Healthy Ageing Through Movement: My Biggest Lesson From Taking a Week Off
- Juliana O’Boyle IFMCP
- Jun 1
- 10 min read
Updated: Jun 9
Last week was unusual for me. It was half-term. It was hot - London heat hits different truly! Life was a bit all over the place as is the way with the teenage years. My usual routine disappeared.
I didn’t make it to F45 where I do most of my workouts. So I didn’t do my usual strength training. My walks were shorter. Apart from a few bits and pieces, movement largely fell by the wayside.
And I really felt it. Not just physically, but mentally too.
My mood was lower. I felt more sluggish. Old aches and pains began creeping back. I could feel the water retention. I felt less resilient, less positive and less like myself. Okay, I'll just say it truthfully - I felt old.
The experience further cemented my thinking of why movement is so important for us as we progress throughout mid life, and reminded me of something I talk to my clients about all the time:
Movement isn’t simply about fitness, weight loss or how we look. It is one of the fundamental inputs that keeps our mind and bodies ageing and functioning well.
As a Functional Medicine Practitioner, I’m not a movement specialist. I don’t teach exercise technique, prescribe rehabilitation programmes or coach athletic performance. But movement forms part of the Structural Integrity section of the Functional Medicine Matrix that I work through with every client, and it influences almost every other area of health that we work on.
The more years I spend in practice (and the older I personally get!), the more convinced I become that movement is every bit as important as nutrition, sleep, stress management and supplements. Possibly even more - because without movement - we feel less desire or motivation to work on the other aspects of health - it's like one drives the other. For example, I don't do a workout and then come back and eat rubbish because I know my body needs proper fuel and why would I waste that time I've spent sweating to negate it?
In fact, without movement, many of those other interventions simply don’t work as well.
Movement Affects Far More Than Your Muscles
When most people think about exercise, they think about burning calories or improving fitness. But movement influences:
Gut motility and digestion
Blood sugar regulation
Hormone balance
Lymphatic drainage
Mood and mental health
Cognitive function
Stress resilience
Sleep quality
Cardiovascular health
Bone density
Muscle preservation
Healthy ageing
It is one of the few interventions that positively impacts almost every system in the body.
Movement helps us process stress.
It supports nervous system regulation.
It stimulates beneficial changes in the gut microbiome.
It improves insulin sensitivity.
It increases circulation.
It helps maintain independence and resilience as we age.
This is why I rarely view exercise as a separate health goal. It is woven into almost every health outcome we are trying to achieve.
The Types of Healthy Movement We Need As We Age
One thing I’ve realised on my journey in the past few years is that no single form of exercise does everything. As we move through our forties, fifties and beyond, we need a variety of movement inputs.
Strength Training
If I could encourage every woman to do one thing, it would be strength training. Strength training helps preserve muscle mass, supports metabolism, improves insulin sensitivity, protects bones and helps maintain physical independence later in life.
Muscle is one of the greatest assets we can build for healthy ageing.
Cardiovascular Training
Our hearts need training too. Zone 2 work, brisk walking, cycling, swimming and occasional higher-intensity efforts all help maintain cardiovascular fitness and metabolic health. Cardio improves circulation, energy production and resilience.
Mobility and Flexibility
Mobility often gets neglected until something hurts. Yet maintaining healthy movement patterns helps us move more freely, reduces stiffness and allows us to keep doing the activities we love.
Everyday Movement
Not all movement needs to happen in a gym.
Walking the dog.
Gardening.
Taking the stairs.
Carrying shopping.
Playing with children or grandchildren.
Our bodies were designed for regular movement throughout the day, not just a workout squeezed into one hour.
Breathwork
Breathing may not immediately come to mind as movement, but it absolutely is. The diaphragm is a muscle.
Breathwork influences posture, nervous system regulation, vagal tone, stress resilience and even digestion. Sometimes the most powerful movement practice is simply learning how to breathe properly again. Try and take regular breathwork breaks throughout your day - there are some great apps to support this!
Making movement part of your everyday life
One thing I have learned over the years is that the 'best' form of movement is often the one you genuinely look forward to returning to.
