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Welcome to the Wellness in Every Season podcast where we embark on a transformative journey towards achieving total wellness even in the midst of overwhelming moments. I am your host Autumn Carter and I am thrilled to have you here. This podcast is a sanctuary for all mothers out there and we extend a warm invitation to anyone seeking guidance and inspiration. We believe in fostering an inclusive community where we learn and grow together supporting each other during life's challenging transitions. as we step out of survival mode and discover the path to thriving, embracing wellness in every season of motherhood. From sleepless nights to new beginnings, we'll explore practical strategies, share heartfelt stories and uncover the transformative power of self-care and self-love. Together we'll unlock the wisdom, strength and resilience within ourselves, reminding one another that we're never alone on this beautiful yet demanding journey. It's time to prioritize your well-being and reclaim your joy, one season at a time.Welcome to the "Wellness in Every Season" podcast, where we embark on a transformative journey towards achieving total wellness, even in the midst of overwhelming moments. I'm your host, Autumn Carter, and I'm thrilled to have you here.
This podcast is a sanctuary for all mothers out there, and we extend a warm invitation to anyone seeking guidance and inspiration. We believe in fostering an inclusive community where we learn and grow together, supporting each other during life's challenging transitions.
Join us as we step out of survival mode and discover the path to thriving, embracing wellness in every season of motherhood. From sleepless nights to new beginnings, we'll explore practical strategies, share heartfelt stories, and uncover the transformative power of self-care and self-love.
Together, we'll unlock the wisdom, strength, and resilience within ourselves, reminding one another that we're never alone on this beautiful, yet demanding, journey. It's time to prioritize your well-being and reclaim your joy, one season at a time.
WelcomeWellness Wanderers to Episode 30. Today I have Tara Gosselink with me. She is the founder of Fit Mum Method and is a health and fitness coach for women. She specializes in habits, mindset, nutrition, effective training, whether you're working out of home or a gym, and helps busy moms understand what you actually need in order to see results and keep them. She is all about sustainable results, which as moms we love. Tell us a little bit more about you and welcome.
Thank you. Thank you. I'm happy to be here. Well, I, you can probably tell by my accent, I am from Canada, but I live in Australia now. I've been here for about 12 years and my husband's Australian. I met him over in Canada when he was traveling and moved over here in 2011. And I now have three boys ages eight, six, and three. And I've been a health and fitness coach now for about four years.
That is amazing. And I can hear a little bit of both accents.
It's so fun.
I love accents and I love Australia. I want to go and I want to bring myself a dingo back
(laughs)
We have cattle dogs, so yeah.
Oh gosh. (laughs)
Yeah, yeah.
The dingoes? They're not all that friendly.
In the zoo they are. No, they don't really care about you in the zoo.
(laughing)
Okay, so what led you to become who you are professionally?
So I didn't just land here. It was a real organic process. And to be honest, I never thought that I would be where I am today if I look back to when I first became a mom. You know, like I'd always gone to the gym, but no real plan. And like back in the day, it was all about, you know, cardio and just being a cardio bunny and this whole like chase to fit into certain things or get fit for like 'fit' for a holiday or look a certain way. And it was just like this whole rat race and hamster wheel of being on this journey of wanting to look a certain way and then losing a bit of weight, gaining it all back. And it was just really frustrating.
So then fast forward, um, when I had children and as you know, being a mum of four, it's busy you often put yourself last. And when I had Jackson, my first son, my husband, he went back overseas five days after I gave birth. So that was really daunting. And I was basically like, you're thrown into motherhood, right? You don't know what you're doing.
And I had this real all or nothing mindset, right? Like I had this mentality that I had to be perfect. I had to do things a certain way. And I didn't really ask for help. And as a result, I then struggled. So I went through probably his first year, like he was really colicky as well, breastfeeding was an issue, he cried all of the time, and I was stressed. So I didn't, and I didn't ask for help. And I was trying to then lose this weight on my own, trying to figure out how to exercise on my own. And it was really, really hard.
