Atlanta Wellness Clinic Podcast

Beyond Gym and Diet: The Hidden Keys to Weight Loss

• Catina Wilson • Episode 10

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Can You Really Lose Weight Without Dieting Or Exercise?

Ever wondered if you could shed those stubborn pounds without hitting the gym or counting every calorie? Licensed nutritionist Catina Wilson breaks down the science behind effortless weight loss in this eye-opening conversation.

Catina shares her personal success story of losing 40 pounds without ever stepping foot in a gym, revealing how nutrition truly drives 80% of weight loss results. But this episode goes far beyond basic diet advice. You'll discover how sleep deprivation creates a hormonal perfect storm that increases hunger while decreasing satisfaction – a devastating combination for anyone trying to manage their weight. Learn why those who struggle with belly fat often find the answer in their stress levels and sleep quality rather than their workout routine.

The conversation explores the counterintuitive science of metabolism, explaining why severely restricting calories can actually halt weight loss by triggering your body's survival mechanisms. Catina provides practical strategies for revving up your metabolism, including why weightlifting offers metabolic benefits long after you've left the gym. You'll also learn about medical interventions like GLP-1 medications and how they affect hunger signals.

Ready to transform your relationship with food and your body? This conversation is your first step.

To learn more about Atlanta Wellness Clinic visit:
https://www.ATLWellnessClinic.com
Atlanta Wellness Clinic
1827 Powers Ferry Rd. SE, Bldg 1 STE 250
Atlanta, Georgia 30339
770-726-8978

Speaker 1:

welcome to the Atlanta Wellness Clinic podcast hosted by licensed nutritionist and clinic owner, katina Wilson. We're here to kick start your weight loss journey because, let's be honest, the only thing we want gaining weight is our wallets. From medical weight loss and nutrition coaching to body contouring, we help metro Atlanta women get real results. Let's dive in.

Speaker 2:

Is it possible to shed pounds without hitting the gym or counting calories? We're diving into the science behind alternative weight loss methods that could change the game. Welcome back everyone to Millie M. Co-host producer here in the studio with licensed nutritionist and clinic owner, katina Wilson. How are you, katina?

Speaker 3:

I am well. How about?

Speaker 2:

you, millie, doing well. Can't wait to break down this fascinating question with you today, because I know our listeners are going to be surprised by some of the insights. Can you really lose weight without dieting or exercise?

Speaker 3:

Yes, and I'm here to tell you I did it. I actually lost in my own weight loss journey. I lost the first 40 pounds or so without ever stepping a foot into the gym, so it can't be done Well so so what I was going to say is all about the 80-20 rule, all about the 80-20. It really fundamentally comes down to nutrition. It comes down to caloric intake what you're taking in versus you know what you're putting out. So as long as you're creating that calorie deficit, it certainly is possible.

Speaker 2:

They say that it starts with nutrition. So that's the key factor to weight loss beyond. What are the key factors beyond diet and exercise?

Speaker 3:

Well, I mean, diet is the biggest thing, right? So it's all about you mean, diet is the biggest thing, right? So it's all about you know, again, creating that deficit. There are other factors, like reducing stress and getting sleep, and we see it even in our clinic.

Speaker 3:

A lot of people really underestimate the importance of getting a good night's rest. Average person should be likely getting seven to eight hours of sleep each night, but I think you know, just, in our busy society, it's just, it's a struggle for a lot of people. And so what ends up happening is that lack of sleep creates disruptions in your hormones, particularly two hormones called ghrelin and leptin. Ghrelin really manages the hunger that we, that we feel, and so when you're not getting enough sleep, that hunger feeling, right, it increases. Not a good thing, because. So that means you're always going to want something to eat. You're going to want a snack.

Speaker 3:

Leptin, also another hormone that's regulated by sleep. It helps provide satiety, right, and so are you satisfied by what you're eating. Well, unlike ghrelin, ghrelin increases, so you're more hungry. Leptin decreases when you're not getting enough sleep, and so now you're not feeling as satisfied. So now you're searching for something. You know, for a lot of people it's probably comfort food, right, that's going to give you that feeling of satisfaction. So exactly, absolutely so, sleep is probably like one of the best things you can do.

Speaker 3:

And then I think the other thing too that folks underestimate is stress. Now, lack of sleep can increase stress, but there are other things that you know can also increase stress. And so, again, when we're talking hormones, when your stress increases, cortisol also increases, and unfortunately cortisol promotes belly fat storage, right. And so people who say they struggle with the weight, particularly like around their waistline, when you start to dig into, like, what's really going on with them on a day-to-day basis, they typically are not getting enough sleep and they're typically under a high degree of stress, for whatever reason. And so diet, exercise are certainly the biggest influences and being able to get off the weight diet more so than exercise. Again, 80-20. However, sleep is a big contributing factor in managing stress and managing stress.

Speaker 2:

Wow, that was a mouthful there. So definitely, stress is a very sinister thing and it affects us in many different ways. And some people stress eat and some people don't eat when they're stressed. And all of that can affect weight loss, because how does metabolism play a role in shedding those pounds effortlessly?

Speaker 3:

How does metabolism play a role in shedding those pounds effortlessly. Well, metabolism is a tricky thing because I think, like the younger you are, your metabolism is at its highest and then over time it actually starts to to decrease over time, and so then you have to do things right to really like pump up that metabolism. So in earlier episodes we talked about the importance of doing things like exercise, particularly like weightlifting. You can exercise and do cardio, but once you stop the cardio it's benefit to your metabolism. It pretty much stops when you stop the cardio. But with something like lifting weights lifting really heavy weights as an example, and really building that muscle, now you're giving your body an opportunity to create kind of this metabolic process where it's going all day, all night, right, and you're not necessarily like in the gym. So you're doing things to increase your metabolism by lifting weights and building that additional muscle.

