Set Point Science

Cheri Alberts
  • 5.0 (5)
  • Nutrition
  • Weekly

The Set Point Science Podcast explores the science behind how your body and brain regulate weight, for good. Hosted by Cheri Alberts, this podcast draws from neuroscience, psychology, physiology, and real-world coaching to explain why weight loss stalls, why forcing never works, and how calm, consistent nourishment allows the body to release weight naturally. No tracking. No extremes. No fighting your body. Just science, understanding, and a gentler way forward.

  1. 3d ago

    How Do I Know If I'm Really Hungry or Just Craving Food?

    What if hunger and cravings are not enemies? What if cravings are actually useful and not a flaw? In this episode, I answer a listener question that comes up after years of dieting: How do you know whether you are truly hungry, not satisfied by your last meal, or simply craving something? Instead of putting hunger and cravings on opposite sides, I offer a gentler frame: both may be your body’s way of telling you that something is needed. We talk about: Why the “real hunger vs. bad craving” question can keep you stuck Why a meal that was almost enough can show up later as a craving The difference between fullness, satisfaction, and feeling truly done Why food reward can intensify after deprivation How meal content affects appetite and satisfaction The Closet Test and why an eating plan has to survive real life My MEL framework: more, enough, or less What to do when you are thinking about food two hours after a meal Why emotional eating does not automatically mean something is wrong with you Watch the Closet Test video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zjqnoydDZTw&themeRefresh=1 Learn more about Set Point Science: https://www.setpointscience.com Follow Set Point Science: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/setpointscience TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@setpointscience Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/setpointscience YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@setpointscience   Questions or interested in coaching? Email me: hello@setpointscience.com Studies referenced: Cameron, J. D., Goldfield, G. S., Finlayson, G., Blundell, J. E., & Doucet, É. (2014). Fasting for 24 hours heightens reward from food and food-related cues. PLoS ONE, 9(1), e85970. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0085970 Borer, K. T., Wuorinen, E., Ku, K., & Burant, C. (2009). Appetite responds to changes in meal content, whereas ghrelin, leptin, and insulin track changes in energy availability. The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism, 94(7), 2290–2298. https://doi.org/10.1210/jc.2008-2495 #WeightLossWithoutDieting #FoodNoise #Cravings #MidlifeWeightLoss #SetPointScience

  2. Oct 27

    I Lost 17.6 Pounds… and Weight Loss Has NEVER Felt This Easy (Ep 43)

    I’ve lost 17.6 pounds since June, and for six weeks of that time, I did almost no structured exercise. After a swimming injury took walking, strength training, and swimming off the table, I expected my weight loss to stall. Instead, the scale kept moving while I continued eating when I was hungry, prioritizing protein and balanced meals, and allowing gentle nighttime hunger when it felt natural. In this episode, I’m sharing the real numbers and what this experience taught me about passive weight loss: weight loss that feels less like a project and more like something quietly running in the background. We’ll talk about: • My progress from 187 to 169.4 pounds • Why I believed I needed cardio to keep losing weight • What happened during six weeks without structured exercise • How reliable nourishment helped calm my hunger and cravings • What “autopilot” weight loss actually feels like • Why one comfortably full evening does not erase your progress • What my injury taught me about food, movement, and forcing results • Why sickness, injury, travel, or exhaustion do not automatically mean your progress has to stop This is my personal experience, not a promise that every body will respond in the same way. But it challenged something I had believed for years: that I had to physically earn weight loss. Have you ever experienced a stretch when weight loss felt surprisingly easy? What was different during that time? Tell me in the comments. READY FOR SUPPORT? Learn more about Set Point Restore: https://setpointscience.com/restore Download the free Gentle Weight Loss Starter Guide: https://setpointscience.com/starterguide For private coaching, email: hello@setpointscience.com FOLLOW SET POINT SCIENCE Instagram: https://instagram.com/setpointscience TikTok: https://tiktok.com/@setpointscience Facebook: https://facebook.com/setpointscience YouTube: @setpointscience Website: https://setpointscience.com #SetPointScience #WeightLossUpdate #PassiveWeightLoss #MidlifeWeightLoss #SustainableWeightLoss #WeightLossWithoutDieting #FoodNoise #Protein #FlexibleEating #GentleWeightLoss #WeightLossAfter40 #CheriAlberts

  3. Oct 20

    Why Your Body Fights Weight Loss and How to Reset Your Set Point (Ep 42)

