December 6, 2024 • 53 mins
In this episode we are joined by our first guest Nikki Virag who is a Health Coach, holding a Nutrition & Health Coaching Diploma and who is the Lead Health Coach with Beyond BMI which offers a multidisciplinary approach to weight management.
We delve into so many great topics about what is health coaching, the role it plays in weight management and the importance of a multidisciplinary support team.
We chat about everything from personal values and experiences, scepticism and success, the need to advocacy in breaking down stigma around the treatment of the disease of Obesity and so much more!
Sit back relax and enjoy the conversation!
Find Nikki Here: https://www.instagram.com/eatbetterlivemore/
Combined Paddy & Belindas weight loss totals over 150lbs supported by GLP1 Medications Ozempic & Mounjaro.
None of the content in this episode is to be treated as personal medical advice. Always seek out personal support from your GP / Medical Care team before beginning or changing any aspect of your healthcare.
We are not medically qualified - simply sharing our insights based on our journeys so far. Paddy is a Qualified Personal Trainer & Nutritional Coach.
Find Paddy Here:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mounjaropaddy/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mounjaropaddy
Find Belinda Here:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ozempic_insights/
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@ozempic_insights3
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:04):
Welcome to The Dose with Paddy and Belinda, your podcast for
all things weight loss and GLP One.
Remember, the information withinthis podcast should not be taken
as personal medical advice. Always consult your own
healthcare team before starting or changing any medical
treatment. For now, sit back, relax and
enjoy the conversation. It's the Dose with Paddy and
(00:26):
Belinda and hello to you. You are welcome along to another
episode of the dose with myself,Paddy Cunningham and Belinda
where we talk about all things GLP one treatment and indeed,
uh, Wellness and weight loss. Today we have a fantastic
conversation, uh, lined up, but I'm not going to tell you all
about that. I'm going to hand over to
Belinda who is going to give us a little bit more of an insight
(00:48):
about today's chat. Thank you very much, Paddy.
So today's episode is something really special and I think it's
one that's going to resonate deeply with so many of you.
We're diving into a topic that'sat the heart of lasting
transformation, what it means tohave someone truly in your
corner, guiding and supporting you at every step of the way.
(01:08):
I'm thrilled to introduce somebody who has been a pillar
of strength and guidance in my own journey, my incredible
health coach, Nikki. For the past 18 months, she's
been by my side, helping me navigate not just the practical
aspects of my health, but also the mindset shifts, the wins and
even the setbacks. Today, we'll uncover the vital
(01:30):
role of health, what a health coach plays in helping people
transform their lives. We'll talk about what you should
expect from a coach, the unique ways they provide support, and
how they can empower you to achieve lasting change.
Trust me, this is going to be aninspiring conversation that you
won't want to miss. So without further ado, let's
(01:51):
welcome Nikki. Hey, Nikki.
Hi, Teddy. That's an introduction.
Thank you. Very true.
And thank you, Nikki, for being here.
We're delighted to have you. Yeah, of.
Course, I'm so happy to be here.You're very welcome to our
virtual studio. You know, with the with the
cleaners in, we tied it up and everything just.
(02:11):
I did blur my background just for you guys so.
I haven't figured out how to do that yet.
Yeah, I will though. No, no, we can't teach you more
tech stuff, No. Forget it and ask you again.
So let's go, Nikki. I would love to know.
Let's start at, I guess the veryfundamentals for somebody that
mightn't be familiar with what ahealth coach is or a coach in
(02:34):
general and kind of the role that that person plays.
So to start with, if you were speaking to somebody, what is
your kind of elevator pitch for what it is you do?
OK. That's a great question.
It makes sense to start with that and the elevator pitch
might be long, so we might need to take a lot of a lot of space
(02:56):
instead. But essentially health coaching
is a quite new concept within healthcare.
So in the UK it is actually a quite popular concept that's
already integrated in NHS versusin Ireland we are a little bit
behind with that. But regardless it, it's become a
really, really important part and support for for anyone
(03:19):
really. But essentially health coaching
is a very collaborative process where we look into different
developing areas of of the individual, trying to establish
what would help them to basically reach their health
goals. So everyone is having individual
challenges in their lives, whether it's the area or in
(03:41):
stress management or physical activity.
Sometimes it's about their energy or how they sleep, but
these are all really important pillars of our well-being.
So health coach meets you where you are at, very importantly
looking at what's going on at the moment in your life and
really look into this goal. So where you want, where do you
want to get in the future? Do you have any goals in mind?
(04:04):
Is there any area in your life that you feel deserves some
attention to get you there? And health coaching, very
importantly give you that space to talk and to share what's
going on. And I think that's one of those
things that's really missing in healthcare in general.
Having that space and having somebody that actually listens
to you, there can be so many individual circumstances and
(04:27):
challenges that prevents us fromgetting there, from really
improving how we feel from day-to-day.
So a health coach can help you to find what direction is is
best aligned with where you are at.
And of course, that's what aligns with your values.
I think we are really geared towards quick fixes and
one-size-fits-all approaches. And I think we all know that
(04:49):
that doesn't really work on a longer term.
So it's all about making sustainable changes.
And, and for that we need, we need a little bit of a support
system. So that's what the health coach
is for. It's a, it's a really broad role
and there are a lot of areas to we can address together.
Yeah, and I know, thank you thatthat's fantastic, brilliant.
(05:09):
And I'm on the I'm in a hotel atthe moment and I'm on the 12th
floor. So that definitely is a great
elevator pitch to pass the time as opposed to the awkward
silence that I've had in the lift all week.
And I've gotten into it, that's what it is.
But like both myself and Belindaare like huge advocates,
particularly for people that arestarting out on a journey like
the ones I guess we have been onthat are supported by a
(05:30):
relatively new medication. But even for folks that aren't
it, but a huge advocates for that multidisciplinary approach
of which a health, which is partof that.
Umm, So I think it's, it's greatto help people understand.
Ah, so rather than maybe just thinking, I need my doctor,
which is a crucial part of it, or my pharmacist, which is a
crucial part of it as well, or maybe a personal trainer, which
(05:51):
is, you know, an important part of journeys like this for people
as well. That they're, I, I've kind of
seen a health coach as a person that can almost like tie that
ribbon off, bringing so many of those different areas together
for somebody to try and see, OK,what's going well, what isn't,
what barriers, what blockers do you have and haven't to
discipline. Actually, it only happened this
morning on TikTok. I got a message from a person,
(06:15):
um, that was saying to me, hey, I'm working with a health coach
at the moment, but I'm finding it really uncomfortable having
to go in and talk with them. And do you think it's important
that I still continue with that?And I, I don't have my phone
here at me now treat out the reply.
But basically it was along the lines of, I said, the fact that
you're finding it uncomfortable indicates to me the exact reason
why you need to go and be in that space.
(06:37):
And you need to open up to thosehealth coaches about the fact
that you're finding discomfort by going and meeting with them
because there's some reason for that.
There's some trigger or underlying thing thing.
That you haven't spoken about. That I think could be useful to
open up, you know, don't worry, the health coach isn't going to
be a offended if you say, oh, I'm not enjoying this or it's
uncomfortable for me. And if anything, they're
(06:59):
probably going to really appreciate the fact that you're
recognising there's discomfort with some aspect of this
journey. And even if you can't uncover
why, they'll be able to help youuncover why.
So like, yeah. Yeah, yeah.
That's fascinating and it's really interesting.
By the end, I think it does highlight that health coaching
is a very collaborative process.So it is a partnership and it's
(07:21):
really important to create a safe space for someone is happy
and OK to share. And that discomfort, it's also
something that we can explore together if you're happy to do
it. And that's really important.
So we we need to know what you are ready for and what you feel
you're ready for. And if you encounter discomfort,
(07:42):
sometimes there's just a sign ofsomething's changing or
something that you know is is isin the process of
transformation. So discomfort is not a bad
thing. If we are OK to sit with that
discomfort, it can lead to fantastic transformations.
But it's hard. Yeah, yeah, it's hard.
It's hard to sit with that discomfort, isn't it?
(08:04):
I mean, I know, I know. Like health coaching is
extremely holistic. It is.
I don't think people understand how holistic it is that it does
touch every single part of your life.
When you go into health coaching, you can't just talk
about one subject because every single subject in your life
(08:25):
touches every other subject, doesn't it?
You know, Umm, but I will say that I, I was uncomfortable as
well. Not because I was in a, uh,
online room with you, Nikki, just uncomfortable with the
stuff that was coming up for me that I've never had a space
where I was able to talk about those kind of things ever.
And I, and I talk about it all. I used to talk about it all the
(08:46):
time on my Instagram as well, like the revelations that came
out of having a health coach andthe self-awareness that you come
away with. Umm, it's an investment.
I think it's definitely an investment in yourself,
especially if you're going on this journey.
Yeah, that we're on. Yeah, I think, I wonder, Nikki,
do you think that sometimes, like if I think of my journey
(09:07):
and experience over the years, like more recently and even
before and I've worked with different types of coaches and
that and sometimes that discomfort can come from, for me
anyway, the fact that there's almost like a mirror being shown
back at me. Whereas when I guess I lived
with obesity for the past, I'll say lifetime, um, you know, kind
(09:27):
of up until this year and kind of finally, I think getting
proper, um, control over life maybe a bit more.
But when that mirror was kind ofbeing shown back at me, I was
uncomfortable with that because I've lived a life of deflection,
of trying to not be the center of attention for.
And some people find that gas given that I do work on radio
and stuff like that and the stuff online.
(09:49):
But again, you're putting stuff out there to deflect bits that
maybe you're uncomfortable with.And when I started having
conversations with people about,UMM, trying to uncover, you
know, some of my behaviors or habits or thoughts about myself
or stuff like that, umm, it was difficult.
It was difficult, like a few years ago, I went to UMM, a
therapist, umm, and it was one of the best experience ever had.
(10:12):
But, and I've talked about this before in a previous podcast,
but umm, in one of the sessions she was like, Paddy, I just love
to, you know, for you to tell your stuff that you're awesome.
And I was like, oh, why would I?Why, why would I?
Why would I think about myself like that?
What's going on here? I know this was a few sessions
in. It wasn't like session one.
(10:33):
And I sat there, I say for like half hour, 45 minutes, just
boiled my eyes out crying because I just was like, why?
Why this focus on me? What?
What's going on here? Why?
Why do I have to say this and not that I was being forced to
say it. There was space being held for
me in a very safe space, and that was probably equally one of
the most powerful sessions I hadwith the therapist at that point
(10:56):
because by the end of the session, even if it did take
nearly an hour, we got to that place of me being able to
recognize that. You're not what you thought you
were. Yeah.
It that like my, my weight didn't define my ability to be a
good human being and to be a value to other people.
