FHP 530 - The Dose Makes The Poison

But again , that's why , most of those times , those type of programs or those type of challenges that people undertake only lasts about 30 days or have a very specific end date , because after that , most of the time , people are going right back to what they're doing .

There are so many things that we are told we should not do or even have to do , otherwise we're going to , you know , sabotage our health , that it's hard to know what's really right for us and to find our balance , and that's why , in this episode , I want to to use one of Michelle's favorite lines the dose makes the poison and I want to discuss what we

really need to see the results that we want and find our lifestyle balance , because there's so much nuance that we're missing out on when we just say this is right and this is wrong . That , ultimately , I think , does really hold us back from seeing the results that we want .

So I'm excited to share not only an episode with Michelle going over what it really means the dose makes the poison , but also discuss some common myths , I see , and some common , very binary perspectives that I think hold us back when we're trying to build the most sustainable diet and workout routine for us .

I did just want to say a big thank you to everyone who has left a review . This helps me keep the episodes sponsorship free , so if you haven't , please go leave one . Only good ones , of course . I really appreciate it . So let's jump right in .

Often , in search of improving our health and getting the weight loss results we want gaining the muscle that we want we seek out a program that tells us what is right to do and what is wrong to do , and often in finding these new programs , we find a lot of restrictions , a lot of boundaries that we're supposed to hit .

There's also , of course , a lot of different , contradictory perspectives , which can make it really stressful determining what is right for us .

But in trying to do all this and then go to sort of an extreme with implementing the plan , doing it perfectly , we ultimately sabotage ourselves and our health because we create so much stress around implementation that we can't create something sustainable and we don't truly assess where we're at right now .

I think it's super key we really do embrace this 80 20 balanced perspective , because a lot of times I think we go into this new program , we try and go all or nothing , we end up cutting it out a ton of things we love , trying to improve our health , and maybe we do do things that are really good for us , like we all know that whole natural foods are

better for us , right . But in trying to be so perfect with that and go at 100% intensity right now , we ultimately sabotage our long-term success and our long-term consistency .

So 100% for the 21 days is all well and good , but then , when you can't maintain that long term , instead of ultimately striking at 80 20 balance , we do this 100% and then steer back to like 0% .

So if you look at the course of a year , instead of being at 80 20 , just by including a few more things , instead of trying to go at that 100% , that 100% ultimately causes us to go at 50% or even 60% . So we're not near as consistent as we could have been had we just allowed ourselves not to feel such pressure to be perfect .

It's really key that we recognize that all stress goes in one bucket , that stress has a huge impact on the results we get and our lifestyle balance that we ultimately create and the success we have reaching our goals .

We have to remember that stress impacts our hormone levels , which impacts our sleep , which impacts our recovery , which impacts our ability to even implement the things we need . And when I say that stress goes in all one bucket .

If we're that bucket right , we're filling ourselves up with all these different stressors throughout the day , be it work , be it having to implement new habits in our diet , be it having to get ourselves to do that workout on a stressful day , be it having to not tell our boss off when we want to write , all these different things are stressors .

And the more our bucket gets filled up , if we don't want it to overflow , something has to happen . We have to be able to poke some little release valve in some hole in it to get it to deflate .

Otherwise we are going to spill over , right , and when we spill over , we just can't keep doing anything we're supposed to be doing , and that's where we get to emotional eating us skipping our workout . Even when we feel like we should , we end up falling off our plan .

So it's really key we recognize that stress is a key component and something we need to focus on when we're trying to make lifestyle changes , and that a little less perfection or a little less pressure to be perfect right now can help us better strike an 80-20 balance over trying to go at 100% intensity , which , if you really do map out the entire year , isn't

even hitting that 80-20 because of that quest to be so perfect for such a short period of time . So please recognize the importance of giving yourself some grace , trying to find that 80-20 balance , not seeking to be so perfect , realizing that a lot of it is about also mitigating stress and managing stress .

If you know you have a busy time of life , if you know work is really tough right now , if you know the summer is tough , with having kids at home and everything else , don't seek to do a plan that's going to end up sabotaging everything because you won't be able to implement it in the way you'd like . Instead , seek to do the minimum .

I think sometimes saying hey , if I want to hit this 80-20 balance , you know what 20% will really pay off for me and what 80% will also really pay off for me , but that won't stress me out so much that I can't have this balance . And in doing that , saying I'm going to do the minimum , it doesn't mean you're not doing a lot .

You can still be doing a lot , but you're thinking what's the minimum effective dose to move forward ? What can I for sure hit ? Okay , and this is where the minimum comes into play . A lot , what can I for sure do . That will allow me to get consistent and do 100% with even just those very small few changes .

So doing the minimum doesn't mean you're letting yourself off the hook . It doesn't even necessarily mean it will be easy .

It just means that it matches where you're at right now with all the other stressors you have going on , so you can feel very successful in this area , doing the habits you're requiring of yourself to get consistent , to then allow this to snowball and build and not feel as stressful , because if you can implement some of those habits and get certain things in grain

in terms of a healthy lifestyle you want to create , and there's no longer a lot of self-control or stress to implement those things as you add on , you're not adding to the other stresses in your life and so you can allow those other stressors to get the attention , the priority that they really need .

