The Victoria Penfold Podcast

Bifocal vision means seeing someone on two levels at the same time—their personality, lived experiences and protective patterns, alongside their deeper Self, or soul.

In this episode of The Victoria Penfold Podcast, I share how I hold this concept in psychosynthesis counselling, and how we can bring it into our relationship with ourselves and others.

In this solo episode, I talk about:

• What bifocal vision means.

• How understanding our blueprints and patterns gives us a choice about change.

• Creating space to connect with the soul within.

• Seeing ourselves and others with compassion, whilst holding boundaries.

• Taking responsibility for our own behaviour and letting others take responsibility for theirs.

• Mel Robbins’ “Let them” and “Let me” approach.

We can recognise someone’s story and see them with compassion whilst still holding boundaries around harmful behaviour. We can also offer ourselves that same understanding as we build new patterns and a life that feels true to us.

Thank you for listening. If you find this helpful, please share and subscribe for more conversations about therapy, nutrition, exercise, life coaching and money through Wholeyfit, the Soul’s Compass Method.

CONNECT WITH ME

Instagram: @wholeyfit

LinkedIn: Victoria Penfold

Website: https://victoriapenfold.com

#BifocalVision #Psychosynthesis #Therapy #Boundaries #Wholeyfit

GLIMMERS: FINDING JOY, SAFETY AND CONNECTION ALONGSIDE PAIN

Glimmers are small moments of goodness, joy, hope, safety and connection—even when life feels difficult. In this episode of The Victoria Penfold Podcast, I share how these moments can help us recognise what matters to us and guide the life we want to build.

In this solo episode, I talk about:

• How joy and growth can exist alongside pain and grief.

• Looking back and recognising moments when we felt fully ourselves.

• My own glimmers of independence, purpose, learning and connection.

• Using those moments as clues for our future.

• Seasonal reflection, boundaries and choosing one small intention.

The goal isn’t to recreate the past exactly. It’s to recognise what made those moments meaningful and create more opportunities for those qualities in our lives now.

Watch the episode here:

https://youtu.be/jstd-wHdH70

Thank you for listening. Please subscribe for more conversations about therapy, nutrition, exercise, life coaching and money through Wholeyfit, the Soul’s Compass Method.

CONNECT WITH ME

Instagram: @wholeyfit

LinkedIn: Victoria Penfold

Website: https://victoriapenfold.com

#Glimmers #Therapy #Grief #SelfDiscovery #Wholeyfit

Endings are a natural part of life, but that doesn’t make them easy.

Some endings are chosen, while others happen outside our control. They can be expected or sudden, and sometimes they leave us without the conversations or closure we wanted.

In this solo episode, I explore:

🔚 The different types of endings we experience

⚖️ Why endings can bring grief, relief, fear and freedom at the same time

🧠 How attachment styles can influence the way we respond

💭 Why losing an imagined future can be as difficult as losing what we had

🌱 How to support ourselves through an ending in a healthy way

📅 How routines, nutrition, exercise, financial planning and community can create stability

✍️ How personal rituals can help us create our own sense of closure

🚶 How to move forward without dismissing what the experience meant

I also reflect on endings within my own life and what they have taught me about closure, acceptance and letting go.

Moving forward doesn’t mean that what ended wasn’t meaningful. It means allowing ourselves to acknowledge what happened while gradually making space for what comes next.

What has helped you move through an ending? Share your thoughts in the comments.

CONNECT WITH ME

Instagram: @wholeyfit

LinkedIn: Victoria Penfold

Website: https://victoriapenfold.com

#Endings #LettingGo #FindingClosure #MovingForward #AttachmentStyles #PersonalGrowth #MentalHealth #SelfConfidence #WholeyFit

Change can be something we choose, something that happens outside our control or a mixture of both. It can also feel exciting, frightening and uncomfortable—all at the same time.

In this solo episode, I explore:

🔄 The different types of change we experience

🧠 What happens in the brain when change feels exciting or threatening

⚖️ How acceptance and excitement can coexist with disappointment

🚪 Why we stay with what is familiar, even when it no longer serves who we are becoming

🌱 How fear of failure, fear of success and a lack of confidence can affect our response

🥗 How nutrition, exercise, routines, financial stability and community can support us during uncertainty

⚓ Why choosing one consistent anchor at a time can help us feel safe and grounded

We may not always get to choose what changes or when it happens, but we can choose how we support ourselves through it.

What is one healthy anchor you can commit to for the next seven days? Share it in the comments.

CONNECT WITH ME

Instagram: @wholeyfit

LinkedIn: Victoria Penfold

Website: https://victoriapenfold.com

#Change #CopingWithChange #EmbracingChange #SelfConfidence #MentalHealth #PersonalGrowth #WholeyFit

CAN MUSCLE BUILD CONFIDENCE?

