The Beyond The Food Show |empowering|educating|women|health|mind Body Connection

Digestive health... or as wellness culture calls it gut health is a hot topic these days.  According to wellness culture, many diseases could be prevented and treated with a gut health protocol. In short: restrictive dieting in the name of health with a side of supplements and detox sprinkle with infra-red sauna.  Gut health is a major concern for many people wanting to leave the world of diet culture. One question I get a lot is :   but what about my food sensitivities and intuitive eating?   Or another version:   How can I maintain a health-reason food restriction and eat intuitively?  Is there a non-diet approach to digestive health? Short answer: YES. There’s is a non-diet approach to gut health and our guest  Beth Rosen will deep dive with us on a science-based approach to digestive health, IBS, and other digestive disorder.  Beth Rosen is a non-diet Registered Dietitian. She specializes in helping clients find relief from digestive disorders such as Irritable Bowel Disease (IBS) and Small Intestinal Bac

Is there a Non-diet Approach to PCOS?   In case you do not know PCOS is the medical abbreviation for Polycystic Ovary Syndrome which affects roughly 10% of women of childbearing age in America. That’s 5 million women.  The top 2 treatment recommendations for PCOS are a very low carbohydrate diet with the hope to lower insulin levels and weight loss. Makes me think of diet culture... The Non-Diet Way to PCOS To answer the starting question: YES,  there’s a way to address PCOS without co-opting diet culture.  NO, you do not have to go on a restrictive diet for the rest of your life to lower insulin or have to lose weight... YES, you can manage your PCOS status using intuitive eating.  That’s what our guest, Julie Duffy Dillon, will help us understand. Julie is a non-diet registered dietician, eating disorder specialist, and food behavior expert partnering with people on PCOS on their food peace journey. She hosts the podcast Love Food.   What you’ll learn listening to this episode:  What is PCOS and how does i

This is part 2 and the final episode in this 2-part series on thought work. If you haven’t listened to Part 1, and especially if you are new to thought work, I’d suggest you go and listen to Part 1 first. In part one, I told you if you are at war with yourself, knowing you can’t go back on a diet but refuse to accept your body... stuck in the duality. Ready to untangle this duality? Thought work to undiet your life  Let me introduce you to Diet Brain. Diet Brain is a coaching concept I created after years of helping women quit dieting, intuitive eating and body image. In fact, I kept seeing the same errors in thinking present in all of my clients. Diet brain is the way in which our brains adapt to diet culture, the deprivation of dieting, self-loathing and self-critical thoughts You see, the human brain is a magnificent organ… highly adaptative. Moreover, neuroplasticity allows our brain to adapt to our environment in order to survive. There are 4 most common errors in thinking that make up my concept of DB,

This is going to be a 2-part podcast… Why 2 parts? Well, this is such an important topic, and I want to be sure I can unpack it well for you. I want to give you time to reflect in between. Most importantly, I want to teach you the basics of TW, and so I can teach you how specifically it applies to women and diet culture. I believe that thought work is the most important skill a woman can learn. In fact, it is not taught in any schooling system… for a reason. Get into this in Part 2. When a woman learns thought work, it is the best investment she can make towards because it solves every problem a woman can have. Only when you learn to manage your mind can you truly be free, happy and fulfilled. So let’s start with Part 1... What is thought work? You go to the gym to train your muscle to be stronger. In the same manner, you go run to train your cardiorespiratory capacity to have more endurance. You go to yoga to train your tendon and ligament to be mobile and flexible. We train nearly every part of our body… bu

In my opinion, being pregnant, giving birth, and raising a child is the most magical power of women. In fact, our bodies as women are capable of creating life. That is to say, we have the power to bring another human to life. Can we let that sink in for a minute? We create life. Our bodies have the capacity to expand in such a way that we can create and develop another human life. Yet as soon as women are done giving birth to this new human, patriarchy and diet culture expect women to shrink back their body and leave absolutely no trace of this magical act. Diet culture has perfected a narrative that leaves women to feel shame for their postpartum bodies instead of being grateful for the goddess they are. Edna's story... it's difficult. Non-Diet Postpartum The non-diet approach to postpartum is the space were women's bodies are celebrated for the magic they created without patriarchy and diet culture oppressing message. Our guest today is a non-diet postpartum expert. She's a dietician who herself gave birth.

