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Welcome back to Weight Loss Wednesday. I cannot believe we are already on our ninth edition of this series. You keep sending in brilliant questions and I truly love answering them, so thank you. Keep them coming.
Today I am digging into emotional eating, holiday baking strategies, how my program works for those using GLP1s, my go to calorie tracking app, and a fun question about my favourite fictional characters. A little mindset, a little practical strategy, a little geekery. The perfect Wednesday mix.
In this episode, I cover:
• Emotional eating without shame How to tell when it is time to comfort yourself with food versus when to take a more structured approach How to stay in control and build awareness Why the aim is not to eliminate emotional eating, but to evolve your relationship with it
• Holiday baking decisions Should you bake? Hack recipes? Avoid it entirely? How to protect your progress and your peace this season Why hacked recipes can be an excellent tool rather than a punishment
• GLP1s and my program Why the GLP1 can be a tool, not the entire solution How my program supports mindset, behaviour and food relationship transformation Why you still benefit from learning calorie awareness and emotional management
• My favourite calorie tracking app The one I use, why I like it, and how I track now while maintaining
• A fun wrap up My favourite fictional characters and superheroes Spoiler: I'm team Buffy, always
Key takeaways
• Awareness is the most powerful tool when navigating emotional eating • You do not have to choose between indulgent treats and hacked treats at the holidays • Weight loss tools only work long term when paired with mindset work • Progress over perfection, always • Small shifts in habits count, so celebrate them
Want to submit a question?
You can submit your Weight Loss Wednesday questions at disruptingobesity.com, or send them to me on Instagram. I love hearing from you.
In this episode I am talking about what to do when you feel stuck, flat, or like you have lost your footing a little bit in your weight loss journey. This is not about starting over. I am not interested in the start stop cycle and I know you're not either. This is about refreshing your approach, clearing the mental clutter, and getting grounded again so that you can keep going.
Sometimes we hit a point where it feels harder than it should. We feel like we are doing the right things but the scale is not moving or our momentum has dipped. It happens. It's normal. It does not mean you have failed or that you need to scrap everything. It simply means it is time to reset your basics, tighten your foundation, and remind yourself of what actually works.
In this episode, I walk through the practical checks I do when I need a refresh, the mindset shifts that help me stay in forward motion, and how to keep this feeling temporary instead of turning it into a restart.
In this episode I cover:
Why a refresh is not a restart
Checking your TDEE and app settings for accuracy
When to move from eyeballing to measuring
Spread, sprinkle, pour foods and how they creep up fast
Letting yourself have the food you love without restriction
Water intake and why it still matters
Staying present and mindful with your food
How to manage the mental and emotional side when it feels tough
The reminder that this only lasts if you stop trying
I’m coming back with the sixth installment of my 'Ask Whatever' series just in time for the holidays! I am thrilled with all the questions so keep them coming! Here’s a look into what I’ll be answering today with a bunch more tips addressed throughout:
• I binged last night and gained 3 pounds... • What to do when a family member wants to lose weight with you, but they don't try • How do I stop my sweet tooth? • Did I experience depression throughout my weight loss journey? • What kind of exercise did I do to lose weight and what I recommend when starting out.
I continue this series once a month, so if you’ve got any questions you’d like me answer on the show, submit them on my website here, send me DM on Instagram @Charlotteskanes or email them to charlotte@disruptingobesity.com. Love hearing from all of you!
Stay tuned for the holiday survival series and as always, keep trying, keep tracking, don’t be intimidated and don’t give up. You’ve totally got this!
This is a tough time of year! The space between Thanksgiving and Christmas, where everything seems like it’s geared towards indulgent eating, can feel like a month-long binge. Additionally with the new year on the way, it can also start to feel just as hopeful as it is hopeless, when you might be choosing between depriving yourself completely or letting yourself off the hook. In this episode, I want to touch on how this is a crucial season in changing your mindset and setting yourself up for success for the next 4 quarters to come. Listen to this episode to hear more on:
• The “grief panic” that sets in and why it’s unproductive to say goodbye to foods you enjoy. • You’re not the problem, the plan you have set for the new year is the problem. • Mindset shifts with how you feel about eating, and deciding what kind of headspace you want to go into holidays with. • Depriving yourself vs. indulging in everything over Christmas. • The last quarter, not the first, sets the tone for the rest of the year.
It’s hard to work towards your goals when it feels like that ship has already sailed and it’s even more difficult to get things under control when you feel like you already blew it, so don’t overcomplicate things and meet yourself where you are currently!
In the meantime, keep trying, keep tracking, don’t be intimidated and don’t give up. You’ve totally got this!
Welcome to this bonus episode of my Monthly Questions series! There has been a backlog of questions I’ve been wanting to answer so I’m covering a lot in this episode! However, if there is a topic you’d like more clarity on, send me a message about it and I’ll consider returning to it more indepthly in the future! Here’s a look into what I’ll be discussing today with a bunch more added throughout:
• Irrational Carb Fear and what starches you should eat. • Can you eat fast food while trying to lose weight? • How many calories you should be eating a day and TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expenditure). • If you feel the need to clear your plate every time. • Do you have to exercise in order to lose weight? • What if you’ve lost weight and no one has noticed? • How to introduce fruits and vegetables into your diet.
