Lady runners and endurance athletes, don't let anyone ever tell you we can't lower our cholesterol, balance our hormones, and boost our running performance without extreme diets, endless supplements or prescriptions. Most of the time, there is a (much) better way and it's time we learn some specifics, nuances, and targeted female-specific strategies to try!

In this episode of Maximizing Hormones, Physique, and Running Through Perimenopause, Louise Valentine, one of the world’s leading health, fitness and performance experts, shares a simple, science-backed roadmap for avid active women and recreational runners age 35+ who are navigating perimenopause and beyond.

Louise reveals root cause mechanisms of why LDL cholesterol often spikes as estrogen declines and how outdated advice about cutting out eggs or red meat isn’t the full picture. Drawing from over two decades of coaching and research, her own fiercely inspiring health journey, and empowering thousands of individuals over the course of her proven career designing integrative health and fitness interventions, she explains practical steps you can take to improve biomarkers in as little as three months.

You’ll learn which supplements actually make a difference, how much your specific food choices matter, awareness of how seed oils sneak into your pantry, and why advocating for yourself with doctors matters. You'll get a step-by-step playbook to discuss your labs with your doctor to be fully heard and get the comprehensive effective care you deserve. Most importantly, you’ll discover realistic strategies, rooted in cutting-edge female-specific science, that help you feel energized, resilient, and confident in your body.

If you’re a driven, active woman who’s tired of feeling blindsided by midlife changes, this episode is your playbook for thriving with less stress, relentless confidence, and more strength.

Link to our FullScript where you can see our curated best supplement picks under "Favorites" & save 20% off the supplements mentioned in today’s episode: https://us.fullscript.com/welcome/breakingthroughwellness/store-start

Learn & level up with my free nutrition guide and award-winning Badass Breakthrough Academy to thrive through perimenopause with less stress: https://www.breakingthroughwellness.com/

Our affiliate link to check Function Health for comprehensive blood work: https://my.functionhealth.com/signup?code=LVALENTINE11&_saasquatch=LVALENTINE11

Take advantage of our podcast listener discount and save 20% off all of Kion’s science-backed clean products: https://www.getkion.com/pages/maximizing Promo code “LOUISE” saves on all future orders!

Episode Highlights:
(0:000 Intro
(3:04) A step-by-step roadmap to lower LDL
(7:41) The importance of advanced lipid testing
(11:13) A client’s success challenging the “only meds” advice
(14:56) Louise’s personal results lowering biomarkers
(19:26) Fueling frameworks that boost natural hormone production
(22:42) Ou

Tune in weekly to "Maximizing Hormones, Physique, and Running Through Perimenopause" for our simple female-specific science-based revolution. Let's unlock our best with less stress!

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Fact: The narrative we’ve been told about perimenopause, that it means slowing down, feeling like crap, gaining fat, and losing our strong, fit, and athletic edge... is not our truth at Breaking Through Wellness!

In this inspiring episode of Maximizing Hormones, Physique, and Running Through Perimenopause, host Louise Valentine sits down with Katie Lowe, a teacher, dedicated runner, and race director, who has transformed her holistic health, energy, physique, and performance during perimenopause.

Katie shares her journey from frustrating overwhelm with conflicting advice, surprising symptoms, fat gain, and burnout...

to smashing PRs at ALL race distances, building strength, and redefining what’s possible for women in their 40s!

With support from Louise’s science-based coaching and innovative female-specific methods, Katie discovered the power of adjusting fueling, living, and training to align with her changing female physiology, embracing the mantra “courage over comfort.”

Her story proves that you can achieve breakthrough results at any age, including a more fit and lean body composition, faster recovery, and stronger running, without extreme diets, injury, or burnout!

You will leave encouraged to trust the process, fuel, and train your body smarter, and know that you have a supportive community of strong, badass, and like-minded women runners that validates the highs and lows of the perimenopause journey.

