Abbott Elementary's Lisa Ann Walter on Healthy Aging: "I Have More Energy Than I've Ever Had Before"

For many women in their 40s and 50s, experiencing the symptoms of perimenopause and menopause is an unavoidable reality, no matter how you prepare yourself for it. Symptoms like hot flashes, dry skin and insomnia are uncomfortable, and the fact that the topic is not often talked about does not do folks any favors.

This was true for actor Lisa Ann Walter. The Abbott Elementary and The Parent Trap star has been prioritizing healthy habits, and Walter wants more people who are going through menopause to receive the information that they deserve. That’s why she teamed up with Centrum Menopause Support on their new Hot Conversations campaign.  

“We want to really destigmatize and normalize the conversation around menopause and setting up support in the workplace,” she tells EatingWell. “Only a quarter of women report having any kind of menopause support in the workplace—I know how that feels.”

In this exclusive interview, we chatted with Walter about menopause and this partnership. Plus, learn more about her favorite snacks to eat on the set of Abbott and the Philly foods that she loves and can’t wait to try.

EatingWell: What's one habit you started doing to take care of yourself that you wish you started earlier?

Walter: At 18, I started selling cosmetics at a fancy department store, and I learned a lot about the ingredients that are necessary to keep your skin looking good. I am very lucky in that now I get lots of compliments from people that do my makeup, saying, “You’ve got great skin.” But I wish I had taken care of the skin on my body. The skin on my body is dry and it's almost, I don't want to say scaly because that sounds horrifying, but it's not nice. The women I work with on Abbott, I'm constantly looking at their skin and asking, “What do you use?” And they told me that they put lotion on in the shower so it keeps the moisture in—that's genius. It never occurred to me. I wish I had done that sooner.

EatingWell: Do you have any on-set meals or snacks that you swear by to keep you fueled?

Walter: I'm sitting in a makeup chair at 4:30 in the morning, and we don't take lunch until the crew has gone through their morning hours. So I'm working almost eight hours before we break for a meal. I start my day with oatmeal or sometimes it’s Greek yogurt and berries. Egg whites are also amazing for me. That is the perfect snack because it actually will fuel me because of the protein. The other thing that the crew makes on our set that I like a lot: I love almond butter, and it'll get messy to eat if you just try to eat it on an apple, so they’ll take a round apple slice and put on some almond butter mixed with whole rolled oats. That really helps fill me until lunchtime.

EatingWell: What’s a common misconception about menopause that you wish more people knew about?

Walter: The fact that it's different for everybody. When you reach the age when menopause happens, you hear, “Oh, you're in menopause. You're dry, you're done, you've lost energy, you don't have the stamina, you don't have the optimism, you're not the same as a fresh young person.” And all I have to say is, look at me and Sheryl Lee Ralph. With the success and the work that I do now, it's not just my job on top of it and it's not just when I'm lucky enough to have a great partner like Centrum. I have more energy, more drive, more stamina at this stage of my life than I've ever had before. I think it's the idea of women becoming useless after a certain age.

EatingWell: Why partner with Centrum?

Walter: Centrum was a brand that I trusted anyway because it was my grandmother’s favorite. Every time I went to Costco, I had to pick Nana up her package of Centrum Silver. That was her medicine, and she was the most well-read person about medicine and health that I knew, so I trusted that she knew that this brand was reliable and trustworthy. I looked at the ingredients on the Centrum Menopause Support bottle and I said, “Oh, it’s not just the clinical stuff but the herbal medications that I've read about, it's right there in the formulation.” So I was into it, and especially the fact that their approach was to make it easier for women to be in a job. It lasts different lengths of time for every woman. Something that people don't realize is that my symptoms are not going to be your symptoms.

EatingWell: What’s something you want to try the next time you’re in Philly?

Walter: All of it. This year, I asked for people to send me any local food recommendations besides a cheesesteak: “Where do I need to go?” There was a big battle on my Instagram post about it between Rita's and John's for water ice in South Philly. Somebody also told me about a panzarotti. It’s like a calzone, but it's fried. Sounds great to me; don't threaten me with a good time!

Editor’s Note: This interview has been edited for clarity and length.