From my late teens to the early ’20s, I suffered from chronic gut issues, leading to easy and unexplained weight fluctuations, low energy, and an immense amount of pain and frustration every single day – things weren’t adding up for me. I was a healthy woman and was always so focussed on my health, doing “everything right” which made it extremely upsetting.
This fuelled me to study a Bachelor of Science Nutrition and visit many specialists to find answers (which I did not).
Then, to my surprise, after countless hours of research and finally visiting the right functional medicine doctor – I discovered that my issues stemmed from having a slow thyroid and multiple food intolerances.
So how did I heal my chronic gut issues?
Since then, from simply eliminating those foods (mine were eggs, gluten, nearly all grains, and dairy) and adopting a unique dietary approach to manage my weight and bloating without the hunger after all of my research and trial and error on myself (which, by the way, is far from what we were taught in Uni with the old school, Australian Guide to Healthy Eating guidelines), I have healed myself. It is an incredible feeling.
I still, to this day, 5-6 years later, maintain the same lifestyle with absolute confidence and ease and best of all – very little bloating, hunger, or yo-yo dieting habits like I was used to in the past.
I can manage my weight far easier and it’s the most freeing feeling in the world when you’re not constantly searching for food and when you can get through an entire day without feeling 9 months pregnant and in severe pain.
Healing myself gave me the inspiration to help others
I absolutely love helping others, so when I left university about 4.5 years ago I had a GIANT fire in my belly to help women who are going through what I went through. I immediately set off to work for myself and start my own business, Health with Bec.
My new life’s purpose was to help women slim down and begin to heal their own gut concerns too with my approach. In a nutshell, it is sugar-free, lower carb, gluten-free, nearly all dairy-free, rich in protein and healthy fats, and plentiful in low-calorie vegetables – meaning BIG servings – YES! This approach enables women to (actually) feel satisfied whilst reducing their calories. They also learn how to keep the weight off – something that no other weight loss plans do.
I consulted women 1/1 for my first 2 years of business, working with over 400 extremely closely and in utter depth – making personalized, totally custom plans. But, then I had to do more.
Seeing results from my clients is what drove me
The results coming through were mind-blowing and I had to get this approach out to more women! I could also see so many common themes so pulling together a meal plan for this subset of women who “do it all” made sense to me. It could work.
Fast forward 2 years, and I now predominantly help women through my Signature online program, the 3 Week Body Reset which has been around for 18 months and a membership that I created only 10 months ago – the Health with Bec Tribe. Women are FINALLY achieving results they have always dreamt of after “trying it all”. It is incredible. I have sold thousands of copies of the 3 Week Body Reset to women all around the world and have over 200, incredible women in the Tribe.
What a challenge it has been but also the best thing I have ever done in my entire life. I couldn’t enjoy what I do anymore. It is my dream, purpose, and absolute passion to help women, day after day and I can’t wait to continue to help more!
So, what are some of my top tips to help YOU manage your weight and/or get to the root cause of your gut issues?
Don’t stop your efforts to find answers after visiting a GP or even a specialist. BOOK IN with a highly renowned functional medicine doctor and get the right tests done. I WISH I did this sooner. I suggest food intolerance tests, gut microbiome tests, parasite tests, and SIBO tests. Also, getting all your hormones tested is vital, and last but not least, ensure you get your entire thyroid panel tested (not just TSH and T4 like all GP’s do – do the whole thing). This means, TSH, T4, T3, Reverse T3, and Thyroid Antibodies.
For diet, if you have tried everything – try my approach! It’s low carb but you don’t even know it as I still include foods like bread and pasta – I just have clever alternatives which I have listed below. It’s so important to consider calories whilst ensuring every one of those calories is providing you with nutrients and helping you feel full. This is where the low carb comes in – when we slightly reduce those, there is more room (calorie-wise) for more healthy fat and fat keeps us nice and full. We also NEED fat to absorb vitamins like vitamins A, D, E and K.
Here are my favorite food swaps to save carbohydrates, stay fuller for longer, and leave room for other foods!
Regular bread to Venerdi Super Seeded Paleo Bread
This bread is a lifesaver. Keep it in the freezer and have in place of regular bread! You can see that it has half the amount of carbohydrates, double the protein and double the fiber. What does this mean? You stay fuller for FAR longer! Resulting in eating less calories overall throughout the day, and ultimately weight loss.
Regular pasta to edamame pasta by Slendier or zucchini noodles
You save calories and can have a way bigger serve too. Also, you create more room for calories for other joys in life, such as wine and a little dark chocolate (pictured below). I love recommending Lindt dark chocolate that’s over 85% and encouraging women to enjoy a glass of wine or two a few times a week. Because of balance right?! The extra fiber is also amazing for gut health and digestion – which we always want to focus on for long term weight loss and maintenance.