Yeah. Yeah, thanks for sharing that
(11:18):
buddy. I think you brought up something
really important. So whoever embarks on GLP one
journey as well or any kind of anti obesity medications, it can
be a very emotional journey, especially at the start, but
even going away. So it can bring up a range of
emotions and it's really important to have that support
(11:41):
system where there is space for those emotions.
It is not easy. It can be very challenging
because first of all, even making that decision is, is
very, very challenging. So I'm sure you both had that,
had that time when it was really, really, it felt
vulnerable maybe even to, to, toembark on those journeys.
(12:02):
But the having that support system, that multidisciplinary
approach is, is really importantbecause our health, our
well-being, it's really complex.It's not, it's very
multifaceted. It's not bad medication.
It's not just about an area, it's a, it's a harmony, it's a
Symphony between all of them. And it all has to work together,
doesn't it, In harmony. Yeah.
(12:23):
Like for the first six months ofmy journey, I had started my
journey on my own. I had just read about Ozempic in
a magazine that my aunt had toldmy mum about.
And I will say that I don't think if I hadn't have had my
health coach you, Nikki, I don'tthink that I would still be on
(12:45):
this journey because it's extremely hard for some people
to go through the emotions at the start to realise that, Oh my
God, is this what my life is supposed to be like when the
food noise turns off. And that's jarring for some
(13:05):
people. I felt it quite jarring as well
when I realised that that's not the way every other person in
the world is when it's taken away from you and when it stops.
And then also I, I talk about this as well, is the mourning
for food as well because I, thatwas my crutch my whole life.
I used food as a crutch. Happy, sad, whatever.
(13:28):
Every other motion in between there, I used that.
I also used to soothe myself. And then all of a sudden I
didn't have that anymore and I didn't know what was going on.
And I remember standing in my kitchen being really, really
upset about something once. And I was four months in, I
think, and not standing in my kitchen not knowing what to do
because I couldn't reach for thefood.
(13:50):
I just couldn't. And that is an awful lot of
stuff for one person to go through on their own.
Keeping in mind as well there wasn't as much social media over
two years ago. There wasn't.
I couldn't find anyone in Ireland that has said one single
word on social media, hardly about Ozempic.
So I was glad to come into the health coaching when I did
(14:16):
because I think I might have, I might not have stayed on it
because it was tough. It was tough.
And and you do need support. You absolutely do when you're
going through it, you know, especially at the start.
Yeah, yeah. And thanks for sharing that
experience with Belinda. I think it's very valid and a
lot of people go through something similar.
(14:36):
So food in general plays a very important part of our lives.
So it's very deeply integrated in our social interactions, but
also as a way of coping with different emotions.
Sometimes we use it as a reward,sometimes we use it as a
comfort. And it it may become our primary
source of self suiting, which iswhere it can become, you know,
(14:56):
very unhealthy and very unhelpful in the longer term.
And that's why that that also isone of the things that
highlights why we need a multidisciplinary approach,
because we do need to address what food means in your life at
the moment. If someone is experiencing a lot
of emotional eating and they go on an anti obesity medication,
(15:17):
they might find that, you know, the food noise is gone and
that's fantastic, but the emotions will not be gone.
You will still be there having all that anxiety, all the
stress, all that upset and you will not have a coping strategy
in place to deal with it. And that's, that leaves a huge
gap. And that's, that's really
important to address. And that's where the health
(15:39):
coaching comes into play as well.
We need to, you know, what will it mean when the food noise
quiets down when you're on this journey?
Because there are a lot of aspects I think people are not
prepared for and this is one of them.
That's and I, I was in no way prepared for it.
No way. And all of the girls that are
and the ladies that I speak to online in, in my subscriptions
(16:01):
and also in my DMS, everybody has the same thought that they
didn't know what to do when, when it happened, you know?
And that's where yourself and Beyond BMI came into it, you
know, for me, I was delighted with it, you know?
It's one of the things we've spoke, but I guess a bit
probably more so offline Belindaa little bit on on the podcast
(16:22):
as well. But if we compare, obviously the
whole issue of access to medication in Ireland is like we
could do probably a whole serieson that.
And we are working on a future episode actually with healthcare
professionals from the UK, from Northern Ireland and the
Republic of Ireland to kind of compare and contrast kind of
access to some of the medications and stuff like that
as well. But one of the things at the
(16:43):
moment that I find really worrying or not worrying, but
umm, yeah, it, it, well it is, it is worrying, it is worrying
is that in the UK at the moment,you can literally go on to an
online pharmacy today. You can bluff the information
you put on there. And I, I see it happening every
week in some of the forums and stuff like that.
(17:03):
And then you can have the medication delivered to you the
next day. You're starting out solo.
You very little medical support,very little healthcare support,
very little it it probably no coaching.
And then I see some of the questions kind of going into the
various Facebook groups and stuff like that where people are
coming looking for. Information.
Proper healthcare support, but from.
(17:26):
Unqualified. People and online and some of
the stuff like that and it's deeply worrying, like some of
the replies and stuff that I seepeople getting in there like
I'm, I say a qualified personal trainer even.
So from that respect and some ofthe advice I'd see people be
giving each other like, Oh my God, there's massive room in the
UK at the moment for refining, um, the approach that people
(17:47):
get. And I think it should be
mandatory and including in Ireland whenever we get better
access, that there has to be a multidisciplinary approach when
you're starting out on a journeywith this treatment because it
is so confusing. There can be a lot on Earth, a
lot to uncover. And I think it's so important
that you do have that support nutritionally, mentally,
psychologically, kind of in the various aspects of the journey
(18:09):
that there is somebody in your corner, like Belinda said, that
has your back for those different things.
And so it's one thing that I hope that Ireland doesn't end up
like that. I, I don't think we, I don't
think we will like, I hope that,you know, the general kind of,
umm, healthcare system that, youknow, we're, we can get a bit
better kind of referring out to the experts when medication is
prescribed. But then that's where we have
(18:31):
like, you know, the likes of UMM, beyond BMI and My Best
Weight that are championing the multidisciplinary approach which
is so crucial and so important in this space.
Yeah, and you know, even as wellthat we advocate for these, umm,
medications, myself and Paddy always, but we also advocate for
(18:51):
them to be prescribed properly. Like Paddy has just explained,
my people come into my DMS and ask me what dose they're, they
need to start on. Yeah, and that's how that's the
worrying part of it. Yeah, yeah, the one of the song
I, I was looking here for, I found the phone and, but I have
something that I want to go backto from when I started with my
health coach, uh, back. Umm, so in one of the very first
(19:16):
sessions I had with my health coach and I didn't really know
what to expect going in because I just thought, I kind of
thought, you know, I'm really self aware.
Sure. What are we going to get from
this? Like, honestly, I'm, I'm always
really skeptical with anything though.
I'm like, ah, here, do you know what I mean?
Like, so I had like, is this going to be like a glorified
session of when I used to go and, you know, stand in a
community hall and get weighed and get clapped out, you know,
(19:37):
and stuff like that. So I went in, yeah, I went into
the session not really knowing what to what to come out with
and it was so powerful, so powerful.
And we kind of explored in that first session with me, umm, what
kind of values are important to me as like a human being and
(20:00):
what kind of yeah, what's my value system?
And that I kind of apply that I is it that I think I show
towards other people. So some of the things that come
out there is like, well, I'd like to think that, you know,
either in work or day to life tomy friends and family would
think that I'm quite loyal. And that I'm dependable and that
I have deep compassion for people as well.
And that I'm quite honest. So if you ask me something, I,
(20:20):
I'll give you the honest answer And which of times can be tough
for people because I, you know, if you're asking me something,
I'll be honest. But then we kind of flipped it
on. OK, well, how do you show those
values towards yourself? And I was like, oh, what what's
what's this curveball? What you mean towards myself?
No shrine grand. I just, you know, go with the
(20:41):
flow. I'll be fine, but we do get into
that a little bit more to the extent then Roy was like, you're
right. I don't know.
How am I showing compassion to myself?
How am I being loyal to myself? How am I being dependable and
how am I being honest with myself?
And this was in the realm of or in the, in the kind of area of,
umm, adherence to making sure that I was doing my workouts.
(21:02):
Umm, a big part of it was that as opposed to just taking the
easy way out and sitting on the couch, it was kind of like, OK,
so if you pick a day that you are, you know, you probably feel
like you would like to be working out, but the easy way
out might be just to stay on thecouch.
Is that being loyal to yourself?Is that true to being
compassionate to yourself? Or is the compassionate thing
(21:23):
supporting your body with that movement that you, you know,
you, you know, or that I felt, Iknew that I needed to do, But it
was like, ah, so I actually printed out on a page, uh, the
exact words of, um, I am loyal to myself.
I am dependable on myself. I am compassionate to myself and
I'm honest with myself. And then for each of those, I'd
kind of write down why for that day or that week, what was the
(21:46):
actions that we're going to support those kind of four
values towards myself. And I had that stuck on my
monitor and would say it multiple times a day and kind of
reflect on it. And umm, yeah.
That was a, that was a really powerful thing for me in that
session, kind of looking at starting out what values are
important to me that I show towards myself on this journey.
(22:06):
But that came, as I say, from, Ithink it was session one, umm,
of me and my health coach when Iwas going in, in there.
We've been skeptical of thinking, sure, what I'm going
to get from this. Yeah.
So part ADI, yeah. That's what did you know.
Yeah, that's amazing. And that's the beauty of the
individualized approach as well,a personalized approach because
(22:28):
here there's really no one-size-fits-all.
When we go into that conversation, it's all about
exploring what what values you have, what, where do you want to
get? And you know, what tools we can
develop together to help you to get there.
And every conversation is very, very different.
And do you? Remember my tool, what I did, I
(22:51):
we had something and it was something that was like personal
to me and I wanted to be able tosee it all the time.
So we put it as my screensaver. On the phone.
Yeah. Yeah, yeah.
Yeah, that was so. That was so good.
It was brilliant. Yeah, yeah.
And I will say as well that likewhat's different in my life now
(23:12):
after having a health coach for so long compared to previous,
the biggest thing that I got coming out of it is the non
negotiables that I have in my life now that I never had
before. Like, and even I said it to my
plates instructor the other day,three classes of plates a week
(23:33):
is non negotiable for me. Two classes of Aqua aerobics is
non negotiable for me. You just have to get those done
because I know even in the moment, if I don't want to do
them, I know that, like we said before, we're future proofing
Belinda's life. This is what we're going well,
this is what we're doing for ourlongevity.
This is what we're doing to be able to run around after the
(23:53):
kids. So it's not just for me and
they, they are my non negotiables.
I've never in my life even heardthe term non negotiables where
you think about doing something for yourself, you know?
I love that term. Yeah, non negotiables.
And it, it, it really does put aboundary around, you know,
(24:13):
what's important for us and really thinking about, you know,
what really matters? What what do you need in place?
