Weight Loss Mindset, Manuals & Romantisizing Your Midlife Glow

Ready to transform your midlife wellness journey with practical, powerful strategies that actually work? This episode delivers a comprehensive roadmap for creating sustainable change through mindful movement, emotional freedom, and simple daily pleasures.

Step into my world as I share exciting news about my wellness and nutrition coach certifications, plus advanced courses in GLP-1 and massive weight loss through NASM. I break down my current gym routine—a carefully structured weekly plan balancing strength training, cardiovascular exercise, recovery periods, and nutrition that's bringing real results without feeling punishing or overwhelming.

Discover four game-changing mindset tricks that have carried me through three years of successful weight loss. Learn how reframing setbacks as valuable feedback rather than failures transforms your relationship with progress. I'll coach you through recognizing cravings for what they truly are—your brain seeking dopamine—and developing practical "if-then" plans that eliminate decision fatigue when challenges arise.

The episode takes a powerful turn when we explore the hidden "manuals" we unconsciously create for relationships. These unspoken expectations often lead to disappointment and frustration when others don't follow our invisible scripts. I'll guide you through identifying these patterns and reclaiming your emotional freedom by replacing control with healthy boundaries.

Your skin's radiance begins in your gut! I share my personal experience with functional medicine testing that revealed candida overgrowth and food sensitivities affecting my skin. Learn why avoiding raw foods after 4pm dramatically improves digestion and complexion, plus the specific probiotic strain that transformed my skin health.

We close with delightful ways to "romanticize" your wellness journey—simple practices like drinking morning coffee from vintage teacups or serving berries in crystal dishes that transform ordinary moments into meaningful rituals. These small touches of luxury and mindfulness elevate self-care from mere functionality to true pleasure.

Leave a positive review to help other midlife women discover these transformative strategies, and join me on Instagram, Facebook, Threads, TikTok, and jackstyescom to continue the conversation!

Chapters

• 1:37 Welcome to Midlife Glow Report
• 2:58 My Gym and Wellness Routine
• 6:29 Four Powerful Weight Loss Mindset Tricks
• 11:51 Throwing Away Relationship Manuals
• 17:21 Gut Health and Skincare Connection
• 22:31 Romanticizing Your Glow-Up Journey
• 26:11 Episode Wrap-Up and Call to Action

Transcript

Speaker 1: 1:02

Well, hello everyone. Welcome back to the Midlife Globe Report. I'm Jax. I'm so glad you're here today. This week has been a great week, a big week. I officially enrolled in my wellness coach certification and nutrition coach certification, plus two advanced courses of GLP-1 and massive weight loss through NASM. So it's going to be an intense next four to six months, about 10 to 15 hours a week for the rest of the year and maybe beyond. But I am so committed and I can't wait to bring you all the knowledge back here online and on the podcast to share with you all online and on the podcast to share with you all. So in today's episode I'm going to take you inside my current gym and wellness routine, share four powerful mindset tricks that have carried me through weight loss the last three years. Coach you on throwing away the manuals we secretly write for our relationships. Give you some skincare tips that ties directly to your gut health and, of course, we'll wrap up with a couple of fun romantic little touches to make your glow-up journey feel extra special. So let's dive in.

Speaker 1: 2:24

So, again to circle back, I did purchase those two certification programs wellness and nutrition coach certification. I've already started the wellness. That's the first step. I've gotten through four chapters. I'm on chapter five. I do them downtime, I do them in the evenings, I do them early mornings. I you know I do wake up at about 4 am every morning. On the weekends I really pack in hours of doing the certification. At least that's what I did this past weekend. So I'm really excited about it. I'm really interested in what I'm going to learn and what I can bring to all of you, what I can bring to the table and, you know, just expand my knowledge and what I can apply to myself, since I am still on a weight loss journey. So I'm very excited. So that's coming along. Also, I did sign back up for the gym and I'm hitting the gym. I do have a routine that I planned out, so I will give a little bit of it right here, right now.

Speaker 1: 3:39

So, monday mornings I wake up early. I do not go to the gym. On Mondays, I use the vibration plates and I do walk for 45 minutes before work. And then, tuesdays, I wake up early, I use the vibration plate, I go to the gym at 5 am, I do legs and glutes, I do HIIT for 15 to 20 minutes and then I use the sauna for 10 to 15 minutes. I come home, have some water, have some protein and then I go for a walk for 30 minutes. So it's probably a packed-in morning on Tuesdays. Wednesdays is my gym off day. I do do a walk for 45 minutes and use the vibration plates in the morning. Thursdays I again hit the gym at 5 am. I do upper body. This day I use the HIIT for 15, 20 minutes and then do the sauna and then I come home have some protein and go for a walk for about 30 minutes. Friday I wake, I do not go to the gym, I use the vibration plate and walk for 45 minutes.

