Health, Fitness & Personal Growth Tips for Women in Midlife: Asking for a Friend

Ep.168 Reversing Osteoporosis: My Midlife Bone Health Blueprint with Michele Folan

• Michele Henning Folan • Episode 168

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The day my DEXA scan results revealed osteoporosis was a wake-up call I dreaded. No symptoms. No warning signs. Just a family history of poor bone health. The casual “take medication and see you in two years" was a no-go for me. Like so many women in midlife, I knew there had to be another way.

In this episode, I share my personal journey of reversing bone loss and improving my DEXA scan results—without relying solely on pharmaceuticals. If you are being presented with an option of drug therapy, please have the conversation with your doctor about what steps are best based on the severity of your disease. 

From strength training with proper form and lifting heavier weights, to increasing protein to 110–120 grams daily, optimizing supplements like vitamin D3, K2, calcium, magnesium, and collagen, and making lifestyle shifts around alcohol, sleep, hormones, and daily sunshine—this holistic approach has transformed my health in many ways.

You’ll learn:

  • Why osteoporosis is called the “silent disease” (and how to catch it early)
  • The nutrition, supplements, and workouts that actually support bone density
  • How lifestyle choices—sleep, stress, and hormones—affect bone remodeling
  • The real results from my follow-up DEXA scan

If you’re a midlife woman worried about osteoporosis, fractures, or staying strong and independent as you age, this episode will give you practical strategies and hope. Don’t wait for a fracture to get serious about your bone health—start building stronger bones and a stronger future today.

Supplements/Hormone Therapy I am taking: (Please consult your healthcare provider before adding any supplements.)

Solaray Magnesium Glycinate https://amzn.to/4oCSXwR 

Solaray Calcium Citrate with D3 https://amzn.to/3HFEzTI 

Thorne Zinc https://amzn.to/4mLwATU

Osteo-K Minis - NBI Health https://amzn.to/45UnNtf

Collagen Peptides - Healthy Bones Co. https://amzn.to/419VNPL

Estradiol 0.05 Transdermal Patch

Progesterone 100 mg

Testosterone 5mg. - Transdermal (compounded)

Past shows on Osteoporosis
Ep.21 Kevin Ellis -  The Bone Coach

Eps.63 & 118 Rebecca Rotstein - The Buff Bones Method

Ep.126 Dr. John Neustadt - Osteoporosis Research & NBI Health

Ep.156 Dr. Doug Lucas - Orthopedic Surgeon and Osteoporosis Specialist 

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Are you ready to reclaim your midlife body and health?
I’ve walked this road myself—through menopause, stubborn midsection weight gain, and the fatigue that makes you feel like you’ve lost your spark. The Faster Way six-week group program set me on the path to strength, confidence, and sustainable change. You can get started here:
👉 https://www.fasterwaycoach.com/?aid=MicheleFolan

💌 Have questions about Faster Way? Reach me anytime at mfolanfasterway@gmail.com

✨ For more tips, science-backed strategies, and midlife health inspiration, sign up for my weekly newsletter:
👉 https://michelefolanfasterway.myflodesk.com/i6i44jw4fq

🎤 In addition to coaching, I speak to women’s groups, moderate health panel discussions, and bring experts together for real, evidence-based conversations about midlife health. If you’d like me at your next event, let’s connect!

Transcripts are created with AI and may not be perfectly accurate.

Disclaimer: This podcast is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute the practice of medicine, nursing, or other professional healthcare services. It is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always se...

Michele Folan:

Hey friends, Michele here. I bring over 25 years of health industry experience to everything I do as a certified fitness and nutrition coach and host of a top 2% global women's health and wellness podcast. And I don't just share these conversations on the mic, I bring them to live audiences. I've moderated women's health panels, interviewed top experts on stage and spoken to women's groups about thriving in midlife through metabolic health, strength and longevity. My mission is to help women feel strong, capable and in control of their long-term health. If you're planning an event on women's health, midlife wellness or personal growth, I'd love to be part of it. Reach out through LinkedIn or the link in the show notes. Let's make your next event unforgettable and meaningful Health, wellness, fitness and everything in between. We're removing the taboo from what really matters in midlife. I'm your host, Michele Folan, and this is Asking for a Friend.

Michele Folan:

More than 10 million Americans are living with osteoporosis and 80% of them are women. By age 50, one in two women will break a bone because of it. The scary part, most have no idea their bones are weakening until it's too late. When I got my DEXA scan results, I found myself face-to-face with this reality. In today's episode, I'm sharing my personal osteoporosis journey what my diagnosis was, the exact steps I took to start reversing my bone loss, and how you can take action now to protect your strength, mobility and independence for decades to come. Welcome to the show, everyone.

