Unlock True Wellness with the FASTer Way + Functional Medicine

If you’re frustrated with your health or fitness—or you’ve been told you just have to live with your symptoms—there is hope! When you combine functional medicine with the FASTer Way to Fat Loss, you’ll get to the root of the issue and solve it in a way that heals your body and eases your mind.

Amanda Tress, founder and CEO of the FASTer Way, and Alex De Oliveira A.R.N.P. were invited to chat with Carmen Brown of OFF-AIR with Carmen about finding better health with functional medicine and the FASTer Way.

Listen to the full episode here:

What is the FASTer Way to Fat Loss?

The FASTer Way to Fat Loss is a holistic approach to healthy living. It focuses on science-backed strategies including:

• Intermittent fasting

• Carb cycling

• Macronutrient tracking

• Whole food nutrition

• Quick & effective workouts that pair with the food log

While it may sound like a lot of strategies, it’s actually a very simple lifestyle—and all clients learn under the guidance of a certified coach. Someone who is on your side, available to answer your questions, and supports you daily!

The REAL Problem

Many people, women especially, will visit a conventional doctor because they can’t lose weight even though they exercise regularly and eat well. Rather than getting the answers they need, they hear comments like:

“This is normal during/after menopause.”

“It’s normal to gain weight at your age.”

“You’re not exercising enough.”

“You need to change your habits.”

“You need to eat healthier.”

Friend, we are here to say it’s NOT your fault.

We know these doctors mean well, but countless people leave these appointments discouraged and defeated, thinking there’s nothing they can do or they just aren’t trying hard enough.

There’s a Better Way

Carmen Brown of “OFF-AIR with Carmen” was one of these women, discouraged with her health. She couldn’t lose weight and she was always tired. After meeting with Amanda Tress and making significant positive changes through the FASTer Way program, she knew something was still off. At Amanda’s urging, she scheduled an appointment with functional medicine hormone specialist Alex De Oliveira at Young Foundational Health. 

After working with Alex, while maintaining the FASTer Way lifestyle, Carmen couldn’t believe the difference in her energy levels nor her weight loss. In fact, Carmen was so blown away by her test results that she asked Alex to share them on the podcast! Listen to the full episode to hear the incredible changes she saw in less than a year.

The Problem with Standard Medicine

Standard medicine doesn’t offer prevention outside a few basic tests. This is a lost opportunity to detect imbalances, precursors to disease (such as type 2 diabetes), and inflammation in the body. Issues that are preventable but have a significant impact on health (and weight) when undetected and untreated.

We can change the current narrative, and through the FASTer Way to Fat Loss and functional medicine. We are doing that one client at a time!

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Listen to the full interview above to hear more about these golden nuggets of wisdom:

• It’s not so much what you should take, it’s how you should live your life.

• It’s never too late to start. What matters is that you start now.

• Type 2 Diabetes is 100% reversible.

• Elevated insulin could be due to low thyroid, menopause, or even prescription medication (seizure, depression, anxiety, etc.) 

• You can fix insulin resistance through exercise, whole-food nutrition, and intermittent fasting.

• The gut needs to rest.

• Excess weight is a symptom of what’s happening in your body.

• Your bloodwork will tell you everything you need to know.

Thanks to Carmen for hosting Amanda and Alex to spread the word about the path to wellness!

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LEARN MORE ABOUT THE FASTER WAY TO FAT LOSS

• What Is Intermittent Fasting?

• 3 Ways People Get Intermittent Fasting Wrong (and why you shouldn't try it on your own)

• What is Carb Cycling?

• FASTer Way Time-Saving Hacks

• How Do Our Live At-Home Workouts Actually Work?

Emotional Addiction and How to Overcome It with Dr. Carleah East

There’s no question we’ve faced a multitude of challenges in 2020. There’s been a global pandemic, a down economy, racial and social injustice and more. All the stress can build up and wreak havoc on our mental well-being. As important as our physical health is, taking care of our mental health is equally important. To discuss this topic, we invited Dr. Carleah East to the podcast, founder and CEO of Smile and Associates, to share her wisdom and advice on mental health. She is a clinical psychotherapist, Licensed Mental Health Counselor, Licensed Supervisor, and professor of psychology. She shares about emotional addiction and how to overcome it.

