Sugar cravings are not always proof that you are weak, broken, or incapable of discipline. Sometimes they are a sign that your body is still looking for a meal to truly land.

In this episode, Cheri shares her long history of feeling obsessed with sugar, including why restrictive diets and abstinence did not solve the problem for her. She explains the difference between being physically full and actually feeling done, plus the rhythm shifts that made sugar feel less urgent: eating earlier, protein first, balanced meals, enough food, less restriction, and paying attention to what her body was asking for.

What you’ll learn

Get the Gentle Weight Loss Starter Guide:

Research referenced in this episode

I’ve lost 15 pounds since my weight spiked on prednisone earlier this summer. What I want to talk about is that I didn’t have to go to war with myself to make it happen.

The weight came off almost like a side effect of something else I was doing.

I call this “passive” weight loss.

In this episode, I’m talking about what passive weight loss actually means, why most weight-loss advice gets the order backwards, and why your nervous system may be the thing standing between you and weight loss, not your discipline.

We’ll talk about:

This is the premise Set Point Science was built on: your body is not broken, and you are not lacking discipline. Your nervous system is doing exactly what it was built to do.

Once it trusts that enough is coming, consistency stops being something you force.

It starts showing up on its own.

Koia Brand Plant-Based Protein Shakes

Learn more about the Passive Weight Loss Mini-Course here:

Follow along:

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Sumithran, P., Prendergast, L. A., Delbridge, E., Purcell, K., Shulkes, A., Kriketos, A., & Proietto, J. Q. (2011). Long-term persistence of hormonal adaptations to weight loss. New England Journal of Medicine, 365(17), 1597–1604. https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMoa1105816

Weigle, D. S., Breen, P. A., Matthys, C. C., Callahan, H. S., Meeuws, K. E., Burden, V. R., & Purnell, J. Q. (2005). A high-protein diet induces sustained reductions in appetite, ad libitum caloric intake, and body weight despite compensatory changes in diurnal plasma leptin and ghrelin concentrations. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 82(1), 41–48. https://doi.org/10.1093/ajcn/82.1.41

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#SetPointScience #PassiveWeightLoss #WeightLossWithoutDieting #MidlifeWeightLoss #FoodNoise #NervousSystemRegulation #ProteinFirst #GentleWeightLoss #SustainableWeightLoss #WeightLossForWomen #Over40WeightLoss #DietCultureRecovery #EnoughFirst #SetPointRestore #WeightLossPodcast

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I lost another 2.2 pounds, moving from 176.4 to 174.2, even after getting sick, losing my swimming routine for a couple of weeks, and dealing with a rotating cast of eye styes.

The exciting part is not just the number. It is that the plan kept working inside my real life because the food rhythm was satisfying and repeatable enough to survive disruption.

In this episode, I explain how I did it.

What you’ll learn:

⚖️ Why losing 2.2 pounds during a messy stretch felt more meaningful than a dramatic perfect-week result

What most often interrupts your plan: sickness, travel, family stress, injury, or boredom with your meals? Tell me in the comments. I read and reply to these myself.

Download the UPDATED 2.0 free Gentle Weight Loss Starter Guide:

https://setpointscience.com/starterguide

Connect with me:

📸 Instagram: https://instagram.com/setpointscience

Research Referenced in This Episode

Kohanmoo, A., Faghih, S., & Akhlaghi, M. (2020). Effect of short- and long-term protein consumption on appetite and appetite-regulating gastrointestinal hormones: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Physiology & Behavior, 226, Article 113123. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.physbeh.2020.113123

Westenhoefer, J., Engel, D., Holst, C., Lorenz, J., Peacock, M., Stubbs, J., Whybrow, S., & Raats, M. (2013). Cognitive and weight-related correlates of flexible and rigid restrained eating behaviour. Eating Behaviors, 14(1), 69–72. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eatbeh.2012.10.015 

#SetPointScience #WeightLossUpdate #MidlifeWeightLoss #SustainableWeightLoss #WeightLossAfter40 #FoodNoise #Protein #FlexibleEating #GentleWeightLoss #RealLifeWeightLoss #CheriAlberts

If you keep overeating at night, the problem may not be that you cannot stop. It may be that your meals never helped your body and brain feel truly done.

What you’ll learn:

🌙 Why nighttime overeating may not actually begin at night

Do you feel truly done after dinner, or do you feel like you are forcing yourself to be done? Let me know in the comments.

Download the UPDATED 2.0 free Gentle Weight Loss Starter Guide:

https://setpointscience.com/starterguide

Connect with me:

📸 Instagram: https://instagram.com/setpointscience

Correction: In this episode I said "a 2000 study by Wilhelm Hofmann and colleagues". I got the year wrong. It's actually from 2007. Sorry for the mix-up! Correct citation is below.

Research Referenced in This Episode

Hofmann, W., Rauch, W., & Gawronski, B. (2007). And deplete us not into temptation: Automatic attitudes, dietary restraint, and self-regulatory resources as determinants of eating behavior. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 43(3), 497–504. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jesp.2006.05.004

Kohanmoo, A., Faghih, S., & Akhlaghi, M. (2020). Effect of short- and long-term protein consumption on appetite and appetite-regulating gastrointestinal hormones: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Physiology & Behavior, 226, Article 113123. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.physbeh.2020.113123 

#SetPointScience #NighttimeEating #OvereatingAtNight #EmotionalEating #FoodNoise #Satiety #Hunger #GentleWeightLoss #SustainableWeightLoss #MidlifeWeightLoss #WeightLossAfter40 #Protein #FlexibleEating #CheriAlberts

My oncologist raised GLP-1 medication during my breast cancer follow-up, and after discussing the newer data, my health history, side effects, cost and the progress I’m currently making, we decided on a three-month test of my existing plan. My answer is not never. It is not yet.

