7 Factors in Assessing What You Are “Really Hungry For”....Not Food
Get out those golden sh*t shovels ladies! We are going to dig deep into our midlife remix with a conversation I had with Dr. Adrienne Youdim. Dr. Youdim let us in on how she left her highly coveted position at Cedar’s Sinai Hospital as the head of weight loss and pivoted to create a one-on-one practice to focus on her patients, write a book, and start a podcast, in the second half of life.
Dr. Adrienne Youdim, is a mother of three, an author, podcaster, and physician specializing in medical weight loss and nutrition. She follows a holistic approach that blends lifestyle changes with evidence-based western medicine. She focuses not only on the food hunger we face but also helps her patients understand their deeper hungers that could be due to anxiety, seeking meaning, belonging, purpose & creativity, in the second half of life.
We are talking all about finding our sweet spot and meaning in midlife. We are going to learn how to be okay with pivoting, understand why we chose what and when to eat is important, and give ourselves the permission that we need to reclaim our purpose in the second half of life. Let’s start digging!
Dr. Adrienne’s 7 Factors to a Better Midlife Remix
It’s okay to pivot. We seem like at some point in midlife we experience where we realize we just can’t do what we are doing anymore. Whether that be the transition from motherhood to career or you are getting out of the thick of it. We live in seasons and sometimes it requires a change in mindset and ideology on how we think we're going to live our lives. The hardest part of that is just accepting that it's okay to pivot
Why am I so hungry? The reason why people get hungry is that when we have super-processed simple carbohydrates, we get a quick spike in our blood sugar. We get hungry when we see that spike in blood sugar. And then what does your body do? Your body responds by your pancreas pumping out insulin. Insulin is what helps manage your blood sugar. But when you get a rapid rise, you get a bolus of insulin and then you get a sharp decline. That drop is what gives you that hunger craving 30 minutes after you have cereal in the morning. You're getting this sugar and insulin response that actually is driving hunger.
Mindless snacking…have you ever been sitting down to watch tv and realize that you just ate half a bag of chips? We are just so mindless with so much of what we do that we don’t even realize we are doing it. There have been studies that show that we underreport our calorie intake by up to 2000 calories a day from mindless eating. Or maybe this situation speaks to you…Your kid has left a bite of mac n cheese, a half-eaten hot dog, and 4 tater tots on their plate. Do you reach for those and eat their leftovers without even thinking about it? All those little bites and mindless snacks add up to unwanted and unneeded calories. Dig deep to identify your true hunger.
In midlife, our bodies start to change. Our body composition starts to change as muscle mass declines. So even if you're the same weight now as you were 10 years ago, the likelihood is that some of that muscle is now fat. So if you're eating what you ate 10 years ago and you haven't maintained a level of activity you may start to notice that your metabolism has dropped and the weight will slowly start packing on. It’s important to note that BMI is not a one size fits all. There are a lot of other parameters to consider. So, don’t go to Dr. Google to find out whether you are at risk of gaining weight and need a lifestyle change.
Your food choices matter. This isn’t about a diet, it’s about your lifestyle. The word diet is just the food we consume. You can eat the foods you want, but need to plan your day accordingly. So maybe your breakfast and lunch are a little less carby so that you can enjoy that bowl of pasta for supper. You shouldn’t shame yourself over the bowl of pasta. Just adjust the rest of your day to fit your plan. Dr. Adrienne says she focuses on big principles like having protein in every meal. Try to incorporate protein in your breakfast as that will help suppress hunger hormones all day long.
Sleep is the best vitamin. Sleep is essential to not only cognitive and emotional well-being, but it’s critical to metabolic well-being not only in terms of weight but even in terms of insulin resistance. There have been so many studies done on people who have been sleep deprived and how they can become insulin resistant within as early as two days. When you don’t get adequate sleep you will see that your hunger hormones actually rise. You are more likely to dive into highly palatable foods that are high in fat and sugar.
Give yourself permission to rethink your life. We’ve talked about this before but midlife is the time to start giving yourself the permission that you need to rethink the way your second half of life is going to go. Find a hobby, go back to school, start a new career…whatever it may be give it your all and focus on yourself! Start small and work through the judgments you know will come your way and just do it anyway. Work on creating healthy boundaries with others in your life to give yourself the much needed space you deserve.
We dug deep through our layers of sh*t that midlife can throw your way. I hope this conversation was helpful in figuring out how our bodies are changing, realizing why we are truly reaching for those chips, and why it’s so important to start giving yourself permission to do the things you want to do. Take the time today to figure out what will help you through your own midlife remix.