Hypnosis for Permanent Weight Loss

Feeling drained by constant dieting, food rules, and starting over only to wonder why consistency feels impossible? In this episode, Leslie reveals the real reason people struggle to stay consistent with food, weight, and habits, and it has nothing to do with discipline or willpower. She explains how food obsession, guilt, and self-blame are symptoms of something deeper that most approaches completely miss.
Leslie breaks down why even knowing exactly what to do doesn't lead to lasting change when your energy is depleted. Life stress, emotional baggage, resentment, and unresolved challenges quietly drain your capacity to follow through, making weight loss feel heavy and exhausting. She shares why this isn't a personal failure, but a human response and how trying harder only reinforces the cycle.
The key shift, Leslie explains, is prioritizing energy over strategy. When emotional patterns quiet down and your nervous system feels supported, consistency happens naturally. This episode offers a powerful reframe and a compassionate path forward for anyone ready to stop fighting food and start creating ease, peace, and lasting freedom.
"If you're asking why you can't stay consistent, ask a better question: why is my energy not good right now? When energy shifts, consistency takes care of itself." — Leslie Thornton
What you will learn from this episode:
00:02 – Why food and weight obsession is mentally exhausting and unsustainable 02:42 – The real reason consistency feels impossible (it's not discipline) 03:40 – How emotional baggage like guilt, shame, and resentment drains energy 04:22 – Why inconsistency has nothing to do with capability or failure 05:45 – How years of dieting create automatic, unconscious habits 06:22 – The three internal drivers behind food noise and overeating 07:49 – Why habits change faster when energy and pleasure are involved 08:27 – How joy and support make weight loss feel easier 09:37 – Why focusing on energy prevents unnecessary weight gain during hard times 09:48 – The better question to ask instead of "Why can't I stay consistent?" 10:26 – Why food is never the real problem 11:35 – How rising confidence and energy naturally change food choices 14:32 – Why prioritizing energy over strategy makes consistency automatic 15:13 – Why food noise is a nervous system pattern, not a discipline issue
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Feeling trapped in a painful cycle of restriction, control, and weight regain only to wonder why nothing ever truly sticks? In this episode, Leslie reveals why even the most disciplined approaches to food often backfire, leading to shame, food noise, and dramatic rebound weight gain. She shares her own experience of extreme restriction, long-term "success," and the devastating kickback that followed.
Leslie explains why strategies like strict dieting, food addiction labels, or external controls can feel logical but often deepen distrust with food and yourself. She breaks down why 95% of people regain weight after restriction and why willpower, perfection, and cutting foods out are not the missing pieces. Instead, she points to what's really driving overeating beneath the surface.
The breakthrough comes from understanding and healing the three internal food drivers that actually run the show: the mind spiral, emotional coping, and self-abandonment. By shifting the focus inward calming food noise, learning emotional regulation, and stopping self-betrayal you can finally create a peaceful, sustainable relationship with food and your body without tracking, restriction, or fear.
"This is not a food problem or a self-control problem. It's an internal problem and when you start there, everything on the outside begins to shift." — Leslie Thornton
What you will learn from this episode:
01:48 – Why 95% of people regain weight after restriction and exercise 02:10 – The three internal food drivers that keep you stuck 07:28 – Why extreme food rules and perfection create massive rebound weight gain 10:42 – How restriction trains your brain not to trust you 11:02 – The "beach ball" effect: why pushing harder always leads to kickback 16:11 – Internal Driver #1: The mind spiral (food noise & all-or-nothing thinking) 17:49 – How hypnosis helps calm overthinking and obsessive food thoughts 18:11 – Internal Driver #2: Emotional eating as a stress-release valve 19:22 – Why high performers struggle most with emotional regulation 21:40 – How unresolved emotions fuel compulsive eating 23:07 – Internal Driver #3: Self-abandonment and people-pleasing 24:08 – Why feeling unseen, depleted, or resentful leads to overeating 26:14 – Why external solutions (even surgery) can't fix internal patterns
Connect With Leslie Thornton:
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Email: [email protected]
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Feeling exhausted from constantly tracking your food, starting over every Monday, and still wondering why nothing sticks long-term? In this episode, Leslie breaks down why food tracking often becomes a false sense of control rather than a path to freedom. She explains how tracking can temporarily soothe anxiety around food while quietly reinforcing distrust, perfectionism, and the all-or-nothing cycle that keeps so many women stuck.
Leslie challenges the belief that more discipline, more data, or tighter control will finally fix food struggles. She shares her own story of extreme dieting, weight regain, and the emotional toll of trying to be "perfect," revealing why information and willpower alone never lead to permanent change. Instead, she highlights how tracking often acts as a band-aid masking deeper nervous system and emotional patterns that drive overeating.
The real solution, Leslie explains, is learning to regulate your internal world rather than micromanaging food. By shifting focus from control to self-trust, and from external rules to internal alignment, you can quiet food noise, feel calm around eating, and finally experience consistency without restriction. This episode offers clarity, relief, and a new way forward for anyone ready to stop managing food forever and start living freely.
"Tracking can feel like control, but when it's coming from panic or fear, it's actually teaching your body not to trust you. Real freedom comes when you no longer need to manage food to feel safe." — Leslie Thornton
What you will learn from this episode:
01:01 – Why tracking food creates a dopamine-driven illusion of control 04:32 – How tracking becomes a security blanket instead of a long-term solution 05:16 – The real reason tracking fails: lack of trust with food and yourself 06:20 – How all-or-nothing eating patterns keep food drama alive 06:52 – What "normal eaters" do differently around food 07:28 – Leslie's personal journey through restriction, perfection, and rebound weight gain 09:25 – Why doing everything "right" still leads to weight regain 10:45 – The internal drivers that actually cause overeating 11:14 – What permanent weight loss looks like without tracking or dieting 12:46 – How focusing on internal regulation quiets food noise 14:21 – Staying calm, confident, and consistent around food even during stress
Connect With Leslie Thornton:

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Email: [email protected]
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Feeling frustrated that no matter how strictly you follow your diet, the weight just isn't coming off? You eat the right foods, follow the rules, and even stick to strategies that worked in the past, but still, the scale doesn't budge. It's not your diet, your body, or your willpower that's holding you back; it's your energy.
When your energetic state is low, restriction and discipline alone won't work. Most of us were never taught how to master our daily energy, and without that, no plan sticks. This episode dives into why mastering your energetic state is the missing key to effortless weight loss, consistent healthy habits, and long-term transformation.
By shifting your focus to your state first, then your story, and finally your strategy, you can finally experience food freedom and sustainable results without obsession, restriction, or stress.
"All you have to do is identify whether you've ever learned how to master your energetic state, change your story, and have the tools to sustain it. Once you do that, the strategy becomes automatic." – Leslie M Thornton
What you will learn from this episode:
00:00 – The bold truth: It's not your diet, it's your energy problem 01:15 – Why low energy prevents sustainable weight loss 03:07 – How mastering your energetic state changes everything 05:05 – Tony Robbins' "Three S's" approach: Strategy, Story, and State 07:18 – Why starting with strategy alone doesn't work 09:49 – How your story and beliefs influence your results 11:00 – The connection between positive state and empowerment 13:23 – Client success story: Angela's 10-pound weight loss and clearing years of trauma 15:00 – How mastering your state makes food and exercise natural and effortless 16:05 – What happens on a Food Freedom call: Assessing state, story, and strategy 17:57 – The simple sequence for lasting weight loss: State → Story → Strategy
Valuable Resources:
Join my next LIVE masterclass
Join the 8-week Fastrack to Food Freedom Program -Guaranteed mental and emotional freedom from food 
Connect With Leslie Thornton:

Book A Clarity Call
Website
Facebook
LinkedIn
Email: [email protected]
If you enjoy the podcast, Would you please consider leaving a quick review on Apple Podcasts/iTunes in under 60 seconds? It brightens our day and helps us bring you incredible guests for top-notch content. Plus, I cherish reading every review! Click here to make a difference!

