LowCarb is not zero carbs! Carbs are not bad. Eating LowCarb is not restriction. You don’t have to count carbs to eat low-carb. The low-calorie and low-fat diet craze that we’ve been attached to for decades has been an epic failure and has driven the epidemic of obesity, insulin resistance, metabolic syndrome, and all of the other psychosocial and economic costs that have come along with this epidemic.  Let’s drop it and our diet culture and thinking like a book.  

We get to move forward with curiosity and the power of choosing for ourselves.  When I started my weight loss, health transformation and life coaching journey in September, 2017, I had no clue that it was going to include a LowCarb lifestyle.  I was literally “Clueless”, which is a great movie if you haven’t seen it.  By the way, Paul Rudd was at KU when I was there and Alicia Silverstone is on TikTok a lot these days.  Paul Rudd going to KU at the same time as me and that one time I saw Jack Black in the Orlando Airport Hotel at the elevator at 1am are my only claims to fame.  

Cutting Carbs Is Not One Size Fits All

Cutting your processed carbs is not a cure all.  It’s not one size fits all.  You get to take an individualized approach.  If you are taking medications, you will want to consult with your physician.  Remember, I am not giving medical advice and I am not your doctor.  

Monday Macros: What is Essential nutrition?  In other words what macros do our bodies need to function? 

Essential Macronutrients:

Our bodies require us to consume protein and fat to function.  Protein and fat are essential nutrition for us to live.  Essential nutrition means that our bodies can’t make them on their own.  Studies have shown our bodies can produce glucose (energy source from carbohyrdrates) for energy even when we are not consuming carbohydrates. 

A well-formulated carbohydrate-restricted diet includes adequate energy, protein, fat, vitamins, and minerals. With adequate protein and fat, the dietary requirement for carbohydrate is zero (Institute of Medicine [U.S.], 2005; Westman, 2002). 

Even when no dietary carbohydrate is consumed, glucose-dependent tissues are able to utilize glucose produced through gluconeogenesis and glycogenolysis (Westman et al., 2007). Because dietary carbohydrate is not essential, it need not be a primary focus for certain therapeutic nutritional interventions. 

Tuesday LowCarb LevelUp: Different levels of carbohydrate reduction Dietary carbohydrate restriction can take many forms. The term “low-carbohydrate diet” lacks specificity and has been used to refer to carbohydrate intake levels that are low only in relation to population averages and/or measured as a percentage of kcals, but do not reach the therapeutic levels of restriction referred to here. 

Therapeutic carbohydrate reduction refers to dietary interventions measured in absolute amounts (grams/day) that fall below 130g of dietary carbohydrate per day, which is the U.S. Dietary Reference Intake (DRI) for carbohydrate (see Institute of Medicine [U.S.], 2005). The following definitions for levels of carbohydrate restriction are based on protocols currently in use or on definitions found in the literature: 

• VLCK (very low-carbohydrate ketogenic) diets recommend 30g or less of dietary carbohydrate per day (Hallberg et al., 2018). 
• LCK (low-carbohydrate ketogenic) diets recommend 30-50g of dietary carbohydrate per day (Saslow et al., 2017). 
• RC (reduced-carbohydrate) diets recommend 50-130g of dietary carbohydrate per day, a level that is higher than levels listed above and lower than the U.S. DRI for carbohydrate. 
• MC-CR (moderate-carbohydrate, calorie-restricted) diets recommend more than 130g of dietary carbohydrate per day with a range of 45-65% of daily kcals coming from carbohydrate (“Carbohydrate Counting & Diabetes | NIDDK,” n.d.). In most cases, kcals are also restricted to maintain energy balance or to achieve a deficit for weight loss. This dietary intervention reflects the amount of dietary carbohydrate typically found in “carbohydrate counting” interventions given to many people with type 2 diabetes. 

What are Net carbs Wednesday: Definitions of carbohydrate intake levels may refer to either total carbohydrate content or to non-fiber grams of carbohydrate, as fiber is not typically metabolized to glucose. Using food labels or nutrition data, the calculation of total carbohydrate minus fiber is referred to as “net carbohydrate.” As no comparative studies of “total” vs. “net” carbohydrate have been done, clinical experience may inform which approach is best for patients.

Protein Power Thursday: In contrast to carbohydrate, protein is an essential macronutrient because essential amino acids are unable to be made by the body and need to be provided by ingested protein. Patients may choose an omnivorous or plant-based approach in order to acquire adequate protein intake. 

The Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) intake for adults is 0.8g protein per kilogram of ideal body weight per day; however, this may be an underestimate of actual protein needs for many individuals (Layman et al., 2015; Phillips, Chevalier, & Leidy, 2016). When carbohydrate is restricted, dietary sources of protein and fat provide kcal in addition to providing the structural components of cells and tissue, therefore additional protein intake may be necessary, up to 2.0g protein per kilogram of ideal body weight. Even at levels above the RDA, protein intake on a low-carbohydrate diets typically remains within the acceptable macronutrient distribution range (AMDR) of 10-35% of kcals.

Yummy Healthy Fats Friday: Therapeutic carbohydrate restriction creates a metabolic milieu in which the body can use fat as a primary source of energy (see also 3.1). Dietary fat provides essential fatty acids and is needed for the absorption of certain micronutrients (fat-soluble vitamins A,D, E and K). Foods that contain a combination of fatty acids—including monounsaturated, polyunsaturated and saturated fats—are recommended. As it has not been clearly determined that saturated fats in foods contribute to adverse health outcomes (Forouhi, Krauss, Taubes, & Willett, 2018), foods considered to be significant sources of dietary saturated fat are not usually restricted for this intervention. However, trans fats should be avoided. Trans fats are thought to contribute to disease through a number of potential mechanisms (Remig et al., 2010)

Saturday LowCarb take-out guide: The cool thing about eating lowcarb or trending lowcarb or whatever you decide to do is that you are adding in more protein and fat and will then feel more full.  Your blood sugars are stabile when eating lowcarb and you don’t feel deprived. 
So, don’t worry if you are going out to eat.  Many restaurants have lots of options that are actually LowCarb.  Check out the menu ahead of time and remember ABC Awareness Before Choice.  You’re going out for the experience and you can be assured you will eat well and feel satiated or satisfied.  

Sunday keep it super simple LowCarb planning – do you want to meal prep, plan one day ahead of time? No problem. You get to choose.  What works best for you and your life?  Just create some constraints around the planning and don’t overconsume recipes and get overwhelmed.  You don’t want to change everything up.  That’s not necessary.  Can you take the processed carbs and sugar out of what you usually eat for family meals and snacks?  Try a LowCarb Swap like a lettuce wrap or cheese wrap and make sure you are planning for protein, fat every time you eat. 

A few other talking points related to LowCarb:

Are there good and bad carbs? No, just food that serves you and food that doesn’t.  

Back to LowCarb. It’s a lifestyle, not a diet.  It’s simply eating quality food that serves our body.  Our bodies were not made to be exposed to all of the processed carbs added to our foods. 

Watch the Video Replay

Up Next: Week 10 – Self Love Superpower

Previous: Week 8 – Positive Body Image

Reverse Your Insulin Resistance Challenge Table of Contents

Week 1: Introduction

Week 2: Why Do We Overeat?

Week 3: Coping with Food Cravings and Urges

Week 4: How Much Physical Activity Is Enough?

Week 5: Social Media Friend Drama

Week 6: Get to Your Natural Weight Set Point

Week 7: Your Metabolic Health

Week 8: Positive Body Image

Week 9: Diffusing Low Carb Confusion

Week 10: Self Love Superpower

Week 11: Stress Less, Sleep More

Week 12: Final Challenge – You Are Lovable, Always

Welcome to what I believe is the most important and foundational principle you will learn when it comes to life coaching, reaching goals, and chasing your dreams.  

CoachU Monday

First, what I’m going to teach you isn’t anything new. Psychologists, philosophers, scientists, religious leaders, have known and taught this through the ages and that is, drumroll please, your thoughts create your feelings and your feelings create your actions or behaviors.  There you go!  We’re done.  No. It’s not as simple as just knowing that your thoughts create your reality or that your thoughts create your feelings and your feelings or emotions are what move you to action or inaction to either make yourself feel or not feel a certain way.

Thoughts Anyone Tuesday

So, what are thoughts?  

A Rainbow that comes and goes, a sentence in your mind, a cloud going by. They’re really like vapor.  Our brains offer up thousands and thousands of thoughts a day.  Some thoughts are interesting.  Some thoughts are wacky.  Some are sad. Some are neutral.  We are not our thoughts.  I think that’s a huge relief because sometimes I’m like, that’s just nonsense.  Good thing I know I’m not my thoughts.  

Thoughts create your feelings. Thoughts can be triggered by circumstances.  

