You worked hard to lose the fat. Now comes the part almost nobody prepares you for… Keeping it off.

In this episode, Ashley and Kathleen walk through exactly how they help clients transition out of a fat loss phase without immediately regaining weight. Ashley also shares about how she has maintained her 10+ lb fat loss from earlier this year, now 4 months later, using the Transform method.

You’ll learn why maintenance is actually harder than dieting, how to slowly increase calories without unnecessary fat gain, why your hunger hormones take months to normalize, what reverse dieting should actually look like, and why most people should spend far more time building maintenance calories than chasing another calorie deficit.

If you’ve ever finished a diet only to gain the weight back a few months later, this episode is for you!

In this episode we discuss:

• Why fat loss isn’t really “finished” when the diet ends

• The biggest mistake people make after losing weight

• How leptin, ghrelin, and hunger change after dieting

• Our week-by-week reverse diet strategy

• How to increase calories without panicking over the scale

• Why maintenance calories are a range, not a single number

• Water weight vs. fat gain

• Why maintenance should be your long-term goal

• Building muscle after fat loss

• When to start another fat loss phase (and when not to)

Time Stamps:

00:28 Intro: Fat loss isn’t the hard part

02:10 Why most people regain the weight

05:10 Fat loss isn’t over when the diet ends

07:29 Hormones and lab work after a calorie deficit

16:06 What transitioning back to maintenance actually means

18:50 Our week-by-week reverse diet strategy

24:47 Water weight vs. fat gain after dieting

28:55 Why maintenance is the hardest (and most important) phase

39:46 Why we increase calories slowly instead of all at once

51:22 What to monitor during maintenance

56:08 Why scale weight doesn’t tell the whole story

58:40 The psychology of maintaining weight loss

1:00:42 Choosing your next goal after fat loss

1:11:37 Why strength training matters more than endless cardio

1:30:42 How Transform guides clients through fat loss and maintenance to keep the weight off_____________________________________________________________Subscribe To The Rooted In Resilience Podcast:⭐ Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@UCSpofOL75STGMvUUlD5em7g ⭐ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3NTIxm2iqgIdnqI2j2FICr?si=477cfb0440fe40ce⭐ Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/rooted-in-resilience/id1663060063_____________________________________________________________

Keep Up With Us!🖥️ Website: https://www.armstrongsisters.com/🗞️ Newsletter: https://www.armstrongsisters.com/newsletter-signup_____________________________________________________________

Support Us & Our Mission to Change the food system! 👩🏼‍🌾 Our Farm CoOp, Nourish Food Club: {The highest quality food you can find, delivered directly to your door. Low PUFA eggs, chicken and pork, 100% grass-fed beef and lamb, traditional sourdough, raw dog food, & more}https://nourishfoodclub.com/ _____________________________________________________________

Follow Us On Social Media➡️ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/strong.sistas/➡️ X: https://twitter.com/strong_sistas➡️TIKTOK: https://www.tiktok.com/@strong.sistas?_t=8oW270Feyz5&_r=1➡️FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100083808037077____________________________________________________⭐️ The Transform Fat Loss and Metabolic Restoration Program ⭐️Join 400+ people who’ve lost fat and kept it off, without giving up their favorite foods. This science-backed, metabolism-first program helps you rebuild your foundation, restore energy, and finally achieve fat loss results that last.Next group starts July 6th, learn more and join the Early Access List here:

https://www.armstrongsisters.com/transform

Most people don’t fail because they’re doing the wrong things, they fail because they don’t do the right things long enough. The physique they want often requires more time, consistency, and effort than they realize.

In this episode, Ashley, Tyler, Kathleen, and Sarah (Team Transform) have an honest conversation about the gap between expectations and reality when it comes to body composition change. They break down why the lean, healthy physique many people aspire to requires more consistency, more daily effort, and more time than social media often suggests. There are no quick fixes, and meaningful body recomposition rarely happens in a matter of weeks.

The team discusses the habits that tend to separate different levels of body composition, including daily movement, strength training, nutrition, sleep, and overall lifestyle consistency. They also explain why chasing the next diet, supplement, or fitness program often keeps people stuck, while the people who achieve lasting results learn to embrace the “boring basics” and repeat them for months and years.

If you’ve ever felt frustrated that your results aren’t happening fast enough, this episode will help you better understand what it truly takes to build and maintain a healthy, lean physique, and why it’s important to match your expectations to the effort you’re willing to put in.