Listen in as Amanda gets all the details from Dr. Carleah East!

We put together an overview of Amanda’s interview below. For full details, be sure to listen to the podcast!

With the onslaught of everything that has happened this year, there is a greater need to address challenges of mental health. We’ve always had underlying issues and daily stressors, but when COVID hit, we no longer had the distractions/coping mechanisms we had before.

We’ve always had basic distractions that we may not have even noticed prior to COVID - those little things that happen throughout our day that become a part of how we handle stressors on a regular basis. For some, it might be going to the gym, getting together with family, social interactions at work, and countless others. These experiences help keep us sane without us even recognizing it. But when the pandemic took hold, these fundamental freedoms were taken out of the equation. It forced emotional struggles and impacts to rise to the surface and the forefront of our mind because the usual distractions no longer were available.

With these challenges staring us in the face, we’re encouraged to confront head on how we are feeling and start to view talking about mental health as a strength, NOT a weakness. Especially considering the global perspective that we are ALL experiencing the same thing - a worldwide pandemic. This aspect of community is allowing us to have more conversations about mental health and lessen the stigma surrounding it.

How the brain’s chemistry impacts physical health:

There’s no doubt we accommodate our lives physically, but we have to do the same mentally. Think about it: If we have pain, we go to the doctor. If our feet hurt, we wear more supportive shoes. If we have a headache, we take medication. It’s the same with mental health. If we have a lingering thought or challenge we feel stuck on, we need to let it out and take action!

In terms of physical health: exercise can be a great option to help with mental health, but it needs to be used in conjunction with other coping mechanisms. There has to be a balance between your mental sect for the body to respond effectively to the workout. There’s a space for exercise, but if your mind is not on point, your body will continue to hold onto the stress and you will not reap the full benefits of the workout because your body is not in focus. 

This is why meditation is great. It doesn’t have to be the stereotypical meditation practice that may first come to mind. Meditation is simply about MINDFULNESS - about being aware of your senses and being fully present. You can practice meditation in your car, in a closet at work, or any quiet space to yourself. 

Taking a holistic approach to mental health:

At Smile and Associates, Dr. Carleah East and her team take a holistic approach to mental health. They don’t just talk about therapeutic strategies, they also instill other health and wellness aspects to mental health. For example, clients are encouraged to focus on nutrition, relationships, physical activity, supplements, and even the use of essential oils. She educates clients on these aspects so they can truly live their best and healthiest lives, physically AND mentally as it is all connected.

She emphasizes the importance of recognizing habits and offering real life modalities to deal with those habits. With a thorough understanding of this connection, you’re able to use the tools in that moment to help maintain your peace and presence, starting from within. 

Dr. Carleah’s book: “The Hangover: Overcoming Emotional Addiction.” 

Emotional addiction is when you become emotionally tied to a relationship or aspects of that relationship. There are things that make us feel good, like physical touch, intimacy, and positive experiences. And there are also lows like arguments, disagreements, and hurtful experiences. Emotional addiction is when you get used to the time of recovery. Once we make up or rectify what wronged us, we’re on an emotional high. Then something else happens and we experience another low. We continue this unhealthy pattern and, eventually, our body becomes used to this pattern. That’s when we have the negative effects - we become content with the rollercoaster of highs and lows, and our bodies start looking forward to and craving the highs. 

This book gives you steps to become emotionally sober and helps you to feel empowered in who you are. It also helps you understand why you’re stuck in the same relationship patterns, and how to navigate and heal those areas. Dr. Carleah provides strategies, tips and assignments to be more mindful.

She leaves us with one tip to take action today: Reframe a negative situation and look at it from a positive perspective. Instead of using the word struggle, use the word challenge. Struggle makes us automatically feel defeated in the things we’re facing on a regular basis. Whereas challenge gives us a boost of encouragement and motivation that we CAN overcome what we’re facing.

It’s time to reframe the way we see some of the hurdles and fears. Instead of seeing them as struggles, view them as challenges to find ways to succeed and begin to overcome!

