Last week I talked about what happens when our brain perceives stress. Our adrenal glands are designed to respond to acute stressors, keep you safe, and then restore you to baseline. However, the way that we live now requires constant adrenal response, causing your body to break itself down to protect you 😱.
Remember💥all stress translates to the same process in your body-it does not matter whether your stress is coming from lack of sleep, over exercising, or just being a parent.
Here are some of the more common effects of stress that I see in practice:
⚡️↓digestive & liver function from a ↓production of stomach acid & digestive enzymes, and suppression of gut motility. Cortisol also ↑the permeability of the gut lining, leading to new food sensitivities and immune reactions.
⚡️↑bacterial, fungal, or parasitic overgrowth. Due to↓HCL, enzyme production, & gut motility, an ↑in proinflammatory bacteria, and ↓blood & oxygen flow to the gut, the bugs & bacteria that we want moving along end up hanging out and multiplying in our intestines.
⚡️Blood Sugar Imbalances due to ↑glucose every time cortisol is released, and ↓sensitivity to insulin from that constant influx of glucose independent of food.
⚡️Impaired Sleep from a disrupted daily cortisol rhythm, ↓liver function & ↑blood sugar irregularities.
⚡️Impaired Thyroid function & Metabolism. ↑cortisol interferes with the conversion of inactive thyroid hormone (T4) into active thyroid hormone (T3), slowing down metabolism. ↑cortisol also ↑muscle breakdown.
⚡️Hormone imbalances in part from ↓pituitary function, ↓thyroid function, and ↓progesterone …leading to estrogen dominance, low libido.
⚡️↓Immune function. ↑cortisol and ↓digestion leads to a ↓lymphocytes and an ↑in inflammatory cytokines.
⚡️Disrupted Mineral Balance. Stress will ↓magnesium, vitamin C, B vitamins, and zinc, and cause imbalances with sodium, potassium, calcium, copper, iron, Vitamin D, & others. These imbalances then lead to sex and thyroid hormone dysfunction, anemia, & more.
Stress: How does my body respond?
So far in this series, I have focused on the types of stress that might affect you. I want you to see that "stress" encompasses more than just your mental health.
Next, I will explain what happens when your brain senses stressors, and continue to focus on what you can do. This series is meant to help you 💥KNOW your stressors, ADDRESS what you can, and become more RESILIENT to the rest💥.
Let’s talk about your brilliant body…Your adrenal glands are two little organs that sit atop your kidneys. They produce a small % of sex hormones (more after menopause), manage blood pressure, regulate electrolytes, and respond to stressors. When your brain 🧠 (hypothalamus & pituitary) senses danger, it tells your adrenal glands to release cortisol, adrenaline and noradrenaline, setting off a cascade of reactions. The release of adrenaline results in an increase in heart🫀rate, and loss of CO2, while cortisol signals an increase in blood pressure and release of blood sugar (note this happens independent of food!) These are all part of your body’s alarm⏰ reaction and we call this system of communication your HPA axis (Hypothalamus Pituitary Adrenal).
Recognizing high levels of cortisol, your body then works to calm🧘🏽♀️everything down and restore balance. This requires breaking down your own thymus gland, skeletal muscles💪🏼 ,skin & AA from diet to provide energy. Meanwhile, your body is also working to minimize or halt what it considers non-essential functions such as sex hormone production, digestion, thyroid function, and in turn metabolism.
First⚡️I want you to see that this whole process is intended to help protect you from what it thinks is dangerous. And, that it goes to a LOT of effort to keep you safe, including breaking down your own tissues for support.
And second⚡️remember that what your brain recognizes as stressful is going to be different from person to person, and for you from day to day. What's more, this whole reaction might even be triggered from an activity that you consider healthy but your body is overwhelmed by.
Stay tuned for how this impacts health. In the meantime, what did you not know about stress?!
Tips to Minimize Inflammation
Yesterday we talked about what can cause inflammation. Today we’re talking about how to minimize it. Remember 💥, inflammation is not inherently bad; in fact it’s a helpful process. Your goal is not to remove ALL inflammation, but to minimize chronic inflammation as a way of lowering stress.
There are so many ways to minimize inflammation and they are highly individualized. Perfectionism can also add to inflammation, so please✋🏼 do not try to take on all of these at once!
