Fitness journals for women over 40 have been my behind-the-scenes project for a while now, and I’m so excited that I can finally share them with you.
I’ve created a collection of eight journals designed to help women track their strength, symptoms, nutrition and movement through perimenopause, menopause and beyond.
And there’s a very personal reason I wanted to make them.
If you’ve followed me for a while, you’ll know that I’m a HUGE tracker. I track my workouts, my strength, my food, my steps… pretty much everything. 😂
But I wasn’t always like that.
Looking back at the beginning of my own perimenopause journey, I really wish I’d paid more attention to some of the small changes that were happening with my cycle, my mood, my energy and just how I was feeling from one day to the next.
At the time, it was easy to brush those things off as a bad day, being tired, being stressed or just life.
It wasn’t until much later that I started putting the pieces together.
That experience was really the starting point for these journals.
Why Fitness Journals for Women Over 40 Make Such a Difference
I wanted to create simple, practical tools that give us somewhere to actually record what we’re doing and how we’re feeling, so we can start seeing the bigger picture over time.
Because that’s the thing about this stage of life. The changes are usually gradual, and they’re very easy to explain away in the moment.
Most fitness journals for women over 40 are really just workout logs. I wanted these to track how you feel as well as what you lift, because at this age the two are completely tied together.
Whether you want to get stronger, understand your symptoms better, eat more protein or simply walk more, there’s a journal in the collection to help you do it.
Strength Training Journals for Every Stage 💪
I’m a huge believer in tracking your strength training.
It’s very easy to finish a workout, put your dumbbells away and completely forget what you lifted by the time you do that workout again!
Writing it down gives you something to work from. You can see when you’re lifting heavier, doing more reps or simply becoming more consistent.
If you need something to actually track, my 35-minute no repeat full body strength workout is a good place to start.
I’ve created four different 12-week strength training journals:
The Perimenopause Strength Training Journal
Track your workouts and strength alongside your energy, sleep and how you’re feeling throughout perimenopause.
The Menopause Strength Training Journal
A dedicated strength training journal for women navigating menopause, with space to track both your training and how you’re feeling along the way.
The Over 50 Strength Training Journal
A 12-week strength journal designed to help you keep challenging yourself, track your progress and continue building strength as you get older.
The Over 60 Strength Training Journal
Created specifically for women over 60 who want to keep strength training, stay active and see their progress on paper.
Perimenopause & Menopause Symptom Trackers 🌸
Of all the fitness journals for women over 40 in this collection, these two are the ones I wish I’d had most.
When you’re experiencing different symptoms at different times, it can be really difficult to remember exactly when something started, how often it happens or whether there’s actually a pattern.
Writing it down gives you something concrete to look back on.
The Perimenopause Symptom & Cycle Tracker
A daily symptom and cycle tracker designed to help you notice patterns between your cycle, symptoms and how you’re feeling.
The Menopause Symptom Tracker
A simple daily check-in where you can record your menopause symptoms and start building a clearer picture of what’s changing over time.
These can also give you something useful to refer back to if you want to discuss what you’ve been experiencing with your doctor or healthcare provider. The Menopause Society also has a lot of plain-English information on symptoms if you want to read up first.
And if sleep and stress are part of your picture too, I wrote about that here: Sleep, Stress & Strength Training.
The Strong Women’s Nutrition Journal 🥦
I track my food, but for me it’s not just about calories.
One of the biggest things I pay attention to is whether I’m actually eating enough protein and fuelling myself properly for the amount of training I do.
That’s what I wanted this journal to focus on.
The Strong Women’s Nutrition Journal gives you somewhere to track your food, protein, water, energy and eating habits without making calorie counting the entire focus.
Sometimes simply writing down what you’re eating makes you much more aware of your habits and where a few small changes could make a difference. If you want to go deeper on timing, have a read of pre and post workout nutrition.
The 100-Mile Walking Challenge 🚶♀️
And of course I had to make a walking journal! 😂
Walking and strength training have both played such a big part in helping me feel strong, fit and like myself through this stage of my life.
The 100-Mile Walking Challenge gives you 12 weeks to work your way towards walking 100 miles.
There’s no complicated plan. You simply walk, track your miles and watch yourself get closer and closer to that 100-mile finish line.
It’s easily the most light-hearted of the fitness journals for women over 40 in this collection, and sometimes having a goal sitting there waiting to be ticked off is exactly the little push we need to get out the door.
Which of the 8 Fitness Journals for Women Over 40 Is Right for You?
All eight journals are 6 x 9 inch paperbacks with plenty of room to write and are designed to be something you actually USE, whether that means keeping one beside your dumbbells, on your bedside table or sitting on the kitchen bench.
Here’s the quick version:
- Want to get stronger? Pick the strength training journal that matches your stage – perimenopause, menopause, over 50 or over 60.
- Want to understand your symptoms? Start with the Perimenopause Symptom & Cycle Tracker or the Menopause Symptom Tracker.
- Want to eat better? The Strong Women’s Nutrition Journal.
- Want to move more? The 100-Mile Walking Challenge.
Because that’s really what this whole collection is about. Paying attention. Tracking the little things. And being able to look back and see the progress or patterns that can be very difficult to notice when you’re living them day to day.
👉 See all the fitness journals for women over 40 on Amazon: Penny Barnshaw’s author page
You’ll also find my digital planners, calendars and workout programs in the Garage Fitness Girl shop.
Fitness Journals for Women Over 40: Common Questions
Do fitness journals actually help?
They do, as long as you use them. The value isn’t really in the writing, it’s in being able to look back over 12 weeks and see the pattern you couldn’t see day to day.
Which one should I start with?
If you’re already training, start with the strength journal for your stage. If your symptoms are the thing throwing you off, start with a tracker instead.
Are they digital or paperback?
All eight fitness journals for women over 40 are 6 x 9 inch paperbacks, printed and shipped by Amazon, so there’s nothing to print at home.
And one little favour…
If you buy one of my journals and enjoy using it, I would be incredibly grateful if you came back and left an honest review on Amazon.
These journals are brand new, so every review genuinely makes a difference. It also helps other women searching for something like this find the collection.
Only if you feel like it, of course. ❤️
I’m really proud of these, and I hope one of these fitness journals for women over 40 becomes a genuinely useful part of your routine.
Now go be strong. 💪
Penny x
