Mother’s Hour With Carolyn Van Beers – Weightloss After Pregnancy, Reclaiming Your Body Part 1

Hi. A big warm welcome to Mother's Hour with me, Carolyn Van Beers here on Women's Radio Station. Thank you so much for joining me today. I think it's going to be a very important show because we're talking and tackling a subject that affects nearly all of us mums. In fact, let's just find out, okay, who's not happy with their post baby body. Yep. Nearly all of us, in fact. Who's been on a diet for what seems like forever and who just thinks these diets don't work? The diets don't work. Whose post baby body is actually really getting them down, though, and making you feel very sad and desperate? I know this because some of you have emailed and wrote in and told me about how much it's getting you down. So. So today's show is weight loss after pregnancy, Reclaiming your body. We're not going to give you a diet because as I just said, the diets don't work. We have a really revolutionary program that's not only going to help you to lose the weight, but it's going to change your whole approach to food and give you a healthier, happier life. What is not to love? The success rate is phenomenal. And it's not just for a couple of months. This mum's is forever. Imagine having the body you really, really want, that you're really happy with and you just feel great every day. Well, hopefully that's what we're going to achieve. That's what we're going to be introducing to you today. And it's all with the help of my very special guest, Gabriela Espinosa, nutritional therapist, yoga, movement and meditation teacher. Thank you so much for joining us. Thank you, Carolyn. I'm so excited to be here and congratulations on bringing this amazing work into the world, offering all this information about women's and wellness to a broader audience. Thank you. You're doing amazing work in the world. No, thank you. Because honestly, you are going to help so many mums today who feel trapped, who feel like they're the hamster in the whee. They don't know what to do. And this is a new way of looking at it. And it does work, doesn't it? Absolutely. Absolutely. Okay. And can I just start by saying you are an absolute testament to your work. Thank you. That's so sweet. I am sat in front of this beautiful woman. You look about 30. Your skin is glowing. You look happy, radiant, smiley. I mean, have you always looked this way? Not always. Not always. I wish I did no, I've had my ups and downs, but I feel great. I feel amazing in my body now and better than I have ever before. Wow. And it's thanks, yeah, to nutrition, a healthy, mindful outlook to life, and just surrounding myself with positive people, positive community, people like yourself. Well, do you know what? Since I've been talking to you, since I knew you were coming on this show, I felt renewed. I've got this wonderful energy and this positive approach now which we are going to be going into in a minute. Just before we start, though, Gabrielle and I talked about what was, you know, the weight loss program. And we decided that it was probably. It's such a huge topic that we should do it over two shows. So we're really lucky we've got you for two shows. Today's show, we're going to get you started. Okay. We're going to start talking about a mindful approach. We're going to talk today about food and nutrition. And Gabriella has prepared just for you a fantastic nutritional plan that's really going to get you started. So we're going to be sharing that a little bit later on. And we're also going to be giving you some of the tools that can really help to make this journey successful. Next week, we're going to be talking exercise plans, yoga, meditation, basically the other half of your weight loss program. And yes, talk to a mother who has literally done it and lost five stone and she's kept it off for the last six years. So there you go. That is a testament to it. Remember, we are doing a show next week, so if you'd like to get in touch about or you have any questions for Gabriella, please do. CarolynSradiosStation.com that's Carolyn C A R O L y n@womensradiostation.com let's go. Let's go. Ready? Okay. So just before actually we do start, just tell me a little bit more about Gabriella and the work you do. Okay. So I have spent the last 12 years educating and empowering women to embrace their whole selves and reconnect with their bodies and reclaim their health through, through nutrition and lifestyle changes. I really feel as women, we're socially and culturally conditioned to perceive our bodies as flawed, inadequate, needing to be fixed. And this perception leads us to a competitive comparison spiral within ourselves and with other women and fuels our insecurities and it distorts the way we see our body and it sees. Distorts the way we see other bodies. I mean, did you, were you one of Those women, when you. Oh, my gosh, yes. I come from. My country of origin in South America, produces beauty queens. I grew up watching Miss Universe pageants, beauty pageants, oohing and ahhing with my grandparents, with my mother, with my father. The legs, the belly, the hair of these women on the telly. It was crazy. That's how I grew up. And then all, all of those messages were transferred to me, right? And so I always felt I was inadequate in some way. I was having to measure up to some standard of female beauty that just wasn't realistic. And