Strength Training for Women: How 5 Wellness Habits Can Transform Your Midlife Health.

Wellness isn’t about doing everything at once or pretending you’ve got it all figured out. I know, because I’ve lived through chapters where just holding it together felt like the biggest challenge.

I lost my dad within six months of his diagnosis, and not long after, my 20-year marriage sadly ended. At the same time, my gym business, StrengthWorx, was sold with the family home, and I had to find a way to rebuild my business and my life in my mid-forties. Then there was the hormonal part of the picture as well, which, combined with stress, was all in all an extremely difficult time as my life slowly dismantled.

I don’t share this to preach or because I believe workouts and wellness are the answer to everything. I share it because I’ve been tossed around by life, too, just like you. And what saved me wasn’t doing it all, or doing it perfectly. It was having a handful of tools, anchors I could come back to when things felt messy or overwhelming, which was often.

I created this 5-part framework as much for me as I did for you. I figured if I needed it, there might be plenty of other women it might help too.

1. Regulate Your Nervous System

When stress runs unchecked, your body shifts into “fight or flight” and treats everyday life as a constant emergency. Your body is constantly flooded with cortisol, and you find yourself in a far more 'reactive' rather than 'responsive' state. Being in a state of high stress affects every area of your life, from your relationships with others and yourself, to sleep, digestion, and contributes to stubborn weight gain around the middle, which can then exacerbate low confidence as well as health issues. This is why I make getting stress under control my first pillar.

Stress management doesn’t mean eliminating all stress. It means creating tools that help you return to calm. Breathwork, meditation, journaling, or even a ten-minute walk outside can reset your nervous system and stop the spiral.

Choose one of these to start:

• Breathwork: Try the 4–4–4 method (inhale 4, hold 4, exhale 4) five times when you feel overwhelmed.

• Journaling pause: Writing slows down your thinking. We can't write as quickly as we think. We repeat what we don't repair. Becoming aware of when we are being activated makes us less likely to be so reactive in the future. Journaling needs to be completely private and for your eyes only. You need to write with complete abandon as these pages can then be enormously healing.

Journaling to help manage stress

2. Prioritise Sleep

Sleep is your body’s repair system. Being tired affects every area of our lives, and for many women, poor sleep is one of the most significant barriers to overwhelm and emotional dysregulation. Hormones play a role, but lifestyle does too; late-night screens, inconsistent bedtimes, overstimulation and alcohol all exacerbate poor sleep. Fatigue also significantly disrupts our hunger hormones, which can exacerbate weight gain.

The good news: minor adjustments add up. This is an ongoing challenge for me, but I do try to put “guardrails” in place for sleep. Think of them as non-negotiables that support better rest, like no caffeine after midday, no phone in bed, and consistent lights-out times.

Choose one of these to start:

• Set a guardrail: Put devices away 60-30 minutes before bed and dim the lights.

• Bedtime consistency: Choose a realistic bedtime and stick to it—even on weekends.

• (I have an alarm that goes off at 9.30 pm and have labelled it - Turn your phone off, Edwina, there is nothing to see here now.)

  
  

3. Strength Training for Women: Embrace it

Clearly, I'm going to shout about this. I used to train in a weightlifting gym, as well as owning my own gym. But bringing strength training to your home has given me the greatest joy, as I know how powerful consistent 30-minute sessions can change your life, physically and mentally. I think this is why I am so passionate about weight training. It's not a new dance routine every week. It is a rinse and repeat of classic moves that can be transformative, not just in your physical appearance, but also in how you handle stress. For me, the psychological benefits far outweigh the physical ones. But getting both is a bonus.

Strength workouts aid weight loss by helping you build lean muscle, which keeps your metabolism active. They also protect your bone health from osteoporosis, strengthen the mobility of your joints, and boost your self-confidence in what your body can do. It's incredibly empowering to feel strong; this feeling permeates every other area of your life.

Choose one of these to start:

• Express workout: Ten minutes of squats, rows, and presses at home, or start my 8-week beginner series to set you up.

• Micro-habit: Put your workouts into a diary - treat them as you would a doctor's appt or a meeting at work. Not an afterthought. This signals to your brain that you are taking care of yourself. Getting on the mat matters, and it's important to you.

4. Focus on Sustenance

Nutrition is the fuel behind every other wellness habit. Protein is especially important for women in midlife, it steadies blood sugar, preserves muscle, and reduces cravings. Without it, energy crashes and emotional eating often follow. You can't out-train a bad diet.

But food isn’t just fuel. It’s also joy, connection, and culture. Restriction doesn't work long-term, but balance does. Choosing foods that nourish you most of the time, while leaving space for enjoyment, is what makes healthy eating sustainable. This is where the 80/20 way of eating comes in, eating well 80 per cent of the time and leaving 20 per cent of the time for a glass of wine or a meal out with friends.

Choose one of these to start:

• Protein at every meal: Once you know how to get 30g of protein on your plate at every meal (roughly 100g a day), you will have fewer cravings. (This is not at the expense of fibre and complex carbs - more look at protein first and then fibre and carbs)

• Protein - again: On your shopping list, put your protein separately so you can easily incorporate it into your meals from the beginning. Greek yoghurt, eggs, meat, fish, tinned fish, tofu, and protein powder as a top-up. Get used to seeing these in your weekly shop. If I had not seen this work time and time again, both personally and with clients, along with this being scientifically backed as a way to preserve muscle mass and manage weight, I would not have put this in here twice!

  
  

5. Nurture Your Soul

This pillar is often neglected, but this is why we have the other pillars in place. Without joy, even the best workout and meal plan can feel like punishment. What lights you up and brings you true happiness? Is it travelling, time with girlfriends, reading, theatre, music, writing, creative projects, or time with loved ones? These are not luxuries. These are what life is all about.

Making time for joy actually improves stress regulation, mental clarity, and energy. It reminds you that wellness is about more than how your body looks or performs; it’s also about how you feel inside.

Choose one of these to start:

• Joy list: Write down 10 small things that you love to do for 30 minutes a day (a walk, reading, a phone call) and choose one daily.

• Schedule longer time for joy too: Block time for longer times to relax and unwind with no guilt. A long, long bath, reading all Sunday afternoon, a night out, shopping, creating something or sitting quietly with coffee and watching the world go by.

  
  

A Framework to Return To

You don’t need to hit 10/10 in every pillar. Some weeks, you’ll prioritise sleep; others, you’ll double down on strength training or sustenance. The point isn’t perfection, it’s momentum.

These aren’t abstract concepts. They’re the tools I leaned on when I was rebuilding my life after divorce, grief, and starting over in my forties. They don’t erase the hard times, but they give you something solid to stand on. And that, more than anything, is what wellness is really about.