Is menopause making you miserable? What you’re doing to fight it could be making things worse. I’m sharing the biggest mistakes we make so you can avoid them, and some strategies that actually work to lose weight over 40.

Recounting my struggles, I weigh up what I’d do differently to avoid the hot flashes, weight gain, brain fog, sleep issues, and mood swings.

Top-line takeaway: I’d ditch the diets and get serious about gut health.

We’ll dive into how the gut controls hormones and metabolism, and cover why “eating healthy” isn’t enough to combat tanking estrogen and progesterone. Then, we’ll walk through my strategy for thriving through menopause: personalized nutrition, knowing your food triggers, and meeting your protein needs.

Drawing in wisdom from previous guests, we’ll go over the importance of advanced labs and early DEXA scans, how to improve bone health and avoid osteoporosis, and why a dietitian should be a core member of your medical team.

A key strategy that’s missing for most women? Sharing experience and resources in a supportive, like-minded community. You can’t Chat-GPT-your-way through this transition.

Tune in to get proactive and take charge of your health.

TESS’S TAKEAWAYS:

• Personalized nutrition is the key to achieving health goals at any age.
• What you eat dramatically affects how you feel during menopause.
• Optimizing gut health and blood sugar helps to balance your hormones.
• Over 40, meeting your protein needs is a game-changer.
• Dieting can make menopause symptoms and health issues worse.
• The 60-Day Reset includes access to dietitians and community support.
• Reduce hot flashes, brain fog, and other symptoms by knowing your food triggers.
• Get advanced hormone and thyroid panels with a menopause-trained doctor.

MEET TESS MASTERS:

Tess Masters is an actor, presenter, health coach, cook, and author of The Blender Girl, The Blender Girl Smoothies, and The Perfect Blend, published by Penguin Random House. She is also the creator of the Skinny60® health programs.

Health tips and recipes by Tess have been featured in the LA Times, Washington Post, InStyle, Prevention, Shape, Glamour, Real Simple, Yoga Journal, Yahoo Health, Hallmark Channel, The Today Show, and many others.

Tess’s magnetic personality, infectious enthusiasm, and down-to-earth approach have made her a go-to personality for people of all dietary stripes who share her conviction that healthy living can be easy and fun. Get delicious recipes at TheBlenderGirl.com.

CONNECT WITH TESS:

Website:  https://tessmasters.com/

Podcast:  https://ithastobeme.com/ 

Health Programs: https://www.skinny60.com/

Delicious Recipes: https://www.theblendergirl.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/theblendergirl/

Instagram:

Struggling to process fear, anger, and grief? Karen Kenney—writer and spiritual mentor—gives us a masterclass in finding love, compassion, and resilience in challenging times.

When Karen was 12, her mother was brutally murdered. She and her sister were sent to live with strangers. Through years of trauma and confusion, Karen sought solace in books and stories. While others around her took satisfaction in vengeance, she found peace in forgiveness, through guidance from mentors, and her study and practice of somatics, yoga, and other healing modalities.

This put Karen, who grew up Catholic, on an unexpected path to a different relationship with spirituality and the divine. After getting a communications degree at Boston University, she lived and worked with Marianne Williamson, then immersed in study of A Course In Miracles, finally claiming her role as coach and thought leader.

We discuss the impact of family and cultural conditioning in shaping internal narratives, and the importance of shifting limiting beliefs to temper the dialogue with ourselves and others.

Cornerstones of Karen’s approach are personal responsibility, harnessing the agency we have, recognizing what spirit and source mean to us, and developing a unique connection to them.

She maps how to assemble a team of spiritual advisors, noting the importance of tapping into our resources and community to consider things in different ways. Then shows us tools to resist fear, acknowledge risk, and feel ‘safe enough’ to take action toward what we want.

Karen’s story epitomizes “It has to be me.” But her message is: You don’t have to do it alone.

TESS’S TAKEAWAYS:

• A Course In Miracles is a workbook to prompt self awareness and growth.
• Developing your own approach to spirituality supports self-love and compassion.
• Intimacy heals. Personal responsibility and deep relationships expand your choices.
• Grief is a sacred path to your deepest healing and highest service.
• You can feed a grievance or you can seek peace. You cannot do both.
• Forgiveness isn’t forgetting. Choosing compassion means suffering doesn’t run the show.
• You’re not the sum of what happened to you, but what you’ve been called to because of it.
• We’re never completely safe. Feeling safe enough is enough.

