CONSISTENT by Primal Potential

I am SO pumped about today's Book Club episode! This might be one of my very favorite podcast episodes! Today we're diving into the book "Why We Get Fat" by Gary Taubes. In this book you'll learn what drives insatiable hunger, what decreases satiety, makes us feel tired and unmotivated and what triggers us to store more fat than we should (and burn less fat than we should). The book is definitely worth the read and Taubes goes deep into both history & science. But don't worry, if you don't have the time or desire to go through the whole book, I want to share the highlights with you today! I really think this episode is a game changer packed with super helpful information about how we can store less fat and burn more fat! http://primalpotential.com/240-why-we-get-fat/ Resources Why We Get Fat by Gary Taubes Carb Timing for Fat Loss Carb Spillover (And How To Stop It) Carb Tolerance Understanding Insulin Golden Rules of Carbs & Fat Loss Wanna Help? If you find the Primal Potential podcast help, it would mean the world to me if you'd take a minute to leave a rating & review! That helps show platforms display my podcast to new listeners! Thank you so much for your support! I can't tell you how valuable it is!

If you are looking to take your motivation, consistency or progress to the next level, today's podcast is full of ways to do just that! If you need help setting expectations that are ambitious enough without setting you up for disappointment or failure, you don't want to miss this episode! A huge part of success in any goal is improving your responses to temptation, frustration, setbacks or emotion. I'll be sharing lessons I've learned in my new yoga practice to help you set appropriate expectations, avoid comparison, build consistency and fast track your results. http://primalpotential.com/239-setting-expectations/ Improving Your Responses & Setting Expectations As I've recently shared on the podcast, after being diagnosed with Hashimoto's thyroiditis and some stress-related health challenges, I'm making some changes in both my diet & lifestyle to help my body heal. One of those changes is yoga. I am not a yogi, I do not like group exercise, but I've taken on a legitimate mental, physical and logistical challenge: 45 yoga classes in 45 days. I've walked out of every single class so far feeling like I've learned something beyond the mat, beyond the yoga pose, and I'm planning to share those lessons with you each week for the next 45 days. So, I'm two weeks into my yoga challenge and I've learned some good stuff! Always come back to stillness In life, more often than not, when we experience tension, frustration, emotion, anxiety or temptation, we react, respond and make things worse. We do the opposite of returning to stillness. We kick up a frenzy. We panic. We perseverate. We worry. Instead of saying to ourselves, "Wait, slow down, take a breath, be still, don't react", we eat. We distract ourselves with food. We yell. We make snarky comments, we withdraw. We manufacture drama. We are an instant gratification society and unfortunately that means we feel like every thing must be reacted and it must be reacted to NOW. This idea of "come right back to stillness" can be a game changer no matter what your goal is. When you feel rattled, return to stillness. Don't react. Slow down, be still and understand that often times, the best response is no response. However, you can't return to a place you don't know. If you don't know what stillness is or where to find it, you can't go there when you need it most. You need to practice moments of stillness so you understand where to go instead of reacting. You can practice by meditating, praying, journaling or simply focusing on your breath. You can practice for 30 seconds or 30 minutes, just practice. Set expectations based on YOU It's easy to set your expectations and standards based on other people. It's easy to look to someone who is further along than you are and decide that you need to perform at their level. Don't. In yoga, striving to match the practice of someone who is more advanced doesn't mean that you're a motivated hero, it means that you're likely to get hurt and set yourself back. In fat loss & fitness, setting expectations based on someone who is further along than you are could mean setting yourself to feel not good enough, to feel defeated, overwhelmed and then give up. Set your standards and expectations based on YOU. Build consistency to see improvements The fact that I am practicing yoga every day for 45 days makes it really easy to see my improvements. Since my last class was just yesterday, when I sit in class today I can easily see what is different and better from the day before. The daily practice allows me to see my improvements and my progress. If I was going once or twice a week, not only would I