Rooted In Presence

If you're in a season of big change; menopause, midlife, or just that feeling of not quite knowing who you are anymore, this episode is for you. We close with a simple breath awareness practice that you can use anywhere, any time things feel like too much.

This week I learned something about butterflies that I haven't been able to stop thinking about.

Inside the chrysalis, the caterpillar doesn't just change. It dissolves. Almost completely.

And yet, one thing survives. Intact. Through all of it. 

Come and have a listen. I t...

Something kept coming up across Carly’s client sessions this week. A composite thread running through different conversations with different clients all trying to figure out how to make their self-care and routines actually stick.

And the question that kept arising was this: could you plan your downtime as much as you plan your workout time?

In episode 137, Carly explores why scheduling the decompression first, before adding anything new, is often the missing piece. 

She introduces the continue, stop, start framework for creating space before scheduling, explores the two kinds of imb...

What happens when your old routines stop fitting? When the life you’ve built no longer belongs to the person you’re becoming?

This week Carly is talking about something she’s been sitting with personally and hearing from clients — what consistency really means when life has fundamentally shifted. After burnout. Through menopause. When the woman you were and the woman you’re becoming don’t quite match yet.

This isn’t an episode about pushing through. It’s about rebuilding differently. Staying in conversation with who you are now, not who you used to be. And trusting...

This is a Mental Health Awareness Week episode. But it's not a fix-it episode, and it's not a think-positive episode. It's an honest conversation about wonder — the small, quiet, always-available kind and why reclaiming it might be one of the most quietly radical things you can do.

Carly explores glimmers, soft fascination and Attention Restoration Theory, the difference between childlike and childish, why joy has been quietly monetised and turned into something that needs to be productive, and what it actually looks like when women reclaim their capacity for wonder, on holiday, dancing, with the people they lo...

In this episode Carly explores why rest feels so radical for midlife women, the science behind rest in strength training and the nervous system, the neuroscience of silence and neurogenesis, and introduces The Restorer; one of four archetypes from the Midlife Presence system. 

Also included... a sneak peek of an upcoming offering at Still Space Hull.

Take the MIDLIFE PRESENCE ARCHETYPE QUIZ here

Thanks for listening to Rooted In Presence

If you’d like to get in touch with a question about today’s episode or find out how I...

Are you drowning in conflicting health advice, trends and opinions?

In this episode, Carly explores what it really means to trust yourself more than any plan, programme, or process, inspired by a powerful post from a former client, the Barbie movie, and and Indigo Girls song.

She also explores how strength training and Breathwork are doorways to self-knowledge, and why midlife (and perimenopause especially) is a profound invitation to finally stop looking outside yourself for answers.

This one is for every woman who's followed all the rules and still felt like something was...

Are you losing bone when you can’t do as much? 

It’s the question Carly left hanging at the end of part two and this week she answers it. 

In the final episode of the Lead With Your Bones series, Carly goes wider. 

Nutrition, stress, sleep, breath, circulation, and the emotional landscape that either nourishes or depletes your skeleton over time. 

Because bone health isn’t just about what you lift. It’s how you live.

She explains why cortisol, the stress hormone so many midlife women are swimming in...

What does a decade working in an NHS hospital have to do with why you should be lifting weights?

In part two of the Lead With Your Bones series, Carly draws on ten years as a clinical dietitian to explain why the patients who came in with more muscle on their bodies consistently did better.

Because building bone and muscle isn’t about aesthetics. It’s about reserves. It’s about having a foundation to fall back on when life throws something at you, illness, surgery, grief, burnout, the relentlessness of midlife. Your bone bank and yo...

When you picture your bones, what do you see? Most of us imagine something rigid and inert, a coat hanger, a Halloween skeleton. Something that just hangs there in the dark while the rest of us gets on with living.

But that picture is wrong. 

And in this episode,the first of a three-part series called Lead With Your Bones, Carly is here to change it.

In this episode Carly explains the science of living bone in plain, language, including why oestrogen matters so much to bone health, what changes during perimenopause and m...

The clocks went forward last weekend. And the night before, Carly did something she does every year without thinking, she left her kitchen clock on the old time. Just as a quiet check. A way to hold both times at once while the world shifted overnight.

She couldn't help thinking... isn't that exactly what menopause feels like?

In this episode, Carly explores what it means to stay rooted in yourself when your body, your hormones, your sleep, your emotions and your sense of self are all quietly (or not so quietly) shifting. 

She t...