ABOUT KAREN KENNEY

Spiritual mentor and writer Karen Kenney uses humor and dynamic storytelling to bring a down-to-earth, no-BS perspective to self-development.

Bringing together tools that coach the conscious and unconscious mind, Karen helps clients deepen their connections with self, and discover their unique understandings of spirituality.

Her practice combines neuroscience, subconscious reprogramming, integrative hypnosis, somatics, and other holistic modalities to help regulate the nervous system, examine internal narratives, remove blocks, and reimagine what’s possible.

A passionate student of A Course in Miracles, devout yoga teacher, and Gateless Writing instructor, Karen is a frequent speaker and retreat leader. Via her programs The Quest and The Nest, she coaches individuals and groups.

With The Karen Kenney Podcast, she encourages listeners to shift from a thought system of fear to one of love, compassion, and personal responsibility.

CONNECT WITH KAREN

Website: https://www.karenkenney.com/

Podcast:

Pete Coles, transpersonal counselor and somatic practitioner, shares how listening in an embodied way to grief, anxiety, and other overwhelming emotions softens self-judgment and shame.

He tells us about his journey, from working musician to therapist for adolescents dealing with drug and alcohol addiction. Seven years in this work led to burnout.

A 600-km trek through the Tasmanian wilderness brought him to a deeper, more holistic relationship with healing. Pete transitioned into working with adults, integrating somatics to enhance trust, body listening, and self awareness.

We discuss the significance of family narratives and inherited personality traits. Understanding those, we can explore our internal landscapes with curiosity and compassion, recognize destructive patterns, and move to deeper understanding of ourselves and others. Pete offers insights into relationship dynamics, and how conflict is often a collision with events in the past.

He says: Slow down and listen to your body. Honor the discomfort that arises—not as a problem, but as a signal that there’s something to take care of.

This conversation will move you beyond words.

TESS’S TAKEAWAYS:

• Rather than trying to solve reality in your mind, listen and care for your body.
• Somatic practices expand how we meet ourselves and others.
• Reframing problems as puzzles shifts our responses to disruptions.
• Give anxiety, sadness, and other overwhelming emotions seats at the table.
• Grief is a meticulous and sacred journey that heals and builds resilience.
• Observing yourself with curiosity expands inner dialogue and choices.
• In taking responsibility for our inner stories, we can move from conflict to resolution.
• Knowing your internal myth leads to greater compassion for yourself.

ABOUT PETE COLES

A transpersonal psychotherapist with extensive experience in drug and alcohol addiction, Pete has a nuanced understanding of mental health, compulsive behavior, and trauma.

In his therapeutic approach, he integrates somatic awareness, helping people connect with their bodies and explore internal myths and formative stories that shape perceptions and behaviors. Pete also supports clients in the safe use of psychoactive plants in their therapy.

Specializing in relationship dynamics, Pete works with couples to uncover how personal narratives intersect, guiding them toward greater clarity and connection.

As co-founder of Elk & Me Therapies and Dispensary, Pete works with a complementary team to offer a holistic and integrative approach to mental health and wellbeing.

CONNECT WITH PETE

Website: https://elkandme.com.au/practitioners/pete-coles/

Website: https://www.emotionalintellect.com.au/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elkandme/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ElkMeTherapiesDispensary/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pete-coles-125879a2/

MEET TESS MASTERS:

Tess Masters is an actor, presenter, health

Dr. Ava Roubin takes us inside the power of Chinese medicine and acupuncture, the value of integrating Eastern and Western healing practices, and how she combined different modalities to build her unique treatment approach.

We retrace the path that’s made Ava a renowned practitioner. The journey forked when she walked away from the final exam to complete her medical degree. Feeling “too young” to be a doctor, she set off on a self-directed apprenticeship, traveling around the country as a massage therapist. With more life lessons under her belt, she completed her degree plus an additional five years of Chinese herbal medicine. An internship in Shanghai expanded her practice, and she felt ready to open her clinic and dispensary in Australia.

