Glowgetter Essentials for Midlife

Your glow isn’t a finish line—it’s a daily practice you can feel today. We open the door with the Midlife Glowgetter Cheat Sheet, a clear framework for women 40+ that turns wellness, style, mindset, money, and relationships into simple, repeatable habits. Think protein-forward meals, smart strength sessions, seasonal skincare, intentional friendships, and one big 90-day goal that lifts everything else.

We also dig into the two biggest blockers behind healthy eating after 40: hormonal shifts that spike cravings and emotional stress that sends you to the pantry. You’ll get grounded solutions—protein with every meal, fiber and healthy fats for stability, “pause lists” for stress, mindful eating cues, and gradual sugar resets—plus quick daily rituals and journal prompts to keep momentum. On the movement side, we tackle time constraints and menopause-related fatigue with practical tactics: calendar workouts, movement snacks, efficient circuits, strength for bone health, low-impact cardio, yoga or Pilates for recovery, and sleep and hydration strategies that actually help.

Because environment shapes behavior, we share two cozy upgrades to romanticize fall—satin pillow comfort and a basket of warm blankets by the reading chair—that make rest inviting and consistency easier. Then we get honest about success and happiness. Instead of waiting until you hit the goal to feel okay, we flip the script: happiness first, success second. With five practices to anchor your mindset—define success on your terms, list daily joys, process tough feelings, and know your why—you’ll build from calm energy rather than pressure.

If this conversation sparked a shift, tap follow, share it with a midlife friend who needs a lift, and leave a quick review so more women can find these tools. Tell us: which small habit will you start today?

The Midlife GlowGetter Cheat Sheet

Success vs Happiness Guide

Chapters

• 0:00 Welcome & Today’s Game Plan
• 2:45 The Glowgetter Cheat Sheet Overview
• 9:45 Daily Checklist, Tools, and Prompts
• 16:00 Why Healthy Eating Feels Hard After 40
• 21:30 Solutions for Hormonal Cravings
• 25:40 Emotional and Stress Eating Fixes