What's the baseline that you need in place to to help
yourself and therefore, you know, have enough energy, have
enough, you know, and had enough?
Self esteem. Self esteem, Yeah.
To even support others around you.
(24:35):
Because one of the very common challenges I see is, you know,
with the busy lives and and the family and other demands, work
demands is that sometimes it's perceived as selfish, taking
some time for yourself. And there's the mom guilt that's
of course, very often comes intoplay, all the dead guilt.
And addressing all of this is, is also part of the story.
(24:56):
So it's, it's also about, you know, finding how to how to
prioritise your own well-being abit.
And that's very, very hard. It's very challenging because
you know you you are used to prioritise everyone else needs
before yours and those priority.Super challenging, not easy.
Yeah. And I think also a bit of
(25:20):
worthiness comes into it as well.
That was a huge thing for me. Like when pre Ozempic, I would
never have thought that I deserved to take all of that
time out of my week and purely concentrate on myself.
But I feel now that if I don't do it, then I'm doing EV me
(25:43):
especially and everyone else around me a disservice.
That's how I look at it now, youknow?
So as I said, non negotiable, yeah.
Pouring from an empty cup. Yeah, and Nikki, I'd love to
know. So if we think about your
background a bit, okay, what wasit that kind of led you into,
(26:04):
first of all the area of health coaching and coaching?
Like what was it that kind of, yeah, I made think, oh, that
could be something for me. And then I guess maybe more so a
little bit specifically within the area that you spent a lot of
your time now for patients and people that are, you know,
living with obesity, why that area or yeah, just to know a bit
(26:25):
more about that. OK, how much time do we have?
We'll keep it brief, don't worry.
So my journey into health coaching, it did originate from
my own personal mental and, and physical health struggles as
well, like you might find that with other health coaches.
So I have been struggling with depression and mental health
(26:49):
issues ever since I was a kid, very, very early on.
And in addition to that, there has been a lot of chronic
diseases in my family. And I kind of so that ever since
I was a kid, I was overweight, Ihad body image issues, I had
mental health issues. It was an ongoing struggle all
(27:12):
along. Not to mention my environment
was always filled with, you know, some, some form of fight
against different diseases in the family.
So not the best set of genetics to, to, to have, but ultimately,
a few years ago, I kind of reached my breaking point.
I lost my parents to cancer in avery quick succession, both of
(27:36):
them. And, and at that stage, I kind
of it, it dawned on me that I might, I must be missing
something here. There must be a reason why this
is happening in my family, something that's a complete
oversight, something I didn't notice.
There's no way my family is justthat one of those unfortunate
(27:56):
ones. So these kind of questions is
just sort of led me into discovering different areas.
What am I missing? What's the missing puzzle piece
here? And I started looking a little
bit into the side of nutrition and stress and really all these
areas. But it was, there's really a lot
(28:17):
of research and reading about different things.
But one thing that really strokeme is how throughout my entire
life, even despite the fact thatI've seen, you know,
psychologists in the past, because I had a depression, even
when I was a kid, there was no one ever, ever in my life asked
me about are you stressed or what are you eating or are you
(28:42):
sleeping? Okay, So I went through a lot of
medical professionals with all sorts of issues and it was just
not part of the conversation. And when I really started
studying nutrition and, and, andstudying more, you know, how all
these valving areas really affect us, it was like, you
know, a light bulb moment of, of, of Oh my God, how come that
(29:03):
no one ever asked me these questions because, you know, I
was not looking after myself at all.
Despite, you know, now that I'm more and more evidence on of how
nutrition impacts us, how our sleep matters, our stress, all
these things incredibly important.
And once I made that realization, there was no
stopping me. So I wanted to learn everything.
(29:24):
And this, you know, led me into the house coaching
qualification. And now next year I will qualify
as an attritional therapist as well.
So the next talk in my journey. Congratulations.
Yeah, brilliant. Thanks.
Yeah. And and how I came about joining
Beyond BMI. So a few years ago when the
(29:44):
founders of Beyond BMI Doctor Harriet Tracy, she was looking
into integrating health coachinginto the Beyond BMI program.
So her approach from the get go is to build up a
multidisciplinary team. And part of it was, you know,
thinking about health coaching. And that was a very novel
approach. And that was incredible because
(30:05):
you know, in Ireland especially health coaching is not not as
popular, yes as in other countries.
So that was a mission I was really happy to be a part of
because it was something new. But it was a very whole health
focus approach. And, you know, the more and more
I learned to bash obesity, it itwas just an area that I found,
(30:28):
well, there is a lot to do to remove the stigma, remove the
judgement and offer people the treatment they deserve.
And I think that was something that's, you know, we're really
happily do in the future as well.
Yeah, that's brilliant. That's.
Wow. Yeah, phenomenal journey, like
in terms of your own life experience as well and like your
(30:50):
health and that kind of motivation to want to I guess
help others. And particularly, you know, as
somebody who has lived with again, obesity for the for the
majority of the last kind of 40 years.
It's even as a child and as a teenager and stuff like that, it
kind of, it's so refreshing and kind of encouraging to hear that
(31:13):
there are people out there that have your back and that want to,
that are rooting for you and that want to break in that
stigma within the care of obesity.
And, you know, obviously that's something that beyond BMI are
AP, you know, they're championing from the gecko in
terms of trying to create a better space and more expecting
space. And even, you know, I remember
us doing a session about, umm, like wording and phrases and
(31:35):
terminology around obesity and how can that be more umm, uh,
compassionate and yeah, just really, really, really, really
powerful. Nikki, do you think that all of
your determination came from feelings of being let down where
(31:59):
your health was concerned? So I would phrase it in a way
that it, it was more driven by how empowered I felt just by
educating myself and knowing andrealizing how important all
these lifestyle elements really is.
And, and, and the transformativeeffect of addressing mindset,
(32:22):
addressing how you think about yourself.
Self compassion is something that's really important.
Even even with our clients in B MB, MI, we work on self
compassion very, very often because that's one of those
tools and and skills that we need in our lives, regardless of
where we are in our journey. So having feeling that
(32:45):
empowerment and finding the right treatment can be asked,
that can be really transformative.
So I would say remembering how Ifelt when I realized that, Oh my
God, there are all these areas that are still in my control and
I can actually work on this and and they will all add up
together in the bigger picture. Yeah, that's what I wanted to
put forward and bring it with myself.
(33:08):
And self compassion is, I know we can just talk about it and
say you need it and all the restof it.
But it's having, I think for everybody that would have been
with Beyond BMI, excuse me, trying to tell somebody to have
self compassion for themselves when they've come off the back
(33:28):
of three decades of feeling ashamed and feeling less than
and feeling worthless. You are going to need every
single bit of help that you can get to be able to take that
weight off your shoulders and beS and be compassionate to
yourself. It's a really, really hard thing
(33:49):
to do. Like, you know how hard that was
for me as well, Nikki, And to step away from all the learned
behaviours that made me carry that weight on my shoulders.
And you know, but it is transformative.
I think so. When it happens, I wonder is
like some of the reason why it'sso difficult.
And I guess it can be diff. It'll be difficult for different
(34:10):
people for different reasons. But like, I know all my life I
lived in a space where by society made me feel that this
was all my fault because I wasn't eating less and moving
more and that that was meant to be the answer.
And again, as a qualified personal trainer, that was I, I
would have been aware of that kind of, uh, terminology.
(34:31):
I never fully aligned with it. Like, obviously you understand
the foundations like energy balance and stuff like that, but
that never seemed to be the realanswer for me, even when I was
qualified as I don't get it. Why are people just saying this?
There has to be more. And it's only really it's over
the past year that I've kind of fully been able to understand I
in truer detail the importance of all the other things that
(34:55):
like the eat lesson move more. Is it it's probably not the most
difficult thing for people in terms of if I look at my friends
and that that have, you know, lived with being overweight and
trying to handle that. They probably know more about
nutrition than the average person in the stream because
they've invested so much in trying to understand this
(35:15):
themselves that the things that can be more difficult is, I
think, as Belinda says, that bitof self compassion about
accepting, first of all, this isn't your fault.
There can be biological reasons why your body is working against
you. And that's a phrase I'll kind of
always go to now, is that my medical treatment, uh, Monjaro
that I'm on, it helps me, umm, balance out that biological
(35:39):
inefficiency. So in effect, that I have a
level playing field then so thatI can focus on my nutrition, I
can focus on my movement, umm, and have a fairer chance of, of
success when I'm putting in the kind of efforts there.
But the other things like that you touched on as well, Nikki,
like the huge importance of things like sleep of stress as
well. Like I'm trying to have, have
(36:00):
better management of those. It's one of the things I'm
studying at the moment via precision nutrition is their
stress and sleep management kindof qualification as well to try
and better understand, OK, what roles do these play?
Not just in weight, but they do play a part of those as well.
But overall, just kind of well-being is so like so
important. And, but I do think we've been,
(36:22):
uh, conditioned so much over ourlives that it's just eat less,
move more, just eat less, move more.
That's the answer. When in reality, that's the the
I, I guess I see the bigger answer is no.
Taking some time for yourself and uncovering what is your
answer because it's going to be different for each person.
That's where a health coach can help you.
(36:43):
Yeah, with understanding what your unique journey is.
But whatever that journey is, the most important thing is to
recognize first and foremost, this isn't your fault.
You know, there's, there's so many and, and unfortunately we
have been told that our whole lives up until Paddy 6 months
ago, me two years ago and the rhetoric of eat less, move more.
(37:07):
Once that was taken out of the way for us, we were able to soar
and we were able to concentrate on our nutrition and we were
able to concentrate on our movement.
Yeah. And like taking that medication
once a week has actually become the smallest part of my journey
(37:27):
now for me. Yeah, it really has.
Same for you, Paddy. Yeah, I, I like, I, I do kind of
flip it on the other side as well.
The other end of the spectrum, say with whether it be
disordered eating or conditions or stuff like that.
Like you wouldn't go and say to somebody that is trying to live
with anorexia or bulimia, that or just eat more and, you know,
(37:48):
keep your food. You like you wouldn't, you
wouldn't. But yet it's almost seen as
socially acceptable to do it on the other end of the scale.
Or you just you're just lazy or you're just eating too much or
whatever. It's like there's so much work
needed there in terms of breaking down that stigma and
the understanding of the diseaseof obesity.
And that's where obviously we have, you know, some brilliant
voices and advocates now kind oftrying to do that, like Nikki,
(38:10):
like beyond BMI, like, you know,different actors.
And, you know, increasingly there is a little bit more, but
it's definitely an uphill an uphill battle.
But Nikki, if I dig into, I guess for somebody that might be
listening and is sitting there thinking, I haven't a clue where
to start. I don't know what even step one
(38:31):
is of trying to understand what journey I need to take to become
comfortable with improving my life in terms of my weight.
