The Get Healthy Tampa Bay Podcast

E146: Sugar Addiction, Emotional Eating & Holiday Tips w/ Kerri Pagliarini (No Guilt Guide)

• Kerry Reller

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Welcome to the Get Healthy Tampa Bay Podcast with Dr. Kerry Reller! This week, I’m joined by Kerri Pagliarini, a certified holistic health coach known as the “Sugar Knockout Coach.” We unpack the difference between sugar addiction and cravings, why willpower isn’t the real issue, and how emotions and habits drive those afternoon and after-dinner sugar urges. Kerri shares practical ways to balance blood sugar, retrain your brain, and enjoy holiday treats without guilt. Tune in for simple, sustainable strategies to navigate candy season and feel your best.

Kerri Pagliarini is a health coach, best-selling author, and founder of the Food Freedom Rebellion—a movement for women who are done with diet rules, guilt trips, and sugar spirals.

After years of bouncing between clean eating and chocolate cake regret, she finally ditched the extremes and found her sweet spot—and now she helps other women do the same. Kerri works especially with nurturers and healers—moms, caretakers, and women who take care of everyone else first and are finally ready to prioritize their own health without giving up wine nights or birthday cake.

Through her signature no-fluff, real-talk coaching style, Kerri helps women kick sugar cravings, reclaim energy, and enjoy food again—without obsession or restriction. She’s the creator of the 90-Day Mind & Body Reset, along with a variety of 1:1 and group coaching programs—all hosted inside her thriving Skool community.

She’s also the co-host of the podcast Food Freedom Rebellion for Nurturers & Healers, where she spills the tea on everything from gut health to guilt-free living. When she’s not coaching or sharing sugar-free swaps in her best-selling cookbook, you’ll find her laughing with her son, experimenting in the kitchen, or reminding women everywhere that willpower is a myth—and food should feel good.

00:29 Guest intro & why sugar feels so powerful
02:06 Kerri’s health journey: migraines, hormones, gut health & food-as-medicine
05:11 Addiction vs cravings: the emotional link and the willpower myth
07:11 Progress over perfection: “add before you subtract” (protein/fat/fiber)
12:39 Habit loops 101: pause, label the feeling, pick a new action
13:48 Afternoon crash vs after-dinner urges: blood sugar basics & routines
16:04 First steps with clients: food foundations, then mindset work
17:44 Building balanced meals that cut cravings (without strict restriction)
18:23 Holiday playbook: kid candy, Switch Witch, donate/toss extras, mindful favorites
23:38 Reset fast: next-meal recovery & letting go of guilt

Connect with Coach Kerri

Websites: www.TLSslim.com/kerrip, www.Empower-WellnessCoaching.com
Facebook: https://web.facebook.com/kerri.pagliarinidorman?_rdc=1&_rdr#
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/kerripagliarini/

Connect with Dr. Reller
Podcast website: https://gethealthytbpodcast.buzzsprou... 
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kerryrellermd/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ClearwaterFamilyMedicine
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/clearwaterfamilymedicine/
Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@kerryrellermd
Clearwater Family Medicine and Allergy website: https://sites.google.com/view/clearwa...
Podcast: https://gethealthytbpodcast.buzzsprou...

Subscribe to the Get Healthy Tampa Bay Podcast on Apple podcasts, Spotify, Amazon music, Stitcher, Google Podcasts, Pandora.

Kerry:

Hi everybody. Welcome back to the Get Healthy Tampa Bay podcast. I'm your host, Dr. Kerry Reller and today we have another Kerri, which I'm super excited about. Kerri Pagliarini is, I say it right.

Kerri:

Close. Yeah. Pagliarini

Kerry:

Perfect. Okay. I, I should have asked you before, but it's a, it's a bit of a tongue twister, but I'm excited to work with another Kerri here today. So welcome to the podcast and why don't you tell us a little about who you are and what you do.