Transcript

SPEAKER_00: 1:01

Hello, my friends. Welcome back to another week of the Midlife Glow Report. I'm Jax, your host. So happy to be with you here today. Today's episode is full of Glowgetter tips for you to enjoy and to take away from and glow up your life. Today I'm going over the Midlife Glowgetter Cheat Sheet, a list of all the things in order to glow up your life. This is a cheat sheet I have developed and currently used to continue my glow up in midlife. We will also be going over the top two reasons women over 40 struggle to eat healthy. Whether the goal is weight loss, weight maintenance, or glowing skin health with several solutions. Plus, the two top reasons women over 40 struggle with being consistent with exercise and movement for wellness with some solutions. Then we will be covering ways I'm currently romanticizing my life and finally a life coaching chat about success versus happiness. So let's get started today. So first things first, let's go over the Glowgetter Cheat Sheet for midlife women. This is something I've developed. It's really handy. I will link it in the show notes if you would like to download the guide, the copy of it. So it's broken up in sections. And the first section is wellness and weight loss. And these are the four um items under wellness and weight loss. First one, daily movement aimed for 8 to 10,000 steps, plus two to three strength training sessions weekly. Second item, nutrition glow up rule. Prioritize protein, fiber, and colorful plants with every meal. Third, hydration habit, 80 to 100 ounces of water daily. Add electrolytes if active. And finally, rest rituals, seven to nine hours of sleep, consistent bedtime, and screen your uh curfew screen. So watch your screen time. Second section is beauty and style, um, capsule wardrobe glow. Build a closet of 10 to 15 versatile staples you love. Second part of beauty and style is Asia's Beauty Routine, SPF Daily, Retinal at Night, Hydrate Skin Deeply. Then there's confidence wear, invest in shoes, bags, and outer wear that elevate every style. And then finally, glow routine, quarterly haircuts, refresh, seasonal skincare swaps. So when the weather changes, change those skincare routines. Third section of the glow getter cheat sheet is midlight mindset and purpose. Morning glow journal. Write three affirmations and one intention every morning. So take some time and do that journaling. Then mindset reset practice, five minutes of breath work, meditation, or gratitude daily. I usually do that before I go to bed. Big glow goal, define one priority for the next 90 days. So don't have a whole bunch of goals. Concentrate on one big goal every 90 days. It does kind of pour out to other things you want to do when you're successful in one item. So, for example, with me being uh losing weight, that is also turned into um doing this online podcast and my online website and stuff. So it does pour into other aspects of your life. Um, third section uh or third part uh mindset and purpose is um or fourth part, glow learner habit. Commit to one book, podcast, or course each month. So really get that learning going, um, whatever it may be that you're interested in. Now, next section is money and career. Know your numbers, track your spending, debt, and savings weekly. Then invest in your future glow, contribute to your retirement, and explore passive income streams. Next, career glow habit, update, resume, LinkedIn, quarterly. So keep that, keep that current so you never know what could happen. Skill glow up, take one new training or certification each quarter. So really keep your skills in line for your profession. Final section is relationships and lifestyle. Glow circle nurture three to five close friendships with intentional check-ins. So check in with your friends daily or weekly, send them a quick voice note or a text if you can't call, and just check in with your people. Then romanticize your life, fresh flowers, candles, playlists, rituals, make daily moments special. Next, adventure glow, plan one new trip or experience every season of the year. Final digital boundaries, limit doom scrolling, replace with uplifting content. So that is the five-section glow getter cheat sheet. Then I've continued this glowgetter cheat sheet. Here is a quick reference daily glow checklist. Here is the quick checklist. Drink 8 to 100 ounces of water, move your body, walk, stretch, or train, eat three balanced protein-rich meals, journal gratitude plus affirmations, connect with a friend or loved one, do one self-care ritual, skincare, bath, meditation, learn or read for 15 minutes, prep tomorrow's plan. So that's a quick daily glowgetter checklist you can follow. Um I do have in my Amazon shop some Glow Getter, Amazon staples and glue, including my favorite electrolytes and water bottle, my feel favorite meal prep containers, protein powder, even an air fryer I love. Um some resistance bands, some sneakers, and a yoga mat, um my favorite SPF and moisturizer, my favorite retinal and collagen peptides, um, my favorite journal and pen, and um how it's even great to get a subscription to Audible or Kindle to keep that learning going. Um, here are three glow journal prompts you can use when journaling. Number one, what is one small shift I can make