Fitness Trends For 2026 — Midlife Women’s Edition

Buckle your seatbelts. You're about to get the predictions for 2026 fitness trends, the midlife women's edition, as I share with you two major entities in the fitness world, the American College of Sports Medicine, excuse me, and the American Council on Exercise, and third party, me, Debra Atkinson, your founder of Flipping 50 and 42 years of experience as a subject matter expert for the American Council on Exercise and international presenter and master trainer, which means trainer of trainers. You'll get my personal and professional opinion on what we're seeing and hearing. Don't miss this episode. All right, it is time for the top 10, and you may be missing, if you've been around for a minute or two, or maybe, you know, 11 or 12 years, we always do at the end of December, a countdown to the top 10 podcast episodes of the, the past year. However, this year we had a little hiccup in that we changed platforms. So probably unbeknownst to you, we now are hosting, which means we upload and that's how it ends up getting to your favorite places. At a very different place. The one thing we negated to do in transferring was to stop in October and say, whoa, whoa, whoa, wait a minute, what are our stats for the year so far? So that we could combine them with the stats from the new platform for this past 3 months and say, okay, where are we where, how did we do? So the way we assess it is, it's not fair if we were doing an assessment of the top 10 podcasts, definitely anything that's been out since January has more downloads 'cause people will find it even after it's been released. You may be consuming them like Chiclets as they come out, right, on Tuesday and Friday. But other people will, based on topic, come back to them or will be listening to them after the fact because maybe one pertains to protein or weight loss or to a favorite guest that they are searching for. Regardless, we dropped the ball on that one. And so we're looking at taking a little bit more time, effort, and energy and doing an update. And it probably will be out as a special. Special episode in January just to go back and reflect. But this episode will give you a little insight into the countdown for top fitness trends of 2026. Now, it's really important that I preface this intro with how this came about. And ordinarily, I am doing this from the ACSM, American College of Sports Medicine's annual survey of thousands of fitness professionals. Now, there may be some PhDs, there may be some professors, there may be some, you know, brand new, still wet behind the ears is what my grandmother would have said, trainers who are just out because they send it to everybody and a certain number of them send it back in. So there is no criteria for who is this, how much experience do they have, what do they know, but it is their feeling, it is their opinion. And yes, I think everybody in a profession gives a blend when they're asked to respond, a blend of their personal and professional opinion. How can any human not? So realize where it's coming from, but I also want you to realize the purpose of ACSM's top fitness trends and their predictions. They do this and generally come out mid or end of November. And mind you, I was a little busy end of November of this year. So I was just in the middle of a move, still unpacking, still have lots of cardboard in my garage, trying to get rid of it week by week, crushing it down. And Um, so we're just coming to it now, but the purpose of ACSM's survey is to help fitness professionals and gyms predict how they will be most successful and what programs they will offer in the coming year. This is not a recommendations list for what you should be doing. This is a prediction of what you will be doing that they can capitalize on. I want to clarify that. Okay, are you with me? Now, also in this episode, the American College— or the American Council on Exercise, or ACE, often in the news, a consultant for news commentary on fitness predictions, trends, um, they also had their own uniquely, and they did it differently. So they used expert advisory board members and got their consultation. So many of their board members have authority, credibility, years of experience in the industry, not just personally delivering, say, a program or working at an academic organization or otherwise, but also supervise large programs, see large pools of individuals making, making money, developing programs, inspiring people to fitness, looking at statistics. So their trend predictions also are a little bit different. So we're gonna see some overlap here, but I want you to understand what we're seeing. I'm gonna give you each of them separately so that we can compare and contrast what have we seen. But in ACEs results, they looked at what they had predicted for 2025 and then looked at what, what's here to stay, what's not going away, what we— what are we seeing more or less of. So totally and holistically, we'll take them both into consideration. And throughout, I will give you what does that mean to menopausal women, what is my take on this for you. So here it comes. All right, this is always one of my favorite sessions of the year, so we're going to dive into this. Listen, I want you to forget about the hype and forget thinking that this might be recommendations for what you should or ought to do. It's not that. It is basically intended originally for e-commerce for fitness professionals. How do you grow your business in this coming year based on what we see as trends? That's how it was