You’ll learn:

• How to set realistic expectations for fat loss and muscle gain without falling into the trap of program hopping or supplement obsession

• The “boring basics” that drive long-term success: strength training, daily movement, adequate protein, quality sleep, and consistency

• Why leaner physiques often require more effort, structure, and intentionality than most people realize

• How to stop chasing shortcuts and focus on the habits that actually move the needle

• Why sustainable body composition changes are built over months and years, not days and weeks

This episode is perfect for anyone tired of chasing the next big hack and ready to focus on what actually works. _____________________________________________________________Timestamps

0:00 - Introduction: Why realistic expectations matter for body composition change

2:35 - Mindset required to achieve your desired results

3:51 - Unrealistic expectations of the time required

6:20 - Matching your expectations with the work you are willing to put in

7:40 - Why you shouldn't change your workouts every few weeks

8:10 - The boring habits you need to master to achieve your goal physique

19:45 - How Tyler is staying committed to his goals while traveling

25:58 - Ashley's update with her physique goals

39:35 - Kathleen's update with her physique goals

53:06 - Sarah life and goal update for her physique

54:00 - Why it's important to consistently weigh yourself

56:45 - How to stop tracking your food

1:01:00 - Changing your expectations and goals in different seasons in life

1:04:50 - Why Transform is not a cookie cutter approach

1:08:00 - Why strength training is a key piece to achieving your physique goals

1:10:00 - A missing piece in the pro-metabolic health space

1:12:50 - Consistency is about finding more ways to win_____________________________________________________________Follow Us On Social Media➡️ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/strong.sistas/➡️ X: https://twitter.com/strong_sistas➡️FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100083808037077____________________________________________________⭐️ The Transform Fat Loss and Metabolic Restoration Program ⭐️Join 350+ people who’ve lost fat and kept it off, without giving up their favorite foods. This science-backed, metabolism-first program helps you rebuild your foundation, restore energy, and finally achieve fat loss results that last.Next group starts July 6th, learn more and join the Early Access List here:

https://www.armstrongsisters.com/transform

In this episode of Rooted in Resilience, Ashley sits down with Dr. Alex Orton to challenge one of the most common beliefs in modern health: that getting sick is always a bad thing.

What if occasional illness is actually a sign of a resilient, functioning body?

Together, they explore how acute illness fits into the bigger picture of metabolic health, why suppressing symptoms may do more harm than good, and how your body’s ability to mount a response (like a fever) is directly tied to your energy production and vitality.

They also break down:

• Why not getting sick for years might not be a flex
• The connection between metabolism, body temperature, and immune function
• How modern life suppresses the body’s natural healing processes
• The role of rest, nourishment, and detox pathways during illness
• Why true healing isn’t linear and requires patience

This episode will shift how you view sickness, symptoms, and what it actually means to be “healthy.”

TIMESTAMPS

00:43 – Why getting sick might actually be beneficial

02:20 – How often should you get sick? Is “never” a red flag?

05:00 – Acute vs chronic illness (and how suppression leads to deeper issues)

07:30 – Why energy & metabolism determine your ability to heal

12:20 – The long-term consequences of symptom suppression

18:20 – Fever explained: why higher body temperature is therapeutic

25:30 – Metabolism, body temperature & declining health in modern society

31:30 – “Healing isn’t linear”: understanding symptoms returning over time

46:50 – What to actually do when you’re sick (rest, food, detox, support)

1:07:30 – The real bottleneck in health: mastering the basics

1:30:00 – Why healing takes time (and why quick fixes don’t work)

_____________________________________________________________

Link to previous podcast with Dr. Alex Orton, where we discuss the downfalls of modern functional medicine and the four pillars of true health.

'When Holistic Becomes Conventional: Rethinking Naturopathic Medicine with Dr. Alex Orton'

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H9TU9oL3ENU&t=2738s

_____________________________________________________________

Keep Up With Us!🖥️ Website: https://www.armstrongsisters.com/🗞️ Newsletter: https://www.armstrongsisters.com/newsletter-signup

Support Us & Our Mission to Change the food system! 👩🏼‍🌾 Our Farm CoOp, Nourish Food Club: {The highest quality food you can find, delivered directly to your door. Low PUFA, corn- and soy free eggs, chicken and pork, 100% grass-fed beef and lamb, traditional sourdough, raw dog food, & more}

https://nourishfoodclub.com/

_____________________________________________________________

✨Learn more and work with Dr. Alex Orton:

https://havenholistichealth.com

^ Schedule your free consult

Dr. Alex Orton on socials:

https://www.instagram.com/havenholistichealth/

https://www.instagram.com/alexorton.nd/

✨