Greg [00:00:00]:
Can I improve my relationship by working on my health? And what I mean by that is sometimes people feel like their marriage is being ruined because of the symptoms that they're feeling. With menopause, relationships are being very fractured.
Jeanette Harris [00:00:24]:
Yeah.
Greg [00:00:25]:
What things? I mean, I. I guess you kind of answered it. Things can I do that can help my health, that then can lead to hopefully improving relationships.
Jeanette Harris [00:00:43]:
This is Secrets for Success.
Greg [00:00:47]:
Welcome to the Secrets for Success podcast. I'm your host, Greg Todd. Thank you as always for joining me, my friends. Okay, today we're gonna do one of our RFV Rapid Fire of Value episodes. Yeah, that's what I'm calling it. Rapid Fire of Value. And so this is, you know, an episode. And by the way, this has been so good for me to do because I have, like, I'm in my own little world, right, of helping y'all and helping healthcare providers serve their communities.
Greg [00:01:17]:
But the people that I'm serving actually know some stuff, right? And I want them to give value on the audiences that they serve. So, Jeanette Harris, welcome back to the podcast.
Jeanette Harris [00:01:29]:
Thank you very much.
Greg [00:01:31]:
Can we talk about, you know, the group of people that you're wanting to now serve in a different way than just treating patients on a daily basis? Can we talk about that group of people that you are trying to help?
Jeanette Harris [00:01:44]:
Well, I want to work with women who are middle age and are going through menopause or the symptoms of menopause. What I've learned, there's over like 40 symptoms of menopause, but some of the biggest ones are weight gain, hot flashes, low energy, and insomnia. And so I've had the experience in all of those personally. And as well as hair loss, that's another huge one. Those are the women that I want to serve because the middle ageing is kind of an interesting transition. You know, you're. You're in the middle. You're not, you know, you're not the young and hot and you're not the, you know, the old and whatever and not.
Jeanette Harris [00:02:30]:
No disrespect to either age group. Right. You're just in the middle.
Greg [00:02:34]:
Just in the middle.
Jeanette Harris [00:02:35]:
But you're. You're that sandwich generation woman. You know, you're probably either taking care of still maybe some kids or grandkids, and you're probably caring for, you know, senior parents or whatever, and you're dealing with your life issues, the transitioning, all the, all the changes that are happening with your body. And then sometimes you just feel left out, confused, not heard and not in really, just not understanding, like what the heck is happening? You know, you're not crazy, but you feel crazy.
Greg [00:03:09]:
Yeah. You like. You're dealing with middle pause.
Jeanette Harris [00:03:13]:
Middle.
Greg [00:03:13]:
Yeah, middle pause. Not menopause. It's. It's middle pause. Because, see, I'm a middle child. And as a middle child, you sometimes feel like nobody's paying attention to you.
Jeanette Harris [00:03:24]:
Right.
Greg [00:03:24]:
You know, and you're just in the middle and the middle is supposed to be. It should be if. If taken care of properly. Should be one of the best. Best times to be in.
Jeanette Harris [00:03:38]:
Exactly.
Greg [00:03:38]:
Oh, my God.
Jeanette Harris [00:03:39]:
Wow.
Greg [00:03:39]:
Wait a minute. I think I got something for your business. Middle pause.
Jeanette Harris [00:03:42]:
Middle pause. I like it.
Greg [00:03:43]:
Middle pause. And middle pause, you're just. You're just in the middle. But now I can tell you this as a middle child, because I'm a middle child.
Jeanette Harris [00:03:51]:
Yeah.
Greg [00:03:52]:
A lot of middle children struggle being in the middle because they feel like nobody gets them because it's either we're supposed to celebrate you in the beginning or celebrate you at the end. Right. But in the middle, one of the beautiful things is if you can find your way, you realize that you got the best of both worlds because you got someone that you can learn from their path.
Jeanette Harris [00:04:16]:
Look up.
Greg [00:04:17]:
Right. And then you also have someone that you can help pave path for.
Jeanette Harris [00:04:21]:
Yep.
Greg [00:04:22]:
And so, yeah, you got the middle pause community. O. I love that.
Jeanette Harris [00:04:27]:
I like that too. I just might have to run with that.
Greg [00:04:29]:
Yeah, you might have to. Yeah, that's just. Well, it was beautiful because you gave a beautiful explanation of how a lot of women feel being in that menopause phase. You know, they just feel like they're in the middle of their life and they're almost dealing with mid life crisis, middle life crisis. And my body is doing different things in the middle of my life, and I don't know how to navigate through that. And so can I ask you some questions?
Jeanette Harris [00:04:57]:
Yeah, sure.
Greg [00:04:58]:
Of things that you know. And I have people that are very near and dear to me that are struggling with a lot of the things I'm going to ask you.
Jeanette Harris [00:05:05]:
Okay.
Greg [00:05:05]:
And so I'm. I'm asking this to you not just to help on a selfish level. It's to help people that I would love to have help with this, that are struggling with these things. But it's also. I think there might be people listening to the podcast that could get help with these things as well. So here's the first thing. Why. Why is it that the people that I love that are struggling with menopause say they feel constantly tired and they.
Greg [00:05:37]:
And they don't feel like they ever can get a full night's sleep. Like, what is something you would just tell them?
