Episode 138: ER Doc: "We Were Never Taught This in Med School!"

So many women feel gaslit by their doc because, as of now, doctors aren't being taught about menopause in med school!

Check out Gina's story of utter frustration to taking control, as an ER doc who never learning this in school.

If you prefer video, you can watch these podcast episodes on YouTube as well: https://www.youtube.com/@mindstrongfitness2541

Check out my (free) workshop, How to Fire Up Your Metabolism in Menopause and Beyond right here: www.MindStrongFitness.com

Transcript

Becoming MindStrong Podcast: ER Doc: We Were Never Taught This in Med School!
00:00
Welcome back to the becoming mind strong podcast. My name is Rachel, and I'm the founder
and CEO of mind strong, where, for nearly a decade now, we've been helping menopausal
women heal their metabolisms, put themselves back in the driver's seat of their health, and
take control. That's what it's all about, getting your life back. And we've been doing it for 1000s
of women for almost 10 years now, which is bananas. Today you're going to hear me dive deep
with Gina. And I think Gina's story resonates with so many women, because when she came to
me, she was like, Rachel, I have been promised the world more times than I can count, and
nobody's actually delivered. And I wanted to scoop her up through the zoom and be like, Yes, I
hear you. Because if you've listened to this podcast, you know that I hate the nutrition industry.
I almost didn't start mind strong fitness almost 10 years ago, because to this day, I don't want
to be associated with an industry filled with snake oil salesman promising the world if they
actually delivered, we wouldn't be here listening to this podcast. And what I love about Gina's
story is not that she went through that struggle, but being able to give her those keys to the
kingdom. Right? We are strong, intelligent women, and Gina's feeling was like, if you just teach
me how this works, I will do it. And to finally be able to give her that education, that knowledge,
we love to call it the keys to the kingdom, and put her in the driver's seat. It is a powerful,
powerful transformation. I can't wait for you to check it
01:34
out. Welcome to the becoming mind strong podcast, the official podcast of mind strong fitness. My name is Rachel, and I'm the CEO of mind strong. And we are here for two things. We're here
for hope in a stage of life where it feels like we are doing everything right and nothing is
working. I am here to tell you you are not broken. This is fixable, and I promise there is hope.
And number two, we are here for truth in an industry that is designed to keep us confused with
shake systems and point systems and frozen meals, I promise you it doesn't have to be that
difficult. Someone can teach you the skill of riding a bike, someone can teach you the skill of
knitting, and I can teach you to master the skill of nutrition. So are you ready? Let's rock and
roll.
02:32
If you think back about 12 weeks ago now to pre ignite Gina, can you tell us a little bit about
what was going on, whether it's physically, mentally, emotionally, like, what brought you into
this world of mind? Strong? Yeah, I think I was kind of at my
02:48
lowest point.
02:51
You know, throughout my life, I've always been in relatively decent shape. I
02:56
don't think I really had to work that hard to stay in shape until my later years, when I got into
my 40s, and then I noticed something was kind of changing, and so I started focusing on
nutrition and exercise and really focusing on calories in, calories out. And then I hit
perimenopause, and it was about a year and a half ago, and all of a sudden my waist. I don't
know what happened to my waist? So I started researching what to do. And there's a lot of
information out there, but what I noticed, you know, focusing on protein and fiber and still the
working out. But what I noticed is all these programs that are out there that are designed to
help you with health and fitness, and especially in this difficult time in our lives, they're all
about taking a pill. They're all about taking supplements. They're all about, you know, put this
in your body and it's a magical pill, and oh my gosh, I got just got so frustrated, I thought, well,
there's no help out there. And I didn't know what to do.
03:59
I'm not really on social media that much. But every once in a while I look at Instagram, and so
you get all these feeds of, hey, take this quiz about menopause, perimenopause. This is what
you do. And I
04:13
just got disgusted with the whole thing. But one day, your post was in my Insta feed, and it was
about your menopause seminar. And I thought, Well, okay, fine. This is probably another scam,
but let me just, let me just see what this lady has to say. You seemed really engaging. And I
thought, Okay. And I listened to it, and
04:37
the more we got into I think it was an hour long lecture, the more you got into it, I thought, oh
my gosh, she she knows what she's talking about, and this makes sense. She's not selling me a
pill. She's actually selling we're not selling me, but going to teach me something.
04:54
And this information is not out there, because I've been looking for this information for a year
and a half.
05:00
Staff. And
05:03
I don't know I had to. It took me. It took me a bit to actually reach out and make that initial
meeting, but I thought I just have to try, because it seems like it's something. And so I met with
the lady, and I still was a little doubtful, but I thought, kept thinking back that lecture really
struck me.