Michele Folan:

I wanted to do another solo show and I'm going to be doing them on occasion, so don't be surprised. But this one is really a follow-up to. A couple weeks ago. I let you all know on Instagram that I got the results of my Texas scan, and I was very excited because when I was first diagnosed with osteoporosis, I did not get the answers that I wanted from the doctor, and I have to say that you go through these different feelings, so at first I was like, oh shit. And then I was a little fearful because I wondered gosh, what does this mean for me long term? Am I going to be able to turn this around without being put on some kind of a pharmaceutical? And so there was a lot to all of this right, but when I mentioned this to my audience out there, I got so many responses and questions that I thought, okay, maybe I need to do a show about this. But it also brought to light the fact that there are so many women out there in midlife that are facing this and, honestly, many don't know that they have osteoporosis. So I'll share exactly what I've done since my diagnosis to start reversing my bone loss and how you can take steps today to protect your own bone health.

Michele Folan:

I do want to add, as I always do I am not a medical professional and some of the things I'm going to tell you to do really are based on the severity of my diagnosis or lack of severity. There are people out there that have far worse bone health than I do, and for some folks, yes, maybe doing a pharmaceutical or a biologic is the necessary first step, but for me, even though that was offered, I declined and decided to do this on my own. Of course, the first step was to have the conversation with the doctor. Now my normal nurse practitioner was out on medical leave. I had the opportunity to speak to her partner and he doesn't know me, so, in all fairness, he doesn't have any ownership of me, but I did expect to get more than well. We're going to have you increase your vitamin D and your calcium, we're going to have you on a bisphosphonate like Fosamax, and we'll see you back in two years. That was the conversation and I decided okay, that's not good enough. I have no idea why you think that's a great idea for me, but my goal is to avoid fractures, to stay mobile and independent until I'm in my 80s. So I decided my approach would be multi-pronged. This was not just one thing that I had to fix and it certainly was not going to be fixed with a bisphosphonate because I was not going on a drug. Now I will say this If you have an osteoporosis diagnosis, it has to be based on the severity. I clearly was not in a state where the bisphosphonate was absolutely mandatory, but if you have really poor bone health and you need to be on a bisphosphonate like a pharmaceutical or a biologic, then that is up to you and your doctor to make that decision.

Michele Folan:

I decided that I would move from more general health type of goals to being a little more bone specific in my health habits, and one of the very, very first things that I did was I went to a physical therapist. So I thought working with a PT, she could show me proper form to make sure I wouldn't hurt myself and to show me some exercises that would be good, specific, for building bone, particularly in my lower lumbar, which is where my osteoporosis was. I wanted expert guidance on form and safety. I didn't wanna just go out there on my own and think I knew everything, because I didn't. I followed Buff Bones, which is it's Rebecca Rothstein. She's been on my show twice. I followed Kevin, the bone coach, which I had already followed him anyway because he had been on my show, and then I also followed Dr Doug Lucas. These are all super great resources for you if you have osteoporosis or you just really want to work on your bone health.

Michele Folan:

I learned exactly what I need to do to stimulate bone growth. So you know compound lifts, impact posture training, making sure I am sitting correctly. And then I decided at that point too, I needed a more structured program. I had been looking at Faster Way and the timing worked out perfectly. I joined Faster Way around this time because getting more intentional about my strength training, structured, more progressive overload, because I knew I was going to have to increase my weights.

Michele Folan:

And then also nutrition Protein was absolutely the goal right, because I needed to up my protein to get at least I go for 110 to 120 grams per day, but balanced macros with healthy fats and plenty of fiber, because I want to make sure that I'm absorbing all my nutrients. Looking back at, like the physical piece of this, I want to make sure that I'm absorbing all my nutrients. Looking back at like the physical piece of this, I wanted to learn more about squats and deadlifts and lunges and push-ups and weighted carries, impact balance. You know doing step-ups, you know single leg work. I really wanted to challenge my bones, challenge my muscles, to try to do this the most natural way that I could.

Michele Folan:

On top of the macronutrients, like protein and fiber and all that stuff, we should talk about micronutrients and we all know calcium is important for bone health and you can get that from food and from supplements. I do both, and you can get that from food and from supplements. I do both. There's also vitamin K2, which I take a combo K2, mk4 that has D3 in it that I get from NBI Health. Again, I had the founder of the company. He is a big researcher in osteoporosis and bone health and I decided to take that product because of the data that he had. I will put that in the show notes.

Michele Folan:

I take a collagen with Fortabone and there are quite a few brands out there that use Fortabone as part of their components. I just choose to do this particular combination because I'm like all right, you know, there is some data that shows that this particular type of collagen is beneficial for bone health. There's also magnesium glycinate that helps with bone mineralization, and then zinc. You don't want to take a ton of zinc I think I take 25 milligrams per day but that also helps with healthy bone. As a disclaimer, I need to say this Do not add any supplements to your current regimen without asking your doctor, because I have no clue what else you're taking and what may interact. So again, please, I am not a doctor, I'm just telling you what I take.

