Live Like a Girl with Dr. Mindy Pelz

Most women know they should move their bodies, eat well, and protect their sleep. But creativity rarely makes the list.
In this conversation, Dr. Mindy sits down with Dr. Daisy Fancourt to explore the growing body of research showing that art is far more than entertainment or decoration. Music, reading, dancing, crafting, storytelling, and even spending time with a painting can affect stress, mood, cognition, connection, and the nervous system.
Daisy explains why creative activities can help the brain enter a state of flow, how music can slow the heart rate, and why reading fiction may strengthen empathy by allowing us to experience the world through another person’s perspective. She also shares why knitting, singing, dancing, and other so-called “grandmother hobbies” are finding their way back into modern life.

In this episode you'll learn:
Why creativity became separated from everyday life
How to choose music that meets your nervous system where it is 
How regular creative activity may support healthier cortisol patterns 
Why book clubs provide more than a reason to read 
What the research suggests about art, brain fog, and cognitive reserve 
Whether online creative classes offer the same benefits as meeting in person 
Simple ways to bring more creativity into everyday life
Resources Mentioned
Art Cure by Daisy Fancourt
Instagram: @daisy.fancourt
More on Daisy Fancourt

Dr. Daisy Fancourt is a researcher and author whose work examines the effects of arts and cultural engagement on health and well-being.
Her research explores how activities such as music, reading, crafting, dancing, and visiting cultural spaces may influence mental health, stress, cognition, social connection, and physical health. She has published extensively in the field and works on projects examining the biological, psychological, and social effects of creative participation.
For more resources related to today’s episode, visit the podcast episode page: drmindypelz.com/ep357
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Disclaimer: This podcast is intended for educational and informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making changes to your diet, fasting routine, or lifestyle.

If you are hungry all the time, exhausted after meals, craving sugar, or suddenly gaining weight around your middle, your body may be signaling something deeper than a need to eat less.
In this solo episode, Dr. Mindy explains why nearly four in ten American adults now meet the criteria for metabolic syndrome—a collection of warning signs that can include elevated blood sugar, high blood pressure, abnormal cholesterol, increased waist circumference, and changes in liver health.
She breaks down four common drivers that can quietly push the body toward metabolic dysfunction: unstable blood sugar, chronic stress, poor sleep, and inflammation associated with excess body fat.
You will also learn why crash dieting, excessive cardio, and relying on appetite-suppressing supplements rarely address the real problem. Instead, Dr. Mindy shares five practical ways to support your metabolism through food order, walking after meals, resistance training, better sleep, and a more flexible approach to fasting.
Your body is not working against you. It may simply need a different strategy.
In This Episode
 What metabolic syndrome is and why it is better understood as a group of warning signs 
 The role insulin plays in deciding whether glucose is used for energy or stored 
 Why crash dieting and aggressive calorie restriction may make matters worse 
 Why cardio alone is not the best strategy for improving metabolic health 
 How to build a blood-sugar-stabilizing plate 
 Why resistance training is especially important for women 
 How muscle acts as a storage site for glucose 
 Practical ways to build strength without spending hours in the gym 
 What “flex fasting” means 
Resources Mentioned
FREE Nervous System Questionnaire 
Fast Like a Girl
Min-Chex by Standard Process
Qualia Magnesium+ 
Berberine Breakthrough
For more resources related to today’s episode, visit the podcast episode page: drmindypelz.com/ep356

Connect with Dr. Mindy:
Join Reset Academy
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Disclaimer: This podcast is intended for educational and informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making changes to your diet, fasting routine, or lifestyle.

LeAnn Rimes joins Dr. Mindy for a deeply honest conversation about what perimenopause has brought to the surface in her life.

She opens up about the unpredictability of her hormones, the exhaustion of trying to maintain the same pace she has carried for decades, and the difference between anxious thoughts and anxiety that lives in the body. 
Together, LeAnn and Dr. Mindy explore why perimenopause can make old wounds feel louder, why hormone therapy can help without solving everything, and what it looks like to slow down when your identity has always been tied to performing, producing, and pushing through.
This is a conversation about hormones, but it is also about identity, capacity, anger, rest, and the question so many women begin asking in midlife: who do I want to be now?

