Build More Muscle - Your Bones Will Love You

Jane Arlow • October 16, 2021

Welcome to World Menopause Day!

Is it just me, or does the phrase “World Menopause Day” conjure the mental image of tired, angry, anxious and over-heated women who are, as you read this, rampaging through the streets in a bid to be heard, seen and told that they’re not going mad?

Now, if you’re one of my male readers and you’re about to skip off singing “la, la, la, don’t need to know this”, err, you do. This video from the NHS is especially for you and explains why understanding menopause is important for men too (ladies, feel free to share this with any chaps you know!).

I mentioned in a previous blog that the word “menopause” was coined by a male doctor and that for the longest time, it’s been seen as a failing, an end and a shameful taboo that shouldn’t be discussed.

And while this year has indubitably been one in which that narrative has started to shift, there’s still plenty of space for us to further move that along as well as improve our own health.

As a special celebration of World Menopause Day, I looked up “synonyms for menopause” and the options were “climacteric” and “mid-life crisis”. Nice.

Perhaps we should all start finding our own personal descriptions for the experience? I’m calling mine “the years in which I stop having the patience for putting up with other people’s BS”.

That is today’s “smash the patriarchy” rant now complete.

So, back to the topic of World Menopause Day. As is so often the case with these days, there is a specific theme this year. And huzzah, that theme is bone health, which you know I have already written about here.

So today, I want to add a new term to your understanding of your bone strength. And that is “sarcopenia”. Put simply, this is the process of generalised loss of muscle mass that can happen as we age.

You’ll notice I said “can happen”. That’s because we can do things to mitigate it.

Why should we care about Muscle Mass?

Thank you for asking. Muscles have several functions.

The first, and most obvious, is that they act to move joints (ankles, knees, hips, spine, shoulders, neck), by attaching to bones across those joints via tendons. The bigger a muscle is, the more force it exerts on the bone when the muscle contracts to move the limb.

This means that if a muscle is bigger, the bone needs to be stronger to absorb the force. So, when you build muscles, your osteoblasts (remember them) are activated to put down more bone cells. More bone cells = denser bones. Huzzah.

Muscles also have a role to play in providing protection from external trauma and acting as shock absorbers for underlying bones and internal organs. So, more muscle = more cushioning and less likelihood of bone breakage. Again huzzah!

They also support your body posture, for example keeping you upright and less likely to fall over (is a third “huzzah” too much?).

Finally, the process of muscle contraction liberates heat (this is literally why we say we “warm up” at the beginning of a class), so they also have a role to play in keeping us warm.

What has menopause got to do with reduced muscle mass?

You might recall from my previous blog, that falling oestrogen levels cause the osteoclasts to work harder than the osteoblasts meaning that your body breaks down bone more than it makes bone. Happy days, oestrogen is also one of the hormones that promotes muscle, tendon and ligament growth. This means that as levels fall, it’s more difficult for our bodies to maintain muscle mass.

If we’re physically inactive, this can lead to not maintaining muscle mass, and to actively losing it by 3-5% each year from the age of thirty onwards. This loss speeds up substantially from about the age of 75 years old.

If you’re still not convinced it matters, let me tell you about a lady I know. She’s is in her late seventies which, from this point in my life, doesn’t seem that old. Right now, she:

· Can’t pick up the kettle to make herself a cup of tea, because it’s too heavy;

· Has to go up the stairs on all fours as she hasn’t got sufficient leg strength and is anxious about falling down them;

· Finds walking to the end of the road too much for her.

Would you like to see this in your future? It’s a “hard no” from me!

If you don't want to be that woman, when is it too late to do something about it? It’s never too late. Of course, like a tree, the best time to have planted it was twenty years ago. But the second-best time is today.

What can I do to improve my muscle mass?

The primary treatment for sarcopenia is, drum-roll please, exercise. Specifically, weight bearing exercise.

This can be anything from dancing to walking to weight training to Pilates (I had to get that in there!). It doesn’t matter, just so long as you get in around 30 minutes each day.

So, bringing this baby back to bone health, here’s a quick summary of some of the things that will help you to minimise the risks of bone fractures and breakages as you age:

· Ensure that you have sufficient calcium in your diet, ideally via dairy products. Supplement if required;

· Optimise vitamin D levels. Supplement from October through to April as there's not enough sunlight for our bodies to manufacture it in sufficient levels;

· Dietary intake of 1g of protein per kg of bodyweight per day;

· Weight bearing exercise for around 30 minutes each day;

· Add balance and strength exercises where possible

· Avoid smoking;

· Limit alcohol intake.