throughout that time, I've been fat, shamed, skinny, shamed, teased about my hair, the clothes I wear, and what will other people think, right? That's what the culture and society that I grew up in, it. That's my personal history, right? And I think each of us has our own unique stories about how body image has developed in our. In our own lives. And when. When was the turning point for you? When did you start to think differently and approach. Not the diet, but. But, you know, changed the way. Yeah, no, it's like a control thing, isn't it? Taking yourself into control? No, that. That. That body image and those expectations of female beauty really weighed heavenly heavily on me. And so after giving birth to my daughter 16 years ago, I. No, you see, 16 years ago, that's outrageous. It's true. I chose to show up differently in my body. I really made the conscious decision to be kinder, more loving and accept accepting because I knew the thoughts I had about my body, the thoughts and beliefs I had about my body would impact her. And I didn't want her to grow up with the same limiting beliefs about her as a woman. So I turned to yoga, I turned to meditation, I turned to healthy eating. And I came to a place where I was at peace with my own body. And I also realized that if I was going to be a teacher and help other women, I needed to be at peace with my body, right? So that I could appreciate the full spectrum and beauty of other bodies of other women. I think that's what so many of us don't realize, is that if we could just stop and go, it's okay, and we can do this, we can get you better. But stop comparing yourself to everyone else and stop feeling so bad about everything. Okay, so why don't diets work? Yeah, diets are tricky. I just find them a very prescribed and prescriptive way of eating that just don't work. I think women think that by going on a diet, they're Going to become healthier. And as if the number on the scale is going to be a reflection of their health. And what we end up doing when we go on diets is cutting out key food groups, important nutrients that we need for energy, our brain health, our skin, our mood, our energy. And it's a temporary fix. Right. It's a quick fix, but you come off the diet and then you go back to your old eating habits, which were the ones that got you to start the diet in the first place. And then you go onto another diet. So we end up yo, yo, dieting. And also, like you said, you're craving certain food groups, so eventually you will fall off the wagon because you've got to have that food group. Exactly. You know, you don't know why you keep going to the fridge, but you're going to the fridge because you're craving something that you've cut out with the diet. Yeah. Or you're starving yourself. Right. Which actually slows down your metabolism and makes you gain more weight. Right. So they just, they just are not a healthy way to approach weight loss, I believe. Well, we've been doing them for what, 70 years, and we're bigger now than we've ever been. So I think, you know, that is very, very, very true. Okay, so how do we start? What's the first thing? If I'm coming to you, I want to lose weight. What is the first thing that you're going to do with me? Well, I do look at your food intake over a period of a week or two. So I do ask you to keep a food diary. And then we go over what you're eating and really evaluate that. And then when I begin coaching my female clients, I always begin also by guiding her to reconnect to her body and improve the mindset she has in relation to her body. And I feel once we improve our mindset, our attitudes and perceptions about our bodies are going to be able to help us make healthy and informed decisions about what we eat and what we put into our bodies. So how do we actually do that? I mean, what's the process that you actually do? So I feel the key is to exploring our emotions, our feelings and sensations around food. So I start by sitting down with you and teaching you a way to turn inwards to those emotions, those sensations, those feelings. So I believe that feeling is believing. Right. So hang on a minute. I've got an idea. Yeah. Why don't we gonna go do a quick ad break. Why don't after that you do this on me? You do this live. Let's do it together. Let's get everyone to do it. Let's get everyone to do it. All right, we're gonna do this in a minute. We're gonna do this in a couple of minutes. Get yourselves ready, ladies. We are going to reconnect with with our bodies and our souls. Live here with Gabriela. We'll see you in a couple. Welcome to Women's radio Station. I'm Sarah Louise Ryan and welcome to Love Lessons live on Women's radio station. Hello and welcome to future Classic Women awards with me, Stefania Passamonte on Women's Radio station. Hello and welcome to Julie Mae is listening. 