I Will I Do in Menopause with Christine D’Ercole (Episode 159)

    As we roll into a brand new year filled with goals and aspirations, this week’s guest, fan-favorite Peloton Cycling instructor Christine D’Ercole would like to remind us that we are bigger than a smaller pair of pants, and the most powerful thing anyone can say to us is what we say to ourselves, and we […]

  • REBROADCAST – Mastering Your Menopause Mindset with Cara Bradley

    This episode originally dropped on May 24, 2023. I’m too old. Nothing works for me. My best days are behind me. I just have to live with (fill in the blank). I’ll never feel better. When we’re really going through it, it can be easy to slip into a personal cave of limiting beliefs that […]

  • REBROADCAST – Built to Move with Juliet Starrett

    This episode originally dropped on April 5, 2023. What does it mean to be fit? Deadlifting your body weight? Running a 10K? Doing an Ironman? Most of our notions about fitness spotlight the big thing we want to do while glossing over all the smaller, equally important, but less “sexy” stuff like joint mobility, breathing […]

  • Getting Up to Speed on Menopause Research (or the Lack Thereof!) with Christine Yu (Episode 158)

    As active women, we’re so used to our bodies being considered “other” or “less than” in health and fitness media, we barely notice it. Our bouncing breasts are a problem. Our wide hips are a problem. Our periods, boy oh boy, big problem. And when we hit perimenopause and menopause? Well, until very recently nobody […]

  • Save Your Menopausal Skeleton with Kristi DeSapri, MD (Episode 157)

    Women generally talk about what they see and feel during menopause. Symptoms like hot flashes, joint pain, and vaginal dryness grab our attention while our bone density silently slips away. Women can lose up to 20% of their spinal bone mass through the menopause transition. Thirty-five to 50 percent of women have low bone mass […]

  • Taming the Hormonal Perimonster with Sasha Gollish (Episode 156)

    A few years ago, elite Canadian runner Sasha Gollish started experiencing some symptoms that had her wondering what the hell was up with her body—crime scene (or as she called them firehose) periods, strange memory lapses, times in races when her legs were flailing and her muscles were not responding the way they typically would […]

  • Ditching Destructive Menopause Diet & Fitness Narratives with Meredith Root (Episode 155)

    Women in menopause get a lot of nutrition and fitness advice. Some of it is sound. Some less so. Quite a bit of it is downright predatory. That is why the best nutrition and fitness advice for menopausal women is often not about grams of protein or hours of exercise, but rather a hard look […]

  • Spiritual Fitness in Midlife & Menopause with Anne Alexander (Episode 154)

    We exercise and train for hours each week (and sometimes each day) to build our physical fitness. We work on our mental toughness. But how much time do we devote to our spiritual fitness? To exercising our soul? For many of us it’s not so much. And we can suffer for it, getting lost, sad, […]

  • Your Questions Answered with Selene Yeager (Episode 153)

    Tummy tucks, insomnia, hormonal headaches, training post breast cancer, anxiety-calming supplements…you had some questions! And we have some answers! This week we dig back into the Speakpipe voicemail box and address your questions regarding menopause-related concerns and performance with host Selene Yeager. We are not medical professionals, of course, so this is not a substitute […]

  • What to Know About Fasting Through and Beyond the Menopause Transition with Dr. Erin Faules, DO (Episode 152)

    Fasting is often recommended as a solution to the metabolic health and weight management challenges menopausal women face. And while it can be an effective health tool when done properly, there are numerous pitfalls that active women can encounter when layering the stress of fuel restriction on top of other stress in their lives. This […]

  • The Power of Play & Parkour During Menopause with Penny Szentkuti & Rachel Gray (Episode 151)

    When we reach menopause and midlife, we’re sometimes leery of trying new things. We don’t want to embarrass ourselves. We feel afraid. We don’t want to get hurt. Whether hormonal, societal, or a blend of both, we can easily succumb to the urge to stay on the sidelines. But the real magic happens when you […]

  • What Happens to Muscle During Menopause with Sam Moore, MS, CSCS (Episode 150)

    Millions of women will tell you they feel like their muscle disappeared overnight once they hit the menopause transition. It may not technically happen in a 24 hour period, but muscle tissue really does slip away quickly over the perimenopause period. That’s a problem because muscle is our metabolic engine and helps us live, play, […]

  • Faster After 40, 50 and Beyond: Live from VinFast Ironman World Championship (Episode 149)

    We’ve been fed a narrative that you can’t get faster after a certain age. We used to say 40. Definitely not after 50. Could you possibly get faster after 60? This week’s guests say, “Why not?” When it comes to women in midlife and menopause, we’re more active than ever. We also know more, have […]

  • Unlock Your Menopause Type with Heather Hirsch, MD (Episode 148)

    Menopause is not a monolith. We all experience this stage of life differently and require unique care. So this week we sat down with Dr. Heather Hirsch, author of Unlock Your Menopause Type to talk about the six basic types she sees in her practice, including premature, sudden, full-throttle, mind-altering, seemingly never-ending, and silent and […]

  • Smashing World Records During Perimenopause with Camille Herron (Episode 147)

    Ultra running sensation Camille Herron is currently smashing world records, including a new woman’s 48 hour running world record set earlier this year where she logged a whopping 435 kilometers (270.5 miles) around a 400-meter track(!), which also made her the first female athlete to surpass a Men’s American record, all while managing the hormonal […]

  • Diving to Incredible Depths During Menopause with Nina McGowan (Episode 146)

    Nina McGowan didn’t begin freediving until she was in her late 40s and sliding into the menopause transition. With the help of her background in meditation, yoga, dance, the arts, and eventually hormone therapy, she’s reached depths she would have only dreamed imaginable, setting multiple Irish National Records as well as securing a World Record […]

  • The New Rules of Menopause with Stephanie Faubion, MD, MBA (Episode 145)

    The conversation around menopause is moving at lightspeed these days, with a wave of misinformation following quickly in its wake. So this week we sat down with the medical director of The Menopause Society (formerly the North American Menopause Society), Dr. Stephanie Faubion, author of The New Rules of Menopause to catch up on where […]

  • Post Menopocalypse with Amanda Thebe (Episode 144)

    Amanda Thebe was so frustrated by her two-year odyssey to find out what was behind her bone-crushing fatigue, vertigo, incontinence, rage, migraines, depression, and other symptoms that were outright derailing her life (spoiler: it was perimenopause), she wrote what would become an Amazon best-selling book, Menopocalypse: How I Learned to Thrive During Menopause and How […]

  • Creating a Positive Menopause Vision with Diesta Goldsmith (Episode 143)

    Menopause is all over mainstream media these days. But too many women are still missing the message that they don’t have to needlessly suffer, especially Black women who on average go into menopause earlier and have worse symptoms such as hot flashes, depression and sleep disturbances than White women, but are less likely to receive […]

  • What Menopausal Women Need to Know About Cortisol with Carla DiGirolamo, MD, PhD (Episode 142)

    Of all our hormones, cortisol might be the most misunderstood and maligned. We’re told this stress hormone is the culprit behind excess belly fat, high blood sugar, accelerated aging, and a host of menopausal and midlife woes. Menopausal and midlife women sometimes are afraid to exercise too much because they’ve been told it will raise […]

  • A Peek Behind the Coaching Process with Marni Sumbal, MS, RD, CSSD (Episode 141)

    At this point, you may have been doing your sport for a decade, maybe two…or more. It’s easy to fall into a rut or lose your spark. The hormonal changes that come with the menopause transition also can make training more challenging and put a dent in your motivation. Trying a new challenge and/or working […]

  • Defying Invisibility and Ageism with Joan Swain (Episode 140)

    When we’re in our 20s and 30s, we see ourselves everywhere in sports marketing and branding. Then, somewhere along the way, we vanish, as though women past 40 or 50 don’t run, ride, hit the weights, or live active, vibrant lives. This week’s guest, Velocio Cycling Apparel ambassador Joan Swain, is on a mission to […]

  • Crushing CrossFit Goals During Menopause with Leka Fineman (Episode 139)

    CrossFit Games athlete Leka Fineman didn’t start the sport until she was 40. She learned to walk on her hands at age 50. Now at 56, she is competing in her fifth CrossFit Games competition as this episode airs. And she’s done it all while going through the menopause transition. We talk all about how […]

  • Managing Menopause-Related Anxiety with Dr. Clare Spencer (Episode 138)

    Whether it’s waking up at 2 a.m. with feelings of impending doom, fighting off a sudden freakout about driving on the freeway, or becoming paralyzed on a tricky trail you’ve ridden, hiked, or climbed dozens of times before, anxiety can hit seemingly out of nowhere during the menopause transition. In fact, because it can be […]

  • REBROADCAST – Sex Solutions with Dr. Lauren Streicher

    *Note – This episode originally dropped on January 27, 2021* Time for “the talk.” Seriously, we get sex ed when we go through puberty to know what to expect. But then we hit the other end of the hormonal spectrum and…crickets. Loss of libido and painful sex are real issues during menopausal years and, all […]

  • REBROADCAST – Save Your Sleep with Sleep Evangelist, Sophie Bostock

    *Note – This episode originally dropped on February 24, 2021* Menopause and midlife can send dueling wrecking balls straight into your sleep architecture, leaving you tossing and turning unable to get to sleep, waking up with racing thoughts at 3 a.m., and generally depriving you of the rest and regeneration you need. This week’s guest, […]

  • Join the Menopause Resistance with Sandra Bueckert (Episode 137)

    Sandra Bueckert started bodybuilding when she was just 16. Now, 40 years later, she’s still in the strength and fitness game, but she’s made a few changes. Sure, she still wants to look her best, but that’s no longer her driving force. These days she’s training to be part of the resistance—specifically to defy what […]

  • How to Harness Your Hormones with Dr. Nicky Keay (Episode 136)

