How She Lost Weight at 47 While Still Eating Carbs W/ WarriorBabe Jennifer

00:00One of the worst points of all of that for me was when my son actually said, Mom, you're doing it all wrong. And he was tracking his macros and focused on protein. And he was like, you have to be eating carbs. And he was like, you know, the cardio is not enough for you. And so I'm like, here's my teenage son telling me I'm not doing it right. Wow. Yeah, yeah. Hey, everyone.

00:30What's going on? So today I have another Warrior Babe here with us, Jennifer. And before Warrior Babe, she was experiencing a season of burnout. She was mentally drained. She was physically depleted. And she was stuck in an all too common cycle of what women experience of cycle dieting or under eating or poor sleep and endless cardio, all of the things. And after years of feeling like she was doing everything right, nothing was working. But then she found Warrior Babe. And with the guidance of her amazing coach, she's learned to eat more.

01:00She's learned to sleep better. She finally feels strong in her own body again. And now she's not only transforming from the outside, she's also learning how to truly love herself from the inside out, which is really cool. And I'm super excited for her to share her story today here with us. Welcome, Jen. Thank you so much. It's so awesome to be here. Love that. Okay, so I know where you're from because we just had this conversation. But I would love for the listeners to know where you're from, how old you are, and what do you do for work? Okay, awesome. Thank you. So I am calling in from Carolina Beach, North Carolina, right outside of Wilmington.

01:34I've been here not quite a year. I am 50, almost 51. So last year was a pivotal point in hitting 50, moving, and in career transition. I just finished 23 years with the federal government at the Department of State. And I am now a full-time life and leadership coach. Hey, let's go. Wow, rock star. I love that story. Super cool. Okay, so let's talk about what your situation was like before you found Warrior Babe.

02:04Well, I did work for the federal government, and I was a leader there. And I pulled long hours, running meeting to meeting to meeting. And so my meals were kind of on the go. And so I was one low carb after another in my journey. And averaging probably four to five hours of sleep a night, a lot of stress and anxiety, just the mind constantly going. I'm a single mom.

02:35And so my son was in high school for the last few years. He's now at college. And so just a lot of balls to keep moving. And when I hit the gym or when I was outside, it was like, just run, try to, you know, walk, jog, do whatever, hit the cardio. And, you know, all of that. Yeah, that worked more in my 30s, maybe early 40s, but it hadn't worked in a long time. Yeah. How much do you think you were eating on a daily basis? Well, at one point, I was on a journey that was averaging 1,100 calories a day.

03:11Wow. Yeah. So you would think I should have been like super skinny, right? What were the results of that? Well, I did lose weight. I did not have muscle. And so, and the other side of that is that when I no longer did that program, of course, I did go back up in the weight. That was just not sustainable. And it was not getting at any of the root issues going on. And so, you know, I was focused on what to try to do on the outside when in fact, all

03:44of this really needed to be rewired on the inside. Right. Isn't that crazy? Because it's not tangible. You can't like feel the inside. So you just got to, you know, learn these strategies, which is pretty cool how you are learning them right now. Yeah. You, when I was reading like your little info thing for this interview, you mentioned you had a hysterectomy. I did. That you were feeling like exhausted and you're feeling disheartened after that hysterectomy. Can you walk us through how that impacted like your routine, how it impacted your energy? Yeah. Yeah.

04:15Yeah. So in fact, last year, again, being a pivotal year, right before I turned 50 and moved, I did have a hysterectomy. I had some ovarian cysts that were coming up and one had ruptured and it was pretty painful. Luckily all good, but I was like, just take it all. Let's be done. And I thought I had been through the worst of the premenopausal symptoms. I had gone through the night sweats and everything and that had fate, you know, faded. And then I had the hysterectomy. Well, all of that returned in kind of a worse way.

04:46And so in addition to healing, I was feeling like I now have these symptoms again. I'm not feeling right. I'm not certainly doing the cardio that I had been doing prior and just not feeling good about myself. Yeah. Wow. That's gotta be hard. At that time. And I can understand how, where the disheartening feeling would come from. You mentioned right before I asked you that question that you were doing like low carb diets and they weren't cutting it and you were doing cardio and all those things.

