Mindful Eating and Health Living with Health Coach,Lisa Airhart

Join me for this very special episode of Art of Healing Podcast.  Lisa Airhart is a Health Coach and published author of "I Lost 20lbs! A Permanent Weight Loss Solution". 

We discuss what role a Health Coach can play in you helping you get to a healthier place. 

We also discuss Mindful Eating, eating with a sense of calm and peace that allows you to enjoy your food even more.

Lisa offers her approach on how to adapt your lifestyle to you body's needs to reach and maintain a healthy way of living.

We also discus how to approach COVID weight gain with a living, mindful heart to heal the heart and soul.

You can find our more about Lisa's offerings on:
Instagram:  @lisaairhart
Facebook: Health Coaching by Lisa
Web:  www.lisaairhart.com

As a thank you for listening,  you can download the free checklist Mindful Vs. Mindless Eating at this link.

Welcome to the Art of Healing Podcast community.  This podcast is devoted to helping you find what works on your journey to health and wellness.  This podcast is devoted to providing information on many healing modalities.  Learn more about:

• Reiki
• Functional Medicine
• Meditation
• Energy Healing

and more!

Learn more about Dr. Charlyce here. 

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Transcript

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Speaker 1 1:47

Hello and welcome to the Art of Healing Podcast. This is Charli for today's episode. I have a special guest. Lisa Earhart is an author, longtime educator who took her passion from teaching children to working with adults to live their best life. As a health coach, Lisa helps busy men and women lose unwanted pounds while looking and feeling their best. Lisa received her training to become a health coach from the Institute of Integrated Nutrition. Lisa and I have known each other for quite a while now, and have been working behind the scenes , uh, to encourage each other in our businesses. I'm so lucky to have Lisa join me today to discuss mindfulness in our eating and our nutrition, and how to feel better. Enjoy. Hello. How you doing ?

Speaker 2 2:46

Are you today ?

Speaker 1 2:47

I'm good .

Speaker 2 2:48

Yeah . I'm doing really well . Excellent. I'm so excited that you're doing this.

Speaker 1 2:53

Awesome. And thank you so much for doing this . So , um, um, I've got health coach Lisa. She and I have been collaborating for several months, and I'm so excited to have her here. And we're going to pick her brain as someone who is working as a health coach , um, especially as we enter these warmer months. So thank you so much, Lisa.

Speaker 2 3:19

Oh, I'm so excited to be here. Charli, thank you so much for having me. Who doesn't like, you know, talking about feeling better liquor , it's just a win-win. I , it's, yeah. I can't wait to , uh, begin, sir .

Speaker 1 3:33

Nice. Well, Lisa, my first question I would like to ask you, especially for the listeners, can you describe , um, what you offer as a health coach?

Speaker 2 3:47

Okay. So, you know, a health coach , um, basically is a, you know, has a , um, a , a variety of , um, geez , they , the , um, that a person can , um, follow. But basically what I zoned in on is finding , um, your eye weight, and that's the weight where you feel comfortable in your skin, and you don't really have to, hmm , put a lot of emphasis to what you're eating or your daily exercise. It's more of a , a natural state of being. So that is where, you know, my main focus is. So what I offer as a health coach is a six month program, a one-on-one coaching, and it's a six month that supports you in these particular goals. Um, getting healthier, feeling better. And once that's achieved first, and usually, you know, you see results quite quickly, then I work with a client to zone in on personal goals. Now, what could that be like? It could be, you know, a , a range versus it could be, you know, feeling more productive at work , um, having healthy relationships , um, you know, what kind of , uh, uh, uh, living environment , um, feels most comfortable. So really , um, you know, focusing on what the client , uh, client's needs are. They're related. You , you li the lifestyle , um, is focused on just as heavily as, you know , um, diet and forget . Yeah, that's part of being healthy. Uh, where I went to school, i, i n we call those the primary foods, meaning those are the first , um, needs. Your first needs would be things that aren't on your plate. Uh, your , your creativity. What are you doing for , uh, your hobbies, that's, you know, you spending time , um, doing what you love. Uh , you , uh, planting flowers talked about being spring. Maybe that's something that you really enjoy doing. And just, you know, be able to find the time to do that because if we feel constrained and we don't find that time, we might grab an extra couple of cookies in the clo , you know, in the cabinet. So , um, you know, finding that balance between your lifestyle and , uh, eating, eating nutritious foods. So that's the short, that's a short tell of what goes on, but it's a six month because it does, you know, we have to go through those more difficult times where you may need support ver such as holidays or the different seasons where , you know, different foods are around. Um, now we're going into excited, because this is one of my, you know, favorite seasons as far as fruit goes, because now we're gonna see more St strawberries and they're , um, less expensive, which I love because, you know, those, you know, some of my favorites , uh, the fruits and we can begin grow garden, but it gets a little trickier as we're moving into the fall. We lose that. So, you know, staying with that client to work our way through the different seasons and to , um, you know, look at different meals you can, you know, make to still satisfy you , um, that , you know, and aunt . So , um, let's see , plentiful or , um, ex maybe a little bit more expensive in the grocery store.