    Hormones bring your DNA to life. They drive your training adaptations, help build muscle and bone, modulate your immune system, and much, much more. As peri and postmenopausal women we often focus on estrogen and progesterone (and maybe testosterone), but others like human growth hormone, vitamin D, and cortisol deserve our attention, too. And though […]

  • Personalized Medicine for Menopause with Julie Foucher, MD (Episode 135)

    Healthcare as we know it (especially in the U.S.) is mostly sickcare. Instead of working with us to keep us healthy, it treats us when we’re on the verge of disease or are outright unwell. There’s a growing movement to change that approach, which would be especially beneficial for menopausal women, who are at a […]

  • Balance is Not a Weakness with Baz Moffat (Episode 134)

    Menopause and midlife don’t mean giving up on our big goals. We can run marathons. We can do Ironman triathlons. We can compete at CrossFit. We just need to do things differently now. We need to respect balanced training that includes equal amounts of effort and restoration and to respect that a balanced life is […]

  • The Power of a Fresh Start with Tonya Oxendine (Episode 133)

    Past trauma can lead to a difficult menopause transition with more severe symptoms. Making matters worse, severe menopausal symptoms such as hot flashes and difficulty sleeping can also heighten existing post-traumatic stress symptoms for women who have suffered trauma. Female veterans are especially at risk for both, and this week’s guest Tonya Oxendine, Warrior Speak […]

  • Your Questions Answered! (Episode 132)

    Pelvic floor injuries, body image woes, race day nerves, declining running times, newfound emotional flare ups, preventing injury…you had questions! And we have answers. This week we dig into the Speakpipe voicemail box and address your questions and concerns regarding menopause and performance with host Selene Yeager. Along with being the host of the Hit […]

  • Mastering Your Menopause Mindset with Cara Bradley (Episode 131)

    I’m too old. Nothing works for me. My best days are behind me. I just have to live with (fill in the blank). I’ll never feel better. When we’re really going through it, it can be easy to slip into a personal cave of limiting beliefs that can conspire to keep us there in the […]

  • Putting Menopause on Ice with Jen McNutt (Episode 130)

    When this week’s guest Jen McNutt laced up her figure skates and got back on the ice after a 26-year hiatus, her goal was to try to get back to where she used to be–hitting double jumps on the ice. Perimenopause had other ideas. Jen found herself struggling with fatigue, weakness, poor recovery, and sliding […]

  • The Art of Menopause Performance with Lisa Congdon (Episode 129)

    Fine artist and cyclist Lisa Congdon was not prepared for the impact menopause was going to have on her body or the extent to which those changes would cause a drop in her athletic performance. So, she dug into all the resources she could find for athletic menopausal women and, at the then age of […]

  • Breathe Your Way to Better Menopausal Health with Jill Miller (Episode 128)

    Remember being told you should start dieting if you could “pinch an inch” around your midsection? (Thanks Special K cereal ads…) Growing up, our bellies were often made a point of shame as they were poked, pinched, and otherwise derided. For many, that shame gets deeper in the menopause transition. That urge to suck it […]

  • Just Keep Swimming with Sarah Thomas (Episode 127)

    When life gets hard, many of us channel our inner Dory, put our heads down, and “Just keep swimming.” Nobody, but nobody, embodies this ethos more than this week’s guest ultraendurance swimmer Sarah Thomas. In Sarah’s 40 years on this planet, she has endured chemo, radiation, and surgery for aggressive breast cancer, a traumatic ectopic […]

  • Hormone Therapy: Where We Are & Where We’re Going with Carla DiGirolamo, MD, PhD (Episode 126)

    Now that menopause is mainstream news, interest in hormone therapy is exploding. And so is the confusion and controversy surrounding it, as menopausal hormone therapy (aka hormone replacement therapy), which is undeniably a game changer for millions, has also become a massive business. Some practitioners are reportedly prescribing “megadoses” of estrogen–in some cases twice or […]

  • Midlife, Menopause & Masturbation with Lou Featherstone (Episode 125)

    Midlife and menopause can do a number on our sexual selves. Our bodies are changing. We can feel more anxious and less self-confident. After years of taking care of others, we can lose sight of ourselves. Sex might be the last thing on our minds. If that makes you sad, take heart. It doesn’t have […]

  • Built to Move with Juliet Starrett (Episode 124)

    What does it mean to be fit? Deadlifting your body weight? Running a 10K? Doing an Ironman? Most of our notions about fitness spotlight the big thing we want to do while glossing over all the smaller, equally important, but less “sexy” stuff like joint mobility, breathing practices, balance, and nutrition it takes to get […]

  • No Expiration Dates with Dede Griesbauer (Episode 123)

    2022 Ultraman World Championship winner and new course record setter Dede Griesbauer will be the first to tell you, age is definitely more than “just a number.” It’s real, and the training, recovery practices, and dedication it takes to accomplish such feats at 52 is radically different than it is at 32 or even 42. […]

  • Sports Nutrition & Supplements – What Menopausal Women Really Need with Abbie Smith-Ryan, PhD (Episode 122)

    Whether we’re trying to make muscle, perform our best, or avoid the dreaded GI distress during long endurance events, women in and beyond the menopause transition have special needs. But the sports nutrition and supplement landscape is rife with conflicting and confusing information. This week we cut through the noise with scientist, exercise physiologist, and […]

  • It’s Never Too Late to Get Back in the Game with Sarah-Jane Nichols (Episode 121)

    Sarah-Jane Nichols is a BMX cycling legend. The Hall of Famer was a 7-time British Champion, 4-time European Champion, and a World Champion as a teen in 1986. Now, at age 52, 34 years after retiring from the sport, Nichols is back on her bike despite being in the throes of extremely challenging perimenopausal symptoms. […]

  • Why Equal Opportunity is No Longer Enough – An International Women's Day Discussion – Women's Performance

    What does equity mean in sport? Yes, it’s women being included, but it’s also resources for racing moms, supporting the inclusion of Black folks in historically white sports, having size-inclusive athletic gear, and SO much more. Feisty Media welcomes a panel of women with intersectional identities to celebrate International Women’s Day and discuss why equal […]

  • Is it Underfueling? Or is it Perimenopause? with Pat Spencer (Episode 120)

    Pat Spencer couldn’t help but think she’d be faster if she were lighter. After all, that’s what everyone in endurance sports tells you. But instead of gaining speed, Pat went from being a competitive age group triathlete to not being able to do any endurance sports because of a profound case of Relative Energy Deficiency […]

  • Your Best Days Are Ahead of You with Anabelle Broadbent (Episode 119)

    Record-holding runner Anabelle Broadbent thought she’d blow right through menopause…until erratic, uber-heavy periods, body composition changes, anxiety, and a major drop in speed told her menopause had other ideas. As a scientist, she did what she knows best: research and problem-solving. And last year, at age 55, she was awarded the 2022 USATF GOLD Phidippides […]

  • Dragons & Gems: Finding Inner Safety During Menopause with Dr. Nerina Ramlakhan (Episode 118)

    Past trauma–big or small–and daily stress can take a toll on the nervous system, and many of us spend our days largely in a state of fight or flight. When we hit menopause, our nervous system becomes even more nervous, and life, along with everything that happened up until that point rises to the surface […]

  • Powerlifting is Menopausal Medicine with Michelle Carlson (Episode 117)

    Many women start exercising to lose weight–to get smaller and chase a number on the scale. This week’s guest powerlifter Michelle Carlson is no stranger to those goals. She took up running in her early 30s and in her own words “spent a ridiculous number of years chasing the number on the scale and living […]

  • Dying to Be Enough with Kristin DiDomenico (Episode 116)

    Do you struggle with feeling you’re not enough? Fit enough? Successful enough? Lean enough? Enough, enough, enough. By the time we reach menopause, many of us have spent years, even decades, of our lives chasing enough. And, as this week’s guest, coach, trainer, and athlete Kristin DiDomenico knows, that relentless pursuit of perfection can take […]

  • Finding Midlife Clarity with Jennifer Stoute (Episode 115)

    People will often accuse a woman who is changing things in her life at 50 of having a midlife crisis. It’s quite the opposite, according to this week’s guest, two-time Olympian, Jennifer Stoute. It’s midlife clarity. Stoute, who also played Rebel the Gladiator on the hit show Gladiators has done her share of evaluating and […]

  • PAVING a Woman’s Path through Menopause and Beyond with Michelle Tollefson, MD (Episode 114)

    In many ways, health care is actually sick care. We are enormously grateful for physicians who can address pathology and treat disease. But often the emphasis is on surviving, not thriving. That’s where Lifestyle Medicine comes in. It’s a system of health care that leans in on the power of social connections, personal psychology, exercise, […]

  • What You Need to Know About Weight In Menopause and Beyond with Fatima Cody Stanford, MD, MPH, MPA (Episode 113)

    We’ve been led to believe weight is a simple equation: energy in versus energy out, which implies it’s all in our control. We’re in charge. We just need the right diet, exercise, and willpower. And while nutrition and physical activity matter a lot, and some maintain their weight through those means, others feel like their […]

  • Transformation in Menopause: Who Do You Want to Be Now? with Nicole DeBoom (Episode 112))

    We’re back! And we’re kicking off the New Year with the perfect introspective conversation with former pro athlete turned entrepreneur and life adventurer, Nicole DeBoom. Nicole recently turned 50 and is in the thick of perimenopause, which for her has manifested in brain fog, night sweats, body composition changes, and more. She’s also recently had […]

  • REBROADCAST: Do You Need Hormone Therapy? with Carla DiGirolamo, M.D., Ph.D.

