Choosing Your Hard: The Decision That Changes Everything After 40

152 - If you’re a woman over 40 who feels exhausted, overwhelmed, or stuck in “I’ll deal with it later” mode, this episode offers clarity and relief.

In Episode 152 of the Feel Light Mind & Body podcast, Clarenda Price explains why overriding your body’s signals leads to burnout, weight gain, poor sleep, and low energy, and why the answer isn’t more discipline or force.

You’ll learn how stress and biology influence decision-making, why resistance is often protective rather than lazy, and how choosing your “hard” intentionally can prevent the harder consequences that build over time.

This episode focuses on awareness, nervous system regulation, and values-based decisions that support real life, not perfection.

You’ll walk away with:
1. A better understanding of how chronic stress affects your body and energy
2. Insight into why waiting to start often makes change feel harder
3. A clear explanation of “why nots” and how they hold you back
4. A simple, powerful action step to regain momentum without pressure
5. Reassurance that you’re not broken, just under-supported

If today’s conversation resonated, Clarenda invites you to take the next step in a supportive, pressure-free way.

You can:
1. Book a free 20-minute consult to explore the Feel Light Mind & Body Program https://www.clarendasempowerment.com/f/fl

2. Join The Noise Detox, a complimentary 8-day online experience to help calm mental noise, reset your nervous system, and reconnect with your priorities.
https://www.clarendasempowerment.com/courses/the-noise-detox

Thank you for listening. If this episode helped you, be sure to follow the podcast so you don’t miss what’s coming next.

You can always find out more at:

https://www.clarendasempowerment.com/

Transcript

0:00

If we try to override our body's signals for too long, we will rapidly deplete our reserves. And when that happens, burnout isn't just a possibility, it's a reality. It's the outcome that we do not want. I'm starting here because many women don't realize they're doing this. They think they're being strong, responsible, and disciplined. In reality, they're pushing past signals that their body has been sending them for a long time. I've been there, and if left to my own ingrained DNA, I would default back to it. Think of it like taking a car from zero to full throttle, highway speed, over and over again, without warming up the engine and without doing any maintenance. It might work for a while, but eventually something gives. Another way to picture this is constantly withdrawing from a bank account without ever making deposits. That can work for a while, but eventually you go into overdraft, and your body has its own version of overdraft. This is where exhaustion, stubborn weight gain, poor sleep, inflammation, and low motivation show up. Welcome to episode 152 of the Feel Light Mind and Body Podcast,

