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Something I haven’t talked about much on the podcast yet are the numerous non life-threatening, yet frustrating health problems I’ve faced over the course of my life. In fact, I actually dove deep into this area about 10 years ago and got a nutrition coaching certification!

And after working with private styling clients over the years, I witnessed firsthand that so many women are facing debilitating health battles, struggling to lose weight, and generally feeling unwell. So while my passion is personal style and helping you build a wardrobe you love, I also know what it means to feel good on the inside and see that confidence and vibrancy radiate on the outside.

While this isn’t my typical episode, I think it’s important to share about my most recent health struggle, how I overcame it, and what I did to lose “the last 10 pounds” without even trying! My weight was NOT my primary concern, but losing the few excess pounds I was holding onto over the last few years has been icing on the cake (no pun intended). My clothes fit more comfortably and, more importantly, my physical symptoms are gone I did this without dieting, tracking my meals, and working out far less than I normally do.

I invite you to listen to today’s episode as I open up and share this very personal journey with you!

A Quick Disclaimer Before We Dive In

I’m not one to focus on the scale. I love empowering women to embrace where they are and all of the incredible things our bodies can do. I generally err on the body positive movement side, but I also want us to take care of ourselves. When we nourish and move our bodies properly, we have more energy and endorphins. It makes me think of that line from Legally Blonde, “Exercise gives you endorphins. Endorphins make you happy. Happy just don’t shoot their husbands, they just don’t.”

There are proven benefits to eating clean and to exercising and if you listen to my episode with intuitive eating coach, Victoria Yates, then you’ve heard my thoughts on this.

I believe that we need to both care for ourselves and be kind to ourselves. I’m going to share more about that and how I got started on this latest health journey as we get further into the conversation, but I’m going to start off by saying that you do NOT have to lose “the last 10 pounds” or hit your goal weight or any of that.

And for me, it wasn’t about my weight at all.

I recently lost 10 pounds, probably over the last two months or so, without even trying. I did not diet. I did not deprive myself of any foods that I love. I didn’t stress over my meals or count calories or keep a food diary. I’ve even been exercising much less than I normally do over the summer.

The reason I decided to finally share about this on the podcast is because I’ve told some of my friends about what I’ve been doing. A couple of them decided to do the same thing, and they’ve also been having amazing results. So please understand, I’m not selling you anything. There is no link for you to click on, it’s not a gimmick or a program, it’s just what I’ve been doing differently to take care of myself. And because I know people in my personal life have been really interested in this and some of them are now doing the same thing and having similar experiences, I just feel like I would be doing you a disservice to withhold this and not talk about it on HER Style Podcast.

How My Health Journey Began

I’m going to tell you what I have been doing and how all of this happened, but first we need to rewind. I want to take you back to the very beginning of this story.

As I mentioned in the intro, I’ve had health issues my entire life, from being born as a very colicky baby to my early days in elementary school. When I was in second grade, I had tons of stomach testing done. I had so much anxiety. I never felt well. My stomach hurt all the time. This lasted through high school, when I spent many days as soon as I got home from school balled up on the couch in so much discomfort from having intense stomach pain.

It took me a really long time to figure out that a large part of my problem was a gluten sensitivity. I’m not celiac, but I am very sensitive to gluten. If I have too much of it, I have this horrible stomach pain that’s unlike anything else I’ve experienced.

So my journey to healing really began about 10 years ago. I started seeing a holistic chiropractor who put me on an elimination diet. We figured out that gluten was a big trigger for my issues. Since then, I’ve followed dozens of diets: restrictive elimination diets, gluten-free, Whole30, E2M, just to name a few. I’ve tried less carbs. I’ve tried less meat. So many things over the years! And for a while, I felt great.

But over the past year or two, I started developing what I’m pretty sure were stomach ulcers. I never had this tested, but if you Google stomach ulcers, I had every symptom and they would come and go. No surprise, it would go away when I got really strict about what I was eating and cut out acidic things like coffee and chocolate. (My two favorite treats in the world!) So I went through many phases of taking everything out, including some of the things I love the most. It was definitely affecting my day to day life. I wasn’t feeling well and I had other symptoms like fatigue, PMS, and inflammation.