Speaker 1 7:38

So , um, and of course, one of the things that I had wanted to , um, you know, have this session with you, as you know, I'm a , I'm a , I see patients, I'm a reiki practitioner as well, but I do see patients in the clinic mm-hmm . <affirmative> and , um, you know, very challenging when I am interacting with a patient and it's time to talk about health and weight. And I am so constrained because I literally have to just say, you know, your weight's unhealthy and you gotta lose weight. And then it just stops there with me. And it sounds like with you, it can go so much further. You've got the six months that you can work individually and setting personal goals and , um, this optimized weight goal.

Speaker 2 8:28

Well, yeah. I want people to know this is the, you know, message is, you know, there's so many diets out there and we, what's the , you know, you hear the latest diet and everyone jumps on the bandwagon, and it's, that's not how, that's not how we're made. We're all individual beings. And what may work for one person may not work for another. And diets don't offer that with the health coach we offer. Um, um, eating that, a way of eating that, that fits into your lifes, that fits into your lifestyle, that fits into your, your needs. Um, one person may, one person's can eat a steak and potatoes and, and do, okay, well , other person obviously able to do that. So it's not a one size fits all . And I also want people to know that, you know, it , it diets, they all work. You immediately, obviously you're going to eat better, so you're going to, you know, see immediate results. But then what happens is when something <inaudible> in someone's life, which, hey, we're all humans things, you know, we're gonna get curved walls as, as we navigate through this journey called life. All of a sudden now you , you know, you might not stick to that diet, and now you feel, you feel guilty or ashamed, or you feel like a failure. And that's, that's, that, that shouldn't be, shouldn't feel that way. Um, it's all like, I , like I said, like all, all diets work, but then again, all diets don't work. Most people who do go on diets lose the weight and then they 90% gain it all back as if you are gradually changing habits and you're looking not only at what the foods you eat and the exercise you do, you're looking at your lifestyle, have sustainable results. That's where we're looking for, we're looking for, it's a more positive approach working with the health coach, because I'm looking for going, well, not what is going not well in your life. So we're focusing on the positive. And with this, we're seeing more positive lasting results. And this is what people want. We want re lasting results. We wanna be able to , um, feel like we are restricted or that we're missing out. We wanna feel like we can still have your, you know, breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Basically, eea enjoy what you're eating, but still feel good in your body. And that's where , um, health , a health coach, having that support , um, comes into play.

Speaker 1 11:28

Lisa is a published author in her book, which is called, I Lost 20 Pounds. A Permanent Weight Loss Solution Can Be Found on Amazon on Kendall , and I'll make sure to post in our show notes where to find Lisa's book. Um, Lisa, in the book, you mentioned a concept that, of course, as a reiki practitioner and a student of meditation , um, you mentioned eating with mindfulness or mindful eating. Um, do you mind sharing mm-hmm . <affirmative> a little bit about what that is? And is that something that we can all do?