To schedule an appointment with Dr. Carleah and her team, please visit her website! You can also follow her on Facebook, call the office at  (727) 569-6305 or email at info@smilepsychology.com. 

To take a deep dive into all 12 steps, you can pick up a copy of The Hangover on Dr. Carleigh’s website https://smilepsychology.com/.

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5 Things You MUST Know About COVID Before School Starts

Parents all over the world are worried about sending their kids back to school, and for good reason. We are in the midst of a pandemic that changed our world overnight, literally! Some people are fearful and some are not, but we all just want the unbiased science-backed data! We invited research microbiologist Kiran Krishnan to the podcast to give us an update on the situation. He shared five things you MUST know about COVID before school starts!

Listen in as Amanda gets all the details from Kiran!

Love reading? We’ve got you! We put together an overview of Amanda’s interview with Kiran. For full details, be sure to listen to the podcast!

Back-to-school time is typically filled with anticipation and excitement for parents as well as kids! We look forward to the routine and, if we’re being honest, a little quiet time. 😉

But this year is different. COVID has changed everything and instead of looking forward to a new school year, many parents feel anxiety over tough choices regarding their kids’ education. Whether you’re back to in-person school, distance learning, homeschool, or something else entirely, there are important things every parent should know about COVID.

5 Things You MUST Know About COVID Before School Starts

1. COVID doesn’t really affect kids

The epidemiological data shows that kids don’t really spread COVID. Even if they get it, the evidence suggests they don’t spread it. 

HERE’S HOW IT WORKS

The coronavirus goes after a certain type of receptor in the cells that are associated with high degrees of inflammation. Inflammation and disease go hand in hand—that’s why people with obesity, diabetes, hypertension, etc., are at much higher risk for more serious infection. The virus goes after these vulnerabilities. 

Kids have far fewer of these vulnerabilities, meaning they don’t have as many “target” cells. Even if kids DO get it, the virus can’t multiply as well in their cells, which means they don’t produce a lot of virus. Simply put, kids aren’t good spreaders.

A study out of China followed 371 family cases of COVID. They found that in 370 cases, the kids got it from the adults. In one case they suspected child to adult transmission. 

According to this information, kids going back to school is low risk. In fact, other countries that have opened school back up have NOT seen a surge in COVID cases.

2. Not everyone who gets COVID can spread it—even adults

We know that kids are not good COVID spreaders, but even in adults, not everyone who gets it can spread it! Only about 20% of people who get the virus can spread it. The other 80% aren’t a big risk factor. 

HERE’S HOW IT WORKS

Infection can occur in different parts of the body, so it really depends on WHERE in the body the virus is! If it’s in the upper respiratory tract (symptoms might include sniffles, sneezing, and coughing), and the virus is growing in the lungs, that person is likely to expel virus particles when they talk, cough, sneeze, etc.

If the virus is in the blood or the gut, the virus won’t be expelled the same way—which means it probably won’t be transmitted by coughing, sneezing, etc., in those people. 

It’s important to note that the virus doesn’t replicate at the same rate in everyone. As it uses our cells to replicate, each person’s vulnerabilities will determine how well the virus replicates in them.

Low inflammation = low replication. 

3. Nasal swab tests have an error rate of about 40%

You read that right—a 40% error rate! There are two reasons for this. 

1. Timing. If you get tested too early you won’t have enough viral load in the nasal area to give a positive result. It usually takes a couple of days after symptoms develop to be testable.

2. If you have it, it might not be replicating in the area being tested. You could have COVID but not in your nasal cavity, but if that’s where the test sample is taken, it will show a negative result.

There is another testing option! The stool test can detect the virus in stool BEFORE it’s detected by the swab test. It’s actually detected in the stool two weeks LONGER than it can be detected by the swab! Find an at-home stool test here. 

Please note: no test is 100% accurate.

4. Masks DO help

The coronavirus that causes COVID-19 is mainly spread through upper respiratory droplets and aerosol. Upper respiratory droplets come out of your mouth when you laugh, sneeze, talk, cough, etc. They are bigger and tend to fall to the ground quickly. Aerosols are much finer particles that can hang in the air much longer, up to three hours. When you wear a mask it will capture some of that as it leaves your mouth and nose.