05:19Like what was the most frustrating part about you putting all of that work in you thinking that you were going to get the results that you wanted, but you weren't getting the results that you wanted? No, I think that one of the worst points of all of that for me was when my son actually said, mom, you're doing it all wrong. And he was tracking his macros and focused on protein. And he was like, you have to be eating carbs. And he was like, you know, the cardio is not enough for you. And so I'm like, here's my teenage son telling me I'm not doing it right.

05:50Wow. Yeah. Yeah. So it was really cool to witness him on his journey and know that there was another way out there. And in fact, I, it must've just been the universe bringing this all together because it was right around then that I found warrior babe. And I'm like, well, what is that? Because I want to feel strong and feeling strong to me is not a number on the scale. It is how I feel inside my, my body. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Spot on. Before we dive into, um, you finding us and finding warrior babe, what were some beliefs

06:22or some habits you had to unlearn in order to start to see the progress that you've seen? Um, what I had to unlearn is, um, the fact that I do need to eat, um, and that I needed more protein in particular, as well as, um, the right amount of carbs and fats. Oh my goodness. Right. That's a whole other belief system, like low fat, no fat. And so what do you mean? I need fats. Uh, and so it, it, like we're talking roughly 40 plus, you know, about 49 years of unlearning.

06:59Well, right. You know, but that's the lifespan here. The other key point is I joke that I was running on empty for so long and I did not realize how critical sleep is to our bodies reset into managing our food intake into managing our strengths, our mental, our mental clarity. I mean, I just, I didn't give myself the space. I didn't prioritize that. And I think about how I would have advocated differently for myself.

07:32If I could go back to my younger self and say, here's what sleep can do. I, I would have advocated differently. Wow. That's a huge, uh, profound, like realization right there. And the shift of perspective from the new Jen's lenses. Yeah. There's a lot of women that struggle with, like you mentioned getting only four hours of sleep and being like, I, a lot of women say like, I can't change that. Like I can't, I can't get more than four hours of sleep. What would you tell that woman now with the new Jen's perspective and lens on that you could

08:05advocate for this woman that's listening to you right now? What would you tell her about how you can get four hours? Like, how did you shift getting from four hours sleep? How many hours are you getting now? I get at least seven. At least seven. So, okay. In between that period, I'm sure there was. Yeah. Love that. Yeah. There had been a period of like, I don't know if I can do this as hard. Yeah. How did you navigate through that, that you, that maybe someone listening to this would be able to navigate? So I had to put a nighttime routine together that included boundaries, um, for me.

08:39And so, yes. Are there sacrifices? Yes. I don't mindlessly scroll on social media or sit there and watch TV. Instead, I'll go to bed and have a book and read for just a little bit, but I know when I need to be lights out. Uh, does it impact relationships? Yes, it does. And so you have to be intentional about where you're going to spend your time. My son is older and I get that. I would still say that going back as the me with a littler one at home, it was still doable.

09:14I took on feeling this responsibility of, I need to manage everything in the house. I need to show up at work in a certain way. And I think a lot of what we as women do is we hold onto that control. We know how we want things. We think it has to be perfect and we have some people pleasing tendencies. And so I think that when we stop and question all of those beliefs, we see that we can ask

09:44for help. It doesn't need to be perfect. And people pleasing really can't happen if we don't fill ourselves up first. I want everybody to rewind like the last minute, two minutes, three minutes of you just sharing that profound realization, the very powerful. And, uh, hopefully like a lot of people can resonate and take away what you just said there, because it's very true. Like you have to sacrifice some things. You have to set some boundaries in place and you have to make sure that you're filling

10:15your cup up first so that you can feel the best and proceed forward with, you know, what you want to achieve for yourself. Um, that's really cool. I love that. Yeah. I think the piece that I had missed in my earlier, we'll call them experiments on the lifestyle is just how much of this is mindset work. Totally. Yeah. Yeah. When we say that we want it, that we want a healthier lifestyle, we want to be more toned.

