Total Health in Midlife Episode #155: An Introduction

Are you ready for a journey that redefines health in midlife? This is not just another health podcast episode. It’s the beginning of a transformation. In fact, it’s your transformation. Imagine breaking free from the endless cycle of diets, stepping beyond the scale’s constraints, and discovering a world where health is about joy, balance, and empowerment.

Today, we’re not just talking about changes, we’re actually making them. We’re diving into what it really means to be healthy physically, emotionally, mentally. And why the usual approach to weight loss is due for a major overhaul.

If you’ve ever felt stuck in the pursuit of health or wondered if there’s more to it than counting calories and tracking steps, this episode is the beginning to your answer. We’re turning the page to a new chapter where health is holistic, authentic, and most importantly, achievable.

Don’t miss out on this crucial conversation that could very well be the turning point in your health journey. Stay tuned, because what you’re about to hear could change the way that you view health and wellness in midlife forever.

This is Total Health in Midlife. Welcome to your best years. They start right now.

Welcome to Total Health and Midlife, the podcast for women embracing the pivotal transformation from the daily grind to the dawn of a new chapter. I’m Elizabeth, your host and fellow traveler on this journey.

As a Life and Health Coach, I am intimately familiar with the changes and challenges we face during this stage. Shifting careers, changing relationships, our new bodies, and redefining goals and needs as we start to look to the future and ask, what do I want?

In this podcast, we’ll explore physical, mental, and emotional wellness, offering insights and strategies to achieve optimal health through these transformative years.

Yes, it’s totally possible.

Join me in this amazing journey of body, mind, and spirit, where we’re not just improving our health, but transforming our entire lives.

Hey everyone, welcome to the podcast and you might notice that things around here look a little bit different. They feel different too. That’s because today marks a significant and heartfelt transition for the podcast.

Now, for three years, we have journeyed together under the banner of Done With Dieting. A name that I have held dear and found deeply meaningful. But life as we know is about growth and change.

A few months ago, I attempted a subtle rebrand. Trying to weave new ideas while holding on to that familiar name because I love it so much. Pretty much everyone around me was urging me to change the name, but I just couldn’t let it go. Done with dieting.

When I started, it felt like it was my favorite pair of jeans. But over time, as I learned more and evolved, that name just started to not fit anymore. Something just didn’t click.

The truth is, I’ve been grappling with a feeling that you might resonate with. The challenge of letting go. Letting go of something that you love. Not because it’s lost its value, but because what you want and where you’re headed, your path has shifted.

The Done With Dieting brand has been a part of my identity and like an old friend. And like an old friend, it’s hard to say goodbye.

I’ve experienced a whirlwind of emotions over the past several months. Grief, for what’s been left behind, uncertainty about the future. And yet, amid all this, a sense of clarity. The clarity that to truly step into the future I envisioned for us, me, and you, the listener. A future where we impact healthy change more profoundly, I needed to let it go.

So, today, I invite you on a new chapter of our journey together with the Total Health in Midlife podcast. I’m Elizabeth Sherman, your host. And it’s not just a new name, it’s a promise, a commitment to dive deeper into what health really means for us. Women in our prime, navigating the complexities of midlife.

So, why this change, you might be asking. It’s simple, yet profound. Our health is not just about the numbers on the scale, or the food on our plate. It’s about our physical, mental, and emotional well-being. It’s about aging gracefully, embracing self-care, and preparing for a vibrant, fulfilling future.

In the coming episodes, we’ll explore these themes, always with our shared goal in mind, to live our healthiest, most fulfilling lives.

The journey ahead is promising, and I’m thrilled to have you alongside of me. Because together, we’re going to explore what it means to achieve total health in midlife and beyond.

Now, when I first launched this podcast as Done with Dieting, my own journey with body image and health was, to say the least, complicated. Back then, I was still untangling the web of ‘Health at Every Size,’ trying to figure out how to fit it into my professional life and personal beliefs. It was and continues to be, an evolution, an ongoing process of learning and unlearning.