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I want to be like that. And don't forget, ladies, this show is going to go out live, but after that it will become a podcast. So if this is an important show for you, you can keep listening to it and you can keep coming back to us and we're going to be continuing this show next week. So if you do want to email me, Carolyn, womensradiostation.com I would love to hear from you, especially if you've got any questions for Gabriella. Right, Gabriella, I'm starting this with you now. We're going to start our new weight loss program but it's not a diet and Gabriella has a kind of starting point which is a self inquiry, it's a reconnecting with your body. Is that right? Exactly, exactly. Feeling and sensing into the body. And we're all going to do it live. Everyone in the studio. Yes, we're all going to do it live. You're going to do it live with me. We've got Aisha and we've got Melis here in the studio. Melis will be half doing it because she's got to keep an eye on things, but I will definitely be doing it. And Mum's at home. Let's start. Yeah, exactly. Let's go. So if you can mums lie down? Yes, well you can if you're seated, you can do it, which I'll have to sitting comfortably in a chair. So sitting on a chair or you can come to lying on the floor. If you're on the floor, bend your knees, feet flat on the floor, hip distance apart. If you're seated, make sure you can feel the ground beneath you. Take your feet hip distance apart. Okay? Keep the spine upright, no slouching. Okay? So you might want to come to the front edge of your chair and that will help you. Okay? And then bring your left hand to your heart. Left hand, let's have a look there. Right hand to your belly. Why? Left hand to the heart. Your heart is on the left hand side of your belly. So on your left side of your body. So I want you to feel your heart, okay? And your belly. Your hand on your belly right below the navel so that you can sense the breath. Okay? So we're going to start here. I'm on my loose belly. You're going to love to learn that belly. Love that belly. Okay? So you can either keep the eyes open or the eyes closed if you're feeling a little bit self conscious. And just begin now by experiencing your breath. Just noticing how the breath is breathing you, how it's moving through you. Notice how it gently expands into the right hand on the inhale and draws back into the body on the exhale. So do this for five rounds of breath. Gently inhaling, feeling the breath expand out into the belly. On the exhale, the breath moves back into the body. And just as you're doing this, notice the quality of the breath, the rhythm of the breath. Notice how the breath is breathing you. Am I breathing in through my nose? You're breathing in through your nose, out through your nose, yes. So next I'd like you to take your attention to a sensation or feeling in your body that gives you that idea of feeling safe, well, alive and whole in your body. So we all have those sensations that give us a feeling of being alive and whole, that we're okay. It could be the beating of your heart if you notice that, the flow of your breath, perhaps it's a warmth in your belly or a tingling in your toes or feeling or fingers. Any sensation or feeling that gives you that sensation of being alive and well and present in your body. And next I'd like you to identify three words that describe that sensation. So the skill of finding words to describe positive feelings of being well and present in our bodies is key to transforming our perceptions about our body. So find three words to describe that sensation. And have them followed by the word I am. So if you're feeling your heart beating, it could be, I am open, I am compassionate, I am free. Shall I do me? What is the sensation you are feeling? I'm alive. I'm alive. I am alert and I am happy. Wonderful. That's how I feel. That's beautiful. So just come back to your breath repeating to yourself. Those three words followed by the word I am, I am, are two of the most powerful words you can use because anything that you put afterwards shapes your reality. If your eyes are closed, just bring them to opening and notice how you're feeling. How did this feel for you, Carolyn? Did you feel a shift? Definitely. Definitely. Look how I'm stood. I mean, it was not stood, but sat. I'm upright. You're looking radiant. Yeah, that's great. You're glowing, your eyes are sparkling. I love that. I see the instant transformation when we really connect with the wholeness, the wellness that's inherent in our bodies. It's there. It's there and it's always there for us to access if we take the time to sit, listen and reconnect. Okay, so you've done that with me now. Now all the mums at home, do we do that every day in some kind of way? It took us how many minutes? Three minutes. Yeah. Took us three minutes to go through that little exercise. I think we can find three minutes in our day. Put your phone aside. The same amount of time you're, you know, scrolling through social media. Exactly. That's just going to make you feel bad. It's going to lead to those comparisons and make us feel. Yes, definitely. And just take three to five minutes to sit upright, lie on your back and hand on heart, hand on belly, and just notice and identify those feelings of being alive and well. So I like to start from that point. We're not fragmented. There's nothing wrong with us. There's nothing we need to fix. Right. We are alive, well and perfect just the way we are. And that's our starting point for a shift in mindset to then begin a healthy and nutritious lifestyle. Because when we look at the way you approach weight loss, am I right in saying you've kind of got a four pronged, not attack, but way mindset, which you've just started with us, and we'll talk more about that in just a second, is a huge one with this, because with that you have the strength to succeed. Then food and nutrition, then other mindset tools are going to keep you, you