developed. However, when the media got a hold of it, it was never shared like that. It was shared to the public as if, here you go, this is what you should be doing this year. So I'm here to give you the inside scoop, and then I will share with you what I believe it means for women in midlife, what we're seeing, what is good, what is not so good. But you may be surprised to find this is not all about weighted vests and/or Pilates or barre. Okay, it's not like that. It's bigger. It's got bigger scope. Okay, every January I— and actually we do this generally in the end of December— I give you my straight-shooting take on the year's biggest fitness trends for the coming year. So 2026 is no exception, but we're looking at two major lists this year. ACSM, standing for American College of Sports Medicine, kind of the Bible on position statements if you will, their worldwide fitness trend survey they've been doing it for, gosh, I don't know, but over 20 years, I believe. It's compiled from thousands of fitness professionals who volunteer their opinions. Realize that. And the second one I'll share with you is ACE's 2026 trend report, sourced from their advisory board of industry experts who've interpreted what they're seeing in the field and where they believe it's going. ACE stands for American Council on exercise. You may recall I have been a subject matter expert for ACE for, I don't know exactly how long, between 10 and 15 years at this point. Meaning I get called in to either live in person or virtually do a review of current exam questions for certification tests for fitness instructors, health coaches, personal trainers, and medical exercise specialists. Often we're just reviewing, saying what should stay, what should go in terms of questions, or rewriting questions or rewriting responses that have been kicked out and said, okay, this isn't good, but it could be good. And then sometimes writing from scratch based on content in a textbook? What a good question. So from this, here we go. This show, every January we get this and/or the survey by ACSM is conducted in November, so usually comes out at the end of December. Here we're doing something a little different this year. Everything's a little different this year. Following recommendations for boosting bone density, but if you're finding that you're injured or you're exhausted more often, yeah, getting all kinds of confused by recommendations to do HIIT versus no, no, no, don't do HIIT, or lifting heavy versus no, no, no, don't lift heavy. If you're watching a friend get fit doing something that threw you under the bus, there's a reason for all of these things. And there's a sweet spot for you that means you'll start in the right place, progress at the right pace, and have the right priority first and know what's coming next. You can't go for bone density heavy and high impact with degeneration in the cervical spine. You don't want to do the endurance exercise that may have had you at the best fitness level in your life at 30. During your menopause transition. But there's a way to know what to do and what order to do it in. Now join me January 14th through the 17th when I offer a series of masterclasses that will give you the insight that you want. Now, mind you, you don't have to attend a series. I'm giving 3 live sessions so that you can be with me live and get questions answered live and in person. So it'll be the same one delivered 3 times. If you like repeat training, you can certainly attend more than one. Flipping50.com/HaloMethod, where I'll teach you how to assess yourself. Or if you're a trainer or a health coach and you want a little deeper dive, you'll be learning how to not only assess yourself but assess clients better. All right, let's start with ACSM's top fitness trends for 2026. Number 1 was wearable technology. So it is still king Queen, Prince, and Princess, and it was last year as well. But tracking beyond steps, we're talking about continuous glucose monitors, heart rate variability. And yet, you know, this is also in your watch these days with your readiness for exercise score. That's often heart rate variability. Recovery scores, that too will be on your Garmin or your Apple Watch. Fitness for older adults is number 2. Now we've seen that on the top 10 list for years. I'm intrigued that they still call it that. It seems a little old school, but we're still looking at that. And maybe I think it's old school because now I am an older adult, I don't know. But every time I get older, that number goes higher, so I'm still middle-aged. That means I'm gonna live to 125, but there it is. So we're really talking active aging. It is officially mainstream. And you know, here's the thing, everybody knows that they need to be exercising. I— we're seeing it, right? The graying of gyms, it was called probably a decade ago, still is today. And it's really quite awesome to see such a wide variability of ages in the gym working out together. The third one is exercise for weight management. Now, that's unfortunately never going to go away. So it is less though about weight loss and more about metabolic focus. Hallelujah, we have finally made some progress. So this isn't about, oh, I want a weight loss program. It is really about— thanks to all kinds of trackers, now we're able to integrate our biomarkers for our blood pressure, our cholesterol levels, our CRP, our A1C, those benchmarks, and look at are we seeing them improve with our exercise. We're tying it all together, not just weight loss and not even kind of the advanced stage we made maybe a decade ago, percent