What kind of tip or advice wouldyou give to somebody that might
be sitting there just feeling very overwhelmed about a journey
that might be needed ahead of them?
Yeah, it is very easy to become overwhelmed because there's just
(38:53):
so much noise information out there and that makes even the
decision making really difficult.
Where to start? What's the first step?
So I would say, of course, you you guys know, I'm, I work for
beyond BMI. So one thing that I think is
really important is find people that are experts in this field
(39:15):
and try to narrow down your focus because listening to, you
know, some random people on the Internet is not necessarily the,
the right expertise you're looking for.
So finding those doctors, those experts in obesity that's
actually are credible is super, super important.
(39:38):
And and, and, and just start there and start just by
educating yourself and differentoptions.
And if you want to have a conversation, you know, all of
these programs, not even just beon BMI, but they do have an
option to just have a chat and, and just discover.
So you don't need to commit to anything, but learning and
educating yourself is really important.
(39:59):
Patty, you know that's saying, and you said it yourself, it's
not your fault. But it's your responsibility and
that responsibility, I find it as a self of self respect.
So respecting yourself, being kind to yourself enough to be
open to have those conversations.
Umm, that's, uh, that's very keylies and, and really just find
(40:21):
the experts on the fields. That's always the best approach
in my opinion. It's invest in, invest in
yourself. Yeah, yeah, absolutely.
And it's something like myself, and again, we say on every
podcast on any live, as much as we will talk about things and
might have bits of insider things, we're not qualified
doctors or professionals or stuff like that in in that
(40:42):
realm. And it's so important, again, as
you say, Nikki, just to double down it that you do engage with
the right qualified health professional or you know, person
to help you with the various aspects of your journey.
And that's where again say the likes of Beyond BMI, they do
have that multidisciplinary approach on.
Yeah. And yeah.
(41:03):
And also I think when you do join something like that, like
beyond BMI, you are in there, you're investing, you're
spending your money, you now know that you are worth this,
but it also gives you longevity in your journey as well.
And it, it like it assists you in so many ways, you know, and
(41:23):
it keeps you, it just keeps you going.
It keeps you motivated, it keepsyou focused.
From somebody who went into my first coaching session
completely chaotic, my, not, notin myself, but my brain was
completely addled from three decades of dieting, eat less,
move more, all the rest of it. And my God, did that take some
time to come out the other side of that and realise that none of
(41:46):
that is true. And I didn't need to be going
around murder in my own head, you know, every single day.
And yes, that's what I say abouthaving a health coach.
It was a brilliant experience. Yeah.
And Nikki, that kind of idea in particular of self compassion,
because that's been one of the biggest things for me and
(42:08):
Belinda, we've spoke about this in our own chats in our like
WhatsApp voice notes back and forward all day.
When things come up, sometimes it's like, OK, self compassion
and it this is OK or that's OK. But again, getting to a place of
allowing yourself to show self compassion to yourself or
accepting that that's OK can be a mammoth thing for people.
(42:30):
What advice would you have for somebody in terms of, I don't
know, even like the smallest stepper initial thing,
particularly in relation to thatidea of self compassion?
Well, that's a difficult one because, uh, self compassion, I
think it's a very broad, uh, ranging topic.
And in terms of getting started,that can be very daunting.
(42:54):
So if someone is starting you off, why don't you just be
compassionate with yourself? That's really not helpful.
Yeah, like what? That sounds weird.
I don't want to do it. So I would say initially it
might be easier to think about if self compression is a bit too
much for you or it's something that's a little bit out of grasp
for the moment. That's OK, but why don't we
(43:17):
explore kindness first? So can we be a little bit kinder
every day to ourselves? And that we'll tie back into the
self compassion piece. But kindness is something that
doesn't have to be, you know, tied into anything, but just
showing some gesture for yourself, something that really
helps you, something that shows you that you are looking after
(43:38):
yourself. And that can in turn in turn, in
turn really increase your confidence and really start
putting you in that motion of, you know what, I can do this, I
can take care of myself. And that's all act of kindness
every day. It can be, you know, just making
a really nice cup of coffee in the morning.
It can be doing your nails. It can be, you know, anything
(43:59):
that you can think of, just a small act of kindness one at a
time. It makes it very tangible and
and very practical. And we can start there.
And that that's something practical that we can put in
place right from the get go. And then we were slowly working
towards what self compassion means to you and, and define it
(44:20):
based on your values. Because this compassion piece
can look very different for everyone, but it all comes from
kindness. And that's where I would start
probably. I love that.
I love that. Position.
Yeah, because the way that I have packaged that in my head
and it took me a long time to get to this place was what is my
(44:41):
moment of joy today, particularly if it is a period
of busyness or stress or whatever.
And lately, every day seems to be full of busyness again, which
Clinton knows when we're talkingabout things is like.
And then it'll be like, Patty, when's the last time you just
sat down? And it's like, oh, God, yeah.
But the one thing that stays constant for me now is that I
(45:04):
need to make sure that I prioritize moments of joy
throughout the day or the week or whatever for me.
And sometimes that can be literally putting on a song that
makes me feel good or makes me smile or, you know, and
something with my partner or thecat or something like that.
But something that makes me feelgood about me in the day.
And that could be like like a 2 minute thing or a 2 minute thing
(45:26):
or whatever. But it's so important for me
now. So important.
But that's a learned behaviour now.
That isn't it. It took.
A long time, A long. Time to get there and realise
that that was a ping I needed and to have me in my journey and
to, I guess, stay and stay good with myself, yeah.
Yeah. And it's everybody needs that
and everybody should be doing that and everybody should be
(45:47):
open to it. But unfortunately, like I said,
it takes, it's hard, it's a hardthing to do and it takes a lot
of strength and it takes focus and it also takes courage and
everybody needs a little bit of help.
So I think we're a health coach is concerned.
If you have the opportunity to have a health coach, if you feel
(46:12):
like investing in yourself and you want your life to be better,
more focused, you want longevity, go and get yourself a
health coach. You know, it's the best thing
that ever happened to me. I'm not just saying that because
you're sat here, Nikki. I went through a lot like you,
you know, I went through a lot of figuring stuff out and came
(46:33):
out the other side all the better for it, you know?
Yeah, yeah. That's amazing to hear, Belinda,
and, and thank you for sharing that story.
It's true. It's, it's nice to hear to that
you advocate for the health coaching because I do think like
that it's going to be a very fundamental part of health in
the future. So I, I see a really big
(46:54):
potential in, you know, growing the health coaching function
across all healthcare services. We need that, we need that
space, we need to hurt and we need to work on these areas that
that absolutely do contribute toumm, you know, our well-being,
our long term health, our longevity.
So hopefully this will always evolve in the future.
Yeah. I'd love to see a, a world
(47:18):
whereby whether it be somebody going to the likes of Beyond
BMI, which already have the multidisciplinary approach
covered. But even in say the community
setting that if you're going to just your own GP and I don't
know, they prescribe you say Saxenda, you know, which is one
of the ones available, you know,readily in Ireland.
But that you don't just get a prescription that you also get a
referral to a health coach or toa dietitian or to that they,
(47:42):
it's almost part of the package that you get to help you on your
journey as opposed to what we see with 99.99% of what's
happening in the UK where you just get, it's like prescribing
go and you're writing solo. And it's such a, a daunting
journey. So it is but.
But The thing is as well, I think that we have to remember
that the reason that that's happening, Paddy, is because the
(48:03):
doctors are not supporting the people on the ground.
They're absolutely not. I mean, from my experience of
going into my doctor about my weight and whatever, I was never
given any help. Never, ever, ever.
But I think that comes down to then what support are the
doctors getting from the healthcare system as well.
(48:24):
And also probably a little bit off the fact that most doctors
will be general practitioners asopposed to a specialist in their
area like a health coach or a dietitianer that.
But they should know where to refer people, Paddy.
Yeah, that's something hopefullywill improve, you know, over
time is that piece as we learn more about the journeys people
are on and the the, the importance of that much
(48:45):
disciplinary approach for peopleand, and how people can be, can
be supported. Yeah, and.
I think I don't even know if thedoctor, the general GPS have any
idea that they can say to their patient, you know, there's
beyond BMI out there, there's mybest weight.
And these people are all geared towards helping you holistically
(49:07):
through your whole journey. You know, they don't ever
mention anything like that, anything ever, you know?
Yeah, but they should. That's where the advocacy is so
important, I guess, to the work that that Nikki and people like
that are doing, you know, at themoment.
Yeah. That's fantastic.
Umm, Belinda, any kind of final questions or bits that were you
had on your little list that we didn't get to cover?
(49:29):
Let me just check one second now.
Because we've codges of our timeas well.
I think we've about four, no? Not really, because I think I've
said everything I needed to say and Nikki, like you were
brilliant. Thank you SO.
Much. Thank you so much.
Is Nikki our first guest? Yes.
Yes, our first guest, yeah. Brilliant type so guys.
(49:55):
Yeah, yeah. Oh, I knew.
I knew the minute we started this podcast that you were you
were going to be on here the minute we started it.
Yeah, spoken about a long time ago, and I can contest to what
Belinda said. She's like a major Nikki fan
girl like this. Not every few days your name
comes up somewhere, Nikki, aboutthe impact and influence and
(50:17):
support that you have been on this journey.
But Nikki, any kind of final words of wisdom for people that
might be listening? Oh, yeah.
So first of all, thanks, guys. It's been a pleasure to be here.
And I know we do need more advocates for and more voices,
more importantly, in the media. Whoever is going on in this
(50:37):
journey to remove stigma, to remove judgement, there's a lot
of work to do. And the conversation is
changing. And it's changing because of you
guys. And it's changing because the
other voices out there who are, who are empathetic, who aren't
compassionate and who wants to help others to understand that
it's a really, really important treatment.
And that is available now and itcan be life changing.
(51:00):
And I'm sure I have a feeling that your listeners are very
similar in a way that they do consider GLP ones and other
medications as a tool. So it is like these tools are,
and these medications are game changing.
They're transformative and they do address the biological
drivers of of weight and that's incredible profound effect on
(51:24):
metabolic health, obesity and they will continue to improve.
But the real power I find it really lies in utilizing them as
a tool. So what they do is they make it
possible to work on other areas in your life that's really that
really impact your well-being. Think about other things you
(51:45):
could do anything from, you know, lowering the barrier to
physical activity, being a bit physical, more physically
active, managing stress. Think about, you know, other
aspects in life where you can make a difference and make you
feel even better. So all these things are so
important to consider. Our health is very complex and
we are very complex and therefore we do need a complex
(52:07):
and comprehensive solution here.So yeah, just basically, if I
had a magic wands, I would just encourage everyone to to look
out for the treatment they deserve because they deserve it.
Everyone deserves the right treatment.