Speaker 1: 4:43

Saturday is I go to the gym at 5 am. I do legs and glutes. I do HIIT for walk for 45 minutes. Saturday is I go to the gym At 5 am. I do legs and glutes. I do HIIT for 15, 20 minutes. I use the sauna vibration plate. When I come home have some protein with fiber I forgot to mention that I always pack in fiber with the protein and then I walk for 30 minutes.

Speaker 1: 5:02

Sunday again I go to the gym 5 am. I do upper body HIIT for 15, 20 minutes, sauna for 10 to 15 minutes, come home, use the vibration plate and in the afternoon, on Sundays, I walk for 45 minutes. And I do make sure my diet is in check. I eat a lot of fiber, a lot of protein, so yeah and healthy fats. So that's where I'm at right now. I have done this routine the last one and a half 10 days it's been, so I am sticking to it. We'll see how long that lasts, fingers crossed. If I need to make adjustments, you know, if I'm under the weather, just really not feeling up to it, or if I have too much to do, then I will make the necessary adjustments. But I will definitely try to get to the gym at least four days a week. So that is my gym routine.

Speaker 1: 5:55

Okay, the next segment is covering some weight loss mindset tricks I have developed over the last three years on my weight loss journey. They've been super helpful, so I'll share them here with you so maybe you could apply them to yourself if you are on a weight loss journey. So the first one is reframing setbacks as feedback, not failure. So, like, every slip up has some sort of data to provide what worked, what didn't and what needs adjusting. So just taking that failure and flipping it and using it as knowledge and some sort of data to apply to the next time, to improve. So, instead of feeling guilty, I always ask what can I learn from this? What can I take away from this? So progress is not linear. Feedback loops keep you moving forward. So always gain some sort of knowledge, some sort of feedback from a mistake or a setback.

Speaker 1: 6:59

Next is I name my cravings when I crave something. Next is I name my cravings when I crave something, and I'll be honest, I don't crave sweets, I crave salty, you know savory. When I crave something, I call it what it is, that it is my brain is chasing a dopamine hit. That's what it is when you crave something and you're not literally hungry and you can eventually feel the difference if you are mindful with yourself. That is a dopamine hit. You just want to feed your brain. So that's what I call it. I separate me from the craving and I say to myself this is a dopamine hit. And so I say it out loud. I pause and I just say it out loud instead of actually just going at it and reacting and eating those tortilla chips or those potato chips.

Speaker 1: 7:55

So, yeah, I name when cravings arise, I ride the urge. I don't divulge in it, I don't do the action. So I'll drink water or I will, uh, look at social media and look at my friends and my the people that I follow and I'll make comments on social media and I'll like their posts and maybe I'll go. There is a one app I use that is a learning app and I will start going through some learning information on that app. They do highlight certain books and whatnot, so it's a quick learning and I get a dopamine hits, a positive dopamine hits, from that learning. So I ride the cravings, I ride the urge and I don't do the action of the urge, but I ride it till they leave, till they're over with. I do deep breathing, I drink water, I go social media, I'll learn something, I'll listen to an audio book, and it's till it passes. So this is not when I'm hungry, this is when I'm just having an urge, so I write it.

Speaker 1: 9:16

Finally, let's see here I use if-then plans so I create automatic responses for tough moments. So if I'm having a craving, I drink water. This has the same thing to do with writing the urge. I have preset ideas to prohibit decision fatigue. So if I'm going to get an urge, my go-to is to grab my big 40-ounce water bottle and just have some sips and just sit in the moment and then or I will, if I'm at home, I will go on the walking pad too. So I have reactions to the urge, I have use. If, then plans, if I have a craving, then I do this. So you have them in your mind. You don't have to think what can I do? I'm having a craving, or I do that craving, I actually do the actual action and I eat those chips. I have an if and then then plan already preset in my mind. So if I'm at work and it's lunchtime and I want something not healthy because I didn't pack, I have a backup plan. I have my go-tos. I go get my unsandwiched from Jimmy John's, which is a sandwich wrapped in lettuce with vegetables and protein. Or I go to Core Life, which I know it's all antibiotic-free. Or I go to Core Life, which I know it's all antibiotic-free grass-fed beef, all organic vegetables, and I get something from Core Life. So I have my go-tos. So my reaction to that craving. So those are my four mindset tips.

Speaker 1: 11:17

Okay, so now I'm going to touch into a life coaching segment. This has to do with us as individuals, having manuals for our relationships, for the people in our lives, having set manuals, set expectations of those people in our lives. So we all carry invisible manuals for people in our lives. They are kind of unspoken rules about how these people in our lives should act. Examples should be like he should always text me back right away, or my kids should visit every Sunday, or my friends should remember my birthday every year. These are manuals, expectations we carry.

