The Midlife Feast

This is the 200th episode and the season finale, and I'm closing out the season by defending the most controversial breakfast on the internet: oatmeal. I'm only half joking. Yes, I answer all of your oatmeal questions in this episode. Steel cut versus rolled, how to add protein, cooked versus overnight, and whether it deserves its reputation as a heart-healthy food. But the real conversa...

Whenever I talk about intuitive eating, women tell me the same thing: "I love the idea, but I don't trust myself around food." And when I talk to dietitians who help people shift from a weight-centric to weight-neutral or inclusive practice, they find it hard to communicate the idea of self-trust. If you can relate to either of these,  this conversation is exactly what you need! Thi...

Is it perimenopause, or are you just finally fed up with the world? Honestly, it might be both. In this listener Q&A, I'm answering the questions so many of you have been sending me, and they're the kind that probably sound familiar. We start with mood, because so many of us feel more irritable, less patient, and a lot less willing to tolerate things we used to put up with. I'll...

What is acceptance is the requirement for growht? What would life look like if you just stopped trying to fix yourself?  That's the question at the heart of this conversation with returning guest Alli Spotts-De Lazzer, a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and Certified Eating Disorders Specialist who has spent nearly 20 years working with people around eating, body image, and the experien...

I sat down with Cadence Dubus, founder of Brooklyn Strength, host of the Busybody Podcast, and we talked about why midlife movement gets so complicated when you’ve been trained to chase fitness rules, perfect routines, and a specific body. We unpack how to rebuild trust so movement supports real life, not a pass-fail scoreboard. Why the "one size fits all" fitness world was never designe...

I'm bringing back one of my favourite conversations this week because May is Osteoporosis Awareness Month, and this topic is too important to let it gather dust in the archive. If you've ever left a bone density scan feeling more confused than when you walked in, or got a result that said "osteopenia" and weren't quite sure whether to panic or carry on as normal, this epis...

If you're feeling confused by all the menopause fitness advice, this episode will clear that up for you! I am so glad to welcome Dr. Maria Luque back to The Midlife Feast. Maria is a menopause fitness expert with a literal PhD in this space, and she is one of the very few people I trust to cut through the noise in the increasingly crowded menopause fitness world. And there is a lot of noise....

I noticed a three-year stretch where I’m barely in family photos, even though I was there., and I don’t want that for you. In this episode, I share 3 practices to shift away from chasing "flattering" and choosing presence instead, so you can be visible in midlife and stop letting pictures decide how you feel about your body. I talk about: Why the point of a picture is the moment, not you...

I'm joined by Dr. Helen Wall, a GP and registered menopause specialist from England, and author of the new book ADHD and Menopause (May 14th, 2026). Dr. Wall speaks out about the intersection of ADHD, neurodivergence, and hormonal changes in women. In this episode, we get into the science behind why estrogen fluctuations destabilize dopamine signaling in the brain, and why that matters so muc...

Have you ever talked yourself out of wearing something, going somewhere, or simply being seen because of what your body looks like? This episode is one you're going to want to save and share! I sat down with Lise Thorne, who you might know as @walking_this_way on Instagram, after one of her reels stopped me mid-scroll. In it, she walked into the ocean in a bikini on a family vacation, no filt...

Have you ever been having a perfectly good day, feeling comfortable in what you're wearing, and then caught a glimpse of yourself in a mirror and you suddenly feel the floor fall out from under you? That moment of being yanked out of your body is something I hear all the time. Meet the comparison lizard, the part of our brain wired for social comparison. It used to be a survival skill. Now it...

What if the dreams you thought you missed the deadline on are the ones you're meant to follow now? Becca Kidwell spent her 30s teaching high school English, convinced it was too late to pursue a creative career. She'd learned what so many of us Gen X women can relate to: if you didn't lock in your path by 30, the door was closed. But then something shifted and she started noticing o...

You know that moment when you catch your reflection unexpectedly and think, "Who is that?" Not in a curious way, but in a way that feels like you don't recognize yourself? If you've had that moment, this episode is for you. In this episode, we're talking about the evolution of body positivity and acceptance, the challenges of embracing body diversity in a culture that&apos...

