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What if the reason you’re struggling to lose fat isn’t simply that you’re eating too many calories? What if your blood sugar, insulin sensitivity, hormones, gut health, inflammation, sleep, and muscle mass are all part of the bigger picture?

In this episode of The BeingBrigid Show, Brigid breaks down seven science-backed strategies she uses to support blood sugar balance, insulin sensitivity, metabolic health, and sustainable fat loss—especially for women. Rather than relying on extreme calorie restriction, keto diets, or an all-or-nothing approach to nutrition, Brigid explains how to work with your metabolism through fiber, protein, balanced carbohydrates, meal timing, mindful eating, targeted nutrients, and movement.

These strategies are particularly relevant for women dealing with stubborn weight gain, belly fat, energy crashes, cravings, insulin resistance, inflammation, or metabolic changes that can occur during midlife.

What You’ll Learn In This Episode:

• Why insulin resistance can impact weight, energy, cravings, mood, inflammation, and metabolic health—even before pre-diabetes or type 2 diabetes
• Why a mild caloric deficit may be more sustainable for women than aggressive calorie restriction
• How tracking waist circumference and body composition can provide more insight than the scale alone
• Why eating 25–30 grams of fiber per day—and getting a variety of fiber sources—can support blood sugar, gut health, satiety, and metabolic health
• How to moderate carbohydrates without relying on long-term keto or extremely low-carb diets
• Why protein is essential for satiety, muscle preservation, and insulin sensitivity
• How meal timing and sleep can influence hunger hormones and blood sugar
• Why chewing your food more slowly can support digestion, satiety, and food intake
• Which nutrients—including polyphenols, magnesium, omega-3s, and vitamin D—Brigid prioritizes for metabolic health
• Why movement throughout the day and strength training are powerful tools for glucose clearance and insulin sensitivity
• Why consistency—not extreme strategies—is what truly moves the needle

Timestamps:

• 00:00: Why traditional weight loss advice isn’t working
• 02:12: The connection between insulin resistance, blood sugar, and fat loss
• 03:40: Why high fasting insulin matters
• 06:51: The benefits of improving insulin sensitivity
• 07:30: Strategy #1: Eat in a mild caloric deficit
• 09:11: Why calories aren’t the whole story
• 10:00: Why waist circumference matters
• 11:27: Strategy #2: Eat 25–30g of fiber + diversify your sources
• 13:47: High-fiber foods to add to your diet
• 16:04: Strategy #3: Moderate carbohydrate intake
• 18:15: Strategy #4: Prioritize protein
• 19:00: Strategy #5: Train your hunger hormones
• 20:26: Meal timing, sleep, and hunger cues
• 21:00: Strategy #6: Chew your food 20–40 times per bite
• 22:46: Strategy #7: Focus on nutrients for metabolic health
• 25:07: Recapping the 7 strategies
• 25:40: Bonus strategy: movement + strength training
• 27:21: Why consistency and identifying your personal barriers matter
• 29:37: Brigid’s approach to transparency and brand partnerships

Why Blood Sugar and Insulin Sensitivity Matter for Fat Loss

For years, weight loss advice has largely focused on calories in versus calories out. While energy balance matters, Brigid explains why insulin resistance and elevated fasting insulin deserve a bigger place in the conversation.

Insulin helps move glucose from the bloodstream into your cells to be used for energy. When your body becomes less sensitive to insulin, the pancreas may produce more insulin to compensate. Brigid explains how ongoing high insulin levels can make it harder to access stored fat and may be associated with weight gain, excess body fat, inflammation, energy crashes, cravings, mood changes, and other metabolic concerns.

Importantly, insulin resistance can occur before someone develops pre-diabetes or type 2 diabetes. That means supporting insulin sensitivity isn’t only relevant for people who have been diagnosed with diabetes—it can also be an important part of preventive women’s health and metabolic health.

Strategy #1: Choose a Mild Caloric Deficit

If fat loss is your goal, Brigid recommends being calorie-aware without becoming calorie-obsessed. Rather than creating an aggressive caloric deficit, she recommends a milder approach that allows for slower, more sustainable progress. For women in particular, she explains that overly restrictive diets can create additional stress and may contribute to fatigue, mood changes, and hormonal symptoms.

The goal isn’t to eat as little as possible. It’s to create a sustainable nutrition strategy that provides enough protein, fiber, antioxidants, polyphenols, and other nutrients to support overall metabolic health while still allowing for fat loss.

Don’t Focus Only on the Scale

Body weight doesn’t tell the whole story. Brigid recommends paying attention to measurements such as waist circumference and waist-to-hip ratio, particularly because visceral fat around the midsection is metabolically significant. Some women may notice changes in their waist circumference before they see a major change on the scale. Looking at multiple markers can provide a more complete picture of changes in body composition and metabolic health.