So then fast forward nine months, I then get pregnant again. My husband is still working overseas and now I have two babies under 18 months and the struggle was real. It was a season in my life that at the time, you don't really realize how hard it was until you've kind of stepped away from it and looked back in. And that's when I realized how little I knew about self-care and how little I knew about health and fitness. I was just going through the motions, really trying to bite off more than I could chew, and as a result, being frustrated and feeling like I was failing all the time. And I didn't understand that until I asked for help. And I hired a coach myself to help me with nutrition because I was still stuck in that whole mindset of, let's really restrict myself so I can lose this weight, let's go really hard at the gym, and then I would burn out. I couldn't keep it up. And so then I reached out and got help the sustainable way.
And that's when I started keeping my results and people started asking me, what are you doing? You know, how are you doing this? Like you, you know, you're gaining energy, you're looking amazing, you're taking care of two kids while your husband is working overseas. Like how are you doing it? But it wasn't until I incorporated nutrition, training, habits, mindset, organization. So like all of these things coming together And I bottled that up and I just rinsed and repeated it. And I was like, this actually works. So it's not just this like low dangling fruit of this diet or this exercise.
It's a combination of everything that works for you. And it's gonna be different for every woman, every mother because we're all different. But I found what worked for me. And now that's when I started helping other women find out what works for them.
And it's different for everybody, right? It's not one thing. It's a combination of all these little things, but that's when the business sort of evolved where I was like, okay, hang on. I'm helping different women. They're all different. It's not a cookie cutter approach. Everyone has a different life, different circumstances, different number of children. You know, I've worked with everyone from flight attendants that are doing this crazy shift work with no kids to stay at home moms with three, four kids. And it's just, it's incredible to see how you can incorporate these habits and for your life that actually work long term. So it organically grew into that.
Um, then I, well, I got certified as a personal trainer, it evolved, and then I started studying nutrition. And so that all came together as well as helping other women. Then I got pregnant again and had my third baby and I was able to keep all of this up because of what I've learned over time. So like I said, it was over time, it really just evolved into a business when I started helping a few women at a time. And then I'd bring on more women. And then I was like, okay, I can actually take my passion and turn it into a purpose. And so then, yeah, over time, that's how it happened.
And that became my business. And it's, I say, I never thought I'd be where I am now when you look back to that first year of motherhood. But those struggles honestly became my strengths. And seeing what I went through in the past and how things evolved over time and how you can incorporate little things over time. And it's not just one thing, it's a whole bunch of different things that all come together. So that's how the business evolved. So I was able to kind of put all of this together and help other women along the way.
So this is a question that is commonly asked when people switch diets between children. How were your first two pregnancies different from your third?
Right. So my first pregnancy, I mean, actually all my pregnancies were pretty much the same, although I thought with my third, I was having a girl. I don't know why. I think because I had less morning sickness than the other two, but pregnancy wise, I would say they're pretty stock standard, good pregnancies. Births on the other hand were slightly, well they're all different. But with Jackson being my first pregnancy, I was still working up until I was 20 weeks and that's when my husband took the month on month off, fly and fly out overseas job. So I was like, well, you know what, he's going to be gone anyway, I'm going to have to stop working. And I was traveling for work at the time. So it was just a natural progression that I was like, okay, well, I'm not going to be going back to that job. I was driving an hour and a half and working in a town. I was staying over out there a few days a week, but I knew that wasn't going to be the case after I had this baby. So I decided, okay, well, let's take these next sort of 20 weeks and just chill. But I was, I was, I was a graphic designer by trade. So I was doing freelance graphic design after I finished that job. So I was working in marketing events marketing for that past job. And then so I just did a lot of freelance graphic design when I was working from home. So that was nice.
But then I had Jackson and I did a little bit of freelance after that. But I was like, you know what, this isn't my this isn't my passion. I really don't love it. I don't want to do this anymore. I'm not going to go into the corporate, you know, marketing world. I just didn't love it. So anyway, had Jackson Caesarean, emergency Caesarean, that was his birth. Mason, my second great pregnancy, I feel like I didn't have time to think about it because I had a small child. I mean Jackson was only 18 months when Mason was born and I remember at 15 months he still wasn't walking and I was like you need to start walking because I can't be carrying two babies and it was probably a month after that he started walking and he just got up and ran. But I was like, oh, thank goodness, because that would have been pretty tough.