Speaker 2 12:10

Yes. So this is a good takeaway for people who are listening right now. Mindful eating is not about this or carbohydrates, it's about just what we're saying. It's about taking your time, slowing down, and using your senses and really not missing the moment of what you're eating. How I explain this in the book and to you right now is that, okay, so let's say you have dinner and you, you know, you sit down to a meal and it's important to sit down. You , you know, not standing up and eating on the fly or grab, you know, just eating as you are driving or , um, you are , um, you know, preparing the meal. So you're just doing the one task of eating certain other people is also , um, fulfilling. So what the first step would be when mindful eating , Seeing, looking, just stopping and looking at your meal. Just looking at it and, and noticing, noticing how it smells. Like all the vibrant colors you've heard of. You know, you're , you're eating the rainbow. Well, let's take a moment and, and look at the beautiful, you know, the greens, if you're having any salad or, or kale or , um, any, any collard greens. Um, als , you know, looking at how plate, taking that moment, not just diving in and appreciating, appreciating at that moment where it comes from. Amina look at , um, a more free food comes from. And I, I'm in a New England girl, so I'm living in Rhode Island and a lot of my food right now. Um, you know, my fruits that I talked about, they're coming all the way from California, my strawberries, or they're coming up from Florida and I'm, I'm thinking, wow, like someone took the time to, to , you know , pick these beautiful strawberries. I'm gonna, I'm gonna , you know, I'm gonna take the moment to just look at that. So the awareness of, of , um, using all your senses, and even sometimes food even has a sound, like if you're have sizzling fajitas , it has that, that sound . So not overlooking that piece, you know, slowing the process down. And then that would be, you know, that would be the first step because that gives you an awareness that this food energize your body. That is, it's doing your body good. It's, it's there for a purpose and it's entertainment. And that's a , you know, there's a lot that goes into eating too, especially if it's a good meal, right? Um, so as to eat, you know, we can the second step and think to yourself, you know, are there any feelings coming up? Um, are you excited about the meal? Maybe you need the resistance toward it because , um, it's pizza with a lot of cheese on it, and you know that, wait a minute, that might be bad for me. But you know what? Just noticing these feelings and just letting them pass. Don't get stuck in it because you, it's more important . It's important to enjoy that meal, not have a , um, a negative feeling as you're eating it. So let these feelings, if you do feel guilt, just, just let them pass. Um, because you know you want to, it's your time, it's, it's, it's your decision of what you are preparing yourself to eat, then the next state to um, uh, obviously you have to pick up your utensils, but take it slow and de and I try, I tried this . I , I'm , can't say that I'm perfect at this, but, you know, trying to take it L eight , you know, my goals like 18, always get there, especially on times I'm stressful. But just, you know, chewing your food , slowing it down , um, aiming for that 15 to 20 bites versus 10 bites and choking it down and not, you know, it interrupts your digestion. Also, if it's like, you know, eat if you're eating very quickly. So, you know, you are also savoring every bite as you are , um, you know, slowing down your eating process. And then lastly, at the end of the meal, be thankful some people do this in the , on the onset of eating, but also, you know, thank you, thank you know, just being thankful for the ex experience and the nourishment that the food. And what this does too, as you practice mindful eating , um, you, you are more aware of what you're , you'll notice after a few weeks, you're in tune to what nourishes you and to what your body is asking. For an example, the other morning , um, I just had this need to have an orange. I just, my body knew that it needed vitamin C and I needed to eat that orange. Now I would've passed that over. And if I didn't, you know, if I, if I just rush through meals. So your body is <laugh> is, is, is a perfect what function really knows what it wants. So also with mindful eating, this will also strengthen those. Um, it strengthens your intuition to let you know what your body needs. Does it need more? You feel like you maybe need more iron, so maybe piece of steak , or maybe you need some spinach to, to satisfy you. So when it , it has , uh, many benefits that will go beyond , uh, nurse in your , you know , um, the weight loss. Cuz this definitely will help in weight loss. It also, hmm , what am I lacking? What do I need? What's it calling for ?

Speaker 1 18:46

So if you don't mind, I'd like to ,

Speaker 2 18:48

I love it.

Speaker 1 18:50

That , that's lovely. Let me reiterate so that the listeners can, can , um, get that. So the mindful eating, you just spelled it out in steps for us. You, you stop and you look at the food. Did I catch that? Mm-hmm. <affirmative>. Yes. And then you make observations.

Speaker 2 19:07

Yes, you did.

Speaker 1 19:09

Okay . So you make observations, the, the color , um, make observations about the texture. You appreciate the food. Mm-hmm. <affirmative> , uh, you open up your awareness to the smell and even the sounds of the food you mentioned, like if it's cookie and the skillet and the sizzling, and then

Speaker 2 19:30

Correct,

Speaker 1 19:32

You observe, you make an observation of your feelings about the food that you're about to eat, but then you don't judge those feelings. You let them pass. And

Speaker 2 19:46

Very important step. Yes.

Speaker 1 19:47

You let them pass. And then you , uh, when you are, you, you want to make sure to chew the food thoroughly. I think you said 18 times to 18 times the chew the food to make sure you digest it well.