know, on that journey on that path. And then obviously the exercise, which is, you know, just as important sometimes as the. You know, as the food or. They balance each other, don't they? And that's how we're going to carry you ladies through, talking about those four big points. So we're on mindset. We've just done the initial bit of reconnecting with ourselves. Be kind to ourselves, haven't we? Renee Brown has this beautiful quote that I love. Speak to yourself as though you were speaking to a loved one. I love that. We don't do that. No, we don't do that enough. We just pull ourselves apart. Exactly. And like you said, compare ourselves with everyone. And then you just feel bad. You've already started by feeling bad. You know, if you wake up in a bad mood, it's because you were on your phone the night before comparing yourself to everybody on Instagram. Promise you. And if you didn't do that and you gave your partner or whoever a little cuddle or your baby a little cuddle, I promise you, you're gonna have a happier day and a happier start. So this is a really good starting point for so many women who can perhaps use this as a real crutch, can't they? And it's always there. It's always. It's a great way of resourcing yourself. And always possible. It's nothing that you have to seek from the outside. It's all within you. It's all possible. I'm free. I love it. And so we presumably, we use this throughout the day when we're having some, you know, and, yeah, it brings you more in touch with your body and your emotions. So when you are having, you know, fluctuations and emotions, because we all have them, that's the normal part of the human experience. You're having a bad day shouting at teenagers. Teenagers. Yeah, that's me. Definitely. Just take a moment to Mommy's timeout. Yeah, we all just, like, we give our kids a timeout. We need it, too. Whoa. Okay. That is amazing. So. Oh. All right. We're going to come back to some more mindset tools a little bit later on in the show. I think now it's quite important that we start talking about nutrition and food. You have done a wonderful nutritional plan, which we're going to be having a look at in a minute. But just before we go into a break, what's the big thing with nutrition? Yes. Blood sugar imbalance. Blood sugar imbalance. Right. So we're just eating the wrong types of food. We're eating overly processed foods that are loaded with sugar. And I personally think that sugar is up there with smoking and drugs as a most harmful substance. And it's everywhere. We don't realize it's hidden everywhere. And it leads to fat around the middle. Right. Increased risk of diabetes, premature aging, cognitive decline, dementia, Alzheimer's. And it's just plain addictive. Plain addictive. And our bodies aren't designed to consume these amounts of sugar that we're putting into our bodies. They're designed to eat fresh, unprocessed, fresh, freshly cooked meals that we can actually digest and actually do their job. Exactly. So what we're actually going to be talking, we're going to go to a short break now, but we're actually going to be talking when we come back about what foods you should be eating. They're going to cut down your cravings, they're going to give your body what it needs so you're going to feel really, really healthy. And we're going to be talking through these amazing nutritional plans that Gabriella has devised just for us mums. And I think we're really, really going to be on a good road with you. Thank you so much. We'll be back just off these short breaks. Do stay with us. Welcome to the Women's radio station. Supporting women's well being. Women's Radio Station is all about diversity from opinions, career, ethnicity, education and most importantly, women's well being. We aim to celebrate the individuality of every woman everywhere, providing opportunities and the platform for your voice. Visit our website womensradiostation.com for more information. Hi, I'm Liz Van Linden, a UK travel consultant for Hazelmere Travel. People come to me as they want unique example experiences and a personalized service. This happens from the moment that they inquire till they come back home. I work with luxury tour operators. You can contact me on 078254-4122 and Liz spelt L I S at hazazelmaertravel.co.uk I'm Tamina Zaman, founder of Empower and Enrich. When it comes to money, do you clam up or get confused? Do you wish you could save more money or are you hoping you have enough for retirement? 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We give practical help to get people back on track. Whether you're thinking of having a baby, trying to get out of an unhappy relationship, or just unsure what benefits you may be entitled to, we can help. Visit turntous.org.uk welcome to the women's radio station supporting women's well being. Women's radio station can give voice to your brand. With a wide range of sponsorship opportunities, including individual programs, we can tailor your experience for you. For more information on how you can sponsor a Show, go to womensradiostation.com Women's radio station supporting women's well being. Welcome back to Mother's Hour with me, Carolyn Van Beers and the lovely Gabriella Espinosa who is my very special guest today in the studio today. She is a nutritionalist, an expert, actually yoga teacher, meditation, movement, and she's here today to basically kickstart us on a weight loss