Outsmart Overeating

On today's episode of the Fat Murder Podcast, Rog Law, joins me as we discuss: Are you focusing on what's going well or what's going wrong?

As humans, we're guilty of focusing on what's wrong in our lives. It's natural. You can blame this nifty little habit on your reptilian brain whose sole purpose is to protect you and help you survive.

Naturally, this reptilian brain it's going to bring to your attention anything that is potentially "threatening" to your survival. But since this is the safest time there has ever been to be alive, our reptilian brains are getting a little bored, feeling a little useless, and having to look for problems elsewhere.

And that is why we are always so focused on the negative (even if life is actually pretty good)!

Clearly, this habit of constantly noticing what's going wrong is not serving anyone because whatever we focus on expands. So it's time to overcome this bad habit and experience a more beneficial perspective about our lives. Which will lead us to better, more badass, more abundant lives!

In this episode, you'll learn:

• The problem with focusing on what's going wrong and how to overcome this extremely conditional life
• Why living like this makes it hard to be in control of your mood and create the things that you want
• The 4 steps required to help you stop focusing on what's going right instead of what's going wrong
• You get more of what you focus on -- in other words, if you're obsessing about a recent binge eating episode, you're more likely to experience it again, the idea goes. If you turn your attention to how good it feels to exercise, you'll feel more inclined to exercise.

Focusing on what's going well will help you achieve your goals because there's plenty of evidence that happier people get more done (and are also likely to live longer).

So focus on what's going right because it will make you happier, and being happy will make you healthier and more productive. Or just do it because it will make you happier. Isn't that reason enough?

Though it has been used for decades as the go-to measurement for health based on your size, in recent years, the BMI has been widely criticized for its oversimplification of what being healthy really means. Join co-coach, Steph Miramontes, and me as we discuss why the BMI is outdated, inaccurate, and needs to be drop kicked as a reliable tool for measuring health. In today's episode, you'll learn:

• The history of the BMI (body mass index) and how it's been used to measure a person's height and weight ratio to assess whether they're underweight, normal weight, overweight or obese to qualify for certain healthcare benefits (or lack thereof)
• Why the BMI has become a controversial hot topic in recent years and how this relates to racism and sexism
• Why the BMI is a poor predictor of health and often creates more problems than it was intended to solve
• If we know the BMI is an inaccurate measuring tool for health, why are doctors still using it?
• If the BMI is a 200 year old outdated model, what else can be done affordably and efficiently to determine one's health?

Dr Spencer Nadolsky (obesity specialist) in a recent instagram post:

"Saying the BMI is a useless indicator of health is like saying cholesterol or most other markers we measure are useless indicators of health. We must still evaluate the Whole individual and look at it all in context."

"Body Mass Index" is NOT a worthless measure. It's a quick screening tool that should be used correctly and assessed on an individual level before diagnosing overweight/obesity vs. muscular athletes vs. non athletes or elderly with sarcopenia)"

"A lean young male with a BMI of 27 is very different from an abdominally obese post-menopausal female with the same BMI. BMI doesn't take many things into account, such as muscle mass. If everyone could get their body fat measurements taken via DEXA, doctors would just use that, but that isn't always feasible."

What has been your experience with having your BMI measured at the doctor's office? I'd love to hear your story and how this practice was harmful or helpful to you. What are your thoughts on BMI for determining one's health?

The problem with labeling foods "good" or "bad" is now they've been given life. It stops being a neutral food choice and starts having a moral implication.

In other words, as soon as a food is labeled "bad," we begin to feel bad for making the decision to eat it. And often that guilt spirals into eating MORE food to self-soothe or numb the emotional response. Join co-coach, Steph Miramontes, and me as we discuss why it's so hard to drop the food labels when they feel true. Other topics covered in today's episode:

• The differences in how children and adults label food and the role diet culture has played in manipulating society to their benefit
• How food labeling continues to perpetuate the all-or-nothing mentality
• Why the moral superiority of food labels can cause us to judge others and ourselves harshly
• Actionable steps to help you dismantle this toxic belief system so you can begin to approach all foods in a balanced and healthy way

Dropping the food labels can be hard work. In fact, not having the safety net of limiting rules and restriction is the harder path. It's easier to live life in the black and white because it seems safer than gray. We often don't trust ourselves around food, hence the need for rules and labels in the first place.

But, I'm encouraging you to develop more awareness around the labels that you put around foods. Notice how your thoughts and interactions with the food changes as you rewrite the narrative and drop the food guilt.

Sometimes I ask clients to write down a list of foods they consider to be 'good' or 'bad'. Then, see if you can come up with other words to describe them that have nothing to do with their moral value.

Focus instead on how the various foods make you feel. From there, see if you can try such foods with a different, non-judgment label. How does the experience change?

This week on the Fat Murder Podcast, co-coachi, Eileen Trujillo is back to talk about how to create a life you love, right now. NOT 10 pounds from now, but TODAY.

In this episode we discuss why innate talent, intelligence, and external circumstances only accounts for 25% of our success while the other remaining 75% comes from just a few things. Tune in to hear us talk about:

• your mindset and outlook
• how to perceive difficult situations as a challenge rather than a roadblock
• the value of a solid social support system
• the importance of "dating" new or old hobbies and interests
• the lost art of having fun and how to reconnect with your inner child

Everyone in your life wins when you bring your best to everyone you interact with. It's not selfish to prioritize your wants and needs. It's attractive. And you'll definitely be someone everyone wants to be around.

This week, I invited co-coach, Eileen Trujillo to join me as we discuss the differences between emotional eating, binge eating, and habitual overeating.

There seems to be a lot of confusion between the three types of eaters, so in this episode we want to provide some clarity to ensure you're following the right plan of action to achieve a specific solution.