⚡️If you suspect gut issues, work with a skilled practitioner who can help test, identify, and treat microbiome imbalances. In the meantime, work on slowing down, breathing, and chewing your food!
⚡️Eat a mineral rich diet, focusing on animals, seafood, roots, fruits, spices, and herbs.
⚡️Balance Blood Sugar by including Fat, Fiber, & Protein in your meals and snacks.
⚡️Minimize processed foods and inflammatory oils in your diet, including canola, soybean, corn, safflower, trans fats and margarine.
⚡️Minimize soda and alcohol.
⚡️Stimulate the vagus nerve & prioritize mental health. Research shows that a meditation practice and stimulating the vagus nerve can help decrease TNF-a and IL-6. Try humming or gargling in the shower!
⚡️Improve Circadian Rhythm. Even a 2 hour nap can lower IL-6 levels.
⚡️Reduce toxic burden. Work on removing environmental toxins from your home which are found in things like cosmetics, personal care products, cleaning supplies, plastics, and unfiltered water.
⚡️Identify and treat infections from mold, heavy metals, and chemicals.
⚡️Include Rest days in your workout routine. Your muscles, joints and tissues need time to recover in order to grow. What’s more, excessive high intensity exercise or chronic cardio can trigger inflammation.
⚡️Know your Genetic Mutations and learn what foods might be critical in supporting your body to function at its best. I love the book ‘Dirty Genes’ for more.
⚡️Have Sex, Hug Someone, and Laugh! Oxytocin, our love hormone, can lower IL-6 and boost T-regulatory cells.
Which one can you start with? Tell me in the comments below!
Know your stressors: Inflammatory Signaling
Next in my series is the 4th category of triggers: Inflammatory signaling. Remember ⚡️, the goals of this series are to help you to KNOW your stressors, ADDRESS what you can, and become more RESILIENT to the rest. The goal is NOT to overwhelm you but to help equip you.
Inflammation is a huge trigger, but one of the hardest to identify. By the time you start experiencing symptoms, inflammation could have been brewing for years.
First ⭐️, It’s important to remember that inflammation is not always bad! Inflammation is actually one of your body’s ways of protecting itself. But, chronic inflammation, especially when left untreated, can put incredible strain on the body. When inflammation is allowed to go unchecked, it can damage the body by creating too many pro-inflammatory cells, such as tumor necrosis factor (TNF), interleukins (ILs), nuclear factor-kappa B (NF-kB), prostaglandins, and free radicals. The chronic release of these proinflammatory molecules stimulates the HPA axis and signals a stress reaction.
There are SO many things that could be causing inflammation for you. But, today I will list a few things that I often see contributing to chronic inflammation so that you can take audit of what might be affecting you:
💥Poor Nutrient intake - from a lack of whole, real foods as well as under fueling
💥Consumption of Inflammatory Oils - canola, soybean, corn, safflower, and margarine
💥Mineral Deficiencies - calcium, magnesium, sodium, potassium & more
💥Heavy metals - chronic exposure without proper detox from mercury, lead, arsenic, & more (found in foods, medicine, water, and industrial environments)
💥Environmental Toxins & Mold - PCBs, PFAs, Glyphosate, VOCs, Phthalates, and more (found in cosmetic products, pesticides, foods, plastics and other household products)
💥Poor Gut Health - including microbiome imbalances, dysbiosis, & infections
💥Food intolerances & sensitivities
💥Perceived and Emotional Stress & Trauma
💥Circadian Disruption
💥Hormone Imbalances
💥Excessive exercise, Tissue & Joint damage
Any that might be affecting you?! Stay tuned tomorrow for tips on how to minimize inflammation.
Tips to Support Stable Blood Sugar
Yesterday we covered some of the science behind Blood Sugar (BS) Dysregulation. Hopefully you learned that it goes well beyond dietary sugar. As I explained, anything that causes stress on your body will likely cause some level of BS dysregulation. True fact: perceived stress can spike my blood sugar higher than a bowl of ice cream!