probably not make progress as quickly, I wouldn't recognize as easily. Both making progress and being able to recognize and observe and notice the progress you make – it's so motivating! And it drives the desire to continue practice and then you get into what I call the cycle of accelerated returns. The same is true with consistency in improving your food choices or consistency in your workout routine. When you are inconsistent, you're robbing yourself in multiple ways. #1, You don't make progress as quickly, of course You aren't as aware of progress you do make If you reject temptation every single day, it's gets easier and easier and you have a closer comparison to have it felt yesterday to be able to recognize that it's easier today. Build consistency. Practice every single day. Don't let your ego get in the way of your progress Oftentimes, after hearing the same message a dozen or more times, a client will excitedly say to me, "I know you've said that a million times but I finally get it! It clicked today!" We have a natural tendency to tune out when we think we know or understand something. We don't listen with full attention to concepts we're familiar with. However, we only retain about 40% of the information we hear (and that's when we're giving our full attention!) Therefore, don't let your ego get in the way of your progress. Continue to listen for that one piece you didn't hear last time that could be the thing you need to move you forward. I'm really excited about the mental & emotional lessons I'm learning on the mat & I'm excited to keep sharing them with you! Resources Fall 2016 Fat Loss Fast Track Join me at ASCEND in Nashville! Wanna Help? If you find the Primal Potential podcast help, it would mean the world to me if you'd take a minute to leave a rating & review! That helps show platforms display my podcast to new listeners! Thank you so much for your support! I can't tell you how valuable it is!

If you haven't listened to episode 237, please start there!. In episode 237 I talk about the link between the foods you eat & your immune system. I think it's fairly likely that you're consuming something to which you're sensitive. It's very possible that your fatigue, your trouble with weight loss, your acne, joint pain or constipation are related to something you're eating. Can we think about this from the common sense perspective for a second? The only fuel your body receives in order to operate comes from what you food, drink and breathe. Your diet is not a supplement. It is the ONLY thing that powers your body. So if something is not working properly, I think it's safe to say that it might have something to do with what you're providing to your body in the form of fuel. Today I'll be talking about the difference between food allergies & food intolerances as well as the most common foods to which people are intolerant, why they create problems and how you can identify if they are creating problems for you! http://primalpotential.com/238-food-intolerances-are-you-eating-things-you-shouldnt-be-part-2/

There is a difference between a food allergy and a food intolerance. You might have unidentified food intolerances that are impacting your health and your progress towards your goals and not even know it! And, just because you've tolerated a food before doesn't mean you do now. Plus, you can overcome your food intolerances! If you continue to consume a food to which you are even mildly intolerant, you are initiating a domino effect of challenges within your body. In today's episode I'm talking about the direct connection between food intolerances, your immune system, your fat loss & your health. I'm sharing the impact of genetics, lifestyle and diet on your immune system and what happens when your immune system is compromised. In part 2, I'll share common foods that trigger an immune response and might be responsible for your symptoms and how you can strengthen your immune system & eliminate your symptoms. Don't miss the full episode! It's a really important one! http://primalpotential.com/237-food-intolerances-part-1/ Are Food Intolerances Slowing Your Progress? To answer this question, we first need to understand the role of the immune system, as food intolerances are based on your immune system's response to food. Your immune system's primary function is to protect you from toxins, pathogens and other threats. Because most threats to your health are introduced to your body through your mouth (what we eat, drink or inhale), the majority of your immune system resides in your gastrointestinal tract. The immune role in the GI tract is to keep out anything and everything that could be dangerous. Unfortunately, when we knowing or unknowingly consume foods to which we're even mildly intolerant, we break down the protective barrier within the GI tract and create larger problems. What are