program after pregnancy. But this isn't a diet. This is you changing your whole way of looking at yourself and your foods that you eat and knowing what's in those foods and how they can literally set you free and give you everything that you need. We just done mindset which was amazing. Thank you. We all felt going my three words and I do feel really energized. I do feel really happy and I will, you know, like you said, keeping my hand on my heart, you know, throughout the day just to bring me back and just to comfort me, you know, and that's lovely. It's really comforting. So now we're going on to nutrition and food and we're going to look at the nutritional program that you have devised for as mums. I can tell you that will be on the website womensradiostation.com if you go into the events page, you will find the blood sugar balancing meal plan. You'll also find the healthy snacks, which we're going to have a look at in a few minutes. And they are really. They're brilliant. They're brilliant, brilliant, brilliant. Gabriella, nutritional specifics. What should we be eating and why? Okay, so I always, you know, I don't like telling my clients to get rid of everything in their diet. We start off with one thing, and as I mentioned earlier, and then adding good stuff. Right? So as I mentioned earlier, I always start with sugar. Getting rid of all processed and refined sugar. So that's the cakes, the sweet biscuits, all the other foods that they're hidden in salad dressings, low fat yogurt, breakfast cereals, wine. Sorry, ladies. Pasta sauces, ready pot meals. Oh, come on. One glass in moderation. I was about to walk out the room. You're on your own. So getting rid of all refined sugar and processed powder foods and keeping even fruit to a minimum, two portions a day, and switching to unrefined carbs and whole grains. So that switching from the white rice, the pasta, to more whole brown rice, wild rice, quinoa, millet. There's so many beautiful whole grains out there. Oats. I've got a quick question about sugar. Are we, because we are addicted to sugar, are we gonna go a bit cold turkey? I mean, how hard is that gonna be? It's gonna be difficult. It will be difficult. I mean, other symptoms. But I'm just asking you to get rid of one thing. And we're starting with sugar. And you have your mindfulness tool, this hand on heart, hand on belly, that allows you to tune in and also tune into why you're gravitating to the sugary foods, which we're going to talk about a little bit. Yes. There are other reasons why we gravitate to the sugary foods. Yes. So as I mentioned, switching to unrefined carbs and whole grains, slow releasing carbs, don't spike your blood sugar levels. Adding protein with each meal, that is essential again, to keeping blood sugar levels balanced. So it could be a handful of nuts that you have for a snack. It could be some lean turkey, lean chicken, a piece of fish, adding that with every meal and snack. Good fats, right? Good fats are amazing for brain health, cellular repair, inflammation. And these include olive oil, avocados, coconut oil, nuts, oily fish such as salmon, mackerel, sardines, herring. Making sure you include at least three portions of that fat into your diet a week, and increasing your vegetables at least three to five portions A day. I try to get women to get to five portions. Do you prefer vegetables to fruit? Really? Oh, definitely, yeah. Vegetables have fiber, right, which help you digest food. It has loads of micronutrients which were sometimes deficient, such as magnesium, calcium. So, yeah, really key to eat your veg, right? And I like to tell my clients to eat a rainbow just to make things a bit more interesting. Buy portions of veg a day, eat a rainbow. Look at the. Go to your supermarket or your local market and just look at all the brightly colored veg and just choose one color from the rainbow. Okay? One. Like you said, markets. If you have a market, try and go to the market and not the supermarket because then you can really play and get excited about the food as you would a child in a sweet shop. You in a vegetable shop. I know it doesn't sound quite as exciting, but it is when you're feeling really good about yourself and when your jeans are falling off you. I get so excited going to markets because the foods are just so beautifully presented and that, you know, that they're fresh and in season and they're literally farm to table and it's amazing. That's great. And less packaging, which we love. So, yes, we're going to definitely be promoting that. Another thing you just touched on then is the protein thing. And I have to say, my life when I was modeling, I had to be a certain weight and obviously I couldn't just reach for sugary things. And I did find that having a snack of protein would almost balance me out. Like you just said, the nuts. Or I would just go around eating salmon flakes or turkey, you know, cooked turkey or something. Having a snack as protein, not necessarily always just with your evening meal really does, you know, pull off some of those cravings that, you know, you were having that low blood sugar when you reach for the sugary products. So, okay, so we've got a really good balance there of foods that you just gave out. Let's take a look at a typical day. So we're moving over to the nutritional plan that Gabriella has brought into the studio today. It's called the blood sugar balancing