Hopefully you also now know that sugar and carbs can even help lower stress hormones at times. Now hear me out 📣, I am not saying to eat ALL the desserts. BUT, I see a lot of disordered mindsets around fear of sugar and carbs, and I want you to see that not only can they absolutely be a part of a very healthy lifestyle & diet, but also that extreme restriction can lead to higher stress hormones for some, especially women.
The ⚡️big goal⚡️is to keep your BS as steady as possible . And to do this we minimize stress on your body. Big caveat here: BS regulation is extremely individualized. So, what works for your friend or for me, might not work for you. Here are some of the things I find most effective for minimizing BS dysregulation:
💥Maximize meals & Minimize Nibbles: Going too long between meals and eating too frequently can both cause BS peaks and dips
💥Prioritize nutrient density: Maximize consumption of mineral-rich animal and plant foods
💥Balance carbohydrates with protein & fat: carbs are metabolized in a much healthier way when paired with protein or fat
💥Eat enough: Insufficient calories for your activity and stress levels will cause more BS fluctuations throughout the day and at night while sleeping
💥Minimize carbs in the morning: Carbs at breakfast can spike higher after a fast and lead to more variability throughout the day (there might be a different story for my morning exercisers)
💥Find a balance of physical activity & rest: Exercise is a stressor that can be helpful or harmful depending on intensity & frequency. Minimize steady state cardio and excessive HIIT, and focus instead on strength training (including body weight) and adequate rest. Check out the @evlofitness podcast for great info on this topic!
💥MORE continued in comments!💥
Know your stressors: Blood Sugar Dysregulation
Mid way into my stress series, so go back and catch up if you’re behind! 💥Remember, the goals are to KNOW your stressors, ADDRESS what you can, and become more RESILIENT to the rest.
Believe it or not, blood sugar(BS) dysregulation might be the sneakiest stressor of all. Most of us have a fairly poor understanding of BS...Would you believe that it’s my ‘healthiest’ eaters who struggle the most with BS dysregulation?! I would bet you didn't know that at times eating carbs can actually help lower stress hormones.
Your blood sugar changes often, but the frequency and intensity of fluctuations is what can be a stressor. One of the primary roles of your adrenal glands is to keep your BS within the narrowest range possible. When your BS is too high, your pancreas will pump out extra insulin in order to help move glucose into your cells. And, when your BS is too low, your adrenal glands release cortisol. Cortisol then breaks down your OWN organ tissue (primarily from muscle and thymus) and converts it into glucose in order to elevate BS levels. You see, cortisol is a survival hormone and low BS is dangerous.
In other words, there are times when eating glucose can actually LOWER CORTISOL, meaning sometimes sugar can help LOWER your STRESS hormones!
What’s more, there are SO many factors that can raise or lower your BS beyond dietary sugar. Any of the stressors in this series can affect BS levels along with these other common triggers:
⚡️Meal Frequency: too far apart OR too frequent
⚡️Meal Timing: mismatched carbs and diurnal insulin patterns
⚡️Energy Balance: inadequate OR excessive calories
⚡️Macronutrient Balance: in particular, carbs not paired with fat and protein
⚡️Micronutrient Deficiencies: vitamins, minerals
⚡️Circadian Rhythm Disruption
⚡️Perceived or Emotional Stress
⚡️Physical Activity: not enough or excessive in frequency or intensity
⚡️Caffeine, Alcohol, Medications
⚡️Inflammation, Infection
⚡️Metabolic dysfunction
⚡️Gut & Oral Microbiome Imbalances: bacteria, enzymes, parasitess...
⚡️Hormone Imbalances & Fluctuations: Ovarian, Adrenal, & Thyroid
Stay tuned tomorrow for how to better support balanced blood sugar!
Tips to Support a Healthy Circadian Rhythm
Yesterday we covered some of the things that can cause disruption to your Circadian Rhythm (CR)⏰and how that might be affecting your health.
Maybe, supporting your CR is one of the stressors that you CAN start to tackle. While it might seem like it has no connection to your health, as you learned yesterday, improving your CR can make a huge💥difference.
Below are some ways to better support your CR. But, remember the goal is never perfection! It is unlikely that you can tackle this entire list. Instead, I encourage you to think about which things make sense for you to work on and start 🏁there.