So remember it's okay to strike a balance and that you sometimes need to do a little bit less to achieve a lot more , and that trying to be perfect with things might be why you're not able to even find that 80-20 balance over the long term I want to talk about with Michelle .

The dose makes the poison , and I think this is a super important subject , as there's more and more controversy coming out on social media , more and more things we're seeing demonized even and this very binary perspective of not only food but even workouts , where things are good or things are bad . There's no nuance to it .

So when you , michelle , actually said the dose makes the poison to me , I was just like mind blown because I think it's such an important point . So can you talk about this when it comes to our nutrition and the detriment that it really is to our perspective of adjusting our diet ?

. To sell either supplements or nutrition or people selling themselves or their programs is fear mongering , and that includes food so and trying to demonize certain ingredients .

But if no one's giving you context as far as how much of that is going to actually cause health effects or really be detrimental for you , then most likely it's not really as big of a deal as what they're trying to make it seem or as scary as what they're trying to make it seem .

So all these claims out there oftentimes are a little bit unfounded as far as what it's , what it would look like realistically in your diet to even get to that level that's going to cause you harm .

Yes , like there are , there are definitely foods that are healthier for you , that are nutrient dense , and those that really don't seem to have any nutritional value , although we can get into the nuance of discussing the emotional value , so to speak , or the mental value of including some of those things in your lifestyle balance so that you don't add extra stress

to the one bucket you do have . But I think it also ignores the fact that healthy quote unquote healthy foods have a downside to , and like gluten , for instance , or dairy , are common ones that come up as being demonized , but they're not necessarily evil for every person , just like they're .

People can have FODMAP issues and someone cannot be able to eat asparagus , while someone else gets a lot of their nutritional value from that . There's so much more nuance where we don't see the problem that it's causing with even the healthy foods we're consuming .

Just like you said , some people they can eat all the asparagus they want , and asparagus is a good vegetable and for other people they're going to have digestive issues consuming asparagus . So it's really finding what's going to be right for you and making sure that you're not just following for the mainstream scary tactics that are being used .

Something that was really common for me was seeing things like these are the things lurking in your fridge that's secretly killing you or killing your family , and that's the headline that you would see and everyone's rushing to it to see what that ingredient is . And you come to find out .

It's something as simple as like hey , do you know if apples can be slowly killing you ? Because , guess what , if you eat the apple core , 20 of those are going to actually kill you because the seeds have a toxin in them . But who's doing that ? Who's actually eating 20 apple cores ?

And I posted a video on diet soda because I personally drink it . I personally weighed the cost and rewards of it . I don't believe it is healthy . Okay , I don't make any excuse for this being healthy . However , I also know that mentally , this is part of my balance and the fact that it doesn't contribute to my stress .

It allows me some enjoyment , it keeps me more consistent overall , like I see the other positive impacts of this thing , and it's it's it's learning to assess this data for ourselves to make informed decisions . That , I think , is really the heart of why I put out that video . More than hey , include this thing specifically in your diet .

So I've worked with some patients in the hospital that had been battling cancer and at that point there was this huge thing where people were really demonizing sugar and cancer patients . And , of course , when it comes to their diet , we want them eating healthy , nutritious foods and high antioxidants foods .

But the reality is , when you have a patient that has sores on their tongues , is going through chemo , is struggling to get their medicine down , sometimes you're just looking for anything that's going to make it a little bit better . So if they're going to want to have what some may deem bad , that's going to have more sugar .

If that's going to make things more palatable for them so that they are able to take their meds , yeah that's going to be a bigger benefit than being worried about some sugar , not to mention at that point , most of the time we're looking just calories , calories in general .

We have vices that potentially are not good for our health , right ? So everything we do is not necessarily promoting better health , but we're also always trying to learn , grow and improve and sometimes thinking in terms of the lesser of two evils can help us make changes .

Maybe we're drinking a ton of regular soda and we're trying to cut calories to lose weight , to improve our health overall , and maybe that swap to a diet soda is helpful . Or maybe swapping in , you know , a candy bar every once in a while for the huge pint of ice cream , because we can stop at the one candy bar .

They might sort of be the same thing , but they're also helping us make changes , meaning ourselves where we're at . That will lead to a better result and often in that snowball , as we're accepting the lesser of two evils , our decisions get better and better . It's part of why I even like macros , because in just dialing in your macros .

Sure , you might not hit it with the ideal foods at the beginning . Maybe you are including more processed stuff . But over time , as you hit that and you make those changes and you feel good about those changes , you see the results . You feel better , you start to make more .

But the truth and the reality is is our bodies require a diverse array of nutrients and that's why you know we talk about macros . But it really does depend on those proteins , those carbs , those fats , those vitamins and minerals for our body to actually function optimally .

It's not just one ingredient , it's not just one thing that's going to make you know it completely fall off all at once . It really is looking at the whole picture and not just one little thing .

You are going to want something that's satisfying for a reason that's probably not so good for you , and I think embracing that and owning that to find a better balance is really key . So it's where it comes back to the dose makes the poison . If you can embrace that you do want these things , how can I make sure that my dosage isn't negative ?

You're going to find that better balance and something that's actually sustainable because in trying to cut out foods yes , it seems simple , that's the attraction of it Someone can get your results without making things complicated , versus teaching you about macros , which unfortunately can feel a little overwhelming to start , but in the end you go so strict with that that

then you overeat the other thing and your balance is probably more often than you really realize , and that's the truth .