body fat. So much more that we're looking at. The next is mobile exercise apps, and hallelujah, Flipping 50: The Stronger Way, we just launched in this past week as I record this live. Anyway, it'll be a couple weeks old by the time you hear this. We launched it privately to our members, so whether you are VIP or you're an Essentials member, you are the first to get in and see it behind the scenes where we're treating them like guinea pigs, y'all. So first in line, sometimes first to see all the kinks and to give their feedback on what they like, what they, what they love, what they, what they don't. And feedback at first has been phenomenal. But the advantages— now you've got that. And for us, we also— it is a mobile app, but don't confuse that to mean You can only use that on your phone, whether you have an Android or an Apple. You can also log in on a browser for an app experience that is different. So if you've watched Netflix or even simply shopped Netflix, like you've seen how it's delivered, you know a little bit more about how the experience would be delivered. So you can scroll through the options that you want and see it, and you can favorite those. So there's lots of ways is it's making it easier to get access to what you want, to favorite it, to come back to it, and to use it offline for as long as you're a paying member, because we all get in situations where we actually need that. And of course, if you cancel your membership, those things that you've downloaded that are a part of the IP of a membership, you will lose access to those. So that's beyond my scope. I don't know tech. I just know it's the magic happens. Next up is balance and core. That is probably never going to go away, by the way. This again is for ACSM's top 10 list. So balance and core, Pilates and yoga are back. Really, did they ever leave? And I think we're always going to see this. So this I think is directly tied to fitness for older adults. I mean, we are smarter, and I think we're not using Pilates anymore for a flat belly. That's, you know, I think we all want one, don't get me wrong, but I think we're wiser and we're using it and realize that in every move in Pilates, you both have a stretch for certain muscles while something else is being strengthened and tightened. You're learning to help the body be in better alignment and in better balance, strengthening some very small and tiny muscles that that stabilize globally that otherwise don't get called upon. We value mobility. And I think this is kind of evident right here. Next is mental health through movement. Amen. And I was working on this today. So it is the weekend and it's the end of the year, but for me, it's also the feel of this is the beginning of the year. I need to be prepared in order for all of you to come in and to be ready to teach and lead through a new year. New start and a potentially a better way. Not more, but better. What can we throw away and make room for new? But really just make room. We don't necessarily have to fill that empty space. Maybe you fill it with just things you love, not necessarily exercise or movement. But we are just diving into mental health through movement, and we go through a lot of of emotional things that tap into our mental health or challenge it during midlife. There's a lot of celebration, but there's also a lot of grieving. There's a lot of change. There are young adult kids leaving home or coming in and coming out, but eventually leaving. And you have that realization they're never going to like sleep in their bedroom every night ever again. They'll be back, But they won't sleep in their bedroom every night, and you're never gonna cook for them every day. You're never gonna constantly do their laundry or tell them to or pick it up. And so even that is a celebration of what you've done preparing somebody for the world. However, there's a little bit of grieving, and how quickly time flew, I think, is really the thing. Um, but there's the grieving, so I want to land on that. You know, uh, Dr. Kelly McGonigal, and I interviewed her once, and I had hoped that she would be a guest on a summit. She had to decline based on her publishers, but she was able to come on and be a podcast guest. And as we talked, you know, so much of her work is around not just the physical component of exercise, but how her work with stress and the upside of stress— that's the title of one of her books, by the way— but she also wrote a book about exercise and the evolution of exercise and how it not just helps physical fitness, but how it brings people together in community. And the various things that can do. But one of those is the, the tie with physical activity and movement and mental and emotional health. So it's very related to stress, which is probably the segue for which she made and did so much more writing about physical fitness. She wrote also about grief and that grief and whether, again, it's mourning a life Or it's mourning maybe a relationship or a, a period of your life that you've lost, a role that you no longer have. There are all kinds of mourning, but mourning and sadness can make it very hard to move. It's a biological, physiological type of a constraint where you actually want to, and you have less motivation to want to move. It becomes very hard to do it. And yet the irony is it is the only thing that will help facilitate moving the emotion through you. Motion moves emotion through us. It's why intuitively many of you listening— I hesitate to say you and everybody, but I would be willing to guess that most of us voluntarily