Giving us an overview of the 5 elements of Chinese medicine, Ava covers how your constitutional type serves as a guide to nourish your body, reset physical and emotional imbalances, and restore vitality. We dive into how acupuncture balances energy and supports recovery, enabling an embodied connection and understanding of self.

Ava explains her unconventional choice to incorporate massage into sessions as a way of opening deeper healing and communication. Acknowledging the significance of ancestral trauma and inherited narratives, she highlights the importance of working with our internal rhythms, seasons in nature, and the cycle of the day.

Whether you’re familiar with Chinese medicine or curious about it, Dr. Ava will rock your world.

TESS’S TAKEAWAYS:

• An integration of Eastern and Western medicine can enhance patient care.
• The five elements of Chinese medicine shed light on emotional and physical health.
• Healing is a collaboration between practitioner and client.
• Acupuncture creates a bridge between the body and the external world.
• Physical touch and massage facilitate deep communication and healing.
• Cycles of nature and of the day influence our own rhythms and healing processes.
• Chinese medicine acknowledges inherited cycles and ancestral trauma.
• You don’t have to feel “ready” to begin. Wisdom often comes through practice.

ABOUT DR. AVA ROUBIN, MA, CMD

A practitioner of Chinese Medicine, Dr. Ava Roubin has decades of experience in the healing arts. She set out on her path as a massage therapist, and evolved to a clinical and spiritual practice rooted in acupuncture, Chinese herbal medicine, and psychosomatic holistic care.

With a Bachelor of Health Science in Chinese Medicine from Victoria University, with a double major in acupuncture and herbal medicine, Ava completed her clinical internship at Shuguan Hospital in Shanghai. It was there that she gained experience combining traditional Chinese and Western medicine in gynecology, oncology, internal medicine, and acupuncture.

Ava’s work with Five Element Acupuncture draws from ancient Taoist wisdom to support profound emotional, physical, and spiritual transformation.

As co-founder of Elk & Me Therapies and Dispensary, Ava works with a team of multi-modality practitioners helping clients connect with their innate healing capacity.

CONNECT WITH DR. AVA ROUBIN

Website: https://elkandme.com.au/practitioners/ava-roubin/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elkandme/

Facebook:

Tired of the same smoothies? Up your game with tips from my cookbooks. As The Blender Girl, I’ve spent decades crafting thousands of recipes for my websites, nutrition programs, restaurants, hotels, and food and lifestyle companies. Now, I’m sharing everything I’ve learned about making shakes with the wow factor.

I’ll walk you through my six steps to sensational smoothies: from thinking outside the box with liquids, choosing the right fruits and veggies, achieving super creamy textures, unexpected leafy greens beyond spinach and kale, to using herbs, spices, extracts, and superfoods to boost flavor and nutrition.

You’ll also learn about incorporating flavored ice, frozen veggies, juices, herbal teas, fermented beverages, and citrus zest to take your shakes to the next level. And get the wildest and most delicious flavor pairings that will make you weak in the knees.

We’ll cover how to avoid the common pitfalls: Strategies for preventing blood sugar spikes, bloating, reflux, and the dreaded chill in winter. Plus how to bring back vibrant colors and flavors when your blend looks like swamp water, and secrets for fixing flavor flops!

Last and not to be missed: Why protein powders are one of the worst things to add to shakes.

Join me for the ultimate smoothie masterclass.

TESS’S TAKEAWAYS:

• The best smoothies deliver fabulous flavor and balanced nutrition.
• Add protein and fats to balance the carbs and avoid blood sugar spikes.
• Skip protein powders made with isolates and use whole foods for better nutrition.
• Boost flavor and nutrient density with herbs, spices, and superfoods.
• Experiment with unusual ingredients and pairings for unexpected taste sensations.
• Go beyond spinach and kale. Try other leafy greens in shakes.
• Add frozen raw veggies to boost smoothies—without altering taste.
• Rather than gulping, sip smoothies slowly to support better digestion.

MEET TESS MASTERS:

Tess Masters is an actor, presenter, health coach, cook, and author of The Blender Girl, The Blender Girl Smoothies, and The Perfect Blend, published by Penguin Random House. She is also the creator of the Skinny60® health programs.

