Fasting Q&A: Hormones, Insulin, and Staying Consistent When Motivation Fades
Release Date: 01/20/2026
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The Fasting Method Podcast
How do you know what your body actually needs — and what you don’t? Episode #250 🎙️ In this episode, Dr. Terri Lance is joined by Coach Lisa Chance to break down the confusion around supplements, vitamins, hormones, enzymes, and peptides. Rather than following generic supplement lists or copying what others take, they explain how to approach supplementation intelligently. From understanding the roles of different nutrients to using testing and symptoms as feedback, this conversation emphasizes a personalized, evidence-based approach. They also explore practical considerations like...
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The Fasting Method Podcast
Why does one meal a day work at first—then suddenly stall? Episode #249 🎙️ In this week's episode, Megan Ramos breaks down the pros and pitfalls of one-meal-a-day fasting (OMAD). While OMAD can produce quick early results, it often plateaus for people with insulin resistance. Megan explains why daily OMAD can shift the body into chronic calorie restriction instead of true physiological fasting—and why that distinction matters. She also shares practical strategies for using OMAD more effectively, including how variation in fasting schedules can help preserve metabolic rate,...
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The Fasting Method Podcast
When motivation rises, intensity often follows — but more isn’t always better. Episode #247 🎙️ As March motivation kicks in, many people feel tempted to fast harder and faster. In this episode, Megan Ramos and Dr. Terri Lance explore what it really means to “turn up the dial” on fasting — and how to do it strategically without sabotaging consistency. As vacations and summer plans approach, it’s common to focus on how many pounds can be lost in a short window, but, as Terri reminds us, focusing on habits and behaviors instead of the scale leads to far more sustainable results....
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The Fasting Method Podcast
What really happens when you try to quit sugar — and why perfection isn’t required to experience freedom. Episode #246 🎙️ You don’t have to be perfect to change your relationship with sugar. In this episode, Coaches Terri and Heather explore what actually happens when people try to quit sugar — especially when perfectionism and cultural pressure get in the way. They discuss the common fear of “missing out,” why short-term challenges can be powerful experiments, and how reducing sugar can quiet food noise, reduce cravings, and improve fasting success. Rather than framing sugar...
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The Fasting Method Podcast
Why shorter fasts often stop working once insulin resistance is established — and what therapeutic fasting is actually designed to do. Episode #245 🎙️ If you’re fasting daily and still feel stuck, you may be stopping right before the real metabolic shift begins. In this solo episode, Megan Ramos explains why shorter fasts — like 14–18 hours — often stop producing results once insulin resistance is established. She breaks down what insulin resistance really means (even without a diabetes diagnosis), why hormones and life stage change your fasting response, and when...
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Why Calorie Counting Fails — and What Hunger Really Controls
The Fasting Method Podcast
Why calorie counting fails — and why hunger, not willpower, drives eating behavior. Episode #244 🎙️ If calories alone controlled weight, calorie counting would work. But it doesn’t — because hunger is the real driver. In this episode, Dr. Terri Lance is joined by Dr. Jason Fung to unpack why the traditional “eat less, move more” model fails so many people. They explain why calorie counting ignores the biology of hunger and how hormones, food quality, and different types of hunger determine whether calories are burned or stored. This conversation reframes weight gain as a...
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The Fasting Method Podcast
A practical conversation about why goals don’t create change — daily actions do. Episode #243 🎙️ "Having the big, beautiful goal doesn’t get us to the big, beautiful goal. Translating it into daily actions is what actually moves us forward." In this episode, Dr. Terri Lance and Megan Ramos explore why so many people feel stuck despite having clear goals — and how shifting focus from outcomes to repeatable daily actions is what creates real, lasting progress. They discuss habit-building, consistency, and the small behaviors that support fasting success, metabolic health, and...
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The Quiet Changes That Make Lasting Results Possible
The Fasting Method Podcast
Real change doesn’t usually look dramatic at first. 🎙️In this bonus episode, Dr. Terri Lance explores the subtle internal shifts that often signal real progress — softer self-talk, quicker recovery after setbacks, and a growing ability to stay engaged instead of giving up when things feel uncomfortable. These changes are easy to dismiss because they don’t show up immediately on the scale, but they are what make long-term results possible. This episode is part of the Beyond Knowing series — focused on bridging the gap between knowing what to do and living it consistently. ✨...
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Beginner Fasting Pitfalls: Why Rushing Slows Your Progress
The Fasting Method Podcast
A practical coaching conversation for new fasters on why slowing down is the fastest way to make real progress. Episode #242 🎙️ If fasting feels harder than it should, you may not be doing it “wrong” — you may just be rushing. In this episode, Coach Terri Lance and Coach Heather Shuker walk through the most common beginner fasting pitfalls they see every week inside The Fasting Method. From delaying electrolytes to cranking intensity too fast, stringing OMAD days together, or expecting fasting to erase poor food choices, they explain why rushing leads to stalls, burnout, and...
info_outlineA grounded Q&A episode focused on what actually keeps you consistent when motivation fades.
Episode #241
🎙️ Motivation is powerful at the start — but it never lasts. What matters is what you build underneath it.
Megan Ramos answers listener questions on hormones, insulin resistance, PMS, PCOS, perimenopause, ADHD, and the mental side of fasting. She explains why biology matters more than willpower and why well-built habits — not motivation — are what carry you forward long term.
👉 What you’ll learn:
- How insulin resistance affects hormones and cycle-related symptoms
- Why fasting can support PMS, PCOS, and perimenopause when insulin is addressed
- Why cortisol fear around fasting is often misplaced
- How to think about hunger, appetite, and structure once weight loss slows
- Why motivation fades — and what actually keeps you consistent
- How to reduce food-driven dopamine reliance, especially with ADHD
⏱️ Timestamps
00:43 – Q1: Why fasting can reduce PMS and period symptoms (insulin and hormones)
02:00 – Q2: PCOS, fasting, and cortisol concerns
01:11 – Q3: Spotting, cycle changes, and healing with PCOS
08:58 – Q4: Taking vitamin D on fasting days
11:28 – Q5: Dark chocolate, insulin resistance, and health claims
14:14 – Q6: Losing weight but still thinking about food and fasting
17:54 – Q7: Eating without hunger and extending fasts
19:42 – Q8: Is fasting different for women than men?
21:50 – Q9: ADHD, dopamine, and alternatives to food
📝 Transcript
👉 https://www.thefastingmethod.com/podcasts/
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⚠️ Disclaimer
This podcast is for educational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional care by a doctor or other qualified medical professional. You should always speak with your physician or other healthcare professional before doing any fasting, changing your diet, taking or adjusting any medication or supplements, or adopting any treatment for a health problem.
The use of any other products or services purchased by you as a result of this podcast does not create a healthcare provider-patient relationship between you and any of the experts affiliated with this podcast.
Information and statements regarding dietary supplements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.