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This scale will change your life.
Yes, I really did throw my expensive bluetooth scale into the trash back in 2017. If you're a long time podcast listener or you have read Fast. Feast. Repeat., you already know this story. After not weighing for over a year, I was curious to see how much more weight I had lost, since I had gone down two jeans sizes. The number blinking up at me was not as low as I expected (thank you body recomposition...I had built muscle and lost fat, resulting in a higher weight on the scale than I thought I would see). Not only was I mad, but I was MAD that I was mad. I knew better than to get upset by a number, since I was at the size I wanted to be. The number was truly meaningless. So, into the trash went my scale.
I haven't weighed since. Until NOW. I recently purchased a Shapa numberless scale, and I absolutely love it.
So: What the HECK is a numberless scale, and why do you want one??? Let me explain the genius behind this new scale, and why I bought one for myself.
You probably know that I am a fan of only worrying about your overall progress and understanding your trend over time. Fluctuations are normal, but they can be very confusing. That’s why I recommend that if you are going to weigh, the best approach is weighing daily and calculating your weekly average. But, even with that approach, stepping on the scale every day can mess with your mind when you see that number flashing up at you. SO MUCH JUDGMENT tied up in that number.
That's the beauty of the Shapa scale. You no longer have to see a number at all, while still knowing what’s happening over time with your overall trend. This scale uses statistics to calculate the changes in your overall body composition, and after the initial calibration period, you get daily feedback in the form of a color that tells you what your overall trend is doing over time. The color lets you know if you’re losing weight, holding steady, or gaining weight. This is important: the color doesn’t change daily based on fluctuations. It ONLY changes if your TREND has changed. This is the same concept as weighing daily with weekly averaging, but with no math for you...AND you don't have the drama of the daily fluctuations blinking up at you. There’s lots of complicated math going on behind the scenes where you don’t have to see it. Dan Ariely, creator of the Shapa, is a Professor of psychology and behavioral economics at Duke University. His TED talks have been viewed over 15 million times. And he is the author of the three New York Times best sellers. In 2018 he was named one of the 50 most influential living psychologists in the world. Yep. I trust his math.
What does each Shapa Color mean?
I haven't weighed since. Until NOW. I recently purchased a Shapa numberless scale, and I absolutely love it.
So: What the HECK is a numberless scale, and why do you want one??? Let me explain the genius behind this new scale, and why I bought one for myself.
You probably know that I am a fan of only worrying about your overall progress and understanding your trend over time. Fluctuations are normal, but they can be very confusing. That’s why I recommend that if you are going to weigh, the best approach is weighing daily and calculating your weekly average. But, even with that approach, stepping on the scale every day can mess with your mind when you see that number flashing up at you. SO MUCH JUDGMENT tied up in that number.
That's the beauty of the Shapa scale. You no longer have to see a number at all, while still knowing what’s happening over time with your overall trend. This scale uses statistics to calculate the changes in your overall body composition, and after the initial calibration period, you get daily feedback in the form of a color that tells you what your overall trend is doing over time. The color lets you know if you’re losing weight, holding steady, or gaining weight. This is important: the color doesn’t change daily based on fluctuations. It ONLY changes if your TREND has changed. This is the same concept as weighing daily with weekly averaging, but with no math for you...AND you don't have the drama of the daily fluctuations blinking up at you. There’s lots of complicated math going on behind the scenes where you don’t have to see it. Dan Ariely, creator of the Shapa, is a Professor of psychology and behavioral economics at Duke University. His TED talks have been viewed over 15 million times. And he is the author of the three New York Times best sellers. In 2018 he was named one of the 50 most influential living psychologists in the world. Yep. I trust his math.
What does each Shapa Color mean?
For the first 10 days, Shapa will ask you to step on the scale twice a day. After those 10 days, Shapa will have found your baseline weight. After this baseline calculation, you will see your first Shapa color.
Shapa color looks at your trend over the past few days compared to the past few weeks. With the Shapa Color, you know if the changes you’ve been making recently are getting you closer to, or farther from, your goal. Your color will not change daily but may change once, maybe twice, in a week depending on your overall progress.
The color feedback is personalized such that Shapa will follow weight trends and confirm it’s a true weight change vs natural weight fluctuation.
If you’re interested, visit https://www.myshapa.com/how-it-works and use the promo code IFStories to save $20. At that link, you can view all of the details, including videos about the psychology behind this groundbreaking new device. There's also a FAQ section that will answer any questions you have before or after you purchase.
When you order at https://www.myshapa.com/how-it-works, don't forget to use the promo code IFStories to save $20 on either the 12 or 18 month programs. After the program ends, you can renew your subscription OR continue using your scale without renewing...you'll still get the daily color, though certain features of the app will no longer be available once your subscription expires. Up to 7 members of your household can share one subscription. See the FAQ on the Shapa website for more details.
