Live Unrestricted - The Intuitive Eating & Food Freedom Podcast

"Eat when you're hungry, stop when you're full." Ok, wonderful… 

But what if you genuinely don't know what full actually feels like? Not stuffed and uncomfortable. The quieter signal. The one that comes before the pain. For a lot of women, that signal has gone basically silent. And this episode is about why, and how to start reconnecting to it.

In this episode I discuss...

→Why years of eating by rules and numbers trains your body to stop sending signals

→How living "from the neck up" disconnects you from the subtler cues of...

You already know about the binge-restrict cycle. That's not why you're still stuck in it. In this episode I'm going 10 layers deep into what's actually keeping the cycle running -  including the real reason "just stop restricting" advice doesn't work, and the three things that actually have to happen to break free for good.

In this episode I discuss...

You spend weeks looking forward to a trip. And then the second you get there, your brain is consumed with thoughts about food and your body. 

Constant math about what you've eaten. Dreading the next time you have to put on a bathing suit. Feeling like you're watching your own vacation instead of actually being in it. And this specific kind of shame that comes from knowing you should be relaxed right now, and being completely unable to get there.

This episode is about why that happens, and what's actually going on underneath it.

Eating healthy feels SO much harder than it needs to be. In the current age of health and wellness culture, you’re being set up to fail. Too many conflicting opinions, too many rules, confusion, overwhelm… and underneath all of it, a nervous system that's been in survival mode around food for so long that even the word "healthy" can feel like a threat.

In this episode, I break down the five most common mistakes that make healthy eating feel impossible. You’ll also know how to simplify it, strip it down to the things that will have t...

You’re becoming aware that you turn to food when you’re feeling overwhelmed or feeling like you’re failing at something, as a way to distract from that discomfort. But even though you now know what’s happening, you can’t seem to stop. 

That gap between knowing and being able to actually do something different isn't a willpower problem. It has everything to do with your nervous system. 

In this episode, I answer a real question from a member inside Food Freedom Academy: she's aware she reaches for food when she's overwhelmed and feeling like...

Today is my 30th birthday. Ahhh!!! And after a month away from the podcast, which hasn't happened since I started it, this felt like the right episode to come back with.

My 20s were challenging and beautiful and full. Living in Italy, living in France, the pandemic, building a business, falling in love, moving between friend groups, failing A LOT growing A LOT. I am SO proud of my 20s. And I am even more excited for what comes next.

In this episode, I'm sharing 30 things I figured out before 30. Some are big life lessons...

Have you ever found yourself spiraling down the "wellness" rabbit hole?

One week you’re told your bloating is from gluten. The next it’s dairy. Then suddenly you’re on your 5th elimination diet, $300 deep in supplements, and still feeling exhausted, anxious, and confused.

I know that trap because I lived it. And so did my guest today - Christy Harrison.

Christy is a registered dietitian, journalist, host of Rethinking Wellness, and author of the books Anti-Diet and The Wellness Trap. She has spent years pulling back the curtain on how we...

You know that feeling where you feel like you get PULLED towards food when you get hit with a strong emotion...like anxiety, stress or overwhelm?

You might know logically that eating never makes you feel better in the long-run, but no matter how much you try, it feels IMPOSSIBLE to break free from emotional eating for good. 

If you can relate, you're going to find out why it feels like food has power over you in this episode! 

Plus, you'll learn brand-new strategies to overcome emotional eating at the source without ever ne...

You want to change. You say you're ready for freedom.

But… part of you is still clinging to the struggle.

In this powerful Part 2 of my conversation with mindset expert Danya Douglas Hunt, we unpack something most people don’t talk about:

The hidden comfort that can live inside patterns we say we want to change- especially when it comes to food, money, and control.

Together we explore:

You might think it’s just overthinking. Procrastination. Perfectionism. Burnout.

But underneath it all?

Fear is calling the shots, and you probably don’t even realize it.

In this raw, honest, and mind-expanding conversation, I’m joined by the incredible Danya Douglas Hunt, a former Olympic Athletic Therapist turned powerhouse mindset coach for high performers. Danya blends neuroscience, quantum physics, and subconscious reprogramming in a way that’s equal parts grounded and expansive.