05:24
Rachel knows what she's talking about. I'm just going to take a leap of faith and do it. And so I
did, and I was still pretty doubtful in the first couple weeks, honestly,
05:36
and now I just, I'm I just am so overjoyed. I think this just a life changing
05:43
situation for me, and I just, I love it, yeah, I know that's one of the big things you and I
connected on when we were chatting, is that education piece, right? Like so many women that
we talk to, are they've just, they've done the research, they want the knowledge. But as you're
saying, everything out there is like, well, take this pill, cut this out, do this diet, and it's like, it
doesn't have to be that complicated. We just need someone to educate. And I love that. That
was the part that that resonated for you, because that's why I do what I do is, as a former
teacher, it's like, let's just cut through the BS and let me teach you how to do this so we're
done with it. Yeah. I mean, you, you were actually teaching us how to live. You have medical
doctors that are out there on the internet giving up. I mean, there are a bunch of snake oil
salesmen, and it just makes me so sad that women are getting sucked into
06:30
fallacies, and you're giving us facts and science, and we just need to
06:37
break down who we are and listen and learn and we change, and it's amazing. Yeah, I like say
the work works when you do the work, but the problem is, most people don't know how to do
the work because their their Instagram feed is filled with marketing BS, to put it bluntly, yeah.
And we are completely in a society of quick fixes. We're into bigger, better, best, whatever is
going to get us fast, whether it's a pill, whether it's a drink, whether it's a new form coffee,
whether it's a you know, follow this diet, whether it's a certain type of workout, and you have to
get away from that mindset and go back to the basics, which is what you guide us on. Yeah.
That makes my heart so happy. Wow.
07:22
So I love some good skepticism. I always tell people like, what I never want to be is another do
as I say thing, right? Because we've, we've run the gamut on eat this, don't eat this, and just
blindly following. Like, I was always that kid that said, But why, but why, but why. And I never
grew out of it. So when people come to me and they're like, I'm a little skeptical. I'm like, Good,
let's be skeptical, because that means your eyes are open and the science will always science.
Like, when we do the work, you'll see that it works. So I said all that to say you get started,
you're still a little skeptical. Do you remember any specific moments in those first few weeks
where it was like, Ooh, like, this feels different, like things are starting to click. Any aha
moments where you realize that you're actually walking the path this time? Yeah, I actually,
actually had two,
08:10
the first one just in starting to track my macros. Because I've done tracking before. I've actually
done many, many years of tracking, but I didn't really have any guidance on what I was
supposed to do with that tracking, and I really was focused on calories and calories out. So
when I started tracking and was very consistent with my macros, I decided to go back to see
what I used to do and the pattern of these wild swings in my macro amounts, and I mean
unbelievable swings in my caloric intake, I would go from days where I'd have maybe 1000
calories to 2000 calories. And I remember my mindset was, well, if I eat more, I'll just work out
more, and I'll keep that caloric deficit, and I should be fine, but the swings were just
unbelievable, and my macros were completely off. You know, I had for the last year, been
pretty steadily tracking my protein and fiber, because that's what you're supposed to do in
perimenopause. But I pretty much was ignoring my carbs and fats and didn't realize that, oh
my gosh, I was just all over the place. So the first aha moment was, Oh, I've been completely
screwing my metabolism, even though I was thinking I was doing something right real quickly
before we keep going in this episode, we are talking a lot about metabolisms in menopause in
today's episode. So I want to offer you a chance to deepen your knowledge. If you haven't yet
checked out my free workshop how to fire up your metabolism in menopause and beyond. It is
one of my go to favorite pieces of content that I have out here in the interwebs. You can use
the link in the show notes below, or go to mind strong fitness.com and you'll get a cute little
pop up that'll get you straight into the workshop. Now let's get back to the show.
09:58
And that's really.
10:00
Made me
10:01
motivated to get this down, get this macro tracking down to a practice a habit, and became a
lot easier when I realized that, but I think
10:15
more profoundly so it was. I was two months into this program, and we were going to go visit
family for a long weekend, and I really felt uneasy about not tracking, because I really want to
get this down. I want to be consistent. And I thought, Okay, you guys have said don't track. And
so I thought, okay, maybe I shouldn't track. And I even texted my coach and said, because I
think accountability is important, I said, Okay, I'm I'm going on a little long weekend. I'm not
going to track. And she said, good, don't do it. So I didn't. And when I got home, I completely
beat myself up. And I said, Why? Why? Why am I doing this program? I completely threw away
an entire weekend. I can't do this. I'm completely off track. I might as well quit. I'm I'm a failure,
and I
11:13
didn't know what to do. And I'm
11:15
kind of a private person, so I didn't reach out to my coach, but I got on your website, and
started just looking for what else is out there on your website. And I found your mindset videos,
and I knew that, I guess I knew that they were there, but I didn't look into them, and I started
watching them.
