Happy & Healthy with Amy

In 2018, the scientific journal Obesity published an article suggesting, "The body-positive movement is contributing to overweight and obesity." So what do you think? In this episode, I'm going to be talking about fat shaming, body positivity, the body-neutral approach, and what it actually means to have a positive body image. So as we roll into the holidays and the new year, if thi...

What's ONE thing you would have In your life right now if you were more influential and persuasive? What if I told you there are specific behaviors that you can incorporate into your own repertoire that will make you more influential and more persuasive?  Where you can affect the "know," "like," and specifically, the "trust" factor? As a result, you can become a...

Do you know why your actions speak louder than your words?  It's because body language - your actions - is an outward reflection of how you really feel. And if there's any conflict between what you say and what you do, we're going to go with what you're doing. In this episode, I'm going to walk you through the posture, movements and gestures - what all those elements look...

When it comes to reading body language, are you able to tell when someone is really comfortable versus when they're uncomfortable? For example, do you know the difference between an adaptor and an illustrator or what a barrier is? If you're a little fuzzy on this terminology, this is an episode that you are going to enjoy because we are going to be taking your ability to read body langua...

How good are you at reading people? If you could get better at reading people, would you become a more effective communicator? Would it help you get more of what you want in life? If your answer is yes to the latter two questions, this is an episode you don't want to miss because In part 2 of the Body Language Series, I'm taking a deep dive into facial expressions and talking about the d...

Do you find yourself worrying or ruminating about stuff that you really can't control? Is it interfering with your ability to get a good night's sleep, taking away your sense of inner peace?  Maybe you're turning to alcohol or smoking or or comfort food? Want to figure out how to stop? In today's episode I'm going to explain exactly why it is that we worry - and it's...

Have you heard about the tension of opposites and how love always wins? If there's something in your life that you want to change, this is going to be key. This is going to help you figure out YOUR WHY. So if you're ready to take that first step to move in the direction of your big goals... of your dreams... This is definitely an episode you don't want to miss. From This Episode: Tu...

When you feel guilty, is it because you actually did something wrong? Or do you feel guilty because you think you shouldn't have done something?  Or because you had to make a difficult choice and it upset someone? In this episode, I talk about the power of gratitude and grace, so you can put an end to unnecessary suffering, start taking daily action, and move forward with ease and confidence....

Do you think primary care physicians should be talking to women who have a normal or overweight body mass index about maintaining their weight or limiting the weight gain? In other words, would it be helpful for your physician to counsel you on the importance of healthy eating and physical activity to prevent obesity? Well, the latest recommendations by a federally supported group are just that......

When you think about what it takes to build the self-care habits for creating deep health, do you get overwhelmed? Not sure if there's a specific order you should be following? In this episode, I am sharing the roadmap for creating deep health - the specific steps and the exact sequence - for creating self-care habits that stick. If you wanna stress less, sleep more, feel better, have more en...

When was the last time you were triggered? I'm not just talking about the triggers that lead to emotional eating, sleepless nights, and that extra glass of wine or two at the end of a long, stressful day. I'm also talking about the triggers for self-care habits, the ones that create deep health and make lasting weight loss inevitable. And mastering your triggers, what I affectionately ca...

What does a good life mean to you? Does it mean doing meaningful work? Does it mean waking up with a sense of purpose driving you, moving you forward? Does it mean having people in your life that you care about, that you want good things for? If you're nodding your head, that means you have stress in your life. And instead of trying to avoid stress or reduce stress, what we actually need to d...

With the new school year starting, are you thinking that now would be a good time to do a habit reset? If this is you, I want to introduce you to the metaphor of the rider, the elephant, and the path and how you can use it to create new habits or improve some of your existing ones. I'm also going to show you how to apply the two-minute rule for your habit reset. From This Episode: The Happine...

Are you in a corporate job and find yourself asking, "Is this all there is?" Or maybe you're contemplating joining the ranks of the Great Resignation or you're part of it already? If you answered yes to any of these questions, you're going to want to listen to this episode from start to finish because I've got author, podcast host and professional development coach, D...

How often are you triggered and are those triggers leading you to take actions that align with your long-term goals?  Or are they routines that are actually moving you further away from those goals? Well, in this episode, I'm talking about the five different kinds of triggers that you have and how you can use triggers to put in place new habits, as well as change your environment to create th...

Are you making one of the most common mistakes when it comes to weight loss? Are you not eating enough? The reason this is important is because when you don't eat enough, you're actually slowing down your body's metabolism. The exact opposite of what we want, if the goal is to achieve lasting weight loss. If this is one of the mistakes that you've been making, rest assured ther...

Have you been told that in order to lose weight, you have to eat slowly and yet you find the whole idea unappealing? Or maybe eating slowly just isn't an option. If that's the case, rest assured, while eating slowly has its benefits, it isn't a requirement for lasting weight loss. In this episode, I'm going to be explaining what the benefits are of eating slowly, but also a num...

Why do you want to lose weight?  Chances are one of your reasons is so you can be healthier. But research suggests weight-centric efforts to lose weight - that is, programs where the focus is intentional weight loss - don't actually make us healthier.  The evidence actually shows that these efforts are more likely to result in weight gain over time. So is there such a thing as a "healthy...

Do you think it's possible to have too much compassion? Or too much self-compassion? If you answered, "Yes," I really want you to reconsider. In this episode, I'm going to be sharing an operational definition of what self-compassion is, what it is not and why it works, especially when it comes to achieving lasting weight loss. If you've been on the weight loss struggle bus...

Have you been trying to figure out why it is that none of the diets and weight loss programs you've been on have you actually worked - where you've lost the weight AND kept it off? Well, one of the keys to lasting weight loss is tapping into your 8th sense.  It's your interoception. When you're able to really pay attention to what's going on inside your body, that's w...

When was the last time someone said something to you, or maybe it was a thought that you had, that you accepted as true - hook, line, and sinker? And then you reacted to it without even thinking, as opposed to being able to respond to it? Given all the recent triggering events, we're going to be talking about how to slow things down so that we can unlearn a lifetime of things that we've...

What do you have in your coping toolkit?  When you're dealing with stressful situations, do you use different tools for different situations or do you have a go-to coping mechanism? In other words, are you using eating or drinking like a carpenter who uses a hammer for nails, along with screws and nuts and bolts? Do you wish you could figure out how to actually get yourself to use the appropr...

What is your reaction to the following statement? "Only fat and protein are essential macronutrients – carbohydrates aren’t. However, carbs should be incorporated in your eating plan." When I read this Facebook post, I nearly had a conniption.  And in response to this misinformation, I have invited two registered dietitians, Brooke Miller and Alyssa Miller, who join me to talk about nutr...

When was the last time you looked in the mirror and were happy with your body?  If it's been a while or maybe you've never been happy with your body, and you've been told you have to be smaller or you have to be fitter... So you've been on this quest to shrink your body. You have permission to be angry and you really have permission to be hurt too, that people have judged you b...

Whether you're 30 years old or 80 years old or somewhere in between, you wake up every morning with things that you need to do, and more importantly, things that you want to do. Hopefully, that means that you're still able to do things like climb a flight of stairs with ease, well into your 80s and 90s, and maybe even 100. In today's podcast, Dr. Dan Ritchie, the president of the Fu...