Then Austin, pregnancy wise, I think I was just more tired because I had two toddlers. And I think you don't really think about it until you're out of it. And this is probably the first time I'm actually looking back and thinking about it. And then so I had him in the end of November, he was natural birth. So his birth was very easy. Mason was out of the V-Back with Mason, my middle, but his birth was quite intense and traumatic. Like he was coming down sideways, he had to be vacuumed out, then he got sent to the NICU. It was just, yeah, it was very kind of scary considering I was like, he seems okay, but I don't know what's happening. And just woman to woman tour and had a episiotomy. So the recovery for Mason was almost just as hard as the Caesarean, if not worse, because everything down there was just affected, right?
So then, yeah, Austin was an amazing birth, amazing recovery, but then COVID hit. So that brought on a whole other element of unknown. And so he would have been about three months, three or four months when COVID hit. And I just remember being at home with three children under the age of four and just being like a little bit loopy. But yeah, pregnancy wise, birth wise, I am very lucky, like nothing too traumatic, too severe out of all of it. But yeah, it seems like a lifetime ago now.
Yeah, we always talk about what was life like before COVID and after COVID. That's our mile marker for everybody around the world. Yeah, I had a traumatic first birth too. And yeah, hemorrhaging the whole thing, tearing on every child.
Yeah, interesting.
And it sounds like your recovery was better with your last child.
Yes.
Before COVID during that little window that you had health wise since you had changed your diet and you had been exercising and doing all these things, how do you feel like your mental health and your overall wellness was during that time? Did you notice the difference there compared to the windows of recovery with your other children? Did you notice any type of difference?
Oh yeah, completely, complete difference. It was like a complete 180. My mental state after I had Austin versus my other two because just talking about self-care with women and I had completely lost that all-or-nothing mentality. I was so much more kind with myself going into being a new mom again that it allowed me to grow exponentially personally because I allowed that to happen. It wasn't like I had to do it this way, had to do it that way and I'm a very routine person but I said to myself myself, if I don't get out of my pajamas until 4pm, that's okay too. And I think that mentality changed everything for not only myself, but for my husband, for my kids. I was just a more relaxed parent, really.
And yeah, I just think having that kindness, like you're going to get the jobs done eventually. But what's more important is that time with your kids because you're not going to get that back. And I really I knew Austin was our last baby. I really just embraced holding him and letting him fall asleep on me. And whereas I didn't do that with the other two, I really didn't.
Well, it's also hard when they're close together in age, our middle two are 19 months. So there's a three year gap, 19 months, and then it's 21 months. And yeah, we are totally done after.
(laughing)
Yeah, it's well done.
Yeah, it can be quite overwhelming and yeah, ganging up on. I feel like there's still some more that you could talk about this if you want to. What specific experiences or motivations influenced your decision to pursue this profession? It seems like there was a little bit more that you had.
Yeah, yeah, well, just going back to helping women. Like I took on a small handful of women almost to trial this and see if it would work because in my heart, I was like, I know I love this and it's worked for me. And I want to help other women because I know just from talking to so many different women, they struggle and we don't ask for help. We don't seek help or we go for those quick fixes that don't, I mean, they work short-term than they, you can't sustain them.
And I'm all about sustainability and doing something that's going to work for you, like I always say the best plan is the plan. you will do. Not the plan your neighbor will do, not the plan your best friend will do. It's a plan that you will do. So when I figured that out for myself, "okay, what's going to work for me?" Let's not do some gym class just because my friend is doing it and she loves it. "What if I hate boxing? What if I hate doing something?" I'm not going to force myself to do it because I thought in the past, you know, that would get me results, but it's not one thing that gets you results. It's the accumulation of what you do over time. and it's showing up over time. And that's one of those like light bulb moment.
It isn't just one thing, it's an accumulation of everything that you love to do. And also things like the habits that you learn along the way, it's not doing 10 things at the beginning, it's slowly incorporating different habits that are gonna help you over time. Because doing the little bits over time might not seem like much, but you're gonna get there in the end And you're going to get there faster than somebody going up, down, up, down, up, down.Right? You're going to just chip away, chip away, chip away.
