The Weight Loss Tool for Midlife Women That Finally Makes the Scale Move | 64

0:00 SPEAKER_01: What if I told you that the thing most likely to move the needle for you right now has nothing to do with your workout?

0:06 SPEAKER_01: It is not a harder spin class.

0:08 SPEAKER_01: It is not cutting back on carbs.

0:09 SPEAKER_01: It is not setting the alarm for 5 a.m.

0:12 SPEAKER_01: It is something so simple that when I say it out loud, you might actually roll your eyes at me just a little.

0:18 SPEAKER_01: And I completely get that reaction.

0:20 SPEAKER_01: I really do because I had the same one.

0:23 SPEAKER_01: But once you understand what this thing actually does inside your body, especially your body after 40, you are going to look at it completely differently.

0:32 SPEAKER_01: So put those earbuds in, take a deep breath, and let's prioritize the best version of you.

0:42 SPEAKER_01: Hey beautiful, and welcome to Weight Loss in Midlife, where we ditch the diet cycle and finally lose fat, build muscle, and feel confident again.

0:50 SPEAKER_01: I'm Jennifer, a certified women's coach who's been where you are, stuck in the all-or-nothing cycle, navigating midlife changes and wondering why what used to work doesn't anymore.

1:01 SPEAKER_01: After years of restriction and burnout, I found a better way.

1:04 SPEAKER_01: Built on macros, mindset, and muscles.

1:06 SPEAKER_01: Each week, I'll share the strategies to help you lose fat, boost your metabolism, and build lasting strength and confidence.

1:13 SPEAKER_01: Let's dive into today's episode.

1:21 SPEAKER_01: Hey beautiful, welcome back to the Weight Loss in Midlife Podcast, the show for busy women in midlife who want to finally lose fat for good, feel confident, and have the energy to live their best life.

1:31 SPEAKER_01: If you are a regular listener here, you already know that this podcast is not about quick fixes.

1:36 SPEAKER_01: It's not about the next diet trend or the supplement that's going to change your life or the morning routine that is going to make everything click.

1:43 SPEAKER_01: What I talk about here on the show is what actually is going on, the real stuff, why your body feels different in your 40s than it did in your 30s, why you have the things that used to work have stopped working now for you.

1:54 SPEAKER_01: Why you can know everything there is to know about food and still feel completely stuck.

1:59 SPEAKER_01: And I see so many of you nodding along with me.

2:02 SPEAKER_01: You get it, you understand what I'm saying.

2:04 SPEAKER_01: You're not confused about what to do.

2:06 SPEAKER_01: You're just stuck in this cycle, the starting over, the Monday reset, the doing really well until something happens, and then watching the whole week fall apart and not knowing how to get back on track without starting from scratch again.

2:19 SPEAKER_01: And here is the thing I want you to really hear right now.

2:22 SPEAKER_01: That cycle is not a character flaw.

2:24 SPEAKER_01: It's not proof that you cannot stick to anything.

2:27 SPEAKER_01: It's the predictable result of never having learned the actual skills that make results last.

2:32 SPEAKER_01: And it's not your fault that nobody ever taught you those skills.

2:35 SPEAKER_01: Every diet you have ever tried gave you a plan.

2:37 SPEAKER_01: None of them changed the way you think.

2:39 SPEAKER_01: None of them touched the voice in your head that says one bad meal means I gotta start all over again.

2:45 SPEAKER_01: That is what the weight loss in Midlife method is.

2:47 SPEAKER_01: It's my eight-week private coaching program built on a real framework.

2:51 SPEAKER_01: And real stands for four things I believe every woman in midlife needs to stop starting over for good.

2:57 SPEAKER_01: R is rewiring your thoughts.

2:59 SPEAKER_01: You have spent years believing that one bad meal means the whole day is ruined.

3:03 SPEAKER_01: That if you're not perfect, you might as well start Monday.

3:06 SPEAKER_01: That voice in your head is not the truth.

3:08 SPEAKER_01: It is a pattern, and this is where we start because nothing else works until this part of your brain starts to shift.