I continue this series once a month, so if you’ve got any questions you’d like me answer on the show, submit them on my website here, send me DM on Instagram @Charlotteskanes or email them to charlotte@disruptingobesity.com. Love hearing from all of you!
Goals and expectations are not even close to being the same thing. Join me on today’s episode to talk about how we can separate the two in order to avoid unrealistic standards and motivate ourselves to achieve incremental changes each day! So tune in to hear and learn more about:
• Little goals vs big goals and how they influence each other. You need smaller goals to move the needle! • The grass isn’t greener on the other side! Don’t lust after the circumstances of others on this journey. • Expectation management and not setting yourself up to fail. Unrealistic goals are only motivating when they are met. • The reality of the toxic dieting industry. • Tracking your progress with more than just the scale.
Goals and expectations can not just be possible, they also need to be probable if you are serious about achieving them. This can be done through smaller goals that are measured by more than just numbers on a scale!
In the fourth installment of my Monthly Questions series, I answer your questions and share advice on anything weight loss related. Nothing is off the table, even when it gets personal! Tune in to hear answers on the topics:
• Is clear alcohol low calorie or calorie free? • What to prioritize when you start to gain back the weight that you were trying to lose. •"I’ve only lost X amount of pounds in X amount of time and I had higher goals, is something wrong with me?" •What keeps you full when you feel like you're hungry all the time? •Why do I do what I do? What motivates me to share my advice and experiences?
Welcome to the 3rd and final episode of our “Saboteurs and Enablers” series. If you haven’t already, I encourage you to come back and listen to part one and part two. In part one I talked about recognizing and coping with Saboteurs, the people who do things to throw off your weight loss game. In part two I did the same thing with Enablers, the people who help you throw off your own game. Today I’ll be talking about what to do if that person is you and you're the one sabotaging and enabling yourself. It’s not bad to admit that this is most of us the majority of the time, so tune in to here more about:
• Eating alone isn’t the problem, it’s the reasons why you’re doing it that can be problematic. • Making yourself aware of your habits, so you can make a plan of action. • How you can use the 3A way (full episode on the topic here) to really see and change how you interact with food. • Taking a good look at the way you talk to yourself about food and limiting statements or internal dialogues.
Confronting yourself about your eating behaviors and patterns is hard, but it’s necessary if you want to get a handle on your obesity. Remember to start with small incremental changes where you can!
As always, keep trying, keep tracking, don’t be intimidated and don’t give up. You’ve totally got this!
Welcome to the 2nd episode of our 3 part series on “Saboteurs and Enablers”. Last week we looked at saboteurs, and if you missed that episode I’d definitely encourage you to go back and listen to it here. Saboteurs are the people who do things to derail your weight loss, while today we’ll be talking about enablers, the people who help YOU derail your weight loss journey on your own. Enablers can be tricky because of how they feel supportive at times when you need it most, so listen in to hear more on:
• How enablers give the permission we’re searching for to take a break and give us someone else to blame. • The myth and trap that saboteurs are negative while enablers are positive. • How to deal and approach enablers. • Taking a look at your role in this and reflecting on your behavior.
If you are interested in learning more about The 3A Way tool that I mentioned, check out my past episode 12 on the topic here!
Tune in next week for the last part in the series!
In the meantime, keep trying, keep tracking, don’t be intimidated and don’t give up. You’ve totally got this!
Weight loss is already incredibly difficult on your own until you calculate the other people in your life into the mix. This is the first episode in a 3 part series where I’ll be talking about saboteurs and enablers. Today we’ll be focusing on saboteurs, the people who try to throw you off track in this journey. So listen in to hear more on:
• What a saboteur is and how understanding their possible motivations can help how you feel about them. • Reminding yourself what they are doing is about them, not you. • Knowing you have choices in how you respond and what you do about it. • 3 big things your response might be dependent on, and questions you can ask yourself.
At the end of the day, you can only control your own choices in these situations, so taking the time to think about it and have a plan can make all the difference.
If you are interested in learning more about The 3A Way tool that I mentioned, check out my past episode 12 here!
So keep trying, keep tracking, don’t be intimidated and don’t give up. You’ve totally got this!
We are back with the 3rd installment of my Monthly Questions series, where I answer your questions and share advice on anything weight loss related. Nothing is off the table, even the questions I hate to see like a few of the ones below! Tune in to hear answers on the topics:
• If the calories on food packaging is just estimates, what’s the point in tracking? • What do I do when the scale is stuck and I’m not losing any weight? • What if I don’t care about becoming healthy and only want to lose weight to be “skinny”? • How to cope with experiencing jealousy of other people who are losing weight faster than yourself.. • Is there a way to live off meal replacement shakes alone?
I cannot tell you how important it is to establish the different concepts between present and mindful eating , but also how they go hand and hand together. When you want to lose weight, it’s not about the food, but changing your whole thought-pattern, interaction and relationship with it, which is what I’ll be covering in today's episode. Being present and mindful now so you can feel more satisfied later! So let’s get into it as we chat about:
• What present vs. mindful eating is and what the major differences are. • Forming memories for your brain so you can eat less of what you enjoy. • Biggest tips surrounding the five senses to become present when eating. • How multitasking while eating can hurt you. • Paying attention to the conversations with yourself before, during and after you eat.
It will take time, but if you can grasp these concepts in a way that works for you,, you will notice a change!
As always, keep trying, keep tracking, don’t be intimidated and don’t give up. You’ve totally got this!