Jeanette Harris [00:05:44]:
Well, a lot of times the fatigue is coming from just really your hormones. It's a lot of hormonal dysregulation. Your estrogen is waning. Your progesterone is. Either you have too much or too little testosterone. We're supposed to have some of that. That's not acting right either. Everybody's doing their own thing.
Greg [00:06:08]:
So it's estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone, and they're basically out of whack in some way.
Jeanette Harris [00:06:14]:
Out of whack in some way. It could either be, you know, one or all of those. And, and so first of all, finding out, you know, probably doing some testing and getting, you know, see what your hormone hormonal levels are at that point. And then however you want to, you know, try to regulate that either through a more natural approach. There's a lot of foods that support either estrogen or progesterone or testosterone. So if you want to do that route, some people like to do the hormone replacement therapy route. And as you start to, you know, go down the avenue that you want, that is one way to start regulating your sleep or getting your energy. Other things.
Jeanette Harris [00:07:00]:
Set your room up for sleeping, you know, at nighttime. I'm guilty of it because I like to have the tv.
Greg [00:07:08]:
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Jeanette Harris [00:07:09]:
But that blue light really can be a disruptor. So if you can, you know, if you gotta have the TV on. One of my suggestions that really works well for me are having, like, the mask, the sleep mask, the dark in the room, and, you know, keep the room as dark as possible and try not to eat and drink, you know, a few hours before going to bed. So, you know, simple things like that. And also establish a sleep routine.
Greg [00:07:36]:
Gotcha.
Jeanette Harris [00:07:37]:
You know, some people just like to be all over the place, but your body works on these circadian rhythms. So, you know, that's why when the sun goes down, you know, our melatonin starts to naturally increase.
Greg [00:07:50]:
Right.
Jeanette Harris [00:07:51]:
So we can start talking, wind it down. But if we're like drinking coffee and all this other stuff and trying to crank out throws everything off. It throws everything off. So, yeah, so kind of look at what you're doing and seeing if you can make one or two changes. Because it's also hard for people to try to change everything at once, because then they just, you know, if they're struggling, then they're like, oh, this isn't working, and then just quit. But just pick one or two things that you can start off changing. Maybe it's like, you know, put the room cooler or turn the TV off an hour before and be consistent with that and see how that works for you. And then, you know, continue to implement things.
Jeanette Harris [00:08:32]:
So that. Those would be my suggestion. Those are things that I have done that have helped me as well.
Greg [00:08:38]:
Okay. Another big thing that she's mentioned to me is joint pain. So not understanding, like have this joint pain, I don't know what's causing it and how can I relieve it. You know, I know that can go in so many different directions, but kind of a brief, like quick understanding of how joint pain has to menopause.
Jeanette Harris [00:09:04]:
Yeah, all of that. And again, it's our hormones because they do so so much with help regulating the other systems in our body. So again, if we're. Our hormonal levels are off, that can lead to more inflammation in the body. And I believe it's more so if your estrogen levels are like really high. You know, things that can drive a lot of high estrogen is like sugar, sugar, the devil.
Greg [00:09:35]:
Sugar's so good. We love it.
Jeanette Harris [00:09:37]:
Oh my gosh, this is the deadliest time of the year because from October to January, a sugar, sugar, sugar. So it's. Everybody might be hormonal by December 31st at this point. But yes. So just when we have a lot of high sugary contents, processed foods and things, those things drive up your inflammatory markers in the body.
Greg [00:10:02]:
Gotcha.
Jeanette Harris [00:10:03]:
So trying to work again on regulating, you know, trying not to eat so much processed food, fried foods, things like that. Sometimes salt can also be a big irritant if you're doing too much salt. So it's not always the sugary things, it's the salty things as well. But looking at those things also hydrating, we. I'm guilty telling you all the things that I'm guilty. I'm trying to be better at. Yeah, but drinking, you know, getting proper hydration. So, you know, we're over 70% water.
Jeanette Harris [00:10:38]:
So if we don't have enough fluid, you think about a car, you know, if the. Or a door, if it's not lubricate, it's going to squeak and crack. Same thing with our joints in our body. If we don't have enough, you know, hydration, that's going to happen as well. So you don't always have to get it all from water. There's different camps that argue, yes, you got it all be water. Some people just hate water. They don't like water.
Jeanette Harris [00:11:05]:
So what do you do but you got to get your fluid in. So I'm of the mindset, eat your water. Eat foods that are high in water content.
Greg [00:11:13]:
Okay, okay.
Jeanette Harris [00:11:14]:
Watermelon, cucumbers, all the melon family is very high. Like cucumbers and watermelon, they have, like, they're like 92 to 98% water. Right. So, you know, you know, those are ways that you can increase that intake. If you don't like water, water, or you can put lemon or, you know, other fruits and things in it.
Greg [00:11:38]:
Of all the things that you just said, you gave so many good recommendations, would you say that pretty much all of those things would also help with moodiness? Because there are people that have told me that they feel a lot more moodier. What's going on? Is that pretty much also the solution for that? And what else do you know with regards to menopause and moodiness?
