Why You Keep Failing at Your Weight Loss Goal

Introduction and Guest Background 0:00

Welcome back to the reverse Autoimmune Disease Summit series, everyone. This is 5.0. It's our fifth iteration of the reverse autoimmune to the theory that one is healing the energy body. And my guest right now, Doctor Venus Ramos, is known as the biohacking. And she's board certified physician and specialty of physical medicine and rehabilitation, who the thriving medical practice in Southern California and has competed for 20 years as a national level fitness athlete, is a respected fitness trainer.

She's had clients ranging from single moms to professional athletes and even an action film star. She's a repeat guest expert on the TV series The Doctors and featured on several other shows, including NBC Today and American Gladiators. She also contributes to multiple health outlets, including Iherb, Dot com and oxygen magazine. Welcome, Doctor Venus! Oh, I am so excited to be here. Doctor Kisha, thank you. So we're going to be talking about the the frame of the body and how it holds on to its form weight.

Right. And this has a lot to do with the energy body and how we've talked and some other, guest expert interviews about how in your Vedic medicine, the mind is the one that determines what's going on in the body. So body image becomes such an important subject in how we see ourselves and what we think is going to make us happy, you know? So I would love to talk a little bit about how you approach weight and, and how our, our patients with autoimmune disease who are having a dysmorphic relationship with their bodies already because it's combative.

How does it figure in. Well, a lot of this a lot of the way we I look at weight loss and approach weight loss, I should say, was heavily influenced, of course, by my history as, fitness athlete competing on a stage where I'm being compared, my body is being compared to other bodies and being ranked. This is certainly something that can be very difficult to deal with mentally.

Body Image, Fitness, and Weight Loss Mindset 2:37

And I've seen many competitors, in that space, really struggle with the mental aspects of getting their bodies in the ideal, perfect shape that they think the judges are looking for. And coming from that background, I realized that. I had to be very, very strong in how I looked at my own body and how I was feeling so that I could be successful. And I did compete for 20 years. So there was an element where I felt good about competing, where I really felt good about my body and what I was doing with it.

And it was always a matter of, not looking at it as if I didn't like what I was seeing and I had to improve it so that it could be better for other people to look at. It was always a matter of, or at least it definitely grew to be what I was feeling. And I think that's really the important aspect of weight loss and what your body image should actually be. So that is that is the huge factor that I think comes into the. The approach when I'm dealing with patients or dealing with clients who are wanting to lose weight or feeling like they need to lose weight.

If weight loss is a goal, I really focus in on what the image of their body is and what their true motivations are for wanting to lose that weight. Well, I like behind you you have the little signs that say they fit and be happy, right? So that that seems like a good stepping stone for moving into what next steps would be, right? Absolutely. I think that, there are some people who are somewhat put off by when I say stay fit, be happy. As if being fit is the only way that you could be happy. But I absolutely believe that fitness is a lot more than just physical fitness.

Being fit absolutely has to be has to do with being mentally fit, emotionally fit, spiritually fit. That is all important when you're talking about achieving that right balance of physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health. So can you know, when we talk about body image, I mentioned this word dysmorphic. And a lot of times people with autoimmune disease feel betrayed by their bodies. You know, like this body with something I took for granted. I didn't realize that I was taking it for granted, and it wasn't working the way that I want it to work.

And there can be a level of not trusting the body. And then others will still be able to maintain a positive body image. But I have noticed that they've put on weight for a variety of different reasons maybe joint mobility issues, things like that, that have made it so that they can't be as active as they used to be. And so can you have a positive body image and still want to lose weight? Absolutely. There there is absolutely a way to have a positive body image and want to lose weight. And having a positive body image is so very important, when it comes to achieving your goals, when it comes to weight loss, because when you are looking at your body positively and you're not feeling betrayed, you're not feeling those negative thoughts about your body, it becomes so much easier to take the steps and make have those steps actually be successful in achieving your goals.

So it's absolutely important for a positive body image to be intact when you are trying to lose weight. So it's absolutely, possible, I think, in right now, actually very recently, in recent years, I've seen this, this push towards being body positive for, it's almost like a hashtag be very positive about, what we think of in society as, a beautiful body, what a healthy body is, to be more accepting of or, and even then just tearing down those, those ideal images that we have of what, a healthy body or a beautiful body is supposed to be.