Studies now show that if you’re wearing a mask and walk through a cloud of virus, it will reduce the amount of virus you breathe in. 

It takes about 1,000 viral particles to make you sick. If you’re exposed to smaller amounts of the virus, it won’t be enough to allow the virus to replicate enough to make you sick BUT it may be enough to trigger your immune system to practice fighting the virus.

Interesting note I: 40% of the spread of the virus is from asymptomatic and presymptomatic people. This means it’s important to wear your mask indoors and when social distancing isn’t possible.

Interesting note II: Wearing a mask outside is typically NOT beneficial. Aerosol virus is not a concern outdoors because environmental factors such as UV, wind, humidity, etc. prevent clouds of virus from hanging in the air.

5. You can reduce your risk factors and increase your resilience

Inflammation is the key to the virus being able to replicate in the body, so reducing inflammation is critical to staying healthy during this pandemic. Improving our gut health is crucial to reducing inflammation, staying healthy, and fighting off any virus or bacteria we might pick up.

A healthy microbiome is essential to a strong immune system. The microbiome can actually be thought of as the “neighborhood watch” for your immune system!

HERE’S HOW IT WORKS

You have about 3,000 square feet of surface area INSIDE your body. You have about 200 million immune cells to survey that area. You have 40 trillion microbes that live in that surface area. That’s a 200,000:1 ratio of immune cells to microbes in your system! The microbes signal to the immune system when a new bacteria enters the body—that signal is inflammation.

When there’s inflammation all over the body all the time, your immune system won’t see those signals when a new virus enters the body. It gets drowned out by all the other inflammation. That’s why people with inflammatory conditions are much more susceptible to a virus like this. The virus is given a lot more time to replicate and build higher and higher levels before the immune system ever detects it’s even there.

BOOST THE IMMUNE SYSTEM TO STAY HEALTHY!

• Take a probiotic, a prebiotic, and eat a diversity of whole foods

• Keep up with micronutrients supplements including zinc, vitamin D, vitamin C, vitamin K2 

Find the probiotic Kiran developed HERE.

You and your family can stay safe once the kids are back in school! Special thanks to Kiran Krishnan for joining us on the podcast to help us understand COVID and empower us to make the best decisions for our families!

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How Intermittent Fasting Can Protect You Against COVID-19

We’ve all seen the news. Every day it seems there’s a new breakthrough or a lead to stop the Coronavirus outbreak across the globe. And while there are some interesting medical trials, there is one fact we can’t get away from: most of the serious sufferers have underlying health issues.

Friends, it’s more important than ever to focus on your health and wellness to prevent disease before it even begins. The FASTer Way to Fat Loss believes in Intermittent Fasting as a lifestyle choice not only to burn fat, but to also help your body rest and repair.

We sat down with Dr. Matt Ferenc to discuss the immune-boosting qualities of intermittent fasting and how it can help protect us against COVID-19. Ferenc is an ER physician in Florida who spoke on the FASTer Way to Fat Loss podcast at the beginning of the pandemic.

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To understand why IF is beneficial during these times, it’s important to know what it does for our immune system in general. Most of our immune system is in our gut and is always looking towards our food for targets. When we’re constantly eating, our immune system is constantly at work. When you do IF, you give your immune system a break so it can work in other parts of the body.

When we are not digesting, the immune system is exploring for cancer cells, damaged cells and disease.

WHY IS COVID-19 SPREADING SO QUICKLY?

Coronaviruses have been around for a long time but this particular strain is so new and so contagious that it has quickly crossed continents. It has been compared to the 1918 Spanish Flu, but the difference today is travel. Modern technology allows us to cross the globe without a thought and so many people are interacting with each other. That wasn’t the case in 1918 or any time before.

 This virus is also very “sticky”. It clings to cells in your body and travels all around. So it’s important to build up your body with a force that can fight it off once it’s in your system. Social distancing, wearing masks and gloves and staying home are doing a good job of slowing the spread, but it’s vital that we also protect ourselves on the inside.