the symptoms of a food intolerance or autoimmune issue? There are so many possible symptoms but the common ones include: bloating gas diarrhea constipation headaches rashes & other skin conditions acne trouble sleeping low energy indigestion allergies depression irritability joint pain slow healing When we fail to eliminate these food allergens and other immune irritants, our immune system becomes compromised and attacks things it shouldn't, including foods and our own body tissues. This leads to new food allergies or autoimmune diseases like hashimotos thyroiditis, lupus and arthritis. The most common autoimmune diseases include: psoriasis fibromyalgia lupus celiac disease hashimotos thyroiditism rheumatoid arthritis In today's episode I'm talking about how your body's inflammatory response works, what happens when common foods trigger inflammation and how we can quiet the inflammation throughout the body and eliminate your symptoms. I'll also share one of the primary challenges with convention prescription drug treatments for these autoimmune concerns. In the next episode I'll be talking about which foods most frequently trigger this immune response and how we can calm our inflammatory response, heal the immune system and eliminate food intolerances. We'll closely examine foods including: sugar caffeine gluten dairy nuts/seeds alcohol Make sure to listen to today's full episode! Resources The Autoimmune Solution by Dr. Amy Myers

I think we all want to be more productive. We want to be less stressed while making more progress towards our goals. That can be a tricky thing to balance because we see the pursuit of our goals as demanding that more get done. We see being more productive as getting more done. In both cases, we feel overwhelmed before we even start because we just don't have enough time to get more done! However, to be more productive, I don't think you need to get more done. To make more progress towards your goals, I don't think you need to get more done. In today's episode I'll talk about how you can be more productive without doing more and while accelerating your progress towards your goals! http://primalpotential.com/236-be-more-productive/ 10 Ways To Be More Productive Today While many of these strategies might seem like common sense, I don't want you to discount them on those grounds. Instead, ask yourself, "Am I consistently implementing this?" Knowing the strategy or being familiar with a concept doesn't matter. Do you live it? Is it yours? Do you have room for improvement? Is it a habit for you? Don't reject the obvious - implement it. If you want to be more productive, it's not about what you know, it's about what you do and what you do consistently! Start Change your language Question everything Check your priorities Stop rushing Be honest about your distractions Set a timer Stop working Establish a routine Don't believe everything you read (or hear) Resources Fall 2016 Fat Loss Fast Track Join me at ASCEND in Nashville! Wanna Help? If you find the Primal Potential podcast help, it would mean the world to me if you'd take a minute to leave a rating & review! That helps show platforms display my podcast to new listeners! Thank you so much for your support! I can't tell you how valuable it is!

So this isn't a pitch for yoga, actually. This is about, however, about a personal yoga challenge I've given myself & the lessons I've learned in my first week that will absolutely improve my fat loss, my fitness, and my mindset. I want to share those lessons with you. So really, this is kind of like yoga for fat loss without having to go to yoga. Haha. I actually think yoga is a great thing for almost everyone, but my purpose in this series is to share with you lessons I'm learning in yoga that I believe can & should be applied to our food choices, our fitness, our mindset, relationships and life in general! http://primalpotential.com/235-yoga-for-fat-loss/ Yoga for Fat Loss, Fitness, Mindset & Crushing Life As I've recently shared on the podcast, after being diagnosed with Hashimoto's thyroiditis and some stress-related health challenges, I'm making some changes in both my diet & lifestyle to help my body heal. One of those changes is yoga. I am not a yogi, I do not like group exercise, but I've taken on a legitimate mental, physical and logistical challenge: 45 yoga classes in 45 days. I'm not challenging you to do that - my journey is my journey - but I do want to share what I'm learning with you through this challenge. I'm not necessarily taking yoga for fat loss, but I think there are incredibly powerful parallels between what you learn in yoga and the skills you need to reach your fat loss, fitness and health goals. I'm doing it because I need to learn to slow down, to be more present, to breathe and to be gentle with my body, my mind and my heart. Leave it to me to take