"Choosing Your Hard: 1:24

The Decision That Changes Everything After 40." I'm Clarenda Price, a former Registered Nurse, Personal Trainer, and Certified Life and Weight Loss Coach. I support women over 40 who look like they're holding it all together, but feel the impact of chronic stress in their bodies, energy and sleep. What I'm sharing with you today comes from years of watching chronic stress, ignored body signals and the"I'll deal with this later" thinking quietly erode our health over time. This isn't theory. It's real life, and I'm really glad you're here. To live our best lives, we need a balance between grace, discipline and commitment. Not perfection. Not extremes. Balance. We need a flow or a rhythm between stress and relaxation. Between effort and recovery. That balance is what keeps us in flow. My wish for every woman is this. To move from forcing herself to do things, to simply doing them because they align with her values. Not because she's punishing herself or feels guilty, but because it makes sense and it feels right. And maybe, just maybe, because she feels inspired. Can you imagine how good that would feel? Imagine how empowering it would feel to be decisive. To say this matters to me and follow through no matter how mentally or circumstantially hard it is. So, not because it's easy, but because you like your reasons. Because you've decided to choose your hard rather than let the hard catch up with you later. Let's talk about that for a moment. Does it feel hard to skip the baked goods, chips, or wine after a long day? Yes. But isn't it also hard when that choice catches up to you in the form of restless sleep, low energy, joint pain, inflammation throughout your entire system, and that wired but tired feeling? Absolutely. One hard is immediate and the other is cumulative. And over time, the second one can become emotionally, mentally, and physically debilitating. I know it might be tempting right now to continue scrolling and tune me out. Travel, recipes, those cute animal videos, who right now we're not sure if they're real or not with all of the AI. I get it. I notice myself doing that too when I'm trying to avoid thinking about something that I need to change or be honest about. But what if instead, just for a moment, you stayed present with me? What if you chose gratitude? Gratitude and belief that you're seeing this for a reason. I actually plan to talk about something lighter today, something more general and easy. Something that would be more comfortable for me to share because there was lower risk of maybe stepping on someone's toes. But during my quiet morning priority time, once again, I felt prompted to go first and to share something and do something that feels harder. Because there's someone on the other side of this mic who is feeling frustrated, discouraged, or maybe even worried. You've noticed gradual changes over the years. Your body, sleep, resilience, and energy. Time has a way of doing that. Changes aren't obvious until suddenly they are. And maybe you're thinking right now "that's me" and that's okay. I've got you. Hear me. There is no need to stay stuck in shame or self blame when there are so many ways to get momentum happening and move towards the healthiest version of yourself. You are not broken. You are simply under supported and maybe in various areas. So what stops us? It's not that you don't know your why. Your why is probably pretty clear. You want to stay independent and do life on your own terms. You don't want to rely on others for basic things, and you don't want to be a burden to your family. You want to keep up on hikes and you want to travel without feeling limited. You want energy, not constant fatigue. Your kids and grandkids matter deeply to you. You want to play on the floor with them, get up easily, run, laugh, and be fully present without feeling in discomfort. You want to love being in the pictures because you know how much those memories will matter later. So if it's not your why, you already know your why. What is it? It's your why nots. The reasons you give for why now isn't the right time. Why it feels too hard, why it feels unfair, why there might even be some resentment underneath it all. When my clients become aware of their why nots and we rewire those beliefs, something shifts dramatically. They stop negotiating with themselves. They stop delaying. They stop feeling stuck. You might be thinking still, "Clarenda, what exactly are the why nots?" They're beliefs rooted in protection. Your subconscious is wired to keep you safe by keeping things familiar. Change requires energy. Agree? And from a biological standpoint, conserving energy used to be essential for survival. Your brain doesn't recognize modern lifestyle changes as positive upgrades. It simply recognizes change as a potential threat. The amygdala sounds the alarm. Then resistance shows up and excuses become plentiful. And the more convincing the excuses, the safer your system feels. If that was actually serving your future self, I'd say keep on going. But if it's not, and most likely it's not, then remember, today is about awareness, not judgment. Here's your action step for today. I want you to list your why nots. List them down on a piece of paper, not just in your head. You might think that you already know them, and most likely, you know the obvious ones. But it's the quiet, unseen, subtle ones that usually are running the show. Write them down without judgment. Leave shame out of it. Just think of this as data collection. As you go about your days this week, think to yourself, "what else?" And keep adding them to your list. Now, before you do this, I recommend that you take a few long, slow, deep breaths. Try to make your exhale a little longer than your inhale. That signals safety to your nervous system. This matters because when you calm your nervous system, your thinking changes. When you tune in, tap in, and turn on, when you listen to your biology, rather than fighting it, everything becomes easier. Cortisol comes down. Decision fatigue eases. Weight can be released with less effort. Sleep improves and energy improves. This is why doing less but doing it intentionally often gets better results than pushing harder. Let me know if you take this first step, if you do the list, because I love it for you. Because without that awareness, it's hard to know what your next step should be. It's not because it's easy, it's because it's powerful.

It does require two strengths: 9:28

honesty and self-compassion. If you listened or watched episode 151, you may have heard me mention that I was hosting an Out of the Miserable Maybe Workshop, and I learned so much from those women there, both online and in person. I learned what's been weighing them down lately, and I have a feeling you'll be able to relate. I kept thinking about it because I also was experiencing it, so I decided to create an 8-day online experience called The Noise Detox. It's designed to help you quiet the mental noise, reset your nervous system and connect with what actually matters without overwhelm or pressure. If today's conversation resonated with you, this is a beautiful next step. And if you're feeling curious about what it could look like to have support in improving your health, energy, and overall quality of life, I offer a 20-minute consult. I'll add both these links to the show notes. No pressure, no fixing, just clarity and encouragement. Having that different perspective can be so empowering. You don't have to wait until things get worse to choose support. You're allowed to begin now. Thank you for watching. Make sure you subscribe because I'm thinking next week we might dive a little bit deeper into inflammation. So when you hit subscribe, you can get the notification and that way you won't miss a thing. Make it a great week, everyone. Much love to you.