WHAT CAN INTERMITTENT FASTING DO FOR OUR CLIENTS HOPING TO PREVENT DISEASE

The numbers don’t lie. 60% of the ER patients you see are suffering from lifestyle-related illness like heart disease and stroke. Dr. Ferenc believes everyone should be participating in some sort of IF program because it prevents these underlying issues, decreasing your risk if you are exposed.

If you are new to IF, check out our guide with tips and information to get started and build your way up.

WHAT DOES IF DO FOR YOUR BODY?

• Creates younger blood vessels – When you fast for a period of time, your body absorbs all the nutrients from what you ate, then starts looking elsewhere. Some research shows when your body gets to the end of the fast period, it starts sending signals to your blood vessels to start regenerating. Your lungs, heart and brain also start regenerating to create more elasticity.

• Can extend life expectancy – Our chromosomes have something called Telomeres that shorten every time we produce new cells. Telomeres can only shorten a finite number of times before cell regeneration stops. This is aging. Intermittent fasting can help because when your body is in fast mode, it can signal Telomeres to stop shortening, thus extending the life cycle of your cells.

• Goes after your body fat as a source of fuel

HOW QUICKLY CAN YOU START INTERMITTENT FASTING?

The beauty of intermittent fasting is you can begin Day One. You can wake up today and start on a program. We recommend reading this helpful guide to get started because it is a transition and a slow start will make it more likely you continue. We especially recommend going slow if you have a pre-existing condition like hypertension or diabetes. But we also recommend joining our 6-week program filled with motivational material, workouts, meal plans and a network of members to keep you going.

The silver lining in the COVID-19 pandemic is people are starting to realize how important it is to live healthy and prevent disease. We want all our members to achieve the health goals they’ve been putting off and the motivation is on every channel right now. Viruses like COVID-19 will always be a part of our life, just like influenza is. We can wash our hands, wear masks and sanitize every day, but there is nothing like a healthy immune system.

Don’t forget, it’s always best to consult your doctor, especially if you’re taking any medications, are pregnant, breastfeeding, or wish to become pregnant, or have a chronic condition, such as heart disease or diabetes.

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How Genes Affect the Way We Cope During the Coronavirus Pandemic

You work out. You eat better. You make positive lifestyle changes. Yet, your body isn’t responding the way you thought it would. To complicate matters, we are all responding to the Coronavirus pandemic in different ways. What gives?

The answer has to do with something called Functional Genomics. We sat down with Dr. Mansoor Mohammed for a new podcast episode, hoping to understand the unique relationship between diet, detoxification, addiction and more during the COVID-19 outbreak. Mohammed is a world-renowned pioneer in Medical Genomics with several patents and is one of the most sought-after speakers for Personalized Medical Genomics. He is on the Canadian Board for Autistic Research and is a consultant for the Toronto Center of Applied Genomics.

WHAT IS FUNCTIONAL GENOMICS?

Many of you have done a genetic test like 23 and me to get a report. Functional Genomics studies how all of your genes in that report work together. It treats your DNA as a language, rather than a black and white report.

Our bodies are an orchestral masterpiece playing together in harmony. Everyone’s body is different and responds differently to diet and exercise, which is why calorie counting is so harmful.

WHY GENETIC TESTS ARE SHORT OF THE MARK

Nothing in the human body works based on single genes. Again, it’s a SYSTEM. All of your genes have variables that affect the way the whole system works. And they will change based on external factors like environment, pollution, temperature, available food, etc. Without looking at the big picture, genetic tests are too simplistic and simply report how your body functions.

HOW DOES DNA AFFECT YOUR DIET?

First, understand that digestion works in three phases.

1. Your brain wants you to eat something based on genetics and preferences. This is actually the first step.

2. Your saliva breaks down food right away. Depending on your genetics, this process could be optimal or not.

3. Your body absorbs nutrients. When vital nutrients get into your gut, your body creates a taxi cab that picks up things like B12 and escorts it to parts of your body. Some of us have better taxis than others.