    Since we started this podcast, many women have gone from being afraid to take hormone therapy to being afraid not to take hormone therapy, as some in the menopause field are saying that menopause is really a “hormone deficiency” and we can’t age well without it. This week we dive in on what hormone therapy […]

  • REBROADCAST: The State of Menopause with Stephanie Faubion, MD, MBA, Medical Director of NAMS

    The good news: we are finally talking about menopause! The not so good news: we still have a long way to go, especially in the realm of research, says this week’s guest Dr. Stephanie Faubion, who is on the tip of the spear leading the way forward as the Medical Director of The North American […]

  • How to Research Your Menopause with Leslie McClure, PhD (Episode 111)

    Dr. Google is often our first stop when we want to understand a symptom we’re experiencing and find out what we can do about it. But the internet is a bottomless well of information–and disinformation. Even when we dig into actual research studies, the conclusions aren’t always reliable or consistent, which is why it’s hard […]

  • Navigating the Rocky Road of Perimenopause with Deanna McCurdy (Episode 110)

    At age 42, off-road triathlete Deanna McCurdy was crushing it, including clocking the fastest female amateur time at XTERRA National Championships, and was ready to turn pro when—perimenopause. Out of the blue, her performance tanked and she found herself in tears through a key race. Deanna, who’s also a mom of a special needs daughter, […]

  • Get a Buff Muff with The Vagina Coach, Kim Vopni (Episode 109)

    Women have been taught incontinence is our destiny–that we should just accept it and wear pads. Pelvic floor issues like prolapse are often normalized–we should just stop running, jumping, and lifting heavy sh*t. This week’s guest The Vagina Coach, Kim Vopni, is having none of it, and she dives into all the therapies and tools […]

  • The Menopause 200 – An Ultrarunner’s Game Plan for Thriving Through Menopause with Kamm Prongay (Episode 108)

    Ultrarunner Kamm Prongay is clear: she did not sign up for the Menopause 200. Her ovaries did. And when they did, she eventually found herself on the start line, unable to run. Kamm has been chronicling her journey through menopause in a series of essays in Ultrarunner.com, including one titled the Menopause 200, in which […]

  • Find Your Menopause Five – The Power of Human Connection in Menopause with Zora Benhamou (Episode 107)

    More than diet, exercise, the money in your bank account, your cholesterol levels, or even your genes, it’s your relationships that matter most when it comes to being happier and healthier in midlife and into old age. That’s important because midlife and menopause are inextricably intertwined, and how we experience one impacts how we experience […]

  • Women Who FKT with Teri Smith and Dana Katz (Episode 106)

    Want to challenge yourself without the pressure that comes with traditional competition? Feel like trying something new that won’t have you comparing your former self to your current self? This week’s guests Teri Smith and Dana Katz suggest trying an FKT, or fastest known time, a challenge where you run, hike, or in some cases […]

  • Healthy, Pain-free Joints Through Menopause. How Regenerative Medicine Can Help (Episode 105)

    Nothing stops you in your tracks like chronic pain and nagging, seemingly endless injuries, both of which can become more common during the menopause transition and beyond. The sports medicine world is brimming with cutting-edge, regenerative medicine treatments promising relief, but it can be hard to cut through the marketing jargon to figure out what […]

  • Surfing the Turbulent Waters of Midlife and Menopause with Lisa Alfano (Episode 104)

    Body image issues. Wrecked sleep. Struggling with slowing down. Midlife and menopause can send us into some seriously turbulent waters. This week’s guest, Lisa Alfano, manages to keep from going under by riding the waves–literally. Lisa is a surfer and triathlete who has married her passions in her business Tri2Surf, a community for women ages […]

  • Less Fuel, More Problems. Why Menopausal Athletes Need to Eat More with Heidi Skolnik (Episode 103)

    Eat less. How many times have you seen and heard that message? As a generation that grew up steeped in diet culture, most of us have it deeply internalized…often to our detriment. Underfueling among active women is extremely common and puts us at risk for low energy availability (LEA), which can lead to relative energy […]

  • Breast Health During Menopause with Amy Comander, MD (Episode 102)

    October is breast cancer awareness month, an annual campaign to raise awareness about the impact of breast cancer. That’s especially important for women in the menopause transition and beyond because the risk of breast cancer rises with age. Most breast cancers are found in women who are 55 and older. This week we sat down […]

  • The State of Menopause with Stephanie Faubion, MD, MBA, Medical Director of NAMS (Episode 101)

    The good news: we are finally talking about menopause! The not so good news: we still have a long way to go, especially in the realm of research, says this week’s guest Dr. Stephanie Faubion, who is on the tip of the spear leading the way forward as the Medical Director of The North American […]

  • The Power of You (Episode 100)

    We are celebrating our 100th episode…and the fact that we have surpassed one million downloads in just two years’ time! Our community is growing by leaps and bounds and you’re the reason why. So this week, we are also celebrating YOU!  Host Selene Yeager sits down with Hit Play Not Pause producer Carrie Barrett to […]

  • Acupuncture for Managing Menopausal Symptoms with Michelle Hay (Episode 99)

    Bloating, hot flashes, night sweats, disrupted sleep, irritability, restlessness, brain fog…this week’s guest Michelle Hay treats them all, as well as the stress that can exacerbate them, with acupuncture. This week’s show is all about this Traditional Chinese Medicine practice, how it works, what to expect, and the specific benefits for menopausal women. Michelle P. […]

  • Less Pain, More Joy & Better Movement in Menopause with Petra Fisher (Episode 98)

    Most of us, even if we’re very active, are not moving our bodies the way nature designed them to move. We exercise plenty. We also sit plenty. We wear shoes that don’t help keep our feet strong or our posture properly aligned. That can set the stage for aches, pains, and injuries, especially during this […]

  • Crushing CrossFit During Menopause with Shawna Norton (Episode 97)

    Heavy lifting, HIIT training, and explosive exercises like plyometrics do a menopausal body good. So, CrossFit can be the perfect workout for women in this stage of life…provided they scale it to their needs. That’s because CrossFit also has elements that may not work with our physiology and can leave us feeling tired and beat […]

  • Harnessing the Masters Mindset with Ashling Smith (Episode 96)

    What would happen if you tossed out all your premenopausal notions about how you are “supposed to” eat and train for your best performance and tried some new tricks to work with your changing physiology? If you’re like this week’s guest, you might just win a gold medal. Ashling Smith is a runner from Ireland […]

  • The ABCs of MHT with Heather Hirsch, MD (Episode 95)

    How do you know if menopausal hormone therapy (MHT) is for you? What should you expect if you start hormone therapy? How long does it take to work? What should you do if you don’t feel like it’s working? We dive into the ABCs of starting MHT this week with menopause doctor Heather Hirsch, MD. […]

  • Saving Your Heart with Martha Gulati, MD (Episode 94)

    The only thing women tend to do better than men after having a heart attack is die. That’s a sobering mic drop. It’s also a fact and one that this week’s guest Dr. Martha Gulati is making her life’s work to change. We dive into the special heart disease risk factors women, especially menopausal women […]

  • Innovations that are Making Menopause Better with Alyssa Dweck, MD (Episode 93)

    From femtech apps to menopause telehealth, tracking rings to cooling bracelets, and even cryotech surgical services designed to prolong ovarian function, menopause is having a moment in innovation and enterprise. This week we dig into it with Alyssa Dweck, MD, FACOG, who is an avid runner as well as a consultant, key opinion leader (KOL), […]

  • The Challenges of Surgical and Early Menopause with Corinne Menn, MD (Episode 92)

    One in eight women will have their ovaries removed before the natural age of menopause. Five percent of women naturally go through early menopause between the ages of 40 and 45, and 1 percent experience premature menopause before age 40. That’s a lot of women. And a large percentage of these women are not getting […]

  • You Deserve to Get Good Sleep with Andrea Matsumura, MD (Episode 91)

    Women have traditionally been ignored in sleep medicine (shocking, we know). That means our sleep issues can be misunderstood and misdiagnosed, especially during menopause when sleep disruptions rise. This week we investigate how hormones and menopausal symptoms impact sleep, as well as dive into sleep issues like sleep apnea (which shows up differently in women), […]

  • IX: Turning up the Volume with Joan Cronan

    Hit Play Not Pause is on a quick summer break during the weeks of July 18th and 25th, 2022. While we’re out, we are excited to share two episodes from Feisty Media’s excellent limited Title IX series. Not to pick favorites, but here at Feisty – this is definitely a favorite. With almost 50 years […]

  • IX: Changing the Game with Wendy Mink

    Hit Play Not Pause is on a quick summer break during the weeks of July 18th and 25th, 2022. While we’re out, we are excited to share two episodes from Feisty Media’s excellent limited Title IX series. This week, Haley Chura – co-host of Ironwomen – interviews the renowned Wendy Mink. Wendy is a professor […]

  • Muscle and Ligament Strength in Menopause with Kathryn Ackerman, MD, MPH (Episode 90)

    If you’re feeling more injury prone, you’re not alone. Many women who have led active, athletic lives without a lot of injuries and “itises” suddenly find themselves sidelined more often during the menopause transition. Fluctuating and declining hormone levels directly impact your musculoskeletal system, as do your lifelong movement patterns, exercise habits, recovery practices, and […]

  • Menopause Lessons from the Mountains with Jeannette McGill (Episode 89)

    Women often stop going to the high mountains when they reach menopause. The reasons why–hot flashes, unpredictable periods, anxiety, and fear, to name a few–will resonate with all of us, whether or not we ever step foot above sea level. This week’s guest, high altitude mountaineer Jeannette McGill is currently navigating the menopause transition herself […]

  • The Obstacle is Her Way with Laura McElduff (Episode 88)

    The menopause transition can throw a lot of obstacles in your path. Training for and participating in obstacle course races can help you overcome them both physically and mentally, as you lift heavy loads, strengthen your grip, and hone your mental toughness and problem-solving skills. Plus, it’s super fun, says this week’s guest, obstacle course […]

  • Better Brain Health with Louisa Nicola (Episode 87)

    As active women, we train our strength and our endurance. But we don’t clean that barbell, we don’t cross that finish line, we literally don’t accomplish anything in life without first having the mental ability that comes from our brain. And as we age, our brains become vulnerable to decline. They physically change during the […]

  • Oh, Baby! with Liz Carlson (Episode 86)