I think that airbrushed magazine. Exactly. Story. Exactly. So we see these these images, and I think there actually is a difference between being body positive and having this, this, positive body image. Again, you can be a body positive person. You can have appreciation for, for all bodies. And know that, that we each have our own ways of being able to contribute to our society and we shouldn't be tearing down anyone's body. The the whole fat shaming thing. I think it's definitely great to be body positive, but there are certainly people who feel like they are part of the body positive movement, but they don't necessarily have a positive body image.

It's very possible for for that to happen. And while you can have appreciation for all body types and know that that all body types are beautiful and and have contributions in this world, you may still have your own negative body image, which could be affecting how you are achieving your your weight loss or weight management goals. Interesting me because I will often be heard saying, but the body I believe, is one of the most underappreciated miracles on the planet. You know that we we put it to bed at night and we think that we're resting it.

But indeed, the liver detoxifying the lymphatic system is going, you know, and doing its job of getting rid of trash and the heart and still pumping and the lungs are still oxygenating. You know, that everything is still going on with this body, even though our minds have gone into a different, state of being. And then we wake up and open eyelids that have the most miraculous thing where we can see. Right? And then we can taste and we have teeth, we can brush, and we have just all of these really beautiful aspect to, to be able to hear, you know and feel and touch.

And yet we, we look in the mirror and say, I can't believe, you know, and I always figured if you if you were a child of a parent that did that all the time to you. Right? You can never do anything right. It's it's exhausting. Right. And so when you think about, to me, body positive

Positive Body Image and Autoimmune Health 10:07

or positive, body image is this deep, deep, unbounded appreciation or the blessing that you have to have a body that works to whatever degree it works in, you know, not to have an expectation that it should be different, that it is. And from that space of appreciation and gratitude, you're actually sending out completely different neuro hormones and biochemical to your body. Solutely right. It's just everything. So that that, perfectionistic drive and constant nitpicking and criticizing about what's not right gets us what we see in front of us.

And so I, I love this discussion about image and positivity and and going beyond what you see in the mirror. But what is happening in your mind in relationship to your body. Right. Yeah. I like to think of when I wake up in the morning and oh I may be a little, my hair may be a little disheveled and I look in there, I say oh wow look what a one awful rest I had last night that that's, that's more about all the beauty that I was able to achieve by getting a really good night's rest, rather than, oh, I look like I just got up out of bed.

Yeah. So it's really, truly just a matter of really appreciating everything that you are doing for your body and everything that your body can do. So that is where having a party positive body image can certainly help put you on the on the right path, in the right frame of mind, so that you can achieve, the goals that you set out for yourself, those health goals. Yeah, I have a lot of patients with autoimmunity that, you know, it would be great for them to just feel gratitude, to have hair, to be disheveled.

Yeah. There we go. There was like a chair. There we go. Yeah. I would love to see hair like that. Disheveled though. Yeah. So if somebody is, struggling with, extra weight, which we know that fat is a storehouse for toxins, of a whole variety, you know, toxins, including hormones that can then as you lose weight and be randomly deposited back out into the bloodstream. What what are some of the secret to getting into that collaborative, seriously compassionate relationship with your body? To have it achieve the weight that it's meant to be at her optimal health?

Well. I deal with with so many people who who sometimes feel like I when I'm talking about how they're feeling and, and, and their body image and things of that sort, they want to deal with. I just want to deal with the facts. Give me the facts. What should I eat exactly? What should I eat? How much? How much of this am I supposed to do? Right. And I and I tell them, okay, I understand that you truly have that that understanding that that your, your body weight is, is basically the product of an energy balance.

Energy in, energy out. Are you having more energy? Calories in than you have going out? As far as your exercise and your normal body processes consuming those calories, what is the balance there? And are you are you out of balance so that you're gaining weight or losing weight? That is true. There is an energy balance situation. You have to look at the calories in and the calories out. But what I think is not appreciated enough is that there's a whole lot more than just counting the exercise calories and the food intake calories and figuring out the balance or the non balance, because usually if you're doing a weight loss, you want it not to be necessarily balanced.

There is more to it than just the the food and the in and out. Yes. Yeah, there's definitely more to it because there's things that affect how that scale works. There's your, oh, your, your feelings about the hormones behind those feelings that can generate those feelings. The, the hormones that can come as a result of those emotions and those feelings. The one that I want to highlight that for just a second, for people that really hear that, that can determine what's going on, or it can be a result of what's going on.

