79 - A Fresh Perspective on Menopause

03/26/18 • 40 min

Welcome back Fitlandians! Today’s episode is number 79 and my guest today is Evelyn DeDominicis and today we are talking all about having a hopeful perspective on menopause. I know it sounds crazy but Evelyn has a pretty incredible perspective and as a 45 year old woman, I was pretty excited to chat with her.

In celebration of support for menopause, if any of you ladies are perimenopausal or menopausal and want some support with your hormones, join the next 30 Days to Thriving with me! We start in just a few short days and to celebrate supporting all of you ladies with this wonderful time of life, I am giving you 50% off for 25 hours from the date that this is released! Hopefully you have subscribed to the show and you can take advantage of this offer. Just enter code MENO50 at the checkout to get 50% off for the April session

Today we are talking about menopause...but this time we are giving you a fresh and hopeful perspective! My guest Evelyn DeDominicis is a functional nutritionist and ready to talk all things menopause.

Evelyn and I first “met” when she listened to Leanne Vogel’s podcast and heard me talking about wine and how to overcome sugar, alcohol and carbs and here we are doing a podcast! Thanks to Evelyn for being an incredible addition to our online community on our Facebook group! We really connected on finding healthy relationships with alcohol and how to find out how to do that as individuals.

BUT...back to our fresh perspective on menopause. So I am 45 years old and a couple years ago my doctors told me I was perimenopausal but fast forward to when I found the ketogenic diet and my periods came back to normal as I found a hormonal balance that way but I know this is coming!

Menopause is something that all women experience but is sometimes a terrifying change! So what is this fresh perspective? Evelyn explains that she just turned 50 and that she has been menopausal (your period has stopped for a full year) for about two years now. The new perspective is that it is simply a hormonal rewiring.

Instead of ovaries producing the hormones in our bodies, our adrenal glands now pick up the job and that change can be challenging. A helpful resource is the book called The Wisdom of Menopause by Dr. Christina Northrup...she is phenomenal and has loads of information.

Her perspective is so refreshing...like it is a rite of passage! Not all that different than puberty! It doesn’t have to be dreaded one bit. In fact, perimenopause can be up to 15 or 20 years before you are actually menopausal...the average is between 4 and 14 years. There is definitely a stigma in this country about getting older and about menopause in general but understanding it is the key. It’s coming into who you are and learning to speak your truth.

With the decline of estrogen and progesterone can have an effect on many things...including our gut. This causes a lower stress tolerance and sometimes even digestive functions. So yes, learning to speak your truth is happening in your body, too!

Our adrenal glands always prioritize cortisol and therefore fights with the sexual hormones that are coming in during this time. Therefore, it is ESSENTIAL to manage our stress and listen to our bodies. We talk about how much stress we put on our adrenal glands climbing corporate ladders and we are left asking what our truths are...sometimes the passion feels passionless later on. Listening is key.

And this matters in all parts of your life...including your food and body. Take the wheel of life, you have your diet, exercise, movement, finances, relationships, spiritual, stillness, community and more...that’s a lot to balance but simply recognizing when something is OUT of balance is what it takes to know when it is time to make a change.

Embrace the journey, role with the punches, and find a state of grace in the changes of life. Spread some lightness in this world and it will ultimately reflect on you as well. Accept the support you need from those around you and it will all seem easier.

Evelyn explains that she was paleo for years and was working toward a keto lifestyle but was knocked out due to hormonal imbalance caused by perimenopause but has since understood what was happening in her body and why it wasn’t working quite right despite her best efforts. She encourages people to experiment with what feels best for your body and to always stay mindful to how you are feeling and what could be happening in your body.

So what ...

So what ...

Previous Episode

78 - 10 Rules to Stop Dieting

Hello Fitlandians and welcome back to the podcast! This is episode number 78 and today my best is Brooke Alpert, Registered Dietitian, nutrition consultant, and author of The Diet Detox.

Before we jump into the show, I want you to come join my own mission to end dieting in the 30 Days to Thriving Program. It helps you release your reliance on sugar, alcohol, and refined carbs so you can start feeling your very best and create a dietary strategy that works for you.

For more info, head to fitlandiafitness.com/programs. There you can register for our the start of our next program on April 2nd. Just for being a valued listener, you can select any of the programs on that page and enter the code PODCAST20 to get 20% off as a big thank you!

So today I’m here with Brooke Alpert. Brooke is celebrating the release of her new book, The Diet Detox and is a Registered Dietitian. Welcome, Brooke!

For those who are new to the podcast, Fitlandia is all about NOT dieting...so it was a natural fit to invite Brooke to the show when I discovered her new book. Let’s have Brooke talk a little bit about how this book came to be.

Brooke says she has been a Registered Dietitian for 10 and 1⁄2 years and has owned her own private practice that entire time. Her focus is in weight loss...she helps people lose weight but not with harmful dieting. After the birth of her 2nd daughter, she had the hardest time losing the excess weight and was feeling quite like a fraud in her business.

She was feeling uncomfortable in her own skin and after a few months of trying to lose the weight the right way, she started to feel a little crazy. She was tempted to reach for the quick fix...and she truly understood the headspace that many of her clients are often in. She eventually had to sit down and have a real talk with herself about doing it the right way...the diet manifesto...the 10 rules to lose weight the right way for good.

So what are these 10 rules?