3:14 SPEAKER_01: E is for eating.

3:16 SPEAKER_01: That works for you.

3:17 SPEAKER_01: Not a diet, not a plan you follow until you don't.

3:20 SPEAKER_01: A way of eating we build together that fits your real life, your schedule, your stress, your social life, the real version of your week, real foods, real situations without obsession, no guilt.

3:31 SPEAKER_01: And A is for aligned action, small, consistent steps that fit the life you actually have right now, not the perfect version, the real one on your worst days, not just the best ones, because the actions you take when everything is hard are the ones that are going to actually determine your results.

3:46 SPEAKER_01: And L is for lasting results, not the number on the scale, but a complete shift in how you feel in your body, how you think about the food, how you show up for yourself every day in your life, the kind of change that stays because it's built into who you are.

4:02 SPEAKER_01: I work with women one-on-one privately over eight weeks, weekly 60-minute sessions, just you and me.

4:08 SPEAKER_01: No group calls, no watching recordings later, real coaching for a real version of your real life.

4:13 SPEAKER_01: And here is what I want to say to the woman who has been listening to this podcast for months and has not taken a step yet.

4:20 SPEAKER_01: I see you.

4:21 SPEAKER_01: I know you're nervous.

4:22 SPEAKER_01: I know you've been disappointed before, and I know that voice in your head is already listing all the reasons why you might not work with this program.

4:29 SPEAKER_01: But here's what I also want you to know the cycle does not stop on its own.

4:33 SPEAKER_01: You've been waiting for the right time, the right moment, and the right version of your life when everything is calm enough for you to finally do this.

4:39 SPEAKER_01: And I'm telling you, that moment is not coming.

4:42 SPEAKER_01: What changes things is a decision.

4:44 SPEAKER_01: A decision that you are done, that you deserve to feel confident in your body, that you want to take that picture and actually be in it.

4:51 SPEAKER_01: If you're ready to make that decision, I would love to be in your corner.

4:55 SPEAKER_01: Head to jenniferpeak.com backslash coaching to get into the program.

4:59 SPEAKER_01: Again, that's jenniferpeak.com backslash coaching.

5:03 SPEAKER_01: I would love to work with you.

5:04 SPEAKER_01: All right, so I'm starting off on something that happened to me this week.

5:08 SPEAKER_01: I was on my way to work.

5:09 SPEAKER_01: I'm driving, minding my own business.

5:11 SPEAKER_01: It had just finished downpouring as I pulled out of my driveway.

5:15 SPEAKER_01: And out of nowhere, this massive dump truck is bowling toward me in the opposite direction, and there's a huge puddle on my right side of the road, big enough where I know that I can hydroplane if I go through it.

5:26 SPEAKER_01: And I had a split second to decide: do I hold my ground and risk the truck clipping me, or do I go through the puddle?

5:31 SPEAKER_01: Well, I have a Bronco and I figure, you know what?

5:34 SPEAKER_01: This is a tough car.

5:35 SPEAKER_01: I'm gonna go through the puddle.

5:37 SPEAKER_01: And my engine totally just seized up on me, just completely gave up on me, and I ended up on the side of the road.

5:44 SPEAKER_01: I had to pull over, call my husband, and wait to be rescued.

5:47 SPEAKER_01: And I sat there thinking, okay, well, I wasn't doing anything wrong.

5:50 SPEAKER_01: The truck was coming.

5:51 SPEAKER_01: I made the most logical move I could make in that moment.

5:54 SPEAKER_01: I was trying to protect myself and my Bronco because I love it, but the car just could not handle what I put it through.

6:01 SPEAKER_01: It wasn't built for that.

6:03 SPEAKER_01: And that is exactly what I think about my women when they come to me and say, I'm doing everything right and nothing is working.

6:10 SPEAKER_01: They're not just doing anything wrong.

6:12 SPEAKER_01: They are working hard, they are trying, they're pushing through.

6:15 SPEAKER_01: But the approach that they are using was not designed for their 40-year-old body.