We’re kicking off a brand new series: the Weight Loss Nevers.
Most of the time you hear about what you should do to lose weight. But in this series, I’m breaking down the things you should NEVER do if you want your weight loss to last. These are the traps, the shortcuts, and the self-sabotage patterns that only make things harder.
In this episode, I share the first three “nevers”:
Never weigh yourself more than once a week. Daily weigh-ins will mess with your head, drive you crazy, and push you toward giving up. Once a week is plenty.
Never go so restrictive you can’t sustain it. If your deficit or food rules are too extreme, you’re setting yourself up to fail. Sustainable weight loss comes from incremental change, not punishment.
Never lose sight of your goal. Big goals matter, but so do the small “micro-goals” that keep you moving forward when the daily grind feels overwhelming.
This episode is about shifting focus away from diet-industry punishment and towards realistic, sustainable strategies. It’s about learning to work with yourself instead of against yourself.
What you’ll learn in this episode:
Why weighing daily makes the scale your enemy instead of your tool
The difference between a healthy calorie deficit and an unsustainable one
How to break big weight loss goals into motivating micro-goals
Why deprivation only leads to overeating (and why you don’t need to punish yourself to lose weight)
If you’ve been stuck in the cycle of extremes - weighing too often, cutting out too much, or losing sight of why you started - this episode will give you a clear, compassionate reset.
Wherever you are in your weight loss journey, you are going to have days where you gain weight. I wanted to talk about this in today’s episode because I believe that it needs to be normalized in the weight loss community. We need to talk about the hard feelings and the things that scare us!
Give it a listen to hear more on: • Changing your negative self-talk and mindset. • How to accept this fact in order to take away its power. • My personal story with pregnancy loss and gaining back half my initial weight loss in a short time. • Not making a decision is making a decision about your obesity- starting small is a win!
So grateful you're here and thank you to everyone who has sent me support over the past month. Recovering and excited to get back on social media!
Keep trying, keep tracking, don’t be intimidated and don’t give up. You’ve totally got this!
This episode is going to be a bit different than usual. If you follow me on instagram, you’ll know I was recently hospitalized and had to undergo emergency surgery, with another one scheduled.
In this episode I’ll be sharing a life update about: • What happened and my current headspace while recovering. • Why I think it’s important to share my journey in hopes of encouraging your own. • How weight loss has helped me prepare for this moment and given me the perseverance to keep going. • Learning how to embrace and celebrate the small wins through your weight loss.
A BIG thank you to everyone for all of your support and kind messages!
Remember to keep trying, keep tracking, don’t be intimidated and don’t give up. You’ve totally got this!
Welcome back to the 2nd episode in my Monthly Questions series, where I answer your questions and share advice on anything weight loss related! So tune in to hear learn more about:
• Changing your mindset on treating yourself and food as a reward. • Reasons why people will tell you you’re too thin once you start losing weight and how to handle it. • Regaining weight fast after coming off “diabetes turned weight loss” medications and what to do next. • An introduction to intermittent fasting and ratios if you’re looking to start.
I’ll be doing the 3rd episode in this series in 1 month, so if you’ve got questions you’d like me to answer, submit them on my website here, send me DM on Instagram @Charlotteskanes or email to charlotte@disruptingobesity.com. Nothing is off the table, ask away!
In the meantime, keep trying, keep tracking, don’t be intimidated and don’t give up. You’ve totally got this!
I don't like rules, especially when it comes to losing an extreme amount of weight. I prefer safety nets - something to keep you from giving up and motivate you to stay on track until you get to that healthy body.
In this episode, I talk about the safety nets you need for extreme weight loss. We'll cover why I believe I'm lucky to be alive, the mindset you need to lose a lot of weight, and why no one deserves to be shamed because of their size.
What You'll Learn:
Why I don't like weight loss rules
What safety nets for extreme weight loss are
The experience of being obese and terribly sick
Why restrictions don't work in weight loss
How to use your trauma to help others
How to talk about obesity in a helpful way
Why no one deserves to be shamed because of their size
The problem with encouraging super-obesity
How to deal with obesity-related depression
The mindset you need to lose a ton of weight and keep it off
Does anybody else Miss Richard Simmons? Because I sure do. I miss how he made me feel with the 'Sweatin to The Oldies' workout videos. Now, I don't exercise and I don't teach it, but I still miss him and in this episode I’ll explain why.
You’ll hear how Richard Simmons created a space for people dealing with extreme weight loss when it wasn't a thing like it is now. I'll also share why I believe making overweight people feel worse about themselves when they already feel bad enough is counterproductive and cruel.
What Is Covered:
Why I miss Richard Simmons
The harmful effects of fat shaming
How to set realistic expectations for weight loss
The war between bariatric surgeries and natural weight loss
The tough love approach to losing weight
Why making fat people feel bad about their weight is counterproductive and cruel
We all have food maps. These are pathways in our brains based on all the food experiences we've had since we were kids. It's how you're wired and how you've programmed your brain to eat and enjoy food.
In this episode, I talk about food maps and what you can do to rewire yours. Because if you're going to change your relationship with food, you must work on your food map and change the path to food in your brain.
I get asked a lot of questions regarding weight loss. I also tend to get asked the same questions repeatedly, so I thought I'd dedicate a monthly series to your nagging weight-related questions.