Kerri:

Awesome. Well, thanks for having me. I always love meeting another Kerri, myself. I feel like we're the unicorns. You don't meet many Kerri's. You meet Carrie's, but not Kerri's so. Anyway, I call myself the sugar knockout coach. I am a certified holistic health coach, and I really help women get a handle on their sugar cravings. And the mindset behind that, which I think also goes hand in hand with clean eating. Like we make everything more complicated than it needs to be as women, like we have so many things on our shoulders and eating healthy, getting our sugar under control, like sugar cravings and all that just feels. Overwhelming and so it gets on the back burner. So I help women make themselves a priority and get control of that.

Kerry:

Such an important thing to focus on at any age of, you know, women's life and wellness. So I think that's awesome And you know, I, we were speaking before, but it's very timely as well as this time of year as we approach, you know, the holiday season. And my kids, I know definitely love Halloween and starting off the season with a bang. So I think we were gonna focus a little bit on that later. But first of all, how did you get into this, you know, position that you are a health coach and what, what made you want to do that?

Kerri:

Very interesting story, like through my own health journey, how most people deal. So growing up I ate a ton of sugar, right? Like we just did in the eighties. We just ate a bunch of sugar. And then I also had migraines though, like in high school, you know, and then in college they just got really bad. And in my late twenties it was that, hormonal issues I had for a really long time and like gas and bloating. And so it all kind of came to a head well, well what's interesting is, so I had hormonal issues. I would have ovarian cysts and I would get on the pill, but I hated that. So I'd get off it and then I'd have a cyst, right? So I have this like totally messing with my hormone cycle as well, but no one really knows that in their late twenties. And so I ended up in the hospital because some cysts had burst, and they saw that I had a cyst wrapped around my fallopian tube, which was very, very painful. And I didn't really think it was that serious until my O-B-G-Y-N sat me down and was like, this is. Serious, Carrie. And I'm like, what do you mean? Like, I just can't go on the pill? They're like, no, you, you, you can't go back to just being on the pill. So I had to figure out what the heck I was gonna do. So as that was happening, my friend introduced me to a book called The Body Ecology Diet, and it was all about gut health, was over eating sugar, which creates gut health issues, which creates a cascade of other issues, which was everything I was going through, I'm like, oh my gosh, this book was like written exactly for me like this is what I need to do. So I hired a health coach to really help me change my diet and my lifestyle. And it has been nothing short of amazing, right? Like migraine's gone, hormonal issues gone like it's food is medicine. It, it really, really is. And so I help women with that, with lifestyle. But then there's a huge emotional component to it as well. And when I was feeling so good and everything was working out in life, I'm like, oh, this is so easy. But then I went through a divorce and the emotional eating hit me too. And so I'm like, okay, there's something else going on here. So I help my women a lot with that too.'cause it really is, we are using food to manage our emotions. We just are.

Kerry:

So, I'm not trying to date you, but how long ago was this, where you had these cysts things like that? Because the book that you read seems kind of like maybe newer age. So what, how long ago was that?

Kerri:

Oh yeah. I'm like, let me age myself. I would say probably like sort to random, like, ooh, probably like 20 years ago. And yeah, she

Kerry:

really impressive. Health coaching, like was not that much of a thing many like 20 years ago. And you know, realizing the gut relationship with food really wasn't either. So that's super amazing that you were able to get that guidance so early on.

Kerri:

So thankful, but, and like you said, it was completely different than what anybody was talking about. I think that's why when I read it, I was like, where has this information been? Like, I could have used this 10 years earlier.

Kerry:

Yeah. So how did you first realize that maybe your relationship with sugar kind of went beyond this simple cravings and kind of was more than that?

Kerri:

You mean for the emotional piece or Yeah, yeah. Mo mostly because I knew better, right? We all know better. We know sugar is not good for us, but I could not keep myself from, I just couldn't stop myself. It was one of those things like I would just keep eating or like a bag of salt and vinegar potato chips, which break down into sugar. Like I was just eating and I knew it wasn't. I knew I didn't need that. Right. There's no nutrients in that for me. So I was like, I know better, and yet I can't stop. Okay. What's happening here? And that's when I'm like, oh, sugar and emotions. And I have used it all the time, right? Until I had that break. But then once it came back, I'm like, oh, we need to, we need to dig into this and really figure this out.