I truly love my Shapa numberless scale. Every day, I open the app on my smartphone and step on the scale. In seconds, I have my color. No drama. No judgment. And now that I'm going through menopause, it's great to see that quick confirmation that I continue to maintain within my ideal weight range.
Shapa color looks at your trend over the past few days compared to the past few weeks. With the Shapa Color, you know if the changes you’ve been making recently are getting you closer to, or farther from, your goal. Your color will not change daily but may change once, maybe twice, in a week depending on your overall progress.
The color feedback is personalized such that Shapa will follow weight trends and confirm it’s a true weight change vs natural weight fluctuation.
If you’re interested, visit https://www.myshapa.com/how-it-works and use the promo code IFStories to save $20. At that link, you can view all of the details, including videos about the psychology behind this groundbreaking new device. There's also a FAQ section that will answer any questions you have before or after you purchase.
When you order at https://www.myshapa.com/how-it-works, don't forget to use the promo code IFStories to save $20 on either the 12 or 18 month programs. After the program ends, you can renew your subscription OR continue using your scale without renewing...you'll still get the daily color, though certain features of the app will no longer be available once your subscription expires. Up to 7 members of your household can share one subscription. See the FAQ on the Shapa website for more details.
I truly love my Shapa numberless scale. Every day, I open the app on my smartphone and step on the scale. In seconds, I have my color. No drama. No judgment. And now that I'm going through menopause, it's great to see that quick confirmation that I continue to maintain within my ideal weight range.
Let's talk about wine!
As I get older, quality matters more and more in most areas of my life. Food needs to be window-worthy, and now, so does wine. You may have heard me mention this on the podcast recently, over and over, in fact...I've struggled with wine lately. Whether you're talking about wines from the grocery store or even expensive wines from the best wine shop in town, I have found that I toss and turn all night after drinking them, or I don't feel my best the next day.
Enter Dry Farm Wines!
I first learned about Dry Farm Wines in 2017 when Melanie Avalon and I interviewed Todd White, the company's founder. Todd is a self-described Biohacker who practices daily meditation, Wim Hof breathing, and cold thermogenesis, follows a ketogenic diet, and my favorite part...he lives a 22:2 intermittent fasting lifestyle!
I couldn't believe that wine quality could really make that much difference, so I continued to drink my regular wines, with a few shipments of Dry Farm Wines here and there. I even tried clean wine competitors. Well, I am here to say that after all of this experimentation, I am back with Dry Farm Wines for good. Yep. Wine quality really DOES make that much of a difference for me, especially in this season of my life. #HelloMenopause
What makes Dry Farm Wines special?
All of their wines are lab tested to ensure they are:
All of their wines are:
They also offer a 100% happiness promise on every selection!
Dry Farm Wines now supports BOTH The Intermittent Fasting Podcast AND the Intermittent Fasting Stories podcast! So, I am thrilled to be able to bring your this special offer:
Enter Dry Farm Wines!
I first learned about Dry Farm Wines in 2017 when Melanie Avalon and I interviewed Todd White, the company's founder. Todd is a self-described Biohacker who practices daily meditation, Wim Hof breathing, and cold thermogenesis, follows a ketogenic diet, and my favorite part...he lives a 22:2 intermittent fasting lifestyle!
I couldn't believe that wine quality could really make that much difference, so I continued to drink my regular wines, with a few shipments of Dry Farm Wines here and there. I even tried clean wine competitors. Well, I am here to say that after all of this experimentation, I am back with Dry Farm Wines for good. Yep. Wine quality really DOES make that much of a difference for me, especially in this season of my life. #HelloMenopause
What makes Dry Farm Wines special?
All of their wines are lab tested to ensure they are:
- Sugar free (<1 g/L)
- Lower sulfites (<75 ppm)
- Lower alcohol (<12.5%)
All of their wines are:
- Grown organically/biodynamically
- Free of industrial additives
- Grown from older vines
- Low carb, Paleo, and Keto-friendly
- Dry farmed/irrigation free
- Fermented with 100% wild, native yeast
- Handcrafted/small batch
- Old World International Natural Wines
They also offer a 100% happiness promise on every selection!
Dry Farm Wines now supports BOTH The Intermittent Fasting Podcast AND the Intermittent Fasting Stories podcast! So, I am thrilled to be able to bring your this special offer:
Go to www.dryfarmwines.com/IFStories to set up your own subscription with Dry Farm Wines!
You'll get an extra bottle of wine in your first shipment
for only 1 penny! That's almost free. ;-)
You can also click on the logo, below,
to go straight to the website.
