What to Focus on to Improve Your Health in the New Year

Hi, friends, and Happy New Year! I hope you had a wonderful holiday season and made some great memories. We had a sweet Christmas this year and really soaked up our last Christmas together as a family of three. We have a lot of new and exciting things coming up this new year, so I loved a little quiet downtime before all of that. Now, we’re switching gears and getting into that time of year when people are a little more focused on their health and often setting some new goals for themselves, so today, I want to share what I believe to be a few of the most effective ways to really improve your health in the new year. 

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Have you already set your goals for 2023? Most of the time when people, especially women, set goals for themselves, they include some kind of health-related goal. Often it can be related to weight or something about their bodies that they’re wanting to change. I love goal setting and think that when done in a healthy way, it can be really helpful and effective, but one thing that I’ve noticed working with women on their health, is that they often don’t really know what to focus on or they find themselves focusing on something that’s kind of arbitrary and often just leaves them frustrated and burnt out after a few weeks. If you’ve been around here for any length of time, you know that I don’t love focusing on weight as a goal because weight is affected by so many things and a healthy weight doesn’t follow a perfect, easy formula, which leaves most women feeling frustrated. It’s also possible to lose a lot of weight and still be really unhealthy - not to mention how it can negatively affect body image and mental/emotional health. So, if focusing on weight isn’t a good idea, what should you focus on if you are really wanting to see improvements in your health? Well, I’m glad you asked because I have a few thoughts to share with you on that. :) 

Stabilize your blood sugar

The first area I believe should be prioritized is stabilizing your blood sugar. I talk about blood sugar a lot on this podcast and when working with my clients because it affects so many things in the body. Every cell in your body is dependent on glucose for energy and it fuels many functions of the body, but when it becomes dysregulated it can increase your risks for heart disease, stroke, kidney disease, immune system dysfunction, hormonal imbalance, nerve damage, metabolism issues, decreased brain health, and so much more. It’s not something to ignore and can lead to serious health issues, yet many, many people walk around with very unstable blood sugar levels and don’t think much about it. You may not even know that you have dysregulated blood sugar but you may be more familiar with some of the common symptoms such as mid-day energy crashes, headaches, irritability, weight gain or difficulty losing weight, slow wound healing, skin issues, fatigue, dizziness, irregular menstrual cycles, fertility challenges, and more. 

Untreated blood sugar dysregulation can contribute to insulin resistance - a condition where the cells of the body become desensitized to insulin, leading the pancreas to produce more and more insulin in order for the cells to respond and be able to take in the needed glucose. This leads to high levels of both insulin and glucose in the body, which also leads to increased fat storage, blood pressure, elevated cholesterol, and triglyceride levels. These dysfunctions within the body lead to an increased risk for heart disease, cancer, Alzheimer's, and just overall increased damage to the body. 

So you can see how this one area of your health that may seem like not a big deal can actually affect your health in really negative ways or when managed well can create a solid foundation for better overall health. 

I have a few other episodes about ways to improve blood sugar regulation, so I’m not going to go deep into that in this episode - go listen to episode 17 or check out my online course if you are looking for more info on how to do this. I also have a brand new resource that is a great tool for anyone, but especially anyone working on blood sugar regulation. You can download my new Healthy Eating Food Formula Guide for free on my website or in my Instagram bio. It gives you the exact formula to follow to create any meal or snack that will support blood sugar balance while also leaving you feeling full without energy crashes or cravings. My favorite thing about this new guide is that it gives you the tools to create healthy meals on your own, with the foods that you enjoy rather than giving you a strict regimen of foods to eat that leave you feeling dissatisfied and bored. Download the Healthy Eating Food Formula Guide here.

I could talk about blood sugar all day, but let’s move on! 

Improve your Gut Health 

The next area that I believe should be prioritized and will have one of the largest impacts on your overall health is prioritizing gut health. Is anyone surprised by this? Probably not! :)

You have heard me say this many times but you cannot have poor gut health and optimal overall health. It’s just not possible! The gut affects everything in the body - some areas are obvious like digestion and metabolism but a lot of areas that you may not think of, like mental health - depression, anxiety, mood imbalances; skin health - allergies, sensitivities, acne, eczema; immune health and autoimmunity; hormone health - hormonal conditions and imbalances, reproductive health and fertility; weight management and ability to regulate weight; even genetic patterns that can affect your kids and their kids. It’s unlikely to think of an area of health or function of the body that isn’t either directly or indirectly affected by gut health. 

So how do you know if your gut health needs attention or to be improved? Well if you’re breathing and haven’t already taken time to focus on improving your gut health, then this is most likely something that you can benefit from. Our “guts' ' run from our nose/mouth all the way through our digestive tract to the other end of us. It houses the majority of our microbiome - an ecosystem made up of trillions of microbes, including different viruses, bacteria, fungi, and other organisms. Studies have proven that there are more of these microbes in our bodies than human DNA cells - isn’t that insane? Just like in any other ecosystem, there needs to be a balance of the types of microbes within our microbiome. Some are more beneficial and some are more opportunistic and can lead to dysfunction within the system when there is an imbalance (also called Dysbiosis). Our current lifestyles of processed foods, excessive sugar, chronic stress, lack of sleep, lack of nutrients - especially B vitamins and vitamin D, and increased usage of meds like antibiotics, oral contraceptives, and antacid/PPI meds all have detrimental effects on that balance and often wipe out the good or beneficial microbes, allowing the pathogenic or opportunistic ones to thrive. Even some things completely out of our control like how we were birthed and fed as babies can trigger an imbalance in our microbiome. 

When this imbalance occurs, it can lead to all kinds of uncomfortable symptoms that you may be familiar with: gas, bloating, constipation/diarrhea, abdominal pain, unexplained weight gain/loss, mood imbalances, brain fog, skin issues like acne or eczema, chronic yeast infections, hormonal imbalances, infertility. When left untreated dysbiosis can eventually contribute to more serious conditions that I mentioned above. 

