Episode 298

Real People, Real Results: Shannon

Published on: 16th April, 2025

Are you tired of starting over every Monday? Wondering how to build lasting healthy habits that stick—even when life gets chaotic? Then this episode is for you. 

This week on Salad with a Side of Fries, host Jenn Trepeck dives into the transformative journey of the Healthy Vibe Tribe and how 12 weeks of shared goals, weekly check-ins, and community support led to lasting change. Healthy Vibe Tribe member, Shannon, joins Jenn to share how she went from chasing the number on the scale to tuning into how she felt—physically, emotionally, and mentally. They talk about staying on track through travel, social events, and everyday chaos, proving that progress—not perfection—is what matters. Tune in to hear how consistency, community, and a shift in mindset can help you transform from the inside out. 

The Salad With a Side of Fries podcast is hosted by Jenn Trepeck, who discusses wellness and weight loss for real life, clearing up the myths, misinformation, bad science & marketing surrounding our nutrition knowledge and the food industry. Let’s dive into wellness and weight loss for real life, including drinking, eating out, and skipping the grocery store. 

IN THIS EPISODE: 

  • (04:20) The creation of the Healthy Vibe Tribe
  • (10:44) Discussion of the commitment level as a Healthy Vibe Tribe member
  • (13:18) Noticing the transformation in healthy habits over 12 weeks
  • (27:20) The Healthy Vibe Tribe principles made all the difference while traveling
  • (33:37) Making the choice about drinking an alcoholic beverage
  • (37:33) Going forward with the learnings from the Healthy Vibe Tribe
  • (44:38) Tips on making life and health changes on your weight loss journey

KEY TAKEAWAYS:

  • Weekly check-ins and shared goals fostered accountability and motivation, especially during busy times. Instead of fixating on the scale, shift your focus to how you feel—physically and emotionally. While tracking numbers offers helpful structure, lasting results come from staying present, consistent, and committed to progress over perfection.
  • Being part of a supportive community and intentionally planning will help you maintain healthier habits during challenging times like vacations and conferences. Scheduling check-ins, packing snacks, and prioritizing wellness, can help you avoid the typical wellness pitfalls of travel.
  • Transformation takes root when healthy decisions become second nature. This shift fosters a sense of empowerment and often inspires those nearby, creating a ripple effect that encourages collective growth. Consistent choices, made with intention, serve as a quiet but powerful example of what’s possible when wellness becomes a way of life.

QUOTES: 

(07:40) “Am I an example or a warning? You get to a point where you have to decide that time is important, and I don't want the quality of the subsequent decades of my life to be different because I kept saying, ‘Next Monday is gonna be the time.’” -  Shannon: Healthy Vibe Tribe Member

(21:31) “There's something really powerful about the words we use, not just in terms of lost weight, which many of you listeners know, is like nails on a chalkboard to me. We remove it, we release it.” - Jenn Trepeck

(32:22) “But the point is that perfection is not required, and bringing the exercise clothes is still progress over where we've been before.”  - Jenn Trepeck

(35:04) “When we start to make quality choices, it inherently invites other people around us to do it too, in a way that's not pushy. Our consistency in healthier choices allows the people around us to adapt.” -  Jenn Trepeck

(40:19) “Accountability, even if it looks a little bit different, is keeping the things in place that we know helped us get here.” - Jenn Trepeck

RESOURCES:
Want to Jump Into Round 2 of the Healthy Vibe Tribe? Start HERE: https://bit.ly/gotrimprofile

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About the Podcast

Salad With a Side of Fries Nutrition, Wellness & Weight Loss
What to eat and when to cheat! Let's decipher between all the “diets” out there. You know what to do but it itsn't working. In fact, your diet could be making you fatter.

Ever wondered if cryo-freezing your fat cells would really work? Should you try acupuncture? A hypnotist? If you do, how do you know if someone’s good?

Salad with a Side of Fries is the podcast that will answer all these questions and more! Talking wellness and weight loss for real life, because most of us are going to drink, eat out, skip the grocery store and who wants a life without fries or dessert?! Host Jenn Trepeck’s expertise as an optimal health coach, in practice for over a decade, along with experts in various modalities will clear up the myths, mis-information, bad science and marketing to reveal the truth of HOW TO EAT and HOW TO CHEAT!*



*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This podcast, its content and guests are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

About your host

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Jennifer Trepeck

“My passion for nutrition and helping others stems from “kicking my food issues” with my own weight management saga.” ~ Jenn

I believe that the greatest accountability is paying it forward! That’s why I teach the nutrition education we are all supposed to know but no one ever taught us, along with the science behind food, fitness, and health.

After I graduated from the University of Michigan Ross School of Business, I founded Better Life Now LLC while working full-time in hedge funds. In 2019, I took my practice from side-hustle to full-time self-employment and launched my podcast, Salad With a Side of Fries. On the show, we offer science-based tips and tricks for how to achieve wellness and weight loss for real life – because who wants a life without fries or dessert?!

Topics we tackle on the podcast include debunking fad diets, food myths, misinformation in marketing, bad science, and general nutrition. I encourage guests whose expertise is different from my own focus on weight management to bring their unique, fact-based perspectives to talk about subjects they are educated in and passionate about.

Due to my decade-long experience of working with clients, I have gained insight into the health and food industry and the how-tos of building a business.

Some specific health and wellness topics I can speak to include debunking fad diets, exposing the BS we are fed by the food and diet industry, how the people around us can positively and negatively impact our health journey, and shifting mindsets in order to overcome inappropriate barometers of success to instead achieve happy, healthy, and meaningful change.

On the subject of business, I can help you by teaching my critical pieces every entrepreneur should know, how to make your side-hustle into your full-time job, ways to sustainably achieve success without burning out, contemporary networking, and how to prioritize wellness while pursuing your projects.

When I find some free time, I’m typically working out at Physique57, discovering hidden gem restaurants in NYC, or traveling to spend time with friends and family.

I’d love to have an in-depth conversation with you, whether it’s leveling up in business or debunking food myths!