What does it take to turn years of pain into a platform for power? We sit with nutritionist, trainer, and competitive bodybuilder Maria Beretta to unpack a journey that starts with teenage loss and spirals into chronic symptoms before snapping into clarity: if the system won’t solve it, she will. Maria breaks down the real face of PCOS—cystic ovaries, acne, mood swings, insulin resistance—and the often-missed reality of hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, where fragile connective tissue makes every step and lift a risk. Instead of accepting a handful of prescriptions, she chose a different map: keto to stabilize PCOS, a hard stop on dairy to cut inflammation, and targeted peptide therapy (BPC-157 and TB-500) to protect her training and speed recovery.
The turning point isn’t just biochemical. It’s mindset. Maria explains how visualization, faith, and ruthless specificity shaped her prep for NPC figure—meal planning without drama, cardio without shortcuts, and posing that balances muscle with grace. She’s candid about the sport’s truths: the expense, the prevalence of PEDs at elite levels, and the monotony few see behind a 20-second stage moment. Then comes the plot twist: a New Year’s Day car crash, a 40% T12 compression fracture, eight disc herniations, and traumatic scoliosis. With imaging to guide her and peptides to support healing, she made a careful, documented return to training and kept the pro card goal in sight.
If you’re navigating PCOS management, EDS training modifications, anti-inflammatory nutrition, or peptide therapy for injury recovery, this conversation delivers practical detail and lived results. Maria’s approach—test, adjust, measure—turns “motivation” into method. We also get real about the mental side: how to set goals that grip you, rehearse the win, and keep going when doctors or doubt say stop. Tap play for a blueprint you can use, whether you’re chasing a pro stage, a pain-free day, or your next personal best.
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