My Recent Turning Point

I realized I needed to try something different. I considered fasting. I’d heard about the Daniel Fast. So I looked into that and then came across an entirely different thing with a similar name, The Daniel Plan. Inside that book, there are recipes and a diet protocol by Mark Hyman, who I was familiar with from my nutrition coach training. He wrote The Blood Sugar Solution and more recently, The Pegan Diet.

What piqued my curiosity in his work was the concept of eating for blood sugar regulation. I’ve had periods in my life where I’ve had massive blood sugar crashes, to the point of blacking out. And I’d noticed over the years that I did feel better when I ate more low-glycemic foods and meals. So I started researching this and came across another book, Body Love, by Kelly LeVeque. This one has been life-changing for me. Let me tell you why.

All the books I’ve mentioned so far have been incredibly helpful on this journey, but what I love about Body Love is that it is so practical. It’s simple. There are really easy, uncomplicated recipes in the book. And what I think has made the most profound difference in the way that I feel and my ability to lose weight effortlessly was adopting Kelly’s Fab Four Smoothie recipes into my morning routine.

The book has a lot of science backed information, but the author breaks it down in a way that’s very easy to understand. Her whole philosophy is the importance of balancing the right amount of healthy protein, fat, fiber, and greens in each meal. She’s also not about a diet and she’s very insistent in the beginning of the book this is NOT a diet plan. I definitely agree with that and I think the biggest difference in eating over the last several months to keep my blood sugar balanced is that I don’t feel hungry.

I mentioned lots of diets that I’ve tried before, and yes, I maybe lost some weight and felt a little bit better. But I was HUNGRY all the time. I don’t love dieting because I do tend to be hypoglycemic. If I don’t eat enough, I don’t feel great.

So the best part of the entire approach I’ve been taking over the last couple of months is that you’re eating to feel satiated. I don’t have to snack as much throughout the day as I used to. I’m only consuming three meals a day, whereas I used to snack all day. I would have five to six meals because I was always hungry.

For this busy mama, Kelly’s Fab Four Smoothies are the easiest thing to throw together in the morning and I do not feel hungry until lunchtime. Because I’m working to keep my blood sugar levels on an even keel, I’m not doing a ton of carbs or high-glycemic fruits and vegetables. But I’m also not being restrictive. I’ve enjoyed myself this summer and I think it would have been really hard for me to stick to a hard and fast diet plan.

What Blood Sugar Regulation Has Done For Me

This is the least amount of thought I’ve put into what I’m eating since going gluten-free 10 years ago, but I’m feeling better. And as I mentioned in the title of this podcast, one of the most incredible bonus results is that I effortlessly lost the last 10 pounds I had gained over the years. (And I’ve kept it off!)

As someone who enjoys exercise, I do tend to make that a priority. But this summer, I’ve been sleeping in and I haven’t been working out as much as I normally do.

Even with that, I found along the way that my clothes fit better. My stomach looks much flatter and because I’m not bloated like I was before. I’ve been able to add back in my beloved cold brew (in moderation). I’ve been eating chocolate again and I still lost 10 pounds! I’m at my ideal, most comfortable weight, and I’m feeling amazing. I have a lot more energy.

What To Do If You’re Intrigued By My Story

I’m not a doctor. I’m not going to prescribe anything to you. Talk to your doctor before you make any changes to your diet. But remember, this is not a hard and fast diet. That’s the best thing about it! There’s simple and there aren’t a lot of rules. It’s all about putting meals together with the right balance of healthy protein, fat, fiber, and greens.

While this is definitely working for me, I do think just like with your personal style, you need to consider what’s going to work for you. I don’t like giving blanket advice for diet and nutrition either, but there is so much evidence to support the benefits of eating for blood sugar regulation. I definitely recommend exploring some of the books I’ve shared today and seeing what might open up for you.

If you’ve been trying to lose weight, doing all the right things, and feeling like it’s not working for you or there’s something wrong with you or you’re never going to feel well, please don’t get frustrated.

That’s where I was. I was working out. I was eating really clean. I was having trouble losing the last 10 pounds and, even worse, I was having more serious health concerns like potential stomach ulcers.

I found a solution that’s done wonders for me. It’s also helping some of the people I love. And so I wanted to let you in on this hidden gem, too.

I wanted to openly share about what’s been going on for me and give you this information so you can figure out if it’s something that you might want to explore. If you decide to check out any of these books or focus on balancing your blood sugar levels, I would love to know how it goes for you!