But again , that's why most of those times , those type of programs or those type of challenges that people undertake only lasts about 30 days or have a very specific end date , because after that , most of the time , people are going right back to what they're doing , so that this is really where you see that yo yo dieting kind of occur because they've avoided

something for so long and then it's available to them again . And well , guess what ? If you were avoiding some of your favorite foods , you're probably going to binge on your favorite foods again and you didn't actually learn how to make room for it in your overall diet . You were just avoiding it total .

So it's really about finding that balance and making sure that we are being realistic and understanding that . Okay , this may have a little bit of that , and I know , specifically talking about this , it was Aspartame that has been kind of trending right now . Everyone wants to avoid it because it's just come out as like a type two carcinogenic .

But if people were to actually look at some things that are considered carcinogenic . No one is jumping on social media saying , hey , but remember , alcohol is type one . No one's jumping on and saying like , oh yeah , but there's also some birth controls that are type one . So there's .

They're focusing on the one thing that's really probably minimally raising your risk , and they're avoiding some of the bigger contributing factors to that .

Like , even with restriction of certain foods , that's creating that restriction mindset of you can't have it , which is creating stress which , like all stress , goes in one bucket . So everything we do from the day is adding to our stress levels and stress does impact our health , not to mention where we're adding all these different stressors .

That's what makes it hard to then maintain some of the new habits or the healthier habits we want , because we've , even though we think , oh well , this isn't a stress related to nutrition , it's still taking up mind space that will impact that . So the more we can be open to that diversity , the more we're going to see benefits mentally as well as physically .

And you even brought it up Like the more we're open to all these different foods , the more we can get nutritional benefit from so many different places over even potentially taking in too much of one thing that could have a negative , despite it even being a healthy food yeah , I mean water in large amounts can be detrimental and unhealthy and dangerous to you .

It's why we can enter stages like perimenopause and menopause or have injuries and not be able to meet ourselves where we're at , because we so demonized carbs or fats or fruits , or even certain vegetables or you know all these different things , instead of realizing that there can be a balance and what portions might be right for us .

Tell me what are the things that like when the holidays come up or when it's the weekend that you're like this is what I really enjoy eating , because most of the time , you're going to get more enjoyment if you're adding those into your favorite your into your diet .

So I really like just saying like , tell me your favorite treats , we're going to work them in and I'm going to show you how you can work them in in a way that you don't feel like you are going to lose control , because I see that a lot where people are like , if I have this , I will eat it all , like I can't have this in my house Because if I eat

it , it's going to be gone . So that's where this restrict binge mindset has taken place . So it's really going to be like okay , well , we're going to actually add this in a couple of weeks . So you know , you're going to it's going to still fit your macros . You've made room for it .

But you also know you can have it again , and oftentimes just changing that mindset and that approach to how you have felt about certain foods .

It does make it so that you feel more control , you don't feel like anything's going to be throwing you off and again it allows you to be able to recognize that , okay , there's no good or bad foods and I can still have my favorite foods and work towards my goals .

But if we don't assess the mindset's behind it , if we don't realize that by saying foods are bad or by acting like we can't have something because it's not healthy , that we're creating these mindsets that ultimately sabotage us , versus being like hey , it's my choice . I'm choosing not to have this right now or I'm choosing to have this .

I know the cost and reward . That mindset allows for a lot better balance , not to mention , we can assess who and what we are Like . That self awareness , I think , is the most key thing , understanding where you're at currently .

Like hey , I failed because I'm right now going out to fast food for every meal and this guy is expecting me to meal prep these ridiculous recipes with 17 bazillion and create ingredients that take hours and hours . It's just not realistic . There's like a disconnect between what they're being told they need to do versus what they're actually doing .

Instead of saying , hey , I can have some of these things , to make small changes based on building that self awareness of what I really need and not making myself feel guilty for also embracing my lifestyle balance .

But if I were to come out and be like no more eating out , that wouldn't be completely unrealistic for him and it would have been . Maybe he would have been able to do it for a week or a month , but he would have become overwhelmed .

So it was really just starting out like , okay , you eat out 21 times a month , we're going to cut that back to fifth or , sorry , a week , we're going to cut that back to 15 . And that just starting there made a huge difference and obviously we were working towards a better diet and of course we're .

Those 15 mils that he was eating out were they the best as far as you know ingredients and nutrition ? No , not necessarily , but we were making those improvements . So you really have to know your own journey and your own path , and this is really why nutrition is all about making it personalized for you .

You have to have that moderation to really unlock the full potential of a healthy and nourishing diet .

We have to start embracing that there's so much nuance to things and that , as much as I like focusing on the nutrition and workout aspect and you do too there's so much more to health , and this is one component , or two components , of all the different components of health , and so making little improvements , making little changes so you can stress less , sleep

better , recover faster , you know , have more enjoyment to life all these things are going to factor in to our well being , and if we try and put too much pressure , too much strain , try and treat like food , just as fuel , when , let's face it , it isn't anymore in our society , it can actually be an overall detriment to our health , instead of promoting the

optimal health that we're really trying to build .