Kerry:

Not to pry, but did in like when you were growing up and things like that, was sugar used as a reward or any other way that kind of maybe kind of solidified those habits and thoughts about it?

Kerri:

Yeah, for sure. I feel like sugar was there no matter what, and then in my teens. You know, I had a job and I could go buy all the sugar that I want, I wanted, and then I moved to New York City and there's a bodega on every corner, and it just became like candy every like, oh, I'm leaving to get on the subway let me grab some candy. Oh, I'm on my way home. Let me grab some candy. And then it just became a daily thing eating lots of candy, like gummy candy is my weakness. I tell people that all the time. Like that was the thing I ate the most of.

Kerry:

are you able to include it in your life now or do you have to completely kind of abstain?

Kerri:

I will have some every now and then. It's funny, we went on a trip and my son wanted to have some gummy candy and I took a bite and I was like, eh, I don't, it's, you know, it's not really, it's not really what I wanted.

Kerry:

It's not what it once was, right? Yeah.

Kerri:

Yeah, and that's funny too'cause you'll, your taste buds do change, but once there's like no emotional connection, it doesn't taste as good as you remember a tasting.

Kerry:

Mm-hmm. So how did you kind of work your, you know, past into your current, you know, business as health, health coach?

Kerri:

I just try to be one relatable, you know, like I've been there and so I understand it feels, like I said, it feels really, really overwhelming. But also it's super doable. Like it doesn't need to be this, if, if you look at the whole thing, it's overwhelming, but if we just take bits and pieces and just work on little steps and celebrate small wins, I think as women we don't do that, right? We're just, we're mad we didn't reach this huge goal, or we feel like we're on track. But when we celebrate all the mini wins, and I don't care if it's like. I ate five gummy candies instead of 10. You know what I mean? Like it's always progress over perfection. And I think that really helps in making it like in small bites. So like for myself, I just went completely cold Turkey the first time I was over sugar, but I was so sick and and scared. But then when I figured out the emotional piece, I was like, I need to slowly cut back. That's when I was like, the small steps is what makes the most sense. And I think for most people is the most doable.

Kerry:

Mm-hmm. Yeah. What do you think is the hardest part about kind of quitting and cutting back?

Kerri:

There's, huh? That's a good question. I was gonna say,'cause temptation's everywhere. I think that is a big deal. Like I was at the Home Depot checkout and there's candy at the Home Depot checkout. Like it's literally everywhere you go. And so if you're like, I really just need a Snickers bar, and that's what you've been using to manage your emotions. You are in Home Depot, like it could go either way. I feel like that that's one of the big pieces is that it's everywhere. And again, we feel like I'm bad because I'm eating sugar and I know that it's bad for me, right? And, but yet we can't stop. And so we beat ourselves up and then we use sugar to manage emotions, which makes us beat ourselves up. And so it's this vicious cycle.

Kerry:

That's exactly what I was gonna say. Vicious cycle. Yes,

Kerri:

it really is. It really is. So anyone listening, like, please stop beating yourself up over that.

Kerry:

Yeah, and it's really, you know, not your fault. Like you said, it's everywhere. So how can you know patients or clients kind of set up an environment that can be more friendly for them?

Kerri:

Yeah. Well, when you are in your home, you have complete control over what you bring into your home. And I work with a lot of women. They're married, they have children, and no, no one wants to eat like they do, or they feel like there is candy because their, their kids are there, or even their their spouse is like, I want these cookies. And they're like, oh, I just don't wanna be around them. And so we give them a lot of tools for mindset so that they can, they can recognize. I mean, the first step is just recognizing like one, why do you even want that? Because I'm totally for, if you just want a cookie because you want a cookie for whatever. That's fine. That's another thing we talk about. But if you're eating a bag of cookies to manage emotions'cause you just got in an argument with your husband, like that's something different. That's when I want them to recognize, you know, what's happening. And then we really work on kind of just rewiring the brain and pathways.'cause a lot of this is also habit.