⚡️Try to get bright sunlight early in the day, ideally within 30 minutes of waking
⚡️Be physically active earlier in the day, if possible and avoid overdoing it with exercise
⚡️Make sure you are adequately nourishing yourself throughout the day rather than saving the bulk of your calories for later in the day
⚡️If you've been eating low carb, consider introducing more carbs into dinner
⚡️Try to eat dinner ≥2 hours before bed **However, a small bed time snack can actually be helpful for some people
⚡️Work with a professional to balance hormones and microbiome health
⚡️Eliminate caffeine after noon
⚡️Minimize alcohol
⚡️Shut down screens 30min-1 hour before bed
⚡️Keep phones and computers away from the bed and out of the bedroom
⚡️Sleep in a cold, dark room
⚡️Create a consistent sleep schedule
⚡️Maximize sleep from 10pm-2am, when most people can get their most restorative sleep
As for my fellow parents, I KNOW those late hours feel like the only alone time you have🤪, and can be precious time with your spouse❤️. But, do me a favor and take audit of your night time hours... Are you using them to connect wtih your spouse, or to truly reset from the day? Or are you zoning out on screens for work or pleasure? I'm not saying some of that is wrong - I do it plenty! But, I encourage you to consider🤔 whether you can re-prioritize those hours, and explore what might really bring you rest, and restoration during that time.
What steps can you take to improve your circadian rhythm?
Know your stressors: Circadian Disruption
This is the 4th post in my stress series, so if you’re behind go back and catch up. Remember💥 the goals of this series are to help you to KNOW your stressors, ADDRESS what you can, and become more RESILIENT to the rest.
Most of us know that stress can disturb our sleep 😴 , but did you know that poor sleep (along with other circadian rhythm disruptors) can be a form of stress itself?!
Your circadian rhythm is an internal clock⏰ that is constantly running and is critical to your health. Essentially every system in your body is coordinated by your brain’s operation of this internal clock.It can even ↑or ↓ regulate certain enzyme functions based on whether your body thinks it's 🌞or🌙. In addition to the sleep-wake cycle, your circadian rhythm also plays a major role in these functions:
⚡️Metabolism, Weight management
⚡️Training recovery & performance
⚡️Blood sugar regulation
⚡️Neurological health
⚡️Immune health, DNA repair
⚡️Hormone function (in particular thyroid, LH, FSH, and prolactin)
⚡️Microbiome (gut) health
⚡️Detoxification
When your circadian rhythm becomes disrupted, it means these systems don’t operate right. And vice versa, when these systems are off, your circadian rhythm can become even more disrupted. So, not only does staying up late leave you feeling crummy, it’s actually impacting a much bigger picture.
Circadian disruption comes from a number of things, including:
⛔️Insufficient sunlight or red light
⛔️Inconsistent sleep-wake patterns, or night shift work
⛔️Hormone imbalance, in particular low progesterone
⛔️Liver health (affected by, but not limited to, alcohol use)
⛔️Excessive blue light, particularly past sundown
⛔️Excessive OR not enough physical activity
⛔️Electric and magnetic fields (EMFs)
⛔️Gut / microbiome health
⛔️High perceived stress (see last week’s post)
⛔️Poor nutrient balance, especially insufficient carbohydrate or calories
So now it’s time for reflection: what might be negatively affecting your circadian rhythm?
Save📌and Stay tuned; tomorrow I’ll be talking about ways to support your circadian rhythm better 👊🏼
Know your stressors: Psychological, Emotional, and Perceived Stress
I see so many misconceptions about what stress means; so this is the 3️⃣ post of many to help you better understand it. The next few posts are intended to help you name your stressors. Believe it or not, ALL stress, no matter what type, has a similar effect on our health.⚡️The goal is to know your stressors, address what you can, and become more resilient to the rest
First up is the type most of us think about when we hear the word "stress."
Often, this stress occurs when there is a difference between what we expected, and what is actually happening. And It’s subjective!
It DOES NOT MATTER what is going on; if it feels overwhelming to you, it is likely causing physical health problems. What’s more, you do not have to have a diagnosis or reason to justify feeling overwhelmed. For my fellow Enneagram 8s, this has nothing to do with your capacity to handle the situation. Even if you don’t feel overwhelmed, I challenge you to consider what keeps your mind 🤯running.