In this episode, I'll try to answer some of your questions and offer insights based on my personal experience. We'll cover topics like the dos and don'ts of calorie tracking, what to do when you cannot exercise, the best way to manage your carb and sugar intake, and much more.
What You'll Learn:
How to calculate your daily calorie needs
The diet rules you must break to lose an extreme amount of weight
The do's and don'ts of using a calorie tracking app
Ways to build awareness around what you eat
Mental and emotional reasons for dropping calories
What to do when you cannot exercise
Ditch the unsustainable meal plan and try this instead
Should you cut out carbs & sugar to lose weight?
If you have questions that you'd like answered, send them in through the podcast page on my website, social media DMs, or reply to any of the stories on Instagram.
Spread, sprinkle, and pour - the three low-hanging fruits for extreme weight loss. If you want to sustainably lose a ton of weight, these are the first food groups you should concentrate on. Forget the traditional macros; I want you to look at things you spread, sprinkle or pour.
In this episode, I'll discuss the easiest way to cut a lot of calories from your diet with little to no disruption to your satisfaction. We'll also cover how to lose weight healthily and sustainably - and keep off the lost weight with good habits.
What You'll Learn:
The low-hanging fruit of extreme weight loss
How to make small, incremental changes to what you eat
The best route to sustainable weight-loss
The main driver of weight loss recidivism
Why you'll never lose weight without self-awareness
How to cut some serious calories from your diet
Ways to shift your mindset for healthier weight loss
So you have been consistent with your weight loss regime. You're doing everything right, and it even feels like you're losing weight. But what do you do when the scale stops moving? Or worse, when it starts moving in the wrong direction?
In today's episode, I'll share a much better way to track your progress when the scale seems to turn its back on you. We'll also discuss how to keep yourself motivated without falling back into your old habits and patterns.
What You'll Learn:
What to do when the scale stalls
The pros and cons of weighing yourself daily
Why you should ditch your weighing scale
The best way to measure weight loss success
Weight loss signs to look out for
The benefits of taking before/after weight loss pictures
The mindset you need to lose an extreme amount of weight
How to keep yourself from falling into old habits and patterns
How to use a yarn to track your weight loss progress
The frustrations that come with non-linear weight loss
Do you need an accountability partner to lose an extreme amount of weight? I already know the pushback I'll get on this, but I believe you don’t. Losing weight is a personal thing. It’s not a team sport, and there's definitely no group work. Yes, everybody wants support, but thinking you're going to bring somebody along with you on your weight loss journey is just another form of self sabotage.
In today’s episode, I’ll be explaining why there’s no plus one in extreme weight loss. I’ll also share the type of support you need to lose weight, as well as how to keep going when everything seems impossible.
What You’ll Learn:
Understand that weight loss is a personal thing
Is support a necesity for weight loss?
Lessons I learned from my weight loss journey
Effective weight loss strategies
Accountability and weight loss
Psychological and physical reasons you don’t want to lose weight
Why losing weight is not a team sport
The stressful part of losing a lot of weight
Ways to start fixing your relationship with food
How to keep going even when things seem impossible
What do you do when you reach your calorie goal for the day, but it is early in the day and you are still hungry (or anticipating hunger later in the day)?
When you were at 338 pounds what was your calorie intake when you started dieting that worked?
What other people think of you is none of your business. People will have opinions about your weight loss, just like they have opinions about your weight. And for some reason, the more you reveal about your journey, the more people will have something to say about it - and not all of them will be polite or pleasant.
In this episode, I'll discuss why you need to disregard what people think about your weight loss. I’ll also share how you can learn to lose an extreme amount of weight the best way you know how, regardless of what other people think.
What You'll Learn:
How to learn to disregard other people's opinions
Why losing a lot of weight does not have to be a miserable experience
Mental shifts to stop worrying about other people's opinions
The ever-growing obesity crisis
Pros and cons of weight-loss surgery
Why single-food diets are unsustainable
Better ways to fix your relationship with food
How to claim the healthy body you deserve
Why you need to stop oversharing your weight-loss journey
Do you hide while eating your favorite foods? Maybe you feel uncomfortable eating in front of other people? Closet eating is a real thing. Some people eat in actual closets, others eat secretly to cope with stress or emotions. And although there's nothing inherently wrong with eating alone, people with a healthy relationship with food don't hide while they eat.
In this episode, I share how you can break free from the chains of closet eating and enjoy food without guilt. We'll also cover ways to develop a healthier, happier relationship with food and let go of the secret eating life that sabotages your weight loss and nutrition goals.
What You'll Learn:
What is closet eating?
The problem with secret eating and how to let go of the shame
One of the first things I teach my clients is the 3A Way to losing an insane amount of weight. It’s a toolbox everybody can use to fix their relationship with food. The 3As are effective in helping you focus on long-term habits that you can stick with, and are more likely to result in lasting weight loss.
So what are these three As? In this episode, I reveal the three things you need to work on if you're going to lose an insane amount of weight. We'll also cover what you can do to change your relationship with food and why maintaining a calorie deficit is an important part of weight loss.
What You'll Learn:
The 3A Way to losing an insane amount of weight
Why you need to track your calories
Behaviors for healthy weight loss
What most people dislike about counting calories
Understanding the comfort-reward mechanism
How to keep yourself accountable in your weight loss journey
Is it possible to lose a lot of weight without cardio, low carb, or cutting out food groups for non-medical reasons?
