How to Boost GLP-1 Naturally (You Don’t Need Ozempic)

single other part of my health. I'm Raley Wukiah and on my podcast A Really Good Cry, we embrace the messy and the beautiful, providing a space for raw and fielded conversations that celebrate vulnerability and allow you to tune in to learn, connect and find comfort together. Hi, wonderful people, welcome back to A Really Good Cry where we try and get honest about health, healing and the habits that can really change our lives.

But watching her and having seen throughout her whole life, it has been so beautiful to watch someone who truly believes that their body is a true gift from God, because the way that she treats her body, the way that she feeds it, the way that she nurtures it throughout her whole life of ninety two years, or at least from what I saw of it, she really did create an environment internally and externally to show gratitude for her body every single day and her life every single day.

And you know, coming back to LA you become a lot more conscious of your body. And it made me think about the colossal amount of things that are out there pretending to be good for us but actually ruining our bodies. One of those things right now, and if you haven't heard of it, you might be living under a rock. One of those things right now is this intoxicating, overwhelming push to be skinny little minies and to basically

just be skin and bones and nothing more. You know, the trends change so often, they change it regularly, but right now, that's where the trends are at. And being a nutritionist, it always fascinates me. And all of these different drugs or recommendations come out based on trends. So I am sure that you have heard of a zempic or GLP one or you know, whatever the terminology people are using are the most common one being a zeenpic.

I'm sure you've heard about it. It's always viral on any part of social media, and it seems like so many people in the public eye have been taking it and are talking about it. You know, Serena Williams just came out as an ambassador for an a zempic style drug. It's constantly being referred to as this miracle weight loss injection that you can take and it makes all your dreams come true, you get as small as you want to be, and it's really being shown to be a glamorous thing to do.

episode is about. What I wanted to share with you today isn't whether you should or shouldn't be taking a zempic, but it's something that most people don't realize it's that a zmpic is just a man made version of something that your body already produces.

to focus on the drug. We are going to focus on all the specific foods and ingredients and habits that you can start incorporating into your life if you are looking for a natural way to lose weight and that can support your GLP one in your body, help to stimulate it, help to keep it going.

full of for longer. Essentially, it tells your pancreas to release insulin more effectively, which helps keep your blood sugar balance, which is why, by the way, this drug was initially created for diabetics. It is a drug for diabetics to help balance their blood sugar levels, and it also communicates with your brain, sending a signal of satiety, that feeling of I am satisfied, I'm content, I'm full, and I don't need to eat any more right now.

And that's only the physical side. The emotional side of constant fear after you come off it, it creates a terrible relationship with food and a lack of discipline in life because you're using it instead of building better habits. Now you can do it alongside better habits, but most of the time the people that are using it, who don't actually need it for drastic weight loss, end up using it as a crutch rather than a tool. They end up using it as alternative or to sub in

doing the hard work. And then when you come off it, which you obviously have to eventually, you're stuck with this fear of putting back on the way. You're stuck with this fear of eating anything that is put in front of you. And so the psychological effect is almost worse than the physical effect, to be honest, from the things that I've seen. And so these GLP one weight loss injections, they mimic the hormones effect directly by delivering this GLP

one synthetically and directly into the body. So rather than encouraging the natural production and the secretion of GLP one from your body. It kind of bypasses the body's natural ability and delivers a synthetic form through injection to do the same job as your natural hormone would and also probably to our unnatural amount that your body probably shouldn't be having. So now that we know what it is, let's get into the foods that actually boost our GLP

one because that's what we're really here for. How do we do this naturally without injecting ourselves with unnatural substances into the body. So the first thing is protein rich foods. Now, there's been a protein hype going on for the past few years, more so this year than any other year. Protein protein, protein, And look, I don't think we need an unnatural amount. Sometimes I think the amounts recommended are so ridiculous. But all you have to think about is

having protein with each meal. Protein is actually a major stimulator of GLP one in our body. So food is like lentils and beans and tofu and good tempe stare fry. You end up feeling fuller and more satisfied. Over the last year a year and a half, I have really been trying to incorporate more protein. I grew up in an Indian household where our and a vegetarian household where our protein came from lentils and doulls and things like that.