Together, we dive into:

Affirmations aren't going to fix the fact that you haven’t felt safe or comfortable in your body for decades. Neither is journaling. And neither will knowing, intellectually, that your body is the least interesting thing about you.

Because body hatred doesn't live as a thought. It lives in your nervous system. It's a survival program, wired in at some point that linked your size, your weight, your appearance, to your safety. And you cannot think your way out of a program that lives in your body.

In this episode, I'm breaking down why everything yo...

You don't have a control problem. You have a nervous system that found control through food. 

Episode 5 of the Nervous System Series is about the real reason behind the compulsion to track, restrict, and micromanage everything around food, including my own story of moving to university at 18, my nervous system hitting DEEP dysregulation,  and realizing years later that what I thought was my personality was actually a strategy. A really effective, really painful, really exhausting strategy.

We go into why the brain keeps filing "control food = feel safer" even when you knowwww it's not logical, th...

You've tried to "just listen to your body." And it either feels like silence, or static, or something comes through that feels way too scary or confusing to stay with. And then you wonder what is wrong with you, because this is supposed to be natural.

Nothing is wrong with you. But there are three very specific reasons why this feels impossible, and this episode breaks all of them down.

In Episode 4 of the Nervous System Series, we go into why survival mode literally turns off your body's signals, what years of overriding your hunger...

You are not lazy. You're not a procrastinator. You don't "just lack willpower." Your nervous system is dysregulated, and once you can recognize that, your shame will start to lift.

In this episode, I walk through an audit - the physical, emotional, behavioral, and thought-pattern signs that you're living in survival mode without realizing it. Sleep that doesn't actually restore you. A harsh inner critic that gets meaner on hard days. Resting that feels more like exposure than relaxation. Racing thoughts at night, second-guessing every decision, looping on the same problem for the hundredth time.

...

The state of your nervous system impacts what, why and how you eat. It determines whether you can hear the signals of your body or not. It determines how you feel about yourself and your body.

So it is soooo important to:
1) be able to recognize which state you’re in

2) know how to bring yourself back to a regulated and present state

Roughly 70% of people in the Western world are walking around in a survival state and have NO idea. They just think it's their personality, but it's not.

In...

Your nervous system runs your relationship with food. Not your willpower. Not even how much you WANT to change. Your nervous system - and until you understand what's actually happening in your body, no strategy is going to stick long-term.

This is Episode 1 of the Nervous System Series, and it's the foundational episode: what your nervous system actually is, what it means to be chronically dysregulated, and exactly how that shows up in your relationship with food.

We cover what neuroception is and why your body is making threat assessments before your brain even has...

Two and a half months ago, I had a breakdown bad enough that I had two choices: completely change how I was running my business, or quit.

I chose to rebuild myself, and every facet of how I was running my business (boy was it hard). And this episode is me finally telling you what that actually looked like. 

For years, I had been normalizing monthly breakdowns. Curled up on the bed, crying for hours, convinced I was a failure. Luke holding me together. I thought it was just the cost of running a business. I...

You don’t need more willpower to stop bingeing. You don’t even need to want it “badly” enough. You need to uncover what the binges are DOING for you. 

In this episode, I sit down with a member of my community, Melissa, for a deep coaching over coffee session about  binge eating, sugar cravings, and the pattern that keeps running no matter how much self-awareness she has. She knows what's happening. And it keeps happening anyway.

We get into:

How many times have you started a habit, felt good about it, and then watched it fall apart the second life got in the way? And then blamed yourself for it?

My guest today has spent 20 years studying exactly WHY that happens, and her answer is going to reframe the whole thing for you.

Monica Packer is a certified habits and identity coach, host of the top-rated podcast About Progress, and author of the upcoming book Sticky Habits: A Woman's Guide to Reclaim Happiness, Ditch Perfectionism, and Create Habits That Last. She's also a 20-year...

You know you’re full. Your body it’s had enough. And yet something takes over and you finish the plate anyway.

That's not a willpower problem. It's a pattern that got wired into your nervous system long before you were old enough to question it, so willpower was never going to be enough to touch it.

