wellness with Alicia
Alicia (health coach, massage therapist, pilates instructor, meat head-hippie) explores a wide range of topics related to women's health, intuitive eating, exercise, life after sport, CrossFit, relationships, mindset, and a whole lot of random, yet seemingly important topics that distracts Alicia in her day to day life. Wellness with Alicia covers these topics in a thoughtful, exploratory, and sometimes comedic format. ie. owning and running a business, finding peace with food and exercise, her current favourite things, and why she can't start her day without a good cup of coffee. Whether it's deep diving into: Body Goals, Fitness Culture, Fat Loss, Health, Food Freedom, Pop Culture, the Dogma of Diet Culture and the Anti-Diet Movement, her love-hate relationship for social media, why she's not sure about having kids and moving to the suburbs, or talking about the ups and downs of starting and running a business as a solopreneur. Alicia aims to talk about heavy topics, light topics, share her own lived experiences, while acknowledging that as someone in her mid 30's, she has a lot to share (so many thoughts, so little time) and a lot to learn! Beyond these topics, Alicia is also a Registered Massage Therapist, Pilates instructor, and has her own online Health Coaching business (Wellness with Alicia) helping women build their physiques without extremes. You can expect Alicia to share her honest struggles as a mid-30-something living in Vancouver, and topics that are taking up way too much brain space. Alicia hopes to bring something a little different to the health and fitness spaces. By speaking about these topics in a unique, conversational, and sometimes humorous way, she hopes to offer up value, provide some education, and perhaps a different point of view.
wellness with Alicia
the problem with "Just Listen to Your Body" for fat loss & muscle gain
In this episode, we’re breaking down why listening to your body isn’t always enough (and why you’re not failing if it hasn’t worked for you). From sleep deprivation and stress to hormonal fluctuations and hyper-palatable foods, there are multiple factors that can make it easy to overeat when trying to lose fat and difficult to eat enough when trying to build muscle.
What I Cover in This Episode:
- Why hunger and fullness cues can be unreliable when you’re stressed, sleep-deprived, or dieting.
- How appetite hormones (ghrelin & leptin) respond to sleep, stress, and dieting—and why they might be making fat loss harder.
- Why eating past a calorie deficit is so easy (just 200 extra calories a day can stall fat loss).
- The reality of muscle gain—why eating intuitively might not get you enough calories to build muscle.
- PMS, hormones & cravings: why your body actually needs more energy during this time.
- Thyroid medications (hyper & hypothyroidism) and how they impact hunger, cravings & metabolism.
Intuitive Eating Principles I’m Challenging (and What to Do Instead):
1️⃣ “Honour Your Hunger”
2️⃣ “Make Peace with Food”
3️⃣ “Feel Your Fullness”
4️⃣ “Cope with Emotions Without Using Food”
5️⃣ “Reject the Diet Mentality”
At the end of the day, listening to your body is part of the equation—but if you’re struggling to see results, there are deeper factors at play. Tune in for a conversation that’s honest, science-backed, and helps you move forward with clarity.
Health Coaching Application: Work with me!
Follow me on Substack: Alicia's Substack
Follow me on Instagram: @aliciamayconnors
Send me an email!: info@wellnesswithalicia.com