If you don't understand the problem, then you may end up spinning your wheels trying to use the wrong tool to "fix" it. So before you can "fix" it, you first have to identify it.

In this episode, you'll learn:

• Understanding the differences between emotional eating, binge eating, and habitual overeating
• Specific reasons that cause you to emotionally or binge eat and actionable steps to overcome these instances of uncontrolled eating
• What it takes to learn how to manage your mind (and as a result, your emotions)
• Why binge eaters are the most commonly misunderstood out of the 3 types of eaters
• What causes "habitual overeaters" to overeat and what they can do to get out of their head and into their body

Of course, it's entirely possible that many of these behaviors overlap. You can be one, two, or all three of these types of eaters at different times. What type of eater are you? What tools and strategies have helped you confront and overcome your eating challenges?

What we believe and who we believe ourselves to be will always have more impact on our ability to lose weight than food ever will. Our core beliefs infiltrate every thought, feeling, and action we make on a daily basis -- from our values, to our religious and political beliefs, and even the way we eat. We simply follow these blind scripts without exploring who influenced us to feel this way and why. Join Rog Law and me today as we help you develop the awareness and psychological tools on the path to living your best life! Topics discussed:

• Understanding who and what influenced your core beliefs and why this could be a big missing piece in your weight loss puzzle.
• What are your strongest beliefs? Are they helping or hurting you?
• How to decipher where these beliefs come from and actionable steps to help you rewrite those that no longer serve you.
• What the process of change looks like when replacing old thought patterns for the better.

What about you? Who were some of your primary influencers? How have they played a role in your life? Are there any you're prepared to ditch? We'd love to hear your thoughts.

When it comes to lifelong sustainable weight loss, one of the most powerful tools in your arsenal is being present with your food.

Unfortunately, with the advent of the internet and our addiction to being 'busy,' most people eat their meals like they're running the 100 yard dash, and as a result, the only rapid thing that happens, is the expansion of their waistline.

Join Rog Law and me for this week's Fat Murder Podcast episode as we talk about the ultimate weight loss 'hack' -- slowing down. Topics discussed:

• Why you may have a habit of eating quickly and how to replace this behavior with deliberate intention to prevent instances of overeating
• What are the pros and cons of speed eating and are they worth it?
• The power of slowing down and connecting with your body (the ultimate calorie counter)
• The pivotal role your environment plays in your eating and how you can engineer it for success

If you want to learn more about how your eating habits may be sabotaging your weight loss, check out episode 75 which is all about cancelling your membership to the "clean plate club" and reclaiming your power from food. --

If you're someone whose background in dieting consists of calorie counting, food scales, and meal plans, taking on a more mindful approach to eating can be scary as hell. We take comfort in the hard data. Instead of allowing our hunger and fullness cues to guide our eating, we turn our focus outward to feel safe and secure in our calorie deficit. Join co-coach, Eileen Trujillo, and me on today's episode of the Fat Murder Podcast as we discuss the four stages of weight loss and how to measure progress without the number crunching. And because progress can be hard to measure without the number crunching, it becomes frustrating to not-always be able to tell if you're on the right path. This episode will help you see where you are, understand why you're there, and provide you with some helpful tools to help you keep moving forward. What about you? What stage are you currently on? Where were you three months ago? And where will you be six months from now if you keep practicing?

In this week's episode, I invited co-coach, Eileen Trujillo, back to the podcast to discuss why you may fear hunger.

If you've been dieting for a while, it's possible that you've become completely disconnected to your physical cues. In fact, it's quite common to avoid hunger altogether by preventing it through "snacks" to keep it at bay.

BUT, if you're interested in learning how to eat like a "naturally thin" person, you're going to have to learn how to get comfortable in your discomfort with hunger. And this episode is all about showing you how.

Join us as we discuss:

• Why you may fear getting TOO hungry and how this prevents sustainable weight loss
• The influential role cultural differences play in managing your hunger
• Why it's important to embrace hunger as a natural physical cue, just like needing to go to the bathroom or getting tired
• Where your panic or fears come from and the practical steps required to manage them effectively
• How your hunger signal will teach you the appropriate amount of food for your body

Eating like a "naturally thin" person means waiting until you're hungry to eat. Not ravenous, but the early signs of tummy rumbling.

But most people eat BEFORE they experience physical hunger. Why? Give this episode a listen and let us know what you learn!

She's BaaAAaAack!

In this week's episode, I had the pleasure of interviewing my Friends With Benefits client, Dr Roma Amin...AGAIN! Dr Amin is a family physician who was kind enough to open up and share her dieting struggles as she navigated medical residency while simultaneously planning a wedding...and now, the stressors of being on the frontline battling COVID-19. Before the program, Roma, often turned to food as a way to delay studying or "reward" herself for surviving another hard day. Despite being a medical professional who understands the intricate ins and outs of the human body, Dr Amin struggled with the psychological aspect of dieting. After years of losing and regaining the same 15-20 pounds, she finally reached her breaking point and joined my Friends With Benefits program to put her dieting struggles behind her once and for all. In this episode, Dr Amin is back to discuss: ▪️The biggest challenges has faced since ending the program ▪️ As an emotional eater, how has been coping with the fire dumpster of 2020? ▪️How measuring progress through habit tracking and non-scale victories (instead of scale weight) has contributed to successful weight loss she has been able to maintain throughout the ups and downs of the coronavirus. ▪️What holiday and social eating looked like for her now compared to years previous (hint: no more food anxiety or losing control) ▪️Dr Amin's shares her BEST advice for those who fear they'll gain weight if they stop calorie counting and focus on weight loss through behavior change. ...and so much more! You definitely DONT want to miss this insightful episode. Give it a listen and let us know what you think in the comments!