And what I love about working with moms is the fact that we, we're all different, but the common denominator is that we are busy, that we often put ourselves last. We often don't know where to start because as we're talking earlier about, you know, with your job and helping women, you know, start, go back to work or they don't know what they want to do. It's like, we're so tired and busy that we don't take that time to figure it out.
Whereas the way I coach women is like, okay, we don't have to figure it out. We just need to start. We just need to do something. We just need to take action, even if it's messy action. And when I started taking that messy action in my own life, that's when things started to happen. And it wasn't doing things perfectly, it was just starting them. And that's, you know, a light bulb moment for me was going, yeah, it doesn't have to be perfect, you just have to start. And that was my own insecurities at the beginning when I would, when I wouldn't want to do something because it wasn't going to be perfect.
That was just me being afraid to fail. And it's like, well, who cares? Who cares if I fail? Who cares if I stumble along the way? At least I've started. So that's, I guess, another aspect to my coaching and doing this professionally is that my own past, what I've gone through in the past has helped me help other women because I've experienced it. I can still experience it sometimes, but it's stepping back and going, "What's the worst that can happen? What happens if I don't try? What happens if I don't start?" Well, I remain the same.
So we have to choose, choose what we find hard and choose what we want out of this life. And a lot of the time you can't, you can't sit back and just, and watch cause you'll remain the same forever. We need to just take that step and try and just put one foot in front of the other, even if it is just setting your alarm five minutes earlier, just do something that's going to set you up for tomorrow. And that's yeah, I think that's a big part of it. And I feel like I've just gone off a complete tangent. But it's, yeah, that's how I do this professionally. It's 'cause I had struggled in the past and my own experiences have led me to where I am now.
That is exactly why I coach stay-at-home moms. Because I've been there, I went back to school. I had to put so many systems in place to make it work. And that's why I have not run out of topics for my podcasts and for my worksheets and with working with moms of here's ways to help because I still have so many that I learned and then I just wanna share and help because I've had so many stay-at-home-mom friends. "How did you do that? Show me this, show me that." "Okay, let's make this more accessible."
Yeah.
I really love that. My question that goes along with this is what does your ideal client look like?
A mom. I have all different types of moms. I personally, I love working with women who want to make change, but they might not necessarily know how, right? They come into this and they're like, "I know I need help, but I don't know where to start." And that's okay because we all start somewhere. And I love, yeah, I guess my ideal client is somebody that wants to put in the effort and wants to make change and understands that it's not going to be an overnight success story because nothing is. Nothing worth having comes easy and nothing worth having or nothing worth keeping comes that easy.
What type of changes is she wanting?
Habits, mindset, nutritionally, a lot of the time women, like moms, they go through the day grabbing whatever they can just to sustain themselves for that day. Whereas I teach them how to eat well, eat a lot of food and maximize their time because we are time poor, right? We don't have time to spend in the kitchen. We, I mean, yes, I work with a few women that love cooking, but the majority don't love to spend time in the kitchen because we already spend so much time in the kitchen and it's, it's teaching these women how to maximize your time so you can get the most out of the meals that you're cooking. So you can have leftovers for the next day and you know that you're eating well. You know, if, if a client wants to lose weight, then I can teach them how to do that as well, as well as making the same meal for their family. It's not about going, okay, I'm doing this crazy shred for three weeks or a month or whatever it is, and I'm going to lose all this weight, but then I don't know how to actually sustain this. So nothing is off limits, right? And I want to work with women that like, "Hey, I like food. Hey, I don't like to be restricted. Hey, I'm a busy mom. I don't want to be making all these little meals in containers and having to stick to this for however long. I want to learn how to go for lunch with my girlfriends and have a drink. And I want to go out for date night with my husband and I want to be able to eat dinner with my kids." And at the end of the day, that is sustainable, right? That's life. That's what we need to be able to do every single day and enjoy our life doing these crazy shreds and quick fixes. That's not, those aren't the kind of women I want to coach because they're quick. It's a quick fix. But then you can't you can't keep it up. You can't keep that up long term. Yeah, up and down up and down.
