Losing Weight with ADHD

This week is a super short episode as I am recovering from pneumonia! Back to my usual shenanigans next week :) I'd love to hear from you! You can connect with me in the following ways: Instagram: @thejennwatts Email: jennifer@jenniferwatts.ca If you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, rate, and leave a review. Your feedback helps me continue to create content that supports you on your jo...

Is weight loss impacted by other life challenges such as finances and clutter/organization? Are there connections and similarities between these 3 things? This is what we are talking about this week! We covered: Correlations between financial hardship and weight How environment affects weight and the connection there (as discussed in episode 18) What are the similarities between all 3 of these? Th...

This week we are discussing how important it is to acknowledge how far you have come and the growth that you have experienced. It's so easy to think about how far we have to go, or to simply focus on the change that is yet to happen or where we want to get to. But it's really necessary to look back and see how far we have actually come - this helps to keep the change happening! We talk a...

In this episode, we talk about the process of developing a short-term strategy that helps you work towards your goals - and I used my own end-of-the-year strategy as an example! I know I love a good story or example, so I hope that listening to what I plan to do to lose weight in the rest of 2024 will help you to think of your own strategies you could implement.  We discuss: How to create a plan f...

You are allowed to want to lose weight.  You aren't a bad person or a victim of diet culture if you truly in your heart desire weight loss.  It's up to you whether it's right for you.  I feel very strongly about this and it's why I recorded this episode! Just remember that you are the one who knows your true intentions, and no one else gets to dictate that for you.  I'd lo...

This episode is partly a bit of an update on my own "reset" I have been taking, as well as some insights from that and reflection on the importance of self-discovery.  I talked about: The need for personal resets to make sure what you are doing aligns with your authentic self How sometimes our habits may actually be forms of restriction rather than genuine change if we aren't taking...

 In this episode, we dive into the concept of feeling at home in your body, which of course can mean different things to different people! Some things covered include: the idea of recognizing your body as part of yourself rather than feeling disconnected some of my personal challenges with this disconnection neutrality and self-compassion as part of working on negative self-talk and body image iss...

In this episode, we dive deep into the concept of sensory overload—how it affects those of us with ADHD and its significant impact on our daily lives, particularly in the context of weight loss. We cover: What is sensory overload? How sensory overload affects people with ADHD The connection between sensory overload and weight loss Symptoms of sensory overload to watch out for Practical strategies...

In this episode, we discuss the connection between sleep, ADHD, and weight loss. We cover: The link between ADHD and sleep issues Sleep and weight connection Specific sleep struggles that ADHDers might face Tips for improving sleep I also covered a couple of specific items that were requested to discuss in this episode about sleep. I hope this was helpful! I'd love to hear from you! You can c...

In this episode we cover the topic of being yourself, which also really includes the ideas of self-trust, masking, and conforming.  We discuss: Why it's crucial to be able to be yourself in the process (and really in life overall) How conforming and masking can impact us How this will affect goals such as weight loss What are some ways to help to foster more of a sense of self As I mentioned...

Setbacks are a inevitably going to be part of the process, so let's talk about how to handle it. In this episode, I covered: Why do setbacks happen (we all deal with them!) How they might be different for an ADHDer What tends to set off the set back for you? How to move through set backs How to move forward and move on I hope this helps to normalize the phase of being in a setback for you! I&...

Have you heard of the "messy middle"? We are talking about what that is, and what it means when it comes to your weight loss journey.  I know that the middle of the road seems like a foreign place for us with ADHD sometimes - many of us are used to more rigid, black and white thinking!  In this episode, we talk about what it might mean to be in the messy middle with weight loss, why we o...

Sometimes as an ADHDer, the idea of "keep it simple" is not actually so simple! Today we are discussing this concept, and if/how we can make it work for us in weight loss.  We cover: Is simplicity achievable for us? Why our brains might not naturally think in simple terms Why it might actually be overwhelming (at first)  to try to keep things basic What are some steps to take if you want...

Today I am discussing why finding your best way to become regulated more often is crucial to your weight loss journey, especially as someone with ADHD. I discussed: What impact does your emotional state have on weight loss Why this might be a big factor for you as someone with ADHD Why working towards more regulation than dysregulation could really positively impact you As always, let me know if t...

In this episode I am really diving in to my own relationship with alcohol, and how it has evolved over the years. Keep in mind that this is purely my own experience, I can really only speak for myself!  I discussed: How alcohol affected my life at various stages Ways that I can see the impact being different as someone with ADHD Why I feel like it was a big part of my life at times Two different b...

Today is a short and sweet episode - I am talking about trusting your own gut feelings when it comes to working towards your goals. I covered: This podcast episode that inspired the topic for today What does your intuition mean when it comes to your weight loss An example of trusting your gut vs. following what your are told How I have noticed myself listening to my own instincts on my weight loss...

I'm covering the idea of whether "eat what you want" is helpful or a hindrance when you are pursuing weight loss as someone with ADHD. This all came about from a comment I saw someone make about this! I covered: How the idea of "eat what you want" might make some people feel or approach weight loss The messy middle between rigid structure and total freedom Is it helpful to...

This episode covers the topic of burnout, and how it can be different as someone with ADHD. We discuss: What is burnout? What are some of the main symptoms My current experience as I am dealing with burnout How it impacts your weight loss journey 6 things you can do to help move through burnout I know this is something that many of us have experienced, and I hope that you feel less alone in it aft...

I am so honoured to have had the opportunity to interview Megs Crawford of Organizing an ADHD Brain! Megs has an amazing story that you won't want to miss, and is just overall a wonderful person.   We talked about: Who is Megs? Her ADHD journey Her history with weight and disordered eating What went into true, sustainable weight loss for Megs Bariatric surgery Losing 120lbs! The impact of yog...

This is a brief episode covering why it's important and relevant to visualize your future self as part of your weight loss journey as someone with ADHD.  We discuss: Why your future self is important How it helps when it comes to weight loss "Intention deficit disorder" and what that has to do with it all I hope you enjoy this quick episode! I'd love to hear from you! You can c...

This week we are talking about something that I am sure is soooo familiar to you if you have tried to work towards weight loss, and that's actually sticking to it!  With ADHD it is easy to trail off and maybe not stay the course, even though you start off with a bang. In this episode we covered: 4 of the main reasons I see that people veer off their plans and don't seem to follow through...

Today we're talking about four stages of getting to place where you can make real, lasting change in your life as someone with ADHD. These are the four that I have honed in on in my own life and experience, and recognize that they are what make the difference when I want to make change for real.  The 4 A's are: Awareness Acceptance Autonomy Action plan I hope you enjoy this episode! I&ap...

Just a quick update to let you know that the name of the podcast is changing! It will now be called "Balanced Living with ADHD". Same content, same topics - just a bit more all-encompassing of a name. You'll see the change on this week's full episode, coming on Thursday.  I'd love to hear from you! You can connect with me in the following ways: Instagram: @thejennwatts Ema...

We are covering self-efficacy today, which is basically your belief in your ability to do something. We covered: What does good self-efficacy look like (and not-so-good self-efficacy) The ADHD connection The weight loss connection Specific ways your self-efficacy might affect weight loss as someone with ADHD How to develop self-efficacy It might not be something that you have considered before, bu...

Today I discussed the idea of aiming for 100% when it comes to our goals. Is that perfectionist thinking that could set us up for failure? Or is it actually an opportunity to give ourselves a break from all of the decision making?  I also talked about what that means if you are aiming for 100% and you hit the inevitable roadblocks - how we handle the bumps in the road can really be the key to our...