All three of those areas are affected by Functional Genetics, but the first part is important during the Coronavirus pandemic. Our relationship with food has a profound impact on our bodies. It is what comforts us and brings joy. With so many people self-isolating and working from home, food can be the comforting item that gets us through. So even though you know that piece of bread (a big FASTer Way no-no) is going to be bad for your body, your dopamine got the best of you. That’s the beginning of the digestion chain. Before we even begin to eat or chew, our metabolism has already begun. Our pleasure response is important because emotional responses often overrule our sense of controls. That’s because our brains respond differently to stimuli that draw us to certain foods.

Genetics play an important role in not only how we respond to diet, but what we are attracted to to begin with.

HOW CAN GENETICS HELP DURING THE CORONAVIRUS OUTBREAK

The pandemic is teaching us one important thing: health from the beginning is critical.

1.      What aisles at the grocery are most bare right now? When we go into crisis, we jump to processed foods, canned foods and frozen foods. These are high in sugar and salt. When hypertension and Type 2 Diabetes are two big indicators of serious issues, we are going after the very foods that cause such symptoms.

2.      We don’t get enough sun exposure. Without Vitamin D, we’re not boosting our immune systems.

3.      Mental health is key. Stressors are high about incomes, jobs, rent, loved ones. Based on our genetics, we’re having different responses to these stressors.

CAN A DNA TEST HELP US UNDERSTAND IF SOME PEOPLE ARE STRONGER AGAINST COVID-19?

In short, no. The COVID-19 virus enters our body through a doorway in our cells via receptors. Scientists are trying to determine if some people are built so that it’s more difficult for the Coronavirus to get in through the door, but so far, there is no evidence of that.

What we are seeing is those who have underlying health issues suffer the worst. Where we can make a difference is preparing our bodies to avoid those serious symptoms. Such as diabetes, obesity, etc. Those are good indicators of poor outcomes. Less than 20% of the United States population is metabolically healthy. That’s why it’s tricky to use data from other countries.

Genetic testing helps you discover what you’re susceptible to. Avoiding those problem areas can prevent you from getting underlying issues.

If you understand the way your body works, you can cater a routine and nutrition plan that keeps you on track and eliminates unnecessary stresses like inflammation and gut problems.

DON’T GET FRUSTRATED

Even if you’re sticking to the FASTer Way to Fat Loss program, you can still have results that are different than others. That’s why scales have no place in our program (you can go ahead and put it in your closet). There are many ways to progress and everyone’s body is different. Getting to know how your specific body reacts to workouts and food is key to optimizing results and reaching the goals you’ve set for yourself. If you know someone who needs to read this, share this article so they can better understand their body and become a leader in their community! The FASTer Way to Fat Loss program has a ton of information and coaching to help you eat better, exercise and live a better, healthier life.

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Focusing on Success in Crisis Through a Crisis with Dr. Diva Nagula

All the noise in the media right now and can fill our minds with panic, doubt and worry. 

With updated news reports every day, it feels like it can be hard to keep a clear mind and stay in peace. Which is why, here in the FASTer Way community, we are committed to bringing you expert resources to educate, inform and offer encouragement on how to thrive in a crisis: physically, spiritually and mentally. 

Amanda recently sat down with Dr. Diva Nagula for a conversation about focusing on success through a crisis. Dr. Diva Nagula is a board-certified osteopathic physician and has extensive knowledge and training in Integrative and Functional Medicine. 

He opens up about his struggle with stage four lymphoma and how he overcame it by focusing on physical AND spiritual health. Check out the key takeaways, or listen to the message below, as Dr. Nagula offers practical tips on building resilience, building your immunity, staying healthy and optimizing the mind and spirit. You can listen by clicking the link below:

Battling Cancer

Dr. Nagula started out his career as a healthcare practitioner with a specialty in interventional pain medication. Shortly after leaving his practice, he got some unexpected news and was diagnosed with stage 4 Non Hodgkin's Lymphoma. This left him at a crossroads: “What do I do next?” He knew that it was time to figure out why he got cancer, and that he had to make some major lifestyle changes if he wanted to win this battle.

