Let’s talk about a topic that so many women feel ashamed of—and I really want to take that shame out of it—weight loss. There’s a lot of noise around this topic, and honestly, most of it is really annoying. So today, I’m breaking down what’s actually going on inside your body and why so many women feel stuck when it comes to changing their body composition.

Here’s the thing: if you’ve tried all the things and nothing’s working, it’s not because you’re broken or lazy. It’s because your body is protecting you. And when you understand how your body works on a cellular level, it all starts to make sense.

We talk about why traditional dieting and chronic under-fueling can trap you in a cycle that feels impossible to break. Most of us started dieting as teenagers—counting calories, doing tons of cardio—and while it may have “worked” for a bit, your body eventually caught on. That slowdown you feel? It’s called adaptive survival—and it’s your body’s way of keeping you alive, not holding you back.

I also dive into the science of safety and metabolism. When you eat far below what your body actually needs, your energy output drops, cortisol spikes, ovulation can shut down, moods swing all over the place, and you just don’t feel like yourself. Your brain doesn’t know the difference between a famine and a diet—it just knows you’re under threat. So it holds onto fat for safety.

And here’s the big takeaway: you cannot starve a body into safety. You have to create safety first.

If you want to see changes in your body composition, start by testing instead of guessing. Work with a functional provider, run full baseline labs, find your real maintenance calories (for most women, it’s over 2000 a day), and focus on blood sugar balance. Swap the high-intensity workouts for strength training a few times a week.

Here’s what I want you to remember: your body isn’t fighting you because it hates you—it’s fighting to keep you alive. When you nourish it, support it, and help it feel safe, the changes you’re looking for become so much easier.

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