One Body to Love with Dr. Meredith MacKenzie

One of the hardest parts about recognising a problem with food is that it rarely announces itself clearly. Most people don’t wake up one day knowing exactly what’s wrong. Instead, they live in a grey zone — where things don’t feel right, but also don’t feel extreme enough to justify getting help.
In this episode, I walk through the eating-behaviour continuum (normal eating struggles → disordered eating → eating disorders), and I explain why the line between these categories isn’t clean or predictable. I also explore why “severity” isn’t determined by how often something happens, what you weigh, or how well you hold things together. It’s determined by the cost: the mental load, the emotional labour, the rigidity, the fear, and the erosion of trust in your own body.
From there, I talk about why these patterns rarely resolve through insight alone. Disordered eating and eating disorders persist because they serve a purpose — often as regulation, coping, or a form of safety when the nervous system is under strain. You can understand diet culture, believe in intuitive eating, and still feel dysregulated when you try to practice it, because these patterns live in the body, not just the mind.
I also spend time on where Ozempic / GLP-1 medications enter the conversation — and why appetite suppression can complicate assessment, reinforce restriction, or quiet behaviours without addressing the underlying relationship with food.
Finally, I share the markers I see clinically that suggest support may be warranted, and I explain what support can actually look like when you don’t want to keep carrying this alone.
One Body to Love 10-Week Intuitive Eating Program
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If you’ve ever made a plan for yourself to move your body more, to take better care of yourself, or to do something that genuinely matters, and then felt frustrated or disappointed when it didn’t happen, this episode is for you.
So often, when our goals don’t stick, we turn that experience inward. We assume we’ve failed, that we’re lazy, unmotivated, or incapable of consistency. But what if the problem isn’t you, or even the plan, but the way we’ve been taught to think about follow-through, structure, and doing it “right”?
In this episode, I’m talking about intuitive eating and intuitive movement through a very real-life lens. I’m sharing personal examples from my own season of motherhood, caregiving, and shifting energy, and unpacking why goals often fall apart when they’re built for perfection rather than for a human life.
We’ll explore how all-or-nothing thinking, self-criticism, and unrealistic expectations can quietly drain motivation, and how building flexibility, backup plans, and compassion can actually help you stay connected to your intentions over time.
This is a grounded, practical conversation about learning to do what works in this season, without shame.
In this episode, you will hear:
02:10 – Why having good intentions doesn’t always translate into follow-through
04:45 – The gap between the version of you who makes the plan and the version who has to live it
06:55 – How all-or-nothing thinking shows up in intuitive eating and movement
09:30 – Why most of the distress comes from self-criticism, not the plan falling apart
12:15 – Going week-by-week instead of planning for an idealized future version of yourself
15:40 – How backup plans prevent burnout and help maintain momentum
18:20 – What “no-brainer” movement really looks like in a full, demanding life
21:10 – The difference between aspirational habits and reliable ones
24:05 – Why flexibility is not lowering the bar — it’s self-respect
26:40 – How to gently audit what’s draining your energy without blaming yourself
29:10 – Reframing plans as tools, not contracts you’re failing to uphold
If you’d like a gentle, actionable next step, I invite you to take my free Eating Personality Quiz. It can help you better understand how you relate to food, structure, and self-care — and what kind of support actually works for you.
👉 Take the quiz here: https://meredithmackenzie.ca/personality-quiz

And if this episode resonated, I’d love to hear from you. You can send me a message on Instagram and let me know what stood out or what you’re noticing in your own life right now.
Until next time, take care of yourself — and remember that doing what works right now is not giving up. It’s listening.
One Body to Love 10-Week Intuitive Eating Program
💻 Book a Connection Call

Website - www.meredithmackenzie.ca
Instagram - @Dr.MeredithMackenzie
Facebook - Meredith MacKenzie Coaching
Pinterest - pinterest.com/drmeredithmackenzie
Youtube - @Dr.MeredithMackenzie

If you’ve ever found yourself in the aftermath of a binge — flooded with guilt, panic, and promises to “fix it tomorrow” — this episode is for you.
In today’s episode of One Body to Love, I walk you through exactly what to do after a binge, not from a place of control or punishment, but from care, nervous system safety, and self-compassion. This episode is a practical, grounding guide you can come back to whenever the shame spiral starts to take over.
This isn’t about being perfect.
It’s about knowing what actually helps — even when everything feels messy.
Summary
Binge eating is rarely just about the food. It’s about what happens after: the mental math, the fear, the self-blame, and the urgent desire to undo what just happened. In this episode, I share a clear, step-by-step roadmap for navigating the post-binge moment in a way that reduces shame, prevents restriction, and supports long-term binge eating recovery.
I talk through how to calm your nervous system, nourish your body without compensation, and interrupt the binge–restrict cycle — even if you’re listening while the discomfort is still very real.
This episode may feel especially supportive if you:
Binge eat at night
Feel stuck in cycles of restriction and overeating
Experience intense shame after eating
Want food freedom without another “reset” or diet
Episode Timestamps
00:55 – Why the shame spiral after a binge feels so intense
02:39 – The compassionate roadmap I use with clients
04:45 – Step 1: Why trying to “undo” a binge keeps the cycle alive
07:44 – Step 2: Gentle hydration as nervous system care
09:25 – Step 3: Why rest and sleep matter more than willpower
12:53 – Step 4: Why restriction and compensation backfire
15:20 – Step 5: How to approach your next meal without punishment
18:10 – Step 6: Ending emotional self-punishment
20:45 – Step 7: Small acts of safety and self-care
23:10 – Step 8: Curiosity instead of criticism
26:30 – Step 9: A simple tool to help prevent future binges
Resources & Links
Five Steps to End Binge Eating at Night (Free Guide)
Am I Really Hungry? Flowchart (a 60-second check-in I use with clients every week)