The concept of improving your gut health may feel overwhelming or daunting but it really isn’t. Following the functional medicine protocol allows you to calm and heal any inflammation of the gut while also supporting the rebalancing of the microbiome. Working with a professional trained in gut health who can lead you through the process will make it even more simple. 

The last area of health that I want to talk about today may feel like a super simple one but it’s one that makes such a huge difference and that is…

Move your body

Moving your body. I know - exercise is something that every health professional talks about and tons of fitness programs are built on, and yet it’s something that a lot of us just overlook. Even knowing all of the benefits of moving my body, it’s always been a struggle for me to be consistent in exercising, but it’s also been one of the biggest “needle movers” for me. Not just in a weight goal or something like that, but regularly moving your body is one of the most effective ways to improve both your blood sugar balance and your gut health! It’s part of the “S” triad (Sweat -or moving your body, sleep, and stress management) that is included in my course - Move Forward, Feel Better (more on that later). I chose to focus on the “Sweat” portion of that triad here because exercise is one of the ways to improve sleep and help the body deal with stress. 

Exercise has just so many benefits. As I already mentioned it helps improve gut health and support healthy blood sugar - which if you remember affects most systems and functions of the body - but let’s just highlight a few benefits like increased energy, increased happiness, improved mood, improved detoxification, improved digestion, and gut motility, increased cardiovascular endurance and overall strength which leads to fewer injuries, improved immune response, improved mental clarity and an overall better outlook on life. 

We all need to be prioritizing moving our bodies each day for at least 10-15 minutes and building up to a longer amount of time. The beautiful thing about exercise is that it can look so many different ways. You can totally customize it to your preferences and schedule. Just make sure to prioritize it and have some accountability for it. You can find a lot more ideas and information on exercise in episodes 15, 46, 53, and 87. I’ll link to those in the show notes. 

So there you have it - three areas that I believe have the biggest impact on your overall health. If you’re looking to actually improve your health in 2023 and take action that has positive effects on your health and makes a lasting difference, I encourage you to focus on these three areas. Most likely whatever area of your health that you are wanting to improve or change will be positively affected and improved.

As a resource to help you know how to focus on these areas that I’ve talked about today, I’m offering 30% off of my Move Forward, Feel Better Course that walks you step-by-step through the process of how to stabilize blood sugar, improve gut health, prioritize those lifestyle factors that I mentioned like sleep, stress, and movement, as well as module all about having a healthy mindset and setting optimal health goals for yourself that will actually lead you to success. It’s a 4-module course that you can do at your own pace that fits your schedule and includes downloadable worksheets to help you apply what you learn to your life and health. For the next two weeks only, you can purchase the course for 30% off making it only $55! That’s the price of one nice meal out or a new sweater at your favorite boutique. Take advantage of this opportunity to learn the tools you need to improve your health! 

PCOS 101

September is PCOS awareness month and so for today’s episode, I wanted to do a quick deep dive into some basics about PCOS. It is actually the number one hormonal imbalance condition among reproductive-aged women and sadly, the leading cause of female infertility. So, this condition affects a lot of women and like many other hormonal issues, it can take a long time to get a proper diagnosis. So I want you to be informed about what PCOS is, what some of the common symptoms are, and if you or someone you love has PCOS, what we can do to help with it!

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PCOS is a common hormone and metabolic condition that affects up to 15% of reproductive-age women. It is associated with a higher risk for long-term health issues such as heart disease, diabetes, hypertension, sleep apnea, and infertility. Higher instances of insulin resistance, IBS, and depression/anxiety are also reported with PCOS. 

Symptoms often associated with this disorder are absent or infrequent menstrual cycles, excess weight gain or inability to lose weight, excess facial or body hair, head hair thinning or loss, severe acne, and often (but not always) insulin resistance and polycystic ovaries. 

PCOS is the most common form of hormonal imbalance and while experts know that it is rooted in inflammation and insulin dysregulation, what actually triggers PCOS is not understood. There seems to be a genetic factor, as women with moms or sisters diagnosed with PCOS are likely to have it as well. Also, as with any hormonal condition, gut health plays a major role. Some believe that it can possibly be linked with a combination of imbalanced gut flora and increased intestinal permeability, which leads to increased inflammation in the body. This can cause cells to become rigid and unable to receive the signal from insulin to let glucose into the cell (which leads to your pancreas continuing to pump out more insulin, and left untreated eventually becomes insulin resistance). Although ovaries do not become insulin resistant, when bombarded with insulin, the ovaries can respond by secreting testosterone. An excess of insulin can also inhibit the secretion of sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) which is the protein that binds excess sex hormones like testosterone and estrogen. This creates a perfect storm for these common PCOS symptoms.

PCOS is a clinical diagnosis, which means that it’s based on having a grouping of some PCOS symptoms and ruling out other diagnoses. Often a physician may want to perform an ultrasound to check the ovaries for cysts, but it is important to note not every woman with PCOS will have polycystic ovaries (despite the name). Most women with PCOS do have insulin resistance, but again - not all. It’s important that you work with your physician and be informed on the recommended lab tests that can be helpful for making a diagnosis. Functional medicine practitioners recommend a full thyroid panel, a full hormone panel including estrogen, testosterone, DHEA, SHBG, progesterone, prolactin, LH, FSH, and AMH, as well as a lipid panel and fasting blood glucose and insulin, and A1C. There may also be other tests as well as research about PCOS continues to be published. 

Once someone receives a PCOS diagnosis there really aren’t a lot of great conventional treatment options. The most common option is to take hormonal birth control and while that can help with symptoms, unfortunately, it doesn’t do anything to actually heal the cause of the symptoms. Not only that, but some believe that it may actually worsen the condition over time. Metformin is also a common medication given to women with PCOS. Just be sure to research and speak with your doctor about the common negative side effects that can be associated with it. 

While there is no cure for PCOS, there are things that a woman diagnosed with PCOS can do to help with symptoms as well as target the underlying known contributors to PCOS - blood sugar dysregulation, poor gut health, and inflammation. 

When I work with clients who have PCOS the first two things that we work on are supporting balanced blood sugar and healing their gut. So let’s talk about some foods, supplements, and lifestyle modifications that can help with those things.