Obviously it's the only chronic relapsing disease where it has
such a cultural root behind because of how weight has been a
(52:32):
thing in the media since probably humanity existed, that
it makes it really, really difficult to to to avail of the
right treatment because people do feel stigma and judgment
around it. So I just wish, I just wish more
people would come on board. Thank you so much.
(52:53):
And I think they're the best words to finish on.
Ever. Thank you so much, Nikki.
Thank you. Thank you for joining.
Thank you guys. Take care, bye bye.
Remember, the information withinthis podcast should not be taken
as personal medical advice. Always consult your own
healthcare team before starting or changing any medical
treatment.
Welcome to The Dose with Paddy and Belinda, your podcast for
all things weight loss and GLP One.
Remember, the information withinthis podcast should not be taken
as personal medical advice. Always consult your own
healthcare team before starting or changing any medical
treatment. For now, sit back, relax and
enjoy the conversation. It's the Dose with Paddy and
(00:26):
Belinda and hello to you. You are welcome along to another
episode of the dose with myself,Paddy Cunningham and Belinda
where we talk about all things GLP one treatment and indeed,
uh, Wellness and weight loss. Today we have a fantastic
conversation, uh, lined up, but I'm not going to tell you all
about that. I'm going to hand over to
Belinda who is going to give us a little bit more of an insight
(00:48):
about today's chat. Thank you very much, Paddy.
So today's episode is something really special and I think it's
one that's going to resonate deeply with so many of you.
We're diving into a topic that'sat the heart of lasting
transformation, what it means tohave someone truly in your
corner, guiding and supporting you at every step of the way.
(01:08):
I'm thrilled to introduce somebody who has been a pillar
of strength and guidance in my own journey, my incredible
health coach, Nikki. For the past 18 months, she's
been by my side, helping me navigate not just the practical
aspects of my health, but also the mindset shifts, the wins and
even the setbacks. Today, we'll uncover the vital
(01:30):
role of health, what a health coach plays in helping people
transform their lives. We'll talk about what you should
expect from a coach, the unique ways they provide support, and
how they can empower you to achieve lasting change.
Trust me, this is going to be aninspiring conversation that you
won't want to miss. So without further ado, let's
(01:51):
welcome Nikki. Hey, Nikki.
Hi, Teddy. That's an introduction.
Thank you. Very true.
And thank you, Nikki, for being here.
We're delighted to have you. Yeah, of.
Course, I'm so happy to be here.You're very welcome to our
virtual studio. You know, with the with the
cleaners in, we tied it up and everything just.
(02:11):
I did blur my background just for you guys so.
I haven't figured out how to do that yet.
Yeah, I will though. No, no, we can't teach you more
tech stuff, No. Forget it and ask you again.
So let's go, Nikki. I would love to know.
Let's start at, I guess the veryfundamentals for somebody that
mightn't be familiar with what ahealth coach is or a coach in
(02:34):
general and kind of the role that that person plays.
So to start with, if you were speaking to somebody, what is
your kind of elevator pitch for what it is you do?
OK. That's a great question.
It makes sense to start with that and the elevator pitch
might be long, so we might need to take a lot of a lot of space
(02:56):
instead. But essentially health coaching
is a quite new concept within healthcare.
So in the UK it is actually a quite popular concept that's
already integrated in NHS versusin Ireland we are a little bit
behind with that. But regardless it, it's become a
really, really important part and support for for anyone
(03:19):
really. But essentially health coaching
is a very collaborative process where we look into different
developing areas of of the individual, trying to establish
what would help them to basically reach their health
goals. So everyone is having individual
challenges in their lives, whether it's the area or in
(03:41):
stress management or physical activity.
Sometimes it's about their energy or how they sleep, but
these are all really important pillars of our well-being.
So health coach meets you where you are at, very importantly
looking at what's going on at the moment in your life and
really look into this goal. So where you want, where do you
want to get in the future? Do you have any goals in mind?
(04:04):
Is there any area in your life that you feel deserves some
attention to get you there? And health coaching, very
importantly give you that space to talk and to share what's
going on. And I think that's one of those
things that's really missing in healthcare in general.
Having that space and having somebody that actually listens
to you, there can be so many individual circumstances and
(04:27):
challenges that prevents us fromgetting there, from really
improving how we feel from day-to-day.
So a health coach can help you to find what direction is is
best aligned with where you are at.
And of course, that's what aligns with your values.
I think we are really geared towards quick fixes and
one-size-fits-all approaches. And I think we all know that
(04:49):
that doesn't really work on a longer term.
So it's all about making sustainable changes.
And, and for that we need, we need a little bit of a support
system. So that's what the health coach
is for. It's a, it's a really broad role
and there are a lot of areas to we can address together.
Yeah, and I know, thank you thatthat's fantastic, brilliant.
(05:09):
And I'm on the I'm in a hotel atthe moment and I'm on the 12th
floor. So that definitely is a great
elevator pitch to pass the time as opposed to the awkward
silence that I've had in the lift all week.
And I've gotten into it, that's what it is.
But like both myself and Belindaare like huge advocates,
particularly for people that arestarting out on a journey like
the ones I guess we have been onthat are supported by a
(05:30):
relatively new medication. But even for folks that aren't
it, but a huge advocates for that multidisciplinary approach
of which a health, which is partof that.
Umm, So I think it's, it's greatto help people understand.
Ah, so rather than maybe just thinking, I need my doctor,
which is a crucial part of it, or my pharmacist, which is a
crucial part of it as well, or maybe a personal trainer, which
(05:51):
is, you know, an important part of journeys like this for people
as well. That they're, I, I've kind of
seen a health coach as a person that can almost like tie that
ribbon off, bringing so many of those different areas together
for somebody to try and see, OK,what's going well, what isn't,
what barriers, what blockers do you have and haven't to
discipline. Actually, it only happened this
morning on TikTok. I got a message from a person,
(06:15):
um, that was saying to me, hey, I'm working with a health coach
at the moment, but I'm finding it really uncomfortable having
to go in and talk with them. And do you think it's important
that I still continue with that?And I, I don't have my phone
here at me now treat out the reply.
But basically it was along the lines of, I said, the fact that
you're finding it uncomfortable indicates to me the exact reason
why you need to go and be in that space.
(06:37):
And you need to open up to thosehealth coaches about the fact
that you're finding discomfort by going and meeting with them
because there's some reason for that.
There's some trigger or underlying thing thing.
That you haven't spoken about. That I think could be useful to
open up, you know, don't worry, the health coach isn't going to
be a offended if you say, oh, I'm not enjoying this or it's
uncomfortable for me. And if anything, they're
(06:59):
probably going to really appreciate the fact that you're
recognising there's discomfort with some aspect of this
journey. And even if you can't uncover
why, they'll be able to help youuncover why.
So like, yeah. Yeah, yeah.
That's fascinating and it's really interesting.
By the end, I think it does highlight that health coaching
is a very collaborative process.So it is a partnership and it's
(07:21):
really important to create a safe space for someone is happy
and OK to share. And that discomfort, it's also
something that we can explore together if you're happy to do
it. And that's really important.
So we we need to know what you are ready for and what you feel
you're ready for. And if you encounter discomfort,
(07:42):
sometimes there's just a sign ofsomething's changing or
something that you know is is isin the process of
transformation. So discomfort is not a bad
thing. If we are OK to sit with that
discomfort, it can lead to fantastic transformations.
But it's hard. Yeah, yeah, it's hard.
It's hard to sit with that discomfort, isn't it?
(08:04):
I mean, I know, I know. Like health coaching is
extremely holistic. It is.
I don't think people understand how holistic it is that it does
touch every single part of your life.
When you go into health coaching, you can't just talk
about one subject because every single subject in your life
(08:25):
touches every other subject, doesn't it?
You know, Umm, but I will say that I, I was uncomfortable as
well. Not because I was in a, uh,
online room with you, Nikki, just uncomfortable with the
stuff that was coming up for me that I've never had a space
where I was able to talk about those kind of things ever.
And I, and I talk about it all. I used to talk about it all the
(08:46):
time on my Instagram as well, like the revelations that came
out of having a health coach andthe self-awareness that you come
away with. Umm, it's an investment.
I think it's definitely an investment in yourself,
especially if you're going on this journey.
Yeah, that we're on. Yeah, I think, I wonder, Nikki,
do you think that sometimes, like if I think of my journey
(09:07):
and experience over the years, like more recently and even
before and I've worked with different types of coaches and
that and sometimes that discomfort can come from, for me
anyway, the fact that there's almost like a mirror being shown
back at me. Whereas when I guess I lived
with obesity for the past, I'll say lifetime, um, you know, kind
(09:27):
of up until this year and kind of finally, I think getting
proper, um, control over life maybe a bit more.
But when that mirror was kind ofbeing shown back at me, I was
uncomfortable with that because I've lived a life of deflection,
of trying to not be the center of attention for.
And some people find that gas given that I do work on radio
and stuff like that and the stuff online.
(09:49):
But again, you're putting stuff out there to deflect bits that
maybe you're uncomfortable with.And when I started having
conversations with people about,UMM, trying to uncover, you
know, some of my behaviors or habits or thoughts about myself
or stuff like that, umm, it was difficult.
It was difficult, like a few years ago, I went to UMM, a
therapist, umm, and it was one of the best experience ever had.
(10:12):
But, and I've talked about this before in a previous podcast,
but umm, in one of the sessions she was like, Paddy, I just love
to, you know, for you to tell your stuff that you're awesome.
And I was like, oh, why would I?Why, why would I?
Why would I think about myself like that?
What's going on here? I know this was a few sessions
in. It wasn't like session one.
(10:33):
And I sat there, I say for like half hour, 45 minutes, just
boiled my eyes out crying because I just was like, why?
Why this focus on me? What?
What's going on here? Why?
Why do I have to say this and not that I was being forced to
say it. There was space being held for
me in a very safe space, and that was probably equally one of
the most powerful sessions I hadwith the therapist at that point
(10:56):
because by the end of the session, even if it did take
nearly an hour, we got to that place of me being able to
recognize that. You're not what you thought you
were. Yeah.
It that like my, my weight didn't define my ability to be a
good human being and to be a value to other people.
Yeah. Yeah, thanks for sharing that
(11:18):
buddy. I think you brought up something
really important. So whoever embarks on GLP one
journey as well or any kind of anti obesity medications, it can
be a very emotional journey, especially at the start, but
even going away. So it can bring up a range of
emotions and it's really important to have that support
(11:41):
system where there is space for those emotions.
It is not easy. It can be very challenging
because first of all, even making that decision is, is
very, very challenging. So I'm sure you both had that,
had that time when it was really, really, it felt
vulnerable maybe even to, to, toembark on those journeys.
(12:02):
But the having that support system, that multidisciplinary
approach is, is really importantbecause our health, our
well-being, it's really complex.It's not, it's very
multifaceted. It's not bad medication.