something like yoga and get all intense with it, haha. 45 90-minute hot yoga classes in 45 days...yeah Elizabeth, way to take it easy... Hey, gotta make it interesting, right? I'm a competitive person! I've walked out of every single class so far feeling like I've learned something beyond the mat, beyond the yoga pose, and I'm planning to share those lessons with you each week for the next 45 days. So, I'm one week into my yoga challenge and I've learned some good stuff! Stay on your mat At my first class, the instructor shared with the new people (I wasn't the only one) that the only goal of the first class is to stay on your mat. Don't quit and leave, don't leave the room for some cool air, just stay. It's okay to rest. It's okay to sit down or lay down, just say on your mat. See, it's 105 degrees in this room and your moving your body in weird, challenging and uncomfortable ways. (In front of strangers! ) You aren't weak if you want to quit. It's not a sign that you're a failure that you don't feel like doing it. But that feeling doesn't mean you need to leave. The desire to leave is just a desire. Don't react. Just stay. How true is this in life & fat loss? It's okay to stop. It's okay to slow down. It's okay to rest. But don't leave. Don't drift. Don't let go of your goals. You can always rest, but don't walk away. Don't leave the pursuit. Stay on your mat. You WILL have times when you want to quit. But that doesn't mean you need to justify ice cream or chips or cookies or alcohol. Just stay there. You're on this journey. Don't leave. Just wait. The maximum benefit comes at your depth In Bikram yoga, which is what I've decided to do, there are 26 poses and, in my class, we do each pose two times. As we moved into a particular posture for the second time, the instructor quietly said, "Keep going. The maximum benefit comes at your depth" See, she didn't want us to stop when it got uncomfortable. She didn't want us to feel the discomfort and not go past it. The maximum benefit, the greatest growth, the fastest improvement comes when you go as far as you can. If she hadn't said that, I wouldn't have looked for my depth in that pose. I would have just done what I felt like I could, held steady when it felt uncomfortable. But this cue from her, this comment, it sent me looking for my depth. For how far I could go. For how deep I could take it. For my limit. For my best. How often do we stop at the point of discomfort in life? We do what we're comfortable with and give in when it gets too hard. But that's not where we improve. That's not how things get easier. That's not the way to transformation. Think about the times in your life when you've grown the most, learned the most or excelled the most. It probably took going beyond your comfort zone - going beyond what was easy or comfortable. When it comes to health, food choices or fitness - where is your depth? Are you going there? Are you bringing your best effort? Where's your limit? How far can you take it? The maximum benefit will come at your depth. Pressure is the beginning of the posture This next one so deeply resonated with me (pun intended). It's pretty similar to the last one but so vivid. I was standing there, waiting for the instructor to declare, "change" so I could release a challenging posture. You hold the posture, usually struggling (certainly for me as I'm brand new to this) and can release when you hear "change" Instead of "change" she said, "the pressure is the beginning of the posture" She meant that instead of looking to release as soon as it gets uncomfortable, consider that the beginning. Your effort begins, your training begins, your work begins, the posture behinds when the pressure starts. That's when it begins, not when it ends. It reminds me what Mohammad Ali said once when asked how many sit-ups he had done. He replied, "I don't know. I didn't start counting until it hurt" This isn't an argument for doing push-ups through the pain, but I think it has much broader applications to life and the pursuit of our goals. Think about it - we let up when it gets too hard. When the temptations get too hard we relent. When we're tired, we give in. How about deciding that the pressure is the beginning of the work, not the end. Temptation is the beginning of the work, not the end. Emotion is the beginning of the work, not the end. Stop trying to manage the room Someone came into the class a few minutes late. The instructor acknowledged her and said, "there's a space up front, just one minute" She'd get her situated once we finished our posture. A few seconds later the instructor said to the late lady, "Stop trying to manage the room. Drop your mat and breathe" We were doing the beginning breathing exercises. I don't think the woman knew what she meant and so the instructor said, "Seriously! Stop trying to mange the room. That's my