Weight Loss And ...

Why Your Brain Won't Stop Thinking About Food with Emily Dhurandhar

Food noise. If you’ve heard the term, you probably know exactly what it means. If you haven’t, you might be about to have a lightbulb moment. It’s that relentless mental chatter about food, not hunger, not cravings, but constant, unwanted thoughts that just won’t quit. For years, people struggling with this phenomenon didn’t even have words for it. They thought it was a willpower problem. It wasn’t. And now, thanks to groundbreaking research, we finally have a way to understand, measure, and potentially treat this invisible burden that affects people across the weight spectrum. Join Holly and Jim as they sit down with Dr. Emily Dhurandhar, Director of Research Special Projects at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, and lead author of the RAID-FN Inventory, the first validated tool to measure food noise. Discover why patients, not clinicians, coined this term, how GLP-1 medications are revealing what many have silently endured, and what the future holds for treating this pervasive issue. Discussed on the episode: * Why food noise is completely different from normal thoughts about food * The surprising discovery about who experiences food noise (hint: it’s not just people with obesity) * What turning off a kitchen fan has to do with understanding these medications * How bodybuilders and endurance athletes might experience food noise differently * Why your environment in the 1940s versus today changes everything * The one word clinicians need to stop assuming about food noise * What to do if you think you’re experiencing this, but your doctor has never heard of it

Obesity Medications and the Coming Revolution in Care with Louis Aronne

For decades, people with obesity were told the solution was simple: eat less, move more, try harder. When that didn’t work, they were blamed. But science has always told a different story: obesity is a chronic, biologically driven disease, just like diabetes or hypertension. And right now, we’re witnessing the most significant transformation in obesity medicine that has ever happened. The new GLP-1 medications like Wegovy and Zepbound are making headlines everywhere, but with breakthrough treatments come big questions. Who should take them? How do you know which one is right for you? What happens when you stop? And with millions of people getting these medications online or from providers with little expertise, how do you ensure you’re getting safe, effective care? Join Holly and Jim as they sit down with Dr. Louis Aronne, one of the true pioneers who shaped this revolution from the very beginning. For over 30 years, Dr. Aronne has been on the front lines, treating patients and conducting research at one of the premier obesity centers in the country. He’ll share the real story behind these medications, what he’s learned from treating 9,000 patients, and where obesity treatment is heading next. Discussed on the episode: * The mouse experiment from the 1980s that changed everything about how we understand weight * Why some people feel amazing on Wegovy while others do better on Zepbound * The creative dosing strategies that help patients who can’t tolerate standard doses * What happens to the majority of people who stop taking GLP-1 medications * The surprising parallel between treating obesity and treating high blood pressure * Why registered dietitians could be the perfect providers for obesity care * The 15 new medications coming in the next five years that will transform access * How these medications prevent 94% of diabetes cases in people with prediabetes * The simple eating strategy that works almost like taking medicine * What it really means when people say taking medication is cheating

How Your Biology Fights Weight Loss Maintenance with Paul MacLean

You’ve done it. You’ve lost the weight. But then something shifts. The hunger gets louder. Food becomes more tempting. The scale starts creeping back up. You’re doing everything right, yet your body seems to be fighting you at every turn. If this sounds familiar, you’re not alone, and more importantly, it’s not your fault. The truth is, after weight loss, your body launches a powerful biological response designed to bring that weight back. It’s not about willpower or discipline. It’s about survival mechanisms that were built for a world without grocery stores on every corner. Understanding what’s actually happening inside your body after weight loss changes everything from how you approach maintenance to how you talk to yourself when things get hard. Join Holly and Jim as they sit down with Dr. Paul MacLean, one of the world’s leading experts on the biology of weight regain. You’ll discover why keeping weight off requires completely different strategies than losing it, what your metabolism is really doing after weight loss, and the science-backed tools that can help you succeed long-term despite your biology working against you. Discussed on the episode: * The powerful rubber band analogy that explains why your body fights to regain weight * What’s really happening at the cellular level when you lose weight (and why it persists) * Why the speed of weight loss may matter less than you think * The controversial truth about whether metabolic adaptation ever goes away * One scientist’s personal journey with weight struggle and GLP-1 medications * The myth about starting with a “clean slate” after weight loss

The Essential Role of Moving More and Eating Better with Robert Ross

You’ve heard it everywhere: “You can’t outrun a bad diet.” Or maybe it’s “Exercise doesn’t matter for weight loss.” Or wait, is it “Just lift weights and you’ll be fine”? The conflicting advice is enough to make anyone throw their hands up in frustration. What if the real answer isn’t choosing between diet and exercise, but understanding how they work together? Join Holly and Jim as they sit down with Robert Ross, one of the rare researchers who has spent over three decades studying both sides of the equation. Ross is a professor in the School of Kinesiology and Health Studies at Queen’s University in Ontario, Canada, and he’s led groundbreaking research on how exercise, diet, and body fat interact, especially that stubborn visceral fat that drives metabolic disease. His work has shaped clinical guidelines and challenged long-held assumptions about weight loss. You’ll discover why the bathroom scale might be lying to you, what your belt buckle reveals that the scale doesn’t, and why being a “non-responder” to exercise might be a myth. Get ready for a conversation that will fundamentally change how you think about managing your weight, whether you’re considering GLP-1 medications, struggling to keep weight off, or just trying to figure out if you should be doing cardio or lifting weights. Discussed on the episode: * Why the bathroom scale has done more harm than good in obesity management * The belt buckle test that reveals more than any scale ever could * What happens to visceral fat when you exercise without losing weight * The truth about exercise “compensation”: Do you really eat more when you work out? * Why 5% weight loss being “clinically meaningful” might be the wrong message. * How cardiorespiratory fitness protects your health even if you have obesity * The intensity question: Does working harder actually matter for fat loss? * What we’re losing (literally) when we only focus on GLP-1 medications * The myth of exercise “non-responders” and what the data really shows * Why resistance exercise becomes critical as we age * The one simple movement activity Ross recommends if you only have 10 minutes.

Turning Weight Loss Into Wisdom: The Story Behind Our New Book

Writing a book isn’t just about putting words on a page. It’s about translating decades of research into something that can actually change lives. After two years of late-night rewrites, deleted chapters, and countless debates over how to explain complex science in simple terms, Holly and Jim are finally ready to pull back the curtain on their new book, Losing the Weight Loss Meds. This episode is different. Instead of diving into weight loss science, Holly and Jim are taking you behind the scenes of their creative process. You’ll hear about the “messy middle” of writing, the chapters they rewrote twenty times, and the moment they realized this book needed to exist now. More importantly, you’ll discover why weight loss maintenance, once the “opposite of sexy,” has suddenly become the most critical challenge facing millions of people. If you’ve ever wondered what it takes to create a science-based guide that works in real life, or if you’re curious about the future of weight management in America, this conversation will give you a front-row seat to both the struggles and the breakthroughs that shaped this groundbreaking book. Discussed on the episode: * The surprising moment Holly realized weight loss maintenance was finally having its day. * Why don't half of the people stay on weight loss medications for even a year * The three profiles that help you identify which strategies you need most * The framework that turns scientific principles into plays you can actually use * What happens to our country if we win (or lose) the weight maintenance game * The vulnerable truth about putting your life’s work out into a noisy world Resources Mentioned: * weightwisdom.com [http://weightwisdom.com/] - Order Losing the Weight Loss Meds, access free resources, and sign up for the January 7th live Zoom Masterclass with Holly and Jim