What if the small things you're already doing are quietly setting you up for the moments that matter most?

In this episode, Carly shares a client story that stopped her in her tracks this week and gets personal about  hospital, how a bare-bones approach to fitness kept her in the game through years of hospital visits and what happened when life gave her a bit of breathing space.

This episode is for you if you've ever looked at what you're managing and thought: is this even enough? Spoiler: it is. You're raising your floor.

This week I did something a little outside my usual world I went to an aerial silks and hoop class. And what I didn't expect was how much it would bring up.

Body stuff. Beginner feelings. And for the first time in a long time... an unexpected thought about my age.

In this short personal episode I'm sharing what the experience taught me about showing up as a beginner and why I think it matters so much, especially when it comes to walking into any new space that asks you to be vulnerable. Whether that's...

In this episode, I'm exploring a shift in language that I think matters more than it might first appear... the difference between nervous system regulation and nervous system care.

We've all heard 'regulate your nervous system.' But what if that framing is quietly telling us that activated states are problems to fix... even when they're actually appropriate?

In this episode:

→ Why 'regulation' language can become a sophisticated form of suppression

→ When your activation is actually your body doing its job correctly

→ What nervous system care looks like instead

→...

TW: Fawn response, trauma response discussion.

It's International Women's Day week, and this year's theme is "Give to Gain." But what if you're already depleted? What if you're already giving everything you have?

In this episode of Rooted in Presence, we explore the complicated tension in this year's IWD theme and what sustainable generosity actually requires.

Host Carly Killen breaks down the difference between generous giving (from overflow) and obligatory giving (from depletion), and why knowing the difference matters for your capacity, your boundaries, and your wellbeing.

You'll discover:

This week’s episode is a little different.

I was invited onto Matt Robinson’s podcast Fitness Business Insights to talk about my journey, from NHS dietitian… to commercial gym PT… to burnout… to building Still Space Hull.

We explore:

This conversation isn’t just about business.

It’s about alignment.
 It’...

Tired but can't switch off? 

Wired but exhausted? 

Feel like you don't have time to relax and when you do, it leaves you foggy instead of restored?

You're not alone. And the answer might not be what you think.

In this episode of Rooted in Presence, we explore why relaxation isn't always the goal and why coherence might be the missing piece for busy midlife women.

Host Carly Killen breaks down the neuroscience behind three different states: relaxation, coherence, and alignment. You'll discover why they're not the same thing, an...

Are you still looking for self love?

You've done the affirmations. You've tried to "love yourself more." Maybe you've even achieved the body, the goals, the external validation you thought would make you feel enough.

But you're still holding your breath. Still monitoring yourself. Still performing acceptability even when you're alone.

In this Valentine's Day episode of Rooted in Presence, we explore why self-love isn't enough and what self-belonging actually means.

Host Carly Killen shares her journey of holding her stomach in even when no one was watching, the exhausting work...

Forgetfulness, difficulty finding words, reduced focus, and that unsettling sense of mental “fuzziness” are common in midlife but they’re not a personal failing.

In this episode of Rooted in Presence, Carly Killen explores menopause brain fog through a nervous system lens, helping you understand what’s actually happening in the brain and body as hormones begin to shift.

You’ll learn:

What if many of your "menopause symptoms" are actually nervous system signals?

In this episode of Rooted in Presence, we explore why anxiety, sleep issues, emotional sensitivity, and overwhelm intensify during menopause—and how your nervous system plays a bigger role than you might realize.

Host Carly Killen breaks down the science in plain language: how oestrogen supports your stress response, why your HPA axis becomes more sensitive in midlife, and what it means when your nervous system loses its natural buffers.

You'll discover:

We're often told to "take up space" to be bold, visible, and unapologetic. But what if the real work isn't about being louder... but about learning to hold space?

In this episode of Rooted in Presence, we explore the difference between taking up space (which can trigger your nervous system) and holding space (which requires deep presence and vulnerability).

Host Carly Killen shares her own journey of learning that shining her light came more from her inward journey into quiet presence than from traditional visibility ever did. She breaks down what holding space actually looks...

What if the thing stopping your midlife growth isn't lack of effort, but a pattern you haven't noticed yet?

In this episode of Rooted in Presence, we explore the hidden trap that keeps high-achieving midlife women stuck in cycles of burnout: growing faster than your nervous system can handle.

Host Carly Killen shares her own pattern of constant forward motion, always reaching for the next thing, never quite landing in the space she'd created and how that drive for growth eventually caught up with her. Twice.

