E06 - Your Weight Loss Roadmap: Navigating Diet Trends

(upbeat music)

Welcome to the Mindful Balance Mini Podcast.

If you are a woman over 40,

ready to break free from fad diets

and discover the power of balance and confidence

in your life, then this podcast is for you

and I am so happy that you are here.

I'm your host, I'm Rachel, a nutrition and mindset coach

and I'm going to break down everything you need to know

into bite-sized pieces of sustainable and realistic tips.

I wanna invite you to join me

as we explore practical strategies to stop overeating,

nourish your body, and use the potential

of your amazing brain to achieve your goals.

If you haven't already,

make sure to hit that subscribe button

so you never miss an episode filled with insights

on nutrition, mindset, and building healthy habits.

(upbeat music)

Hey, welcome back.

Whether you are listening in the car,

walking your dog outside, maybe you are by the pool,

and if that's the case, I am definitely jealous.

maybe carpooling kids around, washing dishes, or maybe you clicked play during your lunch break at

work. Wherever you are today, I am talking about the puzzle of weight loss. And I intentionally

call it a puzzle, but don't worry, we're going to solve this together. But before we start

fitting the pieces together, I want to identify a few pieces that definitely do not belong in

our puzzle. I love visuals, so picture this with me for just a moment. You're at the beach,

building a beautiful sand castle right near the edge of the waves. You spend all that time

creating something that's beautiful and great, but one wave comes and it's gone.

That's what happens with extreme diets and quick fixes. They promise to solve everything fast,

but just like that sandcastle, they can't withstand the test of time.

The part of understanding what not to do is so important before we actually dive into what

does work. In this list of "please do not do", I want to include things like keto, intermittent

fasting, no sugar challenges, raw food diets, optiva, 5-2, whatever it is, whatever you choose,

please, please do not pick those. It doesn't work. By the way, if you want to go deeper into the

science of why not to start any of these diets, I will link a book that you really want to read.

It's called The Diet Fix and it talks about why diets fail, written by Joni Friedhoff.

I highly recommend this book. I am not affiliated with it in any way I wish I were,

but this is just something to give you extra background.

Now we are ready to explore what does work. I mentioned at the beginning the idea of looking

at it as a puzzle. And the reason I thought about this visual is that my family really loves these

puzzles. Not those quick 100 piece puzzles, that's not what I'm talking about. Those you can finish

probably in an hour or so. I am talking about those massive 500 plus pieces jigsaws that take

over the dining room table for days. Those are really a labor of love, patience and working

together and there is something so satisfying in how all the tiny pieces eventually all come

together at the end. If you think about sustainable weight loss, it is also a picture that can't be

put together as a quick fix. But I'm going to break it down for you today so that you can have

a clear roadmap and know that no matter what someone convinces you, this is what it takes.

No more guesses. Basically, I am giving you the blueprint for sustainable weight loss.

First up, back to our puzzle visual, stick with me for a second, we are going to focus

on the edges of our puzzle. These pieces create the framework and give our puzzle the structure.

And if you have followed me for a minute, you know that I believe allheartedly that

balanced and consistent meals are the number one thing to focus on.

When we're eating balanced meals consistently, we are telling our body, "Hey, there is

plenty of energy coming in, you do not need to stress.

Now for the second piece, and that's protein.

Especially for women over 40, this is crucial.

As we age, our bodies naturally lose muscle mass,

unfortunately.

This process accelerates post 40, and if you love numbers,

then you may want to know that muscle mass decreases

approximately 3-8% per decade after the age of 30.

And this rate of decline is even higher after we reach our 50s and our 60s.

And that's exactly where protein steps in as our true friend.

Consuming enough protein supports not only muscle repair and growth, it also slows down

the natural decline.

Think of it as the glue that maintain the structural integrity of our bodies.

Without enough protein, our wall, the skeleton, weakens faster.

It's not just about maintaining shape or muscle definition, it's really about functional strength,

mobility and your overall health as we gracefully, or not so gracefully, age.