    As women are living longer, pursuing higher education, and chasing athletic goals well into midlife, the decision if, when, or even how to have a baby has become increasingly complex, because the old formula of graduate, get married, have kids just doesn’t work the way it used to. So this week’s guest, Liz Carlson, created […]

  • Hot Flashes, Cold Plunges & Pushing the Limits in Perimenopause with George Gilbert (Episode 85)

    Breaking a sweat is generally a good thing–a sign of healthy exertion–unless you’re working out in temperatures more suited to penguins than people. In those conditions, it can quickly lead to hypothermia, frostbite…or worse. So how does a perimenopausal woman (hello, hot flashes) make a 1,130 kilometer trek across Antarctica while pulling a 175-pound sled? […]

  • Build a Better Body Image Toolbox with Maria Luque, PhD (Episode 84)

    The menopause transition can leave a minefield of body image issues in its wake. Some research shows that as few as 12 percent of us are satisfied with our bodies at this time of life. That’s a problem, as poor body image is also linked to mental health issues like depression. We can’t wave a […]

  • Menopause Watts with Karen Duff (Episode 83)

    Hot flashes. Sleepless nights. Mood swings. Divorce. The challenges of menopause and midlife came raining down on this week’s guest, Karen Duff, just a few years after she’d taken up mountain biking and was ascending the ranks quickly with her sights set on world-class competitions. She shares how she persevered through training, racing, and community […]

  • Vaginas, Vulvas, and Pelvic Organ Prolapse with Kathleen Connell, MD (Episode 82)

    Your pelvis changes during menopause–inside and out. The vaginal and vulvar tissues become thinner; the pH and microbiome in your vagina can shift; and the scaffolding that supports your pelvic organs can weaken, increasing your risk for pelvic organ prolapse. There’s help for all of that, so you can continue running, riding, lifting, having sex, […]

  • Next Level Menopause with Dr. Stacy Sims (Episode 81)

    Menopause is not the end of the line. It is not a “deficiency.” It’s a transition to the next phase of your life–a phase that can be positive, empowering, and powerful. But first, we need to understand what menopause really is; what is happening hormonally during this time, and how it is affecting literally every […]

  • Massage in Menopause – Finding a Safe Space with Rosemarie Rotenberger (Episode 80)

    Your muscles and connective tissues can get “stickier” and feel stiffer during the menopause transition, and you can find yourself with more aches and pains and niggles than you had before. Massage therapy can help with that. But the benefits don’t end with your muscles. Massage is also good for the menopausal mind. It activates […]

  • How to Start Lifting Heavy Sh*t & More with Kerry Ann Madden (Episode 79)

    We know lifting heavy, doing plyometrics, and adding intensity to our routines help us stay strong and powerful as our bodies change during the menopause transition. But where do we start? What if we can’t jump? How do we lift heavy if we don’t have heavy weights? Longtime trainer and now one of the leaders […]

  • Do You Need Hormone Therapy? with Carla DiGirolamo, M.D., Ph.D. (Episode 78)

    In the year and a half since we started this podcast, many women have gone from being afraid to take hormone therapy to being afraid not to take hormone therapy, as some in the menopause field are saying that menopause is really a “hormone deficiency” and we can’t age well without it. This week we […]

  • Rewilding Menopause with Kirsten Lewis (Episode 77)

    Kirsten Lewis, at the age of 57, just ran her fastest 5K time–post-menopause, less than two years after she was ready to hang up her racing shoes and walk away from it all while in the throes of the menopause transition. She credits feeling stronger, happier, more grounded, and winning her age group in recent […]

  • Keto, Fasting, Food Phobia & the Un-Dieting of Menopause with Jenn Salib Huber, RD, ND (Episode 76)

    If you’re a woman, someone somewhere has a diet to sell you. If you’re a menopausal woman, that diet is likely to paint carbs as the root of all your woes–and the elimination or restriction of them as your midlife salvation. This week we sat down with dietitian and “undiet” advocate Jenn Salib Huber, RD, […]

  • Why You Need Barbell Medicine with Cassi Niemann (Episode 75)

    Whether you’re training for a tri, into CrossFit, or just want to be strong for life, barbells are the most effective way to get full-body strong in very little time. Barbell lifting also builds bone and muscle, improves stability and mobility, and makes you feel like a complete badass. This week we talk all about […]

  • The Eyes Have It with Christine Begley, OD (Episode 74)

    Need glasses for the first time in your life? Contacts suddenly feel too tight? Are your eyes dry and itchy? Menopause and midlife can usher in a cascade of vision and eye health changes. Thankfully there are many ways you can sharpen your sight and keep your eyes healthy (and more comfortable!). We dig into […]

  • The Joy of Rowing with Sarah Fuhrmann (Episode 73)

    Dim the lights. Pour a drink. Light some candles. And get ready to…row! Yep, row. Indoor rowing can be an exercise in meditation, says this week’s guest and rowing aficionado, Sarah Fuhrmann. It also uses 86 percent of your muscles and can be an ass-kicking workout when you want it to be. This week we […]

  • Save Your Teeth with Dr. Julie Gallagher (Episode 72)

    Even if you brush, floss, and get regular dental check-ups, if you’re like many athletes—especially those in the menopause transition—you may still struggle with tooth decay and oral health woes. That’s because both athletics and hormone decline can lead to conditions that set the stage for dental disease and mouth discomfort, both of which can […]

  • All About Blood Sugar with Molly Downey, RDN (Episode 71)

    Anyone who’s ever hit the wall at mile 19 of a marathon or fizzled out on a Fran at CrossFit, knows how important glucose (aka sugar) is for energy–both mentally and physically. As women in the menopause transition, we also know that managing generally healthy blood sugar levels can be more challenging as we can […]

  • You Belong with Elizabeth Allen (Episode 70)

    We all want to belong. That desire can increase during the menopause transition, when having a community to share experiences with helps us feel less alone. But making those connections isn’t always easy, especially when culture doesn’t include you. This week’s guest, long time athlete Elizabeth Allen, who identifies as a Black, plus-sized GenXer (who […]

  • You Are More than Your Body with Kaisa Keranen (Episode 69)

    For far too long, many of us have defined ourselves (or worse our self worth) by the size of our thighs and the circumference of our waistline, setting ourselves up for a lifelong battle with our bodies and an underlying discontent with who we are based upon a largely unattainable “ideal.” That can get worse […]

  • March to Your Own Drummer with Jennifer Maxwell (Episode 68)

    Sometimes life sidelines us, knocking us off the path we thought we’d be on forever, or at least for the foreseeable future. Menopause can certainly trip us up. But so can many other random, sometimes terrible, events we never saw coming. And sometimes we end up contending with all of it. This week’s guest, Jennifer […]

  • Meet the Menoparkers with Gina Ransom (Episode 67)

    What do you do when menopause turns you into a nearly unrecognizable version of yourself? If you’re Gina Ransom, you pore through every resource you can find, advocate for yourself and others in the same situation, and form a community so you all can keep on kicking ass.  Gina is a lifelong fitness professional who […]

  • No Limits with Leah Goldstein (Episode 66)

    It’s easy to look at the barriers we face and think, “I can’t.” Leah Goldstein is here this week to show you, you can. Leah won the Race Across America (RAAM) outright last year at age 52, beating the next closest man by 17 hours. But that barely scratches the surface of her myriad accomplishments […]

  • When Trauma Meets Menopause with Athena Farias (Episode 65)

    Running is a coping mechanism for many trauma survivors. You lace up and put one foot in front of the other for solace and escape. But what happens when you hit menopause and the demons start to catch up? This week’s guest, coach and endurance athlete Athena Farias talks about all that and more this […]

  • Self Acceptance & the Love of the Game with Julie Dunkle (Episode 64)

    Menopause can be a wet blanket for competitive athletes. How do you keep showing up to start lines when you’re managing hot flashes, heat intolerance, poor sleep, and watching peers walk away from the sport? This week’s guest has some answers. A lifelong athlete and self proclaimed triathlon addict, Julie Dunkle, now in her mid […]

  • Overcoming Obstacles with Julie Angel, Ph.D. (Episode 63)

    Most of us–even the most active among us–are limited in how well we move. Sure we can run or ride a bike or lift heavy sh*t, but can we balance on a beam or jump over fallen logs? Can we move with strength and fluidity in every direction? Can we go over, under, and through […]

  • *REBROADCAST* Let’s Talk About Sex with Kelly Casperson, MD (Episode 50)

    Your brain is your largest–and arguably your most important–sex organ. It’s also the most overlooked, especially during the menopausal transition when we spend a whole lot of time talking about our vaginas (which are important, too, of course!). This week’s guest Kelly Casperson, MD, talks about all of it in a show that drives home […]

  • *REBROADCAST* Estrogen Matters with Avrum Bluming, MD & Carol Tavris, PhD (Episode 41)

    Hormone therapy for menopause is rife with confusion, fear, misunderstanding, and outright misinformation. Even doctors, who are often relying on long debunked research, can be at a loss to help women make educated choices for their health, well-being, and performance during this time. This week’s guests, Drs. Avrum Bluming and Carol Tavris, authors of Estrogen […]

  • Can’t Stop. Won’t Stop. with Melanie McQuaid (Episode 62)

    Longevity in sport takes determination, curiosity, and the ability to adapt to what your mind and body needs as time goes on. That’s the embodiment of professional triathlete, mountain bike racer, coach, and 5x world champion Melanie McQuaid, who continues to kick ass through the menopause transition, placing 3rd at Ironman Chattanooga and 10th at […]

  • "Lifequakes," Identity Crises & Finding Solid Ground with Lisa Hesse (Episode 61)

    “Who am I now?” That’s an identity crisis many of us face during the menopausal transition, especially if we end up taking a step back from our primary sport or activity to figure out what we want from athletics in this next phase of life. This week’s guest, life and wellness coach Lisa Hesse, helps […]

  • Adventures in Menopause with Jeannie Wall (Episode 60)