    If you can lose a bit of weight and then immediately gain it back, your body is not trying to ruin your life. If weight loss keeps feeling harder the more you push, it may not be because you are weak, lazy, or incapable of consistency. Your body may be doing what it is designed to do: protecting the weight range it has learned is safe - your set point. In this episode, Cheri explains why your set point can seem to “fight back,” why hunger, cravings, and inconsistency often make more sense as safety responses than personal failures, and what it can actually look like to help your body feel safe enough to recalibrate. You’ll learn: - What a set point is and why your body defends it - Why restriction, ignored hunger, and the on-again/off-again cycle can make your body brace harder - Why your brain is a prediction machine, not a willpower meter - What “resetting” your set point really mean - Simple safety signals that can help create more calm around food - Why consistency may be the result of feeling safe, not the price you have to pay first If you want support building these safety signals into your actual life, Set Point Restore is Cheri’s monthly group coaching program. For more direct, one-on-one support, email hello@setpointscience.com Subscribe for weekly conversations about midlife weight loss, hunger, cravings, food noise, and building a relationship with food that works with your body instead of against it. Follow Set Point Science: TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@setpointscience Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/setpointscience Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/setpointscience   #SetPointScience #WeightLoss #MidlifeWeightLoss #SetPoint #FoodNoise #Cravings #DietCulture #WeightLossJourney #IntuitiveEating #WomenOver40

  4. Oct 13

    How Can I Lose Weight Without Counting Calories? (Ep 41)

    Can you lose weight without counting calories? Yes. But not by pretending calories do not matter or by trying to “just eat less” all day. In this episode, I’m talking about the middle ground: building an eating pattern that naturally helps you eat the amount your body needs without tracking every bite forever. In this episode: Why food math can make eating feel harder How to build meals that help you feel “done,” not just physically full The difference between gentle hunger and emergency hunger Why meal rhythm matters more than copying someone else’s schedule How to create weight-loss-supporting habits without tracking every calorie How to learn from the scale without turning one number into a verdict Set Point Science is a podcast about practical, compassionate weight loss for women who are done with all-or-nothing dieting. Studies Referenced These studies provide context for the episode’s discussion of satisfaction, protein, fiber, and how different foods can affect the body after a meal. They are not proof that any one food, nutrient, or eating pattern produces weight loss on its own. Holt, S. H. A., Brand Miller, J. C., Petocz, P., & Farmakalidis, E. (1995). A satiety index of common foods. European Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 49(9), 675–690. PubMed Nuttall, F. Q., Mooradian, A. D., Gannon, M. C., Billington, C. J., & Krezowski, P. (1984). Effect of protein ingestion on the glucose and insulin response to a standardized oral glucose load. Diabetes Care, 7(5), 465–470. https://doi.org/10.2337/diacare.7.5.465 Jenkins, D. J., Wolever, T. M., Leeds, A. R., Gassull, M. A., Haisman, P., Dilawari, J., Goff, D. V., Metz, G. L., & Alberti, K. G. (1978). Dietary fibres, fibre analogues, and glucose tolerance: importance of viscosity. BMJ, 1(6124), 1392–1394. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.1.6124.1392 Follow along: Website: https://www.setpointscience.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/setpointscience TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@setpointscience #WeightLossWithoutDieting #CalorieCounting #FoodFreedom #MidlifeWeightLoss #SetPointScience

  5. Oct 6

    Stop Copying Other People’s Eating Schedule and Find Your Rhythmprint Instead (Ep 40)

    There is no universal perfect eating schedule. The goal is to find your Rhythmprint: the personal eating rhythm that helps your body feel steady, fed, satisfied, and less urgent around food. If you feel like you are always trying to figure out the “right” time to eat, breakfast or fasting, snacks or no snacks, stop eating at 6 or eat when you are hungry, this episode is for you. What you’ll learn: • Why “perfect” eating schedules often make food feel harder • What a Rhythmprint is and how to begin finding yours • Why under-eating, skipping meals, and starting over can make hunger and food noise feel more urgent • How to build trust through data instead of more food rules • What gentle nighttime hunger means, and what it does not mean • How to use the foods that already work for you as useful information, not something to feel guilty about Want help building a weight-loss rhythm that works with your real life? Start with the Gentle Weight Loss Starter Guide: https://setpointscience.com/starterguide Follow Set Point Science: Instagram + TikTok: @setpointscience Website: https://www.setpointscience.com #weightloss #midlifeweightloss #foodnoise #cravings #weightlosshelp #eatinghabits #foodfreedom

  6. Sep 29

    Did I Gain Fat Overnight From That Meal? The Truth About “Ghost Pounds” and Water Weight (EP 39)

    Did I actually gain fat overnight after that meal? Probably not. In this episode, I’m explaining “ghost pounds”: the weight that shows up on the scale after restaurant food, a hard workout, more carbohydrates, salt, stress, poor sleep, hormones, inflammation, or just life. The number can be real without being fat. The real danger is not the temporary jump. It is the story we tell ourselves afterward: “I blew it. This is not working. I might as well give up.” That story is how a ghost pound can become a real one. In this episode, I’m sharing: • Why water weight is real physiology, not a consolation prize • Why the scale can rise while body composition improves • Why I stopped treating daily weigh-ins as useful information • How to tell the difference between short-term noise and a real trend • Other data you can use besides the scale Get the Gentle Weight Loss Starter Guide: https://www.setpointscience.com/starterguide Follow along: Instagram: @setpointscience Facebook: @setpointscience TikTok: @setpointscience #WeightLoss #MidlifeWeightLoss #WaterWeight #Glycogen #BodyComposition #FoodNoise #SetPointScience #WeightLossJourney #HealthyWeightLoss #Podcast