It's not just about an area, it's a, it's a harmony, it's a
Symphony between all of them. And it all has to work together,
doesn't it, In harmony. Yeah.
(12:23):
Like for the first six months ofmy journey, I had started my
journey on my own. I had just read about Ozempic in
a magazine that my aunt had toldmy mum about.
And I will say that I don't think if I hadn't have had my
health coach you, Nikki, I don'tthink that I would still be on
(12:45):
this journey because it's extremely hard for some people
to go through the emotions at the start to realise that, Oh my
God, is this what my life is supposed to be like when the
food noise turns off. And that's jarring for some
(13:05):
people. I felt it quite jarring as well
when I realised that that's not the way every other person in
the world is when it's taken away from you and when it stops.
And then also I, I talk about this as well, is the mourning
for food as well because I, thatwas my crutch my whole life.
I used food as a crutch. Happy, sad, whatever.
(13:28):
Every other motion in between there, I used that.
I also used to soothe myself. And then all of a sudden I
didn't have that anymore and I didn't know what was going on.
And I remember standing in my kitchen being really, really
upset about something once. And I was four months in, I
think, and not standing in my kitchen not knowing what to do
because I couldn't reach for thefood.
(13:50):
I just couldn't. And that is an awful lot of
stuff for one person to go through on their own.
Keeping in mind as well there wasn't as much social media over
two years ago. There wasn't.
I couldn't find anyone in Ireland that has said one single
word on social media, hardly about Ozempic.
So I was glad to come into the health coaching when I did
(14:16):
because I think I might have, I might not have stayed on it
because it was tough. It was tough.
And and you do need support. You absolutely do when you're
going through it, you know, especially at the start.
Yeah, yeah. And thanks for sharing that
experience with Belinda. I think it's very valid and a
lot of people go through something similar.
(14:36):
So food in general plays a very important part of our lives.
So it's very deeply integrated in our social interactions, but
also as a way of coping with different emotions.
Sometimes we use it as a reward,sometimes we use it as a
comfort. And it it may become our primary
source of self suiting, which iswhere it can become, you know,
(14:56):
very unhealthy and very unhelpful in the longer term.
And that's why that that also isone of the things that
highlights why we need a multidisciplinary approach,
because we do need to address what food means in your life at
the moment. If someone is experiencing a lot
of emotional eating and they go on an anti obesity medication,
(15:17):
they might find that, you know, the food noise is gone and
that's fantastic, but the emotions will not be gone.
You will still be there having all that anxiety, all the
stress, all that upset and you will not have a coping strategy
in place to deal with it. And that's, that leaves a huge
gap. And that's, that's really
important to address. And that's where the health
(15:39):
coaching comes into play as well.
We need to, you know, what will it mean when the food noise
quiets down when you're on this journey?
Because there are a lot of aspects I think people are not
prepared for and this is one of them.
That's and I, I was in no way prepared for it.
No way. And all of the girls that are
and the ladies that I speak to online in, in my subscriptions
(16:01):
and also in my DMS, everybody has the same thought that they
didn't know what to do when, when it happened, you know?
And that's where yourself and Beyond BMI came into it, you
know, for me, I was delighted with it, you know?
It's one of the things we've spoke, but I guess a bit
probably more so offline Belindaa little bit on on the podcast
(16:22):
as well. But if we compare, obviously the
whole issue of access to medication in Ireland is like we
could do probably a whole serieson that.
And we are working on a future episode actually with healthcare
professionals from the UK, from Northern Ireland and the
Republic of Ireland to kind of compare and contrast kind of
access to some of the medications and stuff like that
as well. But one of the things at the
(16:43):
moment that I find really worrying or not worrying, but
umm, yeah, it, it, well it is, it is worrying, it is worrying
is that in the UK at the moment,you can literally go on to an
online pharmacy today. You can bluff the information
you put on there. And I, I see it happening every
week in some of the forums and stuff like that.
(17:03):
And then you can have the medication delivered to you the
next day. You're starting out solo.
You very little medical support,very little healthcare support,
very little it it probably no coaching.
And then I see some of the questions kind of going into the
various Facebook groups and stuff like that where people are
coming looking for. Information.
Proper healthcare support, but from.
(17:26):
Unqualified. People and online and some of
the stuff like that and it's deeply worrying, like some of
the replies and stuff that I seepeople getting in there like
I'm, I say a qualified personal trainer even.
So from that respect and some ofthe advice I'd see people be
giving each other like, Oh my God, there's massive room in the
UK at the moment for refining, um, the approach that people
(17:47):
get. And I think it should be
mandatory and including in Ireland whenever we get better
access, that there has to be a multidisciplinary approach when
you're starting out on a journeywith this treatment because it
is so confusing. There can be a lot on Earth, a
lot to uncover. And I think it's so important
that you do have that support nutritionally, mentally,
psychologically, kind of in the various aspects of the journey
(18:09):
that there is somebody in your corner, like Belinda said, that
has your back for those different things.
And so it's one thing that I hope that Ireland doesn't end up
like that. I, I don't think we, I don't
think we will like, I hope that,you know, the general kind of,
umm, healthcare system that, youknow, we're, we can get a bit
better kind of referring out to the experts when medication is
prescribed. But then that's where we have
(18:31):
like, you know, the likes of UMM, beyond BMI and My Best
Weight that are championing the multidisciplinary approach which
is so crucial and so important in this space.
Yeah, and you know, even as wellthat we advocate for these, umm,
medications, myself and Paddy always, but we also advocate for
(18:51):
them to be prescribed properly. Like Paddy has just explained,
my people come into my DMS and ask me what dose they're, they
need to start on. Yeah, and that's how that's the
worrying part of it. Yeah, yeah, the one of the song
I, I was looking here for, I found the phone and, but I have
something that I want to go backto from when I started with my
health coach, uh, back. Umm, so in one of the very first
(19:16):
sessions I had with my health coach and I didn't really know
what to expect going in because I just thought, I kind of
thought, you know, I'm really self aware.
Sure. What are we going to get from
this? Like, honestly, I'm, I'm always
really skeptical with anything though.
I'm like, ah, here, do you know what I mean?
Like, so I had like, is this going to be like a glorified
session of when I used to go and, you know, stand in a
community hall and get weighed and get clapped out, you know,
(19:37):
and stuff like that. So I went in, yeah, I went into
the session not really knowing what to what to come out with
and it was so powerful, so powerful.
And we kind of explored in that first session with me, umm, what
kind of values are important to me as like a human being and
(20:00):
what kind of yeah, what's my value system?
And that I kind of apply that I is it that I think I show
towards other people. So some of the things that come
out there is like, well, I'd like to think that, you know,
either in work or day to life tomy friends and family would
think that I'm quite loyal. And that I'm dependable and that
I have deep compassion for people as well.
And that I'm quite honest. So if you ask me something, I,
(20:20):
I'll give you the honest answer And which of times can be tough
for people because I, you know, if you're asking me something,
I'll be honest. But then we kind of flipped it
on. OK, well, how do you show those
values towards yourself? And I was like, oh, what what's
what's this curveball? What you mean towards myself?
No shrine grand. I just, you know, go with the
(20:41):
flow. I'll be fine, but we do get into
that a little bit more to the extent then Roy was like, you're
right. I don't know.
How am I showing compassion to myself?
How am I being loyal to myself? How am I being dependable and
how am I being honest with myself?
And this was in the realm of or in the, in the kind of area of,
umm, adherence to making sure that I was doing my workouts.
(21:02):
Umm, a big part of it was that as opposed to just taking the
easy way out and sitting on the couch, it was kind of like, OK,
so if you pick a day that you are, you know, you probably feel
like you would like to be working out, but the easy way
out might be just to stay on thecouch.
Is that being loyal to yourself?Is that true to being
compassionate to yourself? Or is the compassionate thing
(21:23):
supporting your body with that movement that you, you know,
you, you know, or that I felt, Iknew that I needed to do, But it
was like, ah, so I actually printed out on a page, uh, the
exact words of, um, I am loyal to myself.
I am dependable on myself. I am compassionate to myself and
I'm honest with myself. And then for each of those, I'd
kind of write down why for that day or that week, what was the
(21:46):
actions that we're going to support those kind of four
values towards myself. And I had that stuck on my
monitor and would say it multiple times a day and kind of
reflect on it. And umm, yeah.
That was a, that was a really powerful thing for me in that
session, kind of looking at starting out what values are
important to me that I show towards myself on this journey.
(22:06):
But that came, as I say, from, Ithink it was session one, umm,
of me and my health coach when Iwas going in, in there.
We've been skeptical of thinking, sure, what I'm going
to get from this. Yeah.
So part ADI, yeah. That's what did you know.
Yeah, that's amazing. And that's the beauty of the
individualized approach as well,a personalized approach because
(22:28):
here there's really no one-size-fits-all.
When we go into that conversation, it's all about
exploring what what values you have, what, where do you want to
get? And you know, what tools we can
develop together to help you to get there.
And every conversation is very, very different.
And do you? Remember my tool, what I did, I
(22:51):
we had something and it was something that was like personal
to me and I wanted to be able tosee it all the time.
So we put it as my screensaver. On the phone.
Yeah. Yeah, yeah.
Yeah, that was so. That was so good.
It was brilliant. Yeah, yeah.
And I will say as well that likewhat's different in my life now
(23:12):
after having a health coach for so long compared to previous,
the biggest thing that I got coming out of it is the non
negotiables that I have in my life now that I never had
before. Like, and even I said it to my
plates instructor the other day,three classes of plates a week
(23:33):
is non negotiable for me. Two classes of Aqua aerobics is
non negotiable for me. You just have to get those done
because I know even in the moment, if I don't want to do
them, I know that, like we said before, we're future proofing
Belinda's life. This is what we're going well,
this is what we're doing for ourlongevity.
This is what we're doing to be able to run around after the
(23:53):
kids. So it's not just for me and
they, they are my non negotiables.
I've never in my life even heardthe term non negotiables where
you think about doing something for yourself, you know?
I love that term. Yeah, non negotiables.
And it, it, it really does put aboundary around, you know,
(24:13):
what's important for us and really thinking about, you know,
what really matters? What what do you need in place?
What's the baseline that you need in place to to help
yourself and therefore, you know, have enough energy, have
enough, you know, and had enough?
Self esteem. Self esteem, Yeah.
To even support others around you.
(24:35):
Because one of the very common challenges I see is, you know,
with the busy lives and and the family and other demands, work
demands is that sometimes it's perceived as selfish, taking
some time for yourself. And there's the mom guilt that's
of course, very often comes intoplay, all the dead guilt.
And addressing all of this is, is also part of the story.
(24:56):
So it's, it's also about, you know, finding how to how to
prioritise your own well-being abit.