Your current thinking creates your current results.  Your current thoughts create your current reality!

Beliefs are powerful thoughts Wednesday

So, where do we start?  First, let’s start with a problem.  Maybe you have a problem with a relationship in your life, or something going on at school, or your weight isn’t where you want it to be, or you’re stuck in procrastination or get overwhelmed with self-doubt and perfectionism.  Maybe, you just want to start feeling better?  Maybe you have a seemingly impossible goal you really want to achieve that feels like a mountain and you don’t think you have the equipment or what it takes to get you to the top.  What I’m going to teach you is that the only thing in your way is your thoughts.  And, it’s not really your thoughts as much as it is lack of awareness of the thoughts that create whatever feeling you are having or the problem is you are so attached to the thought that it’s almost like a belief coming up for you.

All together now Thursday

Let’s talk about circumstances, thoughts and feelings.  It’s a helpful way to organize our mind and to create self-awareness so that you can see how It’s so cool to become a powerful observer of your mind.  Just be curious.  Don’t worry if this sounds like we’re thinking about thinking.  That is pretty much what we’re doing.  Just having awareness of thoughts and not judging them, but being a curious observer of your amazing mind is so powerful.  

How do you want to feel Friday

So, what about feelings?  This is so important!  Feelings and emotions are everything.  It’s our human experience.  

Thoughts create our feelings, which are just a vibration in our body.  

You can decide how you want to feel and then choose a thought on purpose that creates that feeling! How cool is that? 

Believing on purpose Saturday

We are not our thoughts. Like I said, most of our thoughts are just programmed or unconscious. You can also create deliberate thoughts, that are choices.  It’s not like a quick switch.  We have to program that thought in our brain and into our life with repetition. You are creating a new neural pathway.  It’s called mental rehearsal, practicing believing a new thought on purpose. 

What’s a belief?  It’s a powerful thought, that is on a loop that we choose to be true.  Maybe, your beliefs serve you and you are going to hold onto them.  

Put it on the Result line Sunday

Notice what you’re thinking. We don’t have awareness of our thoughts usually.  We are attached to the thoughts, and not questioning them. We don’t realize that we are not our thoughts.  Again, thoughts are a rainbow that come and go. We are not our thoughts.  Thoughts are optional.  

You can’t just start a new thought, but having awareness of the thoughts or thought that is coming up creating your feeling, actions, and your results, helps you to start shifting to on purpose creating thoughts that create the result you want.  Learning to be aware and then let go takes practice and starts with just recognizing, then pausing, allowing any feelings or emotions that are coming up for you.  

Notice how that thinking creates your feelings, actions, and results.

Once you truly understand that it’s your thinking causing all the rest, decide to change.

Decide what you want your new result to be.

What will you need to do, feel, and think to create the result?

Try this on as a new thought to create your new results:  I create a positive body image with my thoughts. A positive body image is always available to me.  

Watch the Video Replay

Up Next: Week 9 – Diffusing Low Carb Confusion
Previous: Week 7 – Your Metabolic Health

Reverse Your Insulin Resistance Challenge Table of Contents

Week 1: Introduction

Week 2: Why Do We Overeat?

Week 3: Coping with Food Cravings and Urges

Week 4: How Much Physical Activity Is Enough?

Week 5: Social Media Friend Drama

Week 6: Get to Your Natural Weight Set Point

Week 7: Your Metabolic Health

Week 8: Positive Body Image

Week 9: Diffusing Low Carb Confusion

Week 10: Self Love Superpower

Week 11: Stress Less, Sleep More

Week 12: Final Challenge – You Are Lovable, Always

I’m going to give you a warning. This is all super helpful information.  It’s a powerful article.  I’m going to be disrupting the status quo that clearly hasn’t worked and also I will be coaching you to create a different way forward.  Are you ready?  It’s data and information.  I am not your doctor, so always make sure you are seeking the advice of your medical doctor.  

What Is Obesity (Nufnu)?

Obesity (nufnu) is a multi-factorial disease medical, endocrine, environment, genetic/epigenetic, immune, and neurobehavioral components. 

Obesity (Nufnu) related disease risks may vary depending on your metabolic health.  

How Nufnu Relates to Metabolic Syndrome and IR

Metabolic consequences of nufnu include the components of metabolic syndrome plus the inflammatory and thrombotic states.  There’s more inflammation and increased risk for thrombosis (blood clotting).

