When I started lifting weights 25 years ago, I would like to say it was for the pursuit of becoming strong, independent and badass.

But to be truthful, it was solely for aesthetics.

I had graduated high school and moved to San Francisco to live with my older sister while I took a year off from school to figure out what career path I wanted to pursue.

During that year, I was working various jobs, eating whatever I pleased and not really exercising. Before long, I had put on some unwanted weight and wasn’t happy about it.

My older sister was strength training regularly and competing in fitness competitions. She started taking me to the gym, introducing me to exercises and coaching me on my poor eating habits.

Over that year, I was able to get back down to my previous weight, which was always the initial goal.

But something I didn’t expect happened. I fell in love with lifting.

When I returned to school that fall, I joined a gym and started training three times a week, along with running.

Fast forward 25 years, and I still consistently do both.

But my goals have changed.

I’ve gone from weight loss, to building muscle, to strength, to athletic competitions, and now to longevity, and being able to keep up with my 10-year-old son. I must admit that it gives me a smile when his friends are astonished at how fast and quick I am for a middle-aged mom.

My training has now shifted toward building and preserving muscle, maintaining strength and power, and most importantly, maintaining strong bones. These are the things that will help me age well. I want to be those 70-year-olds I see skiing down mountains in the winter and summiting peaks in the summer.

Those are my goals now.

And as a woman entering midlife, bone health matters.

As estrogen declines during perimenopause and menopause, women become more vulnerable to losses in muscle mass, strength and bone density.

Women can lose up to 20% of their bone density in the five to seven years following menopause. And osteoporosis-related fractures can have serious consequences for independence. Approximately 24% of people over 50 who experience a hip fracture die within the following year, while about half never regain their previous level of function.

These aren’t statistics I share to scare you. They’re statistics that make me want to do something about it. And fortunately, we have tools that can help.

One of the most important is strength training.

A recent 2026 study of peri- and early postmenopausal women found that nine months of twice-weekly heavy strength and impact training increased lean mass, strength and leg power, and increased bone mineral density in the lumbar spine compared with the control group.

Other research has found similar benefits from twice-weekly high-intensity resistance and impact training in postmenopausal women with low bone mass.

The most important tool is knowing exactly where you stand.

This is why I encourage my clients to consider getting a DEXA scan starting in their 40s and then using repeat scans to monitor changes over time.

A DEXA can give you valuable data about bone density, lean mass, body fat and visceral fat.

Instead of guessing about what’s happening inside your body, you have information that can help guide how you train, eat and take care of yourself moving forward.

If you live in San Diego County, I found an awesome company in Encinitas that offers full-body DEXA scans and allows you to schedule online. They also offer discounted pricing through packages and memberships.

You can book your scan here and use code TB20 for $20 off your first scan.

And this brings me back to why I started lifting 25 years ago.

Back then, I wanted to change how my body looked.

Today, I lift because I want to keep doing the things I love for as long as possible. I want to ski; hike; travel; carry my own bags; get up off the floor easily; and play with my grandkids one day. But most importantly, remain strong and independent well into my 70s, 80s and beyond.

This is why strength training is no longer optional as we reach middle age. It’s imperative.

If you’re a beginner or haven’t lifted in a while and don’t know where to start, that’s exactly why I created True Strength.

True Strength is my 3-month progressive strength-training program for women 35+ who are new to lifting or getting back into it.

You’ll get two full-body strength workouts each week, built-in mobility and power work, progressive strength training, and optional conditioning—all structured for you so you don’t have to figure it out on your own.

Learn more about True Strength

Everyone knows they should be lifting weights as they get older. But here’s one piece of fitness that’s rarely talked about. And it’s just as important for staying active and independent.

It’s not flexibility.

It’s not cardio.

It’s power.

When people hear power their minds picture athletes jumping onto plyo boxes or completing a barbell clean. This is a very narrow view of power training.