And that's very, very hard. It's very challenging because
you know you you are used to prioritise everyone else needs
before yours and those priority.Super challenging, not easy.
Yeah. And I think also a bit of
(25:20):
worthiness comes into it as well.
That was a huge thing for me. Like when pre Ozempic, I would
never have thought that I deserved to take all of that
time out of my week and purely concentrate on myself.
But I feel now that if I don't do it, then I'm doing EV me
(25:43):
especially and everyone else around me a disservice.
That's how I look at it now, youknow?
So as I said, non negotiable, yeah.
Pouring from an empty cup. Yeah, and Nikki, I'd love to
know. So if we think about your
background a bit, okay, what wasit that kind of led you into,
(26:04):
first of all the area of health coaching and coaching?
Like what was it that kind of, yeah, I made think, oh, that
could be something for me. And then I guess maybe more so a
little bit specifically within the area that you spent a lot of
your time now for patients and people that are, you know,
living with obesity, why that area or yeah, just to know a bit
(26:25):
more about that. OK, how much time do we have?
We'll keep it brief, don't worry.
So my journey into health coaching, it did originate from
my own personal mental and, and physical health struggles as
well, like you might find that with other health coaches.
So I have been struggling with depression and mental health
(26:49):
issues ever since I was a kid, very, very early on.
And in addition to that, there has been a lot of chronic
diseases in my family. And I kind of so that ever since
I was a kid, I was overweight, Ihad body image issues, I had
mental health issues. It was an ongoing struggle all
(27:12):
along. Not to mention my environment
was always filled with, you know, some, some form of fight
against different diseases in the family.
So not the best set of genetics to, to, to have, but ultimately,
a few years ago, I kind of reached my breaking point.
I lost my parents to cancer in avery quick succession, both of
(27:36):
them. And, and at that stage, I kind
of it, it dawned on me that I might, I must be missing
something here. There must be a reason why this
is happening in my family, something that's a complete
oversight, something I didn't notice.
There's no way my family is justthat one of those unfortunate
(27:56):
ones. So these kind of questions is
just sort of led me into discovering different areas.
What am I missing? What's the missing puzzle piece
here? And I started looking a little
bit into the side of nutrition and stress and really all these
areas. But it was, there's really a lot
(28:17):
of research and reading about different things.
But one thing that really strokeme is how throughout my entire
life, even despite the fact thatI've seen, you know,
psychologists in the past, because I had a depression, even
when I was a kid, there was no one ever, ever in my life asked
me about are you stressed or what are you eating or are you
(28:42):
sleeping? Okay, So I went through a lot of
medical professionals with all sorts of issues and it was just
not part of the conversation. And when I really started
studying nutrition and, and, andstudying more, you know, how all
these valving areas really affect us, it was like, you
know, a light bulb moment of, of, of Oh my God, how come that
(29:03):
no one ever asked me these questions because, you know, I
was not looking after myself at all.
Despite, you know, now that I'm more and more evidence on of how
nutrition impacts us, how our sleep matters, our stress, all
these things incredibly important.
And once I made that realization, there was no
stopping me. So I wanted to learn everything.
(29:24):
And this, you know, led me into the house coaching
qualification. And now next year I will qualify
as an attritional therapist as well.
So the next talk in my journey. Congratulations.
Yeah, brilliant. Thanks.
Yeah. And and how I came about joining
Beyond BMI. So a few years ago when the
(29:44):
founders of Beyond BMI Doctor Harriet Tracy, she was looking
into integrating health coachinginto the Beyond BMI program.
So her approach from the get go is to build up a
multidisciplinary team. And part of it was, you know,
thinking about health coaching. And that was a very novel
approach. And that was incredible because
(30:05):
you know, in Ireland especially health coaching is not not as
popular, yes as in other countries.
So that was a mission I was really happy to be a part of
because it was something new. But it was a very whole health
focus approach. And, you know, the more and more
I learned to bash obesity, it itwas just an area that I found,
(30:28):
well, there is a lot to do to remove the stigma, remove the
judgement and offer people the treatment they deserve.
And I think that was something that's, you know, we're really
happily do in the future as well.
Yeah, that's brilliant. That's.
Wow. Yeah, phenomenal journey, like
in terms of your own life experience as well and like your
(30:50):
health and that kind of motivation to want to I guess
help others. And particularly, you know, as
somebody who has lived with again, obesity for the for the
majority of the last kind of 40 years.
It's even as a child and as a teenager and stuff like that, it
kind of, it's so refreshing and kind of encouraging to hear that
(31:13):
there are people out there that have your back and that want to,
that are rooting for you and that want to break in that
stigma within the care of obesity.
And, you know, obviously that's something that beyond BMI are
AP, you know, they're championing from the gecko in
terms of trying to create a better space and more expecting
space. And even, you know, I remember
us doing a session about, umm, like wording and phrases and
(31:35):
terminology around obesity and how can that be more umm, uh,
compassionate and yeah, just really, really, really, really
powerful. Nikki, do you think that all of
your determination came from feelings of being let down where
(31:59):
your health was concerned? So I would phrase it in a way
that it, it was more driven by how empowered I felt just by
educating myself and knowing andrealizing how important all
these lifestyle elements really is.
And, and, and the transformativeeffect of addressing mindset,
(32:22):
addressing how you think about yourself.
Self compassion is something that's really important.
Even even with our clients in B MB, MI, we work on self
compassion very, very often because that's one of those
tools and and skills that we need in our lives, regardless of
where we are in our journey. So having feeling that
(32:45):
empowerment and finding the right treatment can be asked,
that can be really transformative.
So I would say remembering how Ifelt when I realized that, Oh my
God, there are all these areas that are still in my control and
I can actually work on this and and they will all add up
together in the bigger picture. Yeah, that's what I wanted to
put forward and bring it with myself.
(33:08):
And self compassion is, I know we can just talk about it and
say you need it and all the restof it.
But it's having, I think for everybody that would have been
with Beyond BMI, excuse me, trying to tell somebody to have
self compassion for themselves when they've come off the back
(33:28):
of three decades of feeling ashamed and feeling less than
and feeling worthless. You are going to need every
single bit of help that you can get to be able to take that
weight off your shoulders and beS and be compassionate to
yourself. It's a really, really hard thing
(33:49):
to do. Like, you know how hard that was
for me as well, Nikki, And to step away from all the learned
behaviours that made me carry that weight on my shoulders.
And you know, but it is transformative.
I think so. When it happens, I wonder is
like some of the reason why it'sso difficult.
And I guess it can be diff. It'll be difficult for different
(34:10):
people for different reasons. But like, I know all my life I
lived in a space where by society made me feel that this
was all my fault because I wasn't eating less and moving
more and that that was meant to be the answer.
And again, as a qualified personal trainer, that was I, I
would have been aware of that kind of, uh, terminology.
(34:31):
I never fully aligned with it. Like, obviously you understand
the foundations like energy balance and stuff like that, but
that never seemed to be the realanswer for me, even when I was
qualified as I don't get it. Why are people just saying this?
There has to be more. And it's only really it's over
the past year that I've kind of fully been able to understand I
in truer detail the importance of all the other things that
(34:55):
like the eat lesson move more. Is it it's probably not the most
difficult thing for people in terms of if I look at my friends
and that that have, you know, lived with being overweight and
trying to handle that. They probably know more about
nutrition than the average person in the stream because
they've invested so much in trying to understand this
(35:15):
themselves that the things that can be more difficult is, I
think, as Belinda says, that bitof self compassion about
accepting, first of all, this isn't your fault.
There can be biological reasons why your body is working against
you. And that's a phrase I'll kind of
always go to now, is that my medical treatment, uh, Monjaro
that I'm on, it helps me, umm, balance out that biological
(35:39):
inefficiency. So in effect, that I have a
level playing field then so thatI can focus on my nutrition, I
can focus on my movement, umm, and have a fairer chance of, of
success when I'm putting in the kind of efforts there.
But the other things like that you touched on as well, Nikki,
like the huge importance of things like sleep of stress as
well. Like I'm trying to have, have
(36:00):
better management of those. It's one of the things I'm
studying at the moment via precision nutrition is their
stress and sleep management kindof qualification as well to try
and better understand, OK, what roles do these play?
Not just in weight, but they do play a part of those as well.
But overall, just kind of well-being is so like so
important. And, but I do think we've been,
(36:22):
uh, conditioned so much over ourlives that it's just eat less,
move more, just eat less, move more.
That's the answer. When in reality, that's the the
I, I guess I see the bigger answer is no.
Taking some time for yourself and uncovering what is your
answer because it's going to be different for each person.
That's where a health coach can help you.
(36:43):
Yeah, with understanding what your unique journey is.
But whatever that journey is, the most important thing is to
recognize first and foremost, this isn't your fault.
You know, there's, there's so many and, and unfortunately we
have been told that our whole lives up until Paddy 6 months
ago, me two years ago and the rhetoric of eat less, move more.
(37:07):
Once that was taken out of the way for us, we were able to soar
and we were able to concentrate on our nutrition and we were
able to concentrate on our movement.
Yeah. And like taking that medication
once a week has actually become the smallest part of my journey
(37:27):
now for me. Yeah, it really has.
Same for you, Paddy. Yeah, I, I like, I, I do kind of
flip it on the other side as well.
The other end of the spectrum, say with whether it be
disordered eating or conditions or stuff like that.
Like you wouldn't go and say to somebody that is trying to live
with anorexia or bulimia, that or just eat more and, you know,
(37:48):
keep your food. You like you wouldn't, you
wouldn't. But yet it's almost seen as
socially acceptable to do it on the other end of the scale.
Or you just you're just lazy or you're just eating too much or
whatever. It's like there's so much work
needed there in terms of breaking down that stigma and
the understanding of the diseaseof obesity.
And that's where obviously we have, you know, some brilliant
voices and advocates now kind oftrying to do that, like Nikki,
(38:10):
like beyond BMI, like, you know,different actors.
And, you know, increasingly there is a little bit more, but
it's definitely an uphill an uphill battle.
But Nikki, if I dig into, I guess for somebody that might be
listening and is sitting there thinking, I haven't a clue where
to start. I don't know what even step one
(38:31):
is of trying to understand what journey I need to take to become
comfortable with improving my life in terms of my weight.
What kind of tip or advice wouldyou give to somebody that might
be sitting there just feeling very overwhelmed about a journey
that might be needed ahead of them?
Yeah, it is very easy to become overwhelmed because there's just
(38:53):
so much noise information out there and that makes even the
decision making really difficult.
Where to start? What's the first step?
So I would say, of course, you you guys know, I'm, I work for
beyond BMI. So one thing that I think is
really important is find people that are experts in this field
(39:15):
and try to narrow down your focus because listening to, you
know, some random people on the Internet is not necessarily the,
the right expertise you're looking for.