Kerry:

Mm-hmm.

Kerri:

So we just need to break habits, and that just takes a little bit of time of rewiring. But the first is recognizing, and I'm always telling my ladies, I'm like, I don't care if you're five cookies in, pause, be like, why am I eating these cookies right now? Like, what's really going on here? And they connect it to so many things. I mean, boredom, loneliness, anger, stress. There's so many things.

Kerry:

Mm-hmm.

Kerri:

So once they make the connection, it's easy to stop.

Kerry:

Yeah. I think that's one of like the things that is, you know, a key thing missing in a lot of weight management or things like that programs is that they don't really recognize the emotional piece and how to manage that and, you know, control it, like you said, and realize sometimes you do, it is okay to just eat a cookie. Right. But labeling it for what it is is very important. Right.

Kerri:

Yeah. And I love that you brought that up because we, we work with women to help them lose weight, but they are so conditioned to all these diets of like, oh, I didn't do exactly what I was supposed to do. Oh, I was bad this week. Oh. And they like call and confess that they had a cookie. And I'm like, it's really your, you making that big a deal is sending you down the cycle that we talked about where it's like, I'm bad and, but I'm going to eat a cookie to manage my emotions.

Kerry:

Mm-hmm.

Kerri:

yeah, that is a big shift.

Kerry:

How do you like coach around habit or what is that like? What's a habit and you know, just tell me more about that.

Kerri:

Sure. We do a lot of pausing with many habits, right? And first just like even recognizing. And so my big thing is always, even if it's anything that they're like, I feel like this is a habit. I'm doing it. I don't like it. Right? Once they start having those feelings, like, I wanna change this, I don't know how. It's just pause and just recognize because if you pause and recognize and then you do something different, we like shift activities somewhere else. Shift focus somewhere else. Like if I'm upset of like I'm stressed out, maybe I just need to go for a walk. I don't need gummy candy. I just need to go for a walk. And every time we do that, we're creating a new pathway. Brain where instead if I was doing the same habit, right, I'm stressed, I eat candy, I'm stressed, I eat candy. Like I'm reinforcing that pathway in the brain. The brain is so fascinating.

Kerry:

I find one of the most difficult times of the day is like that after dinner habit that patients or clients, you know, continue to have, and that's something that's really hard to break. What do you, what do you think?

Kerri:

Yeah, I, I thought you were gonna say the afternoon.'cause I see that one a lot. The afternoon one is huge. And then the, yeah, after dinner is, is a big one too. I think it's the first time as women, because I work with mostly women, we get to like, relax. We get to like, be quiet. So instead of listening to our body, we're like, oh, I know what I always do at this time. It makes me feel like I'm relaxing. It's a glass of wine. It's chocolate. It's, I mean, I have one who's like, I just like sweet coffee and I'm like, oh my gosh. Like coffee, middle age, eight o'clock at night. No. But it's because of the sweetness, right? Because she adds so much sugar and creamer and all that in her coffee, which is. You could talk about that also forever, right? How we candy up our coffee. Did that for a really long time.

Kerry:

So I think it's interesting that you were gonna say afternoon, so I know what I think about the afternoon, but tell me what you, why you were gonna say the afternoon instead of after dinner.

Kerri:

There. Well, there's a couple reasons, and really I tell my ladies, we need to look back and see what you were eating. Because I talk a lot about balancing blood sugar and when I was eating all that sugar and all those carbs, like, I mean, I barely ate any protein I went through like in the eighties, right? We didn't eat any fat, so I like to see what people are eating. So it's a lot of what are they eating or not eating. I have my ladies who are just so busy. Or they haven't eaten anything, or at lunch they're like trying to like shovel in food and then by three o'clock they're exhausted because they don't, they don't have any energy, they don't have any food, no nutrients to keep them up and running. So that's been a huge, a huge piece is just kind of like reflecting and connecting how you feel physically after you eat, I think has made a big deal. And then reminding them to eat.