Using the mountain climbing metaphor of "base...

January often arrives with loud messages about fixing, pushing, and starting over.
 This episode offers something quieter.

In this episode of Rooted in Presence, we explore what it means to recommit to yourself in midlife without pressure, urgency, or all-or-nothing thinking.

Rather than setting rigid resolutions, this is an invitation to reflect on:

We’ll gently unpack the difference between intentions, goals, habits, and pre...

January often comes with pressure to start fresh, set goals, and transform overnight. But what if this moment isn’t about pushing forward… it’s about pausing first?

In this New Year’s Day episode of Rooted in Presence, Carly invites you into a gentler, more honest way of beginning the year. One that recognises we’re still in winter, still integrating, and still allowed time.

You’ll explore why many New Year’s resolutions fail not because of lack of willpower, but because they skip the vital stage of assessment and support. Carly shares how laying str...

Take a quiet moment for yourself with this gentle, 10-minute breath meditation designed to help you soften into stillness, whether today feels joyful, overwhelming, lonely, or simply full.

With two gentle Breathwork styles, this guided practice helps calm your nervous system, ease tension, and bring you back home to yourself.

Perfect for Christmas Day, the festive season, or any moment when life feels loud and your body needs support.
 If you’re ready for personal guidance or one-to-one Breathwork sessions, you can reach me at carlykillen.com

 May this practice offer you...

As the Winter Solstice arrives, the turning point of deepest darkness and the slow return of light; this episode offers a gentle reframe on why habits feel hard, why change takes time, and why there’s nothing “wrong” with you if December isn’t the month you magically transform your life.

Carly explores the truth most midlife women were never told:
 you don’t struggle with habits because you lack willpower…
 you struggle because you’re trying to turn skills into habits.

Boundary-setting, emotional regulation, reducing people-pleasing, changing food pa...

In this week’s episode of Rooted in Presence, we explore how to find calm, grounding, and inner steadiness during the festive season, even when life feels loud, busy, or overstimulating.

Inspired by my Breathwork studio, Still Space Hull, this conversation is about the kind of stillness you can carry, not the kind you escape to.

We’ll talk about how to regulate your nervous system in real-time, how to stay centred in midlife when December pulls you in every direction, and why stillness isn’t about stopping… but about anchoring into yourself, wherever you are.

The Gift of Enough: Releasing the Pressure to Do It All 

A gentle, practical episode for anyone who feels overwhelmed by the pace of December. Whether your routines have been disrupted by festive events, family needs, illness, or simply the shift in energy at this time of year, Carly offers a grounded way to stay connected to yourself without perfectionism or pressure.

Inside, you’ll learn how to adapt your strength training, eating rhythms, and self-care practices in a way that sup...

Feeling overwhelmed by festive plans, full diaries, or the pressure to be everything to everyone?

 In this episode, Carly shares simple, nervous-system-friendly grounding tools to help you feel calmer, steadier, and more centred as December begins.

You’ll learn practical breathwork techniques, discreet grounding exercises for busy moments, and gentle ways to stay connected to yourself; even if the season brings overstimulation, excitement, or emotional heaviness.

Whether you love this time of year or quietly struggle with it, this episode offers grounded support to help you meet the festive season with presence, not...

We’ve all heard the saying, “life doesn’t get easier, you get stronger.”

 But what does that really mean in midlife, when your body, hormones, and energy are shifting?

In this episode, Carly explores the real meaning of strength, beyond muscle, beyond mindset.

 She shares how resistance training builds confidence, resilience, and presence (and why the science backs it up), while also unpacking what it means to be strong without bracing or burning out.

You’ll learn:

As the year speeds up and festive demands grow louder, it’s easy to slip into over-giving and overwhelm. 

In this week’s episode, Carly explores the real meaning of loving boundaries; not walls that shut people out, but limits that protect your nervous system, energy, and sense of self.

Discover why saying “no” can actually be one of the most caring things you do, how to navigate the guilt that comes with it, and how boundaries help your body move out of fight-or-flight so it can rest and rebalance.

Whether you’re entering mi...

In this week’s episode of Rooted in Presence, Carly explores a question that quietly shapes so many of our midlife experiences

“When an old pattern resurfaces; is it a relapse, or a revisit?”

From burnout and busyness to the emotional loops that show up during perimenopause, Carly shares how these revisits aren’t signs of failure, they’re proof of integration.