Type 2 diabetes is closely associated with nufnu and begins with insulin resistance that starts 10 to 15 years before diagnosis.  This is why I’m so ready to reverse IR in teens.  Just because your HgbA1c and fasting blood sugar is normal, doesn’t mean that you don’t have IR or aren’t at risk for type 2 diabetes.  Again, lots of information. 

Focus on Metabolic Health, Not Weight

This is your opportunity to start to focus on your metabolic health and not stay fixated on weight.  If you focus on improving your metabolic health, and I’m going to teach you how to do that, your body will reach a natural weight set point.  

So, let’s take a big breath in through our noses and out again and activate our parasympathetic calming nervous system.  Relax. You are worthy of your healthy life. 

Again, I’m talking about metabolic health this week in the RYIR challenge.  What is metabolic health?  Where do I go for more information?  Check out “The Obesity Code” by Dr. Jason Fung and also go to the Society of Metabolic Health Practitioners or smhp.org.  I’m a founding member.  

First, there’s not a real consensus with these definitions and criteria.  I really think this is a helpful and productive way to think about health and how to reverse insulin resistance and its metabolic health effects.  It’s a way to think about it that actually calls out the problem and offers a true solution.  

MUO and MHO and MUL are definitions used to describe Metabolically Unhealthy nufnu and Metabolically Healthy nufnu and Metabolically Unhealthy Lean.  We have to stop thinking that weight equals health or that it’s all cause and effect.  Our bodies and brains are complex systems.  

Your metabolic health is important.  Many of you are tired and bored with focusing on a number on the scale, and don’t have any problems and at the same time your health is important to you. This is where our society gets really messed up and confused.  

I am helping you create a metabolic health approach and that may fit more into your Future Self vision and feel more empowering and also help get you out of fixed, limited, unfun, restrictive diet thinking.  

What is metabolic health? Metabolic health is defined as having ideal levels of blood sugar, triglycerides, HDL or “good” cholesterol, blood pressure, and waist circumference.  These relate to your risk for heart disease, diabetes, and stroke.  

That brings me to metabolic syndrome.  Have you heard of metabolic syndrome?  You may have heard of metabolic syndrome.  I have taken care of many teens who have metabolic syndrome.  

Playlist break: “Born to Run” by the Boss

Playlist break: “C’mon N’ Ride It” by Quad City DJ’s

Be Informed and Make Your Own Healthy Decisions

If you get your information from Google and you follow the guidelines for Prevention, it’s really just the bullet point status quo recommendations.  Let’s take a more fun and interesting and effective approach to improving your metabolic health.  We all need more than bullet point recommendations, especially the recommendations that keep saying the same stuff over and over that hasn’t worked.  

Playlist break: “Speed of Sound” by Coldplay

There is power in knowledge. Get internal and make your own autonomous decisions.  Since I coach teens and I’m a Mom to three young people and I’m also someone who hates when someone tells me what to do, I can tell you there is so much power in getting internal and making your own choices. Many of us adults are like this. I think we all are. 

The Week 7 Reverse Your Insulin Resistance Challenge

Monday Mythbusters:  Calories are not the key to improving your metabolic health. It’s not that simple. Unfortunately, even though we can look around and see that simple calories in calories out thinking, just Eat Less Move More thinking, remains the standard of care in medicine.  It often doesn’t work.  It keeps us stuck in diet culture.  That’s been beat in our heads for ages — to look at the back of a box and the nutritional information, the fat, the sodium, etc.. We are used to eating our food like this, in processed fashion where its value is determined by calories. Another false notion beat into our heads is that we need to count calories and burn as much as we eat through exercise to be a healthy weight.

Here’s the good news: simply eating less does not make you lose weight. “The low-fat, low-calorie diet has already been proven to fail,” said Dr. Jason Fung in his book The Obesity Code. You don’t have to eat less fat or calories to lose weight, but you do need to look at the quality and composition of your food and one way to improve the quality of your food is to cut down on processed carbs.

Let’s Learn more about Insulin Resistance Tuesday: Our bodies are so incredible and interesting.  Don’t fight with your body.  Our bodies are built to conserve energy.  Our bodies were not meant to be exposed to the added sugars in our food system.  Our brains are conditioned to crave sugar because of the added sugars in processed foods.  Obesity is hormonal and not simply caloric. When we eat carbohydrates or sugars, insulin is released to bring the glucose into the cells. Insulin binds to a receptor, like a lock and key, and then glucose can be transported into the cells. Nutrients like carbohydrates raise insulin the most, whereas fats release the least amount of insulin. Every time you eat or snack, you are raising your insulin levels. Excess sugar is stored as fat. Your body can become resistant to insulin. Insulin is linked to other diseases and comorbidities. For example, if your body builds resistance to insulin, you may become diabetic.