Health tips and recipes by Tess have been featured in the LA Times, Washington Post, InStyle, Prevention, Shape, Glamour, Real Simple, Yoga Journal, Yahoo Health, Hallmark Channel, The Today Show, and many others.

Tess’s magnetic personality, infectious enthusiasm, and down-to-earth approach have made her a go-to personality for people of all dietary stripes who share her conviction that healthy living can be easy and fun. Get delicious recipes at TheBlenderGirl.com.

CONNECT WITH TESS:

Website: https://tessmasters.com/

Podcast: https://ithastobeme.com/ 

Health Programs: https://www.skinny60.com/

Delicious Recipes: https://www.theblendergirl.com/

Facebook:

Over 40 and feeling invisible? Shavita Kotak, author of Seven Wonders Of Menopause, shares why midlife isn’t a period of decline, but a divine invitation to listen to your body, ask for what you need, and go after what you want.

Shavita recounts how growing up in London in a traditional Indian family had her feeling trapped between two worlds, aching to veer away from the expected path.

After traveling the world, studying with healers and living in ashrams in India, she settled in Australia to raise her family. Even with all she’d learned, the emotional and energetic unravelling that came with perimenopause blindsided her.

A decade of reading medical research, embracing ancient teachings, and seeking the counsel of female luminaries helped her welcome menopause as a sacred rite of passage. This perspective shift became a gateway to greater liberation and joy, and to her calling—empowering other women to seize opportunity in this life transition.

Shavita emphasizes the importance of self-care practices, and walks us through how to tune into our cycles and seasons, and see physical symptoms as signposts for what to say no to in order to say yes to what matters.

We celebrate the wisdom of age, the value of elders, and our responsibility to share feminine wisdom. Claiming our roles as community leaders, we can break ancestral cycles and drive generational change.

Shavita says: Menopause is about letting go of who you’ve been taught to be, and honoring who you are today.

TESS’S TAKEAWAYS:

• Menopause is not the end women dread, it’s a gateway to your greatest power.
• Aging doesn’t mean disappearing; it’s an opportunity to upgrade your value and intuition.
• Cultivate a daily practice of asking your body what it needs and honoring the answer.
• Use your menopause symptoms as a guide for what you’ve suppressed.
• Saying “no” can be a sacred act of love that leads to the right “yes” for everybody.
• Honor female elders and take your place in sharing feminine wisdom.
• Sacred women’s circles support healing through shared experiences.
• Use menopause to soften within yourself and be in the flow of your life.

ABOUT SHAVITA

As a yoga teacher, wellness educator, and author of Seven Wonders Of Menopause, Shavita Kotak helps midlife women embrace their rite of passage with curiosity, courage, and confidence.

In her former career as a financial planner, Shavita used self-care and spiritual practices to balance the hustle culture of her corporate job and find balance and fulfillment. Now she helps other women do the same.

After two decades of immersion in ancient traditions, and study at ashrams in India, Shavita now leads retreats, women’s circles, and sound healing sessions to create sacred spaces where women share, grow, and support each other.

CONNECT WITH SHAVITA

Website: https://shavitakotak.com/

Book: https://www.amazon.com/Seven-Wonders-Menopause-Mother-Wake-Up/dp/176370422X/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@wombwisdomwithshavita

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/womb_wisdom_with_shavita

Facebook:...

Are you living the life you want or following somebody else’s rules? Julie Hannon, shamanic healer, teaches us how to trust our gut instincts to make choices on our own terms.

Through the lens of her personal experience, Julie illustrates the fulfillment that comes from breaking free of family expectations and societal pressures, and making heart-focused decisions.

After wanting to be a doctor but studying psychology instead, Julie enjoyed a successful career as an HR consultant. But, after developing adrenal fatigue, and watching friends and colleagues battle diseases, she left the corporate world to follow her first calling. She studied alternative healing modalities, and claimed her place in healthcare.

When her son was diagnosed with Lyme disease at age six, and conventional medicine failed to be effective, Julie’s energy work healed him. At a time when Lyme was epidemic in New England, and many cases were chronic, she became one of the go-to healers in Boston for other children struggling with the illness. She expanded her practice to help other children and adults achieve their physical and emotional wellness.

We discuss the importance of upgrading our responses and accessing the wisdom of our hearts to balance our heads. Julie walks us through how to quieten our minds, breathe and listen to our intuition, and set intentions in alignment with our dreams.