In this episode, I'm walking you through 3 specific steps to actually rewire the "clean your plate" mentality for good — not just override it occasionally, but unlearn it at the level where it actually lives.

We cover:

You can want something with your WHOLE heart and still have a part of you working against it.

I got back from my Sedona retreat a couple of days ago and I have been DYING to record this episode. Because what came out of that trip, I did not see coming.

I thought I'd released all the resistance around my goal. I'd been doing the work every single day for months. And then I sat around a fire with my two business girlfriends and completely fell apart, because I realized that part of me had...

Eating disorders don't often look like what you might picture in your mind. 

We often dismiss what we're going through or experiencing because we're not "too thin" or needing to be hospitalized. 

But as you’ll hear in today’s episode, you don’t have to look sick to be struggling.

I’m joined by Foster Wilson, a poet, postpartum doula, and podcast host whose work bridges creativity, care, and connection. After living with an undiagnosed eating disorder for over 20 years, Foster shares what it was really like to exist in the exhaus...

If you've ever spent the weeks before a trip restricting, overexercising, and trying to "clean up" your eating — only to arrive and feel completely out of control around food — this episode is for you.

I know what it's like when a vacation creates more food anxiety than genuine excitement. When you're stressing about it WEEKS before you leave, eat in a way that feels chaotic once you're there, and come home already planning how to compensate. The trip is supposed to be the good part. And it's just... exhausting.

In this episode, I'm walking you thro...

Stephanie had been navigating a complicated relationship with food and her body since she was 15. 

On the outside, she had it “all together”. She was a teacher, a marathoner, an Ironman athlete - someone who got called disciplined and in control her whole life. For decades, she mostly convinced herself she was okay. But she wasn’t. 

In this episode, Stephanie shares what four decades of disordered eating and compulsive exercise actually looked like - how it shifted shapes over the years, what finally pushed her to do something different, and what life is like now.

Have you ever wondered what it’s like to approach food with flexibility, ease and peace of mind?

To just…listen to your body, eat what sounds good, and move on with your day?

Well, this episode is going to show you! I'm taking you inside my internal world to share how I eat as a recovered disordered eater. Not WHAT I eat, exactly -  but how I think about it. The filters behind my decisions. The difference between choosing from fear and choosing from self-knowledge.

I walk through a few days of eatin...

Most of us have been there. A hard day, a stressful afternoon, a moment where you're just…done. And before you've made any kind of conscious decision, you're in the kitchen. Eating something you didn't really plan to eat. Sometimes it feels chaotic and out of control.

And it helps! For about two minutes. And then it doesn't. And then the guilt shows up, the emotions you were trying to escape come back, and you feel worse than before.

If that loop sounds familiar, this episode is going to give you a completely different way to...

You know when you’ve had a good stretch? You feel like you’re making progress. Things are quieter around food. You're not thinking about it as much. You’re actually noticing…change. 

But instead of relaxing into it, you find yourself waiting for it to fall apart. Waiting for the next shoe to drop. 

One of our Food Freedom Academy members asked me about this recently. She'd been making real progress less than a month in and she said: I keep noticing I'm braced for failure. Is that normal?

Yes. And there's a specific...

We hear it all the time…

 “Just be consistent.”

 “Just stick to the plan.”

 “Just try harder.”

But what if the reason you feel inconsistent, stuck, or like nothing is really clicking… has nothing to do with your effort?

In this episode, I'm joined by Courtney Townley, women's health coach, host of the Grace & Grit podcast, and author of The Consistency Code - and we go way deeper than food, workouts, or routines.

We talk about what it actually means to be physically, mentally, and emotionally healthy… and wh...

If you’ve been trying to change your your relationship with food or eating habits… but feel like you keep repeating the same patterns no matter HOW HARD you try, this episode is going to show you why.

Because the issue that you don't have enough information or knowledge. 

The issue is in.... your nervous system.

I'm about to share a deeply personal realization I made last week when I noticed that despite journaling, meditating, and “doing all the right things,” I still felt overwhelmed, stuck, and unable to shift certain patterns. 

I finall...

“What if I’ve dieted for so long that I’ve permanently damaged my metabolism?”