When it comes to food, the first thing to remember is that your body needs to feel safe and know that it can count on adequate fuel throughout the day. The best way to do this is to eat a balanced meal (meaning fiber, protein, and fat) about every 3-4 hours. So that typically looks like breakfast, lunch, dinner, and at least 1 snack, maybe 2. You don’t want to eat continually or fall into grazing throughout the day, but also don’t skip meals or go long periods of time without eating. 

Some specific foods that can help:  

• clean sources of protein: wild-caught, omega-3 rich fish such as salmon, cod, trout or sardines; bone broth, grass-fed beef

• High fiber carbs:  cruciferous veggies, pumpkin, beans, rice, berries, goji, cherries, onion, parsley, garlic, freshly ground flax seeds 

• Healthy fats: walnuts, coconut, olives, 

• Herbs, spices, teas: cinnamon, turmeric, ginger, decaf green tea, Holy Basil tea, liver support teas - like milk thistle or dandelion 

There are some supplements that may also be helpful. I do just want to remind you that everyone’s body is different and may respond differently to herbs/supplements. It’s really best to work with a practitioner who is knowledgeable about these supplements and your particular healthy history. With that said, Vitamin D and methylated B-complex can be helpful because a lot of women (in general), especially with PCOS, are deficient in these. Herbs like Vitex, Dong Quai, saw palmetto, nettle root, and licorice can help with some of the common PCOS symptoms. Inositol is another common supplement given to help with insulin sensitivity and other common issues with PCOS.

There are also some lifestyle recommendations and alternative therapies that can be helpful as well. We all know that regular exercise is good for us, but especially for women with PCOS daily movement is vital for reducing inflammation, balancing blood sugar, and supporting gut and liver health. It’s also important to participate in weight training at least 2x per week (either bodyweight or added weights) which has been proven to help increase insulin sensitivity, allowing it to be more useful in the body. It’s also recommended that women with PCOS prioritize getting 8-9 hours of sleep each night and commit to stress-reducing routines like daily walks and downtime from social media and other emotional stressors. Acupuncture can also be helpful. Many women have also found seed cycling to be helpful - and that probably needs its own episode but essentially is eating certain types of seeds in the follicular phase of your cycle and then switching to other seeds in the second type of your cycle. This can help the body get rid of excess hormones more efficiently and may support more balanced hormone levels. It also provides a great source of fiber which is helpful for gut and liver health  

Ultimately, if you or someone you love has PCOS it’s important to know that even though there isn’t a cure, symptoms can be managed and your body can be supported in such a way that the condition doesn’t have to take over your life. Make sure to get a good team of healthcare professionals on your side that can help you with all aspects of your health and really take the time to learn about PCOS and about how your own body responds - what works for you and what doesn’t. 

Friends, I hope that this episode has been helpful for you. If you’re struggling with PCOS know that you aren’t in this alone and that there is help available for you. Start with some of these things that I’ve mentioned today and build a team of people around you that can support you in this journey. As always if you have any questions, you can send an email to info@yourhealthforward.com. 

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Strength Training Benefits for Women with Cassidy Tipton, CPT

In today's episode, Certified Personal Trainer - Cassidy Tipton shares with us some of the many benefits of strength training for women's health. Whether you would consider yourself to be a beginner or an experienced athlete, Cassidy offers simple and practical tips for incorporating strength training into your everyday life.

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Alaina: Welcome back to the Health Forward Podcast. Today we have a special guest with us, Certified Personal Trainer Cassidy Tipton. Cassidy, welcome to the podcast! We are so happy to have you.

Cassidy: Hello. Thank you so much, Alaina, for having me. I'm so excited to be here.

Alaina: Yes - so I know you from our time working together at a local hospital here in Knoxville. We did that for a couple of years, but for people who don't know you, can you tell us a little more about yourself and your background?

Cassidy: Yes. Absolutely. So a little bit more about me. I kind of fell in love with strength training my sophomore summer of high school. I was one of those people while other girls were sitting there reading magazines like Vogue and Teen Spirit and all that stuff, I was sitting there reading magazines on, I don't know if you remember, the Oxygen magazine. I was a full subscriber to that. I loved it! I was engulfed in all of that. I loved the way those women looked - it was something so new to me. And so I was just taken in by that. I got started with strength training because I played softball in college and in high school, and so I needed to do strength training to help me get stronger with that. So that's where I fell in love with it. In college, I majored in exercise science, and it's funny because I literally changed my major four times when I was in college, and I always kept coming back to exercise science because that was what I truly loved. But other people are like, Oh, you know, you need to do this or that. Of course, I listened to them, but then I always came back to it. And so I did graduate from Carson Newman with an exercise science degree. Then after college, I started my first personal training gig, and I was there for about four years and loved every minute of it. During that time, I fell in love with lots of different types of strength training - working with different special populations of people, not just athletes, but people who were literally just wanting to better their lives, being able to do things with their grandkids. Then I received my ACE Personal Training certification as well as a CrossFit Level one certification. So I dabbled in CrossFit for a while and then also got my USAW Sports Performance certification, with which I competed nationally in Olympic lifting (fun fact for you guys)! So, I've kind of done all different spectrums of strength training.

Then, as Alaina said, we worked together at UT Medical Center - I loved it there! Now, I am currently not doing anything in the fitness realm and I miss it so much! Because of that, I had this strong pull to serve people in that aspect, so, I really started being active on my social media and just really pouring into people and serving people - showing them my workouts. I'm just trying to give that free stuff to people to help others since I don't do that anymore, but I miss it so much and I know that I have the tools and the background that I can help people with it So that is a little bit about me.

Alaina: Yeah, that's great! And you're a mama - you have a little girl. How old is she now?

Cassidy: She is two going on 20. It's like everybody else.

Alaina: I can't believe she's already two. When we stopped working together you had just had her!

Alaina: So, in today's episode, we're talking about strength training - specifically, as it relates to women's health. I think there's a lot of questions and stigma about women doing strength training. So, we are happy to listen to your expertise on this, both in your education and then in your life experience in it as well. So, can you tell us kind of an overview, what is strength training? Are there different types? What are those different types?