meal plan. Exactly. So I always get my clients to start the day with a substantial protein based breakfast. So this can be scrambled eggs with smoked salmon and a slice of whole grain bread, wheat and sugar free muesli which can be soaked overnight. And in the morning you put some berries, some more seeds, a plant based milk if possible, live natural yogurt, not fat free because the fat free means there's sugar in it so it can taste good. Right. Live natural yogurt with fruit and chopped nuts and seeds. Those are a few examples. Poached eggs with tomatoes and a small slice of rye bread. And you've also got on here bacon and eggs, but only one to two times a week. So no, you wouldn't have any carb with that. You would just have the bacon and eggs. I mean you can have a little slice of, you know, sourdough bread, rye bread, whole grain bread. Yeah, I just wouldn't. Variety is the key, right? Variety is the key. So you want to make sure you're getting a balance of all the micronutrients into your diet. And the one thing that I can actually say I've always done all my life, and I think it has been incredibly good, is I always have breakfast and I always have a big breakfast and I think it does help me throughout the day because I'm not always snacking and I don't particularly like sweet things. So I think that, I mean, I'm not good in many ways, but I think that is something that is very important, isn't it key to getting you off to a good start? Definitely. And because you're going to wear all of that up during the day, so have it in the morning when you can and just love it, you know, no coffee. So I know coffee is a big one. I try to get my clients to cut off client coffee in the afternoon. So you can have your cup of coffee in the morning, not on an empty stomach. So start by putting good foods, nutrient dense foods into your body and then take a pause. Maybe you do your self awareness, you're reconnecting with your body and then maybe you can figure out do I really need that coffee? Right. And some of us love the smell. It gives us comfort, it brings us joy and that's fine. Right. But do it after you have your breakfast and then really try to resist the coffee post lunch because it will interrupt your sleep patterns. I mean you could almost have your breakfast fruit juice and have that's your drink of the morning and then have something to look forward to which could be your coffee mid morning or 10:30, something like that as something to look forward to reaching for with the healthy snack, something that's protein based, you know, a handful of nuts, a nut butter on some oat cakes. Right. That could be a nice treat there sitting down and pausing for a your coffee break with those types of snacks. Very doable so far, Gabriella. Very doable. Okay, so it's Lunchtime. Lunchtime. Excellent. So again, we want to include those healthy fats. So I've suggested an avocado and green salad. You can add some cannellini beans for some fiber, roast chicken and lightly steamed veg with a little bit of brown rice. You can have a tin of mackerel, sardines, tuna, and make a salad with that, with some oat cakes. There you have a little bit of everything. A nice vegetable and bean soup served with rye bread and maybe a little bit of goat's cheese or even just cold turkey slices with some oat cakes and beetroot salad. Very simple. Everyone's not getting too hungry right now, but these are lovely and these are going to be giving you all the energy you need in the day. So you probably will be craving unless you've got an emotional response, which we're going to be talking about in a little bit. But you know, essentially your body's got what it needs, so it's not going to be craving all those things. This is absolutely great. So dinner time now. This is exciting. I like to keep things simple at dinner. Right. So again, grilled or baked fish with steamed greens, grilled chicken and some roasted Mediterranean vegetables. You've got no carbs in the evening? I have no carbs in the evening, yes. We've included them in the breakfast and lunch. Right. So I like to, for me personally, I'd like to bring them earlier in the day because you need those carbs to give you energy, sustained energy during the day. So I tend to leave them out in the evening. And also that's really good for weight loss, isn't it? Because you're not having those stodgy carbs that are going to get stored because you're not really using it up. So that's absolutely fantastic. This is so exciting. Okay, we're gonna take another short break, but we're gonna come back, talk about some of the healthy snacks that are gonna be your savior and some of those dangerous little pitfalls that we might be falling into, those bad habits and how to manage those. See you in a couple of minutes. 