Over the years, as I dive deeper into the realm of diet culture and fat phobia, my eyes have opened to the pervasive and often destructive nature of diets. It’s become increasingly clear to me how diets have been woven into the fabric of our society.

And with the recent surge in prescriptions for weight loss drugs like Ozempic, it’s evident that many in our culture are seeking quick fixes to deeper, more complex issues. This trend is a stark reminder of something fundamentally broken in Western culture. Our relentless pursuit of the easy way out, especially when it comes to health.

The real brain f*ck here is that we celebrate overnight successes, especially when it comes to weight loss. Yet, we judge the methods that folks use to achieve it, like weight loss surgery or medical intervention.

We’ve been sold a narrative that managing our weight is as simple as eating less and moving more. But as many of us have experienced firsthand, it’s far from that straightforward.

The truth is health isn’t just a matter of diets and workout routines. It’s an intricate balance of physical, emotional, and mental well-being. It’s about looking at ourselves as whole beings, not just as bodies to be sculpted and disciplined.

This realization led me to a crucial decision, the need for a rebrand. It wasn’t an easy choice. Done With Dieting was more than just a name to me. It was a statement, a stand against diet culture obsessed with size and quick fixes.

But as I’ve grown both personally and professionally, I’ve understood that my approach needed to evolve too. Hence, the birth of the Total Health in Midlife podcast. This new direction is a commitment to exploring health in its entirety, body, mind, and soul. Physical, mental, and emotional health.

It’s about addressing not just the physical aspects, but also diving into the realms of mental and emotional well-being. It’s about understanding how our environment, our relationships, and even things that we have no control over, or maybe even are aware of, like our past traumas, play a significant role in our overall health.

In future episodes, we’ll explore how to address these issues, regulate the nervous system, address both childhood and generational trauma, and explore the various pressures and stresses that impact our health.

We’ll look at health through a broader, more holistic lens. Body, Mind, and Soul. I believe that to truly help women in midlife and beyond, we need to step away from the narrow focus on weight loss and diets. About things to do, and we need to address our emotional and mental health just as much, if not more.

We need to stop chasing the illusion of quick fixes and start doing the deeper work. It’s time to shift our focus from merely surviving to actually thriving.

This rebrand is my pledge to you, my listeners, to provide content that’s not just informative, but transformative. It’s about creating a space where we can have honest conversations about what it means to be healthy, not just physically, but in every sense of that word.

It’s time to redefine what health looks like in midlife. It’s time to stop measuring our worth by the scale. And start measuring it by our ability to live fully, passionately, and authentically. This is not just a change in the name of the podcast. It’s a shift in perspective and a new way of approaching life.

As we start this journey together, I invite you to open your hearts and minds. Let’s challenge the status quo. Question the narratives that we’ve been fed, and build a community where health is seen as holistic, inclusive, and an empowering journey.

Thank you for being here with me, for evolving with me, and trusting me to guide you through this new chapter. I know that together, we’ll explore what it means to achieve total health in midlife and beyond. Breaking free from the constraints of a diet obsessed culture, and embracing a more fulfilling, balanced, and happy life.

As we step into the realm of total health in midlife, our focus is broadening, deepening, and becoming more inclusive. This is not just a podcast about health, it’s a movement, a shift in how we as women approach our well-being, especially as we navigate the complexities in midlife.

Let’s start with the primary themes that will form the backbone of our discussions. First, we have women’s health. We are diving into the myriad aspects of women’s health. Not just physical but again, emotional, and mental too.

We’ll explore the unique health challenges and opportunities that come with being a woman in today’s world. From hormonal changes to heart health, bone density, to brain health. We are going to cover it all.

Next, prioritizing self-care, of course. So, for too long, self-care has been viewed as a luxury or as an afterthought. Especially, for women who juggle numerous roles. We’re redefining self-care as a necessity, not a nicety. It’s about making time for ourselves, not out of selfishness, but out of a realization that we can only care for others when we are at our best.

