“Experts” will tell you it’s complicated: External factors outside your control – from Big Food to food deserts – mean the problem is impossible for you to fix on your own. The media tells you, “Don’t worry! You’re big and you’re beautiful.” That you are healthy at any size. Nice to hear, but it simply isn’t true. Pharma companies and many in the medical community are now going to tell you it’s genetic — a disease of the brain that results in an insatiable hunger.  They do this because surgeries and weight loss drugs are profitable. In this lesson, we’re going to address these issues one by one. 

Day 1 is all about fasting! Learn about the history and science behind fasting and why fasting is a good stress for your body.

This lesson is the 101 on all things “body fat” — what it actually is, what it does in and for the body, and what is considered a healthy body fat percentage. And, most importantly – for your purposes – how does it build up or, rather, get stored in the body and, conversely, how does it get released or “burned” off? Don’t worry, we aren’t going down a biochemistry rabbit hole here. These are just the must-know essentials.

Let’s use a quick analogy: If your body is a car, then reverse is actively gaining weight, neutral is not gaining or losing, and drive is weight loss… Ultimately you have been eating more than you are burning, which is what put the weight on in the first place. By controlling the calories in, we generally shift the car from reverse to neutral. No longer gaining, but not really losing a ton. By adding exercise into the mix we throw the car into drive without compromising your metabolism or muscle mass. 

But how many calories should you personally consume? How much do you need to exercise? In this lesson, you are going to learn the simple math of weight loss and how to apply it to your body and weight loss goals.

This lesson discusses the connection between hormones and metabolism. The goal here is to get your hormones in balance, which will regulate your appetite, optimize your BMR, and help you maintain lean body mass. The good news is that to do this we don’t need a deep dive on each and every hormone because what’s good for one hormone is typically good for all of them. Meaning, the recommendations in this lesson help bring your entire body into balance — so you don’t have to deal with each hormone on a case-by-case basis.

At long last you have arrived at the “diet” section of this course.  And while technically this episode is about food quality, this is where Jillian answers all your questions about popular fad diets. Keto, Carnivore, Paleo, Pegan, Vegan, Vegetarian, Low Fat, Intermittent Fasting, Low Glycemic. Which is best?! Find out what matters most for weight loss.

Finally, the exercise episode! Exercise is the most powerful lever you can pull when it comes to longevity, health, and weight loss. It’s also the number one form of preventative medicine and helps prevent yo-yo dieting. Here Jillian provides clear guidelines for how much and what types of exercises you should be building into your weekly routine. 

Hopefully by now you understand that you gain weight because you have eaten more energy than you have burned in your day and stored that energy in your fat cells. But, have you ever wondered WHY you are “overeating” — i.e. eating more than you are burning? Why do we have such insatiable appetites when our bodies are usually pretty good at staying in balance? And no… it’s not because you have no willpower. This episode digs into where the physiological and psychological hunger is coming from — and how to cope with it.

Willpower is highly touted as the key to weight loss success, and nothing could be more wrong. Willpower is like a muscle: If you use it long enough without a break, it fatigues. It’s the moment at the Mexican restaurant when they go to drop the chips and you say, “No thanks.” If the chips sit on that table, there is no chance you won’t end up eating the basket. So, let’s go over some basic techniques you need to program into your behavior and environment to safeguard yourself against momentary vulnerabilities. We also cover some serious boundary setting, so get ready.

There are certainly things that can add a plus to our A, but these aren’t replacements for eating better and moving more. Nothing in this lesson will come close to impacting your results like diet and exercise. Nonetheless, Jillian offers her thoughts on cold exposure, heat exposure, and supplements.

A big goal (if you have one) can feel a bit intimidating or overwhelming. This episode is here to help remove any of those anxious feelings with something called a goal pyramid. This simple technique will help you know exactly what to do and by when to make that vision a reality!