Brooke’s 10 Rules to Stop Dieting

Protein Source and Fiber Source on Your Plate, Always
Watch the Starches(Breads, Potatoes, Squash, Pasta, Etc.)
Need to Have Fat on Your Plate(Eat REAL Food)
Clocking Your Meals(Eat on a Schedule for Even Blood Sugar Levels)
Watch the Sugar(It’s an Addiction-See Previous Book, The Sugar Detox)
Intentional Indulgence(There’s a Time and a Place-Know Your Triggers)
Drink Water(So Simple Yet So Neglected-Hunger, Energy, Immune System)
1. Waterminder App
Exercise(Move Your Body-HIIT Suggested-Listen to Your Body)
1. 7 Minute HIIT Workout App
2. Aptive App (Treadmill Workouts)
Supplement Smartly(Ideally all Nutrients from Food but 4 Essentials and 4 Bonus)
1. Essential 1: FibHer (8g Fiber and Protein in Water)
2. Essential 2: Nightly 1 (Multivitamin for during night-time restoration process)
3. Essential 3: BeautyFlora (Prebiotics and Probiotics)
4. Essential 4: Fish Oil (Nordic Naturals suggested)
Get Good Sleep (Epidemic of Sleep Deprivation-We Need Rest for Health)
1. Sleep Foreplay (no blue light/screens before bed)
2. Get a Minimum of 7 Hours...Aim for 8!
3. Sleep cold (63-68 degrees Fahrenheit)

Recipes/Owning Your Cooking:

What does intuitive cooking mean? Tapping into your inner wisdom of what your body is needing at each moment. Cooking doesn’t have to be overwhelming and it can actually be really meditative and calming.

Brooke talks about the 5 ingredient recipes in her book to keep it simple and delicious...and realistic for everyone! There are 45 recipes in her book and broken up into Protein, Fiber, and Starch so you know exactly what is on your plate each time. It’s all about connecting to your food, connecting to your body, and cutting yourself some slack! Make the best choices that you can...no one is perfect. Don’t feel guilty, just do your best in each situation.

Bonus Advice:

As soon as you feel guilty about what you ate, weight will be seen on the scale. If it will have any ripple effect on your next meal, don’t eat it.
We should be working through the day, optimizing how we are going to sleep well tonight.
Go back to the basics of being mindful about what you eat and do.

Next Episode

80 - The Mental Health & Fitness Connection

Hello Fitlandians! Welcome back to the show. This is episode number 80 and I am so glad you are here because you are in for a real treat with our guest today! Today we are talking with Byrdie McCoy of Byrdie’s Babes and we are talking about the connection between mental health and fitness. Just a quick word of caution...we do have one curse word included so be mindful of that, though I do hope you choose to listen to our powerful conversation.

I also want to remind you that our next 30 Days to Thriving program is starting very soon! You can head over to sign up for the April session for guidance and support in your fitness journey! Enter FRIEND25 at checkout to save 25% off.

Today we are chatting with Byrdie McCoy. Byrdie is a fellow Portlander as well as an amazing fitness influencer and mental health advocate. Byrdie and Christa “met” via Instagram through a mutual friend and were able to connect via messenger...it was friends at first message! Their messages align perfectly. This episode is all about fitness and mental health and how those two relate.

Byrdie’s Story:

Byrdie has a beautiful little girl and just welcomed her new little prince into this world! Byrdie’s Babe’s is her blog which she created for women to get to know all they ways they can get healthy. It all started a couple years ago when she began offering free Bootcamps for women who had suffered trauma to get moving and feel good. They grew and grew until she decided to start a blog to reach even more amazing women.

The blog is all about showcasing all the amazing ways to move and to help women find the type of fitness that is best for them. It’s a tribe of beautiful babes learning about holistic health and finding support. As you all know, community connection is one of our four cornerstones of fitness and Byrdie is creating a safe and empowering space to feel good.

About 8 years ago, Byrdie was on a Greyhound that flipped on the highway. She was severely injured, breaking 13 bones in her face, severing her clavicle, dislocating her knee and much more. This was an incredibly horrible and traumatic time of her life. She was the mother to a young daughter, a college student, and wasn’t able to do much of anything. It was a dark place and she struggled significantly for awhile and was diagnosed with PTSD.

She tried medication for one day and couldn’t remember anything and immediately stopped taking the medication (this is not the best decision for everyone but was best for her). She started moving a little bit each day which helped her get her mind out of the trauma. She continued to increase the amount of movement she was doing each day because that is when she “felt good” again. She knew she wasn’t the only woman out there going through difficult things and she wanted to share the power of this transition with others and share this message and this experience led to Byrdie’s Babes.

It’s About Openness:

We are all having a human experience and being open and connecting in a safe space makes all the difference! Even if we have significant things going on in our lives, like PTSD or trauma, it is okay to lean on others. Even small steps will make a big difference in your life.

It isn’t healthy to just keep pushing through until you reach your limits. Though many of us, especially us women, like to push ourselves to our limits until we break.

Self care is key. Give yourself permission to do whatever. What makes you feel good? What helps you reconnect with yourself and how can you bring that in to each day?

Boundaries for the Babes:

Boundaries aren’t always easy for women to stick to. Knowing where your limits are is essential to living a happy and healthy life. Byrdie talks about some of the powerful ways that she sets strict boundaries for herself to be the best she can in all parts of her life. To her, her daughter comes first but her business is also still very important to her...and she CAN be great at both.

Work only from 9 to 3 (when her daughter is at school).
The rest of the day is “Mom Time” where she focuses on her daughter.
Schedule time in her week to go and see a movie on her own EVERY week.
Get on the bus to enjoy a good book until it stops and turn around and go home.

Christa talks about a powerful experience that she had recently at the beach. She was walking along the beach with her dog, Bandit, and she was so lost in her brain that she literally tripped on a dead bird. It was a jolt of a reality check to get out of her head, to slow down, and to re-prioritize things in her life. She’s since been working only 3 hours each day and learning a lot about setting boundaries and sticking to them.

The ladies talk about how you have to put YOU first....