We’re also going to talk about aging and longevity. Our conversations will extend beyond just living longer. They’ll focus on living better. We’ll talk about the science of aging, how to age gracefully, and how to make the later years of our life the best years. It’s about quality, not just quantity of life.

We’ll also address healthy retirement. So, retirement isn’t just a financial goal. It’s a health goal too. We’ll discuss how to prepare for retirement that’s vibrant, active, and fulfilling. This isn’t about winding down. It’s about gearing up for a new exciting phase of life.

We’ll also talk about extending health span. We’re not just interested in adding years to our lives. We want to add life to our years. This means focusing on vitality, mobility, mental sharpness, and emotional resilience as we age.

Now, let’s talk a little bit about our secondary themes. These are equally vital and will weave through our conversations, adding depth and breadth to our understanding of health.

First, menopause and managing symptoms throughout life. Menopause is not an end, but rather a beginning. We’ll explore how lifestyle choices can manage and even alleviate symptoms. Turning what many view as a challenge into an opportunity for growth and renewal.

We’re going to talk about feminism. We’ll explore how feminist principles intersect with health, especially in midlife. It’s about empowering ourselves, challenging stereotypes, and embracing our strength and wisdom.

We also need to talk about social justice. Health is not just a personal issue. It’s a societal one. We’ll dive into how social and economic factors impact our health and what we can do both individually and collectively to address those challenges.

Community and Sisterhood, we’re stronger together. This podcast will serve as a platform for building a community of women who support, inspire, and uplift each other.

And finally, self-relationships. Finally, and perhaps even most importantly, we’ll focus on the relationship that we have with ourselves. How we talk to ourselves. How we treat ourselves. And how we perceive ourselves plays a crucial role in our overall health.

These topics are often overlooked or considered subversive. They’re not the typical diet and exercise type conversations, but that’s exactly why they’re so important. We’re going beyond the superficial, diving into what truly makes us healthy, happy, and fulfilled.

This new focus is about breaking barriers, challenging norms, and opening up a world of possibilities for health and well-being. It’s about looking at ourselves as whole, complex beings, deserving of care, respect, and love at every stage of life.

So, as we embark on this journey together, I invite you to bring your whole self to the table. Bring your experiences, your challenges, your victories, and your dreams. Together, we’ll explore what it means to achieve total health in midlife. Not just surviving, but actually thriving in this time.

In our journey towards optimal health, it’s essential to address a topic that remains at the forefront for many, weight loss. I understand its importance and relevance to you, my listener. Many women in midlife are looking to lose weight and I want to honor that desire while reshaping our approach to it.

The new framework of our podcast isn’t about discarding the conversation on weight loss, it’s about reframing it. To focus on sustainable health and lifelong habits.

This change is rooted in a commitment to authenticity and setting realistic, achievable goals. Let’s be clear. The goal here isn’t just weight loss. It’s about achieving and maintaining a healthy weight in a way that’s sustainable and respectful of our bodies.

It’s about understanding that our bodies are complex systems influenced by a myriad of factors, including but not limited to diet and exercise. We’re looking at the whole picture here. Hormonal changes, stress levels, sleep quality, mental health, and more.

This holistic approach acknowledges that weight management is a byproduct of a healthy lifestyle, not the sole focus. It’s about creating a balanced life where nourishing our bodies, engaging in physical activities we enjoy, managing stress, and getting adequate sleep are all pieces of the same puzzle.

In this redefined context, weight loss is not the end goal. It’s the natural outcome of taking better care of ourselves. We’re moving away from the scale as the only measure of success. And instead, we’ll focus on indicators like energy levels, strength, mood, and overall, well-being. These are the true markers of health.

Moreover, this approach is about empowerment. It’s about making choices that align with our body’s needs and our personal values. It’s about learning to listen to our bodies and responding with kindness and respect.

I also want to emphasize the importance of self-compassion in this journey. The path to sustainable health is not linear, and it’s okay to have ups and downs. It’s about the progress. not perfection. This mindset shift is crucial in developing a healthy relationship with food and our bodies.