Kerry:

Yeah, I mean, that's so true. So like usually, you know, we talk about breakfast being the most important part of the day, but like if they're not eating a, what you wanna say, a balanced breakfast, then, well, we always talk about like an afternoon crash. Obviously lunch plays a role too, but that's usually where. Like you were saying, like they are going to turn toward something that will be a quick energy fix, which is usually carbohydrates or you know, maybe the office candy bowl or something

Kerri:

Yeah.

Kerry:

right? Yeah.

Kerri:

I mean, I have one client when I started working with her, she's like, I'm just not hungry. I'm like, okay, well we need to dive into that too, because if you're not eating anything at two o'clock. You're binging on candy. Like I just, then she was like starving for candy at two o'clock, but she hadn't eaten anything. So I'm like, you know, intermittent fasting isn't for everybody, or we need to figure out how that would work. You know, you just don't stop eating

Kerry:

Yeah, no, that's totally true. Like I do I like fasting for some patients, but not for everybody. Like if you're having the tendency to overeat or binge on anything later in the day because you had fasted for so long, then it's definitely not the right thing for you. And you should be taking a pause and stop on that for sure. Yeah.

Kerri:

for saying that.'cause there's so much comparison and like, well, it's working for your neighbor. That doesn't mean it's gonna work for you and it's okay.

Kerry:

Yeah. So you've helped like hundreds of clients through your sugar knockout coaching. What are your most effective first steps for someone who kind of feels stuck?

Kerri:

So when I first start working with people, I really do like to dive into the food. I feel like people think that's the easiest thing to control. And then once we start doing that, then we can see the mindset and emotional stuff starts popping up. Right? Like, why don't you want to eat that? Or Why are you still doing that? So we really do tackle the food first and because I wrote a cookbook, like I love food. I just think food is absolute medicine. But then it does shine a light on the emotional things that we need to work on

Kerry:

Mm-hmm. What about so do, are you like removing sugar in the beginning and expecting'em to feel a certain way or anything like that?

Kerri:

We, yes and no first. What I want, because that scares people, right? Like just removing sugar all at once, and I don't like to do that. I like to baby step. So what I first like to do is up the nutrients, like, let's make sure you're actually getting protein, healthy, fat, fiber, you know, let's try to balance blood sugar first. And even for the first couple weeks I'm like, I don't care if you eat a pizza every Friday night. I don't care if you eat a cookie every night. Like, that's fine. While we're upping the nutrition. And then see if you still want that. Then you still pause every night, do I want this cookie because they're getting the nutrients that they actually need. And then we can start slowly wheeling that back. But most of the time. Eating right or having more balanced meals. They will crave less, they'll still crave sugar.'cause there's probably an emotional piece, but they feel like they're winning. So again, that's another thing to celebrate. Like I'm making progress. I don't need to beat myself up. Like, yes, I ate a cookie or two, but I'm not eating the whole bag. And to me that's, that's huge. Is always progress over perfection. Always.

Kerry:

Yeah, absolutely. And I love that adding back in thing rather than taking things away. I think, you know, mostly people respond a lot better to that than saying, oh, you can't have this, that, or the other. You're not only gonna have this, like, it doesn't work out very well anyway. Yeah.

Kerri:

Yeah. And I think that again is why, you know, some women are like, this program's very different because I'm not gonna yell at you if you did the thing you weren't supposed to do. We're not gonna, like, all of a sudden you're eating none of the foods you love anymore. Like, that sucks. Like, I don't wanna do that. No one wants to do that.

Kerry:

so we've got Halloween coming up and after that, you know, Thanksgiving and Christmas. So how do you help clients, man Na, like navigate these holidays?