will move. We will go think, I need a workout, like I'm so stressed, I just need to go work out, or I just, I have so much energy bottled up, or I'm so happy, like I am, I'm just gonna go, I'm gonna go for a walk, or I'm gonna go for a run, because you've got like a little more energy maybe than you know what to do with, you know. And this is, we see this in young kids, right? Even kids who have ADHD or ADD. In fact, kids who probably don't, but they just need to move more. They can't sit still because they haven't moved. We ask them to sit still so long at school and be quiet. And some of them just need to move in order to then behave better the rest of the time. Dogs and puppies, right? The same. So for people, You know, mental health through movement. And yes, not just grief, but depression and anxiety. There's plenty of research documented for years to show that exercise helps with both. And as we age, especially women, we'll find we have a greater need for that mental health support. Next up is traditional strength training. So nothing fancy about this. This has been on ACSM's top fitness trends list for decades. No, I hesitate to say decades, but years. The old-school champ. I remember distinctly— it's because we remember the negative comments, not the positive ones. I remember somebody coming into a challenge and she was in it for a few days, and then she wrote, she said, this is, this is stuff I've done for 20 years. This is nothing new. And I I, I said, well, I know. I said, have you been doing it lately? And, you know, gently and somewhat with respect, but I was a little taken aback by what I— because here's the thing, we only have so many joints and they only go through so many motions. Traditional and basic exercises are going to be there throughout your life, and they are the staples from which metabolism and bone density is built. Variety for variety's sake simply is a variety. You may be moving, you may be exercising, there may be some improvement, but it may not directly be related to the goals that we have. So traditional strength training is, is never going to go away, and I'm happy to see it's a trend, although it seems a little funny. This episode is sponsored by the Flipping 50 Menopause Fitness Specialist. It is the framework that we designed, our our entire membership and program based on. Since 2013, I've been developing that after 30 years of working with women in midlife. That was born, and in 2018, we rolled out the Menopause Fitness Specialist to train other fitness and health pros on how to actually prescribe exercise. Here's where we're going next, in case you want to get started now, that we're actually training physicians on exercise prescription, knowing they get very little of it in medical school, and hoping that it also bridges the gap for you who may be a fitness or health professional or want to be, who works with women in menopause, because there is so much demand and so much room for you right now. If you are working with women in menopause but not getting all the results, don't have a reliable, predictable framework work that gets you results over and over that people know, like, and trust, come and talk to us. We'll put the link in the show notes for today. That's the Flipping 50 Menopause Fitness Specialist. And if you want to head on over to fitnessmarketingacademy.com, it's where we have all of the content dedicated to you health and fitness pros. Data-driven personalization is the next one on ACSM's list, which I find a little misleading because I come back to the first one, it was wearable technology. So in my opinion, it seems that data-driven personalization would go hand in hand with that, but it seems that it doesn't. So that tells— suggests to me anyway that we're a little slow behind the synthesis of the data that we're getting from our wearables and turning that into personalization. We're watching it, or maybe we have been, instead of turning it into, well, what does that inform for our next choice? It seems a little odd to me that those two don't go hand in hand. So this is, in their opinion, smart programming meeting smart devices. Okay, they should have been doing that, I think, earlier, but that's okay. The next one is adult rec sports, and you're going to find there's a common denominator with the ACEs trend as well, because really this is with adult rec sports. We're talking pickleball, of course, but the reason behind this, whether it's pickleball, whether it is, um, walking clubs, hiking clubs, we're seeing more of that. It's, um, group fitness, still very popular, but the whole idea is this is always end always will be social as much as it's physical. And I think that's what we see in this, this pickleball phenomenon. It is fun and it is activity. It's not strenuous if you're a beginner anyway. I think it can be more strenuous for those who are more experienced and really out there moving it. Um, just from some of my clients, and can I say this in 2026? I've never played. So that should be on my list of things to do and try. I'll share that with you if I do. But community and the social component in the fitness things that we do will ever present be important. And last but not least is functional fitness on ACSM's top trends. Movement that translates to real life. But I want to back up and look at traditional strength training still lends itself to real life. If our highest priority is bone density, or our highest priority is metabolic health or boosting metabolism, traditional fitness wins. You can, you can slay that battle rope all you want