Yeah. Because they definitely it can definitely be a feedback on each other in terms of how hormones and your emotions, react in to react, I guess we should say interact. I'm creating words now. So that is basically very important to understand that that affects how that balance can work. Your calories may not be consumed as well if there are specific emotions, if there are specific traumas, if there are hormone that are affecting it, that energy calorie consumption is not going to be as effective.

So there are certainly things that have very important consequences on that energy balance. And really looking at what you can do to keep a positive energy, around so that your energy balance is working most effectively for you. Is is an important thing to look at. So when we so you just mentioned hormones. There are toxins there in mind that there's, amount that you eat and how you, you exercise, how do you individualize all that? Again, it as, as far as individualizing things is it's certainly something that takes a lot of individual introspection and really taking a look at each thing and really determining, what it is that you can focus on.

I think a lot of weight loss, weight management, a lot of it is, has to do with balancing what you're able to achieve and focus on. I think oftentimes my, my patients or my clients may, may feel very overwhelmed by the, the nutritional aspects, taking a look at their food and knowing, what they're eating and knowing that

Hormones, Stress, and Individualized Weight Management 17:28

they're eating the right things in the right amounts of things. And then they have to take a look at, what's my physical activity? Am I doing the right kind? Am I doing the right amount? Am I doing it at the right time of day? There's all of these things that they're thinking about. And then you say, oh, now you're telling me there's a this other stuff I need to look at? I need to look at, my environment, the toxins that might be affecting, how this is all working out. And now I have to also look at, my emotions and how I'm feeling about that.

And I think one of the, the big things to, to make sure that is addressed because it has such an overall effect on everything, is absolutely looking at the more emotional and mental aspects because of the stress that it can put on your body. So I, I believe that oftentimes that's where I want to start with many of my patients or most of them, because. If that is not addressed and made and protected and made sure that it is, is, moving in a very positive direction, then it basically. It basically tears down everything else that you're trying to achieve in all the other aspects, like a hole in the bottom of the bucket.

And you're exactly the bucket. It's just pouring out the bottom. You need to to make sure that that's plugged up really well, and you have a plan for when things might come in and try to tear that hole down even more. So, making sure that you have ways to manage any stresses or making sure that you are starting from a very good emotional place, when you start on all of these things is very, very important because, even if you just point out at one hormone, cortisol, that one hormone, it if that one hormone is out of balance, it can goes unchecked.

It can absolutely tear into, your mental state. It can tear into, other hormonal, hormonal states, insulin, which, you know, can play a big factor in terms of, of your fat loss. It can affect your, your sleep. It can affect your, it can affect your, your sex life. It can affect so many different things, that it has this leaky gut and sensitive to food and your environment. Yeah, absolutely. It can affect your cardiovascular system. It basically affects every system in your body. Head to toe. Then with wisdom, that one hormone, it has such overreaching effects on your entire body that you definitely need to make sure that that is in place before you move on to all of the other steps.

But Doctor Menas, I'm positive it's my thyroid because I have it. And you know, thyroid was but so is, you know, about thyroid and cortisol and, like I always tell my patients, you know, I read in adrenals or the flip side of the thing coin and the thyroid will get drug, you know, because the adrenals are out of whack and the adrenals are only out of whack because of the way you're perceiving yourself in your world. It really has everything to do. It starts here right? Yes, absolutely. And that's the one.

That's one of the biggest things. The most challenging things I have to deal with is, making people understand or hoping, helping them understand that. That it's not bad for it to all be in their head. A lot of even my pain management patients, it's not in my head. I'm like, it's actually in your head. And that's not a bad it. Being your crazy. It doesn't mean easy. It doesn't mean I don't believe you. It's the fact that it's in your head means that there are in my chain. For there. It's a good thing.

That's a good thing. And it's scientifically based. It absolutely is. So and it's true, there's not just an easy pill you can take for that. It takes some work. But yeah, it's, you know, that, the other thing is a lot of breath is being given now, rightly so, and beautifully though, to insulin resistance. And a lot of people are starting to wear things like 24 hour glucose monitors. And I had a patient the other day who was telling me that she was waking up in spite of, doing intermittent fasting where she fasted for, 16 hours and, and ate at lunchtime, did not, eat past 5 or 6 p.m.

and rested or digestive system and everything really great, you know. But she was waking up with a very high blood sugar. And when, when I started talking to her, I did a, adrenal and hormone test with her and her. Her cortisol was crazy. Her hormones were completely the buckets were empty. And I said, you know, this this intermittent fasting regimen that you're on is on paper, perfect. It's the one I follow. Like, it's really good, but not for you right now, because what's happening is you're stressing your body too much.

