For Women: Nine tips for handling midlife weight woes

(MSN Fitness) - We women are like fine wines: We just get better with age. Save for one little detail: our weight -- which seems fated to skyrocket once we hit that developmental milestone, menopause. According to the North American Association for the Study of Obesity, obesity in women has nearly doubled in the past two decades; it is a problem that researchers say is particularly acute during perimenopause, the three- to 10-year period preceding menopause. The Women's Healthy Lifestyle Project, a five-year study of 585 perimenopausal women funded by the National Institutes of Health, found that women who don't change their lifestyles gain an average of 5.2 pounds during that period.

But before you throw in the towel and submit to age-related weight gain, consider this: Understanding the new set of rules governing your body's changes can provide you with concrete ways to manage your weight. Here's what is happening: As you age, your body stops ovulating and produces less and less estrogen. Meanwhile, the hormone testosterone (no, it's not just in men) remains at the same level. This increased testosterone-to-estrogen ratio triggers the expansion of our waistlines, since our fat distribution changes to be more like a man's, shifting from our hips and buttocks to our waists. (One bright note: Once this transition is completed, half of all women find that their thighs have actually decreased in size!)

As your waistline fills out, some weight gain is inevitable, although the amount can range from two to 20 pounds. However, another key finding of the Women's Healthy Lifestyle Project was that women who engage in physical activity and adhere to a low-fat, reduced-calorie diet are very likely to either maintain their weight or lose weight. The bottom line: Your hormones don't have to have the last word -- you can keep off the weight. Here are nine tactics for staying fit during perimenopause:

1. Pump some iron. Lean body mass, which acts as a calorie-burning machine, naturally decreases as you age. Lifting weights two to three times a week can help you maintain your muscle mass and keep your metabolism revved.

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