Cassidy: Yes, for sure. So strength training (you can also call it Resistance Training) is basically when you are performing some type of physical exercise in which you are working your muscles against some type of opposing force. Now, that force can be something like weights, resistance bands, or gravity (as in just using your body weight). So there are so many modalities of strength training that you can use with the sole purpose of building strength and endurance. Often, when we think of types of strength training, we think of pull-downs, resistance bands, and dumbbells, but it is a totally different meaning inside of strength training that is more of a form of weight training. Then, as you said, you can do plyometrics, barbells, so many different modalities. But when it comes to specific types of strength training, there are seven different types of strength training. I do want to preface what I'm about to say by saying that it's important that we do try to find a program that is encompassing all seven types of strength training just to help get a very well-rounded program. I'll also mention that, women sometimes gear more towards one type and forget others, so be mindful of that. I'll run through these really quick.

So, the first one is going to be agile strength. When we think of this, we think of football players cutting back and forth. We think of things that are very explosive and agility-type movements. So that's gonna be things like shuffles, shuttle runs, and skaters. What's cool is that we can incorporate those types of movements even when we say, "heck, there's no way I can do shuttle runs or skaters", you can still do different versions of that type of training.

The second type is one that women tend to often veer toward - endurance strength. This is where we have the ability to move lighter loads for longer periods of time. So it's more like that 12 - 20 rep range. What's great with endurance strength is this is gonna help us increase the amount of time before we fatigue, while not only exercising but in everyday life. So endurance is so important just to help us as we age so that we can keep doing the things we enjoy. As I said, I do feel that a lot of women, especially when they're starting out with strength training and are worried about the weights and stick to more of the endurance area. There's nothing wrong with that because that is still great. We need that endurance for our muscles and to help us get stronger.

The third type is going to be our explosive strength. So basically, this is going to be your muscle's ability to exert its maximum amount of force in the shortest time possible. This is along the lines of Olympic lifting, box jumps, and burpees. This type of strength is really important as we age because we can build this strength faster than any other. This is especially helpful for elderly clients. For example, in explosive strength we think of the box jumps but we alter them and work on sitting to stand, but doing them explosively. Even with different variations, you can still get that explosive benefit.

Next is maximum strength. This is going to not really be for just the normal everyday average person just wanting to work out, and better their life. This is gonna be more for someone who is trying to lift a single rip at the heaviest amount of possible weight. So this is going to apply more to athletes. However, we can do a variation of this where we're doing higher weight and lower reps - like the 2 to 6 rep range. So we can still get the benefits of what maximum strength that way.

A couple more - next is speed strength. That's basically just how fast you are. You know, this is going to be more useful in sports, but it is good to help us improve how quickly we can react to something. Because as we age, our reaction is something that declines, so it is important that we still are able to react quickly, whether it's when driving or being aware of our surroundings.

Then there's something called starting strengths. Starting strength is what you would see in a track runner in starting position. They are trying to produce as much force or quickness as possible out of a standstill position. We use this same type of strength by sitting up and getting out of a chair. As we get older, we see we see a lot of people struggle to do this - rocking back and then trying to stand up. When we focus on starting strength with compound movements like squats, lunges, etc., it can help build that kind of strength.

Then last, but not least, is relative strength. This is the strength to weight ratio. So, pound-for-pound, how strong you are compared to someone else. So my husband is gonna laugh - my husband is a big man. He is like 230# and very strong, but when we were doing Olympic lifting and I was at my prime, pound-for-pound, I was technically stronger than him. He doesn't like for me to admit that to too many people because he is known for his strength and being very strong. Strength is important but like I said, those are just a lot of different types of strength training.

A great program is going to have a little mixture of kind of each of those types of strength training.

Alaina: So you mentioned this a little bit, especially talking about aging, but how do those things translate into kind of our everyday lives? Where can we see a lot of those benefits - both in our endurance, our ability to move, agility, and things like that as we age, but also from a health side of things?

Cassidy: So a couple of these are beneficial not only just for the everyday person, but especially for women. Number one is definitely going to be that these things are going to build and maintain our muscle mass. So, fun fact for you (well, fun/scary fact), as females our muscle mass decreases 3-8% per decade after the age of 30. This rate declines even more after you hit 60. Okay? And so what stinks about that is this is what leads to an increased risk for falls or the loss of independent living as we age. Strength training is the number one thing that can help slow that process down of losing muscle mass. It also protects our bone health. So as women, we know that we are a lot more susceptible than men to developing osteopenia and osteoporosis. So doing strenth training with any kind of external resistance or weights will help lower our risk for that. Also, if you do already have some form of osteopenia or osteoporosis, it's gonna help slow that process down. Unfortunately, you cannot reverse those factors, but you absolutely can slow it down. My grandmother is an example of this - she has osteoporosis pretty bad. I started helping her with strength training and the slowing down of the process has been huge. So great that when she's gone back to the doctor, there's been a couple of times it's only changed like a fraction, whereas before it was a very big decline each time she went back in my check. That's a big deal because I know a lot of people worry about that as they get older and I don't think that's a commonly known fact that strength training builds bone mass.

Also, for women, strength training is going to help support weight loss and weight management. So when we lift weights, it's going to help us burn more calories and stored energy or fat more efficiently. One way it does that is by increasing lean muscle mass. So we have all heard that muscle burns more energy at rest. Your BMR (basal metabolic rate) is the number of calories you would burn if you sat on the couch and watched Netflix all day. This number is higher if you have more muscle than fat. I think it's one lb. of muscle burns, 3% more than one lb. of fat. Muscle mass helps us to be efficient by increasing our metabolism and helping us burn more while we're literally doing nothing. So who doesn't want that?

Also, I am going to say this, I know that a big stigma around lifting weights for women is that a lot of women are scared that they're gonna get bulky. This is just a myth. The facts behind it are that the hormone testosterone is what makes that happen in the body and we have only about 10% of testosterone that men do. So there is physically no way that when we are lifting that we are going to get bulky as a man could.