10:48We want to be strong. We want to feel good in our clothes. Then I think it's really, you know, what actions do we really need to take to get those results? And then we have to have that mindset of how are we going to think about this and how are we going to feel when we need to make those sacrifices? So we have to really be committed and intentional. Yeah. 1000%. Okay. So we talked about the sleep scenario. How was your, what was the hardest part about letting go the understanding that you had to

11:19eat more food? Like you were going from like, yeah, let's talk about that. Yeah. That was hard. That was hard. I was like, I'm not hungry. I don't want to eat. And I started, you know, feeling like, oh my gosh. So, you know, um, my coach, Allison is amazing. Just shout out to her as she totally rocks. Um, so we talked about some smaller meals, keeping it simple. I do not like to cook. So what are my go-tos that are manageable for me? Um, adding in the probiotic was a big help as well for me.

11:54And so just like looking at what habits am I forming so that I hit these numbers? Because in the beginning, like I was not hitting that protein. And so I'm like, oh, wow, I need some protein powder. It's like eight o'clock at night. I don't want that. Or, you know, it's like, how can I avoid that last, that eight o'clock rush of I'm short. So the better planning throughout the day, uh, has really been, I think key for, for me and I'm sure for many, right?

12:25We, it's a new lifestyle. So we have to experiment with what works and the timing of when we're going to eat those meals so that we're not crunching it in before we're ready to go to bed. Yes. Love that. Love that advice. Okay. So let's talk about, um, when you found warrior babe, how did you find warrior babe? I was online. I think I saw your ad on Instagram and I was like, she looks cool. Like, this is awesome. And then I started listening to some podcasts and I'm like, yeah. And I think what really resonated for me is I travel, I have traveled a fair bit on this

12:59program and it's hard to calculate, you know, account for your food when you're eating out and how are you getting those workouts in? Where are you staying? And I know you have several podcasts about that. And that was like, so game changer for me because, and this came up early in my journey with warrior babe, this is a lifestyle and it needs to be real. Like it's one thing if I'm eating perfectly at home, but if I can't replicate that in the day to day elsewhere, it doesn't do anything for me.

13:29Yeah. Ladies, are you feeling frustrated with body changes you're experiencing during menopause? It's time to take control. If you're between 45 and 65 years old and tired of struggling with body fat and muscle loss, warrior babe is here for you. At warrior babe, we've helped over 18,000 women just like you lose body fat, build toned muscle and understand their bodies better with personalized plans based on hormone and thyroid

14:03testing and more. Imagine knowing exactly what your body needs to see real results and results that last. Look, don't wait anymore. Take charge of your health and join our community of strong, empowered women. Visit warrior babe.com forward slash apply today to start your transformation. That's warrior babe.com forward slash apply. All right, let's get back to the show. A thousand percent. So what, what made you finally like what resonated with you in terms of you making the final decision

14:37and taking the leap in? I wanted to feel strong and I, I wanted to undo. I just knew that where I was, was not a good place. And I wanted to feel good about myself and I wasn't feeling good about myself at all. So I wanted to know that no matter the number on the scale that I know how to eat, right, hit the right numbers. I know how to do the right exercises in the gym, which is so, so key at this stage in life.

15:10I, I didn't want weak bones. Um, and I, I think I was just at the point where I was feeling kind of, kind of like something new has to happen right now. Yeah. Ladies, are you feeling frustrated with body changes you're experiencing during menopause? It's time to take control. If you're between 45 and 65 years old and tired of struggling with body fat and muscle loss, warrior babe is here for you at warrior B.

15:42We've helped over 18,000 women, just like you lose body fat, build toned muscle and understand their bodies better with personalized plans based on hormone and thyroid testing and more. Imagine knowing exactly what your body needs to see real results and results that last. Look, don't wait anymore. Take charge of your health and join our community of strong, empowered women. Visit warrior babe.com forward slash apply today to start your transformation. That's warrior babe.com forward slash apply.

16:14All right, let's get back to the show. Okay. So what was it like? First of all, I have a question. Did you have, did you, were you stumped on like the price? Like, how'd you feel about the price? Yeah, it was, it was, it was pretty scary for me. I knew I'd be changing careers at some point during this program. And I'm like, how am I going to make this happen? It really was taking a bit of a leap of faith. Yeah. Did we fulfill on our promises? Yes. Love that. Okay. Let's talk about when you first joined, like starting with your coach and working with your coach. What was that journey? Like the, like at the beginning?

