E21 - When Nothing Works

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 want to 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.

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filled with insights on nutrition, mindset, and

building healthy habits.

Hey, and welcome back to the podcast. This is

episode 21.

There's a phrase that I often hear and maybe you

have said it yourself,

and that is, "I have tried everything, but I just

can't stop turning to food when I am emotional."

This is a common sentiment, and it's important to

know that you are not alone in this struggle.

In fact, I have just in the last week heard it

from at least three ladies.

So often, we tend to believe that we are the only

ones feeling such emotions and having these

experiences.

When we do, it can feel super lonely, which is

why I always make a point to remind you that,

number one, your feelings are valid and it is

safe for you to acknowledge them and give them

space,

but also that you are never alone. And in fact,

these thoughts and feelings are so very common

because they are a result of how your perfectly

normal brain works and not a rare fault in you,

in your body, in your personality. Okay? Now,

specifically, when you believe that you have done

everything

and nothing has worked for you, it can be

incredibly disheartening.

Feeling like you have exhausted every strategy

out there, yet you still find yourself caught in

the same cycle

of emotional eating, it can be not only sad, but

also feels really hopeless.

It is also a significant barrier to achieving

your goals.

You may tell yourself that you have tried diets,

courses, programs, you invested time and money

and energy

to then just find yourself in the same exact

place.

If you do have that thought, then please pay

attention because I know it is not a great

feeling.

It is also not a great place to be with yourself

in life in general.

This experience can also be, or I should say, it

can feel very isolating and it makes you wonder

if your situation is just unusually challenging.

I used to ask myself in all seriousness,

am I the oddball? Is it possible that I am a

person who can be so successful in so many other

areas in life,

except for this, except for figuring out how to

stop overeating?

So today, I want to offer you a new perspective

on it.

And to do that, I want to start with a question.

Think about everything that you have tried.

Are those things truly in sync with your personal

needs and lifestyle?

It's common to try strategies that work well for

other people.

The diet that your cousin used in order to lose

15 pounds in one month,

or the super trendy gym that offers boot camps,

or any other idea out there that gave you the

hope of finally feeling better in your body.

If this sounds familiar, it might not have been

the right fit for you.

This mismatch between the diet or the program,

the protocol, the detox,

or whatever falls into that category of you have

tried everything,

and you and your needs, your lifestyle, the way

that you are doing things,

is often where we find ourselves feeling stuck.

Because there is a gap between what you feel

should work,

and how it actually plays out in your life.

Now, let's talk about other reasons why it may

feel that you have tried many things,

and none of them worked, other than the

possibility that it was not something

that was going to fit into your personal

situation.

The first one is the challenge of consistency and

time.

The most common hurdle is the misconception that

a quick fix can lead to lasting change.

When we decide to try a new solution, a new

strategy,

many of us allow ourselves to believe that we so

badly want it,

and we so crave the change, that we want to think

that the next solution

is going to be that magic wand.

Even if on a rational level, we know that it won

't happen,

emotionally, we allow ourselves to expect to see

results fast.

When we emotionally expect it, we tend to feel

extremely discouraged

when progress doesn't come instantly.

This is when I feel the need to tell you, and I

am sure you've heard it before,

that sustainable body composition changes,

particularly after 40, is a marathon.

It is not a sprint.

It requires consistent, small lifestyle changes

over time,

and that is something that we don't want to

accept.

We hope that it's not true.

We hope that there is something out there that

will allow us to do it fast,

or without any effort.

Here's another thing that I often see that makes

women feel like

they have tried everything and nothing works,

and that is your mindset.

Your mindset plays a crucial role in your journey

.

The most common and clear example is if you are

someone who often tells yourself

that you are going to fail because you have

struggled in the past,

or it may sound like you are not a consistent

person.

I know so many women that actually say this about

themselves.

I am not a consistent person.

If you are that person, then this will be hard.

What happens when you tell yourself things like

that is that your brain listens.

Yeah, it can be the generator and the recipient

of these negative conversations.

This mindset, and when I refer to mindset, I

really mean all your thoughts

and perceptions about your situation.

This mindset becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy,

whether you are aware of it or not,

whether you want to admit those things or not,

or if it is just the way that your thinking is

operating on autopilot.

When there is a gap between your identity, what

you think about yourself,

and the actions that you want to take,

your brain will respond by aligning your actions

with your thoughts.

This is the very core of self-sabotaging.

It doesn't just happen.

It is actually rooted in your beliefs.

You may tell yourself that you want to do

something,

but if at the core you don't believe that it is

possible,

your brain will find evidence to why you are

right,

and you are in fact that person that can't get it

done.

Along the same lines, when you doubt the

effectiveness of your plan,

for example, if you have thoughts like,

"Ah, I don't know if this will work," or "I don't

know if I can eat this way,"

or even something like, "I don't know, this

person,

I don't know if they understand me.

They don't understand my situation."

When you think this way, it leads you to giving

up on those actions

before you even had time to practice it for long

enough.

Again, you may think that you have tried

everything under the sun,

and nothing worked, but if you have this skept

icism,

which, by the way, often stems from past

experiences or unrealistic expectations,

then now you have another explanation for why

things you have attempted failed to work.

Trusting the process means giving your body,

including your brain and your thoughts,

the time and respect that it needs to adjust and

respond to new habits.

And I know that in our fast-paced world,

patience is almost a virtue that's so often

overlooked.

Focusing only on immediate results can and will

lead to frustration.

And the belief that your efforts are going

nowhere.

No one wants to tell you this because it isn't

something women want to hear.

But again, I'm going to say it, that real change

takes time.

It takes learning.

It takes failing and getting up and developing a

strong mindset and resilience

and all those good stuff that come with learning

and new skills.

You have to be okay with being bad at it,

definitely at first, if you want to be good.

I promise you, if you consistently continue with

whatever it is that you choose to work on,

and you stop looking for the next shiny object or

the best magic pill, it will work.

You just have to continue and take the next step.

All these women that you see around and you

wonder, how do they do it?

By the way, not just in the field of weight

management,

it can be in other areas of life, right?

They don't have any magic powers or special

skills.

They're not more disciplined or love cookies less

.

They were just willing to not see immediate

results.

They were willing to be okay with waiting.

They were ready to fail.

They got right back and they were not married to

a story about why they can't get it done.

They just went out there and they did the things,

even when they didn't feel like doing it.

That's all.

This is also your reminder that if you are

struggling to make a change on your own,

don't hesitate to ask for help.

An outside perspective can often reveal aspects

of our behavior that we cannot see for ourselves.

It's like pointing a flashlight towards an area

that is in your blind spot.

Remember, your journey is unique.

There's no universal solution that works for

everyone.

You have yet to try everything.

There are always new paths to discover and

explore.

And one of those things will work, I promise.

I hope you have a wonderful week.

You have shown up to learn how to improve and

grow.

And that says a lot about you.

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 Bold Delic

ence.

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 the 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 hereafter.

Mindful Balance

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