How Much Sugar Is Too Much? (Here’s How To Tell): GFS Podcast 101
Your inner critic can be the most deadly opponent you face. Day in and day out, it’s willing to go to awful lengths to keep you small, feeling trapped, and never making any changes no matter how necessary.
And for that very reason, today’s podcast is one of the most personal I’ve ever recorded. If I’d heeded the cruel words of my own inner critic, I likely wouldn’t be here today… not just as a clinical nutritionist, but as a healthy person.
I listened to an inner voice… and I’m sharing what I heard that changed the course of my life and helped me win.
And hey, if you haven’t yet subscribed to the podcast CLICK HERE to listen and subscribe through iTunes!
Then take a moment and leave a review on iTunes sharing what you’ve learned and why others would benefit from tuning in!
How to Silence Your Inner Critic, Get Answers & Take Action: GFS Podcast 093
In the following podcast, I’m going to talk about:
– How I found a way to pay for expensive health care even though we’d suddenly lost 2/3 of our income.
– The philosophy that I’ve come to believe in (that actually works)
– Six reasons why you SHOULD adopt it too (if you feel really overwhelmed by your health or life)
– The exact steps I took to get my life in order and start making changes that changed everything
– Why you should embrace your inner underdog
– and much more…
Complete Transcript
“Everything is figureoutable.”
In 2009, I was ready to quit life as an adult. Not literally… but my life wasn’t headed in the direction I thought it should be.
Early in the year, my then-fiance and now husband was suddenly laid off from a fantastic job.
This meant we instantly lost ⅔ of our income.
Mind you, this was about a year before we were getting married. My husband had become very depressed and was unable to find steady work (which we didn’t know at the time would actually last for about 4 years!).
During the summer of 2009, I noticed some really intense health problems capped off by terrible fatigue. After trying to figure out what was going on through my diet and failing, I hired a functional nutritionist. That’s when I was diagnosed with severe candida overgrowth and adrenal fatigue which I’ve talked about before HERE.
Lest we forget that I was on a really tight budget, this process was quite costly. Seeing a practitioner outside of insurance can be expensive. Supplements can be also expensive. Having to buy all organic gluten-free food is expensive.
I know that some people say that one’s concept of what’s expensive is tied to their priorities, but when you’ve lost ⅔ of your income, yeah… it’s going to feel expensive and overwhelming as the bills pile up.
So rather than crawl into a hole and give up, I looked at my situation as a challenge. And somehow I came to the realization that my problem existed simply because I didn’t have a viable solution to it YET.
My Inner Critic or My Health
And that’s where the phrase “Everything is figureoutable” comes in.
I can’t take credit for this saying. I first heard it from business coach Marie Forleo.
I realize that I could have taken a much different path.
I could have played the victim and convinced myself that someone put the evil eye on me (or that God was punishing me). Then I’d probably have spent my time complaining to everyone I knew about it.
Or I could have succumbed to my own inner critic that kept saying “you can’t afford this. You’re stupid and foolish for wasting money on this.” And then just whined that I couldn’t afford to do anything to care for my health and done absolutely nothing.
But I didn’t end up choosing either of those paths…
I can’t quite say why I didn’t, but I recall thinking to myself at the time that if this was a challenge, then a solution must exist. And that’s when I started digging.
The Savvy Gluten-Free Shopper: How to Eat Healthy Without Breaking the Bank
As a result of a relentless pursuit of a solution, I found answers… and plenty of them.
Not only did I overcome my adrenal fatigue and candida, but I went on to turn what I discovered into my book “The Savvy Gluten-Free Shopper: How To Eat Healthy Without Breaking The Bank”. It was so popular after being released that it became an Amazon best-selling book that made it all the way to the top 5 of the Gluten-Free Diet list (which is very competitive).
The point of this podcast is to show you that there is always a way forward.
There’s always an answer.
But you have to be willing and hungry enough (and one could argue that you must be sick enough) to want to change. That the discomfort of making the change and seeking a solution is less painful than continuing to do the same thing or doing nothing at all.
I realized that seeing the problem in front of me as a challenge and finding a solution is a mindset shift. But it’s one that’s infinitely worthwhile in the long haul for six reasons.
Six reasons to adopt the “Everything is figureoutable” mindset
1. It gets you out of a victim mentality. You’re no longer beaten down by life or your health issues.
2. It helps you define what your health philosophy is and what you’re okay with (and what you’re not) in order to get better.
Maybe you’re no longer content eating meat from animals exposed to antibiotics. Maybe you want to find more natural ways of addressing your health through herbs or vitamins rather than pharmaceutical drugs. Or maybe you want to focus on meditation and affirmations to help you heal.
The truth is, your health philosophy is key to deciding what steps you’ll take in the pursuit of your own answers.
3. It also encourages personal responsibility. You acknowledge what you’re doing to sabotage yourself. And you also identify what is and is not in alignment with your health philosophy.
4. It helps you find the inspiration to take steps and give things a try that may be outside of your comfort zone.
5. It breeds tenacity that helps feed your drive to see the pursuit of a solution through to the end.
6. And lastly, it oftentimes changes you for the better.
I do believe that adversity breeds character. Who I am today as well as the clients I’ve worked with searching for their own health answers have all changed in measurable ways that allow us to better enjoy and be present to life.
How to get started making this mindset shift
To get started, clearly identify the problem in front of you.
List what you’ve tried (even if it didn’t work), what you believe is holding you back (maybe it’s fear or money or judgment from others), and what excuses you make to avoid getting started.
Get clear on your pain. What are you missing out on now? And then imagine what you will miss out on if this situation continues to get worse?
Extrapolate on this… maybe it means you’ll be so sick that you’ll no longer be able to work and your marriage will deteriorate. You’ll miss out on helping care for your kids or grandkids.
Brainstorm what a perfect, but reasonable solution would be for you.
Identify what you are and aren’t willing to do to get there. Be honest with yourself (and this is really important). That includes seeking help when you’ve gone beyond your scope of knowledge and know-how. Someone who knows more than you can help you be more efficient and effective when you hit a wall. If you’re not seeing significant progress after a couple of months, it’s time to call in an expert.
Make a list of steps that you can work on each week and organize them in a way that makes sense for you to see change. Each week, work on 2 or 3 of those steps. By putting them slowly into practice, they come to feel more natural and less like you’re just juggling a lot of “things to do”.
And then get started. Baby steps are key. They don’t need to be perfect. And they most certainly add up… especially over the weeks and months ahead.
Embrace Your Underdog Status To Beat Your Inner Critic
Along the way, you may hear your own inner critic whispering horrible nothings in your ear that are meant to get you to stop making changes.
To stop looking for answers.
To stop trusting that a solution is not only out there, but possible for you.
At that moment, take a step back from all the self-judgment and see yourself as an underdog.
More specifically, you’re an underdog to your own inner critic.
Your inner critic has spent years… maybe even decades detailing all of the many ways you suck or fail at life. It doesn’t want you to make changes. It wants you to stay exactly where you are… comfortably suffering.
In the wise words of Jason Kelce, Eagles’ center who dressed as a Mummer and spoke during their 2018 Super Bowl Champion parade — “An underdog is a hungry dog.”
You have to be hungry for that change and the answers that come with it. Hungrier than your inner critic.
Ready to let go of that inner perfectionist and just get started (no matter how messy the path forward is).
And ultimately committed to believing deeply that there is a solution to whatever is facing you… you just haven’t found it yet.
I hope this insight is helpful no matter where you on your journey!
Leave a comment on this podcast about what resonates with you!
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