Co-opting intuitive eating is frustrating, problematic and dangerous, but it’s not a surprise. Intuitive eating is growing in popularity and growing fast. Take a look at the google trend search over the last 5 years. It’s clear: people are starting to be done with dieting. That is to say, people want out from diet culture and are looking for options. Certainly, the weight loss & wellness industry are paying attention. For instance, just think of Weight Watcher rebrand in 2019 to WW-Wellness that Works. Yet another sign of the growth in popularity of Intuitive Eating is when “popular” diet gurus are bluntly co-opting intuitive eating in their weight loss books without even an ounce of shame. In fact, I see the same growth in my professional training program. The waitlist is consistently 150% to program capacity for the last 12 months and no sign of stopping either. Spotting Fake Intuitive Eating I’m honored to welcome Evelyn Tribole to our podcast Going Beyond The Food Show to answer this question: How ca

Let’s look at a few questions: Do you think that the ultimate goal of making peace with your body is to love your body?  I mean, being able to look at your body in the mirror and love every part of it?  Perhaps you think that you should be able to put on a bikini and be able to show off your body to everyone looking with pride?  Perhaps you think that when you finally “heal your body image,” it will mean that you’ll never have a negative thought about your body, and instead, you’ll have adoration thought for each part of your body.  Is that you?  Is this your current belief system when it comes to your body, body image, and body weight?    It sure was me….  You don’t have to love your body.  In today’s episode, we are going to share with you the reasons for this bold statement.  NO, you don’t have to love your body to normalize weight gain or to adopt a non-diet lifestyle. In fact, you don’t have to love your body to become an intuitive eater or to make peace with your body. NO, you don’t have to love your bo

I’ll be teaching a in depth live class titled "Normalizing Weight Gain Masterclass" I’ll share what  I have learn in my own journey of gaining weight following years of dieting and restriction. After going thru my own journey and coaching hundreds of women thru this process I have developed a comprehensive & let’s just say unique  to neutralize weight gain. In this Masterclass I’ll teach the step-by step process so that you can release the fear and anxiety typically associated with weight gain when leaving dieting behind.  Understand why it’s normal to gain weight after dieting Learn how to neutralizing weight gain How to deal with the anxiety that comes with weight gain specifically for women Learn how to accept weight gain peacefully Gain a healthy understanding of natural body weight & set point theory Shed the fear away from not losing weight or gaining weight This speciality class will be taught within Conquer and Thrive coaching program.To get access to this workshop you'll need to join before

Weight gain is a very sensitive, vulnerable and emotional topic for most women. The ability and willingness to openly talk about weight gain is different for each one of us. It’s estimated that by the time most women hit their 45th birthday, statistically speaking, we’ve tried 61 diets, plans, programs, detoxes, cleanses, meal plans, regime, an eating system. In an unending battle to shrink our body and, hopefully, change our life. I want to recognize that simply tuning in to listen to this episode for someone is a huge step… if this is you, I see you and welcome you. For others who have taken the journey beyond the food and unlearn diet culture, this is a much easier and light topic… I see you too, my sister, and cheer you on. Coping with weight gain Weight gain is a difficult topic, a complicated topic and a very nuanced topic. By no means this one episode is a complete resource for the normalization of weight in women. This episode is meant only to be an introduction to the topic of coping with weight gain

I have been wanting to talk about gentle nutrition for years but couldn’t or rather choose not to until now. I hold a great level of responsibility for the topic I chose to discuss on this podcast. Moreover, what could happen after the episode is over. In the case of intuitive eating & nutrition, I couldn’t send you to any entry-level resources beyond my own programs. Up to now, the only nutrition books & cookbooks available on the market were filled with diet culture, weight stigma, and non-science-based facts about nutrition. This is now past... the resource I have been awaiting is now here! Gentle Nutrition: A Non-Diet Approach to Healthy Eating Book Yes, a book that combines intuitive eating & nutrition is now available. Gentle Nutrition: A Non-Diet Approach to Healthy Eating Cookbook is on the market since February 23rd, 2021. Today on the podcast, I review the book and interview the author, my new friend, and colleague, Rachel Hartley. Rachael is a registered dietician, science-based nutriti