For me, that has been a combination of F45 and the Bounce Fit Method. They are very different, but both have become important parts of my routine. F45 gives me the in-person energy of training alongside others, knowledgeable and supportive coaches, and the challenge of pushing myself in ways I might not do alone. The Bounce Fit Method gives me the online flexibility of exercising at home around work and family life, doing something that really lifts me (literally - rebounding) while still benefiting from the motivation and encouragement of a wider online community.
Both have taught me that consistency is rarely about willpower alone. It is often about finding an environment, a community, and a style of movement that genuinely works for your life.
I often encourage clients to stop searching for the perfect exercise programme and instead focus on finding their thing. The form of movement that makes them feel stronger, more energised and more connected to themselves. Because consistency will always outperform perfection.
We Were Designed to Move
Modern life encourages us to sit.
We drive.
We work at desks.
We scroll.
We watch.
Yet our biology hasn’t changed. Human beings evolved to move frequently throughout the day. Movement is not an optional wellness extra to squeeze into a lunchbreak. It is a fundamental biological need.
The week I spent away from my usual routine reminded me just how quickly I notice the difference. Not because I’m chasing a particular weight, body shape or fitness goal, but because movement genuinely helps me feel better. I feel more positive, resilient and strong. I have more energy to pursue my goals, and my sense of purpose - both personally and professionally, feels stronger. I feel more myself, something that many women comment they lose first as they age - their sense of self.
To me, these personality attributes are all markers of healthy ageing. Or at least they are qualities I consistently see in the women I admire as role models. They aren’t just physically active; they are vibrant, capable, optimistic and engaged with life. And I don’t think that’s a coincidence. These qualities are deeply connected.
How I Incorporate Healthy Movement Into My Client Programmes
Part of my consults involve explaining to clients that movement isn’t just about fitness. It’s a biological signal that influences almost every system in the body. Influencing all the factors I have mentioned and contributing to overall resilience as we age.
That’s why movement is an important part of the Functional Medicine Matrix and something we discuss in most client programmes. Rather than handing out a generic exercise plan, we look at what movement means for you and your body right now. Together we might:
✓ Explore how movement is currently supporting (or affecting) your energy, hormones, digestion, mood and overall health.
✓ Identify barriers that are making movement difficult, whether that’s fatigue, pain, injury, confidence, time pressures or simply not knowing where to start.
✓ Assess your current movement patterns and identify any gaps, whether that’s strength training, cardiovascular fitness, mobility, balance, recovery or simply spending too much time sitting.
✓ Set realistic SMART goals that fit your life rather than creating another impossible health target.
✓ Create a personalised movement prescription based on your goals, health history, symptoms and preferences.
✓ Build movement into your day in a sustainable way, including reducing sedentary time and finding opportunities for everyday movement.
✓ Review progress and adapt your plan as your health, confidence and capacity improve.
The aim is to help you find ways of moving that support your health today while also helping you build strength, resilience and independence for the years ahead. Because the best movement plan isn’t the most ambitious one. It’s the one you’ll actually enjoy and continue doing long enough to experience the benefits.
If You’re Not Moving Yet, Start Small
You don’t need to join a gym tomorrow.
You don’t need expensive equipment.
You don’t need to be perfect.
Start with a walk. Add a few minutes of mobility work using a video online as a guide . Try a beginner strength session. Take the stairs. Dance in the kitchen. Stretch while the kettle boils.
The goal isn’t to become an athlete overnight. The goal is to make movement a normal non negotiable part of your life. Because the truth is, movement isn’t punishment. It’s nourishment. And I guarantee you, it will lift you more than 30 minutes scrolling on your phone or mindlessly watching a bad Netflix show. Just like food, sleep and connection, it’s something our bodies simply cannot thrive without.
Why is movement so important for healthy ageing in women?
Movement is one of the few interventions that positively influences almost every system in the body simultaneously — including hormone balance, blood sugar regulation, gut health, bone density, mood, cognitive function and cardiovascular fitness. As we move through our forties, fifties and beyond, the stakes become higher. Muscle mass naturally declines with age, metabolism slows, and the risk of osteoporosis, metabolic dysfunction and cognitive decline increases. Regular movement — particularly strength training — is one of the most powerful things we can do to counteract these changes and maintain both physical and mental resilience as we age.
