In this episode of The Fit Positive Podcast, I’m answering your questions — exactly as you sent them — covering some of the most common challenges women face in midlife when it comes to weight, training, energy, nutrition and hormones.

We talk through how to set realistic health goals, why hunger and exhaustion are often signs of under-fuelling or under-recovery (not lack of willpower), how to train and eat in a way that supports your midlife body, and how to cut through the noise online with evidence-based guidance that actually works in real life.

This is a practical, reassuring episode designed to help you feel more confident in your choices — without falling into extremes or fads.

In this episode, we cover:

• How GPs assess healthy weight using BMI and why body fat percentage matters more in midlife

• How to structure meals across long days to avoid constant hunger and energy crashes

• Why I moved away from a fully plant-based diet and what I prioritise now

• Whether tea and coffee count towards hydration

• What massive fatigue, poor appetite and stalled progress are really telling you

• How to balance strength training and endurance training in midlife

• Smart hacks when daily steps are hard to hit

• Evidence-based sauna guidelines for health and longevity

• The difference between helpful inflammation and chronic low-grade inflammation

• Whether macros matter as much as calories

• Where to start if you feel weak or can’t yet do basic strength exercises

• Why skin health often improves when lifestyle foundations improve

• Easy ways to take creatine beyond protein coffee

• Why menopause belly is common — even in fit women — and what actually helps

• Simple, effective ways to build core strength without overcomplicating it

If you've ever had any of these questions — this episode is for you.

And if you need more support...

🔗 Join Fit Positive

Fit Positive is my online membership for women in midlife who want to build strength, improve health, and feel confident in their bodies — without extremes.

Inside the membership you’ll find:

• 30-minute strength workouts designed specifically for midlife women

• Simple, macro-balanced recipes and nutrition support

• Habit, mindset and stress-management tools

• Step tracking, progress tracking and full app support

• A supportive community that truly understands this stage of life

Join here: 👉 www.fitpositive.ie

In Part 2 of this mindset series, we move beyond what you want to change and focus on how to make change last — without burnout, overwhelm, or all-or-nothing thinking.

This episode breaks down the psychology behind sustainable habits and why stress management is not optional in midlife health. You’ll learn how to build habits that actually stick, how to work with your nervous system (not against it), and why flexibility — not perfection — is the key to long-term success.

In this episode, we cover:

• Why mastering the art of showing up matters more than intensity

• How to size your habits so they’re sustainable on your worst days, not just your best

• How habit stacking removes decision fatigue and builds momentum

• Why your environment and community matter — and how to build a supportive tribe

• How to reconnect with your why and focus on what truly matters

• Why enjoyment and fun are essential for consistency

• How to adjust habits to your current season of life, especially in midlife

• The role of stress, the nervous system, and mindfulness in habit formation

• How resonance breathing can calm the stress response, improve sleep, and support recovery

This episode is for you if you’re tired of starting over, feel overwhelmed by “doing everything,” or want a calmer, more sustainable approach to health and fitness in midlife.

Resources Mentioned:

• Atomic Habits by James Clear

Help us spread the word!

If you enjoyed this episode, it would mean the world if you follow the podcast on Spotify or Apple Podcasts and share this episode with a friend who might find it helpful!

Get in touch!

If you have questions for next week’s Q&A, you can always drop us an email at [email protected]

Join Fit Positive

Get your personalised calorie & macro targets, strength training program, 150+ high-protein recipes, tracking tools, coaching support, and our wonderful community:

 ⁠www.fitpositive.ie⁠

In this episode of The Fit Positive Podcast, we kick off Part 1 of a two-part series on mindset — because while nutrition and training matter, they only work when your mindset supports them.

This episode focuses on the mental side of midlife health: the beliefs, thought patterns and pressures that quietly get in the way of consistency & success — even when you know what to do.

We talk about:

• Why mindset matters
• How self-limiting beliefs form — and how they hold us back
• How to start shifting the story you tell yourself
• Why overwhelm is so common, and how to simplify your focus
• Essentialism as a tool for managing your time

Helpful links mentioned:

⁠Blog: 6 Steps to Overcome Self-Limiting Beliefs⁠⁠Essentialism by Greg McKeown⁠

🎧 Part 2 will build on this foundation and dive into habits, consistency, stress, and creating change that actually lasts.

Thanks for listening - I appreciate you!

Cx

In this episode of The Fit Positive Podcast, we answer one of the most common questions I get from women in midlife:

“I want to lose 10lbs, keep my muscle, and feel more energised — without falling for another diet trend or fad. How do I do this sustainably?”

If you’ve ever felt like you’re doing all the right things but still struggling with energy, hunger, or consistency, this episode will give you clarity and reassurance.

