Last week I was running a workshop and chatting with a lovely lady who was feeling pretty frustrated. She told me she’d put on weight and just couldn’t lose it, no matter what she did. She hadn’t changed anything with her food, and she was still exercising just like she used to. Sound familiar?

I gently asked what her stress levels were like, and her answer was, “Pretty high.” And there it was – the missing piece for so many women. If your body perceives it’s under stress, even if you're not running from a tiger, it doesn’t feel safe. And when your body doesn’t feel safe, it holds on – especially to weight – as a survival mechanism. It thinks you're in danger. Hormones like cortisol kick in and signal your body to store fat, particularly around your belly, in case you need that energy to get through a crisis.

So if there’s ever a time in our life to take things slower, it’s now. Our 40s and beyond are not the time to push harder – it’s the time to get smarter, listen in, and start supporting our body instead of fighting it.

Here are five simple but powerful ways I personally use to keep my stress low – and you could start implementing them straight away.

1. Start your day with calm
   Get your phone out of your room so it’s not the first thing you look at. Your nervous system doesn’t need to wake up to pings and notifications. Instead, ease into your morning with calm. I love starting with a short meditation — one I love at the moment is a 5-minute grounding one on Insight Timer by Danielle Anson (she’s a Kiwi too!). Just 5–10 minutes can completely shift how you carry yourself into the day.

2. Practice gratitude
   It doesn’t have to be deep or poetic – mine certainly isn't! After your meditation, just note 3-5 simple things you’re thankful for - this completely changes your lens and softens stress.

3. Get outside midday
   If it's possible, a walk in the fresh air at midday gets sunlight on your eyes (great for sleep) and calms your nervous system. That midday light also helps regulate your circadian rhythm, which is crucial for hormone balance and energy.

4. Move when you're stressed
   Cortisol is your fat storage hormone –  it was designed to get you up and moving in times of danger. But if you stay still when you're stressed, it lingers and gets stored as fat, especially around your midsection. Movement helps flush it out and resets your system.

5. Change up your exercise
   If you're still doing marathons or intense cardio every day, it might be doing more harm than good. High-stress workouts can spike cortisol and work against you in midlife. What your body really needs now is strength training — focus on building muscle, which boosts your metabolism, supports your hormones, and helps you become more insulin sensitive (which is what we want!). Less hustle, more intention.

If you pair a lower-stress lifestyle with fasting, that’s when things really start to shift. That’s when your body starts to feel safe enough to heal, release weight, and it will find it's natural rhythm again. 

👉 Want to understand how fasting works with your body (not against it)?

Download my Fasting Benefits Timeline and start seeing what’s really possible at the different lengths of fasting when your body isn’t stuck in stress mode – our bodies are truly remarkable when we put them into a state where they're designed to shine!