We know that there are great benefits of strength training for everyone - better sleep, better energy, just more focus. It's going to help with blood markers like cholesterol and blood sugar. All those good things.

Another one that I think for women, especially and especially for moms is, it's gonna help increase our mental and emotional health., I know for me, working out is so much more than, than just how I look. But when I don't work out, within a few days, I can tell mentally. It is my one time that I can escape from everything else that's going on in my life and focus on me. It can help you have more mental clarity and give a good serotonin boost.

Alaina: Yeah, that's great. I think so many people don't know so many of those things. You know? They know that they'll feel better., but they don't really get down into knowing those details. So, I love that you shared that. I've talked a lot about how it helps from a hormonal health side with blood sugar and insulin sensitivity, but that mental-emotional component is so important too.

I think part of it, too, is that we feel stronger. When we're going to do a strength training workout, and we actually do it, not only are we physically stronger, but we walk away with more mental stamina as well, because it's like "I did that!", you know? So, I think that helps so much when you are facing chronic health issues or you are facing just normal life stress. It just gives you a little more confidence that you can manage things.

Cassidy: 100% agree with you for sure. Yeah, for me, it's just that feeling of going in and lifting just gives me that sense of accomplishment. I feel like if I can do this, then I can tackle anything, right?

Alaina: Exactly. So there are some common questions that come up when it comes to strength training. So I'm gonna ask you a few of those.

How many times per week? What is the goal when it comes to strength training versus overall exercise? We know the overall general recommendation of roughly 30 minutes a day, at least five days a week, but how much of that should be strength training?

Cassidy: Yes, so with strength training, it always depends on whether you are new to it as well as your goals. So if you are someone who is brand new to strength training, you've never done it before, and you're wanting to start off it is recommended that in conjunction with your cardio (75-250 minutes a week of moderate to high intensity) that you want to at least start with twice a week of a full-body workout - every other day type deal. You want to make sure you're hitting each major muscle group in that 10-15 rep range. Even if you are not new but say you just are wanting to maintain what you have, twice a week is what can give you results. You're not necessarily going to see the physique benefits at that frequency, but you're more going to see the benefits of improving your cholesterol, helping your joints, helping your bones, and those types of things. I

Now, depending on your goals and depending on if you are really wanting to change your physique, or maybe you have a specific sports goal, then I would say you need to start ramping up the days that you are in the gym doing your strength training. So I would say you need to be in the gym doing more of like a 4-5 day a week type thing and doing more of what's called a split in your workout. Maybe one day you come to the gym and do an upper-body routine. The next day you do lower-body. Then the next day you rest and then repeat the process. You could get even more specific and focus on only two muscle groups at a time, such as the chest and triceps. Then the next day would be back and biceps... next day legs, or something like that. And then obviously there's some abdominal work in there a couple of days a week too but that is just going to depend on your goal.

So, for example, when I was training for Olympic lifting, I was in the gym six days a week, two hours a day. And there is no way that I would do that right now because I don't have the time and that's not my goal. Now in the gym, I usually try to get some sort of strength training workout four days a week, and I'm doing more of a split style. I also really like doing more of a full-body workout to like more of a CrossFit type style workout, where I'm in my strength and my cardio kind of together. It's important that you are doing the right amount of days and everything, but the main thing is that you find something that you enjoy, because if you don't enjoy it, you're not going to do it and you're not going to show up.

So even if it's something that maybe is not ideal, who cares? The main thing is that you're there and that you're showing up. So whether it's Pilates, Barre, CrossFit, or just weightlifting, find what you enjoy and mix it up. Consistency is where you will get the results.

Alaina: Yes, I love that, and I love that you mentioned those different kinds of workouts. I think that's confusing for people. Sometimes they think strength training only means using machines or only using a barbell. You can incorporate strength training and a HIIT workout. You can incorporate strength training in Barre, Pilates - all that stuff. So, just like you said in the beginning, it depends on what your goals are for that and what you will stick to.

So, a couple of other questions? What would you recommend for someone who says, "Okay, I've tried strength training a few times, and every time I do it, I get very sore, and then I can't do it for three or four more days, and then I kind of just stop".

Cassidy: Absolutely. So, that's a great question. So what I would tell that person or what I would want to look at first is going to be some of their lifestyle factors. So with strength training, you know that is just one piece of the puzzle. But if they if that person is not getting enough sleep, if they're not getting 7 to 9 hours of sleep, if they are not drinking enough water, if they are not fueling their body properly - especially enough protein and carbs to sustain that can be an issue. We also want to make sure that there is a good balance of fuel for the workout. Carbs are glycogen for our muscles and they are going to replenish and refuel our muscles after we work out. If they aren't eating within the first two hours after their workout, let's try throwing in a protein shake. How strength training works is that we do not get the benefits of strength training when we are doing the strength training. It's during our recovery process. So, if we are not going through that recovery process, then yes, we're going to be sore all the time. And so how it works is when we're working out, we create these tiny, small, little micro-tears in our muscles and our body, when we are at rest it goes through something called protein synthesis to repair our muscles. That requires both glycogen and protein. So if we are not giving our body enough protein there's no way we can repair properly. That often leads to injury and it can lead to chronic soreness.

Also, are they sleeping? Stretching? Stressed? When our cortisol is elevated, it can lead to injury, and it can lead to soreness because our body is not going to be able to go through that inflammation process of cleaning all that out and just repairing our muscles and everything. Also, making sure that we're drinking lots of water, you could even throw in some electrolytes in your water as well. One of my tried and true methods for soreness is foam rolling. So on your off-days, foam rolling your muscles will help get out that lactic acid build-up out and help your muscles go through that process of cleaning all the stuff out.

Alaina: Gotcha. That makes a lot of sense. I think that's a huge missing piece - the recovery. People think, "I did my work out - I'm done - I'm going to go on with my day", and then they don't give any thought to that recovery. So follow-up to that is, would you say, within 30 minutes or within an hour? What's that time frame that we need to make sure we're getting that good protein, protein, and carbs, but definitely protein?