Place number 3 is resistant training.

I know that we've all been programmed to walk on the treadmill for weight loss.

I have done that for years, but I want to tell you that cardio is amazing training as

it is, and if you love it, please don't stop, since it has many benefits for overall health

and wellness.

but, and I want you to pay attention here, for the purpose of seeing a change in body composition,

it is not the best use of your time. And I'm going to explain that. Strength training helps

build muscle tissue. We want that. And the reason for that is because we want to lose fat and not

muscle. The more muscle mass that you have, the higher your metabolic rate tends to be.

More muscles also helps your body burn more fat during recovery, which again,

is so important, especially after a certain age.

If you're ready, I am giving you the next piece and that is so essential and I would even argue

that this is the number one component of our puzzle and that is growth mindset. Weight loss

takes time and it is not linear or straightforward. Sometimes it doesn't even make sense and can feel

very slow and frustrating. Every time you face challenges you really have two choices.

Choice number one, you can give up. And choice number two is push through. A growth mindset

suggests I might not get this right now, but I'll keep going until I do, no matter what.

I wish I could take credit for this, but I can't. But here's the truth. The only way for you to fail

weight loss is to give up. That's the only way. Alright, we are almost there, but there is one

more thing you need to address, and that's your habits. To put it in simple words, habits are

something that a person does often in a regular and repeated way. Your habits can either work for

or against you. Think brushing your teeth in the morning versus smoking. They're both habits.

Your habits are your brain's way to use shortcuts to save on thinking. Driving to work in the same

way or writing the year on a check. We're all familiar of writing the wrong year when we write

to check when a new year starts.

These are some really clear examples, but I want to offer you that even the way you

think is habitual.

So you really want to create shortcuts that are aligned with your goals, and those shortcuts

are of course your habits.

Maybe it's doing five minutes of exercise daily or drinking one glass of water.

It might not seem like much initially, but those tiny habits really give you the direction

and more important than that, they give you momentum.

I have laid out all our pieces.

There are no hidden tricks here really.

Just like every puzzle piece has its place, every aspect of this blueprint has its role

in creating sustainable weight loss.

So here's a challenge that I want to leave you with until our next week.

Pick one piece of this puzzle, just one, and see where it fits into your life.

Because creating that picture that you have, it starts with one small action.

So just to sum it up, we have spoken about eating consistent and balanced meals, prioritizing

protein, focusing on growth mindset and establishing healthy habits that will help you put this

whole process on autopilot.

Before we end, just a quick announcement that we now have a free Facebook group.

If you want to get even more content from me, plus get to know other women on this exact

journey I will link the group in the show notes or you can search for the Mindful Balance Group

on Facebook. It is a private group that I will personally be monitoring and supporting,

so I really hope to see you there in our new safe and inclusive space. Until then I am sending you

love, strength and patience. Until next time, take care. Bye.

Thank you for tuning in to the Mindful Balance Podcast today. I hope you enjoyed our conversation

and find inspiration to find your unique balance and confidence. Remember that the journey continues

on Instagram. You can find me @rachelemmanutrition. That is one word where I share daily nuggets of

wisdom to help you reach your goals with ease. If you loved today's episode, don't

forget to subscribe to the podcast and leave us a review. Your feedback fuels

our mission to empower more women on their mindful balance journey. Until next

time, take care and stay mindful. Bye!

Thank you for listening to The Mindful Balance. The Mindful Balance is brought

to you by Rachel Emma Nutrition. Our editing and mixing engineer is Michael

Plawner. Our theme song is "Good Feelings" by Bo Gleason. The information in this

podcast does not substitute for medical or psychological advice and is intended

for educational purposes only. Please consult a qualified health professional

regarding health conditions or concerns before starting a new diet or health

program. Rachel Emma Nutrition LLC and accompanying websites and social media

platforms are not responsible for adverse reactions, effects, or consequences

resulting from the use of any suggestions herein or procedures

undertaken here after.

[MUSIC]