6:21 SPEAKER_01: It's like a 30-year-old engine, and their bodies at 40, 45, and 50 just can't process it the same way.

6:28 SPEAKER_01: Forcing harder is not going to be your answer.

6:31 SPEAKER_01: Sometimes the answer is just understanding what your body actually needs right now in this season of your life and working with what it needs instead of against it.

6:39 SPEAKER_01: And that's exactly what we're talking about today.

6:42 SPEAKER_01: Okay, so let me break this down in a way that actually makes sense.

6:46 SPEAKER_01: When you do a really intense workout, a spin class, a hit session, or a hard run, your body is burning mostly glucose for fuel.

6:53 SPEAKER_01: That is what fuels high intensity effort.

6:55 SPEAKER_01: And yes, you burn a lot of calories in that moment.

6:58 SPEAKER_01: But here's what also happens: your cortisol goes up, your hunger goes up, and a lot of women end up eating back everything that they burned, and then some because their body is generally craving fuel.

7:09 SPEAKER_01: And when you're doing these types of workouts a lot of days of the week, this isn't good for your body.

7:16 SPEAKER_01: It puts a lot of stress on your body.

7:18 SPEAKER_01: What we're talking about today is walking.

7:20 SPEAKER_01: Walking is different.

7:22 SPEAKER_01: Walking is a low intensity activity, and when you are moving at that lower intensity, your body actually reaches into the fat stores for fuel, not glucose, fat.

7:32 SPEAKER_01: And because walking does not create that same cortisol spike that those high-intensity cardio sessions do, your hunger stays regulated, your body stays calm, and you're not walking around all day feeling ravenous because you just did a really hard workout.

7:45 SPEAKER_01: For women over 40 whose cortisol is already running high than it used to because of perimenopause and the stress of life in general.

7:53 SPEAKER_01: This matters enormously.

7:55 SPEAKER_01: Walking is not the lazy option.

7:57 SPEAKER_01: It's actually the smarter option for a body that's already under a lot of pressure.

8:02 SPEAKER_01: So, what I want to talk about here is most women think about exercise as the one hour a day that they spend intentionally working out, the gym, the class, the run, whatever that workout may be.

8:14 SPEAKER_01: But there's something called NEAT, N-E-A-T, non-exercise activity thermogenesis, which is just a fancy way of saying that all the movement you do outside of your structured workout, so whether that's a run, lifting, things like walking to your car, taking the stairs, standing while you're on the phone and you're pacing around the kitchen while dinner's cooking, things like that.

8:36 SPEAKER_01: This low impact daily movement adds up to hundreds of extra calories burned every single day.

8:42 SPEAKER_01: And research shows that women who move more throughout the day, they're gonna burn more total calories than women who do just one intense workout and then they sit around for the rest of the day.

8:51 SPEAKER_01: So the question is not just how hard you're working out, it's how much you're moving overall throughout your day.

8:58 SPEAKER_01: And I know that for many busy professional women, that number is lower than they think because we sit at our desks, we sit in the cars, we sit at dinner, we sit on the couch at the end of the night because we're exhausted.

9:10 SPEAKER_01: And listen, I am not judging you any because this is real life.

9:15 SPEAKER_01: This is what's happening.

9:16 SPEAKER_01: But when we start to intentionally, and the word here is intentional, add more movement throughout the day, not just one hard workout, the results are going to start to shift.

9:26 SPEAKER_01: One workout does not undo eight hours of sitting, but a few thousand more steps throughout your day absolutely can change your results.

9:34 SPEAKER_01: And I want to talk about why these benefits go beyond the scale, not just in losing weight.

9:39 SPEAKER_01: This is a part I really want you to hear because even if that fat loss piece did not convince you, this one I hope does.

9:47 SPEAKER_01: Walking lowers your cortisol.

9:48 SPEAKER_01: And we know when you have high cortisol, you're going to hold on to fat.

9:53 SPEAKER_01: And as we talked about before on this show, cortisol is one of the biggest hidden blockers for weight loss in women over 40.