job, not yours. Drop your mat, start breathing, I will get you settled in a minute" This woman was in her head. She was thinking about where she should go, who would have to scoot around to make room for her, where she could disrupt the fewest people And while she did that, she was missing the posture. I loved that instruction – stop managing the room. I know I do that too often, I try to manage the room or the situation instead of just being present in it. I try to manage other people. I spend a lot of my time thinking about what other people will do, when, where. I am a natural leader and so at family events, I'm in my head thinking about where people will sit – are there enough chairs? When will we eat – do we have enough for everyone? Is there a parking space for the person who isn't here yet? While I'm in my head managing everyone and everything, I'm missing stuff. A lot of stuff. We do this at work, at home. We do this when it's none of our business. I'll be sitting in traffic and I see that someone is blocking an intersection when the light turns red. They aren't blocking me. I'm a half a dozen cars behind. But I start thinking and worrying about the people who are at the green light and can't get through and how frustrated the poor guy blocking the intersection must be because he can't move. Dude. Stop managing the room! This cue, stop managing the room, will remind me to just be present, just do what I need to do, and not worry about what's behind me, what's in the future, or what anyone else is doing or should be doing. I'm really excited about the mental & emotional lessons I'm learning on the mat & I'm excited to keep sharing them with you! Resources Fall 2016 Fat Loss Fast Track Join me at ASCEND in Nashville! Wanna Help? If you find the Primal Potential podcast help, it would mean the world to me if you'd take a minute to leave a rating & review! That helps show platforms display my podcast to new listeners! Thank you so much for your support! I can't tell you how valuable it is!

I think we're all sick & tired of dieting failure, dieting obsession and feeling like we've failed. It's exhausting! I don't know about you, but I've tried every diet under the sun. For years I felt frustrated, confused and like something was wrong with me. Nothing was wrong with me. Something was significantly flawed in my approach. Traditional weight loss programs are designed to fail. I don't think it's you. I think it's your approach. In today's episode I want to help you understand why dieting failure is so common - why diets are exactly designed to fail in the long term and what you can do differently to ensure success. http://primalpotential.com/234-avoid-dieting-failure/ How To Avoid Dieting Failure Diets don't work. One of the primary reasons they don't work is because they are based on a leader/follower model. In the leader/follower model, the "leader", whether a person or a company, creates the rules and the structure and you, the follower, step in line and follow their commands. There are many major problems with the leader follower model and I summarize them into the following categories, which I describe in today's episode: Distraction Doubt Dependance Drifting Depersonalization Deflection Instead, if we want long term success we should seek the leader/leader model. The leader/leader model operates based on the premise that some people have great guidance and strategy to offer, but no one knows your body, your preferences, your lifestyle and your results better than you do. In the leader/leader model, you are creating your own plan based on your body's feedback instead of blindly following someone else's strategy. In the leader/leader model, you're identify & creating tools that work for you, not establishing a list of rules you must follow. To watch the full video of this presentation, click here. Ready to join the last Fat Loss Fast Track of 2016? Get More Information Here

Did you listen to part 1 of how to protect & heal your thyroid? If you're wondering how to improve thyroid health, this series is right for you! Make sure you start with part 1! You absolutely can improve thyroid health. You can protect your thyroid and prevent future problems. You can & you should! Your thyroid is about way more than your weight or your metabolism. Every single cell in your body has receptors for thyroid hormones and your thyroid plays a role in just about every aspect of health. Your overall health, metabolism and body composition all depend on the health of your thyroid. In part 1, we covered what the thyroid is & what it does. I shared my recent thyroid diagnosis and the symptoms which preceded it. In researching how to improve thyroid health & function, I've shared several diet & lifestyle strategies that will make a big difference! http://primalpotential.com/233-improve-thyroid-health-part-2/ How to