Michele Folan:

There's one more thing when you think about bone health is hydration. Hydration is incredibly important beyond just getting your eight glasses a day. What I tell my clients is that take or drink half your body weight in ounces every day. That is a great starting point. You'll feel better if for anything, and it helps with the transport of nutrients to your bone. There are some other lifestyle changes that I've made that I believe are worth mentioning.

Michele Folan:

I want to talk about alcohol first. I don't want any eye rolls, but it's important to mention. I went from being a daily alcohol drinker even if it was just one glass of wine I probably drink almost every day to occasional. Alcohol does affect bone turnover, it affects hormones, it affects your sleep and it can mess with your gut microbiome. Back to the absorption piece. I want to make sure that my gut is in tip-top shape to ensure that all these wonderful macro and micronutrients that I'm taking are getting absorbed properly. I just feel like there's so much data out there now to support cutting back on alcohol or quitting altogether that this made great sense in terms of the osteoporosis diagnosis and for those that have listened to my podcast, you all know that I have had my sober, curious moments from years ago that have now translated to me really having a much better relationship with alcohol, and I'm very happy where I am right now.

Michele Folan:

Something else that's to think about is getting outside, getting daily sunshine to help boost your vitamin D production, and also it helps with your mood. Try to get outside and enjoy the sun, particularly early morning, where that resets your circadian rhythm. So sleep is also the other piece of this. Right Bones remodel at night. You want to protect your deep sleep. Try to adopt some good sleep hygiene habits, going to bed at the same time, cool dark room limit screen time at night. That's a big one. We could talk about sleep for hours, but just know that there is a benefit to making sure that you guard your sleep because obviously bone is part of that whole equation.

Michele Folan:

The next important step was hormone optimization. After my hysterectomy, you may remember, I was on vaginal estrogen and testosterone. That was it. My next GYN decided to put me on estrogen. We opted to do oral at the time and estrogen is very important for bone preservation and it does help us build bone. The testosterone I think we kept me at the same dose, but again testosterone for muscle mass and strength. Progesterone now I don't have a uterus, but progesterone does help with bone health. So, being on all three of those, I feel really good about where I am.

Michele Folan:

In regard to my hormone replacement therapy and I know I talked about this on another podcast, so we don't have to dive too deeply into this but, yeah, see a hormone specialist, see a doctor that can really hone in on what you need if you have osteoporosis. Now, when I look at where I am, you know, having gotten the recent DEXA scan and seeing that I've had positive growth in all three segments, so I'd be both hips and my lumbar. I technically still have osteoporosis, but I am starting to see some light at the end of the tunnel where I could possibly reverse this. That's very exciting to me Now. I was talking to a client the other day. She also has osteoporosis. They also do a DEXA scan of her wrist. Wrists are interesting because it's a bone that women most often break first, because as we fall, we break our fall with our wrist. So that is just another data point to get in terms of the DEXA scan is doing your wrists. One other little tidbit that you may not know you want to get scanned by the same scanner every time, if you can. Maybe you move and you can't do that, but it is important to have that consistency in the calibration of the equipment. So just an FYI there.

Michele Folan:

I'm feeling much stronger in my workouts. I am lifting much heavier weights than I ever thought I would, and some of that is coming from the encouragement from Dr Dave DeMarco, where I did the whole body scan and realizing that I really needed to work on building more lean body mass. I'm a very small person and I need that muscle mass to protect my bones and joints as I get older. That was some of the best advice that I've gotten was look, you need to be a little sore after you work out, and I wasn't. I wasn't getting super sore after I worked out. I was probably getting a little complacent with the weights that I was using. I recommend you work with the guy at the gym. There's trainers, there's people out there that can help you feel confident about lifting heavier weights. But you want to do it slowly, over time. It's not something that overnight you're going to be throwing around 25 pound weights. I feel like my posture is better. I'm working on my balance because of course, that's going to be important. As we age. You want to make sure that you're staying firmly on both feet.

Michele Folan:

I will retest my DEXA in another year and this time I'll be excited about going, because I was nervous apprehensive whatever you want to say about this last one because I really had no clue what the outcome was going to be. Bone building is slow, but I'm in this for the long game, as I am with every part of my health. What I want women to hear is that osteoporosis is common, but it's not inevitable. You can take action even after diagnosis. This is not a death sentence, and knowledge is power. Know your numbers and start building habits now.

Michele Folan:

This is about future-proofing your body so it carries you into your 80s and beyond, and you know if you follow me at all. That is my main goal. So get your DEXA scan, don't wait for symptoms. Pick one or two bone building habits to start this month and then, if you could share this episode with a friend who needs to hear this message and continue to follow my bone health journey on Instagram. And if you want structured support, you can check out my six-week metabolism reset, where we work on your strength, your nutrition and lifestyle, because, trust me, all of those things matter when it comes to your overall health, your bone health and aging for longevity. Hey, thanks for tuning in. Please rate and review the show where you listen to the podcast. And did you know that Asking for a Friend is available now to listen on YouTube? You can subscribe to the podcast there as well. Your support is appreciated and it helps others find the show. Thank you.