Yo yo diet is what it was called in my nutrition classes.
Yeah. Yeah. And I mean, it's that you know, it's that low hanging fruit. It sounds appealing. It sounds so sexy. like, oh, you're going to lose 20 pounds in two weeks, whatever it is. Or like even what irritates me as well is those crazy work of, they're like, lose belly fat by doing this one exercise. Like, no, stop. It doesn't work like that. It doesn't work like that. And I think as busy moms, we do, we do gravitate towards the quick fixes or the challenges and I mean, there is a time and a place to do a challenge. you know, if it's going to get you get you going. But I want those women to know that if you start something and don't see yourself being able to do this six months, nine months, 12 months, two years down the track, it's not going to work. Right. Like just like anything, if you can't see yourself continuing, it's not going to work long term and then you're going to end up being frustrated again.
I love that. And then what really was a huge light bulb moment for me was I I nursed all four of my kids. Don't ask me how. I really came to learn how important it was to listen to my body and to take care of me so that I could have milk to produce for my children. Because if I was too busy focusing on hating my body and hating that I wasn't, I gained way more weight than I should have with each pregnancy. So I wasn't losing the weight that I wanted to, blah, blah, blah. Then I wasn't eating enough and I wasn't drinking enough, which means I wasn't producing enough, which means my baby's not growing enough.
Like just how much taking care of myself leads to taking care of my family. And there's also the other aspect that I learned in my nutrition classes and just life in general of being a mom is that kids are watching what you eat and what you say, and they're going to be saying the same things and eating the same things. There's so many times where I want my food, but then they'll come sit in my lap and they'll eat my food. So here, then you get a salad. enjoy, you know, you don't really like lettuce, so you weren't eating it on your plate, but now you're over here eating lettuce on my plate, whatever. So yeah, they're definitely watching and then they're, they're little sponges.
So whether you're doing a healthy habit or an unhealthy habit, they're watching everything. And I find getting the kids involved in the cooking and I mean, I'm very realistic. I'm not saying that every single night I have all three kids helping me cook dinner, no, but if we have the time and I'm prepping something because you know one of my boys is at daycare, one is at an extracurricular activity and I have one at home, I'm saying okay you I choose a dinner that he can help me prep so maybe it's tacos or maybe it's he loves doing panko-crone chicken which we actually we did have that on Tuesday so it's getting them involved and you know having the bag of spinach there. So then he'll just eat the spinach. I'm going, "Who are you? Like, what kid just eats spinach?" But it's because it is there. Yeah. It's because it's there.
And it's just, it really is involving them. And also I find if you teach them why they're eating that food. So why do I need protein, mum? Well, it's because it helps you get stronger without a protein. You're not going to get big muscles. And so every time they're eating chicken or fish are like, "Mom, I'm eating protein." So it's not just, "Oh, I have to eat these vegetables," or, "Oh, I have to eat this meat," or whatever. It's understanding why our body needs it. And just as adults, we want to know why we're doing something. So that's another part of my coaching. I educate why. Why do you need to drink enough water? Why do we need enough protein? Why are these habits so important? It's not just, "Do this, do that, eat this, eat that, drink this." it's why does our body need this?
And you know, I was telling my husband about this the other day, it's like, when did healthy food become diet food, right? And unhealthy food is just the norm, right? And this is why like, my program is all about the basics, right? You get back to the basics of what actually works. And I'll say like, I have the worst marketing slogan, because I always say it's not sexy, but it works. I don't have any slogan or some like sexy catchphrase. I just say I'm going to teach you what you actually need to know that you can actually sustain for your whole life. You know, I have some clients that have been working with me for over three years because it's the accountability and the support and the training programs. And she knows all she needs to know about nutrition and how to lose weight or maintain weight or gain weight to put on muscle, but it's having that that touch point every single month and having someone go, hey, this is what you actually need to do and you can sustain this long term.
So just going back to the kids, like I'm very honest and open with my kids and say what you're eating right now, this is a treat. This is a sometimes food. We don't eat this every day, but nothing is off limits. You can have that because it makes them want it less, to be honest, when you allow them to have these things and explain to them why they can only have that sometimes. Why don't you get candy every day? Well, you know, and so it's just, yeah, it's the education around everything that really helps.
