Are you feeling stuck in a cycle of yo-yo dieting? Have you ever wondered if the shame-based tactics of popular weight loss shows are truly effective?

In this episode, host Nikki Naab-Levy welcomes her colleagues Colette, Brooks, Greg, and Vanessa to deconstruct the myths and misinformation around fitness, nutrition, mindset, and weight loss. In this episode of Results Not Typical, they unpack the Netflix documentary Fit for TV, which examines the reality show The Biggest Loser.

In this episode, you will learn about:

• The difference between intrinsic and extrinsic motivation and how it relates to the long term success of the contestants on The Biggest Loser for maintaining weight loss.

• The negative, long-term effects of using shame as a motivational tool.

• The importance of developing real-life skills for sustainable health.

• Why "The Biggest Loser" failed to provide genuine long-term solutions for its contestants.

This episode is about:

• Examining how shows like
  The Biggest Loser reinforce false beliefs about health and weight loss
  
  

• Understanding the role of shame and extrinsic motivation in short-term weight loss and long-term failure
  
  

• Critiquing the lack of professional mental health support and the defiance of medical advice on the show
  
  

• Highlighting the importance of building sustainable skills rather than just "knuckling down" on restrictive behaviors
  
  

YouTube Timestamps

00:00 | The Problem with The Biggest Loser

00:41 | Introducing the Host and Podcast

01:48 | Guest Introductions

04:26 | The Role of Shame as a "Motivational" Tool

05:42 | Extrinsic vs. Intrinsic Motivation

10:25 | The Scale is the Main Character

14:37 | Skills vs. Doubling Down on Behaviors

17:22 | The Absurdity of Temptation Challenges

22:41 | Trainers Openly Defying Doctors

27:10 | Reinforcing Low-Calorie Crash Diets

Guests Information

Vanessa Zingaro & Greg Sutton

• Instagram: @evolvetoexcel

• Website: https://evolvetoexcel.com/

Brooks Hurbis

• Instagram: @sweat.simple

• Website: https://www.sweatsimpleco.com/

Colette Morris

• Instagram: @cmorrfitness

• Website: https://www.cmorrfitness.com/

Connect with Nikki / Links mentioned

• Instagram: @naablevyfitness

• Website: http://naablevy.com

• Take the 1 minute quiz to get your free personalized strength workouts

• Get your free macros and calories calculator + guide

Are you considering a hysterectomy, or struggling with your body image and fitness journey after surgery? In this episode of the Nikki Naab-Levy podcast, Results Not Typical, Nikki talks with physical therapist Dr. Jocelyn Wallace about a subject that is often underserved: pelvic health.

You will learn about:

• Signs, symptoms, and the best treatment options for endometriosis

• Why a hysterectomy affects more than just one organ.

• The emotional and psychological challenges that can come with the surgery.

• The common advice patients receive and why it isn't enough.

• The importance of self-advocating with your surgeon, especially if you have symptomatic hypermobility.

• How to reconnect with your body and find a new fitness routine after a hysterectomy.
  
  

Here are some key timestamps for this episode:

• 00:01:11 | Introduction to Dr. Jocelyn Wallace

• 00:01:46 | The problem with common post-hysterectomy recovery advice

• 00:03:07 | The impact of a hysterectomy on the entire system

• 00:04:46 | Navigating post-surgery fear and anxiety

• 00:08:44 | Empowering people through physical therapy

• 00:10:48 | The physical therapy process post-hysterectomy

• 00:17:34 | Hysterectomy as a new chapter in fitness

• 00:30:17 | The importance of patient self-advocacy, especially for individuals with symptomatic hypermobility and ehlers danlos syndrome.

Connect with Dr. Jocelyn.

• Name: Dr. Jocelyn Wallace, PT, DPT

• Instagram: @drjocelynwallace

• Website: https://drjocelynwallace.com/

Connect with Nikki / Links mentioned

• Instagram: @naablevyfitness

• Website: http://naablevy.com

• Take the 1 minute quiz to get your free personalized strength workouts

• Get your free macros and calories calculator + guide

In this episode, I’m joined by Melissa Cassera, a publicity strategist, screenwriter, and bestselling author who knows what it takes to make your work irresistible while still staying true to yourself.

What makes Melissa’s perspective so valuable is that she’s spent nearly two decades helping entrepreneurs, authors, and creatives cut through the noise, build real connections, and keep their marketing from feeling “icky.” She also draws on her own experience as a multi-passionate business owner in screenwriting, publishing, and beyond, offering a rare inside look at what truly works.

We talk about:

• How to make marketing feel authentic and aligned instead of forced or cringey.

• The best way to respond to haters, critics, and internet trolls (without losing your sanity).

• Why you don’t have to lock yourself into one tiny niche to be successful.

• How to redefine success on your own terms and celebrate your progress instead of waiting for a “big break.”

Melissa’s journey is proof that you can market with integrity, stand out in a crowded space, and still create a business (and life) that feels creative, fulfilling, and uniquely yours.