Jeanette Harris [00:12:01]:
Yeah, yeah, yeah. In my feelings, your hormones ain't right either. But that's another thing. Yes. So again, when you're having that proper hydration, you have that decrease in that joint pain, tension, headaches, things like that, the brain fog. So again, a lot of these problems can be solved nutritionally by what we eat and how we're eating, and then some of the environmental pieces as well. You know, like I had mentioned earlier, you know, setting your room up for sleeping, and it should be just for sleeping or other activities. But now for all the adults, grown folk.
Jeanette Harris [00:12:50]:
But anywho, so those kind of things, again, people underestimate the importance of vitamin D, which is not really a vitamin, it's a hormone. Right. And vitamin D does so much. One of the things that does help regulate is inflammation, sleep, mood. So getting out in the sun make it a habit. I'm not a fan of sunscreen, but, you know, people do your research on that. But I feel like if I'm trying to get this, you know, this hormone, I don't want to block it. I'm not going to be out there all day worshiping the sun.
Jeanette Harris [00:13:37]:
So if you spend at least 20, 20 to 40 minutes, you know, if you're a darker melanation, you're going to need a little bit more time out in the sun. You know, during his peak hours between 12 and 2 consistently, you're gonna get enough exposure of vitamin D to help try to regulate those systems.
Greg [00:13:59]:
Gotcha, Gotcha. Okay, that makes sense. Can I improve my relationship by working on my health? And what I mean by that is sometimes people feel like their marriage is being ruined because of the symptoms that they're feeling with menopause, relationships are being very fractured.
Jeanette Harris [00:14:28]:
Yeah.
Greg [00:14:29]:
What things? I mean, I. I guess you kind of answered it. Things can I do that can help my health, that then can lead to. To hopefully improving relationships.
Jeanette Harris [00:14:45]:
I would say the first thing would really have a conversation with your. Your partner. You know, communication is definitely key. Sharing with them what you're experiencing. So, you know, you can have a conversation about it and then come up with a plan. And maybe you're over here trying to figure out stuff all by yourself, but if you're just talking to your partner so that he or she has an understanding what's going on with you, they may can help you come up with a solution together. And so communication, I feel, is very important, you know, in those. In that regard.
Jeanette Harris [00:15:26]:
And it may also be a joint approach. When you bring your partner in, they're like, okay, well, I can help you. Maybe we need to make. Make some changes together because it's one of the things is hard if you're over here and you want to make change, but then you don't have a person that's supporting you. They're kind of like almost counterproductive or, you know, sabotaging either intentionally or unintentionally. So I really feel like you need to have that communication and then, you know, start to gain the knowledge to, you know, make the changes that you want to make.
Greg [00:16:04]:
Okay. You've talked about a lot of different changes, and I know that there are some people that are saying, I want to be able to do this, but I'm so busy with my schedule. So how can people find time to make changes with their busy schedule?
Jeanette Harris [00:16:20]:
That's an excellent question. So I have a great business coach that always talks about 168, which I always. I knew 168 meant 168 hours in a week. It's related to some other things, too. I also have another business coach friend. She always talks about 1440. You have 1440 minutes in a day. But I like 168.
Jeanette Harris [00:16:46]:
So we got 168 hours in the week that we got to do everything for ourselves and everybody else.
Greg [00:16:54]:
Right?
Jeanette Harris [00:16:56]:
You have to make time for yourself. And women are. We're so good at taking care of everybody else but ourselves.
Greg [00:17:06]:
Right?
Jeanette Harris [00:17:07]:
But you can't give from an empty cup. You can't give from an empty well. You got to put that mask on yourself first before you try to save the baby if you're on the plane. Right? So making yourself a priority. And I know that's Hard for a lot of women because they feel like, oh, I gotta do this, I gotta do that, da da da da da. But you gotta take care of yourself first and really get in your mind, I gotta take care of me so I can't do all of these other things. And again, I do feel like just making one or two simple changes that you can be consistent at and then start to add in things because, you know, we all say, oh, or I'll say, I'm gonna start this diet Monday and I'm gonna, you know, do da da da da da, whatever. And by Tuesday night.
Greg [00:17:59]:
Right, right, right.
Jeanette Harris [00:18:00]:
Yeah, I ate a whole package of ho Ho's and half a gallon ice cream and whatever else that's handy. So you have to, number one, set yourself up for success. You know, come up with a plan, structure it out, and then plan one or two things that I'm gonna change for this week and track your progress. Give yourself some grace if you don't meet your goal, but then get back on the horse again and just keep doing it till you are consistent. And then you just add another piece and another piece, and next thing you know, you're over here and you're not where you were.
Greg [00:18:46]:
Right.
Jeanette Harris [00:18:46]:
But you're on your way.
Greg [00:18:47]:
Right.
Jeanette Harris [00:18:48]:
If that makes any sense.
Greg [00:18:49]:
Yeah, no, that makes sense. All right, I'm gonna. Since you brought up the whole yo yos, I'm gonna bring up yo yo dieting, ping pong, you know, so, so many of the solutions that you have recommended, a lot of it involves food and people. Find it, whether you're dealing with menopause or not, find it really hard to break out of the yo yo dieting cycle. So if you were to give one piece of advice, so how do I break out of this? How do I make this consistent? What would you say?