No matter what is going on, or whether you feel it is justified, support can be incredible. I highly recommend working with a therapist, even if just for a season.We would all be better with counselors on our team ❤️
In addition to support, it can also be helpful to address what stressors you can. This can be overwhelming, but here are some steps to start:
💥Make a list of what drains you.
💥Reassess your priorities and make sure it aligns with how you spend your time.
💥Figure out what you can outsource - and yes, it’s worth the cost.
💥Be aware of the patterns, environments and people that lead to you feeling overwhelmed.
💥Build more margins in your schedule.
💥Learn to say no.
💥Let go of perfection and guilt.
Lastly, remember that the goal is not just to remove your triggers, but learn how to become more RESILIENT. Below are some questions you can ask when you find yourself feeling triggered:
❓Can I think about this situation differently?
❓Is the threat real?
❓Do I have experience handling something similar in the past?
❓Is there a person or a tool, that would be helpful in this situation?
⚡️Where will you start?
Stress: Beyond Burnout
Often when we think of stress we can easily become overwhelmed trying to figure out how to minimize or eliminate it 😳. As in, "I can’t get rid of my kids, or quit my job." In fact, many of my clients do believe that stress is having an impact on their health, but also feel stuck in the belief that there is no way to address it without completely eliminating stress from their lives -which is an overwhelming and impossible venture 🙅🏼♀️.
So to start, I want to help you see that stress encompasses so much more than mental health and exhaustion.
By giving you a complete definition of stress, the goal is NOT that you feel even more overwhelmed. Rather, my goal is always to equip you to be your own health advocate and expert.💥Only when you can identify additional sources of stress in your life and your body, can you truly address them💥
💡Remember from last week’s post, that stress is our body’s response to danger, or threats.
Most stress is triggered by 4 areas:
⚡Perceived & Emotional pressure -(what we think of when we hear the word stress)driven by lifestyle, relationships, responsibilities, mindset, internal demands, perfectionism, novelty, threat, trauma, ...
⚡Circadian disruption -driven by lack of sunlight, EMFs, blue light exposure, poor sleep hygiene, breathing patterns, hormone imbalance, eating patterns and timing, ...
⚡Blood sugar dysregulation -driven by macronutrient balance, under or over fueling, gut dysbiosis, pathogens, hormone imbalance, mineral balance, irregular eating patterns, nutrient poor foods, dehydration, other types of stress,...
⚡Inflammation -driven by excessive or chronic exercise, mitochondrial dysfunction, autoimmunity, toxic burden, oxidative stress, gut dysbiosis, poor sleep,...
In the next few weeks I will dive into each of these, so stay tuned! In the meantime...
⭐What in those lists stands out to you?
⭐Does one input feel heavier than another?
⭐Do you already have a sense that something on that list is affecting your health?
If not, start looking beyond burnout, and consider what other sources of stress you have the power to address 👊🏼
What is Stress?
I’m not the first to tell you that stress is one of the most impactful drivers of health. But, the word has become a bit watered down. Many of my clients are so confused about stress that they glaze 🥱over the discussion, or assume that if they cannot remove “it” completely, there’s not much else they can do.
Here’s the first thing to remember: Stress IS NOT inherently BAD. In fact, it’s part of our body’s way of protecting us 💪🏼.Stress only becomes a problem when your stressors are overwhelming, or continue without relief. The goal is NOT✋🏼to completely remove stress from your life. That’s unrealistic.
Instead, if we can better understand what stress is, where it might be coming from, and what it feels and looks like when things become out of balance,
THEN ⚡️we can address the root causes and better support our body in its own work.
THEN ⚡️we can become resilient to stress.
You’ve heard me say it before, the more we work WITH our bodies, the easier it is to see change.
So over the next few weeks I’m going to do my best to help explain:
⭐️What stress is
⭐️different types of stressors
⭐️How stress impacts your health
⭐️Signs & symptoms that stress is negatively affecting you
* And more!
So, to start, what IS stress?
💥Stress is often defined as the body AND brain’s response to a perceived challenge, threat, or demand.
In short, stress is a reaction💥a series of alarms⏰ in your body AND your brain to something that seems threatening.And often, those alarms cause downstream effects in order to keep you alive.
