How Plants and Protein Can Help You Through Menopause

by Dr. Stacy Sims

Mar 10, 2026

Most active women underestimate their daily protein needs—and the consequences become more pronounced in perimenopause and menopause. The current RDA for protein was established to prevent deficiency in sedentary people, not to help active women optimize their training and recovery—or to thrive through perimenopause and beyond.

If you’re exercising with intent (whether that’s lifting, running, hiking, or training for performance), then your daily protein intake should fall within the mid- to upper ranges of current sports nutrition guidelines (0.6-1g per pound of bodyweight or 1.4–2.2 g per kilogram).

While current thinking is that total daily protein intake is more important than distribution, by aiming for 25-30 grams of protein per meal you should be able to meet your optimal daily needs.

If you’re plant-based, this is where you need to be strategic. And this matters even more in midlife.

During the menopause transition, your gut microbiome begins to shift. Microbial diversity can decline, inflammation can increase, and metabolic flexibility changes. That combination influences how you respond to training, how you recover, and how your body stores fat.

Muscle and microbiome are not separate conversations: protein intake supports lean mass, strength, and metabolic rate, while plant diversity supports microbial diversity, immune regulation, and estrogen metabolism.

During the menopause transition, both systems are adapting—and supporting one without the other is incomplete.

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