We've been programmed to believe that weight loss demands a total overhaul of how you eat, loads of cardio and lifting weights. None of that is true. Weight loss success is relative. What works for someone with 20 pounds to lose isn't always going to work for somebody with 200 pounds to lose.
In today's episode, I’ll discuss the power of meeting yourself where you are, and how to be successful with sustainable weight loss. I’ll also address why forcing people to change behaviors they're not ready to change and telling them that there's only one right way to lose weight only makes things worse.
What You'll Learn:
The power of meeting yourself where you are in your weight loss journey
Effective strategies for extreme weight loss
The demerits of a heavily restrictive diet
How long does it take to lose extreme amounts of weight?
The foundation of sustainable weight loss
The role of exercise and nutrition for weight loss
What the diet industry gets wrong about extreme weight loss
Is it worth losing weight if you're going to be stuck with a bunch of sagging skin?
Loose skin is a hot topic in weight loss circles right now. And yes, the Ozempic face is a thing. So if you're sitting there afraid to start your weight loss journey because you don't want to deal with a whole bunch of loose skin, here's something you should know. Not everybody ends up with loose skin after losing weight. And if you do, there are countless things you can do to help tone your body.
So in today's episode, I’ll address the worries you may have about saggy skin when losing a lot of weight. I’ll also share some effective ways to help tone your body, and when sagging skin is more likely to occur on your weight loss journey.
What You'll Learn:
My opinion on Ozempic face and loose skin
Why you may experience saggy skin after losing weight
Here's something the toxic diet culture doesn't want you to know: you don't have to exercise to lose weight. I lost 200 pounds with zero exercise. I know that diet and exercise have been touted as the magical weight loss cure. But you absolutely do not have to exercise to lose weight.
Yes, pursuing fitness will definitely make your weight-loss journey easier. But if we're super honest about it, exercising when you're obese is a nightmare.
In today's episode, I'll talk about why the whole diet and exercise thing is a myth, why you don't have to exercise to lose weight, and how to focus on movement and building muscle in different ways.
What You'll Learn:
The benefits of making small incremental changes to your movement
Losing muscle while obese
How to lose weight sustainably
Why you need to focus on building muscle when losing weight
The power of positive self-talk during weight loss
How muscles affect the amount of calories you burn
Debunking the diet and exercising myth
Why exercising while obese can be counterproductive
Losing a lot of weight and losing a little bit of weight are not the same thing. Being 30 pounds overweight and 180 pounds overweight is not the same thing. So why does the toxic diet culture ram solutions for relatively slender people down our throats and act like that's the only answer?
Losing a lot of weight is not a punishment; it needs to be a gradual and sustainable process. You can't successfully go from four burgers to one because you'll feel like you're starving and give up.
In today's episode, we'll discuss how losing extreme amounts of weight is different from losing a little extra weight. I also share why you cannot afford to make radical changes to your eating patterns when you have a lot of weight to take off.
What You'll Learn:
How to change the way you eat and think about food
The power of the mind in losing weight
Why losing weight should be a gradual but sustainable process
How to get used to eating less
The role of satiety in losing extreme amounts of weight
Learning to eat the food you like, but just less of it
Why short-term strategies rarely work for extreme weight loss
We spend hundreds of millions of dollars every year trying to lose weight. Every year the amount we spend goes up, and every year, the number of obese people on the planet also increases.
The big question is, why aren't we seeing any results? Well, the toxic diet culture wants you to fail. It is a business model designed to keep you fat and take your money. Yes, restrictive diets can make you lose weight. But if you can't do it for long enough to get all of your weight off, what's the point?
In this episode, I'll talk about why toxic diet culture doesn't work and why it's almost impossible to lose a lot of weight on a restrictive diet. Remember that fad diet failure is not about you. It's about the fad.
What You'll Learn:
What is toxic diet culture?
Why there's no easy way to lose weight
The power of calorie tracking
Fad diets and why they rarely work
Why 85% of people regain lost weight within 5 years of losing it
How to set realistic expectations for weight loss
Why toxic diet culture wants you to fail
Internal and external factors for wanting to lose weight
I hate cheat days. I think they are completely unnecessary and 100% counterproductive. The whole point of sustainable weight loss is to eat whatever you want, just less of it.
Food isn't your enemy, and weight loss is definitely not about the food. It's about your relationship with food. So in today's episode, I'll share why I believe cheat days are destructive for people looking to lose an insane amount of weight.
What You'll Learn:
Why cheat days are unnecessary
The benefits of focusing on the calories instead of the food
How to break the cycle of using food as a reward
Ways to eat less without feeling deprived
Understand that cheat days encourage binge eating
How cheat days negatively impact weekly weight loss
Ways to shift your mindset for sustainable weight loss
When you get down to the root cause of why you're eating other than to nourish your body, odds are you're eating to either comfort, reward, or cope. These are the three horsemen of overeating.
When you start thinking differently about food and learning to treat it more as fuel, you start to feel differently about it too. This way, smaller amounts become much more satisfying than what you're used to.
In today's episode, we'll cover how you can start looking at food as fuel instead of an emotional band-aid. I'll also discuss why education about nutrition doesn't help the majority of people with weight loss.