And if the second you know , you hear someone say like this is what's killing you , you need to get rid of it Just quickly . I mean , it doesn't take much to do a quick Google search and just say , well , at what level will this actually cause me harm ?

And most of the time , you're going to find that , unless you're allergic or unless it really is like something that you should not be eating , like let's talk . We can talk about this in another podcast . But the new borax trend , where people are drinking borax for a ridiculous reason , you're not going to .

You're not going to find all of a sudden like , oh , this is going to , this is something that really is going to hurt me if I have it in a small amount . That's not going to be the case . Unless we are legitimately ingesting poor poisons and toxins or You're allergic to it . Most of our food is actually going to be able to be enjoyed in moderation .

There are gonna be lots of things you might determine are not , but that doesn't mean that they might not be right for somebody else . But I would challenge you go do your research and understand more of the nuance behind something before you make a decision , even if it doesn't change your decision .

Just to get the nuance , so that you are open to the opportunity in everything . I think the main thing that holds us back in seeing results isn't that we're not doing the right things , it's that we get a very binary perspective of what is right and wrong .

There is so much nuance to everything and so much Opportunity if we allow ourselves to see it and I bring this up because I think often we see foods as good or bad Things . We should include things we shouldn't eat , instead of even seeing it not only on the spectrum but as opportunity to meet ourselves where we're at .

I will tell you that I have seen people achieve amazing results , see all their health markers improved , by including Unhealthy foods in their diet because of the balance that allows them to create the lack of stress that they feel .

Because of having this balance , the the more things they can enjoy , the more sustainable things have become right , so they've included unhealthy foods .

I've seen even people really try and hang on to healthy foods that they think are healthy that ultimately sabotage their health because they're not right for them , because they do have an intolerance or whatever else , but they don't want to investigate those foods because they're quote-unquote healthy and because I think there's so much nuance to things I actually mentioned

to Michelle , I was like what are some unhealthy foods you can think of that have benefit for a specific population that we might be overlooking or people might just demonize without thinking ? And so we came up with a different list and I added some , and then I even asked Ryan .

He added some , and so I wanted to share these foods that at some point or another someone has brought up as being unhealthy or bad or the thing they need to cut out in their diet , and Allow you to see the opportunity and nuance .

This doesn't mean that each one of these foods will be right for you , but I think the more we can be open to different Perspectives to find our balance and even realize that our balance might shift , what you need at one stage of life , as you go through menopause , might very Dramatically change .

As many have mentioned , menopause is a game changer , but it's not a game-ender . Okay , it's a game changer . You just need to change how you're addressing it and how you're playing the game to see the results you want .

So the reason I bring that up is because one of the main foods I hear about is chocolate . I need to cut out chocolate . I just crave chocolate so much . And that's the first thing they go to cutting out .

And this is often why they can't create something sustainable , because you're not cutting out the food they love the most first , and it's because they say , oh , it's sugar , it's not good for me , or whatever else .

But what if I told you , not only does chocolate have magnesium , which can help improve your sleep quality , especially if you're in menopause , but it also has phosphorus , which can improve your bone and teeth health . It does also have fiber and antioxidants , especially if you select a chocolate that's over 70% . Okay .

So instead of saying , hey , I need to cut out chocolate , if you love chocolate , maybe you can make those switch to a little darker chocolate . Or maybe you say , hey , I'm gonna work in some chocolate and work all the rest of my macros around this , because there is some nutritional value .

And if you are struggling with sleep quality and this also adds a de-stressor because you get to enjoy something that you love why not try a little chocolate for dessert and find something that's 70% or darker , okay ? Added bonus that I didn't even mention was with the antioxidants . It can improve your heart health and even potentially lower blood pressure .

So extra bonuses . Now this next one's gonna make a lot of you very , very , very , very , very , very mad . Okay , and it is simple sugars . We straight up demonize simple sugars and , yes , there are lots of processed foods and simple sugars are not the most nutrient dense foods .

However and this is why I say there's so much nuance to things is , if you're an endurance athlete , demonizing simple sugars Might not pay off in the way you want .

If you are a hard gainer , if you are really struggling to gain lean muscle mass , especially after specific health concerns , you might need to embrace the simple sugars , and that might mean , in order to get yourself to eat the quantity of food , you need , the carbohydrates that you need to fuel so that you don't end up losing muscle mass , that you can train

the way you Want and perform the way you want . It might mean eating some jelly bellies Not about excuse my opinion , gummy worms , you know some of these different things because you need that instant fuel to help Function better and perform at your best and potentially , building muscle when it's really hard to .

I can't tell you how many times People will say I can't eat the way I need to eat to fuel my workouts , to building muscle after having really struggled for it , even because of health issues health concerns , injuries , whatever , to rebuild , and Seeing foods is only good and bad holds them back because , really well , I can't eat this thing .

It's simple sugars , it's candy , it's bad for me , right , but it might have a place in your diet . It's not supposed to replace , well , natural foods . We're not ignoring the lack of nutrients in it , but I think it's really key . We see the nuance of things .

Another thing that often gets demonized and this one started surprised me was white potatoes , and I think it's because we started , you know , demonizing white bread , white rice which is another one on the list and white potatoes . But white potatoes are high in b6 , which has actually been linked to healthy brain development and function .