Jeanette Harris [00:19:27]:
And that's a hard one because I, having gone through this several times and going through this again myself, even now, if I'm going to be honest, I feel like you have to have a why. Know your why. Why do I want to lose weight? Is it, you know, for an event that's coming up, or is it to be healthy? Is it to get off a, you know, mess? Know your why again. Come up with the plan to move in that direction. Okay, say for example, you, your A1C may have been high and now you're pre diabetic, and the doctor, their solution is to put you on exemplary metformin, whatever, blah, blah, blah, but you don't want to do any of that. But you're scared out of your freaking mind that I'm going to be diabetic.
Greg [00:20:29]:
Right.
Jeanette Harris [00:20:29]:
I'm diabetical.
Greg [00:20:32]:
Medical. I like that.
Jeanette Harris [00:20:34]:
Diabetes.
Greg [00:20:35]:
Yeah.
Jeanette Harris [00:20:35]:
No, no, no. So you, and you may have gone through the process where you conquered that before, you might have been in that situation and you changed it through your food and your exercise and all that. And now you've like, life happened. You got off your eating plan and now you're. Your weight's back up and now your A1C is tripping again. I think you have to go back to your why. You know, do I want to lose weight or do I want to keep my toes, you know, do I want to be healthy? You know, and why is it important to be healthy? Because I want to be here for my kids. So I want to be able to do this or I want to be able to do that.
Jeanette Harris [00:21:21]:
So having a strong why and then also remembering how good it was or how good you felt when you were at your best physical self, whatever that, you know, those feelings of what it looked like, what it felt like, I think those are the things that can help you get back on track.
Greg [00:21:41]:
Right.
Jeanette Harris [00:21:42]:
And we all go through our seasons because different things happen in our lives, you know, and so that can take us off of there point or a game, if you will. Also, I feel that you need to understand that this is a lifestyle journey. So there's going to be some highs and lows, but you want to have more consistency versus the yo yoing stuff because your body, your body likes steady state. It doesn't like to be all over the place. So getting back to those basics, know your why again, Come up with your strategy, your plan, and keep it simple. I think when we try to make it too complex, a confused mind does nothing.
Greg [00:22:29]:
That's right.
Jeanette Harris [00:22:30]:
So we end up just like, ain't doing it. Yeah.
Greg [00:22:34]:
So we talked earlier in the podcast about energy levels. And so many women that are struggling with menopause, even men struggling with menopause, have very low energy levels. What's one natural way that you're like, hey, do this, and this typically will help raise up the energy levels a bit.
Jeanette Harris [00:22:55]:
I like walking, getting out, walking, particularly if you can get out and walk in the sun so you don't capture that vitamin D and spend 20 minutes of that? I hate to exercise. I ain't gonna lie. I don't like it.
Greg [00:23:11]:
A lot of people feel that way. People don't like it.
Jeanette Harris [00:23:14]:
Yeah, I don't like exercising and I teach exercises, you know, but I don't like it. But here's the thing. But when I do it, and I am bmc, when I am exercising, just complaining or whining, but I feel so much better afterwards, right? So when I think about that wasn't so bad, and look how much better I feel. So if you can, if you're that type of person like me, I hate to exercise. But you like how you feel, and that gets your energy up, it gets your mood up, it helps your sleep. It also facilitates your weight loss. So there's a lot of benefits. So the benefits outweigh the things you have to do.
Jeanette Harris [00:24:02]:
Suck, as my patient would say, you got to embrace the suck. So it outweighs that if you can get past the suck till you, you know. Yeah.
Greg [00:24:12]:
Okay, so here's my next question for you. Diet, joint pain, Is there a correlation?
Jeanette Harris [00:24:20]:
I feel. Yeah.
Greg [00:24:21]:
Yeah. Is it sugar?
Jeanette Harris [00:24:24]:
A lot of it is sugar.
Greg [00:24:26]:
Sugar.
Jeanette Harris [00:24:26]:
Yeah.
Greg [00:24:30]:
There are. I know a family member is. Doesn't want to be on medication, I guess almost feels like it's a failure to have to be on meds for menopausal issues. So I guess my question that I would ask for her is how can I reduce the need for medication by improving my health naturally. Man, I feel like you've said a lot of the things you know, but do you hear. Let me even ask it to you in this way. Do you feel like there's a lot of people that they fight going on medication for this?
Jeanette Harris [00:25:06]:
I would say yes, because I was one of those. So I. I alluded to this a little bit earlier with the yo yo died dieting probably about four years ago, right around the COVID My A1C was high. I didn't realize it. Right. Went in for a checkup and then. So I was. It was like 5.7 almost, you know, pre diabetic, whatever, blah, blah, blah.
Jeanette Harris [00:25:33]:
Diabetes runs high in my family. Heart disease, cancer, you name it. Heart attacks, the whole whatever. So I was determined I was not going to continue the statistic in my family. A lot of my family members are on high blood pressure medication, you know, diabetes medicine, et cetera. So I did not want to continue that statistic. So I talked to the doctor. What are my solutions? And she.
Jeanette Harris [00:26:01]:
Her. Her immediate default was metformin. And I was so offended by her with that. But number one, that she. That was the only thing she came up with. But number two, she was a functional medicine doctor supposed to promote, you know, a more holistic approach. And this was her number one default for me.