This episode is a roadmap for stepping out in order to step into your next “It has to be me!”

TESS’S TAKEAWAYS:

• Your past and present do not lead to an inevitable future.
• Meditation helps you be present and future-informed rather than past driven.
• You can be curious about what’s next without knowing what’s next.
• The seed of your soul is in your heart.
• Practice heart-focused listening to balance a mind-focused world.
• Gratitude—the ultimate state of receiving—maximizes your listening.
• Upgrade your responses with self-care practices and ceremony.
• Own your unique medicine and share it.

ABOUT JULIE HANNON

As a shamanic healer, energy medicine teacher, and yoga practitioner, Julie Hannon helps clients and students connect with their gifts and strengths, and make heart-centered decisions.

With a master’s degree in psychology from Columbia University and bachelor’s degree in psychology from University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Julie worked for over 20 years as a human resources director.

Making a career change, she trained in the healing traditions of the Andes, focusing on the Q’ero lineage in Peru with mentors including Alberto Villoldo, Jorge Luis Delgado, and Joan Parisi Wilcox.

With a certification in Luminous Healing through the Four Winds Society, Julie was also an advanced student of Dr. Joe Dispenza, exploring how quantum physics and neuroscience intersect with shamanic healing. She works in Light Body Healing, Soul Retrieval, Divination, and HeartMath Coaching. Julie served as senior faculty at the Light Body School.

She leads a weekly online gathering for the spiritually curious, Sacred Circle.

CONNECT WITH JULIE

Website: https://www.innerpeaceandwellness.com/

Sacred Circle: https://www.innerpeaceandwellness.com/sacredcirclewithjulie

Facebook:...

Struggling with burnout and fatigue and want to feel energized and in control of your life? Ilana Kosakiewicz, one of Australia’s leading kinesiologists, shares strategies for combating stress and listening to your body, to do the things that light you on fire!

Trying to be the ‘good girl’ and following the socially acceptable path as a corporate accountant had Ilana battling chronic fatigue, autoimmune disease, exhaustion, and a lack of fulfillment.

Kinesiology helped restore her mental and emotional vitality, leading her to become a holistic practitioner to help others.

We discuss the importance of balancing masculine and feminine energy, differentiating between internal and external references, acting in alignment with values and boundaries, and going with your gut.

Tune in for a conversation about permission…to slow down, listen, break free of expectation and obligation, say no to the ‘shoulds,’ and take action on what you really want.

TESS’S TAKEAWAYS:

• Connect with your body’s intelligence and energy through kinesiology.
• Mental and emotional issues often manifest in physical ailments.
• Balancing your masculine and feminine energies is crucial for wellbeing.
• A practice of listening to your body keeps you connected to what you want.
• If it drains you, it’s time to reassess, set boundaries, or let it go.
• Resentment is often a sign you’re living by someone else’s rules.
• Values and boundaries change. Reassess regularly.
• Put your attention on what lights you up.

ABOUT ILANA

As a kinesiologist, yoga and meditation teacher, and host of The Energy Shift podcast, Ilana Kosakiewicz teaches people how to tune into the body’s innate intelligence to restore physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual vitality.

Following a corporate career that brought on a health crisis, Ilana found her mission in guiding other women out of the hustle culture and into a more balanced way of being.

To share her practical tools, rituals, and strategies for sustainable wellbeing, she does 1-on-1 sessions with clients and leads in-person retreats. She supports her global community through online programs.

CONNECT WITH ILANA

Website: https://ilanak.com.au/

The Energy Shift Podcast: https://ilanak.com.au/podcast/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ilanak.kinesiology

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ilanak.kinesiology

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ilana-kosakiewicz/

Meet Tess Masters:

Tess Masters is an actor, presenter, health coach, cook, and author of The Blender Girl, The Blender Girl Smoothies, and The Perfect Blend, published by Penguin Random House. She is also the creator of The Decadent Detox® and Skinny60® health programs.

Health tips and recipes by Tess have been featured in the LA Times, Washington Post, InStyle, Prevention, Shape, Glamour, Real Simple, Yoga Journal, Yahoo Health, Hallmark Channel, The Today Show, and many others.

Tess’s magnetic personality, infectious...