Speaker 2 20:04

Yes.

Speaker 1 20:05

Wonderful. And then you, you in the meal with gratitude,

Speaker 2 20:13

Yes. Many people will say a prayer beforehand, and so it can happen beforehand, buddy and of a meal . Thank it for nourishing your body.

Speaker 1 20:26

Nice. So , um, I think that is , um, that's so interesting because , um, sometimes when I'm working with my own patients or clients, I'll ask them , um, I'll ask them a question like, well, what did you have for dinner yesterday? And it's really interesting, Lisa, I would like to ask your opinion, because a lot of times , um, people can't remember what they had for a meal. You have any insight as to what that might, because I , I actually really do wonder, like, I wonder why they don't re and they'll say , you know, I don't remember . Why do you think that might be? Um, <laugh> , <laugh> ?

Speaker 2 21:07

I think we're hitting on a couple of things. Uh, sometimes we are very busy, but I think it's part of that , um, you know, let , don't judge your feelings if you did have, Hey, listen , I, I'm not gonna say sit here before you and say I eat like , um, training for a marathon. I, I , I'd like to say that, and there was once upon a time that I did, but I wanna enjoy my life. I want to eat what I want to eat. There are times when I do have a pizza, there are times when I have ice cream. I don't have a perfect diet. I eat, my goal is to eat well 80% of the time. So there are gonna be times where yeah , uh, it's not gonna go as well. And I might not feel as well, but we are , we're all human. So I think, you know, no judgment, you know, letting it , it's okay and, and letting those feelings pass. Um, but some people, and this works for them, is keeping a food diary that helps them keep track of what they're eating. It works for some personalities, maybe not for others. What works for me is more of, I plan my meals generally for the week. I don't write anything down, but I'll say , okay, Monday will be a meatless. Monday, Wednesday I'll have some pasta. Sundays I usually a bigger , uh, being Italian, we have a bigger meal on a Sunday, I'm not gonna be removed from that. That's gonna be a , a more of a heavier meal. And then I'll have something lighter on a Thursday. So, and, and also Friday is , um, kind of a , whatever's in the refrigerator I take out or if I'm , if we don't go out to eat. So mine is more or less a routine and that works for me , um, just to keep track. And I, I do pretty much eat the same things for lunch every day. Uh , generally a salad, I usually eat a little bit lighter during the week and like get creative , um, I'm sorry, during the week during lunch and then get creative at dinner time . But that, that works for me. Like I said, this is all individual. It may not work for , um, someone, one of your patients, Shelley's maybe , uh, maybe , um, like I said, maybe a food diary will help because then you realize and you reflect back, like, oh wow, I had, I went to the fast food place three times this week. I didn't realize that . I only thought I want , you know, went once. Right? So, you know that I find that it , it , it can work for some people who want to bump it up and want to make changes. Um, you know, documenting what you eat will work, but , um, but, you know , um, small changes make, you know, make the , make the big results. So not only like running down, you eat what , what you're eating, but looking back and saying, okay, now just what, what, what is one change I can make? Maybe I have to add more water to my diet. Um, maybe I see, no, I'm not really drinking much water at all. So maybe that's an increase. Just, you know, as you, as you add the food diary, you know, going back and reflecting on it because if there's no reflection then there's no change. So that those are , um, you know, some, some ways maybe why , um, you know, people are, are not remembering what they eat or, you know, have to be , uh, guided <laugh> or questioned a little bit more as far as what they eat.

Speaker 1 24:51

So, I, I just thought of a , of an impromptu question, if you don't mind me asking. And as I'm , I'm listening to you and you have made me so comfortable with the topic of healthy eating and healthy body. Um, so I am gonna ask this cuz I have a feeling many of the listeners are already thinking this. For so many people, the pandemic has changed, their lifestyle has changed how they lived, where they worked, how they worked. Mm-hmm . <affirmative> . So for a lot of individuals, they have been through a weight gain of 10 pounds, 50 pounds, 30 pounds, 50 pounds. You know, they've, they've maybe gained a lot of weight. So , um, is there, is there any gentle advice or gentle words or anything you'd wanna offer those individuals to help them find the path back to feeling better?