CLEAN SKINCARE? YES, PLEASE!
When you shop with me at beautycounter.com/ginstephens, you are helping to support the Intermittent Fasting Stories podcast with every purchase.
If you want to try Beautycounter (and once you visit their website, you know you will!), I highly suggest you become a Band of Beauty member. It’s sort of like Amazon Prime for skincare. Go to the menu and select “become a member”.
For $29 a year, Band of Beauty members receive:
I’m so excited to introduce y’all to this amazing company. Let me know what products you love in the Facebook groups!
If you want to try Beautycounter (and once you visit their website, you know you will!), I highly suggest you become a Band of Beauty member. It’s sort of like Amazon Prime for skincare. Go to the menu and select “become a member”.
For $29 a year, Band of Beauty members receive:
- Free Shipping on Qualifying Orders of $100+
- 10% Product Credit on Applicable Orders
- A welcome gift when you spend $50+ on products when enrolling
- Member-exclusive offers
I’m so excited to introduce y’all to this amazing company. Let me know what products you love in the Facebook groups!
Meal Delivery Services Changed my life...
These photos show examples of some of the meals we have enjoyed over the years.
If you know me at all, you probably already know that I am CRAZY about meal delivery services. These services are perfect for the busy intermittent faster. Every day, I open the fridge and there are fresh ingredients, just like I would buy at the grocery store, in exactly the right portions for our dinner. I have discovered that I LOVE cooking...what I didn't like was meal planning and shopping for food. I have also discovered how much I love vegetables! It's been a lot of fun trying things I never would have thought to try on my own. I can't even remember what we used to eat, because I am such a fan of meal delivery services and will never go back. (We used to order so much pizza that one of our local delivery services gave us a Poinsettia as a thank-you two Christmases in a row. I'm not even kidding. Now, if you tried to make me order a pizza, I would be mad at you.)
I've been a Home Chef customer off and on since 2016. They have plenty of family-friendly options, and I love their salads in the summertime to open my eating window. I also love to buy their "oven ready" meals and put them together for my 20-year-old son to take home with him...he is living in his first apartment, and this way I can still feed him high quality food, even though he is not living at home. #GoodFood #ItIsWhatMomsDo. One thing I really love about Home Chef is that they allow you to upgrade or switch out your proteins. Not excited about ground turkey in your pasta dish? You can select ground beef or sausage links instead. Choosy about your chicken (Gin raises hand here)? You can upgrade to organic chicken breasts instead of the standard option.
Click here to try Home Chef. You'll save $35 on your first order.
We also really enjoy Green Chef, Hello Fresh, and Daily Harvest.
Green Chef is a certified organic company, which is something we appreciate. Their service has gotten a lot more flexible (which we love), and you can choose three meals each week from a variety of "meal plans" such as plant-powered, Paleo, and keto. We prefer the Balanced Living plan, since we eat #AllTheThings.
Click here to try Green Chef and save $55 off your first box.
Hello Fresh is one of the original meal delivery companies, and I wasn't a fan when I first tried them back in 2016. When my beloved Plated stopped doing meal kit deliveries (sob), I decided to try Hello Fresh one more time...and I am so glad I did! They have really upped their game. Not only do they have a huge variety of choices each week, they are family-friendly while still offering options that let me try foods I wouldn't normally think to make. Their vegetarian options are really amazing...even though we are definitely omnivores, I enjoy a good plant-powered meal several nights per week, and Hello Fresh's options don't disappoint (even Chad agrees).
Click here to try Hello Fresh, and save $40 on your first delivery.
Lately, I’m really enjoying Daily Harvest for window openers (soups, bowls, and flatbreads) and also dessert (smoothies, oatmeal, and scoops). It’s a great way to get in more high quality veggies.
Click here to try Daily Harvest, and save $25 on your first delivery.
I've been a Home Chef customer off and on since 2016. They have plenty of family-friendly options, and I love their salads in the summertime to open my eating window. I also love to buy their "oven ready" meals and put them together for my 20-year-old son to take home with him...he is living in his first apartment, and this way I can still feed him high quality food, even though he is not living at home. #GoodFood #ItIsWhatMomsDo. One thing I really love about Home Chef is that they allow you to upgrade or switch out your proteins. Not excited about ground turkey in your pasta dish? You can select ground beef or sausage links instead. Choosy about your chicken (Gin raises hand here)? You can upgrade to organic chicken breasts instead of the standard option.
Click here to try Home Chef. You'll save $35 on your first order.
We also really enjoy Green Chef, Hello Fresh, and Daily Harvest.
Green Chef is a certified organic company, which is something we appreciate. Their service has gotten a lot more flexible (which we love), and you can choose three meals each week from a variety of "meal plans" such as plant-powered, Paleo, and keto. We prefer the Balanced Living plan, since we eat #AllTheThings.