But I realized that usually because they're quite watered down, you don't get as much protein as you think. And there's also quite a high carbohydrate to protein ratio within them. And so if you really learn where you can get your good protein plant based sources from, and if you are plant based like me, some of the best options are things like lentils, like I said, beans, seeds, nuts, mushrooms, any kind of soy, ideally organic tofu, tempe edmamee beans.

There are so many options, and the best thing is you can mix them. I'll do a salad with tofu with ed amamae beans with some black beans with seeds on top and nuts on top. And so there are so many different varieties and sources that you can get them from which actually provide all the different amino acids that create this complete protein. And I've said this before when I did my plant based podcast about why I ended up turning vegan or plant based, But this is

the honest truth. And this is not me saying this to criticize anybody who eats me, But all the animals that you are eating get their protein from plant based sources. And so instead of go having an intermediate vessel that you're receiving your protein through, why not just go directly

to the plant based sauce. Why not go directly to the plants, the vegetables, the beans, and all those things that those animals are actually receiving their protein from and digesting it and creating the muscle all the parts of their body that you end up eating.

different because it doesn't dissolve in water. It actually adds bulk to your store and to the food that you're eating in your gut, which helps things moving through your digestive track. So think of it as a broom. That's what I remember them teaching me in my nutrition degree. It's a soluble fiber is like a broom that helps to kind of get rid of all the things in your body that you don't need and helps you to have regular excretion of you know, your poop basically, so

it's really good for preventing things like constipation too. It has less of an impact I think on GLP one, but still it's so important for your gut health, and really we want everything to be working together.

There is a lot of modern research now that shows that bitter foods can actually trigger your satiety hormones, including GLP one.

more effectively and switch on those I'm full signals. That's why in so many cultures, a bitter appeity for a handful of bitter greens before a meal is tradition. It's literally priming your body to digest and feel satisfied. Most of us don't eat a lot of bitter foods anymore, and our modern diye is overloaded with this sweet, salty and sour flavors, so we've kind of trained our taste buds away from this bitter taste, this really important bitter taste.

That's why I think having the support of supplements every day can be beneficial to just make sure that you are getting them in your diet every day, and so lately to keep me topped up on bitters, I've actually been using these supplements by just Thrive the Digestive bitters because it is a much simpler way to get those bitter compounds into your meals daily without having to chew

through a whole plate of dandelion greens. It can help to stimulate your digestion, balance your cravings, and support that full signaling that we're talking about with GLP one. It's really become part of my daily routine taking these because I've really noticed that my digestion feels so much better since taking them, and it definitely keeps me feeling satisfied and full. But you can also simply just add in a handful of a rougular to your lunch or sip

on some Fenergreek tea. Literally taking some Fenergreek seeds, putting into some hot water, boiling it for a couple of minutes and drinking that, or just use tumoric and ginger more generously in your cooking. Small amounts consistently can really shaft how your body responds to food. I think sometimes with these things, we think we have to start incorporating such large amounts of them. It's like, as soon as people learn about tumoric, it was turmeric shots, turmeric and everything,

and there was an overload of these things. And actually, too much of anything, even if it's something good, can cause in your body. Spices and herbs are so potent, more than we even realize. So are the vitamins and minerals and the foods that we eat and in the ingredients that we have. And so starting off with small amounts but consistently trying to have something in each meal,

that's all you really need to do. And if you can't manage that, there's always these just thrive daily bitters that you can top up with whenever you feel like you haven't managed to get your bitters in for the day. The nextcept. We have polyphenol rich foods. Polyphenols are plant compounds. I know it sounds really complicated, but it's not. They're literally just plant compounds that give foods their vibrant colors

