High on Life

In this episode, I’m joined by Dr. Michael Beyaert — a General Internist trained at the University of Toronto with a special interest in cardiovascular disease. With a background in Nutrition and Dietetics (Western University) and a Master’s in Neuroscience (McMaster), he brings a rare, practical lens to metabolic health that connects medicine, nutrition, and the brain.

We dig into what body composition actually means, why visceral fat is so metabolically harmful, and why muscle and strength may be the most overlooked health markers in modern weight loss conversations.

We also talk about sarcopenia (age-related muscle loss), why rapid weight loss can increase risk, and what we actually know — and don’t know — about “safe” amounts of muscle loss during weight reduction, including with GLP-1 medications.

Most importantly, Dr. Beyaert shares the real-world advice he gives patients: prioritize strength training, fuel your body (especially protein), monitor the rate of weight loss, and shift your focus from the scale to outcomes like strength, function, and quality of life.

If you take one thing from this episode, it’s this: strength is health — and rather than obsessing over losing the next 10 pounds, most people would benefit more from gaining their first pound of muscle.

Home BIA Scale Options We recommend one of two at-home BIA scales that you can easily purchase from Amazon.ca:

8-electrode BIA scale (higher accuracy): Provides more precise data by measuring arms, legs, and trunk separately
Standard foot-to-foot BIA scale (more affordable): Still effective for tracking overall trends
Both options are acceptable. The most important factor is consistency.

WORK WITH US
O​​ntario-Wide Virtual Obesity Management Clinic
https://www.highmetabolicclinic.com

Join my Weight Loss Coaching Program for women, Best Weight https://www.sashahighmd.com/bestweight

Recover Strong for Binge Eating
https://www.sashahighmd.com/bed

Taking the first step toward weight loss can feel overwhelming — but you don’t have to do it alone. I’ve created a curated list of my podcast episodes to gently guide you as you begin your journey. https://www.sashahighmd.com/podcast-guide

If you feel like you’re barely eating but still not losing weight, this episode is for you.

We break down why very low-calorie diets—like 1,200 calories or less—often backfire, slow your metabolism, and disrupt key hormones like leptin. You’ll learn how chronic under-eating keeps your body in conservation mode, why hunger and low energy persist even after dieting ends, and what actually supports long-term fat loss instead.

We cover sustainable eating, mechanical meals, protein needs, strength training, and how to rebuild metabolic health—especially if you’ve dieted for years or have conditions like insulin resistance or PCOS. Fat loss isn’t about eating less and less; it’s about creating safety, consistency, and trust with your body.

GROCERY GUIDE: https://www.sashahighmd.com/high-on-life-podcast-grocery-guide

WORK WITH US
Join us in our Weight Loss Coaching Program for women, Best Weight https://www.sashahighmd.com/bestweight

Recover Strong for Binge Eating
https://www.sashahighmd.com/bed

O​​ntario-Wide Virtual Obesity Management Clinic
https://www.highmetabolicclinic.com

Taking the first step toward weight loss can feel overwhelming — but you don’t have to do it alone. I’ve created a curated list of my podcast episodes to gently guide you as you begin your journey. https://www.sashahighmd.com/podcast-guide

FOLLOW SASHA
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/sashahighmd/

In this episode, I sit down with Dr. Ashley White to explore a concept that’s missing from most conversations about obesity treatment: appetite literacy.

Together, we talk about why hunger, fullness, cravings, and wanting aren’t problems to suppress, but physiological signals to understand—and how dieting, stress, and modern food environments disrupt those signals. We explore how appetite is regulated in the brain, why willpower-based models fall short, and how appetite literacy fits into modern obesity care, including the use of GLP-1 medications.

This is a grounded, science-based conversation about working with biology rather than fighting it—and why skill-building matters just as much as treatment tools.

Dr. White is a physician certified in family medicine and emergency medicine through the College of Family Physicians of Canada, with board certification in obesity medicine through the American Board of Obesity Medicine and a Master’s in Public Health with a specialization in global health. Her 15-year career spans community health work in Afghanistan, health equity policy at the Public Health Agency of Canada, rural emergency medicine, and pioneering integrated addiction treatment in primary care. She currently serves as Medical Lead in Canada for HeliosX and is the founder of The Shift Clinic, launching December 2025.