9:58 SPEAKER_01: When cortisol stays elevated, your body literally, like I said, holds on to the fat, especially around your middle.

10:05 SPEAKER_01: A daily walk generally lowers that stress hormone.

10:09 SPEAKER_01: This makes your body more willing to let go of that fat.

10:12 SPEAKER_01: Walking is also going to improve your insulin sensitivity, which is changing in your 40s and 50s, which means your body gets better at using the foods that you are eating as fuel rather than storing it.

10:25 SPEAKER_01: And it also is going to improve your sleep quality.

10:28 SPEAKER_01: It's going to support your mood.

10:29 SPEAKER_01: It's a natural depression reducer.

10:32 SPEAKER_01: It reduces anxiety and it's a low impact so that it's not beating up on your joints the way that those high-intensity trainings can.

10:40 SPEAKER_01: And here's the thing that I think matters most of all: it is something that you can do every single day for the rest of your life without needing to recover from it.

10:49 SPEAKER_01: That consistency is what creates real long-term results.

10:54 SPEAKER_01: I have clients who have tried everything, every program, every meal plan, every workout challenge.

10:58 SPEAKER_01: And the one habit that actually stuck, the one that moved the needle for these women, was adding that 20 to 30 minute walk every day.

11:05 SPEAKER_01: That's it.

11:06 SPEAKER_01: And things started to shift.

11:08 SPEAKER_01: They started to see a difference.

11:09 SPEAKER_01: The best exercise is the one that you're going to actually do consistently, not one where you're going to try it for a couple of weeks and then you're not going to do it anymore because it's too much.

11:18 SPEAKER_01: And walking is the one thing that almost anyone can do every single day.

11:23 SPEAKER_01: So, how are you going to find time to fit more steps into your day?

11:26 SPEAKER_01: I know that you're busy.

11:28 SPEAKER_01: So here's where it gets really practical because I'm not asking you to find an extra hour in your day.

11:33 SPEAKER_01: I know you don't have it.

11:35 SPEAKER_01: This is about stacking steps into what you're already doing.

11:39 SPEAKER_01: Taking calls on a walk, park further away from the store every single time, walking during your lunch break, even if it's just for 10 minutes.

11:48 SPEAKER_01: Get up during TV commercials and pace around the room.

11:51 SPEAKER_01: Do a short walk after dinner, which by the way also help regulate blood sugar after a meal.

11:56 SPEAKER_01: Set a reminder to stand and move five minutes every hour.

11:59 SPEAKER_01: None of these things feel like exercise, but all of them add up.

12:03 SPEAKER_01: Women who aim for about 7,000 to 10,000 steps a day see real changes in their body composition over time.

12:09 SPEAKER_01: This is not a quick fix, not one dramatic effort, but from the accumulation of this consistent, easy movement every single day.

12:18 SPEAKER_01: And if you have no idea where you're starting from now, just look at your steps today.

12:22 SPEAKER_01: Don't judge yourself, but just look.

12:24 SPEAKER_01: Most people are generally surprised by how low that number is.

12:27 SPEAKER_01: And that number is your starting point.

12:30 SPEAKER_01: It's not a report card.

12:31 SPEAKER_01: You don't have to find more time.

12:32 SPEAKER_01: You just have to use the time that you already have, just a little bit more differently, but being also intentional.

12:38 SPEAKER_01: All right.

12:39 SPEAKER_01: So here's what I want you to actually do this week.

12:41 SPEAKER_01: And I'm keeping this simple on purpose.

12:43 SPEAKER_01: Step one, find out where you're starting from.

12:46 SPEAKER_01: Just check your steps today, right now, if you can.

12:48 SPEAKER_01: That number is your baseline.

12:50 SPEAKER_01: Again, please don't judge yourself.

12:52 SPEAKER_01: You're using this as information to start building on that number.

12:56 SPEAKER_01: Step two, add 1,000 steps to whatever you're averaging right now.