Food Freedom in a Weekend mini-course
One Body to Love 10-Week Intuitive Eating Program
💻 Book a Connection Call

Website - www.meredithmackenzie.ca
Instagram - @Dr.MeredithMackenzie
Facebook - Meredith MacKenzie Coaching
Pinterest - pinterest.com/drmeredithmackenzie
Youtube - @Dr.MeredithMackenzie

If you’ve ever found yourself wandering into the kitchen, opening the fridge, grabbing something to eat, and thinking, “I don’t even know if I’m actually hungry…” this episode will feel like a deep breath. Today I’m walking you through one of the most common struggles women share with me: the feeling of being disconnected from your hunger cues.
Whether you’re working on binge eating, stress eating, emotional eating, or simply trying to rebuild trust with food, those moments of “I can’t tell what my body needs” can feel confusing and discouraging. But your hunger cues aren’t gone—they’ve just been buried under stress, rushing, caregiving, emotional labour, diet culture, and everything your nervous system has been holding.
In this episode, I break down how to use my Am I Really Hungry? Flowchart to understand what’s happening in the moment you feel the urge to eat—whether that urge is tied to physical hunger, emotional needs, exhaustion, overwhelm, or simply being on autopilot. This gentle check-in tool helps you slow down, tune in, and make choices from clarity, not guilt.
If you’ve ever wished for a moment of pause before spiralling into stress or shame around food, this will help you reconnect with your body in a way that feels supportive, not restrictive.
In this episode, you’ll hear:
 • 00:54 – Why your hunger cues feel “lost,” and why they’re not gone
 • 02:32 – How the Am I Really Hungry? Flowchart actually works
 • 05:08 – The first question to ask when you feel the urge to eat
 • 06:42 – How to use the hunger scale to check in with your body
 • 07:30 – The difference between gradual hunger and sudden urges
 • 08:15 – How specific cravings can point to emotional needs
 • 09:24 – What your emotions might be trying to tell you before you eat
 • 11:03 – Why emotional eating isn’t “wrong,” and how to honour it without shame
 • 12:16 – How to make this check-in a gentle, grounding daily micro-movement
Download the Flowchart 👉 meredithmckenzie.ca/flowchart

If today’s episode gave you clarity or a moment of connection, I’d love to hear from you. Send me a message on Instagram:
 👉 @dr.meredithmckenzie
And if you’re ready to feel more grounded around food and rebuild trust with your body, the One Body to Love program is here when you’re ready.
Until next week!
One Body to Love 10-Week Intuitive Eating Program
💻 Book a Connection Call

Website - www.meredithmackenzie.ca
Instagram - @Dr.MeredithMackenzie
Facebook - Meredith MacKenzie Coaching
Pinterest - pinterest.com/drmeredithmackenzie
Youtube - @Dr.MeredithMackenzie

If you’ve ever had one tough night with food and thought, “I ruined everything,” let this be your deep exhale. Today I’ll walk you through one of the most misunderstood parts of binge eating recovery: the difference between a slip and a spiral. When shame is loud and panic sets in, it’s easy to feel like you’re back at square one. But the truth is, one moment doesn’t undo your progress. In this episode, I explain how to recognize a slip, stop it from turning into a spiral, and why these moments are not signs of failure, but signs of growth. If you’ve ever felt discouraged the morning after a binge, let this help you find clarity, calm, and a way forward that feels empowering.
In this episode, you will hear:
 • 02:59 – What a “slip” really is, and how to know if you're in one
 • 05:25 – Real-life examples of how slips show up in recovery
 • 05:58 – When a slip becomes a spiral,  and why shame fuels it
 • 08:35 – Signs your nervous system is shifting into shutdown
 • 09:52 – How to gently interrupt the spiral and reconnect with support
 • 15:21 – Why a slip can actually be a sign of progress, not failure
For a gentle, actionable next step, try my free Eating Personality Quiz: meredithmackenzie.ca/personality-quiz
If today’s episode resonated, I’d love to hear from you. Send me a message on Instagram, and if you’re ready to break free from binge eating and reclaim peace with food, my One Body to Love program is here to support you. Until next time!
One Body to Love 10-Week Intuitive Eating Program
💻 Book a Connection Call

Website - www.meredithmackenzie.ca
Instagram - @Dr.MeredithMackenzie
Facebook - Meredith MacKenzie Coaching
Pinterest - pinterest.com/drmeredithmackenzie
Youtube - @Dr.MeredithMackenzie