So, while weight loss might still be part of the conversations, it will certainly be within this broader, more nurturing context. It’s about finding what works for you as an individual, creating habits that you can sustain for life and building a lifestyle that brings you joy and health in equal measure.

To my listeners who are still looking to lose weight, I hear you, and I’m with you on this journey. But let’s broaden our horizon and focus on overall health and happiness. Let’s create a life where we feel strong, vibrant, and fulfilled. A life where weight loss is just one of many positive outcomes of living well.

Together, in Total Health and Midlife, we will explore this new perspective, building on a foundation of habits and choices that support us today and for many years to come.

As we embrace the exciting changes with the podcast, I want to reassure you about the elements of the podcast that will continue to be a staple of our journey together.

First, the format that you’ve come to love and expect will largely remain the same. The solo casts where I share insights, experience, and guidance will continue to be a regular feature. These episodes are close to my heart as they allow for a deeper, more personal connection with you.

There are one on one time where I can speak directly to your concerns, hopes, and aspirations. Additionally, the guest interviews that have brought a diverse perspective and expert insights to our discussions are definitely here to stay as well.

These conversations have always been a source of inspiration and learning. And I’m excited to bring more thought leaders, health experts, and inspirational figures into our dialogue. They will shed light on the myriad aspects of health and well-being, especially tailored to our focus on this stage of life.

Now, for those of you who’ve been with me since the days of Done with Dieting, I have good news. All of the previous episodes will remain accessible. They are a treasure trove of information and have been a significant part of our journey. While our focus and approach are evolving, the wisdom and insights from those episodes are timeless and will continue to be a valuable resource.

Above all, what remains unchanged is the core goal of this podcast, to support and empower you. This has been and will always be a space dedicated to your growth, your health, and empowerment. It’s about creating a community where you feel seen, where you feel heard, and you recognize that you are valued.

This transition is not about leaving behind what we’ve built together. It’s about building upon it. It’s about taking our collective wisdom, experiences, and insights, and channeling them into a broader, more holistic vision of health.

As we move forward with the podcast, know that the essence of what made this podcast a companion in your journey remains intact. We are simply expanding our horizons, embracing a more comprehensive approach to health, and continuing to grow together.

Thank you for being part of this evolution. Your presence and feedback and stories are what make this podcast a thriving community. So, here’s to our continued journey towards a healthier, happier, and more empowered life in midlife and beyond.

As we venture into the fresh landscape of Total Health in Midlife, I am excited to share a glimpse of what lies ahead. We’re not just stepping into new topics. We’re embracing a bolder, more irreverent style. A style that’s unafraid to challenge norms and speak truths that are often left unsaid.

Our upcoming episodes will dive into areas that are crucial for us, women in midlife, yet frequently overlooked. Imagine discussions that go beyond the conventional health advice. Diving into nuance of emotional well-being and the intricacies of mental health, and the complexities of societal pressures.

We’ll talk about the unspoken challenges of aging, the realities of menopause, and the transformative power of understanding our own bodies. One exciting development is the introduction of what I like to call 2.0 versions of some of my past episodes.

Over the years, as I’ve taught various concepts and engaged with countless inspiring women, my understanding and perspectives have deepened. This growth has given me fresh insights into topics that we’ve previously explored.

So, expect to see some of your favorite episodes re-released with updated content reflecting new ways of looking at frameworks and teaching tools. It’s like revisiting an old friend but discovering new depths that you hadn’t noticed before.

Additionally, we’ll be exploring themes around feminism and health, dissecting how societal norms and expectations have shaped our approach to well-being. We’ll discuss the power of community and sisterhood in our health journeys, and the transformative impact of building strong, supportive networks.

But it’s not just about what we’ll talk about. It’s also about how we’ll talk about it. Expect a more candid, unfiltered approach. We’ll be addressing taboo subjects, busting myths, and maybe even stepping on a few toes. All in the spirit of honesty, and empowerment, and getting rid of judgment.