to, but if we don't reach muscular fatigue with muscle groups, we are not going to see increased strength and/or lean muscle mass to the extent that it positively enhances our metabolism, metabolic health, and longevity. So I find it odd functional fitness still has its own unique spin, and I think all fitness really always has been functional. It's— it can't not be. And yet I think people are taking fitness toys and saying, oh, this is now really functional. Or if I take a downward facing dog and I lift my heels and I reach my hand to my ankle, okay, now it's a functional movement. And I, I think we're just looking for another category or a name for things. I don't think traditional only or functional only in the ways they're defining it. Either one of them is good, but if you had to choose, I would say choose traditional. So the ACSM takeaway, you know, technology, aging, mental health, and movement that actually matters— where the energy is going. That's, that's the key, right? We're not just moving for movement's sake, but what are our goals? So So let's go into ACEs trends. How do they, how are they similar and how do they differ? So AI in fitness is number 1. So very similar, right? The second one is wearable data integration. So with AI in fitness, here's what they're talking about. Custom programming, smarter communication, streamlined coaching. Now I find that a little interesting because right now, I, I happen to be in front of two computer screens. It's a busy day over here, and I have Claude and Chap both open. Now I could ask them both for an exercise program based on a female that's X years old in this state of menopause, and here are her symptoms, and here's her priorities, here's her limits, and I could get a, gimme a month-long program, and I would get one back, but would it be custom? Really? I think it still needs some human touch, but where is that coming from? Right? So can you interact with chat and interact with ChatGPT? You can. And the more you know about using it well, the more you know, and it may work for you. I would challenge you. That if you're, if you're in a position where you can't afford or aren't interested in seeking out someone for support, that you challenge yourself and say, okay, for a month I'm going to use ChatterCloud as my personal trainer, and I'm going to train it to train me. And I want to know how you do. Okay, so number one, number two, AI and fitness, and number two is wearable data integration. So we're getting very much overlap between ACE's trends predicted by an advisory board and your ACSM's feedback about it from fitness professionals. Number 3 on ACE's list is recovery is required. Thank God. Amen. My work here is done. Not really, but this is where I have spent much of my time and energy over, certainly over the last 3 to 4 years because we noticed this very steep rise in trend among our community members. Once we reached a critical mass and we were over 1,000 members, we kept seeing this repeatedly. So think about what is a good number of subjects in a scientific study, and we, we like to see at least 100, but over 1,000 is really phenomenal because now we know we've got a really pool, great pool, and we're seeing some real trends in what's happening with them. Well, that's what we agreed to, but what we kept seeing is women tired and exhausted and yet trying to push themselves through the program no matter how they felt. And it was like, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, wait just a minute. And we started doing same things very differently. We started offering women within our Community reset restart programs so that people could— okay, I can stay consistent, but I'm going to do far less because doing more right now is exhausting me. Often because life is throwing you the workout. You're a caregiver, suddenly your workload increased. You're moving. You're going through relationship chaos and stress. That means you don't have this stress. To handle the hormetic controlled stressor that exercise is. Your body doesn't know the difference between, "Hey, I'm choosing this one so that I can get stronger," and this other one, "I'm not choosing this, stop." You know, you're dealing with lots of stress. Your body just has them all carried in this backpack that's on you, and you will reach a tipping point in not a good way, by the way. So recovery is required. I love that this is number 3. By ACE, and it shows— gives me a sense of pride for actually being a subject matter expert with them. But we're talking not just rest between your exercise sessions, but we're talking stretching, mobility, sleep, your nervous system regulation. They aren't optional anymore. And for you, dear woman in midlife, this has to be you more than anything. If you are ignoring and you've powered through in the past, I don't believe you'll get away with that in the future. Inclusive fitness. This is one that has actually been on ACSM's trend report and it wasn't there this year, but it is, they do a top 20 by the way, we just make the top 10 a part of this report. So we're talking accessibility of fitness facilities, of exercise programs, adaptive training no matter what the limitation might be, and diverse representation in all images and demonstrations. Next up is number 5, obesity meds. So we're talking GLP-1s and fitness. They are going to merge. That's not going away. We're going to find trainers adapting to work with medicated clients for health outcomes. And this is probably the missing piece for a lot of women. So I have worked with many of you privately and in