I have noticed that too. My oldest, I was teaching him the things as I was learning in classes. I graduated with my applied health last year. I went back as a mom and finished and teaching him, this is what sugar does to your body. This This is what it does to your bones, your teeth, your blood sugar, like just so many things. So he does the whole, well, I don't think I should have any more of this. Or I shouldn't have any more salt because of this. And I think I'll have something else. And it's like, yes, plus with him being the oldest, it trickles down, right?
Yeah, totally. Yeah, the oldest is really just the educator. And sometimes I feel like there is a loton the oldest child, but it really, that's their role in the family is to teach their brothers because they're gonna listen to them more than they're gonna listen to us. And if he can be that example, it just, it does, it trickles down.
Yes. - For sure. They're kind of our tester child too, let's be honest. Oh, that didn't work, let's not try that on the next kids. What other things do you want to tell us about you? And also I'd love to hear a little bit more about your program.
Yeah, yeah, sure. So I'm currently studying my advanced nutritional counseling. I'm chipping away, chipping away, as you can imagine, with three children. It's four children for you, three for me. Yeah, it's a chipper. It's not every day. It's not necessarily even every week, but I'm doing it. I'm set time away for it, and I just keep chipping away.
I've just started-- well, actually, I'm on my third round of group coaching. So we were talking a little bit before about group coaching and that was just the natural progression for me from one-on-one to groups. So I could help more women at once because we'd be obviously only have a certain amount of time each week that we can offer. And yeah, that was the next thing for me. Um, it's going really, really well. I really, I love it. It's, um, it's eight weeks of group coaching on a group zoom. And each week we covered different topics, each client I have, I still write personalized program for them. So based on their current goals and what they'd like to achieve, I'd write a program for them. So training wise, whether they work out at home or in a gym,
I can write a program for that. I mean, my business went from here to here during COVID and nobody had to work on equipment. Nobody had anything at home because we couldn't get equipment and you could barely even leave your house. So I had to become very creative with what you could do at home. So that was interesting. So yeah, whether you work at home or in a gym, or you work out two days a week, or you just want to go for a walk, I write a program based on that. Most of my clients are coming to me to learn how to lose weight sustainably. So that is part of the program as well, if that's what you're looking for. But yeah, on the group Zooms we go through habits, mindset, organization, your menstrual cycle, calories and weather important, effective training. And it's a real encompassing program. Like we don't, like I said before, we don't just focus on one thing. It's not just, oh, you just need to lose weight and this is how you do it.
It's well, if that is your goal, we need to say, okay, that is my goal, but how do we break it down? And how does your life look to be able to achieve that? And is it getting more organized? Like where are your struggles? Because it's easy to go, yeah, that's what I want to do, but how are we going to get there? And we have to be able to rinse and repeat those steps in order to get there in a sustainable way. So yeah, my clients, they do have lasting results. And a lot of my clients do stay on month to month after those initial eight weeks, just for the accountability and support. You know, they can message me behind the scenes via WhatsApp and we chat and they share their wins. I also have a group page for my clients and it's just a real supportive place for women because like I said, I've struggled in the past before and it wasn't until I sought that accountability and support and figured out what I actually needed to do, that's when everything shifted for me. And that's how this now group coaching has evolved from basically just wanting to help people to be like, this is how I help people. and get them results because it isn't just that low, low-hanging fruit. It is a whole bunch of things coming together in order to keep those results.
How much should people be losing every week? I feel like moms need to know this.
It varies. You could healthily lose about 500 grams (one pound) per week, but fat loss is not linear. And there's a difference between weight loss and fat loss, right? So we are aiming for fat loss. Weight loss is your scale weight. So especially for women, we fluctuate so much, whether it's that, you know, you're approaching that time of the month, whether you have your period, whether you've drank enough water the day before, like our body is 60% water. So if you haven't drank water that day or the day before enough water, You're going to weigh less. It's just how it is. And depending on how that, you know, the food that you've eaten, is it heavier food? Not more calories, but is it just heavier food? And that makes a difference as well. Have you slept? How is your sleep? Like if you've had broken sleep, you're going to retain more water. Have you had sodium? Have you had alcohol?
