Never Diet Again with Max Lowery

What if the reason you can’t lose weight has very little to do with knowing what to eat? If you’ve spent years blaming yourself for having no willpower around food, this episode could completely change how you see your struggle.

In this episode of Why Can’t I Lose Weight?, Max sits down with Catherine, 53, who has been trying to lose weight since her 20s.

Catherine has tried diets, calorie counting, food restriction and lots of exercise. At one point, she was eating just 1,200 calories a day. Yet today, she is at her heaviest weight and feels more confused about food than ever.

She knows what she is “supposed” to do. But put a cookie, fresh bread, crisps or chocolate in front of her, and she feels like she has to eat it — and often all of it.

So what’s really going on?

As Max digs into Catherine’s story, it becomes clear that this isn’t simply a lack of discipline. Years of dieting have taught her to label foods as “good,” “bad” and “naughty.” That restriction may have helped create a scarcity mindset where certain foods feel even more powerful and hard to resist.

They also explore how food and alcohol have played different roles throughout Catherine’s life — providing comfort and escape during difficult relationships, then becoming a reward, celebration or way to relax.

In this episode, you’ll discover:

• Why restricting your favourite foods can make you obsess over them even more
• How emotional eating can become an automatic response to stress and difficult feelings
• Why tiredness, hunger and energy crashes may make sugar and carb cravings harder to manage
• How decades of diet culture can damage your trust around food
• Why self-blame can keep the overeating and weight gain cycle going

Catherine’s biggest realization is simple but powerful: weight loss isn’t only about what you eat. You also need to understand why you eat.

If you’re a woman over 40 who feels like you already know how to lose weight but just can’t stick to it, this conversation will help you look beyond another diet or meal plan and start identifying the root causes keeping you stuck.

Listen to the full episode now and discover why trying harder may not be the answer — and what you may need to focus on instead.

Click the link below to apply to be featured in a future episode.

https://form.typeform.com/to/gA9Iid6z

Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/max.lowery/

Book a Food Freedom Breakthrough Call:  https://www.neverdietagainmethod.uk/call-ig

Watch my The Cravings & Fat-Burning Masterclass:  https://www.neverdietagainmethod.uk/register-podcast

What does it really take to lose 46 pounds and actually keep it off? For Ellen, the answer wasn’t another strict diet, cutting out carbs or finding more willpower.

When Ellen started this journey, she had three children under five, a demanding job and very little time for herself. She’d spent years losing weight through restriction, only to put it back on again.

Each time the weight returned, she felt like she had failed.

She had also lost touch with the sporty, active person she used to be. Most importantly, she was worried her own relationship with food and body image would be passed down to her children.

Fast forward two and a half years: Ellen has lost 46 pounds and kept it off. She has more energy, a completely different relationship with food and recently completed a Half Ironman — a 1.2-mile swim, 56-mile bike ride and 13.1-mile run.

But this episode isn’t about telling you that you need to train for an Ironman to lose weight.

It’s about what can happen when you stop relying on diets and start changing the habits, beliefs and emotional patterns underneath your weight struggles.

Ellen shares:

• Why previous diets helped her lose weight but never helped her keep it off
• How she stopped using food to deal with loneliness and other emotional needs
• Why seeing food as fuel changed her relationship with eating
• How starting with small amounts of activity eventually transformed her energy and confidence
• How she found time to exercise while raising three young children and working a demanding job
• Why planning and getting support from her family made consistency easier
• How becoming more active influenced her children without telling them they needed to exercise
• Why learning to “do it scared” helped her build real self-belief

Ellen’s story is powerful because sustainable weight loss wasn’t the end of her journey. It gave her the confidence and energy to start asking, “What else am I capable of?”

If you’re a woman over 40 who has lost weight before only to regain it, or you’re scared to try again because nothing has lasted, this episode will show you that another restrictive diet isn’t your only option.

Listen to the full episode now and discover what can change when you stop chasing short-term weight loss and start building a life you can actually sustain.

Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/max.lowery/

Book a Food Freedom Breakthrough Call:  https://www.neverdietagainmethod.uk/call-ig

Watch my The Cravings & Fat-Burning Masterclass:  https://www.neverdietagainmethod.uk/register-podcast

What if the reason you can't lose weight has nothing to do with willpower, discipline or motivation?