Power training is simply teaching your body to move with speed and intention. It’s one of the first physical qualities we begin to lose with age, yet it’s also one of the most important for helping us prevent falls, react quickly, and keep doing the activities we love.

The good news is you don’t have to be an athlete to benefit from it.

In fact, it’s something I believe everyone should be engaging in especially as we get older. Whether your goal is to hike, travel, play with your grandkids, or simply feel confident moving through everyday life, power training can help you stay capable well into your golden years.

Let’s talk about why it matters and how you can start incorporating it safely into your workouts.

Why power training matters

Research continues to show that maintaining muscular power is one of the strongest predictors of independence as we age.

Power training can help you:

React faster to prevent falls.
Improve balance and coordination.
Climb stairs more easily.
Get up from a chair or the floor with less effort.
Carry groceries, lift luggage, and keep up with your kids or grandkids.
Improve athletic performance if you enjoy hiking, pickleball, skiing, tennis, or other recreational sports.
Maintain muscle and support healthy aging.

The biggest misconception

When I mention power training, people often picture burpees, jump squats, or complicated Olympic lifts.

That’s not where I start with most clients. Power training simply means moving with intent. You control the lowering portion of the exercise, then perform the lifting portion as quickly as can.

That could look like:

Standing up from a chair quickly, then sitting back down slowly.
Medicine ball slams.
Medicine ball chest passes against a wall.
Pogo hops or small jump-and-stick landings.
Quick step-ups onto a low platform.
Faster sled pushes.

Notice that none of these require extreme fitness or skill to master.

Where to begin

If you’ve never done power training before, start small. Try adding just 1-2 power-focused exercises at the beginning of two to three strength workouts each week. Keep the reps low (around 3–8 reps) and focus on quality. The goal isn’t to be exhausted, but to move well and fast. Make sure to stop each set while your movements are still crisp and explosive.

The bottom line

Power training deserves a place alongside strength training, mobility work, and walking when it comes to long term health. Power training allows you to be able to move confidently, react quickly, and keep doing the things you love for as long as possible. And you don’t need a lot of it. Just a few minutes each week can make a meaningful difference over time.

I’d love to hear from you. Do you struggle to include power exercises into your workouts?

I hope your holidays were filled with rest, connection, and joy. As we start another year, I always feel a sense of enthusiasm for what’s ahead. A lot can change in a year, and a new one brings hope, possibility, and fresh beginnings. At the start of every year, I jot down goals, events, and intentions I hope to accomplish. It helps me stay focused and continue growing. Some people call these New Year’s resolutions; I think of them more as yearly goals.

In 2025, eating healthier, exercising more, and losing weight ranked in the top five resolutions—and that’s been the trend for decades as activity levels decline and obesity rates continue to rise. Yet 50% of people who start an exercise program quit within six months, and 90% of those who join a gym stop going within three months.

Why is that?

The most common reason cited is “lack of time.” But when people say they don’t have time for something, it’s often a reflection of the perceived value of that activity. Human nature tends to move away from things that don’t feel rewarding and toward things that do. If exercise doesn’t feel enjoyable and the benefits don’t feel immediate, it becomes harder to keep showing up.

And here’s the truth no one really talks about:

Many people start an exercise or diet plan with the wrong “why.”

Take a moment to think about why you have started exercising—either now or in the past—and fill in the blank:

“Most of the time, my primary reason for starting to exercise has been because I wanted to _________.”

Roughly 75% of people exercise to improve body composition (lose body fat, gain muscle) or improve health (lower risk of diabetes, hypertension, cholesterol, osteoporosis). The other 25% exercise because of how it makes them feel—better sleep, improved mood, more energy, or greater confidence.

Can you guess which group sticks with exercise, even when life gets busy?

The people motivated by how exercise makes them feel are far more likely to prioritize it when life gets hectic. The reason is simple: humans will almost always choose immediate gratification over long-term rewards. If we associate exercise with feeling good, we’ll make space for it. If we associate it with discomfort, or obligation, it becomes negotiable.