They're high in potassium , copper , vitamin C , manganese , phosphorus , niacin and dietary fiber . Manganese helps the body form connective tissues , bones , blood clotting factors and it even is Contributes to producing the sex hormones . It also plays a role in fat and carbohydrate metabolism , calcium absorption and blood sugar regulation .

It's also important for normal brain function and nerve function all these different things , and so I was even looking some of this up and researching and diving deeper into some of these things because I'm like oh , it has nutrients . I know this , right , but I wanted to get very specific with it because I think we can often demonize things .

It is , you know , gonna be a bigger carb source , so , you know , might not go to it . If you're on a lower carb diet , right , you might choose other vegetables that provide some of the same nutritional value , or other fruits , even that are lower in carbs .

I might provide the same nutritional value , but just simply write something off and say , oh , white potatoes aren't nutrient dense . They are , and they could be a great carb source .

If you need that fuel because you're training intensely and you want to lose fat and I bring this up because so often in our attempts to try and lose weight , we cut our carbs because we've seen keto , low carb diets as being very popular right now and very successful . But if we're training intensely , we don't have that immediate fuel .

We could then be risking losing muscle mass , not seeing the performance gains that we want , and we could sabotage our long-term success Because our body feels like it's starving and we ultimately end up losing muscle mass , which negatively impacts our metabolism and , especially as we get older and we go through menopause , it gets hard to build a retaining muscle .

So we don't want to do anything . We we want to do everything we can to preserve it and not do anything that will potentially put us at risk for losing more . Okay , the next food was actually Michelle , so you can blame her if you get really mad at this one . Just kidding , sorry , michelle . Cereals .

Okay , so I'm not going to tell you to go start your day with a huge Sugary packed cereal , right ? Not maybe the best decision . However , however , if you need the carbs and maybe even consuming the cereal post workout , that can be great .

There are healthier and less healthy aka more nutrient dense and less nutrient dense cereals , and some can be really fortified with a ton of vitamins and minerals , and while we never want to try and rely on these fortified foods or even just a multi vitamin , we want to try and get as much nutritional value out of our foods as we can .

If you have a picky eater , or if you're picking Pickier eater yourself , this could be a way to fill some of your nutritional gaps While potentially getting in the carbs you need , even post workout or even pre workout , to fuel your workout , okay .

So again , it goes back to seeing the opportunity in different foods to hit the nutritional goals that we have , okay , and even the performance goals that we have . The next food is red meat , and this is one of my favorites .

Red meat , you know , we often see demonized because of the saturated fat , but I think it's key we realize that all red meat is not created equal . A lot of those studies are done . I'm very highly processed meats over more natural red meats , not to mention all red meat doesn't have the same fat content .

There are a lot of different types of red meat with a lot of varying fat contents , which Bonus ? You can use the different cuts of steak even to hit your macro ratios and hit your fat intake . But red meat does have creatine , which can be especially important if you are trying to build and retain the lean muscle .

It has iron , zinc , vitamin B12 and again , it can be a lot leaner than we actually give it credit for . In terms of the B12 Benefits , it improves bone health , improves mood , improves eye health . It's can have that energy boost .

It can even help with heart health , even though we don't think about red meat doing so , and it helps keep all of our tissues healthy . It might even play a role in slowing the aging process .

So if you are going through menopause , if you are , you know , struggling with , you know , mood or anxiety issues or energy , you might want to consider including a little red meat in your diet . Especially , potentially a leaner cut , if you're going to be gaining muscle , is that creatine boost as well , so you don't even need to supplement the next food .

And one of my personal favorites and this was the first one I thought to add was popcorn , although I do also always like to throw in red meat because I know it makes people a little bit mad , but popcorn okay . So if you are in a weight loss or fat loss phase you want high volume foods .

Okay , and we tend to crave something salty with a little bit of crunch . Popcorn satisfies that . I have even found that Including , you know , the single serving bags of kettle corn at times are a great high volume snack that Satisfies my sweet tooth if you're a dessert person like me .

But popcorn , as much as we think of it , as this very Empty food , does have a lot of nutritional value . Not only can it make it easier to stick to all the other healthy foods we want to include and our calorie deficit , to see the weight loss we want to improve our health in that way , but it has fiber and antioxidants .

It has a ton of B vitamins there I can talk B vitamins and , as I mentioned , antioxidants and it has also vitamin A , e and K , and vitamin K especially supports bone , cognitive and heart health .

So this thing that we think of as being a little more empty and obviously the more process types we get where it has already moved with your butter on the popcorn , that's gonna impact things . But there's so much nuance to things and sometimes even including a , the lesser of two evils , we'll say so . Including popcorn over chips .

That's gonna help you make a healthy swap , lower the calories , hitch your calorie and take a lot more easily and even potentially get more quality foods and more whole natural foods in at your meals . But I think it's a great option and snack to include , especially when you are trying to get those high volume foods because you're hungry and a deficit .

The next one I wanted to touch on was white rice , and I get comments on white rice a lot because I'll post my bear flag meal where I get a plate which is a lot of times like fish . I'll either get broccoli or avocado and then I'll get white rice and people will be like really , you're eating white rice . And white rice is not a bad nutritional source .