very small groups as well as larger ones. We have fewer women in our community in our large group who are sharing or admitting that they're using GLP-1s. And I say admitting because I think there still is a bit of shame around it, and I'm not shaming you, by the way, by I'm just saying that I think women are reluctant to admit that I'm using that because there's a fear that they will be targeted by, oh, you're cheating, or you're, you're doing something that you shouldn't. And I— hopefully we can throw that down. I think GLP-1s have their place, and if nothing else has worked for you, you've laid the foundation and you have all the other things in place, I think sometimes it's warranted in order to either— so many things, actually. It's not an either-or. It's a potentially get the weight off so that your joints can tolerate exercise and you can be more compliant. To get the weight off so that you are more able to move freely, pain-free, and be compliant with what you want to do but are exhausted and too tired to do when you are carrying the weight at at least. I find microdosing for some women actually doesn't work as well as they want it to. So the— I think the real secret wish behind the scenes for people who are microdosing is that it will help them lose weight or belly fat, but it's a slow, long game. That's a longevity play. And, you know, it may help decrease inflammation However, it's going to happen over months, not weeks, not quickly. And I, I know that many women have actually started with microdosing, ramped up because that wasn't doing anything, and found that even being on full doses didn't work. And there are a variety of reasons I won't get into here, but what we are going to find is that trainers and health coaches are supporting women and men who are on obesity meds, helping them establish the lifestyle habits of prioritizing protein, prioritizing the quality of the foods that they are eating. When hunger can be very limited and that point to satiety can happen very quickly, it's, it's almost like going back to being a toddler or feeding a toddler. You had to give them them the highest priority foods first because otherwise they were going to get full. So you've got to give them the veggies and the fruits and the protein in order to sustain them, as opposed to giving them snacks first. So similarly, I think we've got to tap into that and know how to coach, and we're working on that for our Flipping 50 Menopause Fitness Specialists and the division of how to work with clients with GLPs and what to know so that you understand it yourself. Next up is holistic health. So really looking at health coaching, not just training. This is so very important for women in menopause. So we're talking sleep, stress, mindset, movement— they all get a seat at the table. So we're talking movement versus exercise. So we need both that we need a whole lot less exercise and just really quality when we do it if we have more movement in our lives. And next up, tying right into that, is menopause and women's health. So it's, it's about damn time. I hope you had nobody else in the car with you just then. So we're talking strength, bone health, hormone-aware programming, all the things that we're training menopause fitness specialists since 2018 as one of the premier and first and only exercise for menopause training programs that existed to help our coaches understand what they were dealing with. And still many of them don't. They go right for weight loss. They end up often injuring or exhausting their clients before they actually get results, something we definitely do not want. So we're happy and here for that as well. Next up is longevity over aesthetics. Yes. So it's arrived. And, you know, huge nod to some of the recent authors like Peter Attia, who wrote about this long ago. Literally, it's about thriving now, not just surviving, but also not just about skinny jeans. It's about what do I need to do not just to look good now and maybe get the weight off or belly fat off, but Am I doing myself any disservice for the, the next 10 years or the next 20? And the last 2, you're almost there. Metabolic health focus. So we're seeing a repeat because we saw that above insulin, glucose, inflammation, we're all measuring and we're managing. So by the way, if you want to join us, it's not too late, but It almost is. We're doing another continuous blood glucose monitor challenge. That is, you purchase through my link and I will add that to the show notes and you participate with us for 30 days where we're doing continuous blood glucose monitor and basically blood sugar challenge. For our members, you can participate in the blood sugar challenge whether or not you use the continuous blood glucose monitor. But we will do a pop-up WhatsApp group. So I'm in there daily and looking at what are your questions, leading you through with, um, a cheat sheet on what is it that you wanna do in the first 3 to 5 days, what do you wanna do next, and how are we gonna go through and apply the information that you get and learn from wearing the continuous blood glucose monitor. My recommendation is that you get 2. Sensors and you get them. They're 14 days each, so you've got 28 days. We have a month and we do that together. So again, I will put the link in the show notes. If you're using another continuous blood glucose monitor, you, you actually have to use the one that, that is based on my link. So I get that, we download it through, and it is open to the public, by the way. So if you're curious about how you're doing, we're talking habits