Greg [00:26:25]:
So can you explain what metformin is because. Because I'm. I mean, I don't know what that is.
Jeanette Harris [00:26:29]:
Yeah, well, metformin is a common medication that they use to treat diabetes as opposed to help regulate your blood sugar. But there's. There's a gazillion side effects.
Greg [00:26:40]:
Gotcha. Okay.
Jeanette Harris [00:26:41]:
And so I can't remember. She's going down there, the list of side effects. And keep in mind, this was right in the beginning of COVID So we were doing a telehealth visit. I couldn't even go into the office. And so she's going down to this blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. And I couldn't remember anything she said except may cause diarrhea. So I said, because I really want to have diarrhea right now. And she was like, what? And I was like, yeah, because I really want to have that.
Jeanette Harris [00:27:10]:
And she's like, well, you know, you're at risk. And da, da, da, da, da. And I think you should get out of there. So I just like, yep, okay. And you know, sign me up for the little stick things, whatever, calling the prescription. But I never went to pick up the crap because I was like, I'm not doing this right. So I knew the benefits of changing my numbers through diet and exercise. So that's exactly what I did.
Jeanette Harris [00:27:39]:
I went on, I took a little stream approach because I was like, I'm going to show her. But I just radically changed my eating. So when I say radically, I literally like flipped the switch. No sugars, no whatever. I just started eating. I went plant based.
Greg [00:27:57]:
Right.
Jeanette Harris [00:27:59]:
I got off all processed stuff. I started exercising more consistently. Yeah. And, and how I got my exercise and I would do it with my patients.
Greg [00:28:11]:
Right.
Jeanette Harris [00:28:11]:
So I've figured out if I saw 10 patients a day, to hit 10 squats with 10 patients, that's 100 squats.
Greg [00:28:17]:
Right, right, right. Yeah. That's amazing.
Jeanette Harris [00:28:19]:
Yeah. And so fast forward, I think within a month or so, I had to follow up with her, did more blood work, My numbers were where they were. I had lost weight, I was feeling better. So then I just continued the plant based lifestyle journey.
Greg [00:28:37]:
We're going to talk more about the plant based because I know that's a huge way that you have been able to really navigate through this menopausal journey. But you just mentioned exercise, and I know you don't like to talk about a lot, but you said I did 10 squats for every single patient. Some days when you're seeing 10 patients, you did a hundred squats. Okay. Now exercising is very for a Lot of people that are dealing with the joint pain, symptoms of menopause, even squatting like that is an issue for them.
Jeanette Harris [00:29:09]:
Right.
Greg [00:29:10]:
So what would you say to them? Okay, they want to exercise, they want to do something, they can't squat.
Jeanette Harris [00:29:18]:
Right.
Greg [00:29:19]:
What else can I do?
Jeanette Harris [00:29:20]:
Okay, well, can we walk? Can we start walking? And if it's painful to walk on land, do you have access to a pool where you can walk in the pool and exercise in a pool? Or even you don't have to do squats. I just use that as an example. I did other exercises like with my patients, but I was like, oh, this is one way I can just kind of maximize stuff, even things you might enjoy, do dancing, something to get the heart rate up a little bit, get the body moving. You know, walking is kind of my default thing. But yeah, it doesn't have to be something super strenuous as long as you're getting the heart rate up and you're moving and you know, as you start to feel better and you have less pain, you'll be able to do more. The other big piece of it, people just really need to work on flexibility.
Greg [00:30:26]:
Right.
Jeanette Harris [00:30:26]:
They're so tight, you know, and the joints are, because they're just not moving. So maybe you need to just start with some flexibility, work some stretching, some breathing, get some oxygen in before you start going into all this, you know, a rope, you know.
Greg [00:30:42]:
Right.
Jeanette Harris [00:30:43]:
Biking is another great one. Swimming, all those kind of things are awesome.
Greg [00:30:48]:
So another question for you is, is it possible for me to lose weight quickly without risking my health? And, and I, and I, I, I, I would love for you to talk about your plant based approach if people are feeling like you're struggling with exercise. You gave some great examples, but is there ways to help to drop my weight and not put myself in jeopardy?
Jeanette Harris [00:31:22]:
Yes. So one of my friends that I talked to this a lot about, you know, there's again in the camp, you know, people can't count macros and cut calories. And so there's so many different approaches. I don't like doing none of that. I don't like to count, you know, I haven't done the weight watches and all that.
Greg [00:31:43]:
A lot of people are going to dig.
Jeanette Harris [00:31:44]:
They going to hate me.
Greg [00:31:46]:
No, no, no, they dick you. They won't dick you because they're like, listen, listen, I don't want to do any of that.
Jeanette Harris [00:31:51]:
I won't count nothing. I want to eat. I mean, that's what got me where I am. And lord, okay, I want to eat. So What I learned, you gotta eat to lose. And what I mean by that. Eat foods that create a calorie deficit in your body. If you're into the calorie thing, there's so many foods that are in the plant based world that you get so much bang for your buck that it creates a calorie deficit.
Jeanette Harris [00:32:21]:
Say for example, like your, your beans, your legumes, well, they're loaded with protein, they have fat, but they also have fiber.
Greg [00:32:30]:
Right.