I know we again have started demonizing the white foods , like white bread , white potatoes , white rice , but it has folic acid , it has potassium , it has magnesium and these are all important for healthy cell function . They help with blood pressure regulation and they even help prevent heart disease . Okay , it's also easily digestible .

So if you do have digestive issues and especially going through menopause and we see a lot of changes to our GI tract and a lot more disturbances .

You might find that white rice is a great way for you to get in the carbs you need , and it does have these other nutritional components and nutritional value to it , but it helps because it doesn't cause any GI disturbance , especially if you are more sensitive to a higher fiber intake .

Okay , it does also contain higher levels of the resistance starch , and when it's cooked and cooled and studies have suggested that resistance starch can form specific fatty acids that help the colon stay healthy , so improving your colon health can be an added bonus because of the resistance starch in rice . Okay , this might also decrease the risk of colorectal cancer .

So , again , there's so much nuance and so many things we don't consider when we're really looking at foods . We just so often label things as better , worse , good , bad okay . The last food I wanted to touch on was salt . Salt is very often demonized these days and if we don't get enough salt , that can be super detrimental to our health .

Okay , too often it's demonized because of blood pressure issues , but you need salt to stay hydrated . Okay , it can also make your foods so much more flavorful so that you enjoy the whole natural foods and bring out their flavors so much more to really enjoy the healthy lifestyle that you're creating .

Okay , it does help with balancing electrolytes and it supports a healthy nervous system . Okay , sea salt is even thought to improve sleep because it contains so many helpful electrolytes for regulating hormones .

So if you are struggling with sleep disturbances , especially as you go through menopause okay , or maybe you're in a very stressful time of life , consider adding a little bit of sea salt to your dinner .

You might be surprised by how much really balancing out your electrolytes through adding insult , something we so often demonize does improve the quality of your sleep .

So , remember , foods really aren't just good or bad . There's so much nuance to things and even sometimes we need to steer into the lesser of two evils approach when we're making changes for ourself to create something sustainable that meets us where we're at All right .

So now , the workout things we're often told to avoid , that we're told are bad , or even some of the myths that we're told that we should be doing no matter what right , there's like not only the bad things that are bad no matter what , but there's also the good things that everybody needs to be doing no matter what .

And I find it very interesting because again , it goes back to the nuance and things , some of the really good things . I can find a whole bunch of reasons people shouldn't be doing them , just like the bad things that can find a whole bunch of reasons people should be doing them .

So the first one I wanted to start with , which really applies to any move , but I hear it a lot with squats or lunges . You don't squat or lunge with knee pain , right , you can insert any move and any injury there . If you have an injury , yes , you do not want to do something that you cannot control . That is gonna create more overloads than injury .

However , a lot of times we have to recognize that the injury occurred because of overload , because we weren't able to properly perform a movement pattern . We might have even been able to mimic it because we're an experienced exerciser , but by trying to mimic the proper looking movement pattern , we compensate in overloaded areas .

Therefore , the recruitment pattern wasn't quite correct . We weren't using the correct muscles or seeking out joint mobility from the joints that we were supposed to have it from , from the muscles that were supposed to actually be powering movement .

So when we think , don't do a move for this , you might have to avoid a specific movement as you're rehabbing an injury . However often we want to do everything we can to build back and retrain that movement pattern , because if we don't , you're gonna be squatting in everyday life .

Unless you plan never to sit down to a toilet , you're gonna be lunging , potentially to get something up off the ground . We do a lot of these movement patterns in everyday life and our knees are meant to flex and extend . If we can't control that movement , we're gonna risk a whole bunch of other injuries in our life .

So when we say don't do X move because of an injury , you might have to remove that move . You might have to switch the variation of that move as you're rehabbing , but your ultimate goal always needs to be able to build back to that movement pattern . The more you can build back , the less risk for that injury recurring that you actually will have .

So instead of demonizing moves because of an injury , say , hey , how can I modify this to work around my pain ? How can I even change the recruitment patterns ?

Because a lot of times too , we just say , oh , I can't do deadlifts because of my back , when really , if we just change how we're recruiting things , maybe switch the type of tool to be able to change the movement pattern and get the right muscles working , we may be able to do that move right away and prevent our back pain , because we can change how we're

using the move .

A lot of times , a simple cue to a lunge of having someone keep a more vertical shin angle or use a hip hinge instead of being so upright , or even changes in their stance width can really impact how they feel during that movement and the overload that's occurring with their knees , so that even with knee pain , all of a sudden they can do a lunge right .

So instead of just avoiding moves , say , is there something I can do in a cue to tweak this move ? Is there something I can do to modify this move ? Can I make this move easier so that I can correctly engage the correct muscles ? Or , yes , do I have to remove this move or any variation of this move for right now as I rebuild ?

But your ultimate goal should be to rebuild back . If we can't control it , we're gonna end up with the same injury . That's probably why that move even led to it in the first place , because we weren't using it correctly , matching our needs and goals .

And it's not that we're bad at exercising , having proper form , but again , the more experience you are , the more you can cheat to mimic the proper looking movement pattern . But injuries and I will say health concerns , surgeries , pregnancy , all these things can interrupt a natural recruitment pattern . Even a previous ankle injury can now be causing hip issues .

So don't just write off a move . Okay , that's what I'm gonna tell you . If the moves are bad , there's just improper implementation .