and their healing properties. So you can find them in pretty much every single fruit and vegetable that you've seen. Berries like blueberries, blackberries, strawberries, green tea matcha, dark chocolate, and cocoat I know have amazing you can eat chocolate and it's so good for you. And olives and extra

vergin olive oil. I've been reading so much about how important good quality olive oil is and if you think about it, in all these blue zones, one of the key ingredients that they have every single day is for their skin, for their overall health, for antioxidant properties to fight against cancer. I actually just had an amazing episode with doctor Sam Wants where he was talking about cancer prevention and one of the biggest things he recommended was

olive oil. And then a couple of months ago, I had this gut doctor on called doctor Gundry, and he was saying that he has sometimes six tablespoons of olive oil every single day and he highly recommends it, and so good quality polyphenol rich olive oil is important. And now there are brands that actually specified that they are rich in polyphenols.

Even for things like rooumtod arthritis or any kind of autoimmune disorders in the body or inflammation in the body, it can be so helpful to help fight that inflammation.

She says blueberries are incredible for skin health, so on top of all of this, it's also great for your skin. So I had blueberries in the morning, I'll have a cup of green tea in the afternoon, add some cacow into literally anything, or just have a bite of dark chocolate and add an olive oil when you're cooking. And that's such a great easy way to make sure you're hitting all of these in your day to day life. Now, this is my favorite section because I absolutely love spices,

but spices are literally my medicine box. And I will say that every single day till the day that I die, because I truly believe that spices have been this armor that has helped me stay in better health, helped my immune system, my gut health, my heart health, everything. I feel like my body has just gotten better and better. And I think that's with the right use of spices throughout my life, depending on how I'm feeling, has made such a difference to especially my immunity, but also every

single other part of my health. Spices are literally little magical things that protect us, support us, and act as defense against disease. Each spice holds such potent properties and supports the body in different ways. Spices like cinnamon and tumoric and ginger, all of these help with blood sugar control and digestion. Actually, this morning started my morning with clove and cinnamon water because my gut's been feeling a little bit funny and my cravings have been a little

bit all over the place. So I just started my morning by boiling cinnamon sticks and clove in water and boiled it for a couple of minutes, and I drunk that in the morning. And honestly, how easy. You don't have to think of complicated ways to add it in. You don't need to make curries. You can simply boil it in water and add it into your routine like that.

There's a compound in chili peppers called capsicin I think that's how you say it, and in cayne pepper two and there have been studies that have shown that it increases GLP one secretion and boost your metabolism. So throwing a bit of paprika or cayenne pepper into your evening meal.

And actually, one thing I will say is spices are usually activated, or the beneficial parts of spices are activated through being cooked in fat so whether you're sortaing in olive oil, you'll even notice the aromas are released through that too, So saute them a little bit in some oil before you add in the rest of your ingredients. Next, that we have healthy fats. I feel like whether it's fats or carbs, they've always had like a bad rep.

They keep kind of switching between the two. Don't eat fats, don't eat carbs. But we need the healthy balance of everything, especially when it comes to healthy fats. So things like avocados, nuts, seeds, olive oil, when you pair these with fiber and protein, and you literally are creating the perfect storm for GLP one stimulation. They slow digestion, they enhance fullness, they make

meals much more satisfying. And it's so interesting because most of the things that I'm mentioning they actually were similar to what was said in the skin podcast or the gut podcasts that I had, So a lot of these foods are just staples that we need for our overall health.

Yes they help with weight loss, Yes they're going to help with satiety, but they're also just helping our general digestive system or our general body system to work well, to work optimally, and therefore we all know that if your gut's working well, if your immunity is strong, it impacts your external body too. Glowier skin, better quality sleep, all those things. Everything that we want as far our external body, and everything that we probably want in our

daily schedule can be enhanced by eating the right foods. Finally, the last category of foods is fermented foods. Your gut microbiome has such a huge role in hormone signaling, including GLP one, so probiotics from things like sakrad, kimchi, miso, or tempe can really help to support a healthier gut environment, which makes a GLP one response so much stronger. Now, not everyone eats fermented foods every single day, which is why I love supporting my gut with a daily probiotic.