    “Menopause Is Hell. It Also Made Me a Better Climber.” That’s the title of a feature article written in Outside magazine by this week’s guest and legendary outdoor sport athlete Jeannie Wall. We dig into what that piece is all about and address topics of fear, anxiety, rage, hot flashes, night sweats, fatigue, and the […]

  • Staying On Top of the Symptoms with Catriona Courtney (Episode 59)

    Joint pain, hot flashes, night sweats, crushing fatigue. Menopause can usher in a host of symptoms that make daily life challenging, let alone daily life on top of training and racing as a recreational athlete, being a mom, and managing a business. But with knowledge, practice, and patience, it can be done. This week’s guest, […]

  • Talking Testosterone with Dr. Carla DiGirolamo (Episode 58)

    Women make testosterone. It works in concert with estrogen and progesterone to maintain healthy muscles and bones and fires up your sex drive and helps protect your brain. Yet there are no FDA approved testosterone products for women and “T” is not included in standard menopausal hormone therapy. So women are left to their own […]

  • High Performance Nutrition with Lauren Antonucci, RDN (Episode 57)

    Our performance nutrition needs change during the menopause transition. Few know that better than women who both teach it and live it as athletes and sports dietitians, like this week’s guest ​​Lauren Antonucci, RDN, CSSD, author of High-Performance Nutrition for Masters Athletes. Along with being a sports nutritionist, Lauren is a runner, an Ironman athlete, […]

  • Feet First with Dr. Karen Langone (Episode 56)

    Bunions and bone spurs and heel pain, oh my! Foot pain in all shapes and forms is extremely common and becomes more so as we enter the menopause transition and our estrogen declines, taking our collagen production with it, which impacts the dozens of joints and tendons in our feet. That’s important because our feet […]

  • Leaks, Lockdowns & Magic Wands with Amy Hill Fife, MPT (Episode 55)

    As active women we know all about our muscles. We know the sets and reps to work our shoulders, glutes, and core. We’re proficient in using dumbbells, kettlebells, and squat racks. But when it comes to training our pelvic floor, we know one word: Kegels. That’s not enough. In fact, if our pelvic floor is […]

  • Enter the Dragon Boat with Chris Head and Connie Flesuras (Episode 54)

    Never underestimate the power of menopausal women. Their years of experience and deep well of physical and mental strength uniquely positions them to move mountains–or at least a fully loaded dragon boat weighing more than a ton. This week’s guests Chris Head, a newbie dragon boat racer with the Dragon Divas, a team of Breast […]

  • All About Your Bones with Dr. Marci Goolsby & Dr. Alana Serota (Episode 53)

    As a woman you can lose up to 20% of your bone density during the five to seven years following menopause. Given the fact that we hit peak bone density by age 30, we can’t go back in time and build more, but we can take steps right now to hang onto what we have […]

  • Selene Yeager on Becoming the Face of Menopause with guest host Tania Dalton (Episode 52)

    Happy birthday to Hit Play Not Pause! As a special gift, past guest, personal trainer, and healthy ageing coach Tania Dalton turns the tables and interviews host Selene Yeager for a 1 year anniversary bonus edition of the podcast. The two dive deep into Selene’s background as an accidental athlete turned professional level cyclist as […]

  • Just Getting Started with Mari Holden (Episode 51)

    Whether we run, ride, swim, or practice martial arts, at some point we can feel like we’re nearing the end of the line with how far we can go. That’s especially true when menopause and midlife put us in a Malachi crunch. But maybe what feels like an endpoint is really the starting point of […]

  • Let’s Talk About Sex with Kelly Casperson, MD (Episode 50)

    Your brain is your largest–and arguably your most important–sex organ. It’s also the most overlooked, especially during the menopausal transition when we spend a whole lot of time talking about our vaginas (which are important, too, of course!). This week’s guest Kelly Casperson, MD, talks about all of it in a show that drives home […]

  • Wisdom From the Back of the Pack with Adina O’Neill (Episode 49)

    Races are about more than winning. Competing is about more than podium spots or fastest times. Races are about personal bests and striving to be your best, whether that’s first place or 571st place. In fact, the person who comes in last may have overcome more, learned more, and grown more from the event than […]

  • Behind the ‘Gram with Nicole Sin Quee (Episode 48)

    Following menopausal athletes on Instagram can be inspiring. But if we’re honest, it can also be deflating. You see the podium smiles and the highlights of their lives, which can leave you feeling alone in your own struggles. That’s why it’s so wonderful when one of these athletes like this week’s guest, multisport athlete Nicole […]

  • Balancing Training with the Changes with Lenita Anthony (Episode 47)

    Juggling training by itself is hard. Juggling training along with real life obligations is even harder. Add the physical and psychological changes that come with menopause and midlife? Oh boy. Better call Cirque du Soleil for some tips. Or you can call a lifelong athlete, veteran coach, and exercise physiologist like this week’s guest, Lenita […]

  • When Cancer Enters the Equation with Dr. Corinne Menn (Episode 46)

    Medical menopause can be intense. If you’re a cancer survivor, you may have multiple rounds with menopause. You may go through premature menopause or have menopause symptoms related to chemotherapy and/or other drug treatments and then go through it again either naturally or should you need surgery or other treatments later on. It can all […]

  • Raise the Floor & Break the Ceiling with Tracey Jacobs (Episode 45)

    As women we hear a lot about “breaking the ceiling,” whether it’s the glass one that has hovered over us for so long or the self imposed one that we sometimes put overhead, limiting our potential. Well if you want to crack that ceiling, it helps to raise the floor—elevate the platform from which you’re […]

  • ​​Weighty Matters with Diana Reid, MPH, RDN (Episode 44)

    We often talk about menopause as puberty in reverse. Remember puberty? You sprouted breasts and grew hips and maybe got curvier all the way around. Nobody ever said to you, “What have you done?” You were obviously going through this very natural process. When those hormones reverse course, your body also starts changing. Only now, […]

  • Calm Your Mind with Dr. Alisha Brosse (Episode 43)

    Cognitive behavioral therapy, mindfulness, and other psychological practices come up a lot on this show as ways we can quell anxiety, manage menopausal symptoms like hot flashes and night sweats, and get some quality sleep during this time of life. But what exactly is it? How do you do it? How does it work? We […]

  • Let Your Lifestyle Be Your Medicine with Dr. Melissa Sundermann (Episode 42)

    Let food be thy medicine, they say. But don’t stop there. Let exercise and stress management and sleep and friendships and your whole lifestyle be thy medicine, too. That’s the basic tenet of the type of Lifestyle Medicine this week’s guest, Dr. Melissa Sundermann practices. It’s grounded in research showing how we live our lives […]

  • Estrogen Matters with Avrum Bluming, MD & Carol Tavris, PhD (Episode 41)

    Hormone therapy for menopause is rife with confusion, fear, misunderstanding, and outright misinformation. Even doctors, who are often relying on long debunked research, can be at a loss to help women make educated choices for their health, well-being, and performance during this time. This week’s guests, Drs. Avrum Bluming and Carol Tavris, authors of Estrogen […]

  • ​​Trust the Process with Libbey Sheldon (Episode 40)

    This show is all about working with your changing physiology to optimize performance. This week’s guest, Masters 50-54 Cyclocross World Champion and Masters 50-54 XC and Masters 50-54 Marathon Mountain Bike National Champion, Libbey Sheldon embodies that ethos as well as anyone we know. After struggling with mountain bike stage racing in 2013, Libbey went […]

  • **REBROADCAST** Stop the Leaks with Chloë Murdock, PT, DPT, OCS, CSCS (Episode 6)

    Everyone needs a little summer break, even podcast hosts! So this week we are re-posting this excellent episode with physical therapist Chloe Murdock from fall 2020. Enjoy! It happens. You sneeze, cough, or laugh…and leak. Or you can barely get your key in the door without wetting yourself. It’s common, but not normal…or necessary. This […]

  • The Thyroid Menopause Connection with Ingrid Anderson, RD (Episode 39)

    60 percent of people with thyroid disease go undiagnosed. And if you’re a menopausal woman, you may be mistaking thyroid disease symptoms for menopause symptoms—and suffering from both. The North American Menopause Society calls the thyroid a “touchy gland,” as it becomes imbalanced in about 1 in 8 women. And when it does, it can […]

  • This is Your Brain on Menopause with Dr. Sarah McKay (Episode 38)

    Recent research using brain imaging analysis shows our brains physically change during perimenopause. So our brains are clearly—sometimes substantially—impacted by our hormones. But those hormones are part of a larger chorus that includes nature, nurture, culture, society, lifestyle, and our thoughts and emotions, which can have a profound impact on how we experience the changes […]

  • Kick Ass with Kettlebells with Andrea Du Cane (Episode 37)

    If you’re looking for just one piece of equipment that can help you get strong and fit AF, look no further than kettlebells. If you’re looking for one woman who can tell you everything you want to know about kettlebell training and why it’s the ideal training tool for menopausal women, look no further than […]

  • It’s Not Time to Slow Down with Vonda Wright, MD (Episode 36)

    “Maybe it’s time to slow down.” That’s the message menopausal women often get from their friends, family, and yes, even physicians when they have joint pain and nagging injuries like Achilles tendonitis or “menopause arthritis” that are preventing them from running, riding, and hitting the weights without pain. This week’s guest, active aging expert Vonda […]

  • The Menopause Manifesto with Dr. Jen Gunter (Episode 35)

    Why is there so much misinformation about menopause? What really helps? What doesn’t? What the heck are “bioidentical hormones”? And why do we go through menopause anyway? We dig into all this and much, much more this week with none other than renowned (and oh, so feisty) OB/GYN and pain medicine physician, Dr. Jen Gunter, […]

  • Unwell Women with Elinor Cleghorn, Ph. D. (Episode 34)

    Ever wonder how we got here? How is it that in 2021 billions of women are still largely in the dark about menopause? That many of us still feel kind of ashamed to talk about it? This week’s guest, historian Elinor Cleghorn, Ph.D., author of Unwell Women: Misdiagnosis and Myth in a Man-Made World tells […]

