Connect with Alicia

You can find Alicia at Aldin Consulting Group and Accion-istas. 

Author Bio

Dr Orlena is a health coach. She helps busy mums go from "I can't lose weight" to feeling fit and fabulous. Find out more about her here.

Why Can’t I Lose Weight? How Does Insulin Affects My Weight?

In today’s podcast we’re looking at some common blocks that stop people from loosing weight.

I’ll be explaining how hormones, specifically insulin, affect our bodies. Plus how you can create a healthy way of eating, that supports your weight loss goals.

Why is it so Difficult to Lose Weight?

I recently sent out a survey to people on my email list to find out what problems they faced when trying to lose weight.

Here are some of the responses:

1. Lack of Exercise. “I’m fat, I’m lazy. I don’t loose sleep over it as I know that lack of physical activity is a contributing factor.”
2. Nothing Works! I’ve tried so many things. E.g. reducing carbs, calorie counting, the keto diet. They work for a bit and then stop working.

Common Misunderstandings about Weight Loss

Many of the comments highlighted common ways of thinking that aren’t true. Lots of unrealistic...

Podcast with Dr Ash

Introduction to Gluten

Gluten is a controversial area. Many experts think that gluten is hugely inflammatory and contributes to many diseases. 

We know that people with coeliac disease can't tolerate gluten. But what about people who don't have coeliac disease?

Should they exclude all gluten?

In today's episode Dr Ash explains what gluten is, how it can affect our bodies and what we should do to find our "gluten threshold".

What is Gluten?

A protein found in wheat, barley and rye.

What is Coeliac Disease?

Coeliac Disease is an autoimmune condition. It can be described as a “severe gluten allergy”.

People who are diagnosed with coeliac disease are on a life long gluten free diet. If you have coeliac disease and eat gluten it can affect your body and make you unwell. (Even if you don’t notice it.)

Coeliac Disease Is Difficult to Diagnose

Coeliac Disease (aka “Celiac Disease”) can be difficult to diagnose. Partly as the symptoms...

Recent Research Shows that Eating Lots of Fibre Decreases All-Cause Mortality

The paper “Carbohydrate quality and human health: a series of systematic reviews and meta-analyses” was published in the Lancet.

It showed that eating 25-30g of fibre a day decreases your risk of dying from all causes.

To quote from the study:

“Observational data suggest a 15–30% decrease in all-cause and cardiovascular related mortality, and incidence of coronary heart disease, stroke incidence and mortality, type 2 diabetes, and colorectal cancer when comparing the highest dietary fibre consumers with the lowest consumers.”

Some of the Benefits they Found Included Lower Body Weight

“Clinical trials show significantly lower bodyweight, systolic blood pressure, and total cholesterol when comparing higher with lower intakes of dietary fibre.“

“Risk reduction associated with a range of critical outcomes was greatest when daily intake of dietary fibre was...

How do you create your dream life?

Whether you want to lose weight, get more fit or be happier, you have to make a plan.

And stick to it.

In today's episode, Dr Orlena tells her story of how she transformed her life and gives you the tools to start your transformation.

How to Lead an Amazing Life Podcast

Join the Fit and Fabulous Free Membership Site

You can sign up here to join the site for free.

Author Bio

Dr Orlena is a health coach. She helps busy mums go from "I can't lose weight" to feeling fit and fabulous. Find out more about her here.

You might be surprise to know that exercise isn’t a great way to lose weight (more about that in a bit.) There are loads of benefits to exercise. Both health benefits and feeling amazing benefits!

The Health Benefits of Exercise Podcast

Shout out to Hilary

Congratulations to Hilary for the “audacious exercise award”….swimming outdoors in the UK in winter….without a wet suit.

You are amazing. And slightly bonkers!

Exercise Isn’t a Great Way to Lose Weight

Unless you plan to become a marathon runner! If you’re overweight and want to make changes to lose weight, you’re better off making changes to your diet.

Exercise will HELP you lose weight. It will also help you to feel fit and fabulous.

As the saying goes: You can’t out run a bad diet!

Well Being Benefits of Exercise

• You feel amazing after doing exercise! (Not to begin with but once your body gets used to it.)
• Less stress (see Dr Marianne’s...

Losing weight can feel like an impossible task. It’s easy to find yourself in a “bubble of overwhelm”. You find yourself not knowing what to do.

You don’t have to make millions of changes all at once.

You can make small changes over a period of time.

7 Easy Things To Lose Weight Podcast

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Here are 7 easy things that you can do to lose weight.

1. Eat More Vegetables

   At least half your plate should be fruit or vegetables. More vegetables than fruit.

   Remember to include leafy greens and not just starchy vegetables.

2. Eat Less Refined Carbohydrates

   Not all carbs are created equal. Some carbohydrates are refined (pasta, bread and white rice). They will spike your blood sugars more quickly than carbs found in most vegetables. (white potatoes spike your glucose level too.)

3. Reduce the Junk

   I’m not judging you! You need to put on your big girl (or boy) pants and be honest with yourself. Is this an area you can cut down on?

4. Add Good Fats

   Not all...

 Everything you need to know about the health benefits of the Mediterranean Style Diet (MSD). In today’s episode, I explain why I love the MSD. We look at the research papers that have lead to claims of health benefits. Then we have a think about how you can apply it to your life.

Health Benefits of the Med Style Diet Podcast

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 Why Do I LOVE the Med Style Diet?

• It’s super easy. Just make “healthy tweaks”.
• It can be applied to any cuisine.
• It’s supported by research.

Research show us the Health Benefits of the Med Style Diet

in 2011 the PREDIMED study (funded by the Spanish government) showed lots of benefits to the Mediterranean way of eating.

There was one study with many different papers. (Check out the links below.)

• Less weight around the middle (the dangerous fat aka “central adiposity”.)
• Less likely to get heart disease (specifically stroke).
• Less likely to get type 2 diabetes.
• Less likely to...

Thoughts of losing weight and hunger go hand in hand . No one wants to feel "deprived". But understanding how hunger works can give you useful tools to lose weight.

Hunger and Losing Weight Video

What Happens When We Get Hungry?

People are scared of hunger.

We live in this fear of not the be hungry.

But what really happens when we get hungry?

When the body gets hungry, our body begins to use its fat deposits as a fuel source. So being hungry is not necessarily a bad thing.

Tune into Your Hunger with the Hunger Scale

What I recommend is to tune into your hunger and really understand why you are eating.

Think about hunger with having a scale from 0 to 10 with 10 being I'm totally full and stuffed, 0 being I'm perfectly fine and -10 as I'm absolutely ravenous. 

You want to be eating from -2 to 2. You're not waiting until you are totally ravenous and equally not eating until you are totally stuffed.

You want to eat until you are no longer hungry - until you are...

It's so easy to eat when we aren't actually hungry. Perhaps you're bored, stressed or upset. 

Our emotions play a big part in eating which leads us to eat more food that our bodies actually need.

In this FB LIVE, I explain exactly what "mindful eating" is. (As opposed to "mindless eating").

Why mindful eating is great if you want to lose weight.

And how to start your mindful eating journey.

It Takes Time to Learn Mindful Eating. Be Kind to Yourself.

Please remember that mindful eating is a learnt behaviour. Think of it like learning to play the piano.

You couldn't beat yourself up if you weren't a concert pianist overnight so don't expect to be "perfect" at it straight away.

Learn to observe yourself from a place of kindness. No guilt! The first step is just to figure out what's going on!

Author Bio

Dr Orlena is a health coach. She helps busy mums go from "I can't lose weight" to feeling fit and fabulous. Find out more about her here.