Episode 465: Tracey Mullin

In this episode of Intermittent Fasting Stories, Gin talks to Tracey Mullin from Channahon, IL.

Are you ready to take your intermittent fasting lifestyle to the next level? There’s nothing better than community to help with that. In the Delay, Don’t Deny community we all embrace the clean fast, and there’s just the right support for you as you live your intermittent fasting lifestyle.

You can connect directly with Gin in the Ask Gin group, and she will answer all of your questions personally. If you’re new to intermittent fasting or recommitting to the IF lifestyle, join the 28-Day FAST Start group. After your fast start, join us for support in The 1st Year group. Need tips for long term maintenance? We have a place for that! There are many more useful spaces beyond these, and you can interact in as many as you like.

Visit ginstephens.com/community to join us. An annual membership costs just over a dollar a week when you do the math. If you aren’t ready to fully commit for a year, join for a month and you can cancel at any time. If you know you’ll want to stay forever, we also have a lifetime membership option available.

IF is free. You don’t need to join our community to fast. But if you’re looking for support from a community of like-minded IFers, we are here for you at ginstephens.com/community.

Tracey owns her own cake decorating business. Tracey shares her journey to intermittent fasting, which began in March of 2017. Her lifelong experiences with different diets started in her childhood when she watched her mother experiment with various weight loss programs like Richard Simmons’ Deal-a-Meal and Jenny Craig. Tracey recounts her own experiments with multiple diets and workout regimens in the 90s and early 2000s, leading to weight fluctuations that prompted her interest in more sustainable weight management methods.

Tracey discusses a pivotal moment inspired by an Oprah episode featuring Michael Pollan, which led her to rethink her consumption of processed foods. She later embarked on an elimination diet under her doctor's guidance due to stage 1 liver damage. During this time, Tracey now realizes that she was inadvertently practicing a form of intermittent fasting, resembling a 19:5 pattern, which resulted in significant weight loss at the time, though she didn’t maintain that loss long term when she reverted to her prior eating schedule.

In 2017, Tracey found out about intermittent fasting through a beta program she enrolled in, and she started exploring other resources in the intermittent fasting community. When Tracey stumbled upon Gin's Delay, Don’t Deny Facebook group, her relationship with intermittent fasting continued to evolve, particularly when she met her husband, who was also practicing intermittent fasting. Despite gaining some weight during 2020 amid the stress of the pandemic and major life changes, she prioritized returning to a protocol that balanced fasting with enjoying her meals. Tracey appreciates the flexibility of intermittent fasting and integrates a combination of exercise routines including running, walking, and strength training to maintain her wellbeing.

Toward the end of the episode, Tracey reflects on the personal nature of the intermittent fasting journey and the importance of removing obstacles to allow the body to naturally heal and regulate itself. Her final advice to listeners is about being patient with the process, not getting discouraged by fluctuations, and staying motivated by learning from other people's stories. She underscores the value of allowing enough time for the body to adapt to fasting and suggests that listening to related podcasts can provide constant encouragement and insight.

Get Gin’s books at: https://www.ginstephens.com/get-the-books.html. Good news! The second edition of Delay, Don’t Deny is now available in ebook, paperback, hardback, and audiobook. This is the book that you’ll want to start with or share with others, as it is a simple introduction to IF. It’s been updated to include the clean fast, an easier to understand and more thorough description of ADF and all of your ADF options, and an all new success stories section. When shopping, make sure to get the second edition, which has a 2024 publication date. The audiobook for the second edition is available now!

Join Gin’s community! Go to: ginstephens.com/community

Do you enjoy Intermittent Fasting Stories? You’ll probably also like Gin’s other podcast with cohost Sheri Bullock: Fast. Feast. Repeat. Intermittent Fasting for Life. Find it wherever you listen to podcasts.

Share your intermittent fasting stories with Gin: gin@intermittentfastingstories.com

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