What You'll Learn:
The three horsemen of overeating and how to become aware of them
The good food vs. bad food debate
The benefits of making small changes to what you eat
Why fear-mongering doesn't help people with weight loss
The inverse relationship between nutritional information and losing weight
The difference between enjoying eating and enjoying food
Nobody wants to think about it yet, but the last quarter of the year is almost here and if you want to stay on track with your weight loss goals, it’s time to get ready.
In this episode, I’m talking about why the last three months of the year are such a slippery slope, how the holiday season sets the tone for the next year, and what you can do right now to make sure you’re not spending January, February, and March just playing catch-up.
We’ll get into:
Why the “f%&k it” mindset over the holidays only creates more work for you later
How the last quarter impacts not just your weight, but your mindset and emotional health
The role of predictable triggers: food, people, parties, and even happy memories
How to create Safety Nets instead of permission slips
Practical calorie management strategies, including when to eat at maintenance instead of pushing for a deficit
Why you should enjoy your favourite foods instead of filling up on “meh” calories
Simple, concrete tips to help you get through the season without spiralling
The last quarter isn’t just about surviving Christmas dinner — it’s about setting yourself up so that the new year feels like a fresh start, not a punishment.
This year can be different. This can be your best last quarter yet.
Losing a lot of weight is a huge deal. It's a very intimidating process, especially since most people regain lost weight plus 25% more within 5 years of losing it. So how do you keep yourself going once you decide to lose weight?
In today's episode, we'll discuss a simple way to keep going and stay motivated on your weight loss journey. I'll also share why being scared of the consequences of obesity is not enough motivation for people looking to lose an extreme amount of weight.
What You'll Learn:
The mindset you need to lose weight sustainably
Why you need to love yourself while losing weight
How to set realistic weight loss goals
The difference between awareness and acceptance
Why knowing obesity kills isn't enough
Why you need to stop using food as an emotional band-aid
Weight loss is all about the calories. We all want there to be another way, and it would be awesome if there were. But every single weight loss tool plan, device or treatment works because it puts you in a calorie deficit.
Everybody hates tracking their calories. But as much as it sucks, you won't lose weight if you don't have a handle on your calories. I'm not too fond of tracking, either. But I know calories in need to be lower than your calories out. And that's the holy grail of weight loss.
So in today's episode, we discuss calorie tracking and how the choices and decisions that go into what you're eating determine whether or not you'll be able to lose weight.
What You'll Learn:
How to sustainably stay in a calorie deficit
The benefits of having a calorie-tracking app
Why people dislike calorie tracking
How to eat whatever you want and still lose weight
Does the quality of calorie matter
Why you need to focus more on the calories and less on the food
Being fat is not about the food. We all want it to be, but it's not. If it were about the food, there wouldn't be an 85% recidivism rate. People wouldn't regain all the lost weight plus an average of 25% more than when they started out.
I put on 150 pounds in less than five years; I went from the 180s to the 330s. It also took me two and a half years to lose 200 pounds. What I learnt through all that was that gaining and losing weight doesn't happen quickly. It takes time. And if what we eat was the only key to unlocking the obesity crisis, losing weight and keeping it off would be easy.
In this episode, I explain why losing weight is not about the food we eat. I also explain the difference between emotional and physical hunger - and what to do when you’re not physically hungry but feel like eating.
What You'll Learn:
The problem with modern weight loss diets
How to fix your relationship with food
Is emotional hunger a real thing?
Learning to pause and ask yourself, 'am I hungry?'
How to distinguish between emotional and physical hunger
Ways to deal with eating to feed an emotion
The difference between being full and being satisfied
When people find out that I lost 200 pounds, the first thing they ask me is how I did it. Then they want to know how long it took and what I ate. My answer is usually shocking, because I lost all that weight by eating whatever I wanted and not exercising at all.
Is that even possible? Well, it is. But only if you focus on being on a calorie deficit. And the trick to not exercising was that I didn't like it, and I didn't want to do it.
If you have a significant amount to lose and would like to start losing it for the last time, this episode is for you. I reveal how to get started and sustain your weight loss journey without getting discouraged and without extreme restrictions.
What You'll Learn:
How to start losing weight for the last time
Why most people regain weight after losing it
How to lose weight by eating whatever you want
Why extreme restrictions rarely give intended results
The benefits of having a calorie-tracking app on your phone
Welcome to the Disrupting Obesity Podcast. I'm Charlotte Skanes, and I'll be sharing ways to help you regain control over your body and lose an extreme amount of weight naturally.
It took me just under two and a half years to lose over 200 pounds. And in the end, I did it without changing the kinds of food I ate, or exercising. According to everybody, that meant I shouldn't have been able to lose the weight at all. But I did.
If you're looking for a permanent solution instead of another quick but temporary fix to losing weight, you're in the right place. In this podcast series, I'll be sharing how people with a lot of weight can get it off and keep it off. I won't talk about fancy foods or exotic gym memberships. I'm all for eating whatever you want, just less of it.
What You'll Learn on This Show:
Why losing weight is more than just the food
How to change the way you feel and think about food
Understand that there's no easy way to lose weight
Nine years ago this month, I made a promise. Not a bargain for my life, but a promise to make my second chance worth something.
We’re coming off my longest series ever, the 101 Weight Loss Truths, and the response has been incredible. That series started as one episode and turned into eighteen, and now I’m making the full list available to anyone who wants it, for free.