It’s important to know that the ‘threat’ can be triggered by a huge variety of situations, ranging from actual threats or physical dangers, to how you perceive or react to a situation, to internal stressors such as blood sugar imbalance, infection, and inflammation.
If you’ve read through my previous posts, maybe you already have some ideas💡 about things in your life or in your body, or even about the way that your mind🧠works that could be setting off alarms in your body. And if not, I challenge you to start listening.
👇🏼Comment below with questions you want to makes sure I address about stress! ⚡️
a NEW kind of resolution
You've been here before.... ⠀
You've enjoyed some down time and indulged in a few more treats than usual, you feel a little puffy, a little blah, and are actually interested in making changes. ⠀
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Meanwhile, the 72 billion dollar diet industry is quietly slipping you messages that there is a way out...YOU ARE IN FACT BROKEN, but not to despair, there is still time to find a new you! So you start a new program, eliminate food groups, follow all new recipes, establish a meditation routine, AND start exercising. And you kill it. For a few weeks. ⠀
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You feel good at first, then slowly things start to unravel. Life gets busy, you realize you are exhausted and overwhelmed by all of the new tasks you took on, and obsessing over what to eat. Your anxiety has gone up because you aren’t even sure if what you are doing is right for YOU. You feel better when you are 'on your plan' but can't figure out how to sustain it all. So, ULTIMATELY YOU GIVE UP, go back to take out, and feel like a failure, yet again. Sound familiar? ⠀
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Here’s the thing. I know it feels easier to just follow what someone else tells you to do, even if that includes restriction. And someone else’s plan might work for a little bit. But is that what you want? Something that works for a little bit? ⠀
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Resolutions and goals DO have value. ⠀
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But, this much I know to be true: ⠀
** No plan is going to work for you unless it was designed with you involved. ⠀
** No program is going to work if it requires you to change everything at once. ⠀
** And no program is going to work if it is built on perfection, shame, rigidity and control. ⠀
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Only YOU can decide what you really need and create a plan that will work for you. It does take time, a new way of thinking, and often support (that's where I come in). But I promise you will be hooked once you see and feel the change. ⠀
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So this year, I CHALLENGE YOU to think differently about your resolutions. I challenge you to start by using these as your base: ⠀
* NOURISHMENT ⠀
* GROWTH⠀
* FLEXIBILITY ⠀
* EXPLORATION⠀
* BEHAVIORS, and ⠀
* PROGRESS⠀
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Comment below if you're in! And, stay tuned next week as we dig in more.
Shop Local 2020
It sure does feel easier than ever to shop from my couch this year. Sadly, we also know that small businesses are taking an incredibly hard hit right now. So instead of the easy route, I’m committing to shop local! There are so many fabulous local business that you can support, but I’m sharing a few of my favorites below. Happy Shopping!
Back Porch Posies
If you know your loved one appreciates fresh flowers, then you can’t go wrong with this gift. Julie is a true artist when it comes to floral arrangements and her three month subscription will bring joy to anyone's doorstep.
Levo Wellness
Check out Levo for the fitness lovers in your life. Levo is a personalized plan built by a physical therapist that will move the needle towards your fitness goals without destroying your joints. Gift a month of Levo for an endless collection of online workouts and personal fitness support.
Run Raleigh PT
Give the gift of health with a gift card to Run Raleigh PT. Abby and her team are truly the best at figuring out the root of your issues and helping you feel your best as well and improve performance.
Massage
You can't find a more talented masseur than Shell at Brookside Massage. Treat your special person to an hour of pure bliss.
Rolling M Farms
A third generation family farm in Bunn, NC with local cuts of meat like short ribs, filets, and ground chuck. Find them online or at the Midtown Farmer’s Market.
Artwork by Nan Jones
Nan is one of my favorite local artists. Inquire about commissions or shop her ready to ship acrylic and oil paintings on her website.
FlowCORPS
My favorite workout in Raleigh. Their power Pilates classes are a great for low-impact strength training that is challenging, fun, and safe. Purchase a gift card for a friend, or treat yourself to a class.
A Place at the Table
Run, don't walk if you haven’t visited a Place at the Table yet and grab a stocking stuffer gift card. A Place at the Table is a pay what you can restaurant devoted to providing good food for all regardless of means.
