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Client Highlight: Meet Kiana

The young gal you’re about to meet is pretty special to me.

She’s my kid!

When Kiana asked me about doing a Metabolic Balance plan to help shed a few extra pounds, I had my reservations.

Working with people you’re close to in a consulting role is hard.

I also come across so many people that have a pretty cruel self-image and a toxic relationship with their bodies and food. This was a cycle that I DID NOT want for my kid.

Folks that find it hard to love and accept themselves from the get-go (with their imperfections and their love handles) always seem to struggle and falter more. It’s as if resisting what is only gets them more stuck.

Clients that approach weight loss from a place of self-acceptance and self-love are always more successful.

After many, many discussions, she convinced me that she loved her body and her beautiful curves and that she was doing this to feel better and to prevent problems down the road.

She wasn’t looking for a quick fix or to fit into some type of social norm. She was looking for tools for the long haul.

Magic words for mom.

 

I generated Kiana’s plan and she was all set to go in January.

Along with a few extra pounds, she presented with digestive issues, brain fog and increasing fatigue.

2 weeks in, she was down 6 lbs.  Her digestion improved a lot. She did struggle with some headaches during the first 2 days which quickly cleared up.

Kiana is in the final semester of a Bachelor’s degree in political science. So she’s pretty familiar with how her mind works and her studying patterns.

She also struggles with a mild case of social anxiety.

Anxiety and depression are so prevalent in society today. I think Kiana’s story offers a glimmer of hope.

Something significant that she noticed after starting this work was that she was turning on her camera during zoom classes and found herself participating and interacting more. She also noticed that she was able to focus on her work longer. (Read what Kiana has to say below)

This is a perfect example of the gut-brain connection. When we work at streamlining digestion, cleaning up the diet, replenishing beneficial bacteria and soothing the gut, shifts do happen.

Check out this link on the gut microbiome’s effect on mental health.

One month in, she was down 10 lbs.  In her words, things were getting ‘mundane’ but she stuck with it.  Her energy was good, she was walking daily and noticing that she was able able to recover from anxiety-causing situations quicker.

3 months in and she reached her weight loss goal of 20 lbs. YAY!!

She’s officially in maintenance phase for the next 6 months.

Maintenance will require vigilance and applying all of her new tools. 

Her body will be extremely reactive during this phase. Losing 20 lbs. in a short period of time is actually like knocking the body out of equilibrium. It’ll be natural for her body to want to return to it’s ‘normal’ weight for a certain period of time.

Going back to old ways and habits is out of the question otherwise she will gain back quickly… And if that happens, she’ll have to pay me a gazillion dollars – That’s our deal.

Maintenance is about integrating the new tools and habits while testing and playing and continuing to tune-in.

I know she will be fine 😉

Here are a few words from Kiki:

Q. What was your experience like doing a Metabolic Balance plan?

A. It was not too hard to take the leap because I had already heard a lot about MB, but the first few days were still somewhat of a learning curve.

It didn’t take long before I got the hang of things like weighing the food and cooking with no oils. I actually found myself enjoying the routine and structure that come along with doing the plan, so phase 2 was quite enjoyable for me.

I wanted to do MB because I was experiencing low levels of concentration, brain fog and sugar cravings and I wanted to lose the few pounds that I had gradually gained over the years.

I didn’t lose too much in the first two weeks, but my brain fog disappeared, and my energy levels were crazy. I found myself wanting to exercise and do yoga, things I had previously seen as a chore. This was the best part for me.

Unexpectedly, I began noticing that my struggle with social anxiety was fading. Things that used to be hard, like contributing to class discussions, became a task I (almost) enjoyed.

My grades and relationships with professors and classmates were being positively affected, which increased my confidence and my mood. I was studying for 8 hours a day with no issues and my sugar cravings disappeared right after the initial cleansing phase.

I got to discover foods that I was not used to eating and found myself enjoying them as well. Although I did miss my ramen, I knew I would be able to indulge in the future. The benefits outweighed the occasional craving.

After 3 months, I lost 20 pounds and MB has become ingrained in my routine. I don’t think I would ever go back to eating the way I did before.

I’m confident in my body but also in my brain: It has never performed so well, and my grades and relationships have never been better.

In a few months I will be moving to another country, this will be my greatest challenge yet: To keep up the habits I’ve picked up with MB despite the drastic change to my daily life.  But I’m confident I’ll be able to maintain what I’ve achieved so far.

Kiana

Congratulations Kiana and thank you for sharing some pretty personal stuff.

I hope Kiana’s story inspires you to be mindful of your gut health.

Needless to say, I’m a pretty proud mama ❤

Get more information on the program Kiana worked with HERE

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What Does Stress Management Look Like For You?

A holistic approach involves looking at all of you.

In my last blog, I discussed how simply cooking your own food is a giant act of self-care.

When I ask clients what they do to manage their stress, I usually get a blink, blink followed by a blank stare.

It’s not because my clients aren’t creative, resourceful and amazing humans. It’s because this stuff isn’t prioritized.

What I see day in and day out is that stress matters, actually stress trumps everything.

If that part of the puzzle isn’t being addressed, it can have a big impact on how well you achieve your goals.

 

We will never wipe stress out of our lives, but we can learn how to:

1) Notice it

then we can begin to

2) Manage it

Stress management doesn’t have to be an expensive vacation, gym membership or spa treatment (although it can totally be those things)

The secret is usually just about reconnecting to things you love. Still drawing a blank? Think about things you loved doing as a kid.

I remember a time in my life, not that long ago, when the thought of booking time off to do something for myself that was completely unproductive seemed absurd.

The older I get, the more I realize just how productive being unproductive is.

When I take the time to quiet the old hamster wheel and reconnect to a little gratitude (stop catastrophizing – keep it real) is when I’m the most productive.

When I started diving into this stuff I worried that I didn’t have any hobbies or know how to fill my proverbial cup.

It was only when I started thinking about stress management in terms of self care and joy that I discovered that I have tons hobbies and ways that I can self-soothe;

cooking,
entertaining,
connecting with my people,
walking,
being in nature,
meditating and mindfulness,
reading meaningful books (I call it my smart reading),
gardening (I suck at that one but refuse to give up),
renovating (that’s an expensive one),
home décor,
thrifting,
making my space beautiful
…

I recently noticed that, with a busier agenda, a lot of my loves were being ignored:

I was skipping my morning meditation in order to catch up on emails.

My smart reading book sat unopened for weeks.

I found myself always walking in the evening and in the dark because I stopped scheduling it in during my lunch break. Even worse, lunch was often used to catch up on social media messages.

Noticing was my cue to make some adjustments and review my priorities. Before life rearranged me.

Bottom line: You. Are. Responsible. For. You.

We’re all surrounded by crap and stuff that’s hard to deal with.

Ultimately, you choose what you say YES to and what you say NO to and how you will show up for yourself and the people that need you.

I hope you choose to prioritize yourself this week.

Kim
oxo

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