dealing with stress, with your sleep, your exercise, the type of exercise, the timing of exercise, your movement throughout the day, stress and the way that you handle it, the foods that you eat, the drinks that you drink, and how all of that impacts your glucose. For women who are struggling with belly fat or weight loss resistance, often the, the CGM wearing gives some great insight insight to what is happening with your blood sugar levels that lead to takeaways you can apply for the rest of the year. Often wearing one for a month is enough. And I will tell you, no, they're not free. So the investment will be somewhere around $300. So you're purchasing a year-long membership to the CGM where you can share results with me. You purchase two sensors and it'll put you right there. But I want to challenge your thought process right now that that is expensive, that is too much. And here's, you know, what I would ask you is, what is it costing you now not to know? And what would it— what would it earn you, or how would it benefit you if you did know? How would it change your health outcome? Not just this year, but in 10 and 20 years if you changed your habits a little. And many of us need to see the data literally on paper in order to know and to make changes. If you don't, you again could follow along without participating in the CGM monitor and just do the habits and change them because I do believe if we followed those, we would all be better off. We certainly wouldn't be hurt by it. Okay. And last but not least is third spaces for movement. This again is an overlap from above, although it may sound a little confusing and fancy schmancy in the way they wrote it, but it's community again. So it is looking at things like pickleball, like your hiking and your walking clubs or your running clubs or your triathlon groups. It's not just about going for a bike ride on Sunday mornings. It's about meeting with a group of like like-minded people who are doing that and who you share this common denominator with. I remember I— when I first moved to Scottsdale, the very first weekend I was there, I joined a women's triathlon group that rode together on Sunday mornings. But a big part of their Sunday morning ritual and routine was not just meeting meeting at, you know, 7 AM at a parking lot, but it was meeting specifically at a certain parking lot where there was a cafe where they all, as a ritual, almost all— I mean, somebody had to leave early sometimes, but they would have breakfast together. And it was that that I realized I was missing out because the first couple of times I didn't stay. I hadn't expected to. I didn't know that was part of it. And so I just had planned to— okay, we're going to ride for, you know, a couple of hours and then I'll be back home. And I realized I didn't get the benefit of the community and the friendships in the way that I would have had I stayed. So I think what, what I as a coach and a trainer have to remember and keep forefront is that this is as much for each and every one of us about community And knowing somebody else is going through a similar life situation as me. There are other women who are thinking about doing their workouts just like me, and how am I going to fit this in while I'm traveling or babysitting or, or on vacation? And knowing that you're not the only one is really beneficial. And so find your people is my recommendation, whoever they are. And I think there's a lot to be said for going to a group fitness, or maybe it is a pickleball community, but where there are mixed ages and/or genders, you know, there's— it doesn't have to be that you're only surrounding yourself with, you know, the same demographic as you. Sometimes that injection of somebody younger is also very fun. I think it's why I enjoyed teaching at the university level so very much, because, you know, you— it kept you in touch with with, what that was like when you were there in that moment. And, you know, also I think just kept you more alive and young yourself. And I think it's also great to be around weddings, situations where you're going to younger people's weddings and births of their babies and celebrations in different ways there, to be in a generational, multi-generational situation. It gives everybody an opportunity to respect each other, but it's also another huge sense of community coming from things like that. So looking for those things, I think these are also very true. And that really is grounded for me in the fact that you, my friend and listener, are one of the most powerful health influencers in the world. Being around other people of the same age does matter, but being around other people of younger and older status, and whether it be biologically or chronologically different than you, they're all beneficial for you flexing the muscle of the ability to help. And I'll finish with this really short story. You know, I really wanted to give my son and daughter-in-law an Air Doctor and an AquaTru for Christmas. Twofold, you know, the toxins in the air and in the water that we drink, or if we're drinking out of a lot of plastics, you know, there's nothing that we consume more of air and water. And I've mentioned this before, so you know this one, I'm hoping. But on average, humans consume about a credit card worth of plastic every year. That plastic doesn't come back out. We're not pooing it out. It's there in our system, and it is a hormone disruptor. So if you're talking to a 20, 25, 30-year-old who wants to get pregnant, that may be a part part of fertility problems. And then we look at the