Speaker 1: 12:16

When people don't follow our manuals, we often make it mean like they don't care about us, that they don't respect us and that they don't value us. But that is not the case. Manuals feel comfortable to the brain because they create predictability. That's why we have manuals. It's the predictability. It's just like this is what's going to happen. But they are not real. Manuals are not real.

Speaker 1: 12:42

So you have to remember that other adults get to make their own choices, just like we do. Trying to control them creates a frustration and a distance between you and them. You cannot control others. So freedom comes when we stop tying our happiness to whether others follow our script. So that's our freedom as well as their freedom. We can't expect them to follow our manual, our script.

Speaker 1: 13:17

So we have to remember midlife is a crucial time to release manuals. We're reinventing ourselves in midlife and waiting on others' approval just keeps us stuck. Your value, progress and worth don't depend on someone else recognizing them. You get to decide what's true about you. You have to have the shift from, instead of controlling others, to leading yourself in midlife.

Speaker 1: 13:54

Boundaries aren't about controlling someone else's behaviors, so you need to set boundaries. That's what you should do, not a manual, and it's not about controlling someone else's behaviors. Boundaries, they're about deciding what you will do if this line is crossed. This is a boundary, not a manual, and you need to ask yourself what do I want to think, feel and do in this situation, instead of spinning in frustration? So a practical step you can take is notice whose behavior you want to change and write down your secret manual rules. Write them down and then ask why do I want them to act this way? What am I making it mean? Reclaim your power by reminding yourself my feelings come from my thoughts, not this person's actions. Letting go of manuals create lighter, freer relationships. People will start to feel safe with you, not judged or tested. The result more genuine love, deeper connections and more peace in your own life. So again, here is the journal exercise, this practice you can do, to explore these manuals you have and maybe put an end to them.

Speaker 1: 15:27

Write down one manual rule you have for someone in your life Maybe it's your partner or your child, or a parent or a sibling or a friend and ask yourself what am I making it mean when they don't follow this? What am I making it mean? And journal it and then rewrite it. As I'm responsible for my feelings, I choose to feel blank this today, no matter what. So I choose to feel light and happy today, no matter what. So you are responsible. Your feelings, not this other person's actions. This other person's actions are not responsible for your feelings. Only you are responsible for your feelings. So you do this, you know, daily for a week and notice the shift. You'll feel lighter, freer and more in control, not of them, but of yourself, and this is where your true power lies.

Speaker 1: 16:33

Okay, so next segment is this is just a really quick skincare tip that I read in a book About three years ago and I have totally applied to myself and it totally makes sense, so I'm going to share it with you. It's um, so I don't have any raw foods after 4 pm In the afternoon. You know raw vegetables, sushi, things like that. Most you know I don't have any raw foods. Raw foods are harder on the body to break down. It is best to give them time to digest and eating them at four o'clock is not going to be digested by the time you sleep. So I only eat raw foods before 4 pm, when your metabolism is fired up and your stomach is better equipped to digest foods.

Speaker 1: 17:20

Now the reason is why I'm so concerned with stomach and digestion is because it's now understood that your gut biome has a lot to do with your skin health. That's what they have found in research and data. So you want to slow down digestion and you don't want to digest a lot of food in your sleep, which you can't. So you want to eat all your raw foods before 4 pm so your body can digest by the time you go to bed. Between you know 8, 9, 10, 11 o'clock at night. So that's what I do and that's what I practice and I'm telling you ever since I saw that functional medicine doctor with the Cleveland Clinic, with the Functional Medicine Institute, last year or no, it was this year, it was in January and I saw him and he was so thorough and he did.

Speaker 1: 18:25

I had about 32 vials of blood collected. He had so many tests ordered and it was found that I had overgrowth of candida, which is very common. But I did have it in my gut biome and I got a very good probiotic. I'll let you know what I take. I take Florestor, the reason why it has a certain strain that he has suggested to fight the candida. But he has suggested to fight the candida. It is called Saccharomyces bolodipine, so Bollardi. So I totally butchered that. I apologize, but it's Florestor and you can literally get this on their website. That Florestor is F-L-O-R-A-S-T-O-R. It is such a good probiotic.

Speaker 1: 19:18

My skin has never looked so good, I am telling you. I don't get breakouts, I have a glow and I just feel so much better about my skin health ever since I started helping my gut, eating more healthy. I got these tests. I saw what was wrong. I saw I was allergic to. I have some sort of issues with beets just beets, you know, grown beets, garden beets, just beets. You know, grown beets, garden beets, b-e-e-t-s beets. I do not take those. Well, I have to stay away from those. And the other thing that my body doesn't do well with is baker's yeast baker's yeast, so that cuts out a lot of baking products. So yeah, that's what I found that my body doesn't do well with beets and baker's yeast and that I had an overgrowth of candida. So I do suggest if you have access to a functional medicine doctor, take advantage of it.