11:39
Oh my gosh, I can't I'm going to start tearing up. But I mean so profound at that moment where
I thought, you know, that had that voice in my head telling me that I'm a failure yet again.
11:51
And it was, it was amazing. And those videos on mindset made me turn around 180 degrees
and say, whatever, I got this, I'm going to get back on. I'm going to do my best. Not even going
to do my best. I'm going to do it.
12:08
And they did and and I've even, I've even, I don't, I don't monitor my weight, but I monitor my
waist circumference, and the mindset has made it so much easier to do the macro tracking,
and I'm noticing a difference, a vast difference, just in the last couple of weeks than this entire
program so far. And I really think it had to do with the mindset, yeah, but,
12:35
you know, behind the scenes, I talk about this a lot, but the coaches and I, it's not even a joke. I
say we joke about it, but we're not that weight loss is the simple part, right? Simple doesn't
always mean easy, but it's math and science. The work works when they do the work, it's this
part, though, right? And the reason that people are shocked when their coach will tell them, Oh,
you're going on vacation or you're going for a long weekend, you're not allowed to track, and
there's a very specific reason about that, because we believe in neuroscience, and right now,
our brain has been wired for decades upon decades that we're on a diet, off a diet, eating clean
or we messed it up, right? And if we want to truly wipe that slate clean and say, no, like, this is
not a diet I'm in, I'm in the driver's seat, I got educated, and that means that if I'm living life,
I'm going to have long weekends that revolve around family or friends, not food, and we need
to consciously rewire our brain for this new relationship where it's not all in all out black or
white, and that that was like, I mean, you've got the macro part down, but that is the glue that
holds this all together. That makes me so happy to hear. It's crazy. It's really crazy. I don't
know. I think back when I used to be in a little bit of education, you know, there's the teaching
the what, and there's the teaching the whys and the house. And I feel like your teaching of the
macros is the what. It's a skill. You get it down. It's what we need to do to nourish our bodies.
14:06
But in education, as I'm sure you you know, it's the why is in the house that matter? Why do I
think this way? Why am I feeling this way? Why? Why is this in my head, and how do I change
it? And I don't know. I just think it's so much more important than the macro tracking, tracking
easy, yeah, yeah, hands down. And I know, I know there are plenty of people out there that just
want to focus on the weight loss, but they won't get there unless they work on the mindset,
yeah, yeah. 100%
14:39
here. That's 100% true. Yeah, we say that all the time. People think they're coming to us to lose
15 pounds, like it's this. It's the relationship with food. It's the inner monolog. It's how we talk to
ourselves. It's all the stuff that you're saying that is the holy grail. The rest will happen, whether
you want it to or not. It's biology. It's going to happen exactly right? Yeah, yeah. And I think.
15:00
Interesting how it even extends into outside of this program, like when you change your
mindset in this program, you're changing your mindset in the rest of your life. And so I've
noticed that when I come up upon stressful situations, or I'm starting to I have this habit of
perseverating on a negative experience or something, and in your videos, you teach us how to
deal with that. And so it doesn't just help in this program, it helps in everyday life, where I'm no
longer perseverating on negative things, I'm identifying okay. Why am I thinking this, how is it
making me feel okay? How can I change that? And it's gone.
15:46
I mean, it's, it's more than just weight loss, it's more than just this program. It has permeated
my life, and it's making me better. I'm more positive. I feel better.
15:56
Oh my gosh, there's, there's no better compliment that I could get than hearing that it goes
well beyond this program, because that's the point. It really doesn't. More people would know
about this program, because it would change their lives. On that note, I'm going to put you in
the coach's chair for a second. Okay, let's pretend that on the other side of the zoom, instead of
it being me, that I am someone brand new to this? Maybe I saw my workshop floating around
on Instagram. I've got similar doubts that you do. Oh, this is going to be another scam. This is
going to be take this pill, and you're on a call with me as someone who's very hesitant, very
been promised the world, and no one's delivered, right? Because that is people ask me
sometimes, who's your biggest competition in the nutrition world? And my answer is, all the BS
out there.
16:46
What do you coach Gina say to skeptical Rachel who believes this is going to be another BS
scam out there?