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We give practical help to get people back on track. Whether you're thinking of having a baby, trying to get out of an unhappy relationship, or just unsure what benefits you may be entitled to, we can help. Visit turntousous.org.uk welcome to the women's radio station supporting women's well being. Women's radio station can give voice to your brand. With a wide range of sponsorship opportunities, including individual programs, we can tailor your experience for you. For more information on how you can sponsor a Show, go to womensradiostation.com Women's radio station supporting women's well being. You're back with us here on Mother's Hour, a great show. Today we are talking weight loss after pregnancy. Weight loss for you mums. I know loads of you are so, well desperate just to get this weight off and you realize that diets just don't work. So Gabriella Espinosa has Been in the studio with us. She's back next week as well. We're going to talk in a minute about other things that can inhibit and stop us from succeeding. And they're very important. But let's just finish on your nutritional programmes with the healthy snacks because they are very important because that can be sometimes our weakness, can't it? Exactly. You just, you know, it's 4:30, you're a little bit away from dinner. It's a weak moment. It's a weak moment for me because the kids are back and I'm like, yeah, my breathing's gone a bit bad. Let me just say I. That sounded like something else, but it wasn't. Let's get away from that. Okay, so healthy snacks. Yes. So I always recommend including some protein with your snack. Okay. So again, it can be a nut butter spread thickly on two to three oatcakes for a quick sustaining snack. And nuts are rich and essential in fatty acids. Hang on. But you've got. Except peanut butter. I thought nut butter was peanut butter. It depends on, you know, there's some nut intolerances and nuts, peanuts can lead to some intolerances. So we tend to leave them out. So a different type of nut butter, you can have almond butter, cashew butter. If you're okay with peanuts, it's okay in moderation. I love peanut butter and I, you know, I take a spoonful when I can. You're from Texas two or three times a week. Yeah. Okay. Avocados again. Everyone loves an avocado, which are rich in fats. Again, you can combine them with some goat's cheese for some protein on an oat cake. And in terms of other ideas, hard boiled eggs, I mean, they're just a complete protein snack. So just keep some handy. Boil them in the morning, keep them in the fridge or at room temp, if you're okay with that. And I love having that with the. Again with a small slice of goat's cheese, Manchego cheese or some hummus. Yeah, I like the hummus because you can always have the hummus in the fridge. You know, when you go into the fridge and you want to reach for something else, get the, put the hummus at the front, Put the hummus the front, very near big carrot and just dip it in and put it in your mouth. Because as soon as you put that in your mouth, you will stave off any need to go into the freezer for a mini Magnum. Exactly. Oh, don't even go there. And the smoothies and the juices they are brilliant, aren't they? Blending some mixed berries. I always recommend a scoop of protein powder again to set sustained and keep those blood sugar levels down. Or yogurt. Or yogurt, yes. And you can also add some flaxseed oil, some tahini or pumpkin seed butter or nut butter in there also to make it rich and nourishing. And then good old fruit, right? Good old fruit. I recommend low sugar fruit, any type of berries, an apple or a pear. Again, you can cut them up in small slices. Maybe put smooth a little piece of almond butter or peanut butter on your fruit and then you have your protein against a balance off the sugar levels in the fruit. And grapefruit is great for not making you feel hungry. That's quite a good one. Is that an okay fruit? Some women have issues with grapefruit. It depends on where your hormones are and whether or not you're on the birth control pill or not. So that we can take to a discussion in the future. So there are some issues around grapefruit. How about pineapple? Pineapple is great for digestion, right? Pineapple is great from digestion and that really does satisfy any sugar craving. If I have a pineapple, I'm just fine. So again, if you're going to have a piece of fruit, try to have some protein with it. So again, a handful of nuts. Again, walnuts or pecans, hazelnuts or cashew nuts. That's pecans. How you say it here? Some seeds, you know, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, a seed mix. And you know what as well, if you're in a bit of a hurry, like you know that sometimes your blood sugar level drops really, really quickly. And I hope you're okay with this, Gabriella. But they do frozen smoothie packs, so they've got everything cut up. It's all ready to go. Just bang it into your blender and away you go. And it's. I don't put that much juice in. So mine is literally like a sorbet. It's so good and it does just stop those cravings. You even have avocados that are frozen so you can pop those in. Wow. For some added fat in the summertime, add some coconut water to keep those electrolytes going. Plant milks. Yeah, those are amazing and it's so quick and easy. Don't forget, ladies, these healthy snacks are up on the website womensradiostation.com events page. Please do check it out and let us know if you're going to try it out this week. Let us Know how it's all going for you. CarolineMensradeStation.com so we've taught food. Now, you really, really did emphasize that you need to be aware of some other things that could be going on in your life. It's like you call it fending off the storm, is that right? That if we are mindful, if we know about these things, then we're able to handle them, we're able to cope. And there are some things that do inhibit weight loss. Exactly. Number one is fatigue. Right. Especially if we're not getting enough sleep. And