The Midlife Feast

In my work supporting women in midlife and menopause, there are some regular and recurring themes to the questions I get. Whether it’s a client, someone in the community, or DMs, they  typically go like this:“I don’t understand what’s wrong with me.” or “There must be something I’m missing.” I always reassure them by saying, “I can’t tell you how common that is.” Why is it so common? If you’re over 40, you can thank the 1980s for many of the beliefs you have about food, nutrition, and health. Having grown up in the days before the internet, we didn’t have the luxury of choosing what information we consumed. We were all fed the same messages as the pool of mainstream media was much smaller and less diverse.In this episode, I’m going to share three beliefs that diet culture fed you and why they are likely overcomplicating your relationship with food and your body. Then I’ll give you three questions you can ask yourself if you’re ready to start un-dieting these beliefs and find a more peaceful relationship with food and your body.What did you think of this episode? Click here and let me know!📚 I wrote a book! Eat To Thrive During Menopause is out now! Order your copy today and start thriving in midlife. Looking for more about midlife, menopause nutrition, and intuitive eating? Click here to grab one of my free guides and learn what I've got "on the menu" including my 1:1 and group programs. https://www.easy.link/menopause.nutritionist

When we begin to heal from all the damage diet culture has had on our growth and development, it can feel very urgent to get it “right” for our kids and learn how to keep diet culture out of our homes. While this deserves to be a top priority, it requires a lot of grace.In this episode, nutritionist and fitness coach, Tracey Harper helps us understand why rewriting the narrative for the next generation demands that we continue healing in our relationships with food and our bodies. She will help us frame up conversations that invite young people to get curious about how they relate to their bodies, as well as how to help kids reflect on the impact that the media has on their mental health. If you worry about the damage that’s already been done, I invite you to join us. This episode will remind you that a growth mindset is key to helping young people embrace body diversity and food neutrality. To learn more about Tracey and the work she does, check out her website at www.harperhealthandwellness.com, and www.carlycrawfordfyvc.com and follow her on IG at @harperhealthandwellness.What did you think of this episode? Click here and let me know!Ditch the food guilt for a more peaceful (and nourishing!) relationship with food.  Grab my free Food Guilt Decoder here: https://www.menopausenutritionist.ca/FoodGuiltDecoder📚 I wrote a book! Eat To Thrive During Menopause is out now! Order your copy today and start thriving in midlife. Looking for more about midlife, menopause nutrition, and intuitive eating? Click here to grab one of my free guides and learn what I've got "on the menu" including my 1:1 and group programs. https://www.easy.link/menopause.nutritionist

In this special story session, Christina Testut—a kindergarten teacher and champion of body acceptance—joins us this week on The Midlife Feast to share her inspiring un-dieting journey and the lessons that quarantine taught her about embracing body diversity. She shares why her weight-loss “success story”  became unsustainable, physically, mentally, and emotionally. As a mother and educator, she recognized the urgent need to redefine beauty standards for impressionable young people and took a powerful stand by transforming her epiphany into a children's book celebrating all body shapes and sizes.You can grab the book Embrace Your Features, learn more about Christina and her work on her website, www.christinarunstheworld.com, and follow her on IG @christina_runstheworld or Facebook @christina.testut.What did you think of this episode? Click here and let me know!Ditch the food guilt for a more peaceful (and nourishing!) relationship with food.  Grab my free Food Guilt Decoder here: https://www.menopausenutritionist.ca/FoodGuiltDecoder📚 I wrote a book! Eat To Thrive During Menopause is out now! Order your copy today and start thriving in midlife. Looking for more about midlife, menopause nutrition, and intuitive eating? Click here to grab one of my free guides and learn what I've got "on the menu" including my 1:1 and group programs. https://www.easy.link/menopause.nutritionist

Tight pants. Bloating. IBS. Food sensitivities. If you’re one of the many people who have experienced gastrointestinal discomfort in midlife, you know how complex this issue is. Dr. Kim Bretz ND is joining me to answer some of the most frequently asked gut health questions. She will help us understand that there’s a fair amount of confusion about our gut because we’re navigating both physical symptoms and perceptions all at once. We’ll dive into FODMAPs, why digestive diversity is so important, and why self-directed diets not only add discomfort but actually put us at risk if we don’t know when and how to reintroduce foods. We’ll also touch on why trying to self-diagnose gut health problems can be an unexpected path to disordered eating patterns. To learn more about Kim and the work she does, check out her website at www.drkimbretznd.com, download her free guide and follow her on IG @ drkimbretznd or on Facebook @FundamentalsOfHealth.What did you think of this episode? Click here and let me know!Ditch the food guilt for a more peaceful (and nourishing!) relationship with food.  Grab my free Food Guilt Decoder here: https://www.menopausenutritionist.ca/FoodGuiltDecoder📚 I wrote a book! Eat To Thrive During Menopause is out now! Order your copy today and start thriving in midlife. Looking for more about midlife, menopause nutrition, and intuitive eating? Click here to grab one of my free guides and learn what I've got "on the menu" including my 1:1 and group programs. https://www.easy.link/menopause.nutritionist