  • Find Your Personal Peak with Julie Young (Episode 33)

    What can you do today to make yourself better tomorrow? The best answer to that question is based on you and you alone. Not what other women are doing. Not what you think you should be doing. Not what you used to do. But what you need to do—how to learn and improve—today based on […]

  • CrossFit Rx with Carla DiGirolamo, M.D. (Episode 32)

    Ask your doctor about the benefits of high intensity exercise, lifting heavy sh*t, and adaptogens and you may just get a shrug (or worse a patronizing smile). Ask your coach or trainer about medicine and…well, don’t ask your coach or trainer about medicine because that’s not their job. What’s left is a giant chasm where […]

  • Rolling with The Change with Cheryl Osborne (Episode 31)

    Your big goals don’t have to change with “The Change,” but your training, nutrition, and mindset sure do. This week, long time road and track cyclist Cheryl Osborne, 55, shares how she’s chasing a gold medal and championship jersey at the USA Cycling Masters Track National Championships this fall. Her strategy includes a healthy dose […]

  • Train Smart & Avoid Injury with Claire Callaghan B.Pty MSc (Episode 30)

    It’s hard to chase big goals and live your best life when you’re getting sidelined by injuries, which is a struggle many women face during the menopause transition. Research is only beginning to uncover how our sex hormones keep our muscles and connective tissues healthy and resilient and how the menopausal transition can increase the […]

  • Fine Tune Your Fueling with Dina Griffin, RDN (Episode 29)

    Does your diet make you feel good? How’s your energy? Are you performing and recovering well? How do you really feel? If we’re honest, many of us don’t even really know. Spending so many years on the high carb, low carb, no carb, low fat, high fat, keto, paleo, intermittent fasting Merry-Go-Round, it can be […]

  • Life Starts Now with Tania Dalton (Episode 28)

    How many times have you pushed back a big goal until you got “fitter” or “leaner”? How many times have you looked at an exciting challenge and thought, “That’s not for me.”? Tania Dalton spent most of her pre-menopausal life battling with body image issues, disordered eating, and crises of confidence, which kept her on […]

  • Guts & Glory with Stasi Kasianchuk, RDN (Episode 27)

    Gut health means more than just good digestion—though that’s certainly an important part of it! Your gut microbiome also impacts your overall health, body composition, and athletic performance. It’s also changing all the time and the menopausal transition definitely alters it…and not necessarily for the better. That’s why it’s especially important to build a diverse, […]

  • Reach New Heights with Nancy Feagin and Maggie Odette (Episode 26)

    The hormonal havoc of menopause can leave us with higher anxiety, less muscle, and a decline in power—all things that are unhelpful for sport in general, but especially if you’re scaling a vertical rock formation a dizzying distance from the ground. This week’s guests, Nancy Feagin and Maggie Odette, both badass rock climbers in their […]

  • Screw Diet Culture with Intuitive Eating’s Evelyn Tribole, RDN (Episode 25)

    Diets do not work. More than 30 years of diet culture has proven that point. Yet, we’re still bombarded day in and day out with books, websites, and fitspo pros promising rapid weight loss and making everyone feel bad about their bodies. Menopausal women are currently a popular target for many of these quick fixes […]

  • Keep Your Active Heart Healthy with Dr. Tamanna Singh (Episode 24)

    Everyone knows chest pain is a symptom of heart trouble. What too many people still don’t know is that women are more likely than men to experience other symptoms like nausea or vomiting, unexplained shortness of breath, profound inexplicable fatigue, jaw or back pain, or no symptoms at all. American Heart Association data from two […]

  • Ease Your Aches & Pains with The Ready State’s Dr. Kelly Starrett (Episode 23)

    Tight hips, achy knees, weak glutes, grouchy back, stiff ankles…the list of aches, pains, and niggles that pop up seemingly out of nowhere can feel overwhelming, especially once we hit the menopausal transition and our hormones aren’t keeping our muscles and connective tissues as resilient and supple as they once were. This week’s guest, Dr. […]

  • Healing Moves with Yoga Therapist Carol Krucoff (Episode 22)

    Yoga is more than something you do–that one or two classes a week where you attempt a full pigeon pose. It’s a way you live–a strengthening of the tether that connects your mind, body, and soul. Practiced daily, it can improve every aspect of your physical and mental well being, especially when you need that […]

  • Stoke Your Motivation with Dr. Lisa Lewis (Episode 21)

    Dragging yourself through the motions more often than not these days? You’re not alone. The brain chemistry changes that occur during menopausal years can cause your mojo, motivation, and mental game to go MIA. But don’t despair. This week’s guest, psychologist Dr. Lisa Lewis is here to help you get your groove back. Spoiler alert: […]

  • Save Your Sleep with Sleep Evangelist Dr. Sophie Bostock (Episode 20)

    Menopause and midlife can send dueling wrecking balls straight into your sleep architecture, leaving you tossing and turning unable to get to sleep, waking up with racing thoughts at 3 a.m., and generally depriving you of the rest and regeneration you need. This week’s guest, Dr. Sophie Bostock, the sleep scientist—and self-proclaimed sleep evangelist—is here […]

  • Become a Fat Burning Machine with Gale Bernhardt (Episode 19)

    As active women, we use carbs to fuel our training and racing. But there’s a limit to how many are good for our health (as well as performance), especially as we hit menopause and become more insulin resistant. This week’s guest, coach Gale Bernhardt has been on a mission to help her athletes dial in […]

  • Strong Starts in the Mind with Lisbeth Darsh (Episode 18)

    What keeps you going when the curtains start to fall at mile 19 of a marathon? How do you get up and charge again 3 days into a 6 day stage race? What makes the difference between picking up a kettlebell or a bottle of wine at the end of a long, hard, tiring day? […]

  • Going Big & Staying Balanced with Lynda Rowan (Episode 17)

    Chasing big athletic goals can supercharge your life. But how do you chase and accomplish those goals without dropping the ball on everything else, especially as you’re also trying to navigate all the changes that menopause and midlife can bring? This week’s guest, long time endurance athlete and coach Lynda Rowan is here to help. […]

  • Sex Solutions with Dr. Lauren Streicher (Episode 16)

    Time for “the talk.” Seriously, we get sex ed when we go through puberty to know what to expect. But then we hit the other end of the hormonal spectrum and…crickets. Loss of libido and painful sex are real issues during menopausal years and, all too often, women suffer in silence. Issues like vaginal dryness […]

  • Breaking Down Body Image & Eating Disorders with Dr. Christy Greenleaf (Episode 15)

    The words we say to ourselves. The way we look at ourselves. The way we fuel, or often don’t fuel, ourselves. They’re a product of so many things–culture, society, ingrained images and messages. And too often they hurt our health, performance, and general well being. Exercising, playing sports, and being active can help, but they […]

  • Overcoming the Mental Agony of Injury with Heidi Armstrong (Episode 14)

    Injuries don’t just hurt physically. They can rock you emotionally, as they keep you away from the activity you love, isolate you from your training buddies, and do a number on your self image, especially as we get into our menopausal years and injuries can pop up with increasing frequency. Your doctor or PT help […]

  • Time to Shine with Kacy Duke (Episode 13)

    Ready to create your menopause adventure? Yes, adventure. Now is the time to shine, says this week’s guest, wellness coach and fitness trainer Kacy Duke, who teaches people how to use the right mindset, motivation, and movement to reach their goals. Named one of New York City’s best trainers, Kacy has been the personal trainer […]

  • **REBROADCAST** Joy Goals with Kristen Dieffenbach (Episode 9)

    Missing your usual mojo and motivation? Wrestling with body image issues? Want a little help setting meaningful goals that go beyond how fast you can run a 5K? You are not alone! This week, exercise scientist and mental performance expert Dr. Kristen Dieffenbach addresses these topics and more as we take a deep dive into […]

  • **REBROADCAST** Happy Vaginas with Dr. Mary Jane Minkin (Episode 4)

    Mary Jane is clinical professor in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Sciences at the Yale University School of Medicine. She has been a North American Menopause Society Certified Menopause Practitioner (NCMP) since 2002, and has been in private practice in New Haven, Connecticut for more than 35 years. Mary Jane has won myriad […]

  • Resilience To Go The Distance with Magda Boulet(Episode 12)

    Recovery, resilience, and injury resistance gets harder as we get older. The harder and longer you go, the harder and longer the recovery process can be. This week’s guest, legendary ultra runner Magda Boulet knows all about what it takes to stay resilient and recover well even after the longest, hardest challenges. Since turning 45, […]

  • Plant Power with Leslie Bonci (Episode 11)

    Studies show women following a plant-based diet have fewer night sweats and hot flashes during menopause. So this week Leslie Bonci, MPH, RD, CSSD, LDN, owner of Active Eating Advice digs into the powers, and occasional pitfalls, of a plant-based diet: what it means and what foods to include for optimum muscle, bone, and hormonal […]

  • Inject Badass with Dr. Pam Peeke (Episode 10)

    Past trauma can lead to more severe symptoms and a more challenging menopause journey. This week, stress and resiliency expert Pamela Peeke, M.D., M.P.H., explains how stress and trauma can change our DNA and drag us down mentally and physically, especially at midlife. She also serves up a whole lot of hope and no B.S. […]

  • Joy Goals with Kristen Dieffenbach (Episode 9)

    Missing your usual mojo and motivation? Wrestling with body image issues? Want a little help setting meaningful goals that go beyond how fast you can run a 5K? You are not alone! This week, exercise scientist and mental performance expert Dr. Kristen Dieffenbach addresses these topics and more as we take a deep dive into […]

  • Eat Carbs! with Hillary Wright, MEd, RDN & Elizabeth Ward, MS, RDN (Episode 8)

    Low fat. High protein. Low carb. No carb. This week’s guests and authors of The Menopause Diet Plan, Hillary Wright and Elizabeth Ward, have seen diet trends come and go and come around again. And they know what works. Spoiler alert: Yes, you can – and should – eat carbs. We get into why, as […]