16:46Oh, I felt like I had a true partner right beside me and I'm a coach of a different sort. So I know what it's like to walk beside clients and Alison was just so accessible. So right there, like making adjustments and even, you know, even now through the weekly check-ins, right? There's a constant, okay, what's really going on? Do we need to tweak? And it's, I mean, the support that Alison has given me through some physical injuries, through travel, just all of it.

17:17But she's, you know, I would never think that she's via an app or a text. That's amazing. Did we do a good job with assigning you to a great coach? Oh, yes. Oh, yes. That's awesome. Love that. I love that feedback. A lot of people say, I don't know how you guys do it, but you guys work magic behind the scenes. So I love that. That's amazing. How'd you guys start out? Did you start out in a retrain? Did you start out in fat loss? What was your phase like at the beginning? No, retrain. I spent a fair bit of time there.

17:47I mean, again, years of needing to undo some things and, you know, I won't lie, right? There are moments in the course of this journey where it starts to feel frustrating. And Alison and I, just like, okay, I want, I'm ready to see a change on the scale or see the inches or something, right? I think we all have that. That's just a natural, that's a natural thing. And so Alison and I would have those conversations and she's like, trust me. And it's because we had the relationship, the foundation.

18:20I knew she saw me. I knew she heard me and I did trust her. And so, you know, it's like, okay, I have to give my body the time to heal and undo all the other bad habits in order to take the step forward. And so I'm now starting, I've been in just a fat, my fat loss for just a couple of weeks. I had, you know, more crazy stuff happen. And I will say, right. It's like the slow changes you start to see that start to give you the hope.

18:51And what I realized is I don't want that overnight change because that's not the sustainable change. Love that. I love that narrative shift in your mind. Yeah. Um, well, how long were you in retrain for? Um, I honestly don't remember. I know she, we went up in the macros for like four or five months, I think. Okay. At least. Yeah. Love that. I love hearing the timeline because it really puts into perspective that someone like is

19:24listening to this and they're like, I, the leader who I'm interviewing is like, oh, like you five months or someone says nine months or someone says I was in there for my first whole year. We're just now starting my second year and I'm going into fat loss. Yeah. And in fact, I want to go back. I think it actually. Yeah. I know I, I stayed stable for a little bit. So this was like a up stable, up stable process. So I actually think, yeah, I'm closer to like eight months, eight, nine months. I love that. And that, that really puts it into perspective in terms of like the things like you were mentioning

19:58and you want to see things fast and you want to see results. And it's like, well, you got to put in at least five, nine months of doing this retrain to fix the internal, uh, things so that you can start to see the external rewards from it. Yeah. And I am equating to this of 49 years of doing the right things. I mean, or even, you know, a good 25 years as an adult of not doing the right things here. Sure. 1000%. Um, were you doing strength training before this at all?

20:30A little bit. Um, and I had a coach in a gym and when I look at what I was doing with that coach in the gym versus what I do now, I'm exceeding everything I did before with an in-person trainer. How has strength training, how is this type of, uh, like incorporation of it and how we like to program our methodology? How has that made you feel differently about your body and what it's capable of? Well, I like to go into the gym now. And when I'm doing arms, I'm like, damn, I've got some arms going on now.

21:03I love that. I've never seen those definitions there. So yeah, I like the feeling proud and seeing the number of what I'm lifting or doing is like, okay. I love that for you. So I have a little competition with myself. I'm like, I know it said three reps at this. And I'm like, yeah, that's what I did last week. We're up in that, you know, depending, right. There are some weeks or days when I'm tired and then I just know, deload a little bit,

21:33do it and take care of myself. Not in a way that's like push, push, push. And when I'm feeling that strong, then I know I can do that. Push, push, push. Sure. Yeah. I love that. I keep challenging yourself like that. It's going to continue to get you, get you stronger. And I love, you mentioned that you now love your body. And even before hitting like your biggest transformation, how powerful has that been for you? Super powerful. So for all the ladies out there who have some curves and maybe the hips and thighs that are

22:08super hard to get rid of, I do have that running in my family. And for the longest time, that's just been such a sore subject for me. And now I'm like, wow, my legs are pretty strong. They're pretty capable of so much here. And so it's, I just feel differently about when I look in the mirror, it doesn't mean that they're, you know, that they're tiny or any of that. It just means that what a gift I have in that they can push so much weight.