If your cravings feel more intense than ever, you're not alone.  In this second helping (my creative take on replay 🤣) of episode 117, I'm tackling one of the most-asked questions in my inbox: why do cravings feel so out of control in perimenopause and menopause, and what can you do about it? Spoiler alert: it's not about cutting out sugar or having more willpower. I break down the...

Food freedom is permission to say yes to cake, but it's also permission to say no to dessert because you're full, satisfied, and know you can have it anytime you want. That's the level of trust and attunement I'm talking about in this conversation with Sam Previte, registered dietitian and founder of Find Food Freedom. Sam is one of those dietitians whose passion for intuitive...

Almost every day, someone tells me they're exhausted, tired, or completely burnt out. But burnout isn't just another word for tired - it's a medical diagnosis with real science behind it. It relates to your capacity, your ability to recover, and importantly, it's deeply impacted by your environment and your hormones. In this conversation with Dr. Ashley Margeson, a naturopathic...

Laughing, coughing, sneezing... if these everyday moments have started feeling a little less carefree and a little more leak-prone, you're not alone. And despite what you've been told, the answer isn't just "do more Kegels." In this conversation, movement teacher and pelvic floor expert Lauren Ohayon shares why the pelvic floor doesn't just "squeeze." It dan...

Decision fatigue isn't about willpower - it's about how many decisions you're being asked to make when your capacity is already maxed out. And if you've been caught in the diet cycle for years (or decades), you know exactly what I'm talking about. After 25 different diet plans competing for space in your head, every meal becomes another minefield of "am I doing this r...

If you've ever hidden in the back of a family photo, skipped a headshot session, or cringed when you saw a candid picture of yourself, this episode is for you. I sat down with Kristen Vallejo, a portrait and branding photographer based in upstate New York, who has made it her mission to help women feel comfortable and confident being seen.  In this conversation, we unpack why so many of us (e...

Feeling overwhelmed by conflicting advice about menopause and HRT? You're not alone, and you're not imagining it. In this eye-opening conversation, journalist and author Fiona Clark (MenoWars: Why Menopause's Moment Has Gone Horribly Wrong) joins me to unpack why the menopause conversation has become so polarizing. What started as a grassroots movement of women advocating for better...

Ever feel overwhelmed by conflicting nutrition advice? One influencer swears by seed oils while another demonizes them. Your feed is flooded with "80 grams of protein" meal challenges, and you're left wondering: what should I actually believe? In this episode, I sit down with Colleen Christensen, registered dietitian, recovering perfectionist, and the compassionate voice behind the...

If you’ve been told you should get more fiber but feel confused by the fiber-maxing trend and don’t want it to become a full-time job, this episode is for you. In this episode, I explain why fiber matters in midlife and menopause, how it truly supports digestion, energy, heart health, and satisfaction, and why you don’t need to count every gram or chase perfection. This episode offers clear, pract...

Perimenopause can feel unpredictable, emotional, and deeply disorienting, especially when your body changes quickly and nothing seems to work the way it used to. In this story session, I'm joined by Britney, a 49-year-old therapist navigating late perimenopause, who shares her honest experience with weight changes, fatigue, mood swings, and the fear that often shows up alongside them. Togethe...

If the word “selfish” still triggers guilt for you, this episode is the permission slip you didn’t know you needed. I’m joined by the ever-wise Suzy Reading to explore why so many of us in midlife struggle to receive support, set boundaries, and prioritize our own needs — even when we know better. We unpack the deep roots of people-pleasing, the pressure to be endlessly self-reliant, and how we ca...

Welcome to 2026, where it suddenly feels harder than ever to talk about menopause, health, and nutrition without the conversation getting hijacked by weight loss. In this longer-than-usual episode, I’m joined by family physician and writer Dr. Mara Gordon (who proudly describes herself as an “anti-diet doctor”) to talk about the question that's been on my mind lately: Is a weight-neutral meno...