The other thing I hear a lot , especially as we get older , is don't lift heavy . Hey , what the heck is lifting heavy ? Okay , body weight might be heavy for somebody and 7,000 pounds might not be heavy for someone else . Lifting heavy is relative . You always want to challenge yourself for the reps that you're doing .

Sure , you might not be doing a one rep max , that might not be the heavy that's right for you . Maybe instead you're doing a weight that is very challenging for 10 reps or 15 reps .

But you always want to challenge yourself because if you're not challenging yourself , you're not creating that progression , you're not growing lean muscle , you're potentially not even preserving the lean muscle mass that you have .

We need that extra stimulus , especially as we get older , because we don't utilize protein as efficiently and we're at more risk for losing lean muscle mass , because our body , especially if you are trying to die down because you've gained any weight with , you know , getting older or hormone changes you're going to lose weight from whatever is easy for your body .

And because muscle is metabolically costly , it may utilize more energy to be maintained . If you are in a weight loss phase and in that calorie deficit , your body is going to be like , well , I don't want to expend energy , maintain this new muscle , so I'm going to use that muscle as energy when I need extra fuel .

And so then you're going to lose lean muscle if you're not challenging yourself with loads . If you want to maintain your strength , if you want to be functionally strong until your final day on this planet , lift fricking heavy . When we stop doing the things that kept us strong all along , that's where we start to get old . Use it or lose it .

So if you think , oh , I'm getting older , I shouldn't lift this heavy , it's wrong . It's more reason to lift heavy . Okay , and again , heavy is relative to the reps that you're doing . Any rep range you choose , it should be heavy for it . That's why I don't like saying light or heavy , which they do . It should be heavy for the rep range . Okay .

The next thing and some of you are going to really hate me for this . I kind of like making you mad at me this episode Don't do high impact . Don't do jumping . If you have bad knees . Don't do jumping . As you get older , yes , do jumping Again . Every exercise is earned .

If you have not earned jumping movements , you will not do jumping movements just yet . But you want to find ways to work on that explosive power . If you are not training that explosive power , that reactionary power , that is where you're going to see more risk for not being as coordinated in everyday life and falls and fractures .

Because if we can't catch yourself , if we can't react to something acting on us in everyday life whether or not it's , you know , even a puddle we slip on in the middle of the road . Not that I've done that or anything If we can't catch yourself from falling , that's where we see injury .

And when we do the jumping work , when we do the explosive movement work , when we do even the drills that everybody likes to avoid because they're really awkward and they test our coordination , those things are key to keeping us functionally truly strong .

The more power we have , the better our reaction time , the better our mind body connection Also , the more we can lift .

But if you want to function well in everyday life and be able to react to anything that comes your way , you need to include some of that explosive work and the impact is really good for our bone health as well , especially if we've built up to it .

So if you're not ready for jumping because your landing mechanics aren't there yet , start with something where you don't fully leave the ground , or you start with leaving the ground a very small amount , or you just go up on your toes . But you want to try and build up to everything that you can .

The more moves we can really earn , the stronger , more functionally fit we're going to be . But don't avoid impact just because you're getting older . That's not truly what damages our joints and everything else . It's not having the strength , not having earned the move , not doing the movement correctly .

So we do want to make sure we're training everything properly and really focusing on the muscles that are actually working our mobility , doing that prehab work to support it . But we don't want to demonize the things that make us able to take on any challenges in life that life throws our way .

So if you've been avoiding high impact jumping stuff and it's not because you have an injury where you haven't retrained it yet . A take things back to basics and retrain it . But B don't just demonize something because someone else said oh , you're getting older , it's bad for your joints .

You want to make sure that you're doing everything to protect your joints , and that means making sure that everything is stable , strong , so that you can handle when you step off a curve the wrong way or slide on ice and don't . You don't want to fall . That's probably why I moved to California and I don't like sliding an ice anymore after Boston .

Yeah , so some of the things that are , I hear as do things all the time Okay , stretch more . Everybody's always totally oh , you need to stretch more . Maybe not Okay . A some muscles are not in need of stretching , despite feeling tight . Her hamstrings are a great example of this .

Because we often sit too much , our hip flexors get tight , we can be pulled into anterior pelvic tilt , but our hamstrings can be overly lengthened and they can feel tight because they're like rubber band when it's stretched right . When a rubber band is overly stretched , it feels tighter , and so our hamstrings are the same way .

So stretching them more is only going to end up resulting in potentially more hip and knee instability , hamstring strains and issues , hamstrings , tears , uh high ham , hamstring tendinopathy , uh like , where you can feel it right underneath your butt or you feel that compensating rate .

So stretching that muscle is only going to make things worse and that's potentially for anybody out there . Versus if you do activation and foam rolling , that might help a lot , not to mention if you are hypermobile . Okay , and there's some confusion with hypermobility .

People will think , oh , I'm tight or I'm not that flexible , but hypermobility is the ability for the joint to move in a larger range of motion .

That is really we should be moving in , and it's usually less stable and this is where we can even see people end up hurting their ligaments and tendons and all these different things because they start to rest on structure or take things to end range of motion where they can't actually control with their muscle being strong enough .

So stretching more if you are hypermobile can also be detrimental . It can create more instability of those joints and put you at more risk for injuries . Okay , so just because we hear stretching is important and I do think it is a key part of the pre-hab process , it doesn't mean it's right for everybody and not all forms are right for everybody .

