LLN Episode #174: Sherry Shaban – Fat Loss 101: The Role Of Mindset, Identity And Hormones

About Sherry Shaban: Montreal-based podcaster, YouTuber and fitness and life coach, Sherry Shaban, is an NSCA Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist (CSCS), a certified Athletic Therapist, an Osteopath, and the Director of Fitness for Rock Thomas's M1 Mastermind. With over 20 years of experience in her specialty, Sherry has dedicated her life to helping thousands of people transform their Athletic identity to become who they are meant to be through a unique anti-diet, self loving, simple approach. Sherry believes that our physical body is the direct reflection of our internal environment and that transformation happens from the inside out. Sherry's passion of helping others through their own health & wellness transformation journey stems from her own trials and tribulations: at the tender age of 16, Sherry was hit by a car, and the outcome of that accident nearly left her paralyzed. She underwent her first back surgery one month before her 17th birthday. The second surgery in 2012 came at a time when she was just opening her first CrossFit gym in Montreal. She was rushed to the hospital by ambulance where she discovered she was just 2 millimeters away from paralysis. Through private coaching, her signature online coaching programs, "Making Peace with Food" and "Advanced PowHer", her YouTube workouts and podcast, Sherry works with a diverse population of Athletes - from beginners to professionals athletes. She believes that we all have an obstacle - whether it be a struggle with injury, weight, past traumas or limiting beliefs. "Overcoming the obstacle first starts with changing our belief systems," she says. " If we think we can't, then we will always be right." Sherry has been featured on various podcast shows such as Stop Stretching with Yogi Aaron, Leader's Lab with Ken Eslick, The Wellness Hour with Dr Amy Novotny, and Mission Matters. What We Discuss In This Episode: Sherry shares her powerful journey where for the first few years of being a gym owner, she felt like a phony. She was frustrated with herself, disappointed and angry for being a "victim" of her circumstances, unable to demonstrate a single squat. But her turning point towards recovery came from understanding that one of the central elements to transformation is to let go of debilitating and self-limiting thoughts, and to begin to rewrite a new story. Sherry has made it her life mission to help others do the same: releasing self-doubt, create a new belief system and athletic identity, and become the person they are always meant to be. Sherry refers to her clients as "Athletes," helping them unplug from diet culture and exercise-punishment, and step into a new relationship with their body, mind and environment. She helps her Athletes view food as fuel for performance, recovery and transformation and their training as a lifestyle ritual that becomes a basis of the Athletic mindset. We discuss "Fat Loss 101", which is a big thing for women in perimenopause, even postmenopausal. Mindset definitely plays a role. Sherry loves this topic as she's often asked, "How do you eat? How do you count your calories? What are your macros? Or what are your what is your exercise?" Sherry is an intuitive eater, an intuitive mover, and an intuitive exerciser. When we're focused on diet, and especially if we're following an app or we're following a particular handout that our nutritionist gave us, we're bypassing the body's natural intuitive cues as to when we should eat, how much we should eat, and when we should stop eating. In North America and in Western societies where we have the most abundance of foods, and we have the most abundance and information -- and the most abundance of different types of diet, it's interesting that we're the ones struggling the most with disease. We're the ones who are struggling the most with overweight and with health. Why is that? Because we are so confused. Fat Loss 101 has to start with releasing diets because diets don't work. What does work, though, is starting to add habits that align with your lifestyle that you can find them sustainable over time. With a diet mentality, we usually have the mindset of, "Oh, I can't have cake this week, because I'm on a diet," or you go to a barbecue, and it's "I can't have that glass of wine, or I can't have a second helping of food because I'm sticking to the macros on my app." Whenever we say the word can't in our mind, what we're really saying is that we want it, but we're not allowing ourselves to have it. So, ditch diets & start to incorporate habits that are sustainable. Sherry says one of the best habits, that is really the gift that keeps on giving, is walking. All you need is a pair of shoes, you go outside, you connect with nature, you disconnect with the electronics, everything else at home. And as you're walking as you're moving, it is such a low intensity movement, that it's not going to stress the joints, and it's going to just give you pleasure. We also talk about hormones – the two most important hormones relating to weight are insulin and cortisol. Sherry shares what they are, what they do, and the impact on our lives if they're out of balance. Also, when we're stressed, it's hard to fall asleep, or when we've watched a movie or watch news that's extremely disturbing, it starts to impact the rest of our day and gets in the way of our sleep. When we sacrifice our sleep, and we don't get proper rest and restful sleep, what ends up happening is we start to deeply even imbalanced the hormones and start on that vicious cycle of cravings and hunger. We touched on intermittent fasting – a huge topic in the health and wellness space right now -- and how we can receive benefits from intermittent fasting in as little as 12 hours. "The sky's the limit. If you believe, and begin, you will become." - Sherry Shaban Free Resources from Sherry Shaban: Get your free YouTube workouts, and free meal plan download here: https://www.sherryshaban.com/transform . Connect with Sherry Shaban Website: https://www.sherryshaban.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sherryshaabanfitness Facebook: https://www.facebook.com.sherryshabanfitness LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sherryshabanftiness Podcast: Fall in Love with Fitness YouTube: Sherry Shaban Fitness Connect with Lynne: If you're looking for a community of like-minded women on a journey - just like you are - to improved health and wellness, overall balance, and increased confidence, check out Lynne's private community in The Energized Healthy Women's Club. It's a supportive and collaborative community where the women in this group share tips and solutions for a healthy and holistic lifestyle. (Discussions include things like weight management, eliminating belly bloat, wrangling sugar gremlins, and overcoming fatigue, recipes, strategies, and much more so women can feel energized, healthy, confident, and joyful each day. Website: https://holistic-healthandwellness.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/holistichealthandwellnessllc The Energized Healthy Women's Club: https://www.facebook.com/groups/energized.healthy.women Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lynnewadsworth LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lynnewadsworth Free Resources from Lynne Wadsworth: How to Thrive in Menopause: MENOPAUSE Messing Up your life? I've got this FREE solution tool for you. If you're Seeing the number on the scale creep higher and higher and you're noticing your usual efforts to lose weight aren't working You're suffering from hot blazes, night sweats, and sleeping fitfully You're fighting tears one moment, raging the next, and then, the shameful guilt sets in because you've just blasted your partner – for nothing…again! Learn how to successfully and holistically navigate peri-menopause and full-blown menopause, and even reconcile all the hormonal changes and challenges that go along with it. Say goodbye to brain fog Have fewer hot flashes Step off the emotional roller-coaster Increase your metabolism Shed excess weight and STILL enjoy your favorite foods. You'll be feeling energized, healthier, and more in control so you can take on your day confidently and live life joyfully – even in menopause. Download my guide here: https://holistic-healthandwellness.com/thrive-through-menopause/ 5 Simple Steps to Gain Energy, Feel Great & Uplevel Your Health: Are you ready to create a Healthier Lifestyle? Would you like to feel lighter, more energized, and even add joy to your life? If it's time to find more balance of mind~body~soul, then I've got the perfect FREE resource to help. In this guide, you'll find my most impactful strategies and I've made applying them in your life as simple as 1-2-3 (plus a couple more) to help you create a healthier, holistic lifestyle. Uplevel your holistic health and wellness and download the 5 Simple Steps to Health here: https://holistic-healthandwellness.com/5-simple-steps-to-a-healthier-you/ Did You Enjoy The Podcast? If you enjoyed this episode please let us know! 5-star reviews for the Living Life Naturally podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pandora, or Stitcher are greatly appreciated. This helps us reach more women struggling to live through midlife and beyond. Thank you. Together, we make a difference!