Welcome to Why Can't I Lose Weight?, a brand-new series where I sit down with real women who have spent years, sometimes decades, struggling with their weight, and help them uncover the real reasons they've been unable to make lasting changes.

These aren't your typical weight loss conversations.

We don't talk about diets, calorie counting or what you should and shouldn't eat.

Instead, we dig deeper into the psychology, emotional patterns, childhood experiences and deeply ingrained beliefs that shape our relationship with food.

Because you can't solve a problem until you understand what's actually causing it.

In this first episode, we meet Erin.

Erin is a 54-year-old teacher and mum of two who has struggled with her weight since her teenage years.

She's intelligent, successful and knows exactly what she should be doing to lose weight.

But there's one thing she can't understand.

Why can't she stop herself from eating, even when she's not hungry?

She's tried dieting, calorie counting and exercising more, but nothing has worked long term.

And like so many women, she's spent years blaming herself for her lack of willpower.

As our conversation unfolds, we uncover something much deeper.

We explore how growing up in a household where certain foods were forbidden shaped her relationship with food, why she turns to chocolate when she's stressed, and how years of guilt, shame and self-blame have kept her trapped in the same cycle.

By the end of our conversation, Erin begins to see her struggles in a completely different light.

And in one particularly emotional moment, she shares something that perfectly captures why I created this series.

"I feel seen. I feel a bit more validated as a person."

If you've ever found yourself eating when you're not hungry, feeling out of control around certain foods, or wondering why you can't seem to do something that everyone tells you should be simple, this episode is for you.

Because the problem might not be what you've spent years believing it is.

Want to discover why YOU can't lose weight?

I'm inviting women to take part in future episodes of the Why Can't I Lose Weight? series.

We'll have an honest, in-depth conversation about your struggles and work together to uncover the root causes that may be keeping you stuck.

Everyone who takes part will receive a free, personalised action plan to help them start addressing those root causes.

You can also choose to remain anonymous.

Click the link below to apply to be featured in a future episode.

https://form.typeform.com/to/gA9Iid6z

Follow me on Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/max.lowery/

Book a Food Freedom Breakthrough Call:  https://www.neverdietagainmethod.uk/call-ig

Watch my The Cravings & Fat-Burning Masterclass:  https://www.neverdietagainmethod.uk/register-podcast

If you’re successful in almost every area of your life, why does losing weight still feel so hard? Maybe the problem isn’t that you need more discipline. Maybe you’ve been trying to solve the wrong problem.

So many women tell themselves, “I should be able to do this myself.”

You know about calories. You know protein matters. You know you should eat more whole foods, move your body, and probably drink less wine.

Yet you still find yourself picking while cooking, reaching for something sweet when you’re tired, pouring wine after a stressful day, or thinking, “I’ve ruined it now, so I may as well start again Monday.”

In this episode, I explain why more nutrition knowledge and willpower may not be the answer.

We look at three deeper areas that can make sustainable weight loss harder, especially for women navigating perimenopause and menopause.

You’ll discover:

• Reset: How hunger, energy crashes, cravings, sleep, stress, eating patterns, and metabolic flexibility can influence how easy—or difficult—it feels to manage your food.
• Rewire: Why emotional eating isn’t always eating ice cream after a bad day. It can be boredom, picking while cooking, wine to relax, or chocolate in front of the TV. These patterns can become automatic after years of repetition.
• Realign: How all-or-nothing thinking, perfectionism, people pleasing, poor boundaries, and the stories you tell yourself can keep you trapped in the diet cycle.

We also talk about menopause weight loss. Hormonal changes can affect sleep, appetite, energy, body composition, insulin sensitivity, mood, and fat distribution. But blaming everything on menopause can mean missing other patterns that may also be keeping you stuck.

Most importantly, this episode challenges the idea that asking for help means you’ve failed.

You probably accept expert help in other parts of your life. So why should food and weight be different?

The goal of good coaching isn’t to make you dependent on someone. It’s to help you understand your patterns, build new skills, rebuild trust in yourself, and eventually know how to handle holidays, stressful weeks, meals out, and everyday life without constantly starting another diet.

