Motion Is Lotion: Creating Flow and Ease in the Body at Midlife
They say motion is lotion - and never has it felt more true for me at midlife.
As we move through our forties, fifties, and beyond, our relationship with our bodies begin to shift. Things start to creak and moan and we might feel stiffer in the mornings or notice that recovery from exercise takes longer.
But midlife is not the end of vitality and mobility - it’s the invitation to tend to our bodies more consciously.
With the average life expectancy in Australia now hovering around 85 years, many of us still have decades of living ahead of us. For me that’s another 30 years! That’s a long time to inhabit this body - and we want it to feel good and to carry us with ease, steadiness and vitality.
Yoga teaches us that wellness is not just about touching our toes or achieving the perfect pose. It’s about accessibility, sustainability, flexibility, restoration and building our vitality or chi (life force) in both body and mind. It’s a whole-person practice.
We don't need to be doing the splits or shoulder stands. But we do need to be able to:
* Get up and down off the floor with ease and confidence
* Balance while putting on our shoes
* Reach, twist and turn without pain or putting our back out
* Breathe deeply and fully
* Feel connected and present in our bodies
These are not small things. They are the foundations of dignity and independence in later life.
In yoga, we work with the body to create flow - not just in our limbs, but in our prana, our life force. Movement lubricates the joints, flushes the lymphatic system, and activates the vagus nerve.
It also sends a message to the mind: you’re not stuck.
Many of us reach midlife with a backlog of stress stored in our tissues. You’ve most likely heard the saying “the issues are in our tissues”. Movement - especially conscious, mindful movement - helps to discharge what the body has held. It’s not just stretching muscles, but softening patterns of tension, trauma, and mental fatigue.
That’s why motion matters: It’s not just about flexibility - it’s about adaptability. The ability to shift, release, restore and move forward -in your body and your mind.
Yoga supports mobility, nervous system regulation, emotional release and inner spaciousness. Yoga invites us to slow down, step away from the busy pace and rush of our lives and restore ourselves on very level.
My yoga classes are designed specifically for women in the middle years of life.
They are gentle and nourishing and intentionally paced to meet you where you are.
We work with the natural changes of our bodies - not against them! We focus on keeping the spine supple, hips open, shoulders and neck pain free, and wrist and ankle joints mobile. These areas of the body are often the first to stiffen, yet they are key to our sense of freedom, flow, and confidence in daily movement.
From a physical, mental, and energetic perspective, flexibility is not just about muscles - it’s about mindset, nervous system health, and the ability to stay open to life.
Midlife asks us to move differently - not harder, but wiser.
So, if you’ve been feeling stuck, stiff or stagnant - let this be a gentle nudge:
Roll out your mat. Sit on the floor (or a chair). Take a deep breath. Move your body with kindness. Let your body become your teacher.
No need to strive or hustle.
Because motion is lotion and your 85 year old self will thank you.