In Episode 16 of the She’s Gutsy Podcast, host Juli Kleinhans sits down with Abbi McDuling, a trainer, coach, and mom of two who has spent years unlearning almost everything she was taught about her body. For a long time, the gym was a punishment and the scale was the boss.
Abbi grew up thinking movement was something you did to shrink yourself, taping up magazine models as “goals” and weighing herself before and after every session. Then a back injury stopped her in her tracks and forced her to rebuild from the ground up, this time around what her body could do instead of what it looked like. But the real reckoning came with motherhood. Two pregnancies and a big physical change asked her the question she’d been avoiding for years: who are you when your body isn’t the point?
She’s honest about the fear of not recognising herself, the parts of early motherhood that nearly took her under, and the slow, unglamorous work of coming home to herself on the other side. What she found wasn’t a smaller body. It was a steadier, stronger sense of self, held together by faith and a whole lot of honesty.
This is a conversation about the stories we inherit about our worth, the difference between respecting your body and obsessing over it, and why you can’t hate your way to peace. It’s tender, it’s funny in places, and it’s for anyone who’s ever tied their whole value to a number.
In this episode: Why the gym started as punishment, and what changed everything ; The injury that forced a completely new relationship with movement Motherhood, identity, and the fear of losing yourself; Body respect vs. body obsession, and finding the middle ground; Starting before you feel ready (and why nobody’s really watching); Leaning on faith through the hardest seasons.
If you’ve ever felt like happiness was always one goal weight away, or you’re sitting in the thick of postpartum wondering where you went, this episode is for you. This isn’t just an interview; it’s a real, honest conversation. No pressure, no performance, and no perfection. Grab a coffee (or listen post-workout!) and join us. We’d love to hear from you. What was your biggest takeaway from Abbi’s story?