Strategy #2: Eat 25–30 Grams of Fiber Per Day

Fiber is one of the most powerful tools for supporting blood sugar, gut health, satiety, and metabolic health. Brigid recommends aiming for at least 25–30 grams of fiber per day while incorporating a variety of fiber sources. Fiber can slow glucose absorption, support fullness, and feed beneficial gut microbes.

Your gut bacteria ferment fiber and resistant starch, producing short-chain fatty acids that can influence satiety hormones such as GLP-1 and PYY. This is one reason gut health and metabolic health are so closely connected. Some of Brigid’s favorite high-fiber foods include lentils, raspberries, lentil pasta, psyllium, chia seeds, broccoli, avocado, beans, and other vegetables and plant foods.

The goal isn’t simply to hit a fiber number. It’s to build a diverse microbiome by eating a wide variety of fiber-rich foods.

Strategy #3: Moderate Your Carbohydrate Intake

Brigid doesn’t recommend eliminating carbohydrates. Instead, she focuses on moderating carbohydrate intake and choosing whole-food sources. While lower-carbohydrate diets can be useful for improving blood sugar in certain circumstances, she cautions against long-term keto diets or extremely low-carbohydrate approaches, particularly for women.

Whole-food carbohydrates can provide fiber, antioxidants, polyphenols, and other micronutrients. The goal is to find an amount that supports your individual energy needs while avoiding consistently large post-meal blood sugar spikes.

Strategy #4: Prioritize Protein

Protein plays an important role in satiety, muscle preservation, and metabolic health. Brigid recommends approximately 1.2–1.5 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight and explains that muscle acts like a glucose sponge, helping pull glucose from the bloodstream and supporting insulin sensitivity. Maintaining and building muscle is especially important as we age, making protein and strength training important parts of eating for longevity and supporting healthy body composition.

Strategy #5: Train Your Hunger Hormones

Your hunger isn’t random. Meal timing, sleep, and your daily rhythms can all influence hunger hormones and food choices. Brigid discusses research and insights from Dr. Kristen Holmes around creating a consistent eating window and finishing food approximately two to three hours before bed. She also discusses the importance of sleep, noting that even one night of sleep deprivation can affect hunger hormones, food preferences, and blood sugar. Creating consistent meal timing may also help your body anticipate when food is coming rather than constantly grazing throughout the day.

Strategy #6: Chew Your Food 20–40 Times Per Bite

Eating more slowly can have surprisingly significant effects. Brigid recommends experimenting with chewing each bite 20–40 times. Thorough chewing can support digestion and nutrient absorption, reduce the stress associated with eating quickly, and give your brain more time to register fullness. Slowing down your meals may also help you naturally consume less food without relying on rigid restriction or calorie counting.

Strategy #7: Focus on Nutrients for Metabolic Health

Food is more than calories. The nutrients and bioactive compounds in food can influence inflammation, insulin sensitivity, gut microbes, and metabolic health.

Brigid highlights four areas in particular:

• Polyphenols: Found in colorful plant foods and other sources, polyphenols may support lower inflammation, healthier gut microbes, and metabolic health.
• Magnesium: Magnesium plays a role in stress resilience and insulin signaling.
• Omega-3 fatty acids: Omega-3-rich foods, particularly fatty fish, can support a healthy inflammatory response.
• Vitamin D: Vitamin D is another nutrient Brigid considers important for metabolic health.

Rather than chasing every supplement trend on social media, the focus is on building a strong nutritional foundation through food is medicine principles and personalized nutrition.

Bonus Strategy: Move More and Build Muscle

Brigid’s bonus strategy is movement. Long periods of sitting can make glucose clearance more difficult, while regular movement throughout the day can support glucose regulation. She also recommends strength training three to five times per week to help preserve and build muscle.

Muscle is an important part of insulin sensitivity because it acts as a major site for glucose disposal. Strength training therefore isn’t just about aesthetics—it’s also about metabolic health, healthy aging, body composition, and longevity.

Consistency Is More Important Than Perfection

One of the biggest takeaways from this episode is that you don’t need to implement everything perfectly. Brigid emphasizes consistency and sustainability over extreme strategies. Instead of blindly following an external checklist, consider identifying the biggest barriers that are keeping you from the health outcomes you want.

Maybe you have the nutrition information but struggle with meal preparation. Maybe stress is affecting your choices. Maybe you’re eating well but aren’t getting enough protein, fiber, sleep, or movement. Nutrition is never one-size-fits-all. The most effective approach is one that considers your individual needs, your lifestyle, your body, and the habits you can realistically sustain over time.

Resources & Links:

+ Watch the full episode on YouTube

+ Sign up for the Fall Blood Sugar Reset 

+ Join The Being Collective

+ Brigid’s Website

+ Brigid’s Instagram