Cassidy: So they call it "The window of gains". It is within an hour of your workout is typically what they're recommending, and they usually say you want a complete source of protein. They have done a lot of studies saying that the most quickly digested form of protein is going to be like an isolate or whey protein, but or any type of isolate type protein. So that's going to be something from like a protein shake. Now I know a lot of people might be sensitive to whey protein, so I mean any type of protein shake you could do, and I think that's going to get to your muscles a little bit quicker than a piece of chicken would. Now, if you come straight home from your workout and eat a well-rounded meal, that's still going to be fantastic for you. Sure, it just might not be quite as bioavailable as quickly.

Alaina: Now, what about collagen? Where does that come in because it's not an isolate?

Cassidy: So yes, to make a full, complete protein there have to be 21 essential amino acids in that protein. I think that collagen doesn't have every one of them - I think it's like 19 or something. So collagen is something that you could definitely put in your post-workout shake because it has great benefits, but it wouldn't be something that I would just put in water. It's not going to be sufficient by itself. Yes, but that's a great question.

That kind of brings me to the other point is the complete protein. So there's a lot of sources of proteins that are considered proteins, but are not full, complete proteins. It is important that after our workouts were looking for something with a complete protein, so that's gonna be found mostly in animal sources, right? So just be conscious of that.

Alaina: Cool. Okay, well, are there any resources that you would recommend for people? Maybe who are just starting out their new to strength training? Would you suggest they get a trainer? Are there programs they can do at home?

Cassidy: Yes. So my two favorite resources are going to be ACSM.org and then acefitness.org. That is who I got my personal training certification from, so both of those are the two I trust the most. They are the gold standard when it comes to health and specifically fitness and working out. They do a lot of studies, and they're just they are kind of the cream of the crop. I know specifically, ACEFitness has lots of blogs you can literally type in, "strength training for beginner" and there are thousands of articles that come up that have workout programs in it.

Another thing you can do is getting a personal trainer. I think that's a great idea as well. On those two websites, you can search their database for personal trainers in your area that are certified through them.

Alaina: Great! So if people would like to follow you online where you've been sharing a lot of your workouts and some tips, where can they find you?

Cassidy: Yes, So, on Instagram, they can find me at cass_tipton.

Alaina: I'll put all of that in the show notes so that people can easily find you and then also those two resources as well. Well, thanks so much for spending some of your day with us and sharing all this information with us. It was so helpful!

Cassidy: Yes, you're so welcome! Thank you so much for allowing me to do this and just share some stuff that I love.

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What to Know About Women and Heart Disease

Did you know that heart disease is the number one cause of death for women in the United States? Surveys show that over half of us are unaware that heart disease is such a risk. We tend to think of things like cancer being more of a risk, and while we definitely need to be thinking about that, research shows that for most American women heart disease is the number one cause of death. 

In addition to the risk of Heart Disease being somewhat unknown, it’s also not well known that the signs and symptoms of a heart attack or another cardiac-related event can be very different for women than they are for men. 

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There are many factors that increase your risk for heart disease:

• High blood pressure 

• High triglycerides and low HDL

• Diabetes 

• Metabolic syndrome (Combination of high triglycerides/ low HDL, high blood pressure, high blood sugar, and excess fat tissue around the waist. Harvard med says this is the biggest risk factor)

• Dysbiosis / poor gut health (Research shows that the gut microbiome influences many health parameters, including cardiometabolic health. One study provides evidence that certain families of gastrointestinal bacteria can either positively or negatively affect cardiovascular health. The microbiome is also known to affect metabolism and may contribute to insulin resistance and metabolic syndrome. Other studies found a negative correlation between certain gut bacteria and arterial stiffness.)

• Smoking / Oral Birth control meds

• Chronic high inflammation levels or inflammatory disorders

• Sleep Apnea / poor quality sleep (Poor sleep quality was related to lower HDL-c and higher triglyceride levels in girls, suggesting the clinical importance of improving sleep hygiene to reduce metabolic risk factors in children and adolescents.)

• Family history 

Not only are the risks different for heart disease but the symptoms of a cardiac event, specifically a heart attack, are different for women, as well. While it is still common to have chest pain or pressure, some women never experience that. Other common symptoms include:

• Pain in jaw, neck, back, or upper arm

• Nausea or stomach pain 

• Dizziness or light-headed 

• Sweating

• Shortness of breath 

How can we minimize our risk or work to reverse some of the health issues we may already have?  

The good news is that a lot of the chronic health conditions that I listed above can be significantly improved or even reversed with lifestyle changes. We can do things to...

• Regulate blood sugar levels

• Lower triglycerides levels

• Increase HDL

• Improve microbiome

• Decrease inflammation

This leads you to ask me how - how can we practically do those things?

• Eat regular balanced meals throughout the day. No skipping meals / no stand-alone carbs or proteins (keep blood sugar levels stable)

• Eat lots of plants + omega -3 fats (decrease inflammation, feed good gut bugs, increase HDL, lower LDL) 

• Reduce artificial foods, trans fats, and refined sugars (decrease inflammation, lower triglycerides) 

• Exercise 30 min day (2 days strength at least - decrease inflammation, helps with sleep, improves gut health, decreases stress, helps with insulin sensitivity, increase HDL) 

• Deal with stress (breathing + exercise, talk it out, adaptogens - lowers inflammation, improves sleep, improves gut health, helps with adrenal function and hormone balance) 

• Prioritize sleep (deal with underlying issues, good sleep habits - inflammation, healing and restoration, cell turnover, mental health, stress) 

• Add quality supplements to fill in gaps (whole food multi, omega 3, probiotic + collagen/bone broth) 

So it’s easy to see how what we might consider just basic healthy lifestyle behaviors can really affect our long-term health over time. We tend to want to do the more extreme things, the more trendy things or to just take a supplement or whatever new product is on the market, but really when it comes to the optimal functioning of our bodies and our long-term health, the simple, basic steps really do make a difference. These are mostly the same behaviors and lifestyle changes that I talk about often - when talking about hormone health or gut health - just about any health issue, really. These are the fundamentals, the foundation, for good health, both now and when we are in our 80s. They matter and they make a difference. 