Static stretching might have its place in a flexibility program , but doing it before you're going to lift or be explosive could be detrimental to the power output you're actually able to provide in your workout and it might even see you might even see a reduction in strength .

So you want to think about dynamic stretching and when you're doing dynamic stretching , how you even implement that in terms of focusing on the opposing muscle group driving the stretch could really impact how much benefit you see from the stretching .

So not only is not stretching just good or bad , it's also a lot more nuance in the type of stretching that you include , based on when you're using it and based on what you're working towards . The other thing I wanted to talk about was functional workouts . Okay , I hear all the time do functional workouts . You need to do these if you want to age well .

Don't use machines . Do body building workouts . Don't do body building workouts .

So sort of going back to the splits , that's a whole bunch all in one , but I'm lumping it all into the do functional workouts because I think people think there's one way of approaching training and ultimately , you are going to see results from the workouts that you do consistently and I hope over the course of your life that you're changing it up .

I can tell you I've done more body building type workouts , I've done more equipment type workouts , I've done more functional workouts , and part of it is the more we can create progression through using the same with different , so different movement patterns , different types of loading placements , the more we can see true progress , especially the more advanced we are in

, the longer we've been training , but the more we can also have fun

with things . Because with a machine , if you're doing a press machine , this is still a press , that is still a joint range of motion that you are going to be able to work through those still working muscle groups and in a way that they're meant to be strengthened and that's going to pay off in everyday life .

Okay , if you do a rotational squat to press thingy with a sandbag over your head and blah , blah , blah and whatever people consider to be functional , that's also going to be beneficial , because a lot of times we are moving in weird ways in everyday life with unstable objects .

Right , when you're taking something out of your dishwasher and reaching up to your cabinet , that's a different move than you know doing just a static four to backwards lunch , or it has a lunch component . So there's benefit to all these different things .

But as long as we're training to get stronger , as long as we're focusing on that my body connection , as long as we're working in a variety of different planes of motion , using different tools , creating different instability and creating progression in different ways , we're going to see results .

So , if you enjoy machines , use some machines , but also recognize the limitations . If you enjoy functional training , do functional training , but stop hating on the other one just because it's different .

All these are like , honestly , are valid , and the more we truly included all those different things , probably the more functionally strong we would be for everyday life .

I love using machines , but then I also love using free weights and I love using kettle bowls and I love using cables and I find that by combining all those different things I strengthen muscles in a whole bunch of different ways and have the strongest mind body connection , because I'm asking you to recruit muscles in so many different ways and that really helps

right , cause we get used to things that we do . We get very it's specific training right . When you train in a specific way , you get really good at a specific way of training . You get used to the loads on like a cable machine versus a free weight . So it's like the rule of specificity with some of those things right .

Even with athletics , when you train , you want to train specifically the things you're going to need for your athletic competition as well , because you want to get good at those things . So the more diversity we can include , the stronger our mind body connection to be able to react to anything .

The last one I wanted to go over is body weight isn't as good as weights .

Okay , I will hear you need to do weight training if you want to see results , and while I love weights and while I think weights are a very , very easy way of creating progression , I would argue that any trainer saying that you need to have weights in order to see results is really lazy , and I will even blame myself for being lazy in the past , but it's a

lazy way of creating progression . It's the easiest way . Add more weight , it gets harder , it challenges us more , but there's so many ways using only body weight that you can see results .

And especially starting out , I think there's so much value in learning to master your own body and multiple planes of motion because that's going to help you build out my body connection .

And I can tell you doing gymnastics stuff versus weightlifting stuff Holy moly , did I feel uncoordinated with some of the gymnastics stuff or even fight stuff , despite having great movement patterns with the weights just because it's a different way of recruiting things and even different efficiency needed to recruit the correct muscles to the correct extent for the strength

, endurance type stuff I needed . Okay , so mastering your own body weight is super key and I think it's super valuable to keep in body weight training even as you do that weightlifting , just to keep that mind body connection strong . But you can create progression in so many different ways .

So if all you have is body weight at home , don't write yourself off , don't say I can't achieve my goals . You can do so much with just your own body weight , okay . So let's stop limiting ourselves by saying we can't do certain things or we have to do certain things .

There's so much nuance and over time what we use is going to evolve and the fun part is we can experiment and see different results from using the same things that maybe even didn't work at past times , with new systems , with new lifestyles in place and it's all about understanding the ups and downs of everything .

We're , including the costs and benefits of everything . The more we understand those things , the more we can meet ourselves where we're at , even based on what we mentally need to make things fun . So we want to be consistent and allow results to actually build , but see the nuance and everything .

It's going to pay off amazingly well when it comes to getting results .

Well , that's a wrap for this episode of the fitness hacks podcast . If there is one word I want to be stuck in your head after this , it's nuance . There is nuance to everything . Things aren't just good or bad . As Michelle said , the dose makes the poison .

We need to understand that one size doesn't fit all and that even the size that fits us right now might not be what we need in one year , one month , even one week , and we have to be open to the opportunity and all the different perspectives out there , constantly researching to understand the cost versus the reward to everything , so that we can meet ourselves

where we're at to see the results that we want .