What is metabolic syndrome Wednesday? Metabolic syndrome is a constellation of findings and includes high blood pressure, high blood sugar or glucose, increased body fat around the waist, and abnormal cholesterol levels (HDL and Triglycerides) and is linked to increased risk for type 2 diabetes and heart disease.  About 1/3 of U.S. adults have metabolic syndrome.  Metabolic Syndrome is related to Insulin Resistance.  I’ve taken care of many teens with metabolic syndrome.  

Playlist break: “We are the champions” by Queen 

The risk factors for metabolic syndrome are: age, ethnicity, obesity, family history of diabetes, and if you’ve ever had nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, polycystic ovary syndrome or sleep apnea.  

If you have one risk factor, you should be assessed for the others. 

Gathering your metabolic health data Thursday:  What’s your risk for metabolic syndrome?  Metabolic syndrome is a complex condition.  These are important measures to assess your metabolic health. There are four main components of metabolic syndrome and four measurements: Blood Pressure, Waist Circumference, Blood glucose (sugar), and Fasting lipid panel (cholesterol)

Playlist break: “Rock the Casbah” by The Clash

How to think differently Friday?  You can always improve your metabolic health.  First, you have to reject diet culture and get out of restriction, on again and off again thinking.  You can’t look for answers outside of yourself.  So, this amazing information helps you get unstuck. Also, know your risks.  You are gathering data and getting information.  How important is this?  What’s my level of confidence?  What’s my readiness for change?  Remember, small consistent changes are what you need.  If you are a teen or parent of a teen, you’ll want to Join the IME member Community.  I’ll coach you to create the results YOU want and I will meet you where you are and always have your back along the way.  Also, remember, I never coach on anything I haven’t already gone through.  

Playlist break: “Cars” by Gary Numan

Small changes create big metabolic health rewards Saturday? What you decide on is what works.  It’s that simple.  But, small changes are very important and over time can create long-lasting improvements in your metabolic health. 

How consistent should I be Sunday? Remember when we talked about slaying your goals in week 6? If not, you may want to go back and review.  To take massive action doesn’t mean you are changing everything up all at once.  To transform or improve your metabolic health, what you need to be intentional about is showing up every day for yourself, create self-trust by keeping promises you make to yourself, having your back by being kind to yourself, and doing the thought work when you’re stuck. 

Final playlist break: “Party in the U.S.A.” by Miley Cyrus

Get ready for week 8 where I’m going to coach you to coach yourself! Now, this is the most powerful work!

Watch the Video Replay

Up Next: Week 8 – Positive Body Image

Previous: Week 6 – Get to Your Natural Weight Set Point

Reverse Your Insulin Resistance Challenge Table of Contents

Week 1: Introduction

Week 2: Why Do We Overeat?

Week 3: Coping with Food Cravings and Urges

Week 4: How Much Physical Activity Is Enough?

Week 5: Social Media Friend Drama

Week 6: Get to Your Natural Weight Set Point

Week 7: Your Metabolic Health

Week 8: Positive Body Image

Week 9: Diffusing Low Carb Confusion

Week 10: Self Love Superpower

Week 11: Stress Less, Sleep More

Week 12: Final Challenge – You Are Lovable, Always

I can’t believe we are almost half-way through the amazingness of the 12 week Reverse Your Insulin Resistance Challenge! I’m having a lot of fun showing up on YouTube, IME Community podcast and every day on TikTok doing videos and coaching on TikTok Live.  

If you have been participating, let me know how it’s going.  You can email me at drkarlaactivistmd@imecommunity.com.  

Are you a teen or parent of a teen who wants to LevelUp and Join IME member Community to have access to my coaching on zoom?  

By the way, I’m thinking about all of you as you are headed back to school.  This morning was my son’s first day of High School and also his 15th birthday.  He’s so hilarious.  I have three very funny kids.  It’s weird to call them kids since they are 20, 17 and 15.  I hope your school year gets off to a great start.  I’m sending lots of positive vibes out into the world to you.  

Also, I’m thinking about everyone and COVID as we are in another very serious wave of the pandemic.  Health systems are completely stressed, ICU’s are full across the country, and it’s very serious.  I want to encourage you to get the vaccine if you are able to. My thoughts and prayers are with everyone. This is so very tough. 

