Exploring Menopause and Well-being with local Nutritionist and Personal Trainer

Manisha Morgan is a nutritionist and PT based in Northampton. In 2019 she started an Instagram account help raise awareness for menopause and the importance of changing what we eat and how we exercise.

She works with women to improve their health and well-being through menopause, and has recently been in the spotlight for winning the health and fitness inspiration category at the SHE awards.

We caught up with Manisha to talk about how she helps women, how we can look after ourselves better, and what to expect with the menopause.

Hi Manisha! Tell us a little bit about yourself and what you do…

Hi, I’m 52 years old and I’m married with twin girls aged 11 going on 22!! I am of Indian heritage, my husband is British and as a family we love to travel.

I love food – especially cream cakes! I’m an early bird, I prefer to wake up early and get my morning walk in.

My talent which I recently discovered is that I like to educate through humour. Not everyone gets my humour but those that do find it extremely hilarious. Humour is a great way to break the ice, make people laugh and build rapport.

How long have you been a PT and Nutritionist?

I qualified as a nutritionist in 2018. In 2022 I realised that many women were exercising either ineffectively or they weren’t fuelling their workouts with the right nutrition. This is when I decided to train as a personal trainer so I could give a 360-degree approach to helping women become healthier, happier, and fitter.

Why did you decide to become a nutritionist?

In 2006, aged 39 we went through 5 rounds of IVF. Each one resulted in one of two eggs but failed shortly after implantation. After the 4^th  failed cycle I decided to make changes to my diet. After some research, I made a few changes and hoped for the best.

1 week before my 40^th birthday I found out I was pregnant with twins. To say I was shocked was an understatement! I will never know if the changes I made contributed to my pregnancy. However, I now know, that diet has a HUGE impact on your fertility, for both females and males.

Once the girls were born I resumed my normal eating habits. Then in 2016, I started going through the menopause. At that time there wasn’t much awareness of it, and I was the first in my friend circle to go through natural menopause.

During this time, I started to notice changes, symptoms and of course weight gain. It was at this time that I realised I needed to make lifelong changes to my diet and lifestyle.

My long-term health became my priority as I started learning about the long-term effects of the menopause and the importance of why your diet and lifestyle needs to change as you get older.

This is now something I am passionate about – improving health, more energy, more confidence, feeling good in your clothes whilst eating the foods YOU want. No restricting foods, no fad diets, and no quick fixes.

I’m 52 years old now and am the healthiest and fittest I’ve ever been. Like most women reading, I don’t come from a background in Health and Fitness. I changed my lifestyle when I was 48 and if I can do it anyone can do it. Is it easy? No, but it is achievable.

You put in a lot of work to help women feel better through the menopause, can you share why this is so important?

When it comes to self-care women generally tend to put themselves on the bottom of the list. Everyone and everything takes priority. I want this to change – women need to put themselves first.

I am a real woman who is relatable, and I share my own journey via my social media channels. I have challenges just like other women.

I support women who are fed up with yo-yo dieting to build a positive relationship with food, lose weight, and lead a healthy lifestyle. Fad diets don’t work long term and cutting out foods your favourite foods isn’t sustainable.

Many of my clients are preparing for perimenopause or are going through menopause. I want to make this an easy transition for them by minimising symptoms and the dreaded weight gain, so that they feel confident and happy in themselves.

There is so much misleading information out there that it’s impossible to know what is true and what isn’t. When you approach middle age the priority becomes about health. This is why I want to help to dispel these rumours, and provide women with simple effective easy solutions to improve their health and weight management.

I empower women to attain the highest degree of health and fitness using a holistic approach to nutrition with easy sustainable strategies. I focus on four key areas:

• Mindset
• Optimising your nutrition
• Changing habits and behaviours
• Training effectively (if relevant) 

Congratulations on your recent award win! Tell us more…

This was totally unexpected. I was shortlisted in two categories for the SHE awards which celebrates the achievements of women from all walks of life.

I won the health and fitness inspiration category. This is special because the public vote and then the nominees are shortlisted by a panel of judges.

I have to say though for someone who is confident I cried throughout my whole speech – if you can call it a speech haha.

But the most important thing about this award is I want women to believe age is never a barrier to pursue your passion.

How can people find out more about you? 

People can follow me on Instagram, TikTok, or visit my website: https://manishayournutritionist.co.uk