  • Rise Above the Menopocalypse with Amanda Thebe (Episode 7)

    Depression, anxiety, bone-crushing fatigue, incontinence, heart palpitations, migraines. What the hell is going on? Shockingly, your family doctor may not know it’s menopause. And you’ll end up feeling like you’re losing your mind like this week’s guest Amanda Thebe, author of Menopocalypse: How I Learned to Thrive During Menopause and How You Can Too. Amanda […]

  • Stop the Leaks with Chloë Murdock, DPT (Episode 6)

    It happens. You sneeze, cough, or laugh…and leak. Or you can barely get your key in the door without wetting yourself. It’s common, but not normal…or necessary. This week, pelvic floor specialist Chloë Murdock, PT, DPT, OCS, CSCS offers solutions to the incontinence that can happen during menopause. And, spoiler alert, there’s more to fixing […]

  • Never Wonder "What If" with Cherie Gruenfeld (Episode 5)

    Thirty four years ago, at the age of 42, Cherie Gruenfeld went from lying in bed eating sticky buns and watching the LA Marathon to buying running shoes and a book on how to run a marathon the very next day. She wanted to know what she was capable of. At 76 years old, after […]

  • Happy Vaginas with Dr. Mary Jane Minkin (Episode 4)

    Heavy periods, hot flashes, vaginal pain, debilitating full body achiness, we’ve got a hit parade of menopausal symptoms, and more importantly, solutions this week with guest Mary Jane Minkin, M.D. Mary Jane is clinical professor in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Sciences at the Yale University School of Medicine. She has been a […]

  • Hit Your Next PR with Erin Carson (Episode 3)

    It’s easy to beat yourself up (and down) with strength training. That’s not Erin Carson’s game. As the strength trainer for endurance athletes like 3x Ironman World Champion Mirinda Carfrae, Erin’s approach is building her athlete’s up to be not just strong, but also energetic, nimble, and fast. She dishes out plenty of thoughts on […]

  • Breaking Down the Science with Dr. Stacy Sims (Episode 1)

    What is happening?! You’ll find out as Selene Yeager talks all things menopause with Dr. Stacy Sims, exercise physiologist, nutrition scientist and the brains behind the women’s training and nutrition book ROAR. The show dives deep on symptoms and solutions, including specific fueling and training techniques and adaptogens that can help women maintain muscle, energy, […]

  • Never Retire with Rebecca Rusch (Episode 2)

    Traditionally athletes in their 40s (and certainly their 50s) are supposed to retire and find something else to do. Not seven-time world champion Rebecca Rusch, who didn’t even start racing professionally as a mountain biker until age 38, and proceeded to rack up national and world victories, win Leadville 100 four times, DK200 three times, […]

  • Hit Play Not Pause Trailer

    Welcome to the Hit Play Not Pause Podcast, a Feisty Menopause podcast for active, performance-minded women who aren’t willing to put their best years behind them. It’s time to break the silence and get past the stigma of what you can accomplish as an active woman in your 40’s, 50’s and beyond. We’ll talk about […]

  • Part Two: The Dead Don’t Go To Heaven. Here’s Where They Actually Are Right Now | Suzanne Giesemann

    Can We REALLY Communicate With the Dead? Suzanne Giesemann Reveals Shocking Evidence, Afterlife Secrets & the Science of Intuition Is the afterlife closer than you think? What if the difference between an ordinary thought and a message from Spirit comes down to something you can actually learn to recognize? In this episode of Mayim Bialik’s […]

  • What If My Body Isn't Something I Need to Fix? with Lisa Congdon (Episode 300)

    Artist, author, and gravel racer Lisa Congdon is back for the first time in more than three years, and a lot has happened. She had both knees replaced seven weeks apart, raced the Unbound 50 five months later, and got her power numbers back. Then she decided to stop chasing them. Lisa talks about her […]

  • Premier Women & Money: How to Create a Forever Paycheck in Retirement with Jean Chatzky

    What if you could retire with confidence, enjoy the money you’ve worked so hard to save, and create a reliable income stream that lasts for the rest of your life? This week, we welcome back Jean Chatzky, renowned financial journalist, financial education advocate, and author of Forever Paycheck, to discuss how women over 50 can […]

  • #266 The Things You Don't Realize You've Lost Until You Get Them Back with my sister Teresa

    In this episode, I'm chatting with my sister Teresa about the little things that make a BIG difference in everyday life. Since joining the Vibrant Living Academy, she's noticed she can put her pants on while standing with better balance and ease. She's also realized that an ankle that used to bother her regularly for […]

  • Episode 243 – Why This Menopause Doctor Isn't Against Supplements

    Ever wondered which supplements might actually help you feel better during or after cancer treatment and help ease menopause symptoms? And which ones are worth your money? When you’re feeling exhausted, struggling with symptoms and desperate to feel more like yourself, it’s tempting to head straight to the health food shop. But with so much […]

  • Do we really need to eat differently after menopause? – with Dr Mandy Leonhardt

    How can we nourish ourselves in our 50s and beyond without the overwhelm of diet advice? Liz is joined by Dr Mandy Leonhardt, GP and nutritional consultant for supplement brand SISTERLY, to explore how our nutrient needs change with age. They discuss the essential vitamins and minerals women need at this stage of life, and […]

  • Most replayed moment: The five fundamental pillars of longevity | Kayla Barnes-Lentz & Dr Federica Amati

    Kayla Barnes-Lentz follows an intensive, highly structured daily protocol designed by a team of scientists to optimise every aspect of her health. She believes this carefully curated lifestyle could help her live to 150 years or more. While her routine may not be realistic for everyone, the insights behind it could benefit us all. Today, […]

  • 360 🐝 How to Handle Big Emotions in Midlife: DBT Skills for Stress, Boundaries & Loneliness with Dr. Alicia Smart & Dr. Jesse Finkelstein of TheraHive

    Ever had one tiny thing — a snippy text, an eye roll from your teenager, a comment from your mother — send you into a full-blown emotional tornado? On this episode of The Midlife Makeover Show, Wendy Valentine sits down with psychologists Dr. Alicia Smart and Dr. Jesse Finkelstein, co-founders of TheraHive, to make dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) refreshingly simple. They […]

  • 248 | What's the Best Exercise to Lose Belly Fat During Menopause?

    Have you ever wondered which workout is actually going to help you lose the stubborn belly fat that showed up after 40? One person says walk more. Another says lift heavy. Someone else says HIIT is the best fat burn exercise for belly fat—and then the next person warns you that HIIT will send your […]

  • The 3 Non-Negotiables for a Strong, Durable Body as You Age | Juliet Starrett

    📩 Get Dr. Vonda’s insights Want to understand what’s happening in your body — and what to do next? Each week, Dr. Vonda shares science-backed guidance on strength, bone health, muscle, and longevity — the same way she speaks to her patients. Clear. Practical. No noise. 👉 Join the newsletter: https://manage.kmail-lists.com/subscriptions/subscribe?a=YqJKtR&g=Ww3gx3&   Your body can’t […]

  • image of woman with dark hair named Mary Claire Haver

    Perimenopause or Something Else? Brain Fog, Anxiety & Fatigue with Dr. Fran Haydanek

    What happens in the gap between your last baby and your first hot flash? Dr. Mary Claire Haver sits down with Dr. Fran Haydanek — board-certified OB/GYN and the science communicator behind Paging Dr. Fran — to connect the dots most women are never shown. They unpack “reproductive hormone sensitivity”: why women whose brains react […]

  • The Dead Don’t Go To Heaven. Here’s Where They Actually Are Right Now | Suzanne Giesemann

    Can We REALLY Communicate With the Dead? Suzanne Giesemann Reveals Shocking Evidence, Afterlife Secrets & the Science of Intuition Is the afterlife closer than you think? What if the difference between an ordinary thought and a message from Spirit comes down to something you can actually learn to recognize? In this episode of Mayim Bialik’s […]

  • Ep. 244 – Living the Lifetime of All Lifetimes: Astrology, the Second Saturn Return, and the Moon Cycles

    In this conversation, Dr. Fiona Lovely welcomes Shannon Hugman, a professional astrologer with fifteen years of experience, retreat host, and author of Dear Stardust and the Moon Cycles and Me Journal. Shannon shares her unlikely path into the work—she tried hard not to become an astrologer—and explains how a childhood game of guessing birthdays on […]

  • What Actually Is IBS? The Girl's Guide to Guts

    This episode is sponsored by AirDoctor. AirDoctor – Head to https://AirDoctorPro.com and use promo code FLIPPING50 and get up to $300 off ANY of their select AirDoctor models, plus you will get a 3-year warranty, absolutely FREE! All AirDoctor air purifiers come with a 30-day money-back guarantee. IBS symptoms in women are often dismissed. Could […]

  • Ep 553: 4 Weight Loss Wins That Have Nothing to Do With the Scale

    If you’ve been working hard to lose weight, but the scale isn’t moving, it’s easy to feel frustrated and wonder if anything you’re doing is actually working. But what if you’re making more progress than you realize? I want you to start looking beyond the number on the scale and recognize the behaviors that are […]

  • Jodi Picoult: A life in writing, motherhood and ambition

    What does it take to build a writing career while raising a family, and how do you find the confidence to keep pushing yourself? This week, Gabby is joined by bestselling author Jodi Picoult to talk about her journey from first-time novelist to one of the world's most successful writers. She reflects on a lifetime […]

  • 117 – Testosterone isn’t just for libido: what the data shows

    Does testosterone help women with more than low libido?Real-world data from Dr Louise’s research team says yes. Content advisory: this episode includes themes of mental health and suicide. In this episode, Dr Louise Newson is joined by Aini Kamal, a neuroscience graduate and researcher with Newson Research, the small team Louise funds to study hormone […]