Jeanette Harris [00:32:31]:
Fiber is what bulks you up. It makes you feel full, cleans your colon, makes you have those good healthy poops. A lot of us are just full of crap.
Greg [00:32:39]:
Yeah, Literally.
Jeanette Harris [00:32:40]:
Literally. And that's some of our weight and that's also inflammation.
Greg [00:32:46]:
Right.
Jeanette Harris [00:32:46]:
If you're not taking the garbage out of your house, right. And it's funking up your house, if we're not, you know, since we over here, if we're not eliminating proper litter that is backing up in the body and that's creating, you know, inflammation and all kinds of other ish. So yeah, you have to eat to lose. Eat foods that are high calorie, good healthy fats because we do need fats. I'm not of that mindset. No fats, you gotta have your fats and that make you feel fuller, longer in eat. Eat till you're full and when you're ready, eat some more. Eat some more.
Jeanette Harris [00:33:26]:
And then you, you're going to find out pretty soon you're losing weight, but you're eating all this food. Now your higher products, if you, if we're talking about plant based, like your, you know, your animal products, your dairy, well, they have high fat and high protein, but they don't have high fiber.
Greg [00:33:47]:
Right.
Jeanette Harris [00:33:48]:
So they're not gonna move through your system quick enough and they're not gonna keep you satiated as long as well.
Greg [00:33:55]:
Gotcha. That makes sense. That makes sense. We've talked about a lot of different solutions, a lot of different things, plant based types of foods, exercise and a lot of great stuff. And I know I hit on this earlier, but it's balancing it all. I want you to talk right now to that person just like, I got to balance my family, I got to balance my work life, I got to balance everything. How do I do all of this and make these changes, try to balance family, work and my health goals. How do I do.
Jeanette Harris [00:34:35]:
Is a tough one. It's a struggle. You know, I, I'm, I'm a born again believer, so I incorporate prayer number one. I asked, you know, I asked the Lord for guidance to help me figure out the things I need to figure out for that day. Definitely. If you're a person that needs structure initially or you know, some people need it all the way through, plan it out. You know, plan out your meals. You know, schedule the times that you, you know, going to eat because you want to set yourself up for success.
Jeanette Harris [00:35:15]:
And so if your family's on board with you, then this is something that you can do together. But sometimes that's not the case. You might be wanting to transition to plant based and they want steak.
Greg [00:35:29]:
Right.
Jeanette Harris [00:35:29]:
So you gotta, you gotta figure that out and, and be, and be okay with that. And so having a structure where you have that all figured out. Well, okay, I'm going to meal prep. So I make sure that I have what I need to eat for the day so I'm not in a stress and you know, running out, grabbing the Snickers bar divinity machine. So you, you know, so it's a little extra work a little bit in the beginning, but then once you got your systems down, it's quick and fast, right. You can, you know, you learn how to have meals ready in 30 minutes or less. That's usually how quick I get, you know, stuff on the table. And it's not, it's not like fast food, but it's food that's fast and healthy.
Greg [00:36:19]:
Right, Gotcha. Okay, that makes sense. Confidence. Okay, can we talk about building confidence? I think as your body is changing, you're going through a lot of these different changes. Not feeling like you're the person that you were before. And I believe sometimes we lose that self confidence. Maybe it just could be in the image of what we're seeing in the mirror. Can you talk to that person that is struggling with their self confidence? How do they build their self self confidence back while they're in middle pause.
Greg [00:36:54]:
They're in this middle life. So they're confident to go and do what they need to do for the world.
Jeanette Harris [00:37:00]:
Yeah, yeah, that's, that's a good one. That's a tough one. I feel like it's important to do a lot of self talk. You know, the, the me that I see when I look in the mirror. You have to, I feel like a person has to speak to that image that they see. When we're in the middle of these things, sometimes it's so hard to see the end result.
Greg [00:37:27]:
Right.
Jeanette Harris [00:37:28]:
But you got to call those things which be not as though they were. If we're going to go by the word so we have to speak to the things that we Want even before we see it. That's part of that faith walk, in exercising, so in building confidence. And I was thinking about it this morning. The most two. The most two powerful words I am. And everything that the Lord created, you know, he spoke into existence. So our words have creative power.
Jeanette Harris [00:38:06]:
Whether we believe it or not. That is what it is. So we.
Greg [00:38:09]:
Can you preach enough? We're preaching now.
Jeanette Harris [00:38:11]:
All right, then. So it is. You know, let it come on. But, yes, we speak what we want into existence, and we also speak what we don't want into existence. So. And I know it's hard when you see yourself looking a certain kind of way and you're feeling a certain kind of way, and the enemy is constantly coming at you and saying, look at you. You, yo, yo, die. You failed again.
Jeanette Harris [00:38:36]:
You big, you fat, you ugly. Blah, blah, blah. We got to shut all that down because he's a liar and a thief and an enemy, and the truth ain't in him, and he's a destroyer. So while he's over here, in this ear, we got to pull up the word, you know, and if you're not a Bible believer, you find positive things that you can say about yourself. So when you hear, I'm ugly over here, I'm beautiful. I am the apple of the Lord's eye. He saw me and called it good. You know, you gotta say those things to yourself.