In the podcast, we’re not just passively consuming information. We’re actively engaging with it. We’re questioning, learning, and growing together. This podcast is a platform for dialogue where your voices and stories are an integral part of the narrative. It’s a space where we can be vulnerable, challenge ourselves, and celebrate our journey towards health and fulfillment.

As we move forward, brace yourselves for a journey that’s not just informative, but transformative. A journey where we will not only learn about health, but also unlearn the misconceptions that have held us back. Together, we’ll explore new territories and health and wellbeing armed with curiosity, openness, and a spirit of adventure.

Thank you for joining me on this exciting new phase of our journey. Your enthusiasm, feedback, and stories are the fuel that drives this podcast. So, here’s to exploring new horizons, challenging the status quo, and continuing to grow and thrive in every aspect of our health and lives.

As we start this exciting new phase of the podcast, Total Health in Midlife, I want to emphasize the importance of our community. That’s you, this podcast is not just a one way conversation. It’s a dynamic dialogue, a shared journey where your voice, your experiences, and your insights are valuable, not just to me, but to all the other women who are listening.

I wholeheartedly, encourage you to engage with me on social media, follow, comment, and share your thoughts and experiences. This interaction is more than just keeping the conversation going. It’s about building a community. It’s about learning. It’s about a network of support and inspiration. Whether it’s Instagram or Facebook, your participation brings a richness to this journey that simply cannot be replicated.

Moreover, I invite you to share your stories. Have you had an ‘aha’ moment from one of our episodes? A personal victory, no matter how small it might seem, or perhaps a challenge that you’re grappling with.

Your stories are powerful. They have the potential to inspire, to comfort, and to empower not just you, but others in our community who might be walking a similar path. This podcast is a collective effort to build a supportive, understanding, and empowering community. It’s a place where we celebrate our triumphs, learn from our setbacks, and offer each other encouragement and empathy.

Your feedback, whether it’s about what you love or what you think could be better is crucial. It helps shape the podcast, ensuring that it continues to meet your needs and expectations.

So, as we move forward with the Total Health in Midlife podcast, let’s make it a truly interactive experience. Engage with me, share your journey, and become an active part of this vibrant community we’re building together. Your involvement is what makes this podcast, not just a show, but a movement. A movement towards a healthier, happier, and more fulfilled life.

As I wrap up today’s episode, I want to extend a heartfelt invitation to you. If you found value in our conversation today, if it sparked a thought, a question, or even a smile, I ask you to take a moment and leave a review. Your reviews are more than just feedback. They are the compass that guides this podcast, helping others to find and join our growing community.

And if you know someone who would benefit from our discussions about health, self-care and empowerment, please share this podcast with her. Each share is a ripple, extending our reach, touching more lives, and building a stronger community of women committed to thriving in midlife and beyond.

So, as I close this episode, I’m filled with gratitude and excitement. Gratitude for your time, your ears, and your open heart. Excitement for the journey that we are starting together with the Total Health and Midlife podcast. This is more than just a podcast. It’s a collective journey towards understanding, embracing, and celebrating our health with all its facets.

I look forward with great anticipation to our next episode to continue exploring, learning, and growing together. Remember, this is a journey, not just of health, but of transformation. We are redefining what it means to be healthy in midlife, breaking free from stereotypes, and building a life that resonates with joy, vitality, and fulfillment.

Thank you for being part of this journey. Thank you for your support, your encouragement, and your willingness to embrace this new chapter. Here’s to the adventures that lie ahead, to the stories we will share, and to the community that we build.

Until next time, have an amazing day. Talk to you next time. Bye-bye.

Thanks for staying with us till the end of this episode. If you’re looking to deepen your understanding of the ‘8 Basic Habits that Healthy People Do’ and want to connect with a community of like-minded women, I warmly invite you to join our free Facebook group, ‘8 Basic Habits that Women in Midlife Do’.

In this group, we expand on the habits discussed today, sharing experiences, offering support, and celebrating our health journeys together. It’s a space where you can feel understood and encouraged.

To join, simply click the link in our show notes. Let’s support and inspire each other in our quest for better health. See you in the group!