What you’ll learn:

🩺 Why my oncologist brought up GLP-1 medication after hormone-positive breast cancer

Are you in a “not never, but not yet” season? Let me know below.

Download the UPDATED 2.0 free Gentle Weight Loss Starter Guide:

Connect with me:

#SetPointScience #GLP1 #GLP1Journey #GentleWeightLoss #SustainableWeightLoss #MidlifeWeightLoss #WeightLossAfter40 #FoodNoise #BreastCancerSurvivor #HormonePositiveBreastCancer #CheriAlberts

I lost 1.8 pounds in two weeks without going to war with my appetite...and the biggest win was realizing I did not feel like I needed a break from the protocol.

After seriously considering weight loss medication, I gave my own sustainable approach one focused two-week test. I moved from 178.2 to 176.4 while eating enough, including dinner.

This episode is about more than a number on the scale. It is about discovering that calm, repeatable weight loss may finally be possible without extreme restriction, punishing exercise, or white-knuckling my appetite.

What you’ll learn:

- Why I decided not to begin weight loss medication immediately

🍔 Want the homemade burger buns and chicken burgers with caramelized onions from this episode?

Get both recipes here:

📞 Would you like help creating your own sustainable meal plan?

Book a free 15-minute Two-Step Call with me:

Connect with me:

📸 Instagram: https://instagram.com/setpointscience

Hashtags:

#SetPointScience #EnoughFirst #WeightLossUpdate #SustainableWeightLoss #MidlifeWeightLoss #WeightLossAfter40 #FoodNoise #Hunger #Appetite #FlexibleEating #Protein #WalkingForWeightLoss #CheriAlberts

Avoiding certain foods gave me real stability for years...but when motherhood made those foods part of ordinary life, I discovered that stability was not the same as freedom. In this episode, I explain why having “zero interest” in a food under carefully controlled conditions doesn’t tell you how your approach will hold up when life changes; why understanding the environmental, psychological, and practical conditions shaping your eating is not “making excuses”; and why real food peace is a flexible, portable strategy that can survive birthdays, vacations, stress, family life, and actual Tuesday afternoons.

What you’ll learn:

Get the free Gentle Weight Loss Starter Guide:

Connect with me:

Hashtags:

I almost started weight loss medication yesterday, but this morning I decided not to, at least not yet.

My weight has been stuck around 178, and after watching my husband make easy progress on medication while I continue working so hard, I reached a real breaking point.

I was frustrated. I was tired. And I was ready to change everything.

But instead of making a major decision on one of my worst days, I waited until morning. That gave me enough space to see what was actually happening and recognize two important pieces of my own weight-loss puzzle that I had been missing.

In this episode, I’m sharing the whole messy story, including:

• What made me seriously consider weight loss medication

This is not a polished before-and-after story told once everything has worked out.

This is the real middle.

I’m navigating plantar fasciitis, recurring lung issues, three children, work, summer break, conflicting advice, and a body that does not respond well to generic weight-loss rules.

Taking a long time does not necessarily mean you’re failing. Sometimes it means you’re doing the actual work of discovering what your body and your real life can sustain.

💬 Tell me in the comments: What does a realistic weight-loss approach look like for you?

Not the strictest plan you could temporarily force yourself to follow. What food and movement could you genuinely continue doing as part of your normal life?

Want help building your own realistic meal plan?

Book a free 15-minute Two-Step Call with me. We’ll create a simple meal plan based on your preferences, history, schedule, and current life. Then we’ll decide whether Restore, private coaching, or another next step makes sense for you.

Book your free Two-Step Call:

Follow Set Point Science:

Instagram: @setpointscience

Website:

#WeightLossMedication #MidlifeWeightLoss #GLP1 #SustainableWeightLoss #WeightLossJourney #FoodNoise #ProteinForWeightLoss #SetPointScience

"Eat less, move more" is wrong! It's the advice everyone gives for weight loss, and it's incomplete at best. In this episode I break down why eating less actually backfires for so many of us, and the two states your body cycles through that decide whether it lets go of weight or holds onto it.

What you'll learn:

■ Why "just eat less" can create the exact instability that leads to cravings, grazing, and late night overeating

■ The difference between what I call storage mode and release mode

■ Two real Restore member stories: one about catching a shame spiral before it started, one about building something sustainable around real physical limitations

■ My own recent realization about a subconscious "skip dinner" habit I didn't even know I was still running

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Set Point Restore, my coaching membership, is open for enrollment this week only. Doors close Friday, July 31st, and won't reopen until October. Join in the first three days (by Wednesday, July 29th at 9:00 PM Mountain) and you'll also get 4 bonus PDFs I've never published anywhere else. Full details and enrollment: setpointscience.com/restore

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Instagram: instagram.com/setpointscience

TikTok: tiktok.com/@setpointscience

I'm Cheri Alberts: weight loss coach, breast cancer survivor, mom of three. This is the Set Point Science podcast.

The video you keep asking me for: what I actually eat in a day, protein and all. Not a camera-ready highlight reel, the real rotating meals that keep my cravings quiet and my energy steady while I'm still doing life with kids, medication timing, and zero interest in a perfect plate.

LINKS MENTIONED (AFFILIATE)

—> Koia brand plant-based protein shakes

Butcher Box (get one free month plus ground beef for life): 

What you'll learn:

Want a meal plan built around your actual life instead of someone else's? Free 15-minute Two-Step Call with me: setpointscience.com/twostep

Instagram: instagram.com/setpointscience
TikTok: tiktok.com/@setpointscience

I'm Cheri Alberts: weight loss coach, breast cancer survivor, mom of three. This is the Set Point Science podcast.