What types of exercise are most important for women in midlife?
No single form of movement does everything, which is why variety matters. The key types I'd prioritise are: strength training to preserve muscle mass, support metabolism and protect bones; cardiovascular exercise such as brisk walking, cycling or swimming for heart health and energy production; mobility and flexibility work to keep joints healthy and reduce stiffness; and breathwork, which supports nervous system regulation and stress resilience in ways that are often underestimated. Alongside these, everyday movement — walking, gardening, taking the stairs — matters more than most people realise. Our bodies were designed for regular movement throughout the day, not just a single workout.
What happens to your body and mood when you stop exercising?
Even a relatively short break from movement can have noticeable effects — and not just physically. In my own experience, just one week without my usual routine brought lower mood, increased sluggishness, returning aches and pains and a reduced sense of resilience and positivity. This is not unusual. Movement plays a direct role in nervous system regulation, stress processing, gut motility, blood sugar balance and the production of mood-supporting neurochemicals. When it stops, those systems feel the absence. The good news is that the body responds quickly when movement resumes — you do not need to start from scratch.
Is strength training really necessary, or is walking daily enough?
Walking is genuinely valuable and should not be underestimated — it supports cardiovascular health, mood, blood sugar regulation and everyday movement patterns. But for women in midlife and beyond, walking alone is unlikely to be sufficient. Strength training specifically targets muscle preservation, which becomes increasingly important as oestrogen declines. It also improves bone density, insulin sensitivity and metabolic rate in ways that cardiovascular exercise alone does not. I would encourage every woman to include some form of resistance training — even if it starts small, with bodyweight exercises at home. The goal is not to become an athlete. It is to maintain strength, independence and resilience for the years ahead.
How do I find a form of exercise I'll actually stick to?
Consistency almost always comes down to enjoyment and fit rather than willpower. The best exercise programme is the one you will actually return to. For some women that means the energy and accountability of training with others in person. For others it means the flexibility of exercising at home around work and family life. Community, coaching and a sense of progress all make a significant difference to long-term consistency. My suggestion is to stop searching for the perfect programme and instead experiment until you find your thing — the form of movement that makes you feel stronger, more energised and more like yourself. That feeling is worth following.
How does movement fit into a functional medicine consultation?
In functional medicine, we work with a framework called the Functional Medicine Matrix, which maps the key systems and inputs that influence health — including digestion, hormones, immune function, energy production, the nervous system and structural integrity. Movement sits within the Structural Integrity node of the matrix, but its influence extends well beyond that single category. Because movement affects blood sugar, gut motility, hormone balance, nervous system regulation, mood and inflammation, it has a ripple effect across almost every other area of the matrix simultaneously.
In a consultation, this means I am rarely looking at movement in isolation. I am considering how a client's current activity levels — or lack of them — may be contributing to the symptoms they are experiencing. Someone with fatigue, for example, may have a tendency to move less, which in turn affects their circulation, insulin sensitivity and mood, which further compounds the fatigue. Someone with digestive symptoms may find that gentle daily movement significantly supports gut motility and reduces bloating, even before any dietary changes are made.
Rather than handing out a generic exercise plan, I use the matrix as a tool to understand where movement fits within the bigger picture of that individual's health. We look at what movement they are currently doing, what barriers exist — whether that is pain, fatigue, injury, time pressures or simply not knowing where to start — and what types of movement would be most beneficial given their specific health picture. The result is a personalised movement prescription that supports their health goals rather than adding another overwhelming item to their to-do list.
Juliana O'Boyle IFMCP, MSc, AMH, ANP is a Functional Medicine Practitioner, Herbalist, Naturopath and Nutritionist with over 15 years of clinical experience. Through her Functional Herbalism approach, she combines the science of functional medicine with the wisdom of herbal medicine to help women uncover the root causes of digestive, hormonal and energy-related symptoms. Juliana holds an MSc in Personalised Nutrition, is certified through the Institute for Functional Medicine (IFM), and works with clients across the UK through her West London-based practice, Functional Herbology.
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