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There are so, so many things that I despise about all the popular nationally-known diets. If it involves meal replacement shakes, points or counting anything, I probably hate it. From ‘slim down & happy up”: A lot of well-known weight loss programs have good intentions but poor execution. A calorie restricted diet is a common strategy. Calories in, calories out, right? We just get you to eat less and work out more, and the pounds will fly right off, right? Nope. It’s not that simple. So let’s highlight one very popular weight loss strategy: portion control. Blech. Even saying “portion control” makes me uncontrollably contort my face like these kiddos (except the yogurt girl; I’m pretty sure I’ve never looked that cute). “But, Dr. Angela, shouldn’t you be all for portion control since you help women lose weight?” You would think, but no, no I’m not. Because food selectivity is much more important than portion control. While helping women lose weight through slim down & happy up, we talk so very much about our food choices, and leave grams, calories and servings to those other guys. I actually find that both slender and overweight women alike tend to under-eat- I more commonly advise women to eat more food rather than to scale it back. We should be more mindful of what you’re eating, and less about how much. Women in ‘slim down & happy up’ eat until they are full, breakfast, lunch and dinner. And how is that? How am I assisting in weight loss without counting calories, points or replacing meals with shakes? Well, that takes a while to explain. Five weeks, to be exact. Never fear, registration is now open for the next session of ‘slim down & happy up.’ We’re starting June 27th, so you’ll have to get on board before then! Oh, and to get a private discount code for this current session, sign up above to get on my contact list. Here’s to eating to your fill, 
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Yep, I’m anti-grazing. “I need to eat every 2 hours, or I just faint, get grouchy, become homicidal, start eating dirt, etc.” I’ve heard it countless times. I used to say it myself. But where did we ever get the idea that that was normal? Let alone healthy? Feeling like you will pass out or go crazy if you don’t eat every two hours is not healthy. I don’t let that slide. Why? Why do I care so much because you eat kale and grass-fed lamb and organic walnuts every two hours? Because I care about you and your hormones. Yes, it’s back to hormones again. This time, those responsible for the endless grazing cycle loop are insulin and cortisol (and also a dozen other digestive hormones and other neurochemicals). A major part of the grazing addiction is blood sugar instability. Blood sugar roller coasters, lead to off-the-wall insulin responses and set you up to need to graze constantly. A stable, healthier blood sugar response, on the other hand, allows for the best use of calories, including fat burning. That means grazing (and their wacky blood sugar patterns) can actually lead to weight gain- the very thing that grazers often are trying to avoid! As I explain it in ‘slim down & happy up’: insulin excess + insulin spikes = belly fat Guess what else happens when blood sugar responses go from crazy-roller-coaster to nice-and-smooth? Stress goes down because cortisol (the stress hormone) will decline naturally. Wanna learn how to break the grazing cycle and reduce stress? An added bonus just might be losing a little belly fat in the process. Registration is now open for ‘slim down & happy up,’ my way to target weight loss through stress reduction (and get those pesky hormones under control for once!)- so sign up now while you still have time. If you aren’t already on my contact list, sign up and receive a private discount code for this current session. We begin in a few weeks- don’t get left behind! Here’s to helping you de-stress, 
Let me just make a few things clear: everyone has belly fat, everyone needs some belly fat, and I’m not singling anyone out based on some objective measurement like weight or BMI. Belly fat is not “just fat.” It’s also a glandular organ: it makes hormones and receives hormone signals from other parts of the body. So some belly fat is needed because it has this unique endocrine (hormonal) function, and it also insulates your guts. Cortisol (the stress hormone) and serotonin (the happy neurotransmitter) are two of the most important belly fat signals. High cortisol (i.e. high stress) makes the belly fat prosper and proliferate. A little is ok, a lot- not so much. We really work through this topic in my ‘slim down & happy up’ program, but the gist about cortisol and belly fat is: It’s like a snowball effect, if the snowball was made of stress and fat. So, not good. Serotonin and belly fat is a little more complex- it can go up (yay! happy!) or down (boo! sad!) with more belly fat. The key here is healthy digestive integrity (the opposite being increased intestinal permeability or “leaky gut”- boo! again)- a discussion for another time. It’s the belly-hormone issue that gets us in trouble. As belly fat creeps up on us over the years, it just keeps getting more active. Endocrine glands just shouldn’t grow larger and more active over the years. When this happens in the thyroid gland, ovary or brain, specialists are called and a plan of attack is made. Do we radiate it? Do we cut it out? No one says, “Oh well, that massive ovary is just a sign of aging. It happens to us all.” So why don’t we care about belly fat this way? (Um, because we can just buy bigger pants?) Yeah, that doesn’t cut it in my book. I’m not strictly anti-fat, I’m anti-excess-belly-fat because it’s a sign of hormone imbalance and nearly always associated with high stress. My job is to help others improve their health, and a big part of that is hormone balancing and stress reduction. So, no, I don’t give up and throw up my hands. “You win, belly fat, it’s just middle age.” No, we make a plan to get those hormones and belly fat under control. Don’t know how? Don’t think it’s possible? Join me in my next ‘slim down & happy up’ session and learn my stress reduction-based approach to weight loss (gotcha, belly fat!). Registration is now open through June 26th, so plan to sign up soon! Then find out for yourself what’s possible. I’d love to help you feel you best, and maybe lose a pants size or two in the process. If you haven’t already, get in on a private registration deal while it lasts! Sign up over there above the picture of me and Dude (the black dog) and get a great discount code for this next program session. Hoping to help you happy up soon, 
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I'm Dr. Eloise Cortal, and I want to help you and your joints feel their very best.
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