Prioritizing Your Health as a Teacher with Savannah Pratt

Welcome, friends! In today’s episode, I’m interviewing my good friend Savannah Pratt. Savannah is sharing with us how she has learned to prioritize her health while navigating the challenges that come from her rewarding, yet very demanding and stressful job as an Elementary School Special Education Teacher. She shares tips for how to start making your health a priority as well as encouragement for others with similar demanding work schedules. Listen to the full episode below!

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As a teacher, who is also trying to improve your health, what are some obstacles you often encounter?

Do your coworkers seem to share in those same obstacles? 

What are a few things you have done to overcome or work around these challenges?

Do you feel that prioritizing your health has allowed you to be more focused or more productive in your work? 

What would be your encouragement to anyone listening who is either a teacher or in another stressful, demanding role and wanting to improve their health?

5 Simple Tips for Happy & Healthy Hormones

We all know that hormones can affect how we feel, for better or worse (most of us have experienced the negative side of this from time to time, right?). So, it’s no surprise that our hormones also affect the function of our bodies. In today’s episode, I’m sharing a few of the simplest and most effective ways we can support our endocrine system and get back to having happy, healthy hormones! 

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I think when most of us hear that word we automatically think of the negative side effects that we may have experienced from out of control hormones or hormonal imbalance like hot flashes and rollercoaster emotions, but really our hormones are responsible for so many functions in our bodies, and when well-balanced can help us feel energized, happy, and motivated as well as relaxed and calm.  

Hormones work as chemical messengers released from different organs and glands in our bodies. These hormonal messages are received by hormone receptors throughout the body that then signals a specific response. The entire endocrine system works together to control the level of hormones that circulate through our bodies and when just one of these hormones is even slightly imbalanced, it can easily cause other imbalances and trigger widespread health problems.

So what are some of the most effective things we can do to naturally support healthy hormone function? 

1. Get good quality sleep

Sleep is essential to our bodies’ ability to recover and regenerate. For example, Cortisol, one of our major stress hormones, is regulated in our bodies when we are sleeping (around midnight). So if we are staying up super late or really restless throughout the night, it can be difficult for our bodies to get out of the “fight or flight” response that cortisol creates. Sleep deprivation can also contribute to blood sugar dysregulation, which can lead to hormonal imbalance (which often only adds to sleep problems). Find tips for optimizing and protecting your sleep in Episode 29. 

2. Balance your blood sugar 

Blood sugar balance is so important for optimal hormone function. Unchecked blood sugar dysregulation often leads to insulin resistance, which often leads to hormone imbalances and sadly, often disease. One of the best ways to help regulate your blood sugar levels is to eat your meals at regular intervals (breakfast, lunch, dinner - no skipping) and be sure to include healthy carbohydrates, protein, and fat in every single meal and snack. This keeps the blood sugar (and insulin) from spiking and then crashing - which only creates a state of chaos in the body. Hormones do not like chaos! 

3. Eat a nutrient-rich diet 

Vitamins B6, B12, E, and D, as well as Folate, Iron, Zinc, and Magnesium, are just a few examples of essential nutrients that are necessary for proper hormone function and fertility. Unfortunately, a lot of women are often deficient in these nutrients. In addition, hormonal birth control and other common medications can deplete essential nutrients stores in the body. This is one of the many reasons why it’s important for us to make sure our meals are full of nutrient-rich foods like leafy greens and cruciferous vegetables; high-fiber fruits like berries; clean protein sources like fatty fish, grass-fed beef, and pastured eggs; healthy fats from nuts and seeds, avocados, as well as anti-inflammatory oils like coconut and olive. In addition, taking a high-quality probiotic will help improve the ability of your gut to absorb all of these nutrients. 

4. Manage physical and mental stress regularly

Stress is one of the most common factors of hormonal imbalance and can have detrimental consequences when left unmanaged. As I’ve already mentioned, the body releases cortisol and adrenaline in response to both physical and emotional stressors, which puts our nervous system in the “fight or flight” (sympathetic) state. While this is helpful for dealing with danger or an acute crisis, other crucial functions of our bodies like growth and reproductive hormone production, digestion, and tissue repair are all put on hold until we return to a calm “rest and digest” (parasympathetic) state.  Due to the nature of our lives, it can be easy for us to stay in this chronically stressed mode, especially if we aren’t actively managing the stress. 

In addition to getting quality sleep each night, a few other ways to help manage stress and return your body to a more relaxed state are things like engaging in gentle movement such as yoga or walking, being in nature, practicing deep breathing (boxed breathing is my favorite method - 4-second inhale / 4-second hold / 4-second exhale), enjoying prayer and peaceful music, or participating in a hobby that you enjoy. The key is to be aware of your body and actively work to return to a relaxed state.  

5. Reduce exposure to environmental toxins 

Environmental toxins like parabens, chemicals in plastics, and artificial fragrances (to just name a few). often create chemical responses in the body that can quickly lead the body into estrogen dominance and chronic inflammation. (I’ve devoted an entire podcast episode to this topic if you want to know more about common environmental toxins and how they affect our health). 

Using an app like Think Dirty or EWG to scan products, especially the ones you put on your body and clean your home with, will help make sure you aren’t exposing yourself to harmful chemicals that can disrupt your hormones. 

Here are a few easy switches that will help reduce your exposure: switch from plastic to glass or stainless steel for water bottles and food storage containers; use essential oils instead of artificial fragrances for personal care and cleaning products; ditch the fabric softener and use white vinegar in the rinse cycle instead (ditch those dryer sheets too!). 

An added bonus of all of these lifestyle changes is that they will also help to improve your gut health which is absolutely foundational for optimal hormone function. A lot of hormones are produced and transmitted in the gut, making it basically impossible to have poor gut health and healthy hormones. 

In addition to these tips, I also highly suggest working with a functional medicine practitioner, especially if you know you have a hormonal imbalance or inflammatory disease. This can often look like a team of professionals to help you get to the root of the dysfunction in your body as well as give you guidance for supplements and vitamins specific to your body’s needs. 