In this episode, we cover:

Why most weight-loss approaches stop working in midlife

What a sustainable calorie deficit actually looks like

Why protein is non-negotiable for fat loss and energy

How daily movement (steps) supports fat loss without burnout

Why strength training is essential for preserving muscle and metabolism

How fibre and food volume help control hunger and cravings

The role of sleep, recovery and stress in fat loss

The mindset shifts that make results stick long-term

Exactly how we put all of this into practice inside the Fit Positive membership

Links & Resources Mentioned

Fit Positive Membership

All-in-one support for midlife women — including workouts, nutrition guidance, recipes, mindset coaching and community.
👉 www.fitpositive.ie

Free Calorie & Macro Calculator
Find your personalised calorie and macro targets to support fat loss without under-eating.
👉 https://stan.store/fitpositive/p/free-calorie-and-macro-calculator

My Full Day of Eating
A real example of how to hit your calorie and protein targets with normal, satisfying meals.
👉 https://stan.store/fitpositive/p/a-full-day-of-eating-recipes-1400-calories

If you enjoyed this episode, please follow the show, share it with a friend or pop it on your Instagram stories — it really helps more women find the podcast.

Thanks so much for listening!

Cx

In this week’s episode of The Fit Positive Podcast, we’re talking about one of the biggest — and most underestimated — reasons women gain weight over Christmas:

👉 Mindless snacking and grazing.

This episode was inspired by a reel I recorded this week, where I tracked what felt like “just a few snacks” across the day — a biscuit with tea, a handful of crisps, some cheese and crackers, a few chocolates and a glass of wine.

📊 Total? 1,540 calories — just from snacks alone.

No judgement. No guilt. Just awareness.

In this episode, we cover:

🎄 Why Christmas snacking feels harmless — but adds up fast
• How grazing sneaks calories in without ever triggering fullness
• Why snacks don’t register as “real food” in our brains
• Why this happens even to very health-conscious women

🍽️ The real problem: under-eating at main meals
• Why “saving calories” at breakfast or lunch backfires
• How low protein meals lead to blood sugar crashes and cravings
• Why you can feel like you’re eating nothing — and still gain weight

🥩 The solution: proper, balanced meals
• How protein and fibre at meals reduce snack cravings naturally
• What a Christmas-friendly balanced plate actually looks like
• Why eating enough earlier in the day gives you more flexibility later

🧠 Mindset matters
• This is not about willpower or being “good”
• It’s about giving your body what it needs so snacking doesn’t spiral
• Progress over perfection — especially at this time of year

🎯 Practical, realistic Christmas tips
• How to enjoy festive foods without constant grazing
• When to plan snacks vs when to avoid them
• How to stay in control without tracking obsessively or restricting

Key takeaway:

Eating less at meals rarely prevents weight gain at Christmas.
Eating better meals usually does.

Balanced meals > endless grazing.

If you’ve been feeling frustrated, hungry, or confused about why things feel out of control at this time of year — this episode will bring clarity and relief.

This week on The Fit Positive Podcast, we’re talking about heart health in midlife — why our risk rises, what markers actually matter, and how the habits inside the Fit Positive Method directly protect your cardiovascular system.

In this episode, we cover:

1️⃣ Why women’s heart disease risk rises in perimenopause & menopause

2️⃣ The biggest cardiovascular risk factors for women

3️⃣ The blood markers that matter for your heart — and my own recent results

4️⃣ How the Fit Positive Method protects your heart

5️⃣ A quick note on HRT and cardiovascular protection

6️⃣ Sauna for heart health

⭐ Resources & Links

🔗 Sauna Episode

🔗 ⁠Sleep Episode

🔗 Free Calorie & Macro Calculator

🔗 Fit Positive Empowered Membership (nutrition, strength, tracking tools & recipes to support both fat loss and heart health)

Scientific studies that support this episode...

⭐ 1. Menopause & Increased Cardiovascular RiskDecline in oestrogen and increased heart disease risk🔗 ⁠https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4591897/⁠

Oestrogen’s protective role on blood vessels⭐🔗⁠https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/full/10.1161/CIRCRESAHA.119.315400⁠

⭐ 2. Strength Training & Cardiovascular Health

Strength training improves insulin sensitivity🔗 ⁠https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5485200/⁠

Strength training reduces visceral fat🔗 ⁠https://academic.oup.com/jcem/article/92/4/1736/2597231⁠

Strength training reduces cardiovascular risk in women🔗 ⁠https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/JAHA.119.014567⁠

⭐ 3. Steps / Physical Activity & Heart Health

Even simple walking reduces cardiovascular risk🔗 ⁠https://www.bmj.com/content/347/bmj.f5588⁠

