Guides
Plain answers about bloating, food triggers, strength after 40 and eating your own way. Every health claim links to where it came from.
Guides
The questions people ask before they change how they eat.
- How to find which foods make you bloatedA practical way to find your own bloating triggers: what to write down, how long it takes, and why a list from the internet rarely matches your body.
- Why am I bloated after eating?The common reasons for bloating after meals, what you can change yourself, and the signs that mean you should see a GP.
- How to keep a food and symptom diaryWhat to record, how long to keep going, and how to read a food and symptom diary so it points at your triggers instead of piling up notes.
- Should I try the low FODMAP diet?What the low FODMAP diet is, who it is for, how long each step lasts, and why the point of it is the foods you get back.
- Does eating late make you bloated?Why a late dinner can leave you bloated the next morning, and a two-week test that tells you whether timing is your problem.
- Does cycle syncing actually work?What cycle syncing claims, what the research shows so far, and how to find out whether any of it is true for you.
- How to plan a week of meals with no timeA simple way to plan a week of dinners around your real week: fewer decisions, less waste, and meals you actually want to eat.
Strong after 40
Strength, protein and staying strong through menopause, with a free protein calculator and a home strength test.
- Protein calculator for women over 40Free protein calculator for women over 40. Enter your weight, activity and goal to get a daily range and a per-meal target. No email needed.
- Home strength test for women aged 40 to 60Four simple home strength tests for women 40 to 60: chair stand, push-ups, one-leg balance and the shopping bag stair carry. How to do them safely and read your score.
- Can you build muscle after menopause?Yes. Trials in menopausal women show strength training builds strength and some muscle. What the research found, and how to start.
- How much protein do women over 40 need?The UK minimum is 0.75 g per kg a day. For keeping and building muscle after 40, research points to 1.2 to 1.6 g per kg. Here is why.
- Is creatine safe for women over 40?What the research says about creatine safety and use in women over 40, the usual dose, and who should check with a GP first.
- Do I need to lift heavy weights after 40?Not to build muscle: lighter weights work if you take sets close to your limit. Heavier weights build more maximum strength. What to choose.
- How many days a week to strength train at 50UK guidelines say at least two days a week. Trials in menopausal women found three sessions a week worked best. How to fit it in.
- Will lifting weights make me bulky?Unlikely. In trials with menopausal women, strength training added strength and a small amount of muscle. What changes to expect instead.
- Is walking enough exercise after 40?Walking counts toward your 150 minutes of activity, but UK guidelines also ask for strength work on two days a week. Why you need both.
- Strength training with knee pain: where to startFor knee osteoarthritis, NICE recommends exercise, including muscle strengthening, for everyone. How to start gently, and when to see your GP.
- Strength training and your pelvic floorHow pelvic floor training fits with strength training after 40, what NICE recommends, and when leaking or heaviness means see your GP.
- Strength training for bone density after 40Resistance and weight-bearing exercise help protect bone. What the NHS, the UK osteoporosis consensus and the LIFTMOR trial say, and how to start.
- How much protein per meal after 40?About 25 to 30 g of protein per meal is the research-based target for older adults. Why spreading protein out may help, and what the evidence still lacks.
- Why do women lose muscle after 40?Ageing and the fall in oestrogen at menopause are linked with lower muscle mass and strength. The two factors you can change, and how.
- How to start strength training at 40A plain first month of strength training for women over 40: which moves, how many sets, how often, and how to know it is working.
- Strength training at home with no equipmentA simple home strength routine for women over 40 using bodyweight, a chair, a wall and shopping bags. Why it works and how to progress.
- Is it too late to start strength training at 60?No. Studies show people gain strength from strength training even in their 90s. What the research shows, and how to start safely later in life.
- Enough protein without meat after 40Beans, lentils, tofu, eggs, dairy and fish can cover your protein needs after 40. How to plan meat-free meals that reach your target.
- Strength training with osteoporosisThe UK consensus says people with osteoporosis should keep active and do strength work. How to start safely, and when to see a physiotherapist first.
- Do you need protein powder after 40?No, food can meet your protein needs. When a powder is a useful shortcut, what the research on supplements found, and what to check first.
- Cardio or strength training after 40?UK guidelines ask for both: 150 minutes of moderate activity and strength work on two days a week. How to fit them into a real week.
- How to improve your balance after 40One-leg balance falls off after 60 in research. How to test your balance at home, simple ways to train it, and what UK guidelines advise.
Comparisons
Apps and approaches side by side, including the ones that are not ours.
- Best apps to find bloating triggers (2026)An honest comparison of food and symptom diary apps for bloating and IBS: what each one is for, what it costs, and which to choose.
- mySymptoms alternatives (2026)The main alternatives to mySymptoms for tracking food and symptoms, what each does differently, and when mySymptoms is still the better pick.
- Monash FODMAP app alternatives (2026)Free and paid alternatives to the Monash FODMAP app, what each covers, and why Monash remains the reference for the low FODMAP diet itself.
- MyFitnessPal alternatives for bloatingCalorie counters are not built to find what bloats you. The apps that are, and when MyFitnessPal is still the right tool.
- Best free IBS tracker apps (UK, 2026)Free apps for tracking IBS symptoms, food and triggers, compared from their UK App Store listings, with what each is best at.
Ojafi plans
Short, bounded plans that add to your plate and never take a food away.
- Nothing after nine, a two-week planFinish eating by nine and leave the evening alone. Two weeks, and you’ll know whether it’s when you eat or what you eat.
- Warm mornings, a two-week planSomething warm and cooked before anything cold, every morning. Two weeks, and you’ll know whether a warm start changes your afternoons.
- Meals that hold you, a two-week planTwo of protein, fibre and healthy fat at every meal. Nothing to give up. Two weeks, and you’ll know whether fuller meals quiet the snacking.
- Thirty plants a week, a four-week planThirty different plants across the week, nothing to give up. Four weeks, and you’ll know which of them your gut actually likes.
- Eat with your cycle, a three-cycle planMore iron and magnesium in the days you bleed, nothing taken away. Three cycles, and you’ll know which parts of this are true for you.