You know, it's not getting the food that it wants at the time that it wants. And so you're waking up with this intensely high blood sugar and not because of what you've been eating, but because of the stress. And I don't think people realize it. You know, that actually stress increases your need for insulin. And so, you know, the the this is the be, you know, sure. Eating a Snickers bar. But she wasn't right. She would she was eating a very good diet. And so I find a lot of my very sophisticated intelligence patients that know a lot about this and are trying these different protocols in isolation of their own.

Right. The Lou are not having good success and even making things worse because they're not listening to the feedback of the body. Absolutely. And it is so key, to really listen to what your body is, is trying to tell you to really understand what you are feeling. Because I think when you approach weight loss, through how you're feeling and you really try to make that your goal as opposed to really what you're seeing on the scale or what you're seeing even in the mirror. If your goals are more towards what you are feeling, then you're going to have so much more success in achieving those goals, and you'll actually have some side benefits of those other things that we don't want you to have necessarily as.

You'll see this the pounds, drop on the scale, you'll start seeing, the shape taking form. Those will just be little side benefits. But how you're feeling, and moving towards making you feel better, more energetic. Happier. If you're moving towards those goals, you're always, constantly tuning in to how your body's feeling. And that means you're actually listening to those messages and you are becoming yourself. Part of that feedback loop, that's happening with things like cortisol and thyroid and insulin and things that are all interconnected.

You're actually putting your own mind and what you are putting your efforts out towards, in to that whole system, of feedback and working in a way that it is positive for you. I'd like to share our daily routines. So because I'm sure they're very different. And just so that people get an idea that this isn't the same for every single person, right? So how do you what's your daily routine like? Well, my daily routine, it actually tends to be a little bit different every day. There are certainly some elements that are always the same.

Because my mind is a week like this, it takes me online, it takes me into a nursing home, it takes me to various places. But I do always wake up in the morning.

Daily Routines, Self-Care, and Energy Balance 26:38

I'm at the point where I'm not using that alarm at all. I just wake up in the morning. That usually ends up being in the range of 630 to 7 a.m.. That's when my body, tends to wake up and I, I, I get up in the morning and, one of the first things I do is I drink a glass of water, which happens to be there. I always think it's great, to be able to have water right there, next to me as I wake up in the morning so that I have water, to make myself feel so much better when I start in the morning because I've gone a whole night without any water.

Yeah. So that's what. That's the first thing that I'll do. But as far as activity wise, I always start my morning off, with a morning walk with my mom. It's pretty much, very much a routine thing that I do. I moved in with my mom after my father passed, and it's been wonderful. And I love being able to share that morning walk with my mom. And I also get to have great talks with her, as well as, making sure that she maintains an active lifestyle as well. So I definitely always start my morning with that.

Well, usually I love having a hot beverage in the morning. It's usually a hot coffee or a green tea. Those are two of my favorites. And for myself, I actually try to, change it up a little bit in terms of whether I have, a caffeinated or a naturally decaffeinated version of those, only because I don't, want to become caffeine, dependent. So I usually vary that up on a regular basis to not necessarily become dependent on caffeine. But that's pretty much how I start my morning. Every morning. And then the rest of the day kind of, moves into different areas of, of work, depending on the calendar.

Yeah, exactly. How do you find your day down? Winding my day down. More recently, it's been just a little bit different, recently, but, that's has a little bit to do with the fact that I've decided after taking an extended break, to return to fitness competition, but that's another, another story. I don't want anyone to take on the the fitness competitor lifestyle right now, but, it generally involves me actually being able to turn my computer off. A lot of my work during the day. And, messages I get regarding patients come to me, from my, my secretary.

And at the end of the the day, usually, right after dinner is when I used to just go to my computer, my phone. I take care of any of the messages that came through, emails that came through, things that need to be taken care of by the next morning. I medication refills, things of that sort. So just tying things up, right after dinner. And then after that, I pretty much relax for the rest of the day. Yes, I do enjoy some television. I do enjoy television, in the evening. And I usually like to get a little bit of extra cardio in.

I do that to, an hour. An hour and a half. That's pretty much my cut off. I don't do any kind of exercise after that, period before my bedtime, but usually I will sit on my recumbent bike just to get a little extra cardio in while I'm watching television. That's kind of how I do this little dual, making sure that I'm burning some calories while I'm, sitting on the couch and just doing a regular, TV watching nice, nice. Well, the weather actually kind of similar. I was surprised. Sort of. I get up in the morning between usually 530 and six, and I have three dogs, and so I do their, you know, food and all that and then make a, drink with a couple of scoops of our collagen and then some dandy blend and monk fruit and I, I drink that while I'm getting them all set to go and take my morning supplements, and then I take them for a walk.

