289 - Why Being Hard on Yourself Makes You Overeat

You've tried every diet, counted every calorie, and switched up your workout routine more times than you can remember - but you still feel completely out of control around food. What if the reason you can't stop overeating has nothing to do with willpower, meal plans, or even the food itself? In this episode, we dig into why traditional weight loss approaches keep failing you and what your body is actually trying to communicate through your eating patterns. If you've ever found yourself asking "why can't I just stop eating when I'm not hungry?" this conversation will completely shift how you think about your struggle with food. The Real Work Podcast: Apply and Spotify Enter the Giveaway

After nearly six years of podcasting, Maggie and Ryan make a major announcement about the future of Why We Overeat. They share the honest truth about why they've decided to end this podcast and what they've learned about the limitations of staying focused on certain topics. The conversation reveals how much their understanding has evolved since the early days, and why they feel called to make a significant shift in their approach. They explain what's been frustrating them behind the scenes and why they can't continue down the same path. Plus, they share exciting news about what's coming next and how longtime listeners can be part of the transition. The Real Work Podcast: Apple and Spotify  Enter the Giveaway  

You've been told that losing weight will make you happier, more confident, and finally give you the life you want. But what happens when you actually reach that goal weight and still feel just as empty inside? This episode challenges the widespread belief that weight loss is the solution to deeper life problems. We explore why so many people achieve their "dream body" only to discover they're still battling the same internal struggles they had before. The conversation reveals how focusing on the scale can become a dangerous distraction from addressing the real issues causing emotional overeating in the first place. If you've ever wondered why the promise of weight loss never seems to deliver the fulfillment you expected, this episode will shift how you think about your relationship with your body and food. Click here to join vibe club  

In this episode, we dive deep into the unexpected dark side of fitness tracking technology. What happens when the tools meant to improve your health actually increase your anxiety and disconnect you from your body's natural wisdom? What We Discuss The Oura Ring Confession Why one host ditched their beloved fitness tracker after years of use The surprising relationship between data obsession and anxiety When "helpful" technology becomes a source of stress The Data Trap How checking your readiness score first thing in the morning affects your entire day The disconnect between how you actually feel vs. what your device tells you Why we've become fortune tellers using sleep and HRV data Your Body's Built-In Feedback System The information your body provides that no device can measure How civilization functioned for thousands of years without sleep tracking Why we've stopped trusting our own physical sensations The Obsession Cycle Signs that your fitness tracker has crossed from helpful to harmful The difference between awareness and compulsion When tracking becomes another form of self-abandonment Body vs. Brain Intelligence Why 95% of your subconscious mind lives in your body, not your head The tree metaphor: symptoms, behaviors, and root causes How chronic stress shows up in physical form The Whisper vs. The Scream How your body tries to communicate before things get serious Why we ignore subtle signals until they become impossible to miss The progression from anxiety to chronic symptoms Key Questions Explored What are you actually doing with all that health data? How has tracking changed your relationship with your body? When did we decide external metrics matter more than internal wisdom? What happens when you stop checking and start feeling? Who This Episode Is For Anyone who feels anxious checking their fitness tracker data People who've noticed their relationship with health tracking has become compulsive Those experiencing chronic stress, anxiety, or unexplained physical symptoms Anyone curious about reconnecting with their body's natural intelligence Resources Mentioned Vibe Club community for deeper nervous system work Gabor Maté's work on mind-body connection Dr. Joe Dispenza's teachings on subconscious mind and body

Ever feel like you're doing everything "right" but still can't figure out why you're overeating? You know you should listen to your hunger signals, stop when you're satisfied, and eat without distractions - but something keeps getting in the way. In this episode, we dive into why the simple tools for weight loss feel so impossibly hard to actually use. We explore the uncomfortable truth about why you can't seem to put your phone down during meals, why you eat like you're being chased by a tiger, and what's really happening when you look down and your plate is suddenly empty. If you've ever thought "I know what to do, I just can't seem to do it," this conversation will shed light on the real barriers between you and mindful eating - and why your resistance to slowing down might be the biggest obstacle of all. Click here to join vibe club  

Ever notice how you can put your phone down and then 20 seconds later it's mysteriously back in your hand? Or how you tell yourself you'll stop overeating, but then find yourself at the gas station buying snacks you don't even want? In this episode, I'm getting real about urges - not just food urges, but ALL the urges that run our lives. The scrolling, the shopping, the working until midnight, the constant need to be doing something other than just... being here. We just wrapped up a 3-week Urge Challenge in the club, and the insights that came out of it blew my mind. People started tracking their overeating urges and quickly realized they had urges for everything - and that maybe, just maybe, the urge isn't actually the problem. What we're diving into: Why you can put your phone down and pick it back up without even realizing it The difference between an urge and your fear of the urge (spoiler: one of these is way worse) How society normalizes certain escapes while shaming others Why some people are getting baby chickens and accidentally losing weight The weird thing that happens when you fight an urge so hard that eating becomes about ending the fight, not the food What it's like to sit in an Uber without your phone (harder than you think) Why working 12-hour days gets praised but it might be the same pattern as overeating Plus, I share my own struggle with my phone and how recovering from chronic pain made my phone my unfortunate companion. Ryan jumps in with his realization about work urges and how he uses productivity to avoid... well, you'll see. This isn't about perfection. It's about noticing what your habits are trying to tell you. Because every urge, every automatic behavior, every "I can't help it" moment - they're all messengers. The question is: are you getting the message? Click here to join vibe club  

Have you ever received advice that you know would work - advice that makes perfect sense and has helped countless others - but somehow you just can't make yourself follow it? You hear it clearly, you understand it completely, but when it comes time to actually implement it, something inside you resists. It's not that you lack willpower or motivation, and it's definitely not that the advice is wrong. There's actually a hidden barrier that most people don't even realize exists, and it's the real reason why perfectly good guidance never seems to stick. In this episode, we dive deep into what's really happening in your brain when advice hits this invisible wall. Click here to join vibe club  

You know that voice in your head that never cuts you any slack? The one that calls you a failure every time you overeat and tells you to just "snap out of it"? What if I told you that voice is actually making your overeating worse, not better? Most women think they need to be harder on themselves to see results, but the opposite is true. In this episode, we're diving into why self-criticism creates the exact cycle you're trying to break and what actually works instead. Click here to join vibe club  

Do you have a big weight loss goal but find yourself making choices that work against it every single day? You're not alone - and the problem might actually be the goal itself. In this episode, we dive into why focusing on your ultimate weight loss number can make daily food decisions feel impossible and keep you stuck in cycles of overeating. We'll explore the surprising psychology behind why that "60 pounds to lose" goal might be sabotaging your progress and discuss a completely different approach to thinking about weight loss that actually works. If you've ever felt overwhelmed by the mountain you need to climb or found yourself giving up because the end feels too far away, this episode will shift everything. Click here to join vibe club  

You wake up every morning with the best intentions. Today will be different. Today you won't overeat. But by evening, you've done it again - and you're left wondering what's wrong with you. If you're tired of this exhausting daily cycle of promising yourself you won't overeat and then breaking that promise hours later, this episode is for you. Click here to join vibe club