air that we breathe in, and I think we're more aware now. I think if we go shopping for carpeting or upholstery, you know, there are more non-toxic and allergen-free options there. And I think it's a benefit that companies are touting, but I also think there are of homes built older that, that were built that way. And I think I was at a recent Christmas, and I hesitate to say this because it's gonna sound very judgmental, but somebody brought a huge stuffed animal. And I wish I could turn off this part of my brain now, but I can't. And my immediate thought was, that is so cute. But the next one, okay, was I wonder about the allergen property of that and, you know, the risk. And interestingly enough, you know, we put all these stuffed animals into a child's room and a rug and a, you know, a chair that's upholstered. Um, I mean, what's happening in there in the air quality? When we've got that going on. And if there are pets in the house and there's dander— and I didn't do it, by the way. So these two gifts, it's like giving an appliance. So I didn't give them, although I wanted to so badly I couldn't even stand it. But I was like, that's like giving an appliance to, you know, your spouse. I better not do that. And then I saw my opening. And so my son had said something about— oh, we were talking about church on Christmas Eve, and he's like, I don't know, I've got a really bad cold, so we might not go. And so I'm like, all right, well, I'll see you tomorrow, but if you do, I'm going to 4 o'clock. So I didn't see them the next day. I— we were at Christmas, and I said, well, how's your cold? And he's like, oh, it's fine. I think it was just like more an allergic reaction or allergy to something. And I'm like, really? You know what I'm doing? I think You would really like an Air Doctor. So I was— and they were like very open to it. So I'm like, okay, done. I was like, here's my dilemma. I don't know whether to give you one or give you one for the baby in his room, because I think it will help him, you know, now have that air quality, you know, when he's in his room and he's sleeping, you know, for 8, 9, 10 and hours overnight, you know, if we can start them really well, he's probably going to be healthier for life. So, you know, right now he's still sleeping in their room. So anyway, long story short, they were then on board, but, you know, finding those openings for things like that, I think are really important. And that just brings me full circle. So this started right in talking about, out, you are the biggest health influencer. You will be around generations. You may be aware of things that could be better. You know, I saw an opening where, you know, we were talking about, you know, heating some kind of sauce in this Tupperware. And you know how I've threw it away because you know how the sauce sometimes, you know, sticks and stains the Tupperware. And I'm I'm like, but you know how the plastic is actually getting into the sauce. That's what I said. And I'm like, I couldn't help myself. I'm like, stop it, stop it, because I'm not— I have to let them get there. And, you know, she said, that's why I finally transitioned to all glass. So fortunately, she'd already gotten there by herself. And, you know, that's just another one of those things where they have to be ready to do it, you know. And instead of buying plastic water bottles, you know, that they're drinking because they don't have great tap water, they have to get there. And so they've seen my Aquature on the counter, they've tasted the water and agreed it was great tasting, but whether or not they want one, I haven't gotten that far. Are. So little by little. But all of these things to say, these are trends that should have meaning for you and what you're going to see more of because the awareness about menopause fitness is now there, that you need something different. There have been a lot of people who've said that's not a thing. I am I am in 6 days going to be on NBC New York City on a news segment. However, my talking points have been screened by medical review board, and yet I, I came away scratching my head because some of the things that I have to say about menopause fitness, I can't. But realize that a medical review board is a little bit silly for a fitness segment because medical physicians don't get any exercise information in medical school at all. Maybe 2 hours if they do. Most do not get none. Only 12% of medical schools re— require any nutrition at this point. That may be changing. But I found that ridiculous. And so the reason some of those things were screened is because the medical review individual didn't understand it. And if they didn't understand it and they'd never heard it, they were filtering it. And I thought, I have to play this game. I have to play this game or I can't talk at all. And it's better that I get on and talk it all and potentially can fill a gap with what needs to happen, and then not get on at all. So I want you to realize that we are going to hear more talk about menopause fitness, and hopefully the gap between women's health and what we know is out there in science and what we know I want to know from you, how do you feel? Probably one of the most powerful sentences or questions that you can answer in regard to how well then is it working. And if you don't feel good, if you are not the most energetic person in the room, it's time to change your fitness program, your routine. There is a better answer. So I'll leave you with that for your 2026, and I wish the absolute best and most powerful year ahead for everyone.