In this episode of the WholeyFit Podcast, I’m joined by bodybuilding coach Dan Wilburn to explore what preparing for a bodybuilding competition really involves—physically and mentally.

We discuss:

🏋️ How bodybuilding preparation is tailored to the individual

🧠 Mental health, eating-disorder history and knowing who may not be suited to competing

🥗 Competition preparation, reverse dieting and life after the stage

⚖️ The difference between competitive bodybuilding and long-term lifestyle coaching

📅 What everyday people can learn from bodybuilding—without ever competing

🔥 How structure, discipline and routine can help build lasting confidence

Bodybuilding is about much more than appearance. With the right guidance, its principles can teach us valuable lessons about consistency, self-belief and working towards meaningful goals—but the approach must always reflect the needs of the individual.

🎧 Watch or listen to the full conversation and let us know: Do you think building physical strength can help build confidence too?

Find Dan:

Instagram: @dan_team_dw

Website: https://team-dw.com/

#WholeyFit #Bodybuilding #SelfConfidence #MentalHealth #FitnessJourney #BodybuildingCoach #HealthAndFitness #Discipline #HealthyLifestyle #Podcast

Have you ever felt like the life you're living doesn't quite reflect who you really are?

Sometimes, we make decisions based on values we've inherited from our family, culture or life experiences, rather than the values we've consciously chosen for ourselves.

In this episode of the Victoria Penfold Podcast, I explore what core values are, where they come from, how they influence the decisions we make, and how becoming aware of them can help us create a life that feels more authentic and aligned.

Together, we'll look at practical ways to identify your own core values, understand the patterns you've inherited, and use your values to guide your goals, relationships and boundaries.

• What core values are and why they matter

• How our values are shaped by family, culture and life experiences

• The difference between inherited values and chosen values

• Practical ways to identify your own core values

• How jealousy, inspiration and difficult experiences can reveal what matters most to you

• How your core values help you create healthy boundaries

• Reflecting on whether your current life is aligned with your values

• How your posture and physical awareness can help you reconnect with yourself

When we become conscious of our values, we can begin making choices that are more aligned with who we are and the life we want to create.

If today's episode encouraged you to reflect on your own values, please like, subscribe and share it with someone who may benefit.

Subscribe to Wholeyfit – The Soul's Compass Method™ for more conversations on healing, self-awareness, personal growth and understanding ourselves more deeply.

Instagram: @wholeyfit

LinkedIn: Victoria Penfold

Website: victoriapenfold.com

Many women feel like they're doing everything "right" but still don't feel like themselves.

So why is that?

In this episode of the Victoria Penfold Podcast, I'm joined by Personal Trainer Lynn Winkle, who has a particular interest in women's health and training older adults.

Together, we explore how exercise can support women through the different stages of life, the importance of strength training as we age, and why looking after our physical health has such a powerful impact on our mental wellbeing.

We also discuss the challenges facing the personal training industry and why more people could benefit from seeing exercise as an investment in their long-term health rather than simply a way to lose weight.

In this episode we discuss:

• Women's health throughout the different stages of life

• Perimenopause and menopause

• Healthy ageing and maintaining strength

• The connection between physical and mental health

• Why many women struggle to achieve their goals

• The role of personal trainers

• Where to begin if you're starting your health journey

If today's conversation encouraged you to think differently about your health, please like, subscribe and share it with someone who may benefit.

You can find Lynn here:

@healthwithlynn

https://www.puregym.com/gyms/borehamwood/personal-trainers/lynn-winkel/?_gl=1*1vq9kvs*_up*MQ..*_ga*MjE3OTI3MzguMTc4MzE5NDk3Ng..*_ga_2DPSEVZFNY*czE3ODMxOTQ5NzYkbzEkZzEkdDE3ODMxOTQ5NzgkajU4JGwwJGg4OTE0NTM3NzI.*_ga_H93WMRCZYE*czE3ODMxOTQ5NzYkbzEkZzEkdDE3ODMxOTQ5NzgkajU4JGwwJGgxNDc1ODQxNg..

Subscribe to Wholeyfit – The Soul's Compass Method™ for more conversations on healing, health, personal growth and understanding ourselves more deeply.

Instagram: @wholeyfit

LinkedIn: Victoria Penfold

Website: victoriapenfold.com

Have you ever wondered why you overeat, lose your appetite, forget to eat, or find yourself eating to please other people?

What if the answer isn't a lack of willpower, but your nervous system trying to protect you?

In this episode of the Victoria Penfold Podcast, I explore the four natural nervous system responses—fight, flight, freeze and fawn—and how each one can influence the way we think about food, eat, and relate to our bodies.

Together, we'll explore how these responses can show up during times of stress, why they make perfect sense, and how recognising your own patterns can help you move towards healthier, more compassionate choices.