The cancer diagnosis was a wake-up call that it was time to heal his body; physically and spiritually. He figured that if he got cancer from his lifestyle choices, then he could also reverse it with lifestyle choices, as well. Up to that point, he was eating poorly, not sleeping, always stressed and often exposed to environmental toxins. To take action and heal his body, Dr. Nagula started to heavily focus on his lifestyle choices and taking care of his body. After adjusting his lifestyle, he moved forward with chemo and continued to heal his body.

CHANGING THE COURSE THROUGH HEALTH AND WELLNESS

During this period of lifestyle change, he did a lot of his own research about how implementing healthy lifestyle choices can reverse the curse of bad health. Before his diagnosis, Dr. Nagula was eating a diet full of processed, packaged, frozen and canned foods. To change the course of his health, he went back to the basics of nutrition and learned the importance of fueling his body with organic, non-gmo, whole-food nutrition. He eliminated ALL processed foods and alcohol from his diet and only ate organic, non-gmo, nutrient-dense foods. He started focusing on whole food nutrition and incorporated TONS of organic fruit and vegetables to provide his body with the phytonutrients that he hadn’t gotten before.

Dr. Nagula’s Book: From Doctor to Patient: Healing Cancer Through Mind, Body, and Spirit

In addition to healing his body with proper nutrition and lifestyle choices, Dr. Nagula started   healing his body through mind and spirit exercises. He learned HOW to optimize the mind and reduce stress and anxiety through mindfulness exercises. Mindfulness helps us live in the moment! When we live in the moment, we can eliminate ALL aspects of fear and anxiety from the mind to be truly centered and experience complete peace of mind (even in a time of crisis!)

Recommendations on Incorporating In-Mind Body Exercises

Dr. Nagula recommends practicing mindfulness with in-mind body exercises. Some of these exercises may include yoga, tai-chi and breathing patterns. However, he says that breathing exercises are the quickest and most efficient way to change our state of mind. Breathing is the one thing we can do consciously AND unconsciously to directly control our fight or flight responses.

There are two ways we breathe: Chest breathing or diaphragm breathing. Chest breathing is NOT the ideal form of breathing as these breaths are very quick and shallow; they are similar to how we would breath in a fight or flight response. On the other hand, diaphragm breathing is the ideal form of breathing as these breaths require mindfulness! To practice breathing from your diaphragm, tense up your belly, contract your navel in, and take a deep breath WHILE still holding the navel in. 

How to Practice Box Breathing:

Dr. Nagula recommends incorporating box breathing into your everyday health routine to practice mindfulness and reduce stress, fear and anxiety. To practice box breathing: 

• Inhale for a count of four

• Hold your breath for a count of four

• Exhale on a count of four

• Hold the exhale for a count of four

• Repeat

Repeat this pattern of breathing for 3-5 minutes, once a day OR however is needed to help you feel centered in the moment and reduce any stress and anxiety. When we focus on our breathing and where it goes, we can reduce the chatter in the brain and bring our minds to peace; not worrying about what tomorrow holds, but focusing on the present moment! With this practice, you can actually TEACH your mind to stay focused and not wander!

The importance of lifestyle choices and mindfulness in the current crisis: 

Amanda reminds the FASTer Way community that the three most important aspects to health and wellness are intermittent fasting, whole food nutrition and community. These aspects are so important, now more than ever, as we are in the middle of the COVID-19 outbreak.

We know it can be hard to keep in community with those around us as we are in a period of quarantine and social distancing. But remember, social distancing does not mean social isolation! 

Right now, we can maintain social relationships by getting on the phone to call a friend,  organizing conference calls with members of our community or hopping on zoom calls with family members and relatives. Rather than feeling defeated and disconnected, use this time as an opportunity to connect and reconnect in a different way with your loved ones! We can also choose to focus on whole food nutrition and fuel our bodies with the nutrients it needs, to stay healthy and thrive during this time.

The Importance of Detoxing 

Dr. Nagula recommends that healthy lifestyle choices are THE MOST important aspect during this time, especially for those in cancer remission who are looking to boost resilience and immunity. He says that focusing on healthy lifestyle choices during the period of remission, as well as ridding the body of unnecessary toxins, including more organic whole foods AND not going back to old lifestyle choices, is the best course of action to take.