Speaker 2:

Are there medical weight loss interventions that can work without traditional dieting?

Speaker 3:

Yeah, absolutely. I mean we offer, obviously, the GLP-1s, right, so we offer those medications, and those medications play a role also in trying to manage some of the things that we had talked about, right, that hunger feeling. So it's going to slow down that digestion process. In addition to slowing down that digestion process, it's going to remove that food noise. So you're not going to necessarily not only feel hungry, you're not going to necessarily be thinking about rule.

Speaker 3:

But here's the thing that sometimes people underestimate sometimes even not eating enough can contribute to weight gain, right, we've had a couple of conversations actually, like recently, with some patients here at the clinic and they say like I'm not losing weight and I'm super hungry.

Speaker 3:

And so you know, as a coach, my first inclination is to ask questions. So it's like tell me what's going on. And when you dig into their diet, like there's one lady by the time we walked through, like what she eats on a typical day, it wasn't even a thousand calories, right. So she's literally putting her body, unfortunately, into starvation mode. So so I know it sounds counterintuitive On one hand, at the beginning we said you want to take in fewer calories, but you don't want to take in such fewer calories to the extreme, where it shocks your body, and now your body is saying like I don't know what I'm going to eat again. So every little thing that you eat, you know it's going to want to hold on to because it's now in starvation mode. So it is definitely a nice balance. So it is important to eat, eat clean and reduce your calories, but not reduce your calories to the point where it's not only it's going to impact your metabolism, but it's also going to send you into starvation mode.

Speaker 2:

When I was young, I had a biology teacher tell us that we should eat six small meals a day as opposed to three huge meals and, like you said, clean meals, maybe meals maybe carrots and hummus or a baked potato or whatever you suggest is, because I know you're the specialist. But whatever you suggest is good and healthy. But smaller meals throughout the day will rev up that metabolism so that it's constantly burning and constantly going.

Speaker 3:

Yeah, absolutely, and I love that idea and it's something that I follow myself, where I do suggest you have your three primary meals, but then you have some small snacks in between. One of the things that's going to do is it's going to help regulate your blood sugar, for sure, right, but then you're just going to be satisfied a lot longer. But that requires planning or it requires scheduling, and so that's one of the things that you know, as people going on this weight loss journeys with us, we really try to over-index on. You really have to plan, because when you don't plan, when you make decisions when you're hungry, you tend to make bad decisions. Right? You ever gone to the grocery store hungry and maybe you've got a list of like five things and the next thing you know you've got like a cart full of things, right, cause you're making decisions based upon like how you feel in the moment. So, yeah, I really love the idea of five meals throughout the day because, again, it not only levels that blood sugar, but you just generally feel satisfied throughout the day.

Speaker 3:

You don't feel like you're missing something, so that's certainly important.

Speaker 2:

Bad decisions are made on an empty stomach. I can tell I mean plenty of bad decisions made on an empty stomach.

Speaker 3:

I mean plenty of bad decisions, right? You know. Plenty of bad decisions being hangry, right?

Speaker 2:

so exactly, exactly. So while we're on that topic, um, how do mindset and behavioral changes and, I guess, emotional states impact long-term weight management?

Speaker 3:

Yeah, I mean it comes back to you know, being mindful is critically important. So, if you think about it, when you're not mindful and earlier I said, we're such a busy society we're always on the go, right, people are on the go in the car, they're eating in their car, they're eating in front of the TV, they're eating in front of their computer at work, right, just because we're all so busy, right, right? The challenge with that type of lifestyle, if you will, is you're not paying attention. Not only are you not paying attention to what you're taking in, and you're typically eating too fast, you're not paying attention to how your body feels and so, for that matter, you overeat. So I'll give myself an example.

Speaker 3:

When I started my journey, I thought I was eating healthy, right, when I was working with a coach just like we have patients here that work with me I was working with a coach and when I walked her through what I ate, what it really fundamentally came down to is I was eating in front of the TV, I was eating in front of the computer, I wasn't really paying attention and, before I knew it, that healthy pistachios that I was eating turned out. I was eating the whole entire bag right, the whole bag is not healthy. A fourth of it that's healthy, but the whole bag of it is not right. And those are still calories that you're taking in. So I was taking in a lot of excess calories unknowingly, and so it's important to. When we talk about mindful eating and again, these are conversations that I have with patients it's let's turn off the TV, let's pay attention and enjoy the food, enjoy the people that we're with when we're eating.

Speaker 3:

Let's pick up our fork, let's chew the food, let's taste it, let's really feel the textures, but put the fork down. Put the fork down to your food. Thirdly, eat thoroughly 15 to 20 times, swallow it before you pick it up again. One, that's going to force you to slow down. And two, now you're, it's going to give you an opportunity to really like cue into those fullness signals and so that way you're not overeating. And then what you find when you do, that you actually end up eating less, and that's an easy way to start reducing the number of calories without having to actually count them. It's an easy way to actually start reducing the number of calories. And then, before you know it, you know you're down a pound, you're down five pounds. You're down 10, right, because you make little small changes like that.

Speaker 2:

Thank you so much for your insight, and our listeners will definitely appreciate all the tips and the tools that you're giving them. We'll catch you on the next time for more insights on achieving real results. Thank you.

Speaker 3:

Good to see you.

Speaker 1:

That's a wrap on this episode of the Atlanta Wellness Clinic podcast. If you're ready to kickstart your weight loss journey, and not just your bathroom scale and frustration, visit atlwellnesscliniccom or call us at 770-726-8978 for a free 10-minute weight loss consultation, because the best time to start was yesterday. The second best time right now. See you next time.