Like there's so many factors into what the scale will say and that's why I coach my clients on, okay, let's not look at the scale. Like if, especially if that scale is triggering for you, it's not triggering for me, but I still don't like it. Like if I go, I'm like, you know what? I'm feeling really good this week and I get on and I'm two kilos heavier. I'm like, but it shouldn't matter, right? So I don't even weigh myself anymore because it really, really doesn't matter. It's about going on how you feel, how your clothes are fitting, your energy levels. And I have my clients monitor all of this. I'm like, if you're feeling irritable, Let's, let's increase your calories because we cannot be irritable moms. Like we're already triggered in so many ways that being on in a deficit isn't always sustainable long-term either.
Like we have to go back up to our maintenance and we have to go back down. And that's why it's achievable long-term because it's not just going stop eating
this and cut all your calories and see ya it's going, okay, how are you feeling this week? Okay. So you're feeling like this. Okay. Your, your period's approaching. Let's maybe go back up to maintenance just for the next four days because you're probably going to want to eat some chocolate. You're probably going to want to do this.
And there is actually more iron.
Yeah, there is.
There's actually a study on this about women. There's two control groups. And one was given different calories for the month based on their menstrual cycle. And the other control group was just giving the same amount of calories no matter whether they're approaching their period, what stage of their cycle they were in, those were their calories, and they were in a deficit the whole time. The control group that did the best was the one that had the variable calories based on their cycle because they were able to adhere to it long term. These women in this other group were like, "It's so hard. I'm just, I'm in a deficit. I just want to eat chocolate," and then they deprived themselves and then they just go and eat it anyway. So they actually, the group that had the variable calories lost more weight long term than the group that was told, "Don't do this, don't do that."So it's just really interesting.
It totally makes sense too.
Yeah.
So, and this is why it's not a black and white cookie cutter approach because every woman is different and we need to understand that we are going to have weeks where we're like, is really hard. It's testing me, there's obstacles, but we need to understand that they're just obstacles and we can get over them. And it's not about having a setback, it's just taking a step back and then going forward again. But when you have that accountability and support, it's a lot easier, especially knowing someone else is going through it with you. And you have other women that are on the same journey.
I love that. And I love that you offer the option for people to still stay accountable so they'd have long-term maintenance. And one thing that I think is so interesting, and my husband and I talk about this, I'm pretty much where I need to be weight-wise, but my husband's working through some of the weight loss because he has the dad bod. Just means he's a really good husband, which he is, and father. But you have up to eight pounds of poop in you at any given time. So like, when he was starting to track his weight loss, and we have a special scale that can check muscle density and all this stuff. We were teasing when he finally got past the eight pounds. He's like, okay, now I know it's not poop. And it's actually I'm losing fat. So yeah, that's, that's one of our many jokes that we have. And it definitely goes along with our weight fluctuates depending on different things. So I really love that you talked about that. And I loved that you talked about how it should not be based off the scale because most people have normal scales and they don't check for what is your muscle density? What is your water? How hydrated are you? And all these other things that are scale can check it does it through an electric pulse. I think my husband would tell you more about that to me. He's the nerd. But he's actually really excited because his gym that he goes to is going to do a detailed analysis and he wants to compare it to what our scale says to see how accurate it is. So he'll nerd out on that.
Is it like a scan at the gym?
I don't remember exactly what they're doing. I'll let you know after he does it. So is there anything else that you wanted to talk about really quick and then where can we follow you and if we are just like sign me up, tell us, give us all the details.
Yeah, for sure. I think I'd just like to leave your followers with just the just the inspiration that you can do it. And it you might not know right now you might be listening to this thinking, Oh, I can't do it. I'm just so busy. I'm tired, all of the things. But realistically, that's never going to change. It's just going to be different, right? Life has obstacles and struggles forever and that's the beauty of it, right? We get better at overcoming them and then we get thrown something else and go, okay, now I can get through this. But just taking action, just starting, even if it's listening to this podcast today going, okay, I've done something today for myself to put me in a position to be a better mom tomorrow, right? A better wife, a better woman, just doing something to help yourself because without helping yourself, the family gets the rest of you.