Jeanette Harris [00:39:13]:
So what, the enemy's telling you what you are not. You're over here saying, I'm beautiful. I'm strong. I'm confident. I'm a winner. I will do this. I can do this. I can do all things through Christ who strengthened me.
Jeanette Harris [00:39:28]:
You know, the righteous are as bold as a lion. I have boldness. I have no fear. Faith overcomes fear. So. So this is how we take our words and speak into existence what we want. Because the moment we start saying, I can't do that. Oh, I ain't.
Jeanette Harris [00:39:48]:
This. You affirming. You're giving power to that. And do you know, we do exactly what we said we can't do. So why are we surprised when it didn't happen? We spoke that into existence. Whether we believe it or not, that is what it is because we are created after Him, So we have that power and that capability. So it is a challenge even for myself. It's daily.
Jeanette Harris [00:40:15]:
It's daily work because the enemy, and we talked about this earlier, he's always on his job. He ain't never failing. He brings friends. And so they're always. These attacks are always coming at us. Seen and unseen. So we got to stay on our game because he's not letting up. And so we can't let up every day.
Jeanette Harris [00:40:33]:
We got to suit up our armor, our mental armor, our armor that protects our heart. You know, and sometimes I know for me, the biggest enemy outside of the double is myself because I'm listening to the foolishness he's telling me. So what I would say to that woman that's out there struggling, you got to make it. You got to make a choice. You got to stand on your square. Whose report are you going to believe? Are you going to believe the issue over here just because you see it in the mirror? That's temporary? Or are you going to believe the possibilities of what you know, the most high say you are, that you're beautiful, you're strong, you're confident, he made you good, you're perfect, you're striving for perfection. You know, you're becoming more complete in him and in your purpose for him. Because we all were put here for a purpose outside of ourselves.
Jeanette Harris [00:41:35]:
Like you said earlier, we're put here to serve. So. And once we're in, you know, our purpose calling, that also creates confidence because we now, okay, I'm doing what I'm supposed to do. I'm not over here dilly dallying and messing around and listening to foolishness over here. I'm over here walking in my purpose, my goal. So, yes, mind talk. Get your mind right. Talk to that mind.
Greg [00:42:05]:
Well, I'm gonna take out that piece of the podcast. That was about three minutes. Oh, I'm gonna take that out.
Jeanette Harris [00:42:12]:
Okay.
Greg [00:42:13]:
I guarantee you, like, because I'm sitting with what you just said from me, I guarantee you that's going to help hundreds of thousands of people. What you just said. If you came here to my studio for us to do the interview for that three minute clip, it is going to talk to millions of women.
Jeanette Harris [00:42:37]:
Wow. All praises.
Greg [00:42:39]:
Okay. It's going to talk to millions of women. It just. And by the way, I'm sorry I noticed a podcast, but like, I'm sorry, I'm, I'm like, I felt that. I felt that for me. I guess maybe I am. I don't know if I'm struggling with middle, middle pause. But I, I felt like that was for me.
Greg [00:42:57]:
I feel like so many people like, oh, my gosh. That was for me. Yeah, that was for me. There's so much selft talk that's going on. Doesn't matter what level you get to Jeanette. Okay. The self talk and, and and everything you said is, is, Is so true. It's.
Greg [00:43:12]:
It's the enemy that is putting this. And then we're usually second, second in command to the enemy and, and allowing these things to get in play. I just, I'm just telling you right now, I'm cutting that out. So. Okay, I'll, I'll give you credit for it, but it's all my puffer.
Jeanette Harris [00:43:29]:
I take no credit for that. Surely the Lord could speaking to me too, because I know that. Yeah, yeah, no, I know. But yeah, that's, that's where we are. We're in a war.
Greg [00:43:39]:
We are in a war. We are. Okay, I've got to ask you two more questions. So. Okay, let's just say, you know, we have people that are listening, like. All right, I really, I do intent on making these choices, but I also have the family pressure.
Jeanette Harris [00:43:58]:
Yeah.
Greg [00:43:58]:
You know, the social events, this, that. Da, da, da, da, da. So, Connie, can you explain how you would give them advice on navigating the social pressures, the family pressures, in order to make their life better?
Jeanette Harris [00:44:12]:
Oh, Lord. Yes, Lord. Because we are in the social season. We just got through Halloween and it's, you know, so called Thanksgiving. And so all the way up, it's. That's a cycle of gatherings. A lot of times your family and even your friends aren't going to understand because there's so much emotion surrounding eating. You know, in gatherings, we eat when we're happy, we eat when we sad, we eat when we mad, all of that.
Jeanette Harris [00:44:44]:
So what I would say is you don't want to remove yourself from. From social gatherings unless you feel like it's just going to be too much pressure because they'd be like, oh, come on, eat this tater salad. You know, girl, it's good. Mama made this. And the next thing you know, you open the table salad. Okay, so what I suggest, when you're going around family and friends, you take things that you can bring that, you know, you can eat at the gathering and share with the family and make not, you know, try not to make a really big deal out because then they, you know, they just be revving you for that. Ah, Lord, that ain't got no flavor. What's that salt and pepper in that? You know, you know how folk be doing.