Diet and wellness culture do a fantastic job “shoulding” all over us, especially when it comes to the habits we put into place. This pressure does not mix well with our already strained capacity in midlife, making it necessary to ask ourselves if the habits we keep are serving us anymore. That’s why I’ve invited health coach and behavior change expert Heather Sayers Lehman to help us dive into this work. Habits can be powerful tools, but they should be a reflection of how attuned we are to our own needs and preferences-not diet culture rules. We’ll unpack why we need to focus less on willpower and more on self-compassion. You’ll be so refreshed by the way Heather helps us approach habit change in a way that actually feels aligned and makes the ROI easy to recognize! To learn more about Heather and her work, connect with her on her website at  heathersayerslehman.com or follow her on IG @heathersayerslehman. Also, be sure to tune into her podcast The Air We Breathe. What did you think of this episode? Click here and let me know!Ditch the food guilt for a more peaceful (and nourishing!) relationship with food.  Grab my free Food Guilt Decoder here: https://www.menopausenutritionist.ca/FoodGuiltDecoder📚 I wrote a book! Eat To Thrive During Menopause is out now! Order your copy today and start thriving in midlife. Looking for more about midlife, menopause nutrition, and intuitive eating? Click here to grab one of my free guides and learn what I've got "on the menu" including my 1:1 and group programs. https://www.easy.link/menopause.nutritionist

Celebrate with me as we toast to the 100th episode of the Midlife Feast! As you know, on every episode of the podcast, I ask my guests what they think the missing ingredient in midlife is. After revisiting the answers in 100 episodes, I want to share with you the top five insights that have reshaped our understanding of midlife and menopause. As we clink glasses to this journey, I’m celebrating all the incredible guests who have come to share their wisdom and experience, collectively reminding us this is not our mother’s menopause. No one has to navigate this season alone anymore. What’s more, is that we’ve discovered that with the right information, resources, and a trusted community, we have the chance to thrive in this season, not just survive. But most of all, I am celebrating the fact that you, the listeners have made this such a special community. Thank you for being such loyal listeners, for your regular feedback, and for sharing the show with more of your friends in midlife. Looking forward, I invite you to continue feasting on all that midlife has in store with more episodes full of vulnerable and empowering discussions!🎉🎉🎉 Celebrate and SAVE 10% on an annual membership in the Midlife Feast Community using the code MISSINGINGREDIENT at checkout here ⬇️ https://www.menopausenutritionist.ca/themidlifefeastcommunityWhat did you think of this episode? Click here and let me know!Ditch the food guilt for a more peaceful (and nourishing!) relationship with food.  Grab my free Food Guilt Decoder here: https://www.menopausenutritionist.ca/FoodGuiltDecoder📚 I wrote a book! Eat To Thrive During Menopause is out now! Order your copy today and start thriving in midlife. Looking for more about midlife, menopause nutrition, and intuitive eating? Click here to grab one of my free guides and learn what I've got "on the menu" including my 1:1 and group programs. https://www.easy.link/menopause.nutritionist

In addition to the emotional and physical changes that can come with midlife, have you ever felt discouraged when you realized that your relationship with your spouse or partner was having its own midlife crisis?If so, you’re not alone, but you don’t have to stay stuck. Since we’re celebrating Valentine’s Day this week, I thought it would be the perfect time to invite relationship expert Carrie Cohen on the show to talk about why feeling disconnected in relationships and marriage in midlife can happen without us even noticing. She will let us in on why midlife is another transition for our relationship that will need plenty of communication and negotiation until both partners land in a sweet spot. Best of all, Carrie shares some incredibly practical and powerful tools you can implement in your relationship to get the spark and connection back on the menu again! To learn more about Carrie and her work, check out her website at www.carriecohencoaching.com and follow her on IG @CarrieCohenCoaching. What did you think of this episode? Click here and let me know!Ditch the food guilt for a more peaceful (and nourishing!) relationship with food.  Grab my free Food Guilt Decoder here: https://www.menopausenutritionist.ca/FoodGuiltDecoder📚 I wrote a book! Eat To Thrive During Menopause is out now! Order your copy today and start thriving in midlife. Looking for more about midlife, menopause nutrition, and intuitive eating? Click here to grab one of my free guides and learn what I've got "on the menu" including my 1:1 and group programs. https://www.easy.link/menopause.nutritionist