13:00 SPEAKER_01: I'm not telling you to get up to 10,000 overnight.

13:03 SPEAKER_01: Not a massive overhaul.

13:04 SPEAKER_01: Just add 1,000 more steps more than you did yesterday.

13:08 SPEAKER_01: Do that for a week and come back.

13:10 SPEAKER_01: And I want you to message me.

13:12 SPEAKER_01: Tell me how you're feeling.

13:13 SPEAKER_01: I'm not asking you to train for a marathon here.

13:16 SPEAKER_01: I'm asking you to just go for a walk.

13:18 SPEAKER_01: That's going to not only help with weight loss, but it's also going to reduce stress, which in turn does help with weight loss, but it's also going to help your mood and your insulin sensitivity.

13:29 SPEAKER_01: That is the whole assignment this week.

13:31 SPEAKER_01: And if you want to take it up a notch, try adding a slight incline if you're on a treadmill when you can.

13:35 SPEAKER_01: Even a small hill or a treadmill incline of three to five percent increases the calorie burn without having to go any faster or push yourself any harder.

13:44 SPEAKER_01: Or try alternating three minutes of your normal pace and one minute of power walking.

13:49 SPEAKER_01: Just those little changes, you're going to continue to see results.

13:52 SPEAKER_01: So here's what I want you to take away from today.

13:55 SPEAKER_01: Walking is not a consolation prize for women who cannot do a harder workout.

13:59 SPEAKER_01: It is generally powerful.

14:01 SPEAKER_01: It's a fat loss tool, especially for women over 40 whose cortisol is already elevated and whose bodies are changing in ways that make intensity work against them instead of working for them.

14:11 SPEAKER_01: It burns fat directly.

14:13 SPEAKER_01: It keeps your hunger regulated.

14:14 SPEAKER_01: It lowers your stress hormone.

14:16 SPEAKER_01: It's sustainable.

14:17 SPEAKER_01: It is something you can start today without buying anything else, signing up for anything else, or rearranging your whole life.

14:24 SPEAKER_01: You are not starting over at this point.

14:26 SPEAKER_01: You are starting smarter.

14:27 SPEAKER_01: You are taking where you are and just adding to it.

14:31 SPEAKER_01: And that is the different thing.

14:33 SPEAKER_01: All right, ladies, if this episode resonated with you, will you do me a favor and share it with one woman in your life who needs to hear it?

14:39 SPEAKER_01: Maybe she's stuck.

14:40 SPEAKER_01: Maybe she's tired of trying things that don't work.

14:43 SPEAKER_01: Maybe she just needs someone to tell her that there is a simpler way.

14:46 SPEAKER_01: Send her this episode.

14:47 SPEAKER_01: And if you have not left me a review yet, it just takes 30 seconds.

14:50 SPEAKER_01: And it generally helps more women find this show.

14:53 SPEAKER_01: And I would just greatly appreciate it.

14:55 SPEAKER_01: And you can also join my weight loss in midlife method.

14:58 SPEAKER_01: It's just me and you, eight weeks of coaching one-on-one, where I help you find out what's keeping you stuck and creating a system, plans, nutrition, everything to help you move forward and lose the weight that you want to lose and feel great about yourself.

15:12 SPEAKER_01: All right, ladies, thank you so much for being here, for choosing to invest in your health today.

15:16 SPEAKER_01: These small moments of care that you're taking, that's going to build your real confidence, your lasting strength so that you can live your best life.

15:23 SPEAKER_01: All right, ladies, remember that you are beautiful and you are strong.

15:27 SPEAKER_01: Until next time, keep showing up for yourself, keep celebrating those small wins.

15:30 SPEAKER_01: And remember, one choice, one change, one meal at a time.

15:34 SPEAKER_01: I hope you have an amazing week.

15:41 SPEAKER_01: Before you go, I have one quick favor to ask.

15:44 SPEAKER_01: If this episode empowered you, it would mean so much to me if you could help me write the word.

15:48 SPEAKER_01: So more quick and lose back, so unbelievable.