22:40They can do the lunges, you know, and I think about just where I want to be 10 years down the road, 20 years down the road. And it's the work I'm doing right now that will get me there. Yeah. Oh, I love that. That's great. So what are some of your like biggest achievements that you've had since joining Warrior Babe? Like where are you at now with your progress and your transformation and the things that you've experienced? So I think first and foremost is the mindset win.

23:12That I think is really key. I don't ever want to see another low carb diet. Wait, you love carbs? I am learning to like certain carbs in a way that is really like, you know, when you're in a low carb diet and they say, don't eat fruits because of all the natural sugar, like really? And now I'm just like, I get to have my fruit. So you're good. I'm happy to hear that. That's rewiring. Right. Yeah. Yeah.

23:42So that's been pretty key. The sleep again, I cannot say that one enough. I think for me, what is really sticking is all of the exercise, the exercises. I love the variations. And again, that challenge of where I'm going in. So when I'm seeing the measurements start to change and the scale start to shift in a way that feels sustainable, that's huge for me.

24:14I used to, like I said, travel. And as I would travel, it would be nothing to come home from a trip and be up five pounds or maybe more. And now my body has adjusted to the point where I don't come home with that same increase. Wow. And I think once we learn how to eat, then when we, if we revert and eat things that we don't normally eat now, like I don't feel good. I don't want that same food.

24:46How does that stability feel for you? Like the kind of stability feel like for you on your body and your mind? It feels so healthy. Yeah. It just, I mean, I wake up with a clearer head. I don't have that mental fog. Uh, so it just makes me wonder, like all the processed foods and things that are out there, right? Like, how does that contribute to poor sleep? And then waking up with that mental fog, you know? So just the choices that we make in what we are eating. And I'm not saying I don't eat processed food or eat out. I do. It's just a question of what am I ordering?

25:17What quantities am I ordering and how often? Yeah. And, and so now when I look at what I'm eating in a way that, that I just think about how do I want to wake up the next morning? And that is such a driver in some of my choices. Oh, I love that so much. I think that's really a profound thing to ask yourself for sure. How do I want to wake up? How do I want to feel when I wake up tomorrow morning? Yeah. I love that. I'm going to take that and think about these in my own life. Thank you.

25:48That's hilarious. Um, so going back to like the progress that you're seeing, what do you feel like you can do now that you're able to do now that you weren't or couldn't do before, like either emotionally or physically? Well, definitely the numbers, uh, on in the gym of what I'm lifting. Yeah. Yeah. I wasn't, no, I couldn't have, have done that sustainably. Um, so when I look at where I'm pushing, I know I can still do more and that's awesome because that's my challenge and building the cardio into this fat loss phase for me is awesome

26:25because I do love cardio. And so I've been in programs before where it's like, no, don't, don't exert too much because we have you on such low calorie. Right. And so now I get to do the things I love doing in a way that is healthy. So, you know, it's like, Alison, I just had this conversation and I told her what I was really doing with some of the cardio. And she's like, okay, then I'm bumping that because you're already there. So it's like, whatever you give me, I'm going to try to push a little bit more. That's awesome.

26:56So yeah, it's just that, that accountability. Yep. Yep. Yeah. And that's amazing that you get with a coach, right? Yeah. They've had the ability to support. So you, you were just talking about the other programs that you've tried. What, what is different about worry, babe compared to those programs that you've tried before? This is real life. And, you know, it's not requiring me to go purchase food from somebody else. Um, I have control over what it is I'm eating and I get to see what works and what doesn't

27:29work with in the macros that are set out for me. And I get real time feedback, you know, of try these recipes or look here and, um, just the, yeah, I, I don't want to be in a program where somebody is saying buy our food or do this. Um, that is not, that's not real to me. Yeah. Love that. You actually, and you can eat more food and you can get to eat more food. Exactly. Who would have thought that eating more food could actually make your body work the way

28:03it's supposed to work? I know from everything that we've learned growing up or, you know, especially for the older demographic, the things of marketing and Jenny Craig and like all the things like that. It's like, you're told to eat less, eat less. So it's like, kind of like a mind, um, you have to really like rewire that narrative to, and it sounds like counterintuitive to say, eat more when you've learned for so long that eating less, you thought would get the results. So, but no, eating more, you get to the results that you want to see. It is so true. And you know, as we do this long enough, when we're traveling or somewhere without a food