Last week was Week 5, “I Gotta Feeling” where I taught you to give yourself permission to feel your emotions instead of buffering with food.  What an important skill.  I love “More than a feeling” by Boston.  Each week builds on the next, but you can start this week and get going on slaying your goals and learning the truth about your body’s natural weight set point.  

Drown Out Diet Culture – You Are Not Stuck!

I wasn’t planning on addressing this, but there’s so much confusion, especially on TikTok, where creators are saying you are stuck at your current weight.  Nope. Nope. Nope.  Now, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with staying at your current weight.  Let’s drown out our society’s ridiculous noise that perpetuates diet culture and isn’t healthy mentally or physically for any of us.  So, if you don’t want to make changes.  No problem.  You get to decide.  If you do want to create a healthier life, you can start wherever you want.  Fueling our bodies with healthful balanced  food that serves us is possible and there’s some great data about that. 

I recently saw an article in the NYT about a recent study out that looked at metabolism and is disrupting what we thought about metabolism as we age.  So cool!  There are four stages of metabolism in our lifetimes.  This study is definitely disrupting the status quo thinking about metabolism. 

Physicians Breaking the Mold to Help You Find Your Natural Weight Set Point

There’s only a handful of us doctors across the country and actually, globally, who are disrupting what doesn’t work.  We don’t take sponsorships or ad money.  There’s some amazing data.  There’s so much frickin’ confusion out there, it makes me want to pull my hair out.  Listen to experts, especially those of us physicians who are willing to speak out, say where healthcare has gone wrong, and are helping as many as people as possible to create a healthier path.  What’s also powerful, is that there are some of us physicians who have also gone through our own weight loss journey.  The importance is the focus on metabolic health and reversing insulin resistance.  You can check out the Society of Metabolic Health Practitioners website at smhp.org.  I’m a founding member and proud of it. 

Our bodies are status quo homeostasis machines.  Our bodies adapt to what we are fed.  Sure, it’s more complex than that.  Making the change to cut back on processed carbs and then being consistent over time is going to show some major improvements in your metabolic health and help you to reverse insulin resistance. Let’s get to goal slaying. 

The Secret to Slaying Your Healthy Weight Goals

So, I’m a major goal slayer.  My top strength is Activator and I can grind out a goal with diligence and persistence like nobody’s business.  I can also make it pretty grueling on myself.  I’ve learned the tools of self compassion and I created Make it fun to get it done and learned that goal slaying can be fun and also it’s not being hard on ourselves that works.  It’s self-love superpower. When you learn to be kind to yourself no matter what and have your own back, it’s so powerful.  You can do anything.  All of this is practice. 

I’ll tell you the secret to any goal I’ve slayed. The key to any goal slaying is staying with your vision.  It’s an elevated approach.  It’s not about the how.  It’s like looking up and taking a 40,000 foot view.  You are the butterfly and not the caterpillar.  

Expect to feel self-doubt, confusion and overwhelm, fear of failure, victim and lots of discomfort along the way.  There’s nothing going wrong.  Discomfort is the currency of our dreams. 

Let’s get going with the week!

Monday Goal Slaying Motivation:  Choose the goal that commands your attention! What’s your biggest pain point? What’s the biggest obstacle in your way?  What’s the trade off?  Experience temporary discomfort now while achieving your goals and dreams or the long-term discomfort of not achieving your dream?   

Choose Your Goal Tuesday :  Pick a 30-day goal.  Choose one goal at a time.  I’m sure you’re really excited, but choosing one goal at a time is very important.  Otherwise, you will most likely indulge in overwhelm and that will keep you from taking action on any of your goals.   Choose a goal that motivates you, so how important is achieving this goal and is there value in achieving this goal?  How does this goal fit into the bigger picture of my life?  Am I interested in the outcome?  Drink more water? Cut back on processed carbs?  Crush your sugar cravings?  Work on self-trust eating?  Get more organized?  Increase your fitness?  Get better sleep?  What’s your goal and why do you want to achieve it?  Why will I do it no matter what and who has your back as you are reaching your goal?  