In this episode you'll learn:
The difference between mental anxiety and physical “body anxiety” 
Why LeAnn has had to change her relationship with rest 
What happens when your life still demands more than your body can give 
The grief women may experience around motherhood, identity, and missed choices 
Why hormone replacement therapy is not always a simple fix 
How perimenopause can force women to reconsider who they have always been

More on LeAnn Rimes
LeAnn Rimes is a 2x Grammy Award-winning singer, songwriter, performer, and actress whose career has spanned more than 30 years. She rose to fame as a teenager and has since built a career across music, television, writing, and live performance. In recent years, LeAnn has also spoken openly about mental health, trauma, psoriasis, anxiety, and the realities of growing up in the public eye. She currently stars in 9-1-1: Nashville and is touring in celebration of the 30th anniversary of her album Blue.
Website: leannrimes.com
LeAnn's Tour Dates
LeAnn's Substack: @leannrimescibrian
Instagram: @leannrimes
Soul of EverLe Candles
For more resources related to today’s episode, visit the podcast episode page: drmindypelz.com/ep355 

Connect with Dr. Mindy:
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Disclaimer: This podcast is intended for educational and informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making changes to your diet, fasting routine, or lifestyle.

Why are so many women doing everything "right" and still struggling to lose weight?

In this solo episode, Dr. Mindy explains why the missing piece may not be your diet or workout routine, it may be your nervous system. When your body is stuck in chronic fight-or-flight, it prioritizes survival over fat burning, making weight loss feel impossible despite your best efforts.
You'll learn how chronic stress impacts cortisol, cravings, digestion, sleep, and metabolism, the five signs your nervous system may be keeping you stuck, and practical ways to help your body shift back into a state where healing and sustainable weight loss become possible. From fasting and food to movement, sleep, and simple daily habits, Dr. Mindy shares actionable strategies to help your body feel safe enough to finally let go of stubborn weight.

Resources Mentioned
Free Nervous System Guide
Fast Like a Girl
Burn Fat Like a Girl Reset
For more resources related to today’s episode, visit the podcast episode page: drmindypelz.com/ep354
Connect with Dr. Mindy:
Join Reset Academy
Watch the episodes on YouTube
Follow Dr. Mindy on Instagram
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Disclaimer: This podcast is intended for educational and informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making changes to your diet, fasting routine, or lifestyle.

Millions of women have been told they have PCOS. Millions more have been told nothing is wrong at all.
Now, one of the most common hormonal conditions affecting women has a new name: PMOS, Polyendocrine Metabolic Ovarian Syndrome. The change reflects what experts have long understood, this condition is about far more than the ovaries. It's deeply connected to metabolism, insulin resistance, inflammation, and hormone balance.
In this episode, Dr. Mindy is joined by Dr. Thaïs Aliabadi, renowned OB-GYN and co-host of the She MD podcast, along with entrepreneur and women's health advocate Mary Alice Haney. Together, they unpack why so many women go undiagnosed, why insulin resistance isn't always visible on the outside, and how lifestyle, nutrition, and early intervention can dramatically change a woman's health trajectory.
They also discuss the growing impact of environmental toxins, breast cancer risk, fertility, metabolic dysfunction, and what every woman should know before walking into her next doctor's appointment.
In this episode you'll learn:
 Why PCOS was renamed to PMOS and what the change means 
 The three criteria used to diagnose PMOS 
 Why up to 80% of women with PMOS remain undiagnosed 
 How insulin resistance affects both lean and overweight women 
 Why birth control alone doesn't address the root cause of PMOS 
 Practical nutrition, lifestyle, and medical approaches to improving insulin sensitivity 
 How to become a stronger advocate for your own healthcare 
More on Dr. Thaïs Aliabadi & Mary Alice Haney:
IG: @shemdpodcast
IG: @drthaisaliabadi
IG: @haneyofficial
IG: @oviihealth
shemdpodcast.com
draliabadi.com
ovii.com
For more resources related to today’s episode, visit the podcast episode page: drmindypelz.com/ep353

Connect with Dr. Mindy:
Join Reset Academy
Watch the episodes on YouTube
Follow Dr. Mindy on Instagram
Subscribe to Dr. Mindy’s newsletter

Disclaimer: This podcast is intended for educational and informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making changes to your diet, fasting routine, or lifestyle.