Connect with Melissa

• Website: https://melissacassera.com/
• Follow Melissa on Instagram: @melissa.cassera
• Melissa’s Podcast: Listen to Drip, Trickle Flow, Flood

Connect with Nikki

• Take the 1 minute quiz to get a free personalized strength plan: https://freestrengthquiz.com/
• Free calculator and guide to your personalized macros for fat loss and body recomposition: https://naablevy.com/macro-guide/
• Follow Nikki on Instagram @naablevyfitness
• Visit Nikki’s website: https://naablevy.com/

In this episode, I’m joined by my client Carlyn Rubin, who shares her journey navigating fitness and nutrition with symptomatic hypermobility.

What makes her story so powerful is that Carlyn came to me with a body composition and weight loss goal, but through strength training, she discovered so many unexpected benefits along the way.

We talk about:

• How EDS and spinal fusion shaped Carlyn’s relationship with her body and movement.
• What surprised her most about strength training and how she built the confidence to walk into the gym and get started.
• Her experience with low-calorie diets, weight cycling, and what changed when we increased her calories and let go of rigid food rules
• What she wishes more hypermobile people knew about strength training

Carlyn’s experience is a reminder that with the right approach, it’s not just possible to get stronger. It’s possible to feel better and more at home in your body while doing it.

Links mentioned:

Join my 6 week nutrition program Fat Loss Fundamentals.

Grab the last VIP spot in the program.

Connect with me on Instagram @naablevyfitness

You had a plan to track your food, get your steps in, knock out two workouts. But then life happened, and you didn’t do any of it. Which would be fine except it keeps happening and you’re starting to feel stuck.

In this episode, Nikki breaks down what’s actually going on when motivation disappears and how to follow through on the things you want to do, when you’re just not feeling it.

Topics covered:

• The science of motivation.
• The different kinds of motivation and why it matters.
• 3 practical tools to generate motivation when we feel stuck or overwhelmed.

Additional Fitness & Nutrition resources

Grab your free macros & calories calculator + guide

Take a 1 minute quiz to get a free strength plan.

Hop on my list to be notified when enrollment for the nutrition challenge starts.

Stay in touch!

Follow me on Instagram @naablevyfitness

In this episode of Results Not Typical, Nikki speaks with personal trainer and nutrition coach Sahara Coleman about the realities of living and training with symptomatic hypermobility.

They explore how these conditions affect daily life, movement, identity and what it means to show up for yourself when your body doesn’t always cooperate.

Topics covered:

• Training and daily life with hypermobility including chronic pain and injury
• Naviagting POTS and low blood pressure
• Hypermobolity comorbidities beyond the joints
• How identity, mindset, and autonomy play into managing chronic conditions
• Strength training and fitness with hypermobility

Connect with Sahara

• Instagram: @saharathenutritioncoach
• Work with Sahara in person at BodySTRONG Burien

Connect with Nikki

• Get your personalized free strength plan at freestrengthquiz.com
• Instagram: @naablevyfitness

In this episode, Nikki is joined by MNU Certified Nutritionists Vanessa Zingaro and Greg Sutton to break down why we struggle with consistency and what to do when knowledge isn't enough to move forward.

You’ll learn:

• Why more information isn’t the solution to reaching your goals if you're struggling with consistency.

• How to identify and move beyond all-or-nothing thinking.

• What your internal dialogue has to do with your results

• How the Stages of Change explain why you keep "starting over"

• Practical tools to build follow-through (even on tough days)

Connect with Greg & Vanessa

• Grab their 3 part mini series Stop Starting Over
• Follow Vanessa on Instagram @vanessa_zingaro_
• Follow Greg on Instagram @coach.greg.sut
• Evolve to Excel Website

Connect with Nikki

• Grab your free calories and macros calculator + guide
• Take the quiz to get free personalized strength workouts
• Connect with Nikki on Instagram @naablevyfitness

In this epside, Nikki is joined by yoga teacher and strength coach Laurel Beversdorf and physical therapist Dr. Sarah Court, DPT to deconstruct the myths around “good” muscles, “bad” muscles, and the idea that getting out of pain requires activating your muscles in a specific order.

They cover:

• Why the “good muscle vs. bad muscle” narrative isn't an accurate or helpful depiction of how our bodies actually work and how it can lead to unnecessary fear or overcorrection in movement.

• The difference between muscle "timing" and motor control, and how these concepts show up in pain management, rehab, and strength training, especially when people assume certain muscles need to be "turned on" to fix dysfunction.

• How strength training improves coordination and load tolerance across movement patterns, often more effectively than trying to isolate or “activate” specific muscles.

• Why obsessing over alignment and activation can reinforce unhelpful perfectionism and interfere with developing actual strength, resilience, and confidence in your body.

• How nervous system adaptations and context influence which muscles are recruited and why variability, not a specific kind of activiation or sensation, is a better goal.

Connect with Laurel and Sarah

• Movement Logic website: movementlogictutorials.com

• Join the Bone Density Course waitlist.

• Movement Logic Instagram: @movementlogictutorials

• Connect with Laurel Beversdorf: laurelbeversdorf.com | IG: @laurelbeversdorf

• Connect with Dr. Sarah Court, DPT: sarahcourtdpt.com | IG: @sarahcourtdpt

Connect with Nikki

• Take the 1 minute quiz and get a free personalized strength plan!
• Website: naablevy.com | IG: @naablevyfitness