Protect & Heal Your Thyroid - Part 2 What is your thyroid? Your thyroid is a small gland in your throat. It's an endocrine gland, secreting hormones your body needs for nearly every bodily function. What does it do? Your thyroid controls the metabolic rate of every organ in the body. Remember that your metabolic rate isn't just about body weight. It's about energy & fuel. Metabolic rate refers to the ability & efficiency of your body to get the energy & nutrients it needs from fuel you consume or fuel stored in your body as well as the ability & efficiency of your body to store fuel in the form of fat, muscle and bone. Your thyroid regulates & influences countless bodily processes including breathing, heart rate, menstruation, muscle development, fat burning, sleep, body temperature, cholesterol production and more. What can you do to protect and heal your thyroid? Control your blood sugar by limiting processed foods & following the Golden Rules of Carbs & Fat Loss Minimize stress Support your microbiome Get enough vitamin D via food, sunlight and/or supplementation Cut out gluten and gluten-like components (corn, oats, etc) Identify & eliminate food allergens (even mild ones!) Common food allergens include dairy, eggs, wheat, grains, nuts & seeds The food allergen test I am taking can be purchased here Consume enough (but not too much) iodine Eat selenium rich foods like brazil nuts, turkey, chicken Eliminate trans fats and limit unsaturated fats Want to join the Fat Loss Fast Track? Last chance this year! Get More Information Here Resources Chris Kresser's Free Thyroid Report Fall 2016 Fat Loss Fast Track Metabolic Effect Adrenal & Thyroid Protocol Gluten reactions can last up to 6 months (research) Benefits of reducing iodine The Paleo Cure by Chris Kresser The Hormone Cure by Sara Gottfried Food Allergy Testing Vitamin D Supplement Join me at ASCEND in Nashville! Wanna Help? If you find the Primal Potential podcast help, it would mean the world to me if you'd take a minute to leave a rating & review! That helps show platforms display my podcast to new listeners! Thank you so much for your support! I can't tell you how valuable it is!

Here's the deal guys: your thyroid is about way more than your weight or your metabolism. Whether you have a thyroid issue or you don't, we all must ensure we're doing all we can to protect & heal this critical endocrine gland. Every single cell in your body has receptors for thyroid hormones. Your overall health, metabolism and body composition all depend on the health of your thyroid. Even if you don't have a thyroid gland and you're on synthetic thyroid hormones, you absolutely can & will from many of these strategies. In today's episode I share my recent thyroid issues and what I'm doing about them along with what your thyroid is, what it does and some of the things you can do to protect and heal your thyroid. http://primalpotential.com/232-heal-your-thyroid/ How to Protect & Heal Your Thyroid What is your thyroid? Your thyroid is a small gland in your throat. It's an endocrine gland, secreting hormones your body needs for nearly every bodily function. What does it do? Your thyroid controls the metabolic rate of every organ in the body. Remember that your metabolic rate isn't just about body weight. It's about energy & fuel. Metabolic rate refers to the ability & efficiency of your body to get the energy & nutrients it needs from fuel you consume or fuel stored in your body as well as the ability & efficiency of your body to store fuel in the form of fat, muscle and bone. Your thyroid regulates & influences countless bodily processes including breathing, heart rate, menstruation, muscle development, fat burning, sleep, body temperature, cholesterol production and more. What can you do to protect and heal your thyroid? In today's episode, part 1, we talk about the importance of blood sugar balance, gut health and bacterial balance. We'll go into many more strategies in part 2. For now: Control your blood sugar by limiting processed foods & following the Golden Rules of Carbs & Fat Loss Minimize stress Support your microbiome Want to join the Fat Loss Fast Track? Last chance this year! Get More Information Here Resources Chris Kresser's Free Thyroid Report Fall 2016 Fat Loss Fast Track Metabolic Effect Adrenal & Thyroid Protocol The Paleo Cure by Chris Kresser The Hormone Cure by Sara Gottfried Join me at ASCEND in Nashville!

I'm not sure if you're familiar with the shame spiral, but I sure am. Here are the cliff notes: it sucks. We have this terribly inefficient habit: we keep returning to approaches that don't work. I want you to really think about this question: do you need a different approach? That's what we will investigate on today's episode as we explore the shame cycle & how we can break free from it. http://primalpotential.com/231-the-shame-spiral/