Daily step count & mortality🔗 ⁠https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/article-abstract/2763292⁠

⭐ 4. Nutrition & Heart Health

Fibre reduces LDL cholesterol and CVD risk🔗 ⁠https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3257631/⁠

Diets high in ultra-processed foods increase CVD risk🔗 ⁠https://www.bmj.com/content/365/bmj.l1451⁠

Protein, whole foods & cardio-metabolic health🔗 ⁠https://academic.oup.com/ajcn/article/101/6/1320/4564490⁠

⭐ 5. Stress & Sleep as Cardiovascular Drivers

Chronic stress increases heart disease risk🔗 ⁠https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5579396/⁠

Poor sleep increases blood pressure & inflammation🔗⁠https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/CIRCRESAHA.116.309356⁠

⭐ 6. HRT & Cardiovascular Protection (when started early)

The Timing Hypothesis (benefits when started within 10 years of menopause)🔗 ELITE Trial:⁠ https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/nejmoa1505241⁠

WHI re-analysis — younger women had reduced CHD risk🔗 ⁠https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3986473/⁠

⭐ 7. Sauna & Cardiovascular Health

Finnish sauna study — reduced cardiovascular mortality🔗⁠https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamainternalmedicine/fullarticle/2130724⁠

Sauna improves blood pressure & arterial stiffness🔗 ⁠https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5941775/⁠

⭐ If you enjoyed this episode…

Please share it on your Instagram stories or with a friend who needs to hear it.
Every share genuinely helps more midlife women access evidence-based support.

And if you want to take the next step, join us inside Fit Positive Empowered — where we pair science-backed training and nutrition with daily support, coaching, and community so you can feel your strongest, healthiest, most confident self in midlife.

This week’s episode is a midlife health & fitness Q&A — answering the questions you submitted on Instagram.

We cover everything from calorie ranges and weight fluctuations to sauna and sleep to alcohol and protein… all through the lens of what's proven by science to work for women in midlife.

Covered in this episode

How to know if you’re really in a calorie deficit

The calorie range approach — and why it works better in midlife

How to calculate your own range (10% either side of your target)

How long sauna sessions really need to be

Why motivation isn’t the thing that gets you results

How to build systems that automate habits

Why 3–5lbs weight fluctuations are normal

Easy ways to hit 90g protein per day

How to navigate Christmas without spiralling

Better and not-so-good alcoholic drink options

My top 3 game changers for better sleep

Resources Mentioned in the Episode

Free Calorie & Macro Calculator

Macros Mastered Guide

Alcoholic Drinks Compared

Podcast Episode on Sleep

Help us spread the word!

If you enjoyed this episode, it would mean the world if you reviewed it on Spotify or Apple podcasts, and share with a friend who might find it helpful!

Get in touch!

If you have questions for next week’s Q&A, you can always drop us an email at [email protected]

Join Fit Positive

Get your personalised calorie & macro targets, strength training program, 150+ high-protein recipes, tracking tools, coaching support, and our wonderful community:

 www.fitpositive.ie

In this short, practical episode, I’m sharing the three habits I’m focusing on this week to support my health in midlife — especially as we move into colder, darker days where routines naturally shift.

We talk about:

✨ Adjusting your step goals seasonally so movement stays sustainable
✨ Using tracking as a tool for awareness, not perfection
✨ Why sauna is a midlife superpower for recovery, inflammation, stress, metabolism & longevity

I’ve included the scientific references below, plus details of an event I’m hosting this Sunday where you can explore hot and cold therapy with me in person.

🔥 JOIN US THIS SUNDAY — The Balance Within

If you’d like to learn how to use sauna and cold therapy safely and effectively — for stress, recovery, hormone balance, metabolism and inflammation — come join our in-person event:

👉 Learn more and grab your ticket here:
https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/the-balance-within-hot-cold-for-your-wellbeing-tickets-1968545173606?aff=oddtdtcreator

Sauna Studies Referenced in This Episode

Here are the research papers and summaries I mentioned:

1. Finnish Sauna + Cardiovascular & All-Cause Mortality (men & women) Kunutsor SK, Laukkanen T, Laukkanen JA.
“Sauna bathing reduces the risk of cardiovascular and all-cause mortality in a prospective cohort of middle-aged and older women and men.” BMC Medicine, 2018.
🔗https://bmcmedicine.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12916-018-1198-0

2. Heat Therapy, Healthspan & Longevity (mixed-gender data) Laukkanen et al.
“Sauna use as a lifestyle practice to extend healthspan.” Experimental Gerontology, 2021.
🔗https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0531556521002916