We'll also look at why it may not be about the food alone. Sometimes, the key to changing our relationship with food is understanding the unmet relational need underneath the behaviour and recognising when we need co-regulation rather than self-control.

• What fight, flight, freeze and fawn responses are

• How to recognise your own natural nervous system response

• How each response can affect the way you eat and relate to food

• Why stress can change your appetite and eating behaviours

• The core relational need behind each nervous system response

• The importance of co-regulation and human connection

• How to return to a state of homeostasis

• A practical exercise to help you identify your own patterns and recognise what you need in each state

Once we recognise our natural response, we can create a safe space to choose a different one.

When we find safety in connection, food often returns to us naturally.

If today's episode helped you understand yourself a little more, please like, subscribe and share it with someone who may benefit.

Subscribe to Wholeyfit – The Soul's Compass Method™ for more conversations on healing, nutrition, self-awareness and understanding ourselves more deeply.

Instagram: @wholeyfit

Facebook: Wholeyfit – The Soul's Compass Method™

LinkedIn: Victoria Penfold

Website: victoriapenfold.com

Dyslexia and Systems

In this episode, I explore the relationship between systems and dyslexia, and how understanding both can help us better understand ourselves and others.

What is a system?

A system is a group of connected parts that influence one another and work together as a whole.

Examples include:

• Family systems

• Business systems

• School systems

• Religious systems

• Sports teams

We can also think of the body as a system.

The skeletal system, muscular system, organs, veins, nervous system, and brain are all connected. Every part matters, and every part influences the whole.

This can also be understood through the idea of the therapeutic third — something that emerges from the interaction of different elements and people coming together.

What is dyslexia?

Dyslexia is a difference in the way the brain processes information.

It can affect spelling, writing, memory, organisation, and the way information is understood and communicated.

At the same time, many people with dyslexia are highly intelligent, creative, innovative, and excellent problem solvers. Many are entrepreneurs because they naturally see the bigger picture and think outside of the box.

In this episode, I also explore an interesting perspective that suggests dyslexia may represent a deeper challenge between different ways of processing information, often described as the masculine and feminine, or the left and right sides of the brain, struggling to work together.

This invites us to ask:

Where else is this familiar in my life?

Many of the difficulties associated with dyslexia arise because existing systems were not designed for the way a dyslexic mind naturally works.

It is not that the person cannot understand the information.

Often, they simply cannot access it in the way it is being presented.

As a result, many dyslexic people develop their own systems:

• Routines

• Structure

• Colour coding

• Technology

• Visual aids

These systems help build a bridge between how their mind naturally works and the demands of the world around them.

Dyslexic people often need more time, not because they lack intelligence or understanding, but because they are creating their own pathways and systems to process information.

This is why patience is so important.

Alongside practical strategies and tools, it is valuable to explore the deeper meaning behind our struggles and ask what they may be trying to teach us.

If you have someone in your life who is dyslexic, be patient.

Ask them what they need.

Quite often they already know — they simply need to be listened to.

Subscribe to Wholeyfit – The Soul’s Compass Method™ for more conversations on healing, self-awareness, personal growth, and understanding ourselves more deeply.

Instagram: @wholeyfit

Facebook: Wholeyfit – The Soul’s Compass Method

LinkedIn: Victoria Penfold

Website: victoriapenfold.com

How to Grow Old Well – Lessons from 98 Years of Life (with My Grandad)

In this week's podcast, I am joined by someone very special — my grandad.

At 98 years old, he has lived through war, rationing, huge social change, and nearly a century of life. Despite recently recovering from a heart attack and two strokes, he continues to demonstrate remarkable resilience, independence, and strength.

In this conversation, we explore what has helped him stay active, healthy, and engaged with life for so many years.

We discuss:

• what life was like growing up as an only child

• the lessons he learned from family life and early experiences

• living through war and rationing

• how those experiences shaped his relationship with food, health, and waste

• the habits and routines that have stayed with him throughout his life

• maintaining a healthy and stable weight for over 80 years

• the importance of staying active and independent as we age

One of the things I find most fascinating is that my grandad has remained almost exactly the same weight since he was 17 years old.

We explore what has contributed to that consistency and whether the habits he developed in his younger years helped shape the health and wellbeing he enjoys today.

This episode is a reminder that there is wisdom to be found in lived experience, and that sometimes the simplest habits, repeated over a lifetime, can have a profound impact.

Thank you for listening.

If you have any questions or reflections, I would love to hear from you in the comments.

Subscribe to Wholeyfit – The Soul’s Compass Method™ for more conversations on healing, wellbeing, resilience, and living a meaningful life.

Instagram: @wholeyfit

Facebook: Wholeyfit – The Soul’s Compass Method

LinkedIn: Victoria Penfold

Website: victoriapenfold.com