Listen to the full episode now and discover what can change when you stop starting another diet and begin addressing the patterns underneath your relationship with food.

Follow me on Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/max.lowery/

Book a Food Freedom Breakthrough Call:  https://www.neverdietagainmethod.uk/call-ig

Watch my The Cravings & Fat-Burning Masterclass:  https://www.neverdietagainmethod.uk/register-podcast

What if the reason you keep regaining weight isn’t a lack of willpower—but because diets never address why you’re eating in the first place?

At 61, retired nurse Kim felt like she had tried everything. Weight Watchers. Slimming World. Keto. SlimPod. Atkins. Even the cabbage soup diet.

She could lose weight. But keeping it off was another story.

Before joining the programme, Kim describes herself as being at “rock bottom.” She was post-menopausal, struggling with aches and pains, caring for ageing parents, and feeling anxious and overwhelmed. Food—and increasingly alcohol—had become a way to cope with stress.

A difficult phone call could lead to reaching for food without even thinking. A stressful visit with her parents might end with a gin and tonic, followed by evening snacking.

And every time another diet failed, Kim blamed herself.

In this episode, we explore why sustainable weight loss after menopause can require looking beyond meal plans and restriction—and addressing the habits, emotions, and thought patterns underneath your eating.

You’ll hear how Kim learned to:

• Recognise her emotional eating triggers instead of automatically reacting to them.
• Use mindfulness, breathwork, and emotional regulation tools during stressful moments.
• Eat three regular, balanced meals without obsessing over food.
• Reduce the constant “food noise” and start trusting herself around food.
• Enjoy meals out, holidays, cake, and the occasional drink without feeling like she had ruined everything.
• Respond more calmly to stressful situations instead of automatically turning to food or alcohol.

After around five to six months, Kim had lost over 11kg, six inches from her waist, and nearly two clothing sizes—while still going on holidays, attending weddings and parties, and eating out.

But the biggest change isn’t just the number on the scales.

Kim says she feels calmer, more present, and hopeful about the future. She’s planning walks, improving her swimming, trying new hobbies, and thinking about what she wants from the next stage of her life.

If you’re a woman over 40 who knows what to eat but still struggles with emotional eating, menopause weight loss, stress eating, or keeping weight off, Kim’s story may help you see the problem differently.

Listen to the full episode now and discover what can change when you stop starting another diet and begin addressing the patterns underneath your relationship with food.

Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/max.lowery/

Book a Food Freedom Breakthrough Call: https://www.neverdietagainmethod.uk/call-ig

Watch my The Cravings & Fat-Burning Masterclass:  https://www.neverdietagainmethod.uk/register-podcast

If you think losing weight means giving up your favourite foods or relying on willpower forever, this episode will change the way you think. Jacqueline lost an incredible 33.7kg (5 stone 4lbs)—and says she's never been hungry throughout the process.

In this follow-up conversation, six months after her first appearance on the podcast, Jacqueline shares what has happened since joining Live360. After decades of trying every diet imaginable—from Weight Watchers and Slimming World to cabbage soup diets and cutting carbs—she finally found the missing piece that helped her break free from emotional eating and endless yo-yo dieting.

Before starting the programme, Jacqueline struggled with everyday movement. Tying her shoes was difficult, walking caused pain, and she worried she wouldn't be able to enjoy a planned trip to Japan with her family. Fast forward to today, and she's walking for miles, taking the stairs instead of escalators, running to fitness classes, and enjoying a level of freedom she never thought possible.

In this episode, you'll discover:

• Why traditional diets kept failing—even when they worked in the short term.
• The mindset shift that helped Jacqueline stop emotional eating for good.
• How she learned to enjoy holidays, restaurants, and social events without gaining weight.
• Why she no longer feels controlled by sugar cravings, crisps, or food noise.
• The difference between eating for comfort and eating for fuel.
• How changing her environment made healthy choices feel effortless.
• Why lasting weight loss isn't about more willpower—it's about changing your identity and habits.

One of the most powerful moments in this conversation is hearing Jacqueline explain how food no longer controls her life. Instead of constantly thinking about snacks or using food to cope with stress or boredom, she now enjoys balanced, protein-focused meals, feels satisfied between meals, and makes conscious decisions without feeling deprived.