This is a question I hear a lot. If you’ve spent years restricting, tracking, cutting carbs, pushing through hunger, over-exercising, … it makes sense that your body doesn’t feel the same anymore.

Maybe you’re exhausted.

Maybe you’re lifting weights but not building muscle.

Maybe you’re barely hungry all day… then ravenous at night.

Maybe the second you loosen control, your brain screams, “You’re going to gain everything back.”

In this episode, I sit dow...

Chances are, that you are already abundantly aware that too much of your worth is attached to your body. Maybe...

And underneath all of that, there’s this quiet belief: “If my body isn’t good enough, I’m...

Are you someone who is locked in with food during the week? You're disciplined, structured, productive, following your eating plan, no "junk" food in the house... being "good"...

And then as Friday night hits, it's like a switch flips.

You can finally relax, allow yourself to have the foods you've been avoiding, and you end up eating in a way that doesn't feel great for your body throughout the entire weekend. 

So you tell yourself: “It’s fine. I’ll just get back on track Monday.”

In this episode, we're talking about how...

Most of us have been taught to live our lives according to what is the "right" or "wrong" thing to do. 

We look to others. We compare. We copy. We see something that's working for someone else, so we try to replicate it. 

But that keeps us disconnected from our own individuality. No two humans are designed the same. There's no one-size-fits-all approach to health, nutrition, movement, self-care, relationships, career, or really ANY area in our life. 

We're all unique. And the only way to create a life that lights you up - tha...

If you’ve been trying to heal your relationship with food for years (or decades), and you’re still not where you want to be, this episode is for you. Because today we’re talking about a invisible belief that lives so deep, most women don’t even realize it’s running the show.

I dive into why your nervous system has built protective armor after years of false starts, “failed” diets, and the kind of hope that felt amazing… until it turned into disappointment, shame, and another Monday restart.

In this episode, I’ll walk you th...

If you’ve ever thought, “I know I should eat more… so why does the idea of it freak me out?” this episode is for you.

Maybe you’re rigid with calories or portions. 

Maybe you’re constantly hungry, tired, or thinking about food.

Maybe you’re technically eating what you’ve been told is “enough,” but your body is saying otherwise.

And yet, when you even think about eating more, your chest tightens. Panic kicks in. Fear takes over.

In this episode, we’re talking about why that happens and why it has...

You're not stuck, you're resisting change.

If you feel like you really WANT to heal your relationship with food - make better food choices, stop overeating/binge eating or thinking about food constantly - but you're frustrating that you can't seem stop repeating the same old patterns over and over again, this episode is for you.

Kathy has been where you are-trapped between restriction, overeating, and feeling out of control. Together, we uncover the real reasons she keeps falling back into old patterns and what it actually takes to create a peaceful, effortless relationship with...

If you’ve ever thought, “I’ve tried everything… why is food still so hard for me?” this episode is for you.

title: "I Tried Every Diet for 30 Years. This Is What Actually Healed My Relationship With Food"

In this deeply honest conversation, I sit down with Mandie, a former long-term dieter, perfectionist, mom, and high-achiever who spent over 30 years managing her weight, controlling food, and trying to “do it right”… yet still felt trapped by food obsession, binge cycles, and constant mental noise.

Mandie shares what it was like to:

Do you feel like you've been doing everything you can do change your experience with food, yet you're still not where you want to be?

Maybe you’ve read the books. Listened to the podcasts. Done the journaling, the mindset work, the healing work.

And yet… you’re still overeating or obsessing over food constantly.

In this episode, we’re unpacking why that's happening, and no, it’s not because you’re broken, lazy, or doing it wrong.

You’ll hear the core insight that completely changed everything for me and finally explai...

Obsessing over food is exhausting. It feels like an ongoing mental battle that takes over your mental space and affects all areas of your life. 

This is the time of the year when diet culture is everywhere. It's easy to fall into the tap of the “New Year, New Me” mindset and get pulled back into the dieting cycle that doesn't serve you.

But what if this was the heal you finally found freedom from food obsession and found a new way of eating? One that doesn't involve giving up the foods you love, feeling out o...

Does this pattern feel familiar to you?