  7. Sep 22

    Why Do I Crave Sugar and How Do I Stop? (Ep38)

    Sugar cravings are not always proof that you are weak, broken, or incapable of discipline. Sometimes they are a sign that your body is still looking for a meal to truly land. In this episode, Cheri shares her long history of feeling obsessed with sugar, including why restrictive diets and abstinence did not solve the problem for her. She explains the difference between being physically full and actually feeling done, plus the rhythm shifts that made sugar feel less urgent: eating earlier, protein first, balanced meals, enough food, less restriction, and paying attention to what her body was asking for. What you’ll learn • Why sugar cravings may get louder after under-eating, waiting too long to eat, or meals that leave you full but unsatisfied • Why “full” is not the same as feeling calm, finished, and done • Why abstinence and willpower are not always the complete answer • How protein, balanced meals, and earlier nourishment affected Cheri’s own cravings • Why the goal is not to fear sugar, but to make it feel ordinary and less urgent Get the Gentle Weight Loss Starter Guide: https://www.setpointscience.com/starterguide Research referenced in this episode Halton, T. L., & Hu, F. B. (2004). The effects of high protein diets on thermogenesis, satiety and weight loss: A critical review. Journal of the American College of Nutrition, 23(5), 373–385. https://doi.org/10.1080/07315724.2004.10719381

  8. Sep 15

    “Passive” Weight Loss: How I Lost 15 Pounds Without Dieting (Ep 37)

    I’ve lost 15 pounds since my weight spiked on prednisone earlier this summer. What I want to talk about is that I didn’t have to go to war with myself to make it happen. The weight came off almost like a side effect of something else I was doing. I call this “passive” weight loss. In this episode, I’m talking about what passive weight loss actually means, why most weight-loss advice gets the order backwards, and why your nervous system may be the thing standing between you and weight loss, not your discipline. We’ll talk about: why weight loss can feel harder after years of dieting what your brain is actually trying to predict why big calorie gaps can create biological pushback why consistency is often a side effect of proper nourishment how protein helped calm my food noise and cravings why gentle nighttime hunger feels different when your body has been fed enough earlier how passive weight loss can become the middle ground between “take the drug” and “go hardcore” This is the premise Set Point Science was built on: your body is not broken, and you are not lacking discipline. Your nervous system is doing exactly what it was built to do. Once it trusts that enough is coming, consistency stops being something you force. It starts showing up on its own. Koia Brand Plant-Based Protein Shakes https://link.amazon/B05wEGxJf (amazon affiliate link) Learn more about the Passive Weight Loss Mini-Course here: https://setpointscience.com/passive Follow along: @setpointscience on Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, and Facebook https://setpointscience.com ‍ Studies Mentioned Sumithran, P., Prendergast, L. A., Delbridge, E., Purcell, K., Shulkes, A., Kriketos, A., & Proietto, J. Q. (2011). Long-term persistence of hormonal adaptations to weight loss. New England Journal of Medicine, 365(17), 1597–1604. https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMoa1105816 Weigle, D. S., Breen, P. A., Matthys, C. C., Callahan, H. S., Meeuws, K. E., Burden, V. R., & Purnell, J. Q. (2005). A high-protein diet induces sustained reductions in appetite, ad libitum caloric intake, and body weight despite compensatory changes in diurnal plasma leptin and ghrelin concentrations. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 82(1), 41–48. https://doi.org/10.1093/ajcn/82.1.41 ‍ ‍ #SetPointScience #PassiveWeightLoss #WeightLossWithoutDieting #MidlifeWeightLoss #FoodNoise #NervousSystemRegulation #ProteinFirst #GentleWeightLoss #SustainableWeightLoss #WeightLossForWomen #Over40WeightLoss #DietCultureRecovery #EnoughFirst #SetPointRestore #WeightLossPodcast ‍

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About

The Set Point Science Podcast explores the science behind how your body and brain regulate weight, for good. Hosted by Cheri Alberts, this podcast draws from neuroscience, psychology, physiology, and real-world coaching to explain why weight loss stalls, why forcing never works, and how calm, consistent nourishment allows the body to release weight naturally. No tracking. No extremes. No fighting your body. Just science, understanding, and a gentler way forward.

Information

  • Creator
    Cheri Alberts
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    45
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Copyright 2025 All rights reserved.
  • Show Website
    Set Point Science

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