Connect with Dr. Ashley White:
Instagram: @ashleywhite.md
The Shift Clinic: www.theshift.clinic
Website: www.ashleywhitemd.com

FOLLOW SASHA
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/sashahighmd/

WORK WITH ME Join my Weight Loss Coaching Program for women, Best Weight https://www.sashahighmd.com/bestweight

Recover Strong for Binge Eating
https://www.sashahighmd.com/bed

O​​ntario-Wide Virtual Obesity Management Clinic
https://www.highmetabolicclinic.com

Taking the first step toward weight loss can feel overwhelming — but you don’t have to do it alone. I’ve created a curated list of my podcast episodes to gently guide you as you begin your journey. https://www.sashahighmd.com/podcast-guide

168. Don’t Believe Everything You Hear: How to Interpret Health Information Online

In this episode, I talk about why so much health information online sounds confident, compelling—and often overwhelming—and how to think more clearly about what you’re hearing.

We explore why extreme health claims are so persuasive, how algorithms reward confidence over nuance, and why popularity doesn’t equal accuracy. I walk through a practical framework I use to evaluate health claims—looking at anecdotes, mechanisms, population data, and long-term clinical outcomes—and why speed of weight loss is not the same as sustainable health.

I also share the red flags I personally watch for in health content, and how I use podcasts and social media as tools for curiosity rather than instructions. This is a pragmatic conversation about taking what resonates, leaving the rest, and remembering that no single approach works for everyone.

If you’ve ever felt confused, behind, or anxious after consuming health content online, this episode is for you.

WORK WITH ME
O​​ntario-Wide Virtual Obesity Management Clinic
https://www.highmetabolicclinic.com

Join my Weight Loss Coaching Program for women, Best Weight
https://www.sashahighmd.com/bestweight

Recover Strong for Binge Eating
https://www.sashahighmd.com/bed

Taking the first step toward weight loss can feel overwhelming — but you don’t have to do it alone. I’ve created a curated list of my podcast episodes to gently guide you as you begin your journey. https://www.sashahighmd.com/podcast-guide

FOLLOW SASHA
Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/sashahighmd/

Episode 167: Why “Do Not” Goals Backfire (and How “Do” Goals Improve Consistency)

In this episode, I break down one of the most common goals I hear from women—“I need to stop snacking at night”—and why goals like this almost always fail. Not because of a lack of discipline, but because they ignore physiology. “Do not” goals create a metabolic void: the brain is told what to avoid, but the body’s needs for energy, protein, blood sugar stability, muscle preservation, and nervous system regulation aren’t addressed. When those needs go unmet—especially in women dealing with insulin resistance, perimenopause, menopause, chronic stress, or GLP-1 medications—willpower is expected to do the impossible.

I explain how restriction fuels the deprivation–compensation cycle, why cognitive restraint breaks down at night, and why night snacking is usually a signal of under-fueling earlier in the day—not a self-control problem. Then I walk through how shifting from “don’t” goals to physiology-based “do” goals (like prioritizing protein, eating regularly, building balanced meals, planning intentional evening options, and reducing nervous system load) leads to better consistency, quieter food noise, and more sustainable fat loss—especially for women on GLP-1s.

If you’ve ever felt like you’re “good all day” and then unravel at night, this episode will help you stop blaming yourself and start supporting your metabolism instead.

FOLLOW SASHA
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/sashahighmd/

WORK WITH ME
Join my Weight Loss Coaching Program for women, Best Weight https://www.sashahighmd.com/bestweight

Recover Strong for Binge Eating
https://www.sashahighmd.com/bed

O​​ntario-Wide Virtual Obesity Management Clinic
https://www.highmetabolicclinic.com

Taking the first step toward weight loss can feel overwhelming — but you don’t have to do it alone. I’ve created a curated list of my podcast episodes to gently guide you as you begin your journey. https://www.sashahighmd.com/podcast-guide