this week that my future self will thank me for? Number two, where is my life? Where in my life do I want to glow brighter in health, style, love, or purpose? Number three, what is one limiting belief I'm ready to release in midlife? And here are some five-minute glow rituals on busy days you can do. Play a song that makes you feel happy and makes you dance. Um, and finally, the success formula is consistency plus confidence plus curiosity equals the lasting glow up. So that is my mid-life glow getter cheat sheet. I will link it in my notes. You could download the guide, uh, but I wanted to touch on that and go over. Next, we're going over the two top reasons women over 40 struggle to eat healthy. Whether the goal is weight loss, weight maintenance, or glowing skin health. And I do have solutions for you. So, reason number one uh women over 40 struggle to eat healthy is hormonal shifts and cravings. Perimenopause and menopause trigger estrogen, progesterone, and insulin changes, leading to increased cravings for sugar, carbs, and comfort foods. Um, so how to combat these hormonal shifts and cravings. Here are some solutions you can use. So prioritize protein at every email at every meal to balance blood sugar. Or you can include healthy fats, including avocado, salmon, or olive oil, for example, to reduce cravings. You can eat fiber-rich foods to slow digestion and stabilize energy. You can plan balanced snacks like apple and almond butter, hummus plus veggies. You could avoid skipping meals. This can intensify cravings later. You could drink water or tea before giving into cravings. You can track cycle or menopause symptoms and adjust nutrition that way. You can reduce processed sugar gradually to retrain taste buds. You could try magnesium-rich foods or supplements for chocolate cravings. Finally, practice mindful eating. Pause before indulging and ask, do I need fuel or comfort? Know the difference. The second reason women over 40 struggle to eat healthy is emotional and stress eating. Food often becomes the quick soother for stress, overwhelm, or loneliness, especially during midlife transitions like empty nest, career changes, or caregiving. So this is totally me. My son is 26. He is getting ready to move out this spring. I take care of my parents who are elderly. Um, I'm wanting a career change, but I haven't pulled the trigger yet. So I tend to stress eat and emotional eat. And I have learned the difference from when I am really hungry or I am just stressed or emotional. And that's something you need to do too if you're doing this. And here are some solutions in order to combat emotional and stress eating. Keep a pause list, a non-food stress relievers list, like walk, bathe, journal, different things you can do to pause those cravings and stay active to refrain from eating something like uh something comforting. Uh, you can practice mindful eating, slow down, and savor every time you eat. So don't watch TV, don't scroll your phone. Really concentrate on what you're eating and chew like 20, 30 times each bite. You could check in, are you hungry or just stressed? You could plan comfort swaps like herbal tea, dark chocolate, or warm soup. You could create a calm eating environment, no screen, soft lighting, like I mentioned before. You can build stress rituals, meditation, yoga, or deep breathing before meals. You could journal feelings before turning to food. So if you're getting a craving, take 10 minutes and journal. Um, you could use smaller plates to control portions. I do this. You could replace forbidden foods with healthier versions. You can seek therapy or coaching support if emotional eating feels unmanageable. So those are some solutions for emotional and stress eating. Next, we're going over top two reasons women over 40 struggle with being consistent with exercise and movement for wellness. And I do have solutions. So the first reason women over 40 struggle with being consistent is time constraints and competing priorities. So here in midlife, you're balancing work, family, caregiving, and personal responsibilities. It leads to little spaces for structured movement. Exercise often gets pushed to the bottom of the list. So I'm going to list some solutions to prevent this. Um, first, schedule workouts like non-negotiable appointments, literally put them in your digital or paper calendar. Um, block the time. Try movement snacks, five to ten minute bursts of exercise throughout the day. So if you take a break from working, get a stand-up desk and start doing some squats and lunges. Um, get a walking pad and start walking on the walking pad during midday, different times of the day. Um, so really keep active. Dance, dance to your favorite song, take a d take a dance break. Um so those are movement snacks. Combine movement with family time, walk with the kids, dance in the kitchen. Wake up 20 minutes earlier for a quick session. Whether it be stretching, use the bend app like I do. Whether it be using the walk pad in your garage or in your basement or in your exercise room. Um, doing some dumbbells with the arm weights. Turn in, turn on a video on YouTube and start exercising with it. Turn on some favorite songs, create a playlist. Um, so wake up 20 minutes early for a quick session. Use lunch breaks