You can expect to see lots more from me on the topic of menopause over the coming months, culminating in a new program I’m building, aimed specifically at women who want to take control of their own health.

If you’re looking for more resources on any of the topics mentioned in this blog, please let me know!

If today is the day that you're taking action on your health, email me and let's set up some time to talk about how I can help you.

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Breast cancer - know your risks

By Jane Arlow • October 13, 2025

October's Breast Cancer Awareness Month and if you haven't done it recently, please let this be the nudge you need to give them a good feel up. Here 's a link to the NHS website below showing how to perform your check and what to look for. If you're one of my gentlemen readers, please don't think this doesn't apply to you. It does. Men can still get breast cancer. And if you find something that doesn't seem right, please contact your GP as soon as possible. 80-90% of lumps are likely to be benign, but for the small percentage of those that aren't, early detection and treatment are your best chances of having successful treatment and being around to annoy friends and family for a long time. Don't skip your mammogram I know having mammograms is really uncomfortable. But this is one of the best ways to check for cancers that aren't otherwise easily spotted. So if you get invited, please go. (And don't skip your smear test either!!!) Know your risk factors 1 in 7 women will get breast cancer in their lifetime. Here are some of the risk factors: - Age : older women are more likely to get breast cancer than younger women and age is the highest risk factor. - Genetics : Breast cancer risk is higher if you have first-degree relatives who've had it (although 85% of women with a relative with breast cancer WON'T get it). - Breast density (relates to the percentage of non-fatty tissue): the risk is highest for those with the most dense tissue. You can ask your radiographer to tell you whether you have dense tissue at your mammogram. - Lifestyle factors: These include having overweight or obesity, alcohol consumption, tobacco use and insufficient physical activity. - Exposure to endocrine disrupting chemicals: These "forever" chemicals, such as pthalates and parabens, show up in makeup and toiletries. Risk doesn't normally come from one exposure to one chemical, but from prolonged exposure to many different chemicals over a long period of time. You can read more about the risks here It's worth noting that even if you get a diagnosis, it's unlikely you'll ever know if there was "one thing" that caused it. What happens if you get a diagnosis of breast cancer? I am in no way competent to comment on the treatment plan your medical team recommend for you. Everyone I know who's had breast cancer has had a different treatment plan, depending on: the stage of cancer; whether it had spread further; whether it was hormone-receptive; whether it was due to genetic mutation; and the age of the woman. I do know that for all of us, it was a really scary time. You should be given access to resources outside of the surgical and oncology team, often via a Macmillan nurse, who can answer questions on topics from your treatment and reactions, to claiming for extra benefits. They're also great if you're not sure what questions to ask. While you're in the heat of the panic, it can be difficult to think clearly about what you need to know. Using "what should I be asking that I'm not?" is super helpful. Keep moving after your diagnosis, during and after treatment The one thing I can advise you on with all confidence, is to keep moving. Exercise is safe, possible and helpful for individuals with breast cancer, throughout the treatment cycle. In fact, international guidelines say you should try to get back to your normal activities as soon as possible. Exercise can help reduce the risk of cancer coming back; and may stop stage 1 cancers from growing further; and can also reduce treatment side effects like tiredness, cognitive impairment or lympoedema. Yes, you may need to dial back your usual activities if treatment leaves you feeling exhausted. But whenever you can, please aim for 150 minutes of exercise in every week. Many forms of treatment also lead to a higher osteoporosis risk, so please also do resistance-based and/or some impact-based exercise every week. I'd also recommend paying attention to shoulder mobility. Scar tissue and "guarding" of surgery sites can reduce your range of movement a lot. Check in with your medical team to confirm if there's any specific movements you should avoid during your treatment plan, and when you'll be signed off to go back to them. One last piece of advice someone else gave me... When you tell people you have cancer, a lot of them will have an opinion on your treatment plan. Especially if they're of the "my friend cured their cancer by just eating this one thing.." type. Unless this person is an oncologist, you can safely ignore them! So, what are you still doing reading this? Go off and give yourself a fondle!