SMART Goals Wednesday:  What’s a measurable goal?  You get to decide how you measure your success. What’s SMART stand for when it comes to setting goals? SMART is an acronym used for any type of goal setting.  SMART goals help set you up for major goal slaying success! SMART stands for Specific (make your goal clear and figure out exactly where you will end up when you have achieved your goal) /Measurable (It’s important to figure out how you will measure your success so that you know when and can celebrate when you’ve achieved your goal.  By this time, I will have completed and created (insert goal).  I will know I’m done because of _______ You can also create your own measures of success.  Did I show up as my authentic self?  Did I coach with compassion?  Did I learn something new?  Did I hold space? Did I have fun? How? .    /Attainable (make sure your goal is possible, If you set a goal that is outside of your realm of possibility, your brain will use that as evidence to criticize and that will cut down on your confidence.  /Relevant means that the goal matters in the bigger picture of your life /Time Bound means you can achieve your outcome or goal in a certain period of time.

Take Massive Action Thursday:  Now that you have your goal and your SMART goals, it’s time to get going.  Self-trust is created by taking action.  You are learning to show up for a goal you set for yourself.  That’s super powerful.  Write down everything you need to do to in the next 30 days to get to your goal.  Break it down into steps.  

Make it Fun to Get it Done Friday: Since this is IME Community, I’m going to teach you my entire philosophy which is to Make it Fun to Get it Done.  Start by owning your goal, then get yourself all amped up to take action like Dwight from The Office before a sales call when he was jamming out on air guitar in the backseat while Jim waited patiently outside the car for Dwight to do his thing.  

Superhero Saturday: Self-love is your superpower to achieve your goals and dreams.  Some of you may not have even heard of Superman.  You should watch the movie, “Superman” with Christopher Reeves, best Superman ever.  Some of the special effects in that movie are hilarious.  Clark Kent was Superman’s version of a nerdy base level human.  When the world needed saving Clark Kent would go into a phone booth and come out as hottie Superman.  Well, you are your own superhero.  You are able to go into a phone booth and put on your self-love superpower cape and go save the world.  No pressure!

Sunday Strategizing:  What are the obstacles in your way? What’s in between you and your goal?  What’s hard about your goal?  What do you need help with?  Now, turn your list of obstacles into strategies.  You can turn your obstacles into strategies which clears your path to achieve your goals.  A strategy could be a skill you need to develop.  Here’s an example: If your goal is to eat sugar in moderation, one obstacle may be “I have lots of urges and cravings to eat sugar.” Strategy examples are: “Even though my sugar cravings are conditioned, my brain can be conditioned to create a healthier pathway.” “ I will create a pause when I have an urge or craving to eat sugar.” “ I will keep an urge jar and only count my wins.”  

Now, get it all on the calendar and mark off your wins! You’ve got this!

Watch the Video Replay

Up Next: Week 7 – Your Metabolic Health

Previous: Week 5 – Social Media Friend Drama

Reverse Your Insulin Resistance Challenge Table of Contents

Week 1: Introduction

Week 2: Why Do We Overeat?

Week 3: Coping with Food Cravings and Urges

Week 4: How Much Physical Activity Is Enough?

Week 5: Social Media Friend Drama

Week 6: Get to Your Natural Weight Set Point

Week 7: Your Metabolic Health

Week 8: Positive Body Image

Week 9: Diffusing Low Carb Confusion

Week 10: Self Love Superpower

Week 11: Stress Less, Sleep More

Week 12: Final Challenge – You Are Lovable, Always

Coach:  How did you feel when she blocked you on IG?  

Teen: “I don’t know.”  

Coach: Can you describe it?  Where is it in your body?  What color is it?  

Teen: “I don’t know really.  I just felt upset.”

Coach: Why did you feel upset?

Teen: “Because I just did. I have no idea why she blocked me. I didn’t do anything.  I can’t think of any reason why she blocked me.”

Coach:  What do you do when you feel upset?

Teen: “I was doing so great before she blocked me and then had so many more cravings for food and ate so much and felt out of control again.” 

Defining and Accepting Emotions

In IME Community, teens are learning the skill to allow emotions instead of numbing out with food, how to show up as a friend to themselves first, and how to show up and where to put their attentional focus on social media. 

I love helping teens to stop self-judging, to have the self-confidence to achieve their health goals and create a big magic dream for their future. 

So, what is an emotion or feeling?  It’s a vibration in your body created by your thoughts.  Your thoughts create your feelings.  

I can’t believe it’s already Week 5: “I Gotta Feeling” of the Reverse Your Insulin Resistance Challenge!

This week is for all of us, social media friend drama or life drama.  

This week, I’m coaching you to give yourself permission to allow all your human feelings and emotions. 