for walks or stretch sessions. This is what I do. At lunch, when I'm at work, I walk. If the weather's bad, I walk in Target or TJ Maxx. So I do get my steps in. Um, choose efficient works work workouts like hits, circuits, resistance bands. So choose efficient workouts. Prep gym clothes the night before. Lay out your gym clothes. I do this. Put your shoes, your socks, your stretch pants, your t-shirt, your sweatshirt. Lay it all out so you can quickly put it on, put that deodorant on, grab your gym bag and get out the door. Make it easy for yourself. Next one is stack habits. Walk while listening to a podcast or audiobook. If you're listening to an audiobook, don't just lay in bed. Get on that walking pad, get some movement in while you're listening to my podcast or an audiobook. Um, use standing desks or walking meetings. I do this. I do do walking meetings. If I'm talking to someone, we'll walk down the hallway or something. Um, or I have a standing desk at work. Every 45 minutes, I stand for 15 minutes and move and and move in place and raise that uh raise that uh standing desk. And finally, reframe movement as part of self-care, not optional. No movement is self-care. It's not something you have to do, it's something you get to do. Change your mindset. So the second reason women over 40 struggle from being consistent with exercise and movement for wellness is hormonal changes in perimenopause and menopause. Fluctuating estrogen and progesterone can cause fatigue, hot flashes, joint stiffness, and sleep disturbances. Making workouts feel harder and harder to commit to. So here are some solutions regarding the hormonal changes in perimenopause, prohibiting you from getting in movement. One thing you could do is focus on strength training for bone and muscle health. Or you could choose low-impact cardio like walking, swimming, or cycling. Do something you love, make it fun. Use restorative practices like yoga or Pilates to calm that cortisol and nervous system. Prioritize self-hyging, a dark room, cooling techniques. Hydrate well to reduce hot flashes. Add more protein for muscle recovery to prevent that stiffness and that soreness. Consider adapens or supplements with medical guidance. Track cycle symptoms and adjust workouts accordingly with your cycle. Practice mindfulness to reduce stress hormone spikes. Finally, celebrate your small wins. Progress looks different in midlife. So that is my solutions for hormonal changes in perimenopause and menopause, menopause prohibiting movement in over 40. So, next, I'll be going over two ways, uh, two things I have done this past week to romanticize my life for fall. So the first thing is I purchased a satin pillow in a deep chocolate brown, so a deep tone. Um uh it's aesthetic and and uh the deep chocolate brown feels grounding, rich, and luxurious. Um, it brings a sense of warmth and seasonal coziness now in fall. Um, the darker tones naturally calm the nervous system, singling signaling your body to relax. Um, it preva uh evokes stability and comfort and safety, those deeper tones. Also, the satin reduces friction, helps with hair breakage, frizz, and tangles. So that's why I sleep with a satin pillow. And also it's naturally cooler, so it helps with when I overheat at night, especially being my age, and helps with night sweats and hot flashes. Um, so that's why um I use satin pillows, and that's why I chose chocolate brown. Um, the next thing I've done to romanticize my life is I have in my living room now a large basket of cozy blankets next to my uh cream leather recliner, you know, in my next to my reading chair. Um, it's a large rope basket full of chocolate and cream blankets um with a couple books and magazines in the in the uh basket. It is um it gives your spives my space uh curated, cozy autumn vibes. It feels inviting, like your home is singing, come sit, rest, and enjoy. The warm tones of the chocolate and creams evoke comfort, grounding, and calm. Um, paired with the books and the magazines, signal relaxation and indulgence. Um, having blankets within reach make it effort effortless to stay warm on those cool fall evenings, which encourages you to linger in restful spaces rather than rushing through the downtime. Um, the cozy textures help lower stress hormones and activate my sense of touch, allowing the body to relax more fully. Um, so that's why some of the reasons why I have the basket full of blankets and books. It also creates a sanctuary for myself. It can it communicates that my rest matters. Um, so that's that's another thing that it helps with the basket. Um so yeah, that's something else I'm doing, a basket full of autumn-colored blankets with books and magazines right next to my reading chair. So those are two ways I've romanticized my life this past week. So next I'll be going over this is the final part, final segment of the podcast. This is going to be a life coaching chat regarding success versus happiness. So why don't you grab a cup of tea and get real about something that I know every midlife woman wrestles with? Success versus happiness. Have you asked yourself, what do I really want? Success or happiness? It feels like such a big question, right? Because for so long we've been taught that success creates happiness, that if we lose