16:56
Gosh, I guess I would say,
17:00
What do you want your life to look like in five years? Do you want to be where you are now in
five years? Or do you want to do something that makes a difference in your life, where you are,
who you want to be? And you don't even have to say five years, in one year, truly, yeah, in one
month.
17:24
Who do you want to be? And
17:27
if you want to be healthy, both in your body and your mind,
17:33
you don't want to pick a quick fix program. You want to be in a program where you're taught
how to do this, you're taught why you're doing this, and not just with the physicality of tracking
macros and making sure that you're nourishing your body,
17:51
but how and why you nourish your mind,
17:55
and you take it from there, and it's a life long experience. This isn't a quick fix. It's not going to
be easy, but it's going to change your world.
18:07
Yes, a freaking men. Amen to that. I forget a year. I mean, we've known each other 12 weeks,
and look at the way you're talking about how you talk to yourself is night and day. It really is,
and it didn't happen. It really didn't happen until after the second month. And those people that
are starting out right now, I would say, what do they say? It takes three weeks to make a habit.
I think that's kind of a saying. I would say, anybody who is starting out in this program jump on
the macro tracking. Get that down.
18:42
Because once you do get on to the mindset work and make that be the focus of the rest of your
12 weeks, I delayed that, and I think that was a huge mistake. Get on that mindset work as
soon as you can, and you'll be golden. Yeah, yeah, I love that. That's something we talk a lot
about, is the balance right in the beginning. Whether you're we, we work with two types of
women. So some come from your school. Of like, I've done macros before. I'm familiar with it. I
just didn't go all in on it, right? You were focused on protein and fiber. Some are, like, What in
the world are macros? Where do I start with this thing. So the way we always tell people is
everything we do has an element of mindset woven into it. It doesn't work without that. But for
a lot of people, in the beginning, it's like there's so much to learn about. How much protein do I
need? How do I play? I call it the game of Tetris, right? Eating foods that fit together. But once
you've got it, it's a matter of practicing the skill, tweaking, adjusting, right? All the stuff that
you're doing a few weeks in, it's like, now we're fine tuning, and that's where the fun begins,
because now it's like, okay, I got the logistics down. Let me deep dive into the why behind this.
And that's just, that's such a beautiful way of saying that that's such great advice. Yeah, I think
I.
20:00
And only imagine how it would feel
20:04
without the experience of trying to track before. I think it'd be really overwhelming.
20:11
But for for those people, I'd say, put down everything else. Don't Don't be looking on your
Facebook. Don't be looking on your Instagram. Use that time to really learn this skill, and the
advice that one of your videos gave about pre planning and pre practicing is huge. So in the
beginning, I would, you know, instead of watching the news, I would sit down with my phone
and start pre planning, pre practicing, and now it is just like an automatic skill. I'll have a day
off before a stretch of work, I'll be like, Okay, I'm planning out everything and making sure that
I am in my macros. And then it's so easy to throw meals together. The other night, I didn't have
time to do it, and at the last minute, I was like, Oh crap, I've got two days. I've got to plan really
quick. And so 10 minutes, I sat plugged in everything, had some anchor meals, calculated all
out, ran into the kitchen 15 minutes, had everything together for two days, done. Oh man, and I
was able to stay on track. And it felt so good. It felt so good. But that practice makes perfect,
and when you're not used to doing it, just that should be the focus as much as possible in the
first couple weeks, so you get it down, and then it's easy. Yeah, my favorite analogy is like,
when people learn to knit or crochet, right? Like the first times you're like this, and you're doing
two stitches and then tearing it apart, and then eventually you're like, in your chair talking to
your best friend, watching TV and not even thinking twice, like it's learning a skill, and there's a
learning curve up front, and it's going to take some time, especially if you don't have a
background in it, but that's it. Like on the other side of it, you want to make a blanket, you want
to make a sweater, like the sky is the limit because you've mastered a skill. So true, so true.
Oh, Gina, I wish I could hug you through the computer. I know.
21:59
Oh, my goodness,
22:01
I know what you're sharing is going to resonate with so many women, because that really is the
the biggest challenge in this nutrition industry is scrolling through social media being promised
the world, and none of it actually works. And you know, my backstory as a former teacher is
like I was either going to scream from the rooftops, it doesn't have to be this hard, or start a
company based in education, and you're just such a living, breathing example that when you
do the work, it works on the other side, and that means this, and it means this really, it really
is, I mean, it's amazing, it's amazing. Oh,
22:35
I can't thank you enough. I really can't enough. That means the world to me. Thank you so
much. You
22:45
For more information on mind strong fitness, or to apply for a free one to one strategy session
with my incredible all female team, visit www dot mindstrong fitness.com, you
23:00
you.