A few years back, I was browsing Instagram, and I noticed a hashtag trending #womeneatingfood. I scrolled through and what I saw was magical: thousands of women eating food absolutely without giving an ounce of worry. Women eating unapologetically. That’s how I discovered Alissa Rumsey. And since then, Alissa has been on the podcast twice and been teaching inside my Non-Diet Mentorship Program. Unapologetic Eating: The Book Today, Alissa is launching a book: Unapologetic Eating: Make Peace With Food and Transform Your Life. In her words, it is about getting back to your roots and who you were before society told you who you should be. In today’s episode, I interview Alissa Rumsey. Alissa is a registered dietitian, nutrition therapist, certified intuitive eating counselor, and the author of Unapologetic Eating: Make Peace With Food and Transform Your Life. Alissa is passionate about advocating for women to reclaim the space to eat and live unapologetically. What you’ll learn listening to this episode: Discove

Dieting backlash is the counter-reaction to food restriction, aka dieting. Things like "food cravings," urges to eat the restricted foods, nighttime eating, "overeating," binging, weight regain, depression, anxiety… that's all dieting backlash, also known as rebound eating. Here's where it gets interesting... women who deliberately restrict their food intake when under a diet are more likely to overeat, especially in response to an emotional state. What we think as emotional eating may actually be diet backlash or rebound eating. In a subconscious way, we give ourselves license to eat foods that are normally forbidden, and we use emotion as a way to give ourselves permission in the hope to lower the guilt of "not following the diet," we lay the blame on emotional eating. It's the self-fulfilling prophecy of dieting. Nothing has gone wrong. Nothing is wrong with you… it's biology. Here's what I propose... To reflect on these 4 questions: How much of what we self-describe as a "problematic relationship to food

Let's unpack comfort eating or eating for comfort. Comfort is defined as a state of ease and freedom from pain or constraint. When we eat for comfort, we feel uncomfortable; we don't want to feel discomfort, so we look for a solution to not feel comfortable and that solution is food. So we comfort eat. Sounds like a pretty legitimate action… it is a coping tool. It's a variation of the larger family of emotional eating- whereby you eat in response to an emotion. Most often, uncomfortable emotions like stress. Stress eating, comfort eating, emotional eating - all the same thing - using food to cope with physical or emotional discomfort. Why is it a problem to solve? Is comfort eating a problem? Let's imagine that same person feels the same level of discomfort, but instead of opening the fridge or the cupboard and reaching for food, that same person would say go for a run. Would it be a problem to solve? …. Interesting question, right?… but necessary. Especially as women, we must challenge all the beliefs we ha

People-pleasing isn't a character trait or, for that matter, a personality trait that we are born with. In fact, people-pleasing is a belief, a set of thoughts that we as women are socialized to. More precisely, we aren't socialized or educated to be people-pleasers… we are socialized to be "good girls". The Good Girl Syndrome is like a character we are asked to play as women and from a very young age. As people identifying as women, we are socialized to be polite, modest, quiet, not to argue, not to fight, play within the parameters, and most importantly, fit the norm… Indeed, we are socialized to believe that we are responsible for other people's perceptions of us. Other people's perception of us is more valuable than our own opinion of ourselves.  So effectively, we are taught to be people-pleasers. But I'm not a people-pleaser... really? If you are thinking right: well, this is not me, BUT you are struggling to accept your body. I'm afraid to tell you, my sister, it's you. Women's relentless pursuit of th

This podcast is going to be for every woman - every woman who has been targeted by dieting ads. I have chosen this title for a reason: "Tuning out the weight loss industry" instead of "tuning out diet culture" for a reason: to reach more women. When you are at the beginning of your journey shifting out of dieting, the word diet culture doesn't mean a thing… actually, for many, it means being on a diet. Diet culture is a new term that is not part of women's vocabulary, and for a good reason. As women, when we learn about the word "diet culture", it has a massive impact. In #5, I share the definition of diet culture for all the newbies. Tuning out the dieting noise is a choice This podcast intends to help all women make a choice.  A choice in the face of all the marketing from the weight loss, fitness, and wellness industry aimed at women and our bodies.  To help women make an educated choice about their body, how they live their life, the way they eat, and the way they take care of their mind, body, and soul. 

