Most women are told that feeling exhausted, gaining weight, losing muscle, and watching their body change after 40 is just what happens. Dr. Stephanie Estima is here to tell you that's the wrong map.
BETTER is the podcast for women in perimenopause and menopause who want to build real strength, understand their hormones, and take body composition seriously — without the diet culture nonsense and without the fear.
Dr. Stephanie is a chiropractor, brain health expert, and one of the few voices in the menopause space who leads with fitness, muscle, and what your body is actually capable of. Each week she brings the world's leading researchers, clinicians, and practitioners into conversation — then translates the science into something you can use on Monday morning.
Topics include strength training in perimenopause, body composition after 40, HRT and hormonal health, bone density, metabolic health, injury prevention, sleep, nutrition, and the kind of training that actually works when your body is changing.
This is not a podcast about surviving menopause. It's about building the strongest, most capable version of yourself — at the exact moment most women are told to expect less.
Latest episodes
Showing 20 · updated from the feed
No Time for the Gym? How to Rack Up Movement Minutes and Protect Your Bone Density with Katy Bowman
#30 trending · Health & Fitness
What if the guilt you feel for skipping the gym is based on a flawed concept? Biomechanist Katy Bowman challenges the notion that exercise is merely a modern, recent way
Sep 21 1 h 24 min
The Physiology of Grief: What Loss Actually Does In Your Body with Mary-Frances O'Connor, PhD.
Falling in love triggers a specific hormonal cascade: oxytocin, dopamine, the whole cocktail that makes you feel like you can't think about anything else. What almost nob
Sep 14 1 h 17 min
How Nitric Oxide Controls Blood Flow, Energy & Hormone Function with Cathy Eason, MS, BCHN
If you’ve got a cupboard full of supplements you bought with good intentions but never used, this episode is for you. Cathy Eason, Chief Science Officer at Berkeley Life,
Sep 7 1 h 17 min
Your Brain on AI: How to Build Your Memory Muscle Before You Borrow It with Jim Kwik
For over 30 years, Jim Kwik has coached Hollywood, professional athletes, political leaders, and Harvard University on how to learn faster and think sharper — and in this
Aug 31 55 min
Pilates Girls, You're Losing Bone. The Exercise Science of Building Bone After 40 with Prof Belinda Beck
For decades, women with low bone density were told to take it easy; Professor Belinda Beck's research proved the opposite: high-intensity resistance and impact training s
Aug 24 1 h 14 min
Frozen Shoulder, Aching Hips & Just Aging: Midlife Joint Pain with Dr. Tom Walters
You did everything they told you. You rested it. You waited. And it still hurts. Here's the part no one explains: rest is often the reason it isn't getting better.
Dr. T
Aug 17 1 h 24 min
Spiritual Fitness: Letting Go vs. Giving Up with Danielle LaPorte
We've been taught that healing is something you power through. Overcome the fear. Crush the goal. Cut the cord and move on. Danielle LaPorte says that's exactly why so ma
Aug 10 1 h 22 min
Why Your Body Composition Isn't Changing (And It's Not What You Think)
You’re training hard, tracking macros, getting enough protein, and sleeping eight hours a night, yet your body isn’t changing.
In this solo episode, Dr. Stephanie explai
Aug 3 42 min
Perimenopause & Autoimmunity Look Identical. Here's How to Tell the Difference with Mickey Trescott, MSc
Is it perimenopause or autoimmunity? The symptoms are similar, and most women don’t ask. Mickey Trescott, founder of the Autoimmune Protocol movement, explains the overla
Jul 27 1 h 20 min
Is Muscle Soreness Progress? Dial in Your Exercise Intensity & Recovery with Dani Coleman
If you've ever judged a workout by how wrecked you felt the next day, this episode is going to reframe everything. Dani Coleman, VP of Training and Head Trainer at Pvolve
Jul 20 53 min
Don't Love the Stairmaster: Try Passive Cardio with Infrared Sauna with Connie Zack
If you've ever dismissed a sauna as a spa luxury, this episode will change your mind. In this episode, Connie Zack, co-founder of Sunlighten, breaks down how infrared lig
Jul 13 1 h 08 min
Look. Feel. Perform. Why Muscle Is the Answer to All Three After 40 with Andy Galpin, PhD
If you've ever felt like your body stopped cooperating in your 40s — the recovery that takes days instead of hours, the muscle that seems to disappear no matter what you
Jul 6 1 h 06 min
HRT Can’t Fix Your Ligaments: The Diabolical Role of Estrogen on Connective Tissue
You've been training consistently for years. You know your way around a gym. And then, out of nowhere, a shoulder gives out on a weight you've pressed a thousand times. O
Jun 29 52 min
Stop Trying to Feel Better — Get Better at Feeling: Heal Anxiety from the Body Up with Dr. Russell Kennedy
If you've tried therapy, medication, journaling, and every mindset tool available — and you're still anxious — this episode is for you. Dr. Russell Kennedy, physician, ne
Jun 22 1 h 21 min
More Cardio, Less Food, Still Gaining: Your Midlife Fitness Do-over with Natalie Jill
If you’ve been eating less, exercising more, and still experiencing unwanted body changes, this episode is for you. Natalie Jill, a Licensed Master Sports Nutritionist an
Jun 15 1 h 07 min
The Estrogen Shortage Is Real & Your Gut Might Be Making It Worse with Esther Blum
Esther Blum, integrative dietitian and menopause expert, unpacks the estrogen supply chain crisis, leaving women without basic hormone care, while there are 25 erectile d
Jun 8 1 h 06 min
96% of Drs Weren’t Taught About Pain: The Recipe for Relief with Dr. Rachel Zoffness
Dr. Rachel Zoffness is a pain psychologist, neuroscientist, and author of Tell Me Where It Hurts -- and she's here to dismantle the biggest lie medicine has sold us: that
Jun 1 1 h 01 min
De-Influencing Your Perimenopause Skincare: What Actually Works (And What to Throw Out) with Dr. Mamina Turegano
If you have been getting your skincare advice from 60-second reels and 18-year-old influencers, this episode is your reset.