The Pleasant Bee
Snag a local honey bear jar or a beeswax votive. Local honey can help with seasonal allergies. Located at the Midtown Farmer’s Market or shop online.
Current Wellness
Current Wellness offers services that integrate physical, mental, and social health that emphasize inclusion and self-compassion for the community. Check out their Holiday Wellness Package: $75 for either a massage or a personal training session and 3 group classes.
Boulted Bread
It feels hard to create even a short list of my Raleigh go-tos without including our favorite local bakery. Daily in-house milling of organic and heirloom grains, and lots of love, leads to the most delicious pastries you’ve ever tasted. A Boulted gift card would make the perfect stocking stuffer.
Quail Ridge Books
Everyone loves a good cookbook right?! Quail Ridge is an independent bookstore with a friendly, knowledgeable staff. Shop online or in store for your favorite book worm.
It's hard to move forward if you are always looking sideways
Who doesn't love to dig in to the hottest health trend? Social media wants us to think of “wellness” as a universal truth. But, I believe that what wellness looks and feels like is completely different for each of us, and so our goals, processes, and priorities should also be unique. ⠀
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Our culture is great at respecting differences some ways, but quite the opposite when it comes to nutrition. ⠀
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We would never assume that exactly what our friend does as it relates to mental health, career choice, parenting, or nurturing relationships will work perfectly for us. We even recognize that medications and procedures can work differently for each of us …. And yet, when it comes to nutrition, we all feel like there must be this ONE solution that we just haven’t discovered yet. Which leads to a believe that our imperfect health is rooted in our laziness, or lack of willpower, to stick to the same plan that our girlfriend does. ⠀
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Sadly it’s not just the process, but also the outcome that we tend to try to mimic. We value differences in hair styles, nail colors, and decorating choices. But then want to look as similar as possible when it comes to weight and shape. ⠀
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I’m here to remind you what you already know…that we are all dramatically unique when it comes to health and so your process and goals need to be unique as well. ⠀
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There are no wrong answers in this game, as far as I’m concerned. It’s not wrong to want to change your physique, get stronger, support your hormones, liberalize your diet, heal your gut, stop binging, improve your sex drive, or just find balance in health. But each of these might involve drastically different pathways and certainly will look different form person to person depending on what you have going on in life. ⠀
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Start by digging into where you are now, what is going on in your body, and where you want to be heading. Sometimes it can be hard to do this work alone, and sometimes it can even be dangerous. So don’t be afraid to reach out to me, or another professional who can help you along this journey. Make it YOUR journey. Not anyone else’s. I promise you won’t regret it. ⠀
Stop thinking about what and start focusing on how
Any good leader or coach knows that the real win isn’t in the outcome, it’s in the growth along the way. If you’ve been a client of mine, you know this is something I repeat over and over. ⠀
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How many of you parents know exactly what you want your child to grow up and do in life? Or, who they should fall in love with? No? Me either. ⠀
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But, I do know the characteristics and behaviors that I want them to cling to no matter what. I know that I want them to be kind and inclusive, to be a good listener and always willing to learn, to be brave, to never give up, and to know they are loved no matter what… And so, as parents, we teach them HOW to do all of these things. We focus on behaviors more than the destination. ⠀
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Unfortunately, when it comes to ourselves, we too often focus on the outcome, on exact prescriptions, rather than the behaviors, patterns, and processes that help us get there. Most of us have enough to worry about, especially right now, and we don’t need to add food to that list. ⠀
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So, instead of thinking so much about which food you need to eliminate, what carbs you should be eating or not, which vegetable is healthiest, or even the diet you want to end up on, what if you started to think about the patterns and behaviors that help you move towards your goal. ⠀
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For example, how many of you eat more when you are standing up than when you put your food on a plate? What if your “sugar cravings” are more often a result of a stressful day? Or maybe, your endless snacking habit is because you skimped on a meal. Maybe, like me, you try to escape chaos by nibbling on something in the afternoons, and the problem isn’t the food, it’s your response to the chaos. ⠀
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There is a time and place for thinking about specifics, but let’s not start there. Instead, I want you to think about what behaviors are linked with eating in a way that makes you feel your best, and what behaviors (whether they work for your neighbor or not), make it harder for you to eat in a way that makes you feel your best. ⠀
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Health is not a game you can win, and in fact, there is far more to be gained in the process than the destination.⠀
What behaviors help you?