the weight, get the promotion, fix the relationship, or buy the house, then finally we'll be happy. But here's the truth: success does not lead to happiness. Happiness leads to success. So what is happiness really? Happiness isn't a prize you unlock when you achieve something, it's not tied to your bank account, your gene size, or how many likes your post has gotten. Happiness is a feeling you create within your mind. It's available to you right now. No achievement required. This doesn't mean you'll be happy 100% of the time. You're human. You'll feel the whole range, sadness, fear, frustration, joy, peace, love. That's the beauty of being alive. But happiness is always within reach when you learn to manage your thoughts. So what success really is? Success, on the other hand, is about achievements, setting goals, reaching milestones, evolving and growing. And let me be clear: success is beautiful. You should want to evolve, you should set goals that excite you and push you. But the trap comes when you tie your happiness to those goals. Because here's what happens: you hit the goal, you feel a burst of happiness, then your brain says, Okay, what's next? Suddenly you're chasing the next milestone, thinking, when I get there, then I'll feel better. Sounds familiar? So the balance between success and happiness. Here's the magic balance. Happiness is the foundation, it's your state of mind available in this very moment. Success is the bonus, it's what you create from a place of peace, joy, and self-love. When you start with happiness first, you actually reach success faster. Why? Because you're not weighed down by fear, doubt, or depression. You've created from a place of possibility and calm energy. My personal story. For years I equated thinness with success. I thought if I just lose the weight, then I'll be happy. But do you know what the real transformation began? When I decided to stop chasing thin as the definition of success and chose to focus on happiness instead. And guess what? That's when success started coming off. Not because I bullied myself into it, but because I felt lighter inside first. Happiness fueled my success, not the other way around. So here are some practices for you, some ways you can bring this into your own midlife reinvention journey. Number one, ask yourself daily: am I chasing success to feel happy, or am I creating happiness now and letting success follow? Number two, define success on your own terms. Write down what success means to you. Not society, not your family, not your boss, you. Number three, practice present happiness. At the end of each day, list three small joys that made today enough. A walk, a laugh, a warm meal. This rewires your brain to find happiness now. Number four, do the work on negative feelings. When fear or doubt show up as you chase a goal, don't push them away. Acknowledge them, process them. Balance comes from allowing all emotions, not pretending they don't exist. And finally, number five, know your why. Ask yourself, why do I want this goal? And will I still love myself on the other side no matter what, even if I don't achieve that goal? So this is the takeaway. Friends, the real secret is this success is about evolution, happiness is about your mind. You can choose success endlessly and never feel satisfied, or you can choose success right now, happiness right now and let success flow from that place. So, what do you really want? Success or happiness? My answer both, but only when happiness comes first. Because when you're happy in the moment, when you know it doesn't get better than right now, you create from a place of love. And that is what your true reinvention begins. So on the uh show notes, I will list a mini coaching guide regarding success versus happiness that you could download. It could help you know the difference and you know maybe make the shift to happiness versus success. Uh, because success all always follows. So that's a wrap. That's episode 20 of the Midlife Glow Report with me, Jax. Um, I hope you guys are gonna have a great week ahead. I will check in next week. Um, if this podcast resonated with you, if you enjoy bits and pieces, please leave a review. It helps women like us find this podcast and find everything I'm sharing, and we can create a community. Um, yeah, I do have a Facebook group we uh starting to grow. Um, I do have my social media channels. Um I'm doing a new thing online. I'm also kind of throwing in there um snippets of Martha Stewart. She is the reinvention queen. She has been through so much. I mean, she started her business at age 50 from a divorce, uh having to raise her daughter on her own. So she is the ultimate midlife reinvention queen. She is my idol. So I am sharing bits and pieces throughout social media, and maybe I'll start sharing them on this podcast. Um, but that's something else I wanted to mention. But again, if this podcast resonated, please leave a review. It would help me so much. But other than that, I hope you guys have a great week ahead. Um, you can reach out to me on social media if you have questions or comments, or if you have suggestions, suggestions of what I should cover on this podcast. I am so welcome to that. Um, but you guys, thanks for listening, and I will check in soon. Love Jax.