I love supporting clients as they learn to pinpoint and heal the root cause of their hormonal imbalance. They often notice such an improvement in their symptoms simply by adjusting their lifestyle and making changes specific to their body’s needs.

Learn how you too can improve your health and get back to having happy, healthy hormones! Click here to schedule a free 30-minute consultation call with me where we will work together to identify your specific health goals to help you move forward in your health journey.

018 - How I Supported My Body Through Insulin Resistance

Hi friends! In last week’s episode we talked about ways to keep our blood sugar levels stable and why that is something that we need to be paying attention to (If you haven’t listened to that episode yet, hit pause and go do that real quick, so that we are all on the same page!). In that episode, I mention Insulin Resistance as something that can cause blood sugar imbalance, and that it is becoming more and more common.

Insulin Resistance occurs when our cells are no longer sensitive to insulin. Insulin is a hormone produced by the beta cells in our pancreas to help allow our cells to utilize glucose. In last week’s episode, I gave the analogy of insulin being like a key that opens the door for glucose to go into our cells - and in someone with Insulin Resistance, it’s like that key just stops working. 

There are a few different theories as to why this happens. Sometimes it can be due to an overproduction of insulin caused by a continual release of glucose into the bloodstream. This is often, but not always, due to lifestyle and dietary choices. When we eat mostly carbohydrates - especially simple carbohydrates that break down very quickly into glucose - then our pancreas is continually releasing insulin as well. When this happens chronically, over time our cells simply become so desensitized to the glucose, that they stop functioning properly and can’t utilize the glucose as they should. Therefore we end up with high levels of both glucose and insulin in the bloodstream and our cells don’t get the energy that they need to function well.

 Another cause of Insulin Resistance, that research is showing as more and more prominent, is that chronically high levels of inflammation in the body actually cause damage to the insulin receptors on the cells. So, in this case, it’s not so much that the cells are desensitized and can’t respond to the insulin, it’s that they are actually damaged and can’t respond to the insulin. Although this is a different root cause, it results in the same issue of high levels of glucose and insulin in the bloodstream.

As we know, inflammation in the body is caused by so many different things - inflammatory foods like sugar, artificial and highly processed foods, food colorings and dyes, infections in the body, dysbiosis in the gut, chronic stress, lack of sleep, and so much more. Now research is showing that having high levels of this inflammation is actually doing damage to our bodies on a cellular level.

I actually experienced this myself several years ago when I went looking for answers to my hormone imbalance issues. My labs came back that I had both Insulin Resistance and PCOS. It really surprised both me and my physician, because I didn’t really have any of the other symptoms that, at that time, were thought to accompany IR and PCOS, but as I would come to find out later, my body was very inflamed. I had really poor gut health - dysbiosis and leaky gut, a candida overgrowth, endometriosis (which is an inflammatory disease), years of low-level chronic stress, and a long history of not eating well or really caring for my body well at all. I just didn’t know what I didn’t know! And for me personally, my genetics mixed with all of those things created a perfect storm for IR and then a cascade of hormone imbalance as a result. Thankfully, both insulin resistance and chronic inflammation are things that can be positively affected by lifestyle change, and with the blessing of my physician, that’s exactly what I did. She asked me to come back in 6 months to recheck my levels and thankfully, my insulin levels were back within the normal range and my cycles had also returned to normal intervals, as well. 

If you are struggling with Insulin Resistance or suspect that something is imbalanced with your blood sugar levels or hormones, I strongly encourage you to work with a physician and get some lab work done. Depending on your practitioner, you may need to specifically request that they check your insulin levels, as that isn’t always part of routine lab work. 

As far as how to manage, and possibly reverse Insulin Resistance with lifestyle changes, all of the tips that I shared in last week’s episode apply here as well. Things like eating balanced meals at regular intervals, regular exercise, getting quality sleep, and managing and reducing your stress levels will all help to stabilize the amount of glucose in your bloodstream and lower inflammation. 

There are a few specific recommendations that I would add for someone looking to manage IR though. Your key focus is going to be on reducing inflammation in your body and helping your body to become sensitive to insulin again. This is very important so that you don’t progress further into prediabetes and Type 2 diabetes. 

Be sure to always have a protein and fat with every meal and snack and try to reduce your intake of carbohydrates overall. 

Some people call this a low-carb diet. There are also paleo and keto diets that are similar in nature, but overall I’m just talking about when you look at your plate, or the portions of what you are eating, having carbs only account for about 30-40% of your food.

Eliminate simple, processed carbs altogether.

You need carbs, but you do not need simple carbs full of inflammation-raising ingredients. Stick to high fiber veggies, some nutrient-rich root veggies like sweet potatoes, and whole forms of non-gluten grains like brown rice or quinoa. 

Engage in strength-training exercises at least 2x per week.

We’re not talking about anything crazy here, but research has shown that doing bodyweight and added weight exercises helps to increase our cell’s sensitivity to insulin. You can click here to find a few of my favorite online strength training workouts to do at home or there are tons of classes at your local gym if you’d rather have some personal instruction and work out with other people. 

Add anti-inflammatory herbs and supplements to your diet.

• Make sure you are taking a good whole-food vitamin to fill in any nutrient gaps.

• Supplement with extra vitamin D and magnesium, if needed. Both can help to increase insulin sensitivity. 

• Cook with turmeric, ginger, and garlic which can all help to lower inflammation levels and they’re delicious! You can also get or make teas with inflammation lowering ingredients, too!

Work with a professional for more support.

While Insulin Resistance can be reversible, it isn’t always easy. It takes concentrated effort and some research, but it is so worth it! If you feel like it’s too overwhelming for you or you would just like personalized support as you make changes to your lifestyle, reach out to someone that can help. This is something that personally I am passionate about and have done a lot of research on, so I would love to work with you one-on-one if you feel you need more support. Click here to schedule a free 30-min initial session with me!

I hope that you have learned something from my story that is encouraging to you and that these tips help you see that there are things you can do to help heal your body!