They want the best of you. And if we aren't taking care of ourselves, we literally only have what's left and our family can't thrive, right? So we have to be able to have that self care and know it's not about the bubble baths and the massages, it's about putting some plans in place to make your life easier. And the more you plan, I know it sounds very counterintuitive, like the more you plan, the more time you're going to have. But it is true. The more you plan your life out, the more time appears. And I make time every single week to read my book because that's important to me. But I also have a million other things throughout the week that are slotted in and and get done because I've planned them. But if you leave it up to the day then it's just not gonna happen. So taking that action even if it's just opening your agenda and going okay what day am I gonna go for a walk this week? What meal am I gonna have tomorrow? That goes a long way and it's a sort of that snowball effect of action breeds motivation. Action breeds motivation. If you're waiting to feel motivated you're gonna wait forever. Motivation comes and goes. You have to find that intrinsic motivation and that is taking action and seeing those small results over time. So that's what I'd say to your audience is just just take action.
Just start. It doesn't matter what it looks like. Just do something for yourself that'sgoing to set you up. For following Instagram @fitmumethod, Facebook is just fitmumethod. And because I'm an Australian, it's M-U-M method. And I've sent you the link for my free book as well. So you can download that. And that just has lots of information, habits, mindset, client stories, my own personal stories. So yeah, have a read of that. And that's all yours to have.
And if we are just like wanting to skip all of that and sign me up for your program, tell us the details on how to do that.
Yeah. Yeah, so if you go to Instagram, there's a link in my bio. So if you just go to the top, if you click on the link, there's an application form you can, it'll take you two seconds to fill out. And I will contact you to schedule a call and we'll just have a quick chat so I can get to know you, what your goals are, what you'd like to achieve. And if my program is a good fit for you. Otherwise you can email me at fitmamethad@gmail.com and we can have a chat there. And yeah, I'll message you back and yeah, set up a time to have a chat.
I will make sure that links to her are in our show notes as well as in the podcast transcript, which is on the website. So you will be able to easily find her. Thank you so much for being on with us. And there were so many things and so many people that came to mind where I'm like, I don't want to share her information with them and them and them. And there were so many times where it was like, we could end here. And it would be like complete. There are so many great nuggets here that I'm going to have a hard time figuring out where to have my podcast clip for Instagram. So thank you for everything. And thank you so much for reaching out to me. And I really loved our time together. Thank you.
Thank you. Thank you, Autumn. Thank you for having me on. It was a pleasure. It was so nice to actually put a face to the name. Yes. All right. Thank you.
Join us next week where we're set to explore the profound art of uncovering authentic answers residing within our very bodies. We'll delve into the intriguing process of recognizing when our words and actions resonate with truth as our bodies hold the key to this revelation. Into the captivating realm of body language and physiological cues unveiling the silent truths we often overlook within ourselves. Together we'll unravel the enigmatic messages carried by clenched fists, racing hearts, and wandering eyes and empower you with a skill to interpret your body's language of authenticity, get ready to navigate conversations with renewed self-assurance, gain the ability to untangle deception, and embrace the unequivocal markers of truth intricately woven within us all.
Thank you for joining us on this week's refreshing wellness discussion. I'm Autumn Carter, your guide through the seasons of motherhood, and I hope you found inspiration and valuable insights during our time together.
If you resonate with the topics we explored today and want to continue your wellness journey, I invite you to follow me on Instagram at Moms Wellness in Every Season. There, you'll discover a wealth of ongoing wellness tips specifically curated for moms like you.
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If you have a specific topic you'd like us to cover in more detail or if you're interested in a free coaching consultation, don't hesitate to reach out. You can send me a direct message on Instagram or visit my website, wellnessineveryseason.com, to send an email. I'm here to support you on your wellness journey.
Thank you again for being a part of our vibrant community. I'm genuinely excited to connect with you, hear your stories, and continue this important discussion in the weeks to come.
Until next time, remember to prioritize your well-being, embrace every season with grace, and always strive for wellness in every aspect of your motherhood journey. Take care, and I can't wait to catch up with you soon.
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