I live in a very hilly area. We do a hike or at least an hour and a half, sometimes two hours every morning, and then come back and I do, meditation, spiritual practice for another bit and start my, my workday around ten. So, that gives me this really nice period of time that I get to do my, my, self-care and then start my mind's always on computer, time in front of the computer, and then I will to wind down my day, so I eat, I do do intermittent fasting. I'll. I'll break my fast at lunch and in a really nice, you know, very robust lunch, very robust dinner.

And then at the end of the day, well, if I'll review my day. And laughter is really important to me. So if I have not had a good belly laugh that has made me cry a little bit in my day, then I will either call one of my kids because that will happen in that period of time, or I will sit down and watch old TV show called psych. Makes me belly laugh and I'll do an episode of that. And so it's like a prescription for me. I want to laugh every day. So that's amazing. You know? Yeah. And then I will read, and then oftentimes do, sauna or, hot detox baths with salt, do candles be off the screen and, and sesame oil massage and then go to bed.

And I usually am in bed by about nine. I really, I really like to power down and, read a book and then go to sleep and start it all again. So, yeah. So they're kind of, I mean, I don't do cardio at night except sometimes. So sometimes I'll do the same thing. If I'm watching psych, then I'll do some hand weights and things like that. So and I usually encourage my patients to do the same for be active while you're, you know, do a minute for a minute, right. Do a little trampoline or, like you said, a recumbent bike or some hand weights or some yoga stretching, something to kind of like get back into an embodied space, right?

Absolutely. Thanks for sharing that. I wanted people to really see that there's there's so many different ways of living a life of being human, right. And there's not a one size fits all. And it really does come from that emotional space. And I appreciate you pointing out, like, your feeling. That's a nice way to to move from if something else if you're not there. So is there anything else that you want to share with our audience before we go? Oh my goodness. There's always so much. But, the one thing that I always like to tell everyone when they're, they're taking on a new program, or weight loss program, Just no matter what's happening, no matter how stressed out you feel, whether you're worried about how many calories you're supposed to be eating that day, or you're you're fretting about how many, hours you were supposed to have spent on on the treadmill this week.

Just remember to to take a breath. That's the answer to everything. Just just take a breath because you can start from a good place. First off, when you're taking deep breaths, that in itself can do a lot to just get you into the right frame of mind. Bringing down any cortisol levels that might be going a little unchecked. So that I always say, remember to come back to your breath, just take a breath and you can start again and start feeling good about where you're at. Beautiful. That's great advice.

So you're providing the 15 minute Better Body blueprint for our audience. Thank you so much as a free gift for joining the summit, do you want to talk a little bit about that? Absolutely. The 15 minute Better Body Blueprint

Breathwork, Blueprint Offer, and Closing 35:48

is actually something that I designed because I really felt the struggle that my patients and clients were having with with fitting in all of this advice that everybody's giving, just being able to fit it in because we're all so busy. Yeah. So I came up with five packs. I don't want to say little hacks because they can actually have big, big impact on your life, but but five simple things that you can do in your life that will actually fit in. Because all I'm asking is for 15 minutes out of your day.

If you can just give me 15 extra minutes out of your day, you can put these, hacks into your life. These five hacks, they can really do a lot to help you achieve that. That better body in mind spirit. Nice. And then for those of you that have listened to these talks and said, oh my gosh, I really want to have this forever, that I can go back to and reference again and again and again. The All access VIP pass. Doctor Venus has actually provided, a bonus for you too. A gift for that inner circle, the Ignite and workshop to improve productivity.

So if you like to talk about that, I actually have, an eight module workshop that you can take through as well as as an E guide that is going to help you achieve on a weekly basis. You'll be able to go through each of these steps and modules that will take you through improving your energy, improving your body so that it can actually achieve what you wanted to achieve. Over the process of, over the course of these eight modules and I'm going to basically be able to take you through and show you how easy it is to achieve a more productive life.

Thank you so much. I really appreciate your generosity, your generosity of time, and your wisdom. Thanks for all that you do in the world, Doctor Manus. Absolutely. And thank you, Doctor Kesha. I was so thrilled to be here today. All right, everybody, until next time, be well.