If you are an adult, don’t you wish you had learned these skills when you were a teen? 

Week 5 Reverse Your Insulin Resistance Challenge Plan

Are you ready? Let’s go!

Mood Ring Monday!  Do you remember mood rings?  I had several that turned my fingers green.  I was obsessed with checking in on the current color of my many mood rings to find out what my mood was at any given moment and if my many mood rings were in sync.  

Mood rings are a perfect metaphor for how our culture externalizes our emotions.  It’s just like our society to teach us to watch the changing color of a mood ring instead of giving us permission and teaching the skills to allow us to get internal, check in with ourselves throughout the day and create emotional awareness.  

What’s your mood this Monday? 

Try on a metaphor Tuesday! As someone who has had to learn the skill of allowing my emotions, and as a pediatrician for 25 years, and a Mom of 20, 17, and 14 year-old humans, and mostly from what I’ve learned through the amazingness of coaching teens, I know it’s super tough for all of us to describe how we are feeling.  

One tool I use when I coach teens who are stuck is to create a metaphor for their feelings and emotions. 

What’s a metaphor that works for you to describe how you are feeling?  Calm like in a swimming pool, sad like a weighted blanket is on you, excited like it’s your birthday? 

I’m sure with school starting no one feels excited. Well, I always did.  Nerd alert.

Welcome all emotions Wednesday! In our society and culture, we are not taught the skills or even given permission to feel our human emotions.  That leads us to think there’s something wrong when we perceive a negative emotion, so we end up reacting, resisting, or avoiding, instead of allowing all emotions to pass through us, so we can be present in the moments of our lives.  

Whether you are resisting, avoiding or reacting, your emotions are there under the surface or buried deep.  

When you learn to allow and even welcome all your human emotions, you find a freedom you never had.  You find freedom from buffering with food.  

Ask yourself, “What would it feel like if I welcomed all my human emotions?”

Don’t ride the Thought Train Thursday!  Thoughts create your feelings, but that doesn’t mean you have to do anything other than recognize feelings and how emotions come up in your body. Don’t overthink your feelings.  Don’t spend a lot of time chasing down the thought train of what’s creating your feelings.  Later, you will be able to do more thought awareness, but recognition of feelings is key at the beginning. 

How are you feeling Friday?  When was the last time someone asked you, “How are you feeling?” 

Did they truly listen and care about your answer? You can listen to yourself and care about your answer.  

“I care.”- This is a super cheesy line Luke Skywalker says in Star Wars.  It’s Mark Hamill’s super cheesy delivery that gets me every time.

So, I will ask you on this find Friday,

How are you feeling? 

Permission to Feel Saturday! Do you get critical and judge yourself for feeling sad, anxious, tired, disappointed?  

Recently, I’ve been feeling disappointment, but instead of allowing the feeling of disappointment, I was depleting my energy stores by resisting it.  I was making feeling disappointment mean that I was disappointed in myself and that didn’t feel believable.  

So, through coaching, I created a space, took some breaths and decided to say to myself, “I feel disappointed.” Then, I left it at that.  It felt empty and gray and hollow to me.  I just accepted I felt the human emotion of disappointment and didn’t make it mean anything else.  

Ask yourself, “How can I give myself permission to feel all of my emotions and not judge myself for having a human emotion?”

Sunday Mindfulness. I coach teens to recognize what they cause and control, which is mainly deciding how they want to show up and where they put their attentional focus, and that all feelings are part of the human journey and there’s nothing going wrong when they perceive a negative emotion.  

What would it feel like to respond to your emotions instead of reacting, avoiding or resisting? What mindfulness practices help you calm your mind so you can respond instead of reacting, avoiding or resisting?

Watch the Video Replay

Up Next: Week 6 – Slay Your Goals to Get to Your Natural Weight Set Point

Previous: Week 4 – How Much Physical Activity Is Enough?

Reverse Your Insulin Resistance Challenge Table of Contents

Week 1: Introduction

Week 2: Why Do We Overeat?

Week 3: Coping with Food Cravings and Urges

Week 4: How Much Physical Activity Is Enough?

Week 5: Social Media Friend Drama

Week 6: Get to Your Natural Weight Set Point

Week 7: Your Metabolic Health

Week 8: Positive Body Image

Week 9: Diffusing Low Carb Confusion

Week 10: Self Love Superpower

Week 11: Stress Less, Sleep More

Week 12: Final Challenge – You Are Lovable, Always