Click here to try Green Chef and save $55 off your first box.
Hello Fresh is one of the original meal delivery companies, and I wasn't a fan when I first tried them back in 2016. When my beloved Plated stopped doing meal kit deliveries (sob), I decided to try Hello Fresh one more time...and I am so glad I did! They have really upped their game. Not only do they have a huge variety of choices each week, they are family-friendly while still offering options that let me try foods I wouldn't normally think to make. Their vegetarian options are really amazing...even though we are definitely omnivores, I enjoy a good plant-powered meal several nights per week, and Hello Fresh's options don't disappoint (even Chad agrees).
Click here to try Hello Fresh, and save $40 on your first delivery.
Lately, I’m really enjoying Daily Harvest for window openers (soups, bowls, and flatbreads) and also dessert (smoothies, oatmeal, and scoops). It’s a great way to get in more high quality veggies.
Click here to try Daily Harvest, and save $25 on your first delivery.
Institute For Integrative Nutrition
I completed Health Coach training through the Institute for Integrative Nutrition in 2019, and I loved their focus on bio-individuality. It matches everything I learned in 2017 when researching for my second book, Feast Without Fear. Yes, we are all different when it comes to what foods work well for our individual bodies! If you have ever dreamed of a career helping others meet their health related goals, click on the link, below, for a free curriculum guide. I'm so glad I went through their program.
Products and books I love
This is the vibration plate that I use--I have the Turbo.
It is a nice relaxing workout for someone like me, who doesn't want to do a traditional workout.
You say lazy, I say efficient!
There is also some compelling science supporting the use of these machines.
Here is one study:
https://jagwire.augusta.edu/whole-body-vibration-has-same-health-benefits-as-walking/
And here is one more:
https://jagwire.augusta.edu/whole-body-vibration-shakes-up-microbiome-reduces-inflammation-in-diabetes/
I love the LifePro Turbo because it is small enough to fit under the bed or the sofa and I can pull it out to get in my workout!
Click on this link or the photo below to go to the website,
and use coupon code ThankyouGin to save 10%!
It is a nice relaxing workout for someone like me, who doesn't want to do a traditional workout.
You say lazy, I say efficient!
There is also some compelling science supporting the use of these machines.
Here is one study:
https://jagwire.augusta.edu/whole-body-vibration-has-same-health-benefits-as-walking/
And here is one more:
https://jagwire.augusta.edu/whole-body-vibration-shakes-up-microbiome-reduces-inflammation-in-diabetes/
I love the LifePro Turbo because it is small enough to fit under the bed or the sofa and I can pull it out to get in my workout!
Click on this link or the photo below to go to the website,
and use coupon code ThankyouGin to save 10%!
When I post photos of my meals, I always get a comment or two about the cow butter dish.
Want a cow butter dish of your own? Here you go.
Want a cow butter dish of your own? Here you go.
This is the DNA test that I used for both ancestry and health information.
After receiving my report from them, I was able to download my raw data and find out even more about myself.
After receiving my report from them, I was able to download my raw data and find out even more about myself.
I am amazed at how easy it is to bake bread.
This book has actually turned me into a confident baker.
This book has actually turned me into a confident baker.
If you have fresh bread, you are going to want spreadable butter.
Did you know that it's okay to keep your butter out on the counter, so that it stays soft and spreadable?
This large butter dish holds those large blocks of butter, such as the Kerrygold 1/2 pound blocks.
Did you know that it's okay to keep your butter out on the counter, so that it stays soft and spreadable?
This large butter dish holds those large blocks of butter, such as the Kerrygold 1/2 pound blocks.
I love Michael Pollan, and this book is a great read.
After you read Feast Without Fear, read this one.
After you read Feast Without Fear, read this one.
For fresh breath during the fast, try these Wow drops. The only ingredients are peppermint oil and chlorophyll, with no added sweeteners.
Keep in mind that peppermint oil is in the grey area, which is explained here.
Keep in mind that peppermint oil is in the grey area, which is explained here.
This is the type of magnesium I use. I take it every night at bedtime, as directed on the bottle. Of course, talk to your doctor or healthcare professional about any supplement questions that you may have.
This is the weighted hula hoop that I use. Make sure to select one that is the right size for you. There are size guides on the product listing to help you figure out your correct size.
All products listed here are Gin-approved.
I am a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program. As an Amazon Associate, I earn a commission from qualifying purchases. In addition, I have an affiliate or sponsorship relationship with the other products linked here on my page. When you purchase an item through one of my links, I earn a commission. Your support helps fund all of the work that I do, so I appreciate every click and every purchase! Fast On!