If you're a woman over 40 struggling with emotional eating, menopause weight gain, or the frustration of losing weight only to regain it, this episode offers real hope. Jacqueline's story proves that sustainable weight loss isn't about finding the next diet—it's about changing the way you think, building healthier habits, and creating a lifestyle you can actually maintain.

If you're ready to stop dieting and finally create lasting food freedom, book a Food Freedom Breakthrough Call to learn how Live360 can help you. And if you're not quite ready yet, be sure to listen to the full episode—you might just hear the mindset shift you've been missing.

Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/max.lowery/

Book a Food Freedom Breakthrough Call: https://www.neverdietagainmethod.uk/call-ig

Watch my The Cravings & Fat-Burning Masterclass:  https://www.neverdietagainmethod.uk/register-podcast

What if the reason you're exhausted, stuck, or struggling isn't because you need to try harder—but because you've outgrown the life you've built? 

If you've been chasing success for years but still feel unfulfilled, this episode will challenge the way you think about achievement, identity, and what it really means to create a life you love.

In this episode, Max sits down with executive coach Julia Starr, who helps high-achieving professionals navigate career pivots without losing themselves in the process. Drawing on her background in management consulting and adult development psychology, Julia explains why so many successful people reach a point where the next promotion, pay rise, or achievement no longer brings the fulfilment they expected.

Together, they explore why burnout, anxiety, poor health, and constant stress are often symptoms of living out of alignment with your values—not signs that you simply need more discipline or resilience.

In this episode, you'll discover:

• The 5 biggest signs you've outgrown your career or current life.
• Why high achievers often struggle to make big changes—even when they know they're unhappy.
• The difference between following external validation and living according to your own values.
• How perfectionism keeps you stuck waiting for the "right" decision.
• Why your nervous system resists change, even when change would improve your life.
• A practical exercise that can instantly help you gain clarity on what really matters.

Max also shares how these same patterns show up in women trying to lose weight. Many believe they need another diet, stricter rules, or more willpower. But in reality, lasting transformation often comes from addressing the deeper issues underneath—stress, identity, limiting beliefs, boundaries, and the stories we tell ourselves.

If you've ever felt trapped by the life you've worked so hard to create, this conversation will remind you that you are so much more than your job or your achievements. You don't need to have your entire future mapped out before making a change. Small, intentional steps can create extraordinary transformation over time.

Ready to stop living on autopilot? Listen to the full episode today and discover how aligning your work, health, and values can help you build a life that actually feels good—not just one that looks successful from the outside.

https://www.instagram.com/juliastarrcoaching/

https://www.juliastarrcoaching.com/

Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/max.lowery/

Book a Food Freedom Breakthrough Call: https://www.neverdietagainmethod.uk/call-ig

Watch my The Cravings & Fat-Burning Masterclass:  https://www.neverdietagainmethod.uk/register-podcast

What happens when the diets that always worked suddenly stop working?

In this episode, I'm joined by Letitia, one of our incredible Live360 clients. Like so many women over 40, she'd spent years stuck in the same cycle: lose weight, regain it, promise herself she'd start again on Monday. But when perimenopause arrived, everything changed. The strategies she'd relied on no longer worked, and the constant mental battle around food became exhausting. 

What started as frustration with her body slowly became a crisis of confidence and identity.

As her children became more independent, Letitia found herself questioning who she was beyond being a mum. She became increasingly self-critical, withdrew from life, and felt trapped in a cycle of guilt, perfectionism and emotional exhaustion.

Since joining Live360, she's:

•  Lost 1 stone and 5.5 inches from her waist
•  Stopped obsessing over food and dieting 
•  Rebuilt her confidence 
•  Found consistency without restriction 
•  Learned to enjoy birthdays, holidays and family meals without guilt 
•  Begun embracing the next chapter of her life with excitement instead of fear 

In this conversation we discuss:

•  Why perimenopause makes old weight loss methods stop working 
•  The hidden emotional cost of dieting 
•  How identity changes after children leave home 
•  Why perfectionism and all-or-nothing thinking keep women stuck 
•  The importance of community, coaching and support 
•  Why lasting weight loss starts with changing how you speak to yourself 
•  How confidence becomes the foundation for every other area of life 

This episode is about far more than weight loss.

