Midrising Conversations · Episode 12
Do We Really Need to Optimise the Sh*t Out of Midlife?
When exactly did being healthy become another full-time job?
Apparently midlife now comes with a checklist. Eat enough protein. Lift weights. Walk your steps. Take your supplements. Remember your hormones. Look after your cholesterol. Work on your mobility. Do some cardio. Sleep properly. And, while you’re at it, perhaps practise a little self-compassion because you’re inevitably not going to manage all of the above.
In Episode 12, Gill and Barbara ask whether we really need to optimise the sh*t out of midlife, or whether looking after ourselves can be a little less complicated than the internet would have us believe.
About this episode
Protein seems to be everywhere. Cottage cheese has somehow become exciting again. We’re being told to lift weights, get our steps in, take supplements, protect our bones, build muscle, improve our cardiovascular fitness and start thinking about longevity.
And some of that advice really does matter. As Gill and Barbara discover in this conversation, there’s a definite shift in midlife from exercising because you want to look a certain way to thinking much more seriously about strength, mobility, independence and the kind of older woman you want to become.
The problem comes when looking after yourself becomes another impossible standard to meet. So this episode is also about dropping the perfectionism, giving yourself some credit for what you are doing and accepting that sometimes turning up, doing five minutes, eating reasonably well or getting through half the workout is actually enough.
In this conversation
- Why protein has somehow become the food obsession of the 2020s
- The constantly expanding midlife health to-do list
- Cholesterol, cottage cheese, sardines and the Mediterranean diet
- Hormones, supplements and trying to remember to take all of them
- Frozen shoulders and the physical surprises nobody warned us about
- Whether 10,000 steps really needs to be the goal
- Walking versus running and finding exercise you’ll actually do
- Why strength, cardio and mobility start to mean something different in midlife
- The shift from focusing on weight and appearance to thinking about longevity
- Self-compassion, perfectionism and learning to recognise what you have achieved
- What we simply cannot be arsed with anymore
This episode is for you if…
You’re trying to look after yourself but feel as though the rules keep multiplying. Maybe you’ve been told to eat more protein, lift heavier weights, get more steps, improve your sleep or suddenly pay attention to blood test numbers you barely thought about ten years ago.
It’s also for you if you’re starting to care less about chasing perfection and more about being strong enough to carry your own shopping, get yourself off the floor, travel, work, play and keep doing the things you love for as long as possible.
The Midrising takeaway
Maybe midlife isn’t about becoming the most optimised version of yourself. Maybe it’s about looking after yourself well enough to enjoy the bloody thing.
A quick note: This episode is a conversation about our own experiences, opinions and what we’re learning along the way. It isn’t intended as medical, nutritional or health advice. For advice about your individual health, speak with an appropriately qualified health professional.
About Midrising Conversations
Midrising Conversations is the podcast for women in the middle of everything. Hosted by Gill Townsend and Barbara Scalzi, it’s a place for honest conversations about midlife, work, health, relationships, identity, reinvention and all the things nobody really prepared us for.
No perfect answers. No pretending we’ve got it all figured out. Just two women comparing notes as we work out what this next part of life is going to look like.
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Catch up on more Midrising Conversations and join us each week as we talk our way through the messy, funny and occasionally ridiculous reality of midlife.
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