But when the series ended, I wasn’t sure what to do next. Normally I’d go to an Ask Whatever episode, but those have shifted to Wednesdays with the launch of Weight Loss Wednesday. That means I had to step out without my usual safety net and talk about something bigger.
In this episode, I share the story of the promise I made during my five months in the hospital, and how that moment shaped everything I’ve built since then. From losing the regain, to surviving catastrophic illness, to creating this podcast, my cookbooks, workbooks, and the Flamingo Forum community.
It wasn’t survivor’s guilt. It was purpose. The promise wasn’t about surviving. It was about doing something with survival. About changing the conversation around weight loss and creating a safe space for women to do it.
That promise is why I show up every week. It’s why I built a private platform, why I answer your questions, and why I keep pushing to make this work as helpful and accessible as possible.
If you want to hear the story behind it all, this is the episode.
Welcome to my brand new series: Weight Loss Wednesdays
Every week I'm answering your questions about weight loss and from time to time I'll answer questions about myself.
This week's questions are:
Do you think hormones can affect weight loss?
What are you reading right now and what are some of your all-time favourite books?
How do you pick yourself up when facing rejection again and again? Rejection in the form of career, love, relationships. How do you keep your health plan on track when you're facing that?
If you'd like me to answer one of your questions you can send them in here: https://www.disruptingobesity.com/the-podcast
We made it. This is the final episode in the 101 Weight Loss Truths series. After 18 episodes, we’ve come to the end, and these last three truths are the ones that mean the most to me.
Here’s what I cover in this episode:
99. Have a singular focus and accept that you don’t have a choice When I was fighting for my life in a hospital bed, I didn’t have the luxury of options. I had to focus. And the truth is, that same kind of clarity is what helped me lose over 200 pounds, and then over a hundred. In this segment, I talk about what it really means to narrow your focus and stop giving yourself a back door to escape through.
100. There is no backward, only forward This was the hardest one to record. It’s something I used as a lifeline during my recovery and something I still rely on now. When you’re trying to change your life, you can’t keep looking over your shoulder. You’ve got to deal with where you are now and figure out what to do next. The past matters, but it doesn’t get to decide your future.
101. You’ve totally got this I say it every week, and I mean it every time. Whether you believe in yourself or not, I believe in you. You can do this, even if it’s hard, even if you’ve failed before, even if you’re not sure where to begin. You don’t have to be perfect. You just have to keep going.
Thank you for coming with me through all 101 truths. This series might be over, but your journey is just getting started.
We’re in the home stretch of the 101 Weight Loss Truths series with part seventeen. I’m breaking down four more powerful truths that get right to the heart of sustainable, long-term weight loss.
Here’s what we cover this week:
95. There’s no place for perfect in weight loss Trying to be perfect with your eating, tracking, or mindset might sound like commitment, but it’s actually just self-sabotage in disguise. I talk about how perfectionism kept me stuck for years and why dropping the expectation of doing it "right" all the time was one of the most freeing things I’ve ever done.
96. Breed. Build. Become. This is one of the core concepts from inside my program. I explain what it means to breed new habits, build them up through repetition, and become the person who just does them. If you’ve ever had a habit crumble like a sandcastle at high tide, this one’s for you.
97. Keep your eyes on your own scale Comparison will wreck your momentum faster than any dessert ever could. I walk through what it really costs when we compare our weight loss to others, and why it’s so important to stay focused on your own journey instead of someone else’s highlight reel.
98. Consistency not intensity Intensity feels sexy. Consistency actually works. If you’re tired of starting over every Monday, this truth might be what helps you finally stop. I explain why sustainable weight loss demands a long game approach, and why you need to be able to keep going far more than you need to go hard.
Next week, I’ll be back with the final three truths. They’re big ones. And yes, there’s a decent chance I’m going to cry.
We’re officially in part sixteen of the 101 Weight Loss Truths series, and in this episode, I’m walking you through five of the biggest, most foundational truths of the entire list.
This one isn’t just about food. It’s about your relationship with food. Because let’s be honest, it’s never just about the calories or the macros. It’s about your habits, your patterns, your triggers, your nostalgia, your rituals, and your Gladyses.
Here’s what we’re covering today:
WLT 90: What You Eat Matters Not just for your body, but for your heart, your memories, your grief, your cravings, and your comfort. It's about calories and connection.
WLT 91: Who You Eat With Matters Even if it's just you and your inner Gladys. People, past or present, impact our choices in ways we don’t always realise.
WLT 92: When You Eat Matters Calories don’t tell time, but your brain and your habits sure do. This one is about timing, triggers, and figuring out what works for you.
WLT 93: Where You Eat Matters From the car to the couch to the fridge door, your environment has more influence than you think. If you’ve ever inhaled snacks standing in your kitchen, this one will hit home.
WLT 94: How You Eat Matters Fast? Distracted? Ritualistic? Guilty? Comforted? However you do it, your method matters. And it tells you a lot more than you think.
I also share a few of my personal weird food quirks (yes, including the hot dog thing) and why I still keep some of them around, but with boundaries. These five truths make up a huge part of the foundation of my 53-week program, and they're part of what helped me rebuild my relationship with food from the ground up.
In this episode, I'm digging into Truths 85 to 89 of the 101 Weight Loss Truths series. Five more uncomfortable but important truths that can change the way you think about weight loss.