it does two things. It raises our cortisol levels, which is another hormone which makes us hold on to weight. And so both fatigue and elevated cortisol make us in turn crave and eat more sugar and more carbs, which can actually make us more tired in the long run and not lose weight. Oh, my goodness me. Sleep is important. So turning off all electronics an hour before bed. This is me. This is all over. I'm still, oh, I've got some time. The children all around. It's so tempting. So tempting. Yes. Hour before bed, all blue lights off. Right. Gosh. Read a book. So guilty. Read a book, listen to some music, go and do your reconnecting experience, exercise that I showed you. Just do that before bed and you'll notice your nervous system calming and getting ready for bed. Another thing that's really, really important is the thyroid. It's very common post pregnancy hypothyroidism. That's when your thyroid doesn't produce enough of the thyroid hormone. And this can cause fatigue, it can cause weight gain, brittle hair, nails. So it's definitely something that you can have checked by your gp. Go and ask for a thyroid blood profile. And you can also have the opposite happen. You can have a hyperthyroid, which means your thyroid is producing too much thyroid hormone. This can also lead to anxiety, hair loss, fatigue, your heart racing. So both ends of the spectrum are not great. Right. So I highly recommend, I always, if I ever suspect that I always send my clients to the GP and I tell them, ask your GP for a thyroid blood profile. This is what I'm experiencing. The GP will say, oh, you just had a baby, you know, give yourself a year. But no, you have to ask, you have to step up and ask for what's, you know, what you can, what you can do to investigate further why it's that loss is being stubborn. And if you have been following this program, for example, and nothing's happening, because we will see a result in about Three months, Wouldn't we? Yes, it takes about three months. Yeah. If after three months you're not seeing any results, then you could be in that thyroid category of either one or the other. So definitely get that checked out. And I would. We would look at. You can always address thyroid issues with food. Is that the great thing? Right? Yeah. Getting the right nutrients to support your thyroid, which actually is something that our guests. Next week. And we can talk about that a little bit more next week. Okay. And then finally, you're emotional, you know, eating for you. Eating your emotion. So gravitating to food out of boredom, out of loneliness, out of loss of connection. You know, as new moms, sometimes we miss that connection with friends, probably friends who are currently not moms. That sense of community. There are all sorts of reasons that we gravitate emotionally to sugar and unhealthy foods. So again, that's why that reconnecting exercise is very good to help you feel and sense into what emotions may be coming up for you. There are other great tools also for calming your emotions. One that I love is earthing or grounding, which refers to direct skin contact with the surface of the earth. So taking off your shoes and walking or standing barefoot in the park in your garden, especially now in the summertime, why not? Right. And incredible benefits. Your mood and sleep improves it, reduces stress, inflammation, reduces any kind of pain you may be feeling in the body. Another one that I love is movement. Right. I'm gonna have to say we're gonna have to talk about this next week. Yes. Because we are really nearly coming to the end of this year show. So these are kind of mindfulness tools, like a toolkit that we are going to touch on next week. And these are the things that Gabriela recommends to maybe stop or to prevent too much of the emotional responses to food, which is grabbing a bag of menstruals and just stuffing them all in your mouth in one go, which we don't want to do. And these are the things we know we're a little bit guilty of that. So we're really going to investigate those a little bit more next week. Gabriela, do you have a website that we could go to to visit to find out a little bit more about you? My website is gabriellaespinosawellness.com it may not be completely up at the moment. I have been updating it or I'm also. I am on social media on Instagram. Gabriella Espinosa Wellness and I do post on there from time to time. Not regularly. You can access me there? Yes. Okay. Gabriella's back with us. Next week we're going to be talking exercise, we're going to be talking more of these mindfulness tools. I'll see you next time. Thank you so much for joining me. Thank you. It was a pleasure. Welcome to Women's Radio Station. I'm Sarah Louise Ryan and welcome to Love Lessons live on Women's Radio Station. Hello and welcome to future Classic Women Awards with me, Stefania Passamonte on Women's Radio Station. Hello and welcome to Julie Mae is listening. Hi, this is Anna Kennedy and we're at Women's Radio Station supporting women's wellbeing and we're talking all about things autism, women. The possibilities are endless. That's what makes us different. Hi, I'm Falguni Desai of Action Coach. Are you a business owner with more than five employees? Do you want to grow your business? I'm a London based business coach who helps small and medium sized businesses to grow and make a profit. 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