If you have recently been told that you have high blood pressure, (perhaps for the first time ever) there are a couple of things you should know. First, this is not your fault! Second, don’t panic - because Dr. Alex Verge ND is back to help us understand why you’re not alone when it comes to understanding why blood pressure (among so many other things) changes in midlife.Your blood pressure might even improve as you listen to this episode and hear all of the great suggestions Dr. Alex shares with us to help you feel prepared for your next checkup. We talk about why Dr. Alex advocates for measuring your BP at home, how estrogen contributes to the equation, and what secondary factors to consider if you feel like you’re already doing all the right things.If you learned something new on this episode, be sure to share it with another friend in this season as a way to celebrate heart health this month! To learn more about Dr. Alex and her work, check out her website at www.kuraclinic.ca and follow her on Instagram at alexvergend.Links Mentioned: Hypertension Canada’s List of Recommended Devices - https://hypertension.ca/public/recommended-devicesUS Blood Pressure Validated Device Listing - https://www.validatebp.org/Stride BP (Joint Initiative with European Society of Hypertension) Validated Blood Pressure Monitors - https://www.stridebp.org/bp-monitors/Episode 39: What Every Woman Needs to Know About Heart Health, Cholesterol, and Menopause with Dr. Alex Verge, NDWhat did you think of this episode? Click here and let me know!Ditch the food guilt for a more peaceful (and nourishing!) relationship with food.  Grab my free Food Guilt Decoder here: https://www.menopausenutritionist.ca/FoodGuiltDecoder📚 I wrote a book! Eat To Thrive During Menopause is out now! Order your copy today and start thriving in midlife. Looking for more about midlife, menopause nutrition, and intuitive eating? Click here to grab one of my free guides and learn what I've got "on the menu" including my 1:1 and group programs. https://www.easy.link/menopause.nutritionist

Today we’re tackling a topic we haven’t yet devoted an entire episode to but certainly deserves one!  I’ve invited Nutrition & Body Relationship Coach, Deb Benfield to help us explore the subtle but profound impact of ageism on body image in midlife. We cover so much in this one conversation including aging body liberation, what it means to carry internalized ageism, and how that intersects with disordered eating during midlife. The episode emphasizes the importance of self-compassion, acknowledging losses, and practicing body acceptance. Deb and I get to express our excitement about this life stage, challenge societal norms, and promote a positive and fresh perspective on aging.  To learn more about Deb and her work, be sure to check out her website at www.debrabenfield.com and follow her on IG @agingbodyliberation.What did you think of this episode? Click here and let me know!Ditch the food guilt for a more peaceful (and nourishing!) relationship with food.  Grab my free Food Guilt Decoder here: https://www.menopausenutritionist.ca/FoodGuiltDecoder📚 I wrote a book! Eat To Thrive During Menopause is out now! Order your copy today and start thriving in midlife. Looking for more about midlife, menopause nutrition, and intuitive eating? Click here to grab one of my free guides and learn what I've got "on the menu" including my 1:1 and group programs. https://www.easy.link/menopause.nutritionist

One of the biggest challenges of midlife is the fact that so many of us feel flat-out exhausted, even after 8 hours of sleep!  That’s why I invited the Fatigue Fixer, Dr. Sarah Vadeboncoeur, ND to help us understand why this chronic exhaustion is so common but also more complex than just having low iron levels. Sarah will share the four areas you need to explore to discover what's zapping your energy these days. We’ll also dive into why ”meno-rage” could actually be a gift and why we need to allocate more time each day to meet our own needs for nutrition, movement, rest, and pleasure. To learn more about Sarah and her work, connect with her on her website at www.drsarahv.ca, follow her on Instagram @sarahvadeboncoeur and listen to her podcast The Fatigue Fixer. You can also watch her free masterclass here.Links Mentioned: Episode #26 Understanding Cultural Menorage with Mona EltahawyEpisode #44: What Women in Perimenopause Need to Know About Iron Deficiency with MaryAnn JacobsenWhat did you think of this episode? Click here and let me know!Ditch the food guilt for a more peaceful (and nourishing!) relationship with food.  Grab my free Food Guilt Decoder here: https://www.menopausenutritionist.ca/FoodGuiltDecoder📚 I wrote a book! Eat To Thrive During Menopause is out now! Order your copy today and start thriving in midlife. Looking for more about midlife, menopause nutrition, and intuitive eating? Click here to grab one of my free guides and learn what I've got "on the menu" including my 1:1 and group programs. https://www.easy.link/menopause.nutritionist