Speaker 2 25:50

Absolutely. This is a co I'm hearing this so much like you are charise , what, think of it, we've been inside, we have been cut off from the things we enjoy doing. We love to socialize, we love to, you know, go to eat. We like to, to gatherings. This has been shut off . This is stressful for us. So we have to go back to, you know, embody ourselves. What I'm seeing here is, and what has been working with some people I , I've been talking with is just going back simple things like getting outside, especially now that it's warmer. And what I mean by getting outside, feeling the sun, walking through the, it's called, I'm looking into it and I really am fascinated with, it's called, it actually has a title, it's called Earthing. And it's just that you're getting grounded in this because that has been, I feel it's been like that piece has been taken away from us and we have to get back into that because we, we're human. We're mammals. We are born to experience nature. We are, we feel , um, a section from being out in nature, walking, hiking , um, listening to the ocean. If you're close, that's beautiful, but you don't necessarily have to be, you can find some, you know, in wherever you are, there's parks. But out there in the fresh air, it's gonna change your perspective. It's going to make you feel better. I would say that would be cooped up and wearing our masks. That is essential right now. And secondly would be just simple meditation. Even five minutes can change what your outlook just automatically calms down your nervous system. And it could be what's meditation look like for you? Again, visualized what works for one person may not work for another. And we find that, we find that , um, what works for, you know, the individual. So it could be a guided meditation where you, there's many apps on available or it could be just sitting in , sometimes I feel like when I'm in the shower, it's a meditation, just the water dripping on your head. You're quiet, it's just you, it's your time. Okay . For some that works. But you have to, your intention has to be, yes, this is my time, or my, or I'm quieting. And yes, not to be perfect. Meditation isn't perfect. You don't have to be an expert. Yes , there's thoughts that come up, but that's all. Okay. Um, a fast meditation if you're in traffic could be just taking, you know, the deep breaths, you know , breathing in for . And I know that you had some on your podcast too, you offered some Shelly's , um, and, you know, breathing out , um, that's another way to, you know, calm down that nerve . Because remember, when you're stressed , um, and you're listening to the external, a a a lot of times , um, your , your fast relief is gonna be that you necessarily would not eat. So this is , um, you know, meditation is , it's so, it's so beneficial, especially in these times . And a light exercise. I have a routine in the morning where I , I matter , um, sometimes matter what kind of , uh, thing I have, meaning sometimes I don't really have a lot of time. I do , um, some stretching, some yoga, and sometimes I only have 10 minutes. But in that 10 minutes, along with time , um, it just does a world of good. And I would say lastly with the fourth , um, way of , um, you know, feeling better with times is journaling, writing about it, get it out, get your feelings on paper. It's more profound than it is just thinking about them. Um, it doesn't have to be, you can, you know, you can strive for a daily writing, but when you feel like something's on your mind, you wanna express it, write it down, write it . It doesn't have to be, you don't have to worry about penmanship or spelling. It's just, it's all about you. It's it's health . And with these , um, I'm, I'm finding these, these, you know, going back to some simple tools can really help during these times of, of, you know, we're just of, of what we've been through, the changes in the last year, this kinda back into our bodies. And , um, knowing, you know, we're just , uh, knowing that we're, we're just taking care of ourselves. It's a form of self-love.

Speaker 1 31:15

And Lisa, for the listeners , um, I am sure they're gonna wanna know where to find you and how to read more about you. Um, and of course for the listeners, I will include Lisa's , uh, information in the show notes. Lisa, can you share where the listeners can find you?

Speaker 2 31:36

Absolutely. I am on social media, so on Instagram is ba it's my name Lisa Earhart, l i s a , and the last name is spelled a i r h a r t. And there you, I post tips , um, health tips, both , um, with , uh, it's not just focused just mainly on food, but it's also , um, uh, inspirational, motivational , um, and , and life . Um, motivations also. And that would be another place that you can find me would be on Facebook , um, geared , well, I have a personal Facebook, but you'd be more interested in my , um, um, health , uh, information. So that would be health coaching by Lisa, that's on Facebook. It's just health Coaching by Lisa. And lastly, my website, again is my name, lisa earhart.com. And you'll also gain some information there. Um, they'll be posted a , um, newsletter that will, you also will find that will be, you know , um, uh, health information.

Speaker 1 33:09

Lisa, thank you so much for joining me on the Art of Healing Podcast. I really appreciate your time. I think this topic is, or I feel this topic is so important, this mindful eating and this embracing our food and our diets with love. Thank you so much. And for the listeners, please check the show notes for all those good details and info about Lisa. And until next week, bye-bye.