Speaker 1: 20:20

Another thing that I'm doing to get my follow-up blood work is I've been researching and it's quite expensive through the blood work through my doctor's institute and the hospital system. It's quite expensive and I found a more affordable way to get the same blood work and beyond more tests, and that's through Function Health. Now, the stats is sponsored or anything. I literally believe in function health. The gentleman who started function health, dr Mark Hyman, started the Cleveland Institute, cleveland Clinic Functional Medicine Institute years ago. He is very knowledgeable, he is thorough and I'm going to get my blood work done, which is about $500 a year for over 100 tests of blood work twice a year, which is very reasonable because I'm telling you, the blood work I had done back in January cost, you know, with my insurance and it didn't cover a lot. It was over $1,200. And that was not nearly as much tests as Function Health does. So that's where I'm going to get my follow-up blood work done. They do review your blood work and let you know what they find. So you do get feedback. So it is a really good tool and that's what I'm going to use. I'm planning on doing that in October.

Speaker 1: 21:41

But so I don't eat raw foods. I know that I went on a tangent, but I do not eat raw foods after 4 pm. That's my skincare tip for the day. So I have the perfect closing segment. This is warm, playful and things that I got ideas from the young girlies in their 20s of romanticizing your life, and I kind of take a different take on it romanticizing my glow-up journey. So doing little actions to romanticize little actions in life. And I'll give you two of them that I actually did this past week in life. And I'll give you two of them that I actually did this past week.

Speaker 1: 22:29

First, you drink your morning coffee or tea from a vintage teacup with a saucer. So I have some of my grandmother's teacups and saucers. I literally pulled it out of my china cabinet and there's a little dust. I washed it out and I poured a cup of espresso in a teacup with saucer. I sat at my kitchen table. I had dim lighting on. I know you're gonna think I'm crazy.

Speaker 1: 22:58

I have a TV in my kitchen because I watch news, or I watch TV while I cook, and I had the news on. This was early in the morning. I had the news on this was early in the morning. I had the news on light dim lights, and a teacup and saucer full of espresso, and it turns a simple ritual into a little ceremony, making you feel elegant and intentional, which is exactly what it did. It signals to your brain that this is my moment. I'm slowing down and savoring life. Romanticizing small routines help you anchor joy in everyday habits, and that's what I did. It's not about the cup. It's about giving yourself permission to feel special daily. So this really made me feel special. I felt like a queen.

Speaker 1: 23:49

The other way I romanticized my glow up journey was I had a crystal little dish that I usually put candies in. I had a crystal dish full of red raspberries on my desk and it stood there and sat there like a queen's snack. It elevates an ordinary snack into a treat that feels indulgent and royal. Every time I reached for the berries, I was reminded that I deserve beauty and nourishment. It creates a visual cue of abundance. Healthy food can be just as aesthetic as it is functional. These small touches of luxury make your glow-up journey fun, light and delicious.

Speaker 1: 24:41

So, yeah, I had a little crystal dish of red raspberries. They were firm and fresh. I bought them from Costco the day before and I sat there typing away on my blog, pulling each red raspberry from a crystal dish, and I just felt like a queen and it put my mind in such a different mindset, a different feeling, and it felt amazing. So I highly suggest you try these two. I'll be coming out with more of these of how to romanticize your life and your glow-up journey now in midlife. So again, I'm taking this tip from the young girlies in their 20s. This was the big thing I saw on social media and I'm applying it to me in my midlife and I highly suggest you do the same. It feels amazing.

Speaker 1: 25:36

All right, my friends, that's a wrap for today's episode of the Midlife Glow Report. We've covered a lot, from the mindset shifts that make me going on this weight loss journey to freeing ourselves in relationships by throwing away those invisible manuals, to caring for our skin from the inside out and even adding a touch of magic and vintage teacups and crystal berry bowls. Remember your glow up isn't just about big changes. Remember your glow up isn't just about big changes. It also is about the little things you do daily that make you feel strong, free and alive. Keep showing up for yourself, keep leading with love and keep writing your own story. If today's episode inspired you, share it with another midlife woman who's ready to awaken and glow up right alongside you. Please leave a positive review so other women like you can find this podcast. And don't forget, you can always find me on Instagram, facebook Threads, tiktok and at jackstyescom and at jackstyescom. Until next time, keep glowing, keep growing and never forget midlife is your time to shine. Love, jax.