3. Infrared Sauna, CRP & Inflammation Reduction

Complementary Therapies in Medicine, 2018.
Summary of findings (CRP reduction & recovery benefits):
🔗 https://radianceinfrared.com/infrared-sauna-inflammation-recovery

4. Heat Shock Proteins & Muscle Protection

Dr Rhonda Patrick – FoundMyFitness review of sauna science
🔗 https://www.foundmyfitness.com/topics/sauna

5. Sauna, Brain Health & Stress Resilience (includes women)

SaunaRealm summary of mixed-gender research on:– reduced dementia risk– autonomic nervous system balance– sleep benefits
🔗 https://saunarealm.com/blogs/sauna-realm-blog/the-science-of-sauna-how-heat-therapy-boosts-recovery-immunity-and-longevity

🕒 Episode Timestamps

00:00 — Intro
02:10 — Why you must tweak your habits seasonally in midlife
04:20 — Habit 1: Adjusting step goals for winter
08:00 — Habit 2: Tracking for awareness, not judgement
12:15 — Habit 3: Sauna + recovery for inflammation, metabolism & resilience
21:40 — Key sauna studies explained
26:00 — Invitation to this Sunday’s hot/cold therapy event
28:00 — Final thoughts

⭐ If you’d like more support

✨ Join Fit Positive Empowered (nutrition coaching, live & on-demand workouts, personalised calorie and macro targets, 150+ high-protein recipes, community):
www.fitpositive.ie/empowered

In this episode, I’m joined by my lovely friend and fellow health coach, Vicky Chisholm, who lives in Yorkshire in the UK. We chat about how we first met through our health coaching course, bonded over hikes in the Yorkshire Dales, and how online friendships can be a real lifeline when you work for yourself.

Vicky shares her own health and career journey – from massage therapist and PT in her 20s, to working as a PA for 25 years, to retraining as a naturopathic health coach during lockdown. She talks openly about living with a lifelong iron-related fatigue condition, watching her mum struggle with ulcerative colitis, and how those experiences shaped her interest in truly holistic health – looking at the whole person, not just symptoms.

We dive into why strength training can feel intimidating for midlife women, how to make it feel safe and doable, and Vicky’s brilliant “Strong & Centred 50” series on Instagram – 50 days of one-minute foundational strength moves to help women build confidence, form, and consistency without overwhelm. We also talk about boundaries, burnout, perimenopausal fatigue, and the small non-negotiable habits that keep us both grounded.

We talk about:

• Vicki’s path from massage therapist and PA to health coach, PT, and online membership owner

• What “holistic” really means in practice – looking at the whole person, not just one system

• Living with chronic fatigue and why burnout is so common for midlife women

• Why strength training feels scary for many women – and how to make it approachable

• Vicky’s one-minute-a-day strength series and why tiny daily actions matter more than perfection

• How shifting your macros (especially protein) can transform energy levels in midlife

• Boundaries, saying no, and protecting your “energy budget” as life gets busier

• Swapping Netflix and extra drinks for sleep, recovery, and feeling genuinely well

Vicky’s 3 simple daily habits for midlife women:

1. Drink water before your tea or coffee.

2. Get outside every day – even 10 minutes of fresh air and walking helps.

3. Do at least one minute of movement every day – to reinforce the identity of “I am someone who moves”.

Connect with Vicky
Instagram: @strongandcentred.coach

Website: https://www.centred.coach/

Even the most health-conscious women can fall into this trap — eating “clean,” whole foods and cooking from scratch, but still struggling to lose weight.

In this episode, I share the story of a member’s Beef Tagine recipe that looked totally healthy — all local Irish produce — but actually came in at 960 calories per serving.

We’ll talk about:

🍯 Why healthy doesn’t always mean low calorie

🥄 How to identify the “hidden calories” in home-cooked meals

💪 The simple swaps that cut this recipe’s calories in half (without losing flavour!)
📲 And how tracking can build awareness — not restriction — so you can make confident, flexible choices

You’ll also hear how small changes in your meals can make a big difference over time — helping you feel fuller, stronger, and more in control without cutting out the foods you love.

See the before and after for yourself 👇
🧾 Free Download: Fit Positive Smart Swaps — Beef Tagine

📥 Download the free guide: Fit Positive Smart Swaps — Beef Tagine

This guide includes:

✅ The original Bord Bia recipe and the Fit Positive version

✅ Every swap and calorie saving

✅ Simple principles you can use to tweak any recipe

💪 Join Fit Positive Empowered

If you’re ready to reach your goals in a sustainable, science-backed way — with:

• Personalised calorie and macro targets

• 150+ low-calorie, high-protein family recipes

• Time-efficient strength workouts

• Coaching and community support

Join Fit Positive Empowered here