“I want to move with joy” “I want to get out of the funk of not movement” “I know exercise is good for me… just can’t bring myself to do it” “How do I motivate myself to move more without dreading it.” That you are at the beginning stage of challenging the concept of dieting or an advanced intuitive eater that now wants to work on reclaiming their relationship to exercise. Or that you have made peace with food already and now want to tackle your relationship to movement. This podcast going to help you. How to move more I know for me I’ve known that I SHOULD exercise more often for decades… and my solution for years has been to sign up for a gym membership and resorting to using discipline, punishment, and willpower to force me into the gym until, just like dieting it didn’t work. Diet culture has taught us to jump into action… without ever asking why and how we got there in the first place is the reason why we keep repeating the same patterns time after time. Find the place to start is to find the reason(s)

What you’ll learn listening to this episode on my goals for 2021: The reflective process for 2020 The 6 questions to use to reflect on 2020 My 4 lessons learned in 2020 The goals I have for 2021 Mentioned on the show: Podcast Roadmap Conquer & Thrive

"Nothing is easy for the unwilling."  When we set a goal or desire to change an aspect of our life or self, we often get “stuck” into inaction.  The fear of taking action in the unknown and the paralysis into stagnation is normal. It’s present for most of us women. This fear is a normal reaction from our brain to command us into staying put instead of moving ourselves into the unknown.  It’s our brain’s duty to prevent us from taking action.  To create any new result in your life: becoming an intuitive eater, accepting our body, career advancement,... ANY CHANGE.  Being willing to be willing  You have to be willing to do two things:  Feel your emotions Change your perspective on failure  And if you are unwilling to face your fears and emotions, then forward progress on improving your quality of life will not be easy.  You have to be willing to tell your brain: Hey brain, I get it, it’s your job to keep me safe and avoid the unknown & anxiety of newness, but moving forward, I’m willing to feel these emot

Smart Goals are to goal setting what dieting is to Diet Culture. For years, I set goals the diet Culture way… you know, the SMART GOALS. Every year the pattern repeated itself. Give up by the 5th week. Just like diet culture, SMART goals are anchored on external results, accomplishment of actions, grounded into avoidance of failure and perfectionism. It’s archaic, sexist and builds on elitist principles. Just like dieting doesn’t work, SMART goals do not work because it disregards how humans function. It requires constant willpower, which we know to be a limited resource, so when willpower runs out, action-driven goal setting techniques stop working. In today’s episode, we are going to discover the right way of setting goals for women: the diet-culture-free way to set goals. What you’ll learn listening to this episode: Why SMART goals don’t work How I created my life against all odds  My business success in 2020 in the middle of a pandemic What is the diet-culture-free goal-setting process Mentioned on the

“It feels terrible as a mom to put yourself first... it’s easy to say self-care when you don’t have kids”. This is such a sensitive topic for moms... Me, the single woman with no kids telling them to take time for themselves. I have avoided doing a topic on this subject because let’s face it, it’s true: I don’t get it. That’s until today... I have a guest expert who can speak about this from a lived experience. She’s a mom of 3 kids under 12, with a professional career and now starting a business. Unyime gets it. Unyime Oguta is our guest today. She’s a Non-Diet Nutritionist, Certified Intuitive Eating Counselor and a student of mine. She’s just about to graduate from our Non-Diet Mentorship program. What you’ll learn listening to this episode on mom's guilt: Why balance is B.S... The disease of “Shoulding yourself” The toxicity of “getting your body back”... How to no longer feel guilty around taking care of yourself The way to feed my family healthy while trusting my children’s choices How to do self-care