I have tried many probiotics in my time. I've tried liquid probiotics, different types of supplement capsules. Right now I'm taking just Thrive Probiotic. I really appreciate that brand. They have great ingredients and a lot of researchers have discovered that the body's naturally harsh stomach acids, which is obviously necessary for digesting all types of foods kills off ninety nine point nine percent of the probiotic strains, and a lot of these probiotics that we end up buying before.

that's the case with their little probiotic, so wonderful. There are so many different supplements that you can get out there, but I really like them right now. Now, I've been seeing a lot about berberon being used as nature as a zempick. Now, although berberine has been shown to help an aid in weight loss, it is actually quite different from a zmpic when we look at the way that

it actually works in the body. A zempic, like I said, mimics the golp one hormone that's released in response to eating. GLP one then interacts with the part of the brain that reduces the appetite and signaling of feeling full, and it also stimulates the production of insulin to help manage our blood sugar levels. Beburon, on the other hand, has also been shown to stimulate insulin and reduce glucose levels, but it does so via just a different process.

healthy fat. Your lunch could be a lentil and vegetable soup drizzled with a good glug of olive oil and a side of a rouglar salad, maybe with some lemon and salt sprinkled on top. For your snack, you could have some edimalmae beans with some sea salt and maybe

sip on some green tea in the afternoon. And then for dinner you could do a delicious tofuo noodle stir fry with broccoli, ginger, lots and lots of spices and some kin and pepper to get your polyphenals in, served over some quinoa for some wonderful protein.

hungry you actually get in the day. Low sleep quality or quantity can affect your hunger hormones, your insulin lif It makes you crave more, It makes you crave all the foods that you probably don't want to be eating, and it increases your hunger Hormit is like I wake up after a day of bad sleep or a night of bad sleep, and I am so ravenously hungry, and because the appetite hormones are just all over the place. Stress my gosh, who is not stressed out these days?

Stress management is so important because high courters all disrupts your appetite hormones across the board, and so whether it's trying to make sure you get a good work out in every single day to help balance out your blood sugar levels, trying to make sure that you have good sleep hygiene, and trying to incorporate things like meditation and breath work into your day to help regulate your stress.

Those three on top of the food you're winning. So to wrap this up, the reason is zempic works is because it copies something that your body already knows how to do, but you do not have to rely on a drug for that. Your body is so wise. Our body is wiser than we know it. It knows exactly what we need and how to do it if we give it the right things to support what the body can already do.

So next time you are building a meal or doing your weekly shop, just remember to add to your lists and protein rich foods beans, lentils, tofu, tempe, satan, edemamae, fermented foods like kimchi, sauerkraut, miso, high fiber foods, especially soluble fiber like oats or cheer seeds, flax seeds, apples, pears, legomes, bitter foods like rooglar, dandelion, greens, feno, greek, and healthy fats like olive oil, avocado, nuts, polythenol, rich foods like

green tea, dark berries, cacao or chocolate, and my favorite spices and herbs like cinnamon, tumoric ginger. And that's basically your shopping list for the week that you're going to need to start incorporating this into your day to day life. Now, Look, the world can be so difficult to navigate, especially with

so much money being poured into pharmaceuticals. They can package it to seem so appealing and so good for you, And I'm not saying it's the wrong way, but I will say that trying everything before you choose that is probably going to make you feel far better than going straight to a drug. So I hope this is useful. Let me know if you try incorporating all of this into your day. We'd love to hear some of the recipes.

Thank you all so much for listening. I hope you have such a wonderful week. Sending you all so much love.