When your reason for exercising is tied to intrinsic benefits (energy, mood, confidence, and mental clarity) you receive positive reinforcement every time you exercise. But when your motivation is tied to long-term outcomes like lab markers or fat loss, you may not see those results for months. It’s difficult to stay invested in something when you can’t clearly tell that it’s “working” yet.

The real secret to consistency?

Reframing your why.

Look back at what you wrote down earlier. Did you start with the wrong why?

If your why is rooted in how exercise makes you feel—amazing! You’ll naturally prioritize it because the benefits show up quickly and repeatedly.

If your why has been weight loss, health markers, or outside pressure, I want you to reflect on your relationship with movement. Do you see exercise as something you should do…or something you get to do?

One feels like an obligation. The other feels like a gift.

If exercise feels like a chore, you’ll struggle to make time for it. If it feels enjoyable you’ll protect that time.

And here’s another key part:

It’s not just about reframing your mindset—it’s also about choosing movement you actually enjoy. I always tell my clients: if you hate running, I’m not going to ask you to run. Why? Because you won’t do it. Stop forcing yourself into workouts you dread. Find something that feels good and energizing.

Here are a few ideas to get you started. See what resonates:

• Team sports
• Individual sports
• Group fitness classes
• Martial arts
• Walking (treadmill, outdoors, or with a friend)
• Hiking
• Biking (indoors or outdoors)
• Dancing
• Yoga
• Pilates
• Strength training (at home, outdoors, or at the gym)
• Group strength classes
• At-home workout videos
• Running
• Roller skating/blading
• Cardio machines at the gym
• Surfing
• Indoor/outdoor rock climbing

If there are activities on this list you’ve never tried, maybe 2026 is the year to experiment. If you’ve struggled to stay consistent in the past, maybe it wasn’t a lack of discipline—maybe it was just the wrong why.

No sooner than the turkey is carved do we find ourselves sweating over the upcoming holiday season. Five full weeks packed with obligatory events, social gatherings, gift shopping, holiday performances, end-of-year deadlines, family expectations—and the list goes on. Panic creeps in as we start cutting out anything that doesn’t “fit” to make room for all the things we should do.

And too often, the first thing we sacrifice is ourselves.

After more than 20 years of coaching, I see this pattern every December. People pile too much on their plates. They panic. And the very things that keep them grounded—sleep, movement, meal prep, daily walks, a moment of quiet—are the first to go. Then January rolls around, and they feel exhausted, sick, and 5–10 lbs heavier.

What they don’t realize is this:

They had a choice the whole time.
But they convinced themselves they didn’t.

They thought they should show up to the book club brunch, the neighbor’s holiday party, the office happy hour, the classroom volunteer shift… so they traded their own well-being to check those boxes.

But here’s the truth:
Without self-care, you cannot sustain yourself.

Self-care is the fuel that supports every other role you play. If you want to be a better parent, partner, colleague, boss, sibling, or neighbor—you have to take care of yourself first. That sometimes means saying “no,” or “not this time,” so you can protect the routines that make you stronger, calmer, and more resilient.

Because the alternative is waking up on January 1st drained, depleted, and wondering how you lost yourself in the holiday shuffle.
This season, I want you to give yourself full permission to prioritize—and fiercely protect—your self-care rituals.

Start by asking yourself:
1) What two activities genuinely recharge your battery?
What makes you feel lighter, more energized, more like yourself?
2) When you imagine doing those activities, how do you feel during and after?
And how does that feeling ripple into the rest of your day?

Then, any time a new invitation, request, or responsibility comes your way, pause before you automatically say yes.
Ask yourself:
Will this support me—or will it take away from the things that nourish me? Can I realistically do both?

You deserve to enjoy the holidays without abandoning yourself.
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Key Takeaways
• Self-care is not optional—it’s foundational.
• Your time and energy are finite; spend them intentionally.
• You’re allowed to say no without guilt.
• Protecting your well-being makes you better in every role you play.