It's about letting go of the constant battle with yourself and finally feeling at peace around food, your body and your future.

If you've ever thought:

•  "Why can't I do what used to work?" 
•  "Maybe there's something wrong with me." 
•  "I'm exhausted by constantly thinking about food." 

...this conversation will remind you that you are not broken you've simply never been given the right support.

If you'd like to find out more about working with me and the Live360 coaching programme, book your free Food Freedom Breakthrough Call

Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/max.lowery/

Book a Food Freedom Breakthrough Call: https://www.neverdietagainmethod.uk/call-ig

Watch my The Cravings & Fat-Burning Masterclass:  https://www.neverdietagainmethod.uk/register-podcast

What happens when you've tried every diet, embraced intuitive eating, explored body positivity... and you're still unhappy?

In this powerful client success story, I'm joined by Victoria, who spent years stuck in the same cycle so many women know all too well. She'd tried every diet imaginable before rejecting dieting altogether, only to find herself continuing to gain weight while feeling completely lost. 

Everything changed when she stopped focusing solely on food and started addressing the real reasons she was struggling.

Since joining the Live360 coaching programme, Victoria has lost 30lbs and 7 inches from her waist, but that's only a small part of her transformation.

In this episode, we discuss:

•  Why dieting and body positivity both left her feeling stuck 
•  The hidden emotional and psychological causes of weight gain 
•  How stress, burnout and people-pleasing fuel emotional eating 
•  Why weight gain is often a symptom, not the root problem 
•  The role of identity, self-worth and nervous system regulation in lasting weight loss 
•  How overcoming fear allowed Victoria to completely transform her life 
•  Why confidence comes from building evidence, not motivation 

You'll also hear how Victoria made one of the biggest decisions of her life, leaving a high-stress career, moving back to Spain, training as a yoga teacher in Nepal, and rediscovering the adventurous, confident version of herself she'd lost along the way.

This episode isn't just about losing weight.

It's about becoming the person you were always capable of being.

If you've ever thought:

•  "I've tried everything." 
•  "Maybe I'm the one person who can't change." 
•  "I know diets don't work, but I don't know what to do instead." 

...then this conversation will give you hope that lasting change is possible.

Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/max.lowery/

Book a Food Freedom Breakthrough Call: https://www.neverdietagainmethod.uk/call-ig

Watch my The Cravings & Fat-Burning Masterclass:  https://www.neverdietagainmethod.uk/register-podcast

What if the biggest obstacle to your weight loss isn't food... but the way you speak to yourself?

In this episode, I dive deep into one of the most overlooked drivers of emotional eating, self-sabotage, and inconsistent weight loss: your critical inner voice.

You know the one.

The voice that says:

•  "I've ruined it now." 
•  "I've got no willpower." 
•  "What's wrong with me?" 
•  "I'll never change." 

Most women believe these thoughts are true. But what if they're not?

What if the reason you keep finding yourself back in the kitchen at night, reaching for biscuits, chocolate, or wine, has less to do with food and more to do with the emotional stress created by years of self-criticism?

In this episode, I explain:

✅ Where your inner critic actually comes from
 ✅ How childhood experiences, culture, and past dieting shape your self-talk
 ✅ Why self-criticism creates stress inside the nervous system
 ✅ The hidden connection between shame, emotional eating, and weight gain
 ✅ Why food often becomes a form of emotional relief
 ✅ The difference between CBT and Acceptance & Commitment Therapy (ACT)
 ✅ A simple 4-step framework to stop being controlled by your thoughts

Most importantly, you'll learn that you are not your thoughts.

You are the person observing them.

And when you stop believing every thought your mind produces, you create the space to make different choices, build self-trust, and finally break the cycle of starting over every Monday.

Because lasting weight loss isn't just about changing what you eat.

It's about changing the relationship you have with yourself.

Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/max.lowery/

Book a Food Freedom Breakthrough Call: https://www.neverdietagainmethod.uk/call-ig

Watch my The Cravings & Fat-Burning Masterclass:  https://www.neverdietagainmethod.uk/register-podcast