28:36scale or, or whatever, I can look at something and guess pretty close. How many ounces are there? See, I love that, that point right there, because this is what that is. This journey is all about. Like you come in, you're learning what macros are and you're learning how to track them and implement them on a daily basis, but you don't have to track them for the rest of your life because you start to develop these skillsets that you're gaining here right now. You can look at something and be like, ah, I can gauge how much of a carb this is or how

29:07much proteins in this or how much fats in this. How does that feel for you? It feels so empowering. Yeah. Like I have control over my body. Yeah. Like, like I, I can look at something and say, yeah, that that's going to be good. Yeah. Food freedom. Isn't that incredible? It is. It is freeing. And it's so funny too. Something that came up on my fitness pal, it, uh, I had a little message that said your future self is, um, something to the effect of your future self is asking if you've tracked your food today.

29:37And I was like, how way? Seriously. Oh, wow. Okay. Oh, wow. They give me the chills. Right. I'm like, well, my future self is already knowing what I'm eating. So. Wow. That's pretty cool. Cause like, you're not, it's not who you're working towards right now. It's who you're working to become. So exactly. Yeah, exactly. Oh, that's good. That's cool. That's cool. That's cool. Feature. My fitness pal. I know. Right. Um, okay. So is there anything about your journey that I haven't asked that you would want to share

30:10while we're still here? I, so I think there's one point that I love about this program and it's around the community point. And so I've been in other programs where there were a lot of calls and, and, and whatnot. And what I love about the way this community is set up is that depending on where you are in your journey, you can plop, you can pop onto a call or not. And I'm a big, big person to go back and listen to calls, do podcasts.

30:45I'm probably not as much on the community side for the live calls, but that's just my personality. And yet I know that when I am on the community calls, there's, there's awesome stuff there. There's great information. And so I think for each person, just to be able to figure out what support is good for them. There are so many resources about where they can engage, go back and listen. I mean, the information is just amazing, amazing out there.

31:20Thank you. I love, I love that. I love hearing how the community is in through your lens and your perspective of it. And that's, that's a really cool takeaway for someone that may be listening to this right now. That's feeling like stuck or unsure about what to do next in their journey. What would you say to them about warrior beam? I would say first your coach is like the best resource you, you have. And working from that point, I think the mindset work is probably the very next thing because

31:51so much of what we need to do is retraining our operating system here and countering the negative thoughts that may come up when progress may take a little longer. And I say progress in quotes because it's happening through the rewiring. And so I think giving that space and grace to ourselves is really the foundation before any of the physical changes start. I love that so much.

32:22Thank you. I love that you use like the rewiring and retraining. It's like, you're not just retraining your metabolism like you do once you get into the program, but you're also retraining and rewiring your mindset, which is a huge aspect of the journey. If, you know, if your mindset's not on board with you, it can make the journey that much harder for you to, you know, get where you want to be. Well, Jen, thank you. Thank you for sharing this story with us. Thank you for being here and being open and, you know, making it known for women that may be struggling like you were struggling before to that there's a light in the tunnel and that

32:52your transformation too, isn't just about like the weight that you lose. It's about the peace. It's about the strength. It's about the compassion, the support that, you know, you gain along the way and the self love that you gain along the way. So, and your journey, you know, being that you turned 50 or 51 now, right? Almost 51. Almost 51. Happy early birthday. But soon. Thank you. So I call this my halftime show. So way to like put on a great show here. Yes. Oh, I love that so much. It's true. Like your journey proves it's never too late to feel good again. Like to never, you know, be comfortable and confident in your own skin.

33:26And I'm excited to see how far you go with this. Appreciate that. I am too. Thank you so much. What a great community. Oh, thank you. Thank you for being a part of it. Hey, really quick before you go. I have one small favor to ask. If this episode brought you value or sparked something in you, take just a moment to hit that review button. Your rating and review make all of the difference. Helping more women discover the tools they need to transform the fitness and their confidence. It takes less than a minute, but it can change the path of someone else's journey.

33:58Thank you so much for leaving that review. I appreciate you so much. Thank you.

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