Jeanette Harris [00:45:35]:
So you just, you know, you make things. If you're going to Thanksgiving dinner and you want to be there with family and friends, there's several ways you can handle it. You can take things that you, you know, most of the time people are bringing food to Share anyway. So you make several things that you can eat and share or make things that are very similar that's gonna help you stay on your plan. Like if it's, you know, a salad or whatever. There's things that are gonna help you stay on the plan. Still be able to partake in social gatherings and not feel I have to stay away or I can't, can't be, you know, be a part of that. So that's what I would do.
Jeanette Harris [00:46:17]:
You can eat before so that when you get there, you're not as hungry.
Greg [00:46:22]:
Right.
Jeanette Harris [00:46:22]:
You just snacking on appetizers. Appetizers. So. So there's a lot of different ways you can. Can handle that and still be a part of the gathering and not feel like I've got to dip or, you know.
Greg [00:46:37]:
Yeah, I feel like you've given so much amazing advice and counsel to people that are going through. Middle pause.
Jeanette Harris [00:46:49]:
Middle pause. I'm taking that one.
Greg [00:46:51]:
Okay, that's fine. But I'm taking that three minutes.
Jeanette Harris [00:46:53]:
Okay.
Greg [00:46:55]:
All right. And I really do think that people have listened to this podcast and they're like, okay, I want to make changes, but you know what people are mostly afraid of, so let's just hit the elephant room. Yeah, what, so what if I fail again? What if I fail again? And how do I make sure that this time is different? Because the majority of people that are listening have tried one of the things that you've recommended possibly, and they've gone. They fall off. They've fallen off the wagon. So now they want to know, how can I make sure that this time is different? But what would you tell them?
Jeanette Harris [00:47:36]:
Definitely a little bit of self reflection. Looking at where. Where the hiccups came in, where. Where you did fall off. Is there a pattern to that? What can you do different with that? Sometimes it's, again, you're not. You put yourself in situations where you kind of self sabotage if you're not emotionally strong enough to stave off that, you know, the self sabotage. So it might be evaluating that. The other piece of that is you may need an accountability partner or a group of people who are on the journey with you, because we tend to do things very well for other people or when we're in a group or if somebody's like, hey, I'm be calling you at 5:00 to see if you had your four glasses of water today or whatever.
Jeanette Harris [00:48:33]:
And you're like, it's 4:48 and I've only drank one. So you like, you know, that kind of thing. So I Feel like having accountability through either group. You know, people who understand and get you, that can love you enough and support you, but also help you, like, you know, hey, okay, we got to get back on track. So that piece of it. And then also a little bit of introspection or self reflection, like, okay, where. What can I do differently? And again, just giving yourself some grace. Gotta give us.
Jeanette Harris [00:49:08]:
Oh, my God, we're so hard on ourselves because this. This cat over here telling us, oh, you know, fell again. Give yourself some grace, knowing that if you fall down, a righteous man falls down seven times, but he gets back up. You got to get back up again.
Greg [00:49:24]:
Right?
Jeanette Harris [00:49:25]:
Gotta get back up again.
Greg [00:49:26]:
Wow.
Jeanette Harris [00:49:26]:
Gotta get back up again and keep moving forward, because it's not. This is a lifestyle journey. It's not a destination. Yeah, we're on a journey.
Greg [00:49:39]:
Wow. You need to do more podcast episodes.
Jeanette Harris [00:49:43]:
What? No.
Greg [00:49:45]:
You know, it's all right. I'm gonna end it, but I'm not.
Jeanette Harris [00:49:50]:
Hold on.
Greg [00:49:50]:
I gotta just say one thing first. It's like, you know, this is a reason why I do this and part of the reason. And by the way, I'm even this studio, I'm up on my lease, just letting you all know, podcast, I'm gonna still have my podcast no matter what. But I am up on my lease, and I. I'm really conflicted on what I do, you know, because initially, as a team, we. We decided that, like, we're getting out of this office and we're going to go virtually. You see, I have all the homes and whatnot, so we can do things there. But part of me feels like I love.
Greg [00:50:32]:
This is the only thing that I want to keep out of this whole office. It's this. And you want to know what I want to keep it for? Because I believe it gives a platform to people that already have the blessing. Sometimes just putting you in a room like this and just letting people that don't usually speak speak, they can find their voice.
Jeanette Harris [00:50:52]:
Right.
Greg [00:50:53]:
I hope today you realize you found your voice.
Jeanette Harris [00:50:56]:
I believe I have. I didn't even realize I had it that much in me.
Greg [00:50:59]:
Yeah, you really do. You really do. And. And so anyways, this has been. This has been fantastic. This has been one of my favorite, because I feel like I'm really thinking I got menopause, because there's a lot of things I'm like, I'm booty, I'm irritable, I'm cranky, can't lose weight, and I'm here to help me out. So that's why I'm going to call it mental pause. All right, so, anyways.
Greg [00:51:25]:
No, really, I'm being dead serious now. Yeah. You've helped so many. I know you've helped me, and I know it's going to allow me to help more people. And. And I just want to thank you for coming on. This is fantastic.
Jeanette Harris [00:51:38]:
Thank you. Thank you for having. You have helped me as well. So I really appreciate the opportunity to be here. Thank you so much.
Greg [00:51:45]:
This has been fantastic. Thank you.
Jeanette Harris [00:51:46]:
That was easy.