Dr. Mamina Turegano is not your average derma
May 25 1 h 37 min
15 Minutes of This Rewires Your Brain & Metabolism — The Science of Lactate | Dr. Stephanie
Dr. Stephanie Estima gives a masterclass on the often-overlooked role of lactate in how our bodies work during exercise. She’s redefining lactate as a key metabolic signa
May 18 42 min
Your Gynecologist Can't Fix This: The Cardiometabolic Side of Menopause with Dr. Heather Hirsch
The single biggest lie women have been told about perimenopause? That it's a gynecological problem. Dr. Heather Hirsch — board-certified internist, Harvard faculty, and f
May 11 1 h 09 min
Chart trend
Position in the Alternative Health chart (US), last 90 days.
#1#16#31JunJulAugSep
#6
all-time peak
32
days in the top 10 since Nov 2024
Chart positions
Where BETTER! with Dr. Stephanie Estima | Strength, Body Composition & Perimenopause ranks today in each Apple Podcasts chart (US, Sep 22, 2026).
A curated, balanced selection of Apple Podcasts reviews.
I really like Dr. Stephanie’s content. I definitely learn a lot in each episode. My only frustration is the amount of product suggestions/sponsors. I understand sponsors keep the show up and running. I just don’t love being sold so often in one episode. Perhaps the scripts could be shorter? Not sure but I wanted to give an honest review.
AltezzaFit · Jul 2026
I cannot say how incredibly grateful I am to Dr. Stephanie Estima and the information she shares, interviewing some of the most forward thinking doctors willing to push against the status quo in the arena of women’s health! As a biologist and fellow information nerd, this has become one of my favorite podcasts. I am 39, living with Hashimoto’s, slow COMT, dealing now with an onset of perimenopausal symptoms and the information Stephanie shares have been my standard go-to while allopathic (apathetic) medicine continually fails to support this transformative process in my life. From Hashimoto’s to Perimenopause the offerings from my primary care NP AND endocrinologist have been “well your thyroid isn’t bad enough to treat” and “you can take SSRI’s for stress intolerance” SCREW THAT. Unfortunately I have to get ACTUAL care by paying out-of-pocket, that’s the current reality that Dr. Estima and her guests are trying to push against to make meaningful changes in our less than adequate medical system. I also want to say that I feel so appreciative and supported in my new lifting journey with Stephanie, metaphorically, by my side. Stephanie I want you to know I have used this valuable information to also help other women I care about as well as helping my partner to make sense of these things alongside me. He has become more supportive and understanding in the ever ongoing nuances. Stephanie thank you so much for your no-BS, badass support! Much love.
On a second note, I have a request. I know I can’t be the only one dealing with this but having a slow COMT and entering perimenopause, or being IN peri, there seems to be so many contradictions with this combo. Throw Hashimoto’s into the mix and it’s like, “great! What CAN I do?” So many helpful things like HRT are tricky with slow COMT. Has there been any investigations into to this combo from any doctors/research, if so, it’d be amazing to do an episode on this. ALSO, since women are having children later in life and that often aligns with Perimenopause, what then is the advice given to them when they cannot take HRT when either trying to convince, pregnant or breastfeeding? Do they have to just muscle through those times unsupported? Curious about this topic as well as I am in that boat too. Have you ever heard of trouble breathing while falling asleep in perimenopause, yep that’s another thing that’s tied to estrogen decline(?) I am not at all overweight in and am relatively fit, but this is a new symptom that’s come up with me recently.
I’d also love to hear episode or on any combination of these topics: PMDD, Hashimoto’s, and Slow COMT. Love, love, LOVE the work you’re doing. Thank you for advocating for women’s health!
Soraya WildFeather · May 2026
I loved the postcast with Dr. Felice Gersh! I learned so much and really liked the way she explained the difference in estrogens. The bit about bio identical vs. human identical hormone replacement therapy was helpful! I hope you have her on again and cover progesterone and testosterone.
TMHotMama · Mar 2026
Loved the tendon episode. Just rehabbed from frozen shoulder doing much of what you recommend only to now have achilles pain. Sister had tennis elbow…tendons are like the theme of life these days! Didn’t know isometric holds could help so starting that and your other advice today! Thank you so, so much for sharing your wisdom!
digital product newbie · Feb 2026
This was a very disappointing episode. It is my first introduction to Better! so I really hope future episodes are not like this one. It was basically an hour long infomercial for her guests product. She said in the beginning how the environment is so crucial to decreasing inflammation and senescent cells but then did not say one thing about how to improve that environment other than use her product. (Basically). It just felt quite biased and although there was good info about the science of hair loss there was nothing about how to prevent it other than using her product. Bummer.
CC doc · Jul 2025
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