Figuring out your values
Now that you've tuned in to what feels off, let’s talk about where you are heading.⠀
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Too often, we have this whole concept of goal setting backwards. How many of you have desperately wanted something - a particular job, a new piece of clothing… only to find out later that it was not what you expected? We are too busy focusing on very specific, short term goals, without even knowing if they will bring us what we truly want. ⠀
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Goals are very specific things that we can check off of a list. With most goals, we either win or lose, which often leads to misplaced beliefs about our lack of willpower or commitment. Values, on the other hand, are aspects that we nurture. Values are things we can choose to embrace any minute, and yet are also ever evolving and growing. There is no finish line when it comes to values, only practice. ⠀
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This might seem a little intense when it comes to health. But, when you can identify your values, and keep those in mind, suddenly making small choices becomes easier. If you don’t know where you are going, the daily decisions in between can become overwhelming, distracting, and often defeating. ⠀
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So, instead of thinking about what you want right now, I wonder what it would feel like to first figure out what you value. Think of this as starting at the end and working backwards. ⠀
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Then, with those values in mind, re-evaluate your short term goals….Maybe counting calories helps you stay on track but is too hard on your mental health. Maybe you are waking up early to work out but it’s draining the only energy you have to give to your family later in the day. Maybe your low carb diet is affecting your once healthy sex life, or maybe you value time with friends or family but can’t seem to do that while following a certain meal plan. Maybe your short term version of success does not align with your ultimate values, but you never even thought of it through that lens. ⠀
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There are so many different pathways to health. But the one that will work for you in the long term is the one that aligns with your values. ⠀
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Reach out if you are ready to think about how to more closely align your health goals with your values 👌
What does healthy feel like to you?
For years, I’ve used Instagram to inspire you to make real foods the centerpiece of your table. While that is a great compliment to my work, I recognize that my feed does not reflect my practice. So to give you a better taste of what I do professionally, I’ve decided to include more content posts. Not to worry, I will still be sharing colorful and seasonal recipes for those of you who are here for the eats. I plan to cover topics such as hormones, digestion, mental health, and more, but if there is something you want to learn about, please share in the comments! ⠀
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First up on my list is the reminder that your body is smarter than my degree. In other words, the best way to assess YOUR health is to check in with YOURSELF - physically, mentally, and emotionally. ⠀
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We are inundated with health messaging, but no one else can say what the right path is for you without first knowing you. If you are interested in pursuing health, it’s critical that you stop and sit with what you believe it means to be and feel healthy, give yourself space to listen and notice, maybe even find a good teacher that can help you read the red flags, and evaluate where things feel off. This doesn't have to be an overwhelming process, but it does require honesty. ⠀
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My suggestion is to start paying attention to your body like you would your own child. Try your best to notice, without judgement, and observe...How are you sleeping? Do you constantly feel fatigued? How quickly do your moods change? Are you often irritable or annoyed? Do you have a hard time recovering between workouts? Do you poop every day, and what does it look like? Do you regularly feel bloated or gassy? Do you have a sex drive? Do you know how to eat throughout your menstrual cycle? Do you enjoy what you eat; does it satisfy you and keep you full? ⠀
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You might not know yet what healthy feels like, and only you can make that discovery, but that isn't something you have to do alone. My job is to empower you with information and tools so that you know how to listen (and later what to do about it). It’s hard to move towards health if you don’t know where you are, or what you are moving towards. ❤️
Making Meals Easy (Part Two)
Welcome back to Making Meals Easy ! This is Part Two of the series. If you haven’t read part one yet, head on over here. You don’t want to miss out on any of my tips for making meal planning easy and stress free.
Making Meals Easy (Part One)
Do you struggle to find a way to plan meals that works consistently? Or are you stuck in a rut with the same old meals? Maybe you’ve already given up but are ready to get back in the kitchen. Read on for a fresh and simple way to think about meal planning. This is part one of a two part series so stay tuned for more! Learn how to make a meal map, use meal templates, find your winner meals and more.