She talks about her own turning point; the moment a simple breath became the bridge back to her body and how revisiting old habits can actually deepen your resilience, compassion, and capacity f...

In this reflective episode, Carly explores what the trees, and the rhythm of autumn can teach us about navigating change in midlife and menopause.

Drawing from personal stories of burnout, breathwork, and renewal, she explores how the natural cycles of nourishment, release, and rest mirror our own seasons of transition; especially through menopause and other midlife shifts.

You’ll hear about:
 🍂 Why slowing down doesn’t mean giving up
 🌳 How to stay grounded when everything feels uncertain
 🌿 What nature can teach us about protecting what matters most
 ✨ Simple practices to stay rooted through chan...

In this week’s episode of Rooted in Presence, Carly is joined by Laura Starky, a trauma-informed integrative somatic therapist, yoga and meditation teacher, and someone who’s walked the messy, beautiful path of healing herself.

Together they explore what it really means to come home to the body after years of disconnection.
From alcohol and overworking to people-pleasing and emotional eating, Laura shares how old coping patterns can gently unravel when we learn to listen inwardly.

✨ In this conversation:

We hear a lot about midlife transformation; reinvention, breakthroughs, new beginnings.
 But what no one tells you is that the real transformation often happens quietly, between the breaths.

In this week’s episode of Rooted in Presence, Carly shares her personal story of burnout, perimenopause, and rediscovering her grounding through breathwork.

 It wasn’t a dramatic moment that changed her life, it was what came after.
Integration. Gentle awareness. Everyday presence.

✨ In this episode:

What does it really mean to feel grounded?

In this week’s episode of Rooted in Presence, Carly explores the science and soul of grounding and why it matters so much in midlife.

From hormone changes in perimenopause and menopause to the emotional shifts of parenting, caregiving, and career transitions, many of us lose our sense of stability. Carly shares her own journey from feeling completely ungrounded during burnout and ADHD diagnosis, to discovering a nourishing sense of rooted presence while walking barefoot through an Ibiza villa.

Listen in to learn:
 - The...

Who are you when the roles shift?

In midlife, so many of us feel the ground move beneath us. Children grow, parents age, careers evolve, bodies change. And suddenly, the roles we’ve been living inside: mother, partner, achiever, caregiver, don’t define us in the same way.

This episode is an invitation to explore what lies beneath those shifting identities.

I share personal stories of how my relationship with my daughter has changed as she grows into young adulthood, and how burnout challenged the way I’d tied my worth to wor...

We’ve been told to focus on “eating right”... counting calories, tracking macros, following the perfect plan. Nutrition matters, yes. But nourishment? Nourishment changes everything.

In this episode of Rooted in Presence, I explore how midlife calls us to move beyond food rules and into a deeper, kinder relationship with eating. As a dietitian for over 15 years, I know the science... but I'm also aware that food is about more than fuel. 

It’s about care, pleasure, presence, and connection.

We’ll explore:
 🌿 The difference between nutrition and nourishment
 🌿 Why midlife is the perfect time...

Change, even the good kind, can leave us feeling wobbly, disoriented, or untethered. In this episode, I share a story about repotting plants for my new Breathwork studio, Still Space Hull, and how it mirrors the experience of midlife change.

Just like plants, we can experience our own kind of “repotting shock” when we step into something new. Old roots are disrupted. Familiar ground feels shaky. And yet, this is how growth happens.

You’ll hear:
 🌱 What repotting shock can teach us about midlife transitions
 🌱 Why feeling unsteady doesn’t mean you’re fa...

Two years ago, I pressed record on the very first episode of this podcast. Back then, it was The Strong Bones Coach Podcast, a space dedicated to building stronger bodies and stronger bones. But as the conversations deepened, so did the calling.

This milestone episode marks the beginning of a new chapter: Rooted in Presence.

In today’s conversation, I share:
 🌿 Why I started the podcast in the first place
 🌿 The quiet nudge that told me it was time to change
 🌿 The synchronicity of “RIP” and the question that’s shaped my life: What if this we...

Midlife isn’t a restart, it’s a remembering.

This episode is an invitation to call back the parts of you that have been quiet for too long, the ones hidden under survival, pleasing, and performing.

 We’ll explore the realms of reclamation, inspired by Women Who Run With the Wolves and the Bodies of Breath: creativity, sensuality, healing, sexuality, timelines, magic, and the wisdom beyond endings.

You’ll hear how these aren’t lofty concepts but living, breathing parts of you that can return through the simplest of moments.

Because int...