In this deeply reflective episode, Leslie sits down with Amy DiGrosa, transpersonal life coach, clinical hypnotherapist, and university professor, to explore menopause as a spiritual initiation, identity shifts in midlife, subconscious healing, and the powerful call of the Camino pilgrimage.
This conversation goes far beyond hormones and symptoms. Together, Leslie and Amy unpack how menopause, empty nesting, weight struggles, and emotional overwhelm are often invitations to reconnect with purpose, intuition, and inner truth. They also explore how hypnosis, community, and embodied practices help women heal at the root rather than constantly trying to "fix" themselves.
What you will learn from this episode:
00:00 – Why menopause often coincides with weight gain, confusion, and identity shifts 01:30 – Menopause as a spiritual transition, not just a biological one 03:00 – Moving from caregiver identity to asking "What about me?" 04:55 – Why managing symptoms alone is not enough during menopause 06:45 – Asking for help and releasing shame during life transitions
08:15 – Introduction to guest Amy DiGrosa and how she and Leslie met 10:30 – Amy's work as a university professor and leading international programs 11:45 – Walking the Camino and why pilgrimage is transformational 13:10 – Growing up between countries and learning adaptability early in life 15:00 – How constant change builds resilience and flexibility
17:10 – Learning languages, making mistakes, and releasing perfectionism 19:05 – Parallels between language learning and healing relationships with food 21:00 – Why adults struggle more with change than children 22:30 – Adaptability, resilience, and responding instead of reacting
24:10 – Amy's introduction to hypnosis through her own healing journey 26:00 – How subconscious beliefs form in childhood 28:00 – Trauma, belonging, and the body remembering everything 29:45 – Dieting as a mask for deeper emotional wounds
31:10 – Leslie's personal breakthrough: realizing food struggles were emotional, not behavioral 33:15 – Internal self-conflict and how self-criticism fuels food issues 35:00 – Emotional release as the turning point in healing 36:40 – Why conditional self-love keeps women stuck
38:10 – Healing through hypnosis, therapy, and embodied practices 40:00 – Why no single tool works for everyone 41:45 – Following curiosity and inner nudges instead of rigid plans
43:20 – Empty nesting, menopause, and spiritual awakening happening together 45:10 – Identity loss after motherhood and discovering "Who am I now?" 46:55 – Shifting from religious conditioning to spiritual self-connection
48:30 – Asking bigger life questions: purpose, meaning, and contribution 50:10 – Responding to life instead of reacting from old programming 51:50 – Seeing problems as invitations instead of obstacles
53:30 – Why women often carry too much without support 55:10 – Asking for help as strength, not weakness 56:40 – Menopause as a collective, shared experience for women
58:10 – Introduction to the Camino pilgrimage 59:45 – History and spiritual meaning of the Camino de Santiago 1:01:30 – Why people walk the Camino during major life crossroads 1:03:20 – Walking as a form of healing and embodiment 1:05:00 – Community, generosity, and connection on the Camino
1:07:10 – "Buen Camino" as a life philosophy 1:08:45 – Using future desires (like walking the Camino) as motivation for healing 1:10:20 – Invitation to explore a future Camino retreat 1:11:40 – How to connect with Amy and access her free resources
1:13:00 – Final reflections on listening to inner guidance and trusting your path
This episode is especially powerful for women in perimenopause, menopause, or major life transitions who feel disconnected, overwhelmed, or stuck in cycles with food, weight, or self-doubt.
Valuable Resources:
Join my next LIVE masterclass
Join the 8-week Fastrack to Food Freedom Program -Guaranteed mental and emotional freedom from food 
Connect With Leslie Thornton:

Book A Clarity Call
Website
Facebook
LinkedIn
Email: [email protected]
If you enjoy the podcast, Would you please consider leaving a quick review on Apple Podcasts/iTunes in under 60 seconds? It brightens our day and helps us bring you incredible guests for top-notch content. Plus, I cherish reading every review! Click here to make a difference!