Here’s what I cover:
85 – You can lose weight for whatever reason you want No, really. You don’t need a Gladys-approved noble cause to justify it. If it’s about your jeans, your confidence, or your desire for a thigh gap, go ahead and want that. Your reason is valid.
86 – Loose skin happens but it’s better than the alternative Let’s stop pretending this isn’t part of the conversation. Yes, loose skin is real. Yes, it can be frustrating. But I promise you, it’s better than the complications of carrying excess weight. I’d never trade my loose skin for the weight I used to carry.
87 – Safety nets help you soar Rules make us rebel. Safety nets help us fly. I explain how reframing your weight loss ‘rules’ as supportive safety nets gives you freedom instead of resistance. I’m talking practical examples, from eating with the fridge open to meal prepping after stressful phone calls.
88 – Meet yourself where you are You can’t jump off at the 1200 calorie stop if your train isn’t there. This one’s all about honesty. Real progress starts with knowing where you actually are, not where you wish you were. No more unrealistic overhauls. Just small, honest, sustainable steps.
89 – Tracking a binge is always better than not tracking it This one’s tough but it’s powerful. Avoiding the number doesn’t make the binge disappear. It just lets guilt and shame spiral out of control. You need a baseline, and you need data. You can’t do better next time if you don’t even know what “better” looks like.
This episode is a mindset shaker so brace yourself, Gladys.
In this week’s Weight Loss Wednesday, I’m answering your questions about some of the most common challenges on the journey, from feeling shame around tracking to the pressure to get your macros just right.
I talk about how to handle the guilt that can come with calorie tracking, why it’s so important to see the truth instead of avoiding it, and how to stop the exhausting cycle of starting and stopping.
I also explain why I believe calorie awareness matters more than macro math, what really causes weight regain, and how my 500-calorie deficit approach kept me on track during both of my major weight loss phases.
Other questions this week include the difference between secondary and type 2 diabetes, and whether I’ve had loose skin removal surgery after my weight loss.
In this episode, I’m walking you through Truths 81 to 84 in our ongoing series of 101 Weight Loss Truths. These four truths are connected by something a lot deeper than food or scales, they’re about awareness, intention, and how you see yourself.
Here’s what I cover in this episode:
🔹 Truth #81: Everybody Intermittent Fasts You already do it, you just don’t think of it that way. Everyone has an eating window and a fasting window. Even if your eating window is 18 hours long, you’re still technically intermittent fasting. It's just not working for you yet.
🔹 Truth #82: Tightening Your Eating Window Helps No cold plunges. No skipping meals out of nowhere. Just gradual, manageable shifts in when you eat. I share how I went from a chaotic eating window to a more structured one and why it made all the difference (without needing to eat breakfast ever again, thank you very much).
🔹 Truth #83: You Are Not Your Body — You’re the Thing That Lives Inside It This one gets personal. I talk about growing up with a disabled parent and how it helped shape my understanding of identity, body image, and the mental traps we fall into when we think our body is who we are.
🔹 Truth #84: Gratitude is a Weight Loss Tool This isn’t about writing affirmations on a post-it and pretending everything’s fine. Gratitude helps you see what’s working, notice the wins, and hold on when things get tough. It’s not toxic positivity, it’s survival. It keeps you focused, it keeps you motivated, and it will absolutely help set you free.
This episode goes deep, but it also reminds you that you’re in control of more than you think, especially when it comes to your mindset. And yes, we’ll lighten things up a bit next week. Gladys already filed a formal complaint.
In this episode, I’m digging into Weight Loss Truths 77 through 80 and this one’s for anyone who’s ever talked down to themselves over a slice of pizza or who thinks Monday is the only day that counts.
Here’s what I cover in this episode:
77. You have to change the way you talk to yourself about food If the words “cheat,” “treat,” or “junk” are in heavy rotation, this one’s for you. Language matters. The way you talk to yourself about food is often just a mirror of how you talk to yourself in general and I want to help you spot it and shift it.
78. You have to change the way you think about food If pizza still feels like a moral failing and kale feels like penance, we need to talk. You’re not going to get anywhere sustainable if your thoughts around food are still swinging between punishment and reward. I’m not aiming for food euphoria here I just want you to get to food neutrality.
79. Weigh yourself once a week Yes, I said it. Once. A. Week. Not daily. Not “whenever you feel curious.” The scale can help or it can destroy your motivation, depending on how often you’re stepping on it.
80. Do it on a Wednesday Wednesdays don’t carry the emotional baggage that Mondays do, and they give your body time to recover from weekend sodium overload. It's the most emotionally and physiologically neutral day of the week so let's give poor little Monday a break and make Wednesday your weigh-in day.
This episode is all about self-talk, mindset, and finding a rhythm that actually works for you — without letting food or the scale ruin your week.
Listen to this episode if:
You’re caught in a guilt/shame spiral with food
You weigh yourself constantly and feel discouraged
You still think of food as “good” or “bad”
You want a more sustainable (and sane) way to approach weight loss
Mentioned in this episode:
Why cheat day language is so dangerous
The importance of food neutrality
My own experience giving the scale to my mother-in-law (yes, really)
Why salt might be lying to you on Monday mornings
If you’ve been blaming pizza or the scale for your setbacks, this episode is your wake-up call. Let’s stop the spiral and shift toward something more helpful — and more honest.