  • How to Lose Weight with Low Progesterone | MMP Ep. 350

    ☎️ Book Your COACHING INQUIRY Call: https://calendly.com/d/386-k9q-4cg/coaching-inquiry-call-zoom ☎️ Book Your COMPLEMENTARY CONSULTATION and CALORIE CALCULATION Call: https://calendly.com/d/2p8-mxx-dgf/free-consultation-call-zoom⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Waking up at 3am, spotting before your period, PMS that has gotten worse, rings that will not come off and a scale that will not move, even though you are eating less and working out more? In this […]

  • 241: Stem Cells: Miracle Cure or Million-Dollar Scam? What Science Really Says

    (00:00:00) 241: Stem Cells: Miracle Cure or Million-Dollar Scam? What Science Really Says (00:00:05) Welcome to Itchy and Bitchy Podcast (00:00:48) Doc Itchy Medical Pet Supplements (00:01:21) Hair Loss and Stem Cell Injections (00:03:52) The Science of Stem Cells (00:08:13) Stem Cell Sources and Ethics (00:10:54) The Promise and Pitfalls of Stem Cell Therapy (00:11:17) […]

  • Bonus: Train Smarter, Not Just Harder — Meet the Feisty Winter Training Experts

    In this special Another Mother Runner bonus episode, host Sarah Bowen Shea introduces some of the expert educators behind Feisty Winter Training, a 16-week program designed to help women build fitness, strength, and knowledge through the winter months. Through highlights from Feisty’s Hit Play Not Pause, The Women’s Performance Podcast, and Another Mother Runner, you’ll […]

  • The Tamsen Show podcast image

    How to Improve Your Gut Health (What Finally Worked for Her) with Journalist Chloe Melas

    Bloated, dealing with stomach pain, or running to the bathroom every time you eat, and told it’s nothing? In this episode, you’ll learn the gut symptoms you shouldn’t ignore, how much fiber you really need a day, and three simple changes that can help improve your gut health, plus how to speak up when a […]

  • Menopause Weight Gain – Beyond the Scale with Val Schonberg RD

    Why is my body changing, and what am I supposed to do about it? It's one of the questions I hear most in midlife and menopause spaces. My friend Val Schonberg, RDN, MSCP is back on the podcast to talk about her new book, The Weight of Menopause. We get into why we still don't […]

  • What Are You Doing With Your Life? An 89 Year Old’s Best Advice for You

    You are in for a treat today. You’re getting The Mel Robbins Podcast on the go! Last week, my mother-in-law, Judie, walked into our kitchen in Vermont and announced that she’s planning a big adventure, starting on her 90th birthday. She and her partner, John, have decided to backpack around Europe for a year. I […]

  • Nara Smith: “I have a real issue with people trying to put women in boxes” Influence and identity

    Model and influencer Nara Smith is one of TikTok’s most recognisable faces. With over 15 million followers across social media, she’s become known for her aesthetic cooking videos and signature ASMR-style voice. Think making skittles from scratch, wearing haute couture. In this wide-ranging chat with Fearne, Nara talks about raising four young children alongside a […]

  • Why I don’t eat low-fat foods

    Is a low-fat diet really the best choice for women looking to manage their weight and cholesterol in midlife? Liz explains why she prefers whole, naturally satisfying foods over many low-fat alternatives, which can contain added sugars and fillers to replace lost flavour. She also explores the role of healthy fats and how to make […]

  • Robotics in knee replacement with Prof Chris Vertullo

    Robotic surgery promises precision. But does it translate into better outcomes for patients having knee replacement? In this episode of Joint Action, Professor David Hunter speaks with Professor Christopher Vertullo, an orthopaedic knee surgeon and researcher based on the Gold Coast. Chris is Clinical Director of the Australian Orthopaedic Association Clinical Trials and Data Analytics […]

  • Begin Again Moments: How to Keep Your Sex Life Alive

    In this episode of Begin Again Moments, Davina McCall revisits two honest, eye-opening conversations with relationship expert Paul C. Brunson and psychosexual therapist Dr Karen Gurney, exploring how you can rebuild intimacy, reconnect with your partner and rediscover desire at any age. Paul reveals why his sex life is better after 23 years of marriage, […]

  • Substack Exclusive: Why Swiping Kills Attraction, How Technology Is Emptying Our Lives & the Way Back to The Meaning of Your Life | Arthur Brooks

    In this special episode, originally recorded live with our Breaker community on Substack, Mayim and Jonathan sit down with Arthur Brooks to talk about happiness, meaning, and his new book, The Meaning of Your Life: Finding Purpose in an Age of Emptiness. Brooks is one of the leading voices on human happiness, and he explains […]

  • Stop Being Available: How to Set Better Boundaries and Take Your Power Back

    Are you the person everyone depends on? Do you remember the appointments, make the plans, solve the problems, keep track of what everyone needs, and step in whenever something falls through the cracks? If that sounds familiar, this conversation is for you. In this deeply relatable and practical conversation, Mel sits down for another episode […]

  • Hip Hurts at Night in Menopause? 5 Ways to Find Relief | Dr. Vonda Wright

    Get Dr. Vonda’s latest insights on strength, bone health, longevity, and aging with power delivered straight to your inbox. Join her free health & longevity newsletter here: https://www.drvondawright.com/resources/aging-longevity   Have you ever woken up in the middle of the night because you rolled onto your side and your hip lit up? You’re not alone, and […]

  • They Died, Saw Hell & Came Back. What 1,500 Near-Death Experiences Reveal About Dying | John Burke

    What if near death experiences are giving us clues about what happens after we die, and even revealing something about God, consciousness, and our purpose here on Earth? John Burke, bestselling author of Imagine Heaven, has spent years researching more than 1,500 NDEs. In this episode of Mayim Bialik’s Breakdown, he shares some of the […]

  • Episode 53: LAUGHING ALL THE WAY THROUGH PERI/MENOPAUSE with COMEDIAN ALYCE CHAN aka MOMCOMNYC

    ⚡️Did you spit out your tea while watching her lol videos copping kid attitude about peri/meno on the playground? OMG SO GOOD! 🤣⚡️ ⚡️This week one of our very favorite humans on the internet – Comedian Alyce Chan aka MomComNYC joins Menopunks for an unfiltered and hilarious conversation about peri/menopause, aging, why finding humor in […]

  • Does Heavy Outperform Moderate In Building Muscle After 50

    Building muscle after 50 doesn’t mean you have to lift heavier every time you walk into the gym. What if moderate weights and higher repetitions could deliver similar results?  A 2026 study involving women averaging 68 years old offers an interesting perspective on how we approach resistance training as we age. The findings challenge the […]

  • Ep #210: Perimenopause Weight Gain: Hormones or Calories? | Aram Grigorian

    "I'm barely eating, but the scale keeps climbing. Is it my hormones, my metabolism, or something else?" If you're struggling with perimenopause weight gain, especially stubborn belly fat, you're not alone. It's one of the most common concerns women share with us, and there are a lot of opinions about what really causes it. Online […]

  • Rethinking retirement: why work could be key to ageing well – with Lyndsey Simpson

    We’ve been sold the idea that retirement is the ultimate goal, but could stopping work abruptly leave us feeling bored, isolated and without purpose? Lyndsey Simpson, founder of 55/Redefined, joins Liz to explore why gradually cutting back on work while bringing more interests into our lives might be healthier for us. They discuss why working […]

  • The Power of Love: Intimacy, Trust & Rediscovering Yourself After 40 | Anna Cordin

    What if the greatest transformation of your life happened after 40? What if intimacy wasn’t just about physical connection, but about learning to trust, surrender, reconnect with your body, and rediscover your passion for life? In this candid and inspiring episode of the Wise Divine Women Podcast, Dana Irvine welcomes author, ballroom dancer, and electric […]

  • 6 things f*cking up your perimenopause

    🌿 The Peri/Menopause Game Plan starts November 16Everything I’ve learned about perimenopause in one live, four-week experience. It’s practical and balanced, it doesn’t take sides, and it’s designed so you leave with your own plan. There are six sessions on Zoom, Mondays and Thursdays at noon ET, from November 16 to December 7, with no […]

  • How to NOT get sick this winter – 3 foods to fight colds, beat flu season and protect your immune system

    Why do you catch every cold going, while others rarely get sick? Many of the cold and flu tips you grew up with are myths, but in today’s episode, world-leading immunity expert Professor Daniel Davis and Professor Tim Spector explain the five everyday habits that can protect your immune system. You’ll learn why some people […]

  • Phytoestrogens: The Food You Were Told to Avoid Could Help Hot Flashes & Belly Fat | MMP Ep. 349

    ☎️ Book Your COACHING INQUIRY Call: https://calendly.com/d/386-k9q-4cg/coaching-inquiry-call-zoom ☎️ Book Your COMPLEMENTARY CONSULTATION and CALORIE CALCULATION Call: https://calendly.com/d/2p8-mxx-dgf/free-consultation-call-zoom⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Have you been avoiding soy because you heard it causes breast cancer, wrecks your thyroid, or floods your body with estrogen? In this episode, Stephanie Crassweller breaks down what phytoestrogens actually do in perimenopause and menopause, and how […]

  • 247 | Your Belly Fat Isn't Proof Your Cortisol Is Too High

    WONDERING WHY YOUR BODY HANDLES FOOD AND STRESS DIFFERENTLY AFTER 40? You’re eating healthy, trying to lose stubborn belly fat, and wondering whether insulin, high cortisol, or changing hormones are getting in the way. There’s a reason weight loss can feel different during perimenopause and menopause. I’ve put together a free resource to help you […]

  • How To Retrain Your Menopause Brain for Less Stress with Natalie Rivans of re-origin | 309

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  • 116 – Bioidentical HRT has good safety data, so why do so few women take it?

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Hit Play Not Pause

Perimenopause and menopause hit active women differently. We have a different lifestyle and different goals. And we know our bodies. Whether you run and hike or do CrossFit and ski (or a little of everything!), you’ve had a way of eating and exercising that worked…until the menopause transition, when it all goes out the window […]

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