Learn & level up with my free nutrition guide and award-winning Badass Breakthrough Academy to thrive through perimenopause with less stress here: https://www.breakingthroughwellness.com/

Learn more about Katie's running company here: https://2lowerunco.com/

Link to our FullScript where you can see our curated best supplement picks & save 20% off: https://us.fullscript.com/welcome/breakingthroughwellness/store-start

Take advantage of our podcast listener discount and save 20% off all of Kion’s science-backed clean products: https://www.getkion.com/pages/maximizing

Episode Highlights:
(0:00) Intro
(3:00) Katie’s early love for sports and running
(7:15) Jumping into a 50-mile race unprepared
(8:05) Building a local running community
(10:08) Feeling stuck despite doing “all the things”
(11:35) Finding Louise through a Facebook comment
(16:53) Early breakthroughs: body comp and performance
(17:53) Unexpected PRs and faster recovery
(22:44) Learning the art of adjustment
(24:40) Balancing a daily run streak with recovery
(30:24) “Courage over comfort” mindset shift
(32:49) Defying society’s limits on aging women
(36:22) Eating more food and still seeing results
(40:41) Why breakfast is now non-negotiable
(48:05) Shifting priorities and trusting the “why”
(57:02) Sustainable strategies for lifelong running
(1:00:19) Outro

Tune in weekly to "Maximizing Hormones, Physique, and Running Through Perimenopause" for our simple female-specific science-based revolution. Let's unlock our best with less stress!

I'd love to connect!

Instagram 📷
https://www.instagram.com/breakingthroughwellness

Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/BreakingThroughWellness

Email 💬 (Note: We do not have guests on our podcast)
support@breakingthroughwellness.com

Often, the very thing we love, running and endurance training, is silently adding counterproductive stress to our body. While not a sole causative factor in adverse health outcomes, recent research findings have scientists, practitioners, recreational endurance athletes, and runners pausing across the world!

In this episode of Maximizing Hormones, Physique, and Running Through Perimenopause, Louise, one of the world’s leading integrative health practitioners, exercise physiologist, and fitness experts explores the often-overlooked connection between female physiology, gut health, and endurance training.

Drawing on her 22+ years of clinical experience, research, supporting thousands of active individuals at all levels, and her own journey as a dedicated runner reversing stomach precancer, Louise explains how stress, gut health, and hormonal changes intersect during perimenopause and what you can do about it. From the science behind intestinal permeability (that stubborn lower ab “pooch” and bloat) to targeted, affordable supplements and practical fueling strategies, she keeps it simple, science-based, and specific to highly active women who love to run.

You’ll also hear Louise’s candid take on the latest viral headlines and misleading social media spins claiming running causes cancer, why it’s not that simple, and how to critically approach the noise without giving up the sport you love. This episode is equal parts honesty, science, and actionable tools so you can run, live, and thrive with confidence.

If ready to critically think about novel research findings, instead of panic or jump to conclusions, this episode is for you!

Feel, look & perform your best with my “All About Gut Health & How to Restore It” Mini Course here: https://www.breakingthroughwellness.com/offers/tKTJYVjP/checkout

Link to check out the “Healthy Gut Support” (intestinal support formula) mentioned in the beginning of this episode: https://equi.life?irad=859795&irmp=3644194

Watch my blog article “The Art of Magaining Stress & Chronic Disease Risk When You Love Fitness or Running… A Lot” “https://www.breakingthroughwellness.com/blog/dedicated-female-runners-the-art-of-managing-stress-women-s-health-osteoporosis-chronic-disease-risk

Learn & level up with my free nutrition guide and award-winning Badass Breakthrough Academy to thrive through perimenopause with less stress: https://www.breakingthroughwellness.com/

Link to our FullScript where you can see our curated best supplement picks & save 20% off, including 20% off Seed, the supplement mentioned in today’s episode: https://us.fullscript.com/welcome/breakingthroughwellness/store-start

Take advantage of our podcast listener discount and save 20% off all of Kion’s science-backed clean products: https://www.getkion.com/pa

Tune in weekly to "Maximizing Hormones, Physique, and Running Through Perimenopause" for our simple female-specific science-based revolution. Let's unlock our best with less stress!

I'd love to connect!

Instagram 📷
https://www.instagram.com/breakingthroughwellness

Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/BreakingThroughWellness

Email 💬 (Note: We do not have guests on our podcast)
support@breakingthroughwellness.com