Kerri:

Yeah. So the, it's a tricky time of year, I'm not gonna lie. Right. It's a tricky time. So, so the first thing I want them to understand is give yourself a break, right? Like, don't, don't start beating yourself up.'cause they already know where that leads to. That leads to more eating. And I talk like. Practical strategies. So my son's 12, he is gonna go and try to get as many pounds of candy as he can. Right? And so we sit afterwards and he loves to sort it all out. I don't, I mean, they're, they're so great at marketing with candy, right? Like they just are, I'm like, that's cute packaging. So I let him pick the five that he wants, and then the rest go in a bag that I, we either do, I mean, he's too old for Switch witch, but he knows we're getting rid of it for something. Or I put it on top like on top of the refrigerator, like the hidden zone, and then I'll like donate it or throw it in the trash. Like he'll forget about it. We've, I'll forget about it. We forget that it's there. So like, kind of outta sight out of mind, but I let him pick the five that he really likes because. I feel like a lot of restriction in a lot of women I've worked with, like that starts early. They've learned restriction from parents and whatever like very early on. And so I don't want it to become one of those things like you can't have that because again, that creates, well now I want that. I'm, it's human nature now. I want all that candy, and so I don't want to go down that road.

Kerry:

What is switch Witch? I haven't heard of that

Kerri:

Oh, the Switch Witch is where they put all their candy in a bag and she comes and gets the candy and brings them the toy or something else that they would like instead.

Kerry:

Okay. That's very nice. Okay. Yes, we've done the method of donating. Honestly, they mostly donated to the troops, which I hope they're doing okay over there. But not, not making everybody sick, but yeah, sometimes we end up throwing it away too, which is obviously it's just an unreasonable amount that no, no human can ever consume, I think in one setting anyway. But that's the way it is. So, say some parent is struggling because they like candy a lot and they are constantly exposed to it around this time. Any tips?

Kerri:

Yeah. I mean, the same method, right? Like that's what I would do. And with, but with this. Without guilt, right? I like Butterfinger. Pick, pick, pick out a couple Butterfinger, like pick out a couple of the five that you like. But the non guilt is the big part. This is what I tell my ladies. Okay, here's the mini Butterfinger you really want that you are going to tell yourself before you have it. I, I'm having this. And I'm gonna enjoy every bite. And then you take a bite and you actually taste it because I can scarf down right? When you feel guilty and you feel bad, you just start shoveling this all in. And then you feel really guilty afterwards. But if you actually, without guilt, enjoy what you're eating. Chocolate cakes. Something at Thanksgiving. You can actually enjoy it and I bet you don't eat more than one or you know you're not gonna shovel in the food when you're just mindlessly eating and you don't wanna taste it because you feel guilty. So you just shove it in.

Kerry:

What do you think about like, minimizing the exposure? Like I will, you know, say maybe don't purchase the candy for the trick or treaters like so early on, so it's not in your home yet.

Kerri:

Oh yeah, absolutely. Absolutely. That's, that's a big one. I don't know anyone who really does that, but I think some people are just great planners and so they wanna make sure that they get that stuff ahead of time. Like we get all of ours last minute. That, yeah, for sure. And then, like I said, pick the ones you like that you're going to eat without guilt. Get rid of the rest, donate them, throw'em in the trash. I mean, we found recently a bag of candy from last year. It's still above our refrigerator. It just got left there and I'm gonna throw that away,

Kerry:

Hopefully no rats or something

Kerri:

oh my gosh. Yeah. I don't think even the animals wanna go near it Maybe if we put it outside for ants, but that's so funny.

Kerry:

Any like way to reframe Halloween as fun without turning it into like sugar hangover for days afterwards.

Kerri:

Yeah, I think we need to get back to like the holiday is the thing. Right. Like we're, we're getting dressed up. Like we always have a party at my house with the neighbors before we head out. And it's fun, you know, like everyone gets together and, and everyone's dressed up and we're walking around and like, that's the fun thing. And then our neighbors having a block party. So it's, you know, enjoy that without thinking about candy. And I know it's so hard because some of us have been conditioned, that's all we think about of the holidays is food. And I can't have that and I shouldn't have that. But if you let all that go and just actually hang out and enjoy like the moments and the holiday without thinking about the food aspect. Easier said than done. That's actually a great way to do it, and it's a lot of fun.