So finding those doctors, those experts in obesity that's
actually are credible is super, super important.
(39:38):
And and, and, and just start there and start just by
educating yourself and differentoptions.
And if you want to have a conversation, you know, all of
these programs, not even just beon BMI, but they do have an
option to just have a chat and, and just discover.
So you don't need to commit to anything, but learning and
educating yourself is really important.
(39:59):
Patty, you know that's saying, and you said it yourself, it's
not your fault. But it's your responsibility and
that responsibility, I find it as a self of self respect.
So respecting yourself, being kind to yourself enough to be
open to have those conversations.
Umm, that's, uh, that's very keylies and, and really just find
(40:21):
the experts on the fields. That's always the best approach
in my opinion. It's invest in, invest in
yourself. Yeah, yeah, absolutely.
And it's something like myself, and again, we say on every
podcast on any live, as much as we will talk about things and
might have bits of insider things, we're not qualified
doctors or professionals or stuff like that in in that
(40:42):
realm. And it's so important, again, as
you say, Nikki, just to double down it that you do engage with
the right qualified health professional or you know, person
to help you with the various aspects of your journey.
And that's where again say the likes of Beyond BMI, they do
have that multidisciplinary approach on.
Yeah. And yeah.
(41:03):
And also I think when you do join something like that, like
beyond BMI, you are in there, you're investing, you're
spending your money, you now know that you are worth this,
but it also gives you longevity in your journey as well.
And it, it like it assists you in so many ways, you know, and
(41:23):
it keeps you, it just keeps you going.
It keeps you motivated, it keepsyou focused.
From somebody who went into my first coaching session
completely chaotic, my, not, notin myself, but my brain was
completely addled from three decades of dieting, eat less,
move more, all the rest of it. And my God, did that take some
time to come out the other side of that and realise that none of
(41:46):
that is true. And I didn't need to be going
around murder in my own head, you know, every single day.
And yes, that's what I say abouthaving a health coach.
It was a brilliant experience. Yeah.
And Nikki, that kind of idea in particular of self compassion,
because that's been one of the biggest things for me and
(42:08):
Belinda, we've spoke about this in our own chats in our like
WhatsApp voice notes back and forward all day.
When things come up, sometimes it's like, OK, self compassion
and it this is OK or that's OK. But again, getting to a place of
allowing yourself to show self compassion to yourself or
accepting that that's OK can be a mammoth thing for people.
(42:30):
What advice would you have for somebody in terms of, I don't
know, even like the smallest stepper initial thing,
particularly in relation to thatidea of self compassion?
Well, that's a difficult one because, uh, self compassion, I
think it's a very broad, uh, ranging topic.
And in terms of getting started,that can be very daunting.
(42:54):
So if someone is starting you off, why don't you just be
compassionate with yourself? That's really not helpful.
Yeah, like what? That sounds weird.
I don't want to do it. So I would say initially it
might be easier to think about if self compression is a bit too
much for you or it's something that's a little bit out of grasp
for the moment. That's OK, but why don't we
(43:17):
explore kindness first? So can we be a little bit kinder
every day to ourselves? And that we'll tie back into the
self compassion piece. But kindness is something that
doesn't have to be, you know, tied into anything, but just
showing some gesture for yourself, something that really
helps you, something that shows you that you are looking after
(43:38):
yourself. And that can in turn in turn, in
turn really increase your confidence and really start
putting you in that motion of, you know what, I can do this, I
can take care of myself. And that's all act of kindness
every day. It can be, you know, just making
a really nice cup of coffee in the morning.
It can be doing your nails. It can be, you know, anything
(43:59):
that you can think of, just a small act of kindness one at a
time. It makes it very tangible and
and very practical. And we can start there.
And that that's something practical that we can put in
place right from the get go. And then we were slowly working
towards what self compassion means to you and, and define it
(44:20):
based on your values. Because this compassion piece
can look very different for everyone, but it all comes from
kindness. And that's where I would start
probably. I love that.
I love that. Position.
Yeah, because the way that I have packaged that in my head
and it took me a long time to get to this place was what is my
(44:41):
moment of joy today, particularly if it is a period
of busyness or stress or whatever.
And lately, every day seems to be full of busyness again, which
Clinton knows when we're talkingabout things is like.
And then it'll be like, Patty, when's the last time you just
sat down? And it's like, oh, God, yeah.
But the one thing that stays constant for me now is that I
(45:04):
need to make sure that I prioritize moments of joy
throughout the day or the week or whatever for me.
And sometimes that can be literally putting on a song that
makes me feel good or makes me smile or, you know, and
something with my partner or thecat or something like that.
But something that makes me feelgood about me in the day.
And that could be like like a 2 minute thing or a 2 minute thing
(45:26):
or whatever. But it's so important for me
now. So important.
But that's a learned behaviour now.
That isn't it. It took.
A long time, A long. Time to get there and realise
that that was a ping I needed and to have me in my journey and
to, I guess, stay and stay good with myself, yeah.
Yeah. And it's everybody needs that
and everybody should be doing that and everybody should be
(45:47):
open to it. But unfortunately, like I said,
it takes, it's hard, it's a hardthing to do and it takes a lot
of strength and it takes focus and it also takes courage and
everybody needs a little bit of help.
So I think we're a health coach is concerned.
If you have the opportunity to have a health coach, if you feel
(46:12):
like investing in yourself and you want your life to be better,
more focused, you want longevity, go and get yourself a
health coach. You know, it's the best thing
that ever happened to me. I'm not just saying that because
you're sat here, Nikki. I went through a lot like you,
you know, I went through a lot of figuring stuff out and came
(46:33):
out the other side all the better for it, you know?
Yeah, yeah. That's amazing to hear, Belinda,
and, and thank you for sharing that story.
It's true. It's, it's nice to hear to that
you advocate for the health coaching because I do think like
that it's going to be a very fundamental part of health in
the future. So I, I see a really big
(46:54):
potential in, you know, growing the health coaching function
across all healthcare services. We need that, we need that
space, we need to hurt and we need to work on these areas that
that absolutely do contribute toumm, you know, our well-being,
our long term health, our longevity.
So hopefully this will always evolve in the future.
Yeah. I'd love to see a, a world
(47:18):
whereby whether it be somebody going to the likes of Beyond
BMI, which already have the multidisciplinary approach
covered. But even in say the community
setting that if you're going to just your own GP and I don't
know, they prescribe you say Saxenda, you know, which is one
of the ones available, you know,readily in Ireland.
But that you don't just get a prescription that you also get a
referral to a health coach or toa dietitian or to that they,
(47:42):
it's almost part of the package that you get to help you on your
journey as opposed to what we see with 99.99% of what's
happening in the UK where you just get, it's like prescribing
go and you're writing solo. And it's such a, a daunting
journey. So it is but.
But The thing is as well, I think that we have to remember
that the reason that that's happening, Paddy, is because the
(48:03):
doctors are not supporting the people on the ground.
They're absolutely not. I mean, from my experience of
going into my doctor about my weight and whatever, I was never
given any help. Never, ever, ever.
But I think that comes down to then what support are the
doctors getting from the healthcare system as well.
(48:24):
And also probably a little bit off the fact that most doctors
will be general practitioners asopposed to a specialist in their
area like a health coach or a dietitianer that.
But they should know where to refer people, Paddy.
Yeah, that's something hopefullywill improve, you know, over
time is that piece as we learn more about the journeys people
are on and the the, the importance of that much
(48:45):
disciplinary approach for peopleand, and how people can be, can
be supported. Yeah, and.
I think I don't even know if thedoctor, the general GPS have any
idea that they can say to their patient, you know, there's
beyond BMI out there, there's mybest weight.
And these people are all geared towards helping you holistically
(49:07):
through your whole journey. You know, they don't ever
mention anything like that, anything ever, you know?
Yeah, but they should. That's where the advocacy is so
important, I guess, to the work that that Nikki and people like
that are doing, you know, at themoment.
Yeah. That's fantastic.
Umm, Belinda, any kind of final questions or bits that were you
had on your little list that we didn't get to cover?
(49:29):
Let me just check one second now.
Because we've codges of our timeas well.
I think we've about four, no? Not really, because I think I've
said everything I needed to say and Nikki, like you were
brilliant. Thank you SO.
Much. Thank you so much.
Is Nikki our first guest? Yes.
Yes, our first guest, yeah. Brilliant type so guys.
(49:55):
Yeah, yeah. Oh, I knew.
I knew the minute we started this podcast that you were you
were going to be on here the minute we started it.
Yeah, spoken about a long time ago, and I can contest to what
Belinda said. She's like a major Nikki fan
girl like this. Not every few days your name
comes up somewhere, Nikki, aboutthe impact and influence and
(50:17):
support that you have been on this journey.
But Nikki, any kind of final words of wisdom for people that
might be listening? Oh, yeah.
So first of all, thanks, guys. It's been a pleasure to be here.
And I know we do need more advocates for and more voices,
more importantly, in the media. Whoever is going on in this
(50:37):
journey to remove stigma, to remove judgement, there's a lot
of work to do. And the conversation is
changing. And it's changing because of you
guys. And it's changing because the
other voices out there who are, who are empathetic, who aren't
compassionate and who wants to help others to understand that
it's a really, really important treatment.
And that is available now and itcan be life changing.
(51:00):
And I'm sure I have a feeling that your listeners are very
similar in a way that they do consider GLP ones and other
medications as a tool. So it is like these tools are,
and these medications are game changing.
They're transformative and they do address the biological
drivers of of weight and that's incredible profound effect on
(51:24):
metabolic health, obesity and they will continue to improve.
But the real power I find it really lies in utilizing them as
a tool. So what they do is they make it
possible to work on other areas in your life that's really that
really impact your well-being. Think about other things you
(51:45):
could do anything from, you know, lowering the barrier to
physical activity, being a bit physical, more physically
active, managing stress. Think about, you know, other
aspects in life where you can make a difference and make you
feel even better. So all these things are so
important to consider. Our health is very complex and
we are very complex and therefore we do need a complex
(52:07):
and comprehensive solution here.So yeah, just basically, if I
had a magic wands, I would just encourage everyone to to look
out for the treatment they deserve because they deserve it.
Everyone deserves the right treatment.
Obviously it's the only chronic relapsing disease where it has
such a cultural root behind because of how weight has been a
(52:32):
thing in the media since probably humanity existed, that
it makes it really, really difficult to to to avail of the
right treatment because people do feel stigma and judgment
around it. So I just wish, I just wish more
people would come on board. Thank you so much.
(52:53):
And I think they're the best words to finish on.
Ever. Thank you so much, Nikki.
Thank you. Thank you for joining.
Thank you guys. Take care, bye bye.
Remember, the information withinthis podcast should not be taken
as personal medical advice. Always consult your own
healthcare team before starting or changing any medical
treatment.
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