Kerry:

I mean, same with every holiday, right? I mean, especially Thanksgiving is always considered about the food, but it's really like giving thanks and being with your friends or family and loved ones, you know? So that's very important way to, as an adult, to be able to step back and look at that a little bit harder as a kid.

Kerri:

Oh yeah. As a kid it's definitely harder.

Kerry:

So let's say someone slips up and maybe they ate more than they wanted to of the candy at Halloween and turned into, I don't wanna use the word wi binge, or maybe maybe an indulgence more than they wanted. How do they can, how can they move forward in the healthiest way, like you said earlier, but without the guilt?

Kerri:

Without the guilt. So there's two things I would say'cause I always tell my ladies, I'm like, you could get back on track, like literally at the next meal. You know, like, let that, let that go. It's the next meal. Like what are you gonna have? What nutrients do you think you need to kind of counterbalance? That, and then really again, with the whole guilt thing, every time I'm like, you feel guilt, I'm like, pause. You gotta reframe that of like, I was enjoying the holiday. I was enjoying, like, I got caught up in the moment and I was enjoying the holiday. Okay. Right. Like, and now, and if it's a day or two, it's not that big a deal, right? If it's, you know, two weeks of holiday, like free for all, then we're like, Ooh, it's a little bit harder to get back on track. But recognizing the guilt is a huge piece too.

Kerry:

Yeah, I like that. I, I don't like how people like wait till Monday or the next week or anything. Like, you can get back on with the next meal, the next bite, whatever it is, you know, as, as long as you are, you know, are ready to get back on track. I think that's really, really helpful advice. So. With your whole work with sugar and everything, is there anything else that you really want the listeners to know that maybe is or isn't associated with Halloween and holidays?

Kerri:

Yeah. For anyone that knows me, this I hate the word willpower. You do not lack willpower. Okay. You just have to either one, like balance blood sugar. It's just, it's just biology and brain chemistry, like you can fix that. You are not broken, you are not weak If you beat yourself up for not having enough willpower, which is why I hate the word, like, then you get caught in that cycle that we talked about. So if you walk away with anything, it's that please don't think you just need more willpower. There are so many other things and you don't have to do it all at once. It can be small little steps.

Kerry:

Yeah, I like that. Well, willpower of course. Like when we, you know, in our obesity medicine training, that's definitely something that we realize willpower is not the, the issue at all. It's definitely biological science. Absolutely. Which is why, you know, some of these medications are really helping with that'cause they're actually treating the biology. So that's great. And then you said something about habits, which is obviously something you're wanting to retrain the brain. Right. So that's. That's also a key important thing. And like you said, you can lay down new neural pathways to create new habits and the slowly flush out the old ones, which are sometimes still there. It's very difficult. So like, you have to keep reinforcing. So that's, that's really good advice there. So where could people find you if they wanna work with you?

Kerri:

Awesome. There's a few places, so on my website, my website is empower wellness coaching.com. So I have some free resources and some fun stuff there. There's a sugar quiz if anyone wants to just take that and see like how, how far down the sugar rabbit hole you might be. I also have a podcast with my business partner who focuses, she's an herbalist and focuses on gut health.'cause I mean, sugar and gut health, as I mentioned earlier, are so hand in hand. And so that is the Food Freedom Rebellion. That is our podcast there. And you can also find me on Instagram sugar K Coach.

Kerry:

Awesome. Well, well thank you so much for joining us on the podcast today. I'm excited to, you know, have our listeners hear, hear all these hot tips for how to be healthier around sugar and make it okay. And everybody, please stay tuned next week for next week's episode. Thank you.

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Dr. Kerry Reller

Host