This upcoming April, the FASTer Way VIP community will start incorporating some of these same detox elements Dr. Nagula recommended, to heal our bodies and focus on ideal health. We will focus on eliminating toxins from our diet, incorporating organic, non-gmo food products AND practicing mindfulness exercises to mitigate stress. It is so important, now more than ever before, to focus on achieving ideal health.

We will continue to dial in on making healthy lifestyle choices and focusing on whole food, organic nutrition. Eat as if your life depended on it, and feed your children as if their lives depended on it, as well! (Because it DOES!) 

FASTer Way family, we want to empower you to GET WELL and STAY WELL in this time, to prevent future disease and fulfill your purpose with energy! Focus on establishing a healthy lifestyle and be more mindful of the choices you make. We want to see you take that first step to creating a healthy lifestyle! Join us in the FASTer Way community as we thrive through this time of crisis, together. There’s never been a more important time than NOW to take action on your health. We are here for you! 

You can find more information and resources from Dr. Nagula, as well as his book, “From Doctor to Patient: Healing Cancer Through Mind, Body, and Spirit,” online at https://fromdoctortopatient.com/.

A Conversation with Microbiologist Kiran Krishnan regarding COVID-19

Although we know COVID-19 is highly contagious, we’re still learning about the illness, how it seems to be spreading, and how it’s not affecting every region in the same way. Microbiologist Kiran Krishnan joined Amanda on the FASTer Way podcast to talk about why this is and what we can do to protect our health. Listen to the full episode below or continue reading for a summary of their fascinating conversation!

The Symptoms of COVID-19 No One Is Talking About

We’re all familiar with the general symptoms that can take anywhere from 2–14 days to appear: fever, cough, shortness of breath. You may even feel a scratchy throat or dry, barking cough. These are symptoms driven by the virus itself. What most people don’t know is that there can be other symptoms caused by our immune response to the virus! 

Immune response symptoms (when the body’s immune system causes a reaction in response to the virus) occur in 53% of cases and can result in loose stool (diarrhea), cramping, or gut pain. 

It’s important to be on the lookout for both sets of symptoms, and if you notice them but aren’t sure if it’s COVID-19, just act as though you have it. Stay put at home.

How Does a Virus Work?

A virus is a very simple organism. It’s essentially a packet of genetic material—a fatty envelope that carries some RNA in it. It can’t even reproduce by itself, it relies on a host cell for that (in other words, our cells). Once a virus enters the body, it will find a susceptible cell and insert its genetic material. That genetic material has codes in it that take over the cell’s reproduction machinery. Simply put, it hijacks our cells in order to reproduce.

Our cells have something called ACE2 receptors, which are expressed in people with chronic inflammation or any kind of tissue damage. The ACE2 receptor system is the ant-inflammatory repair system in the body. These ACE2 receptors are where the virus enters the cell and takes over to begin multiplying in the body.

At this point, the immune system begins to recognize cells that look a little bit different, but because they’ve never seen this virus and we have no immunity to it, it takes time for our bodies to figure out what is. That’s why it can take up to two weeks to start experiencing symptoms! The trouble is, even if we’re asymptomatic, we’re still contagious if we have the virus. That’s why COVID-19 is so highly contagious—most people are spreading it to others days before they know they have it.

What To Do If You’re Sick

The seasonal cold and flu are much more prevalent right now than COVID-19. It’s also the start of allergy season for many people. The hard part is, all of these have similar symptoms. The safest thing to do is act as though you have COVID-19 no matter what kind of illness you’re experiencing. Isolate yourself as much as you can with the people you’ve already been around (because if you have it, they already have it—no need to further isolate within your home). Don’t go out. 

If you do have COVID-19, most of the symptoms aren’t a concern. The time to call your doctor is if you begin to experience shortness of breath. Do NOT go into the doctor or ER, call first. There are even COVID-19 hotlines you can call, search Google for your state’s number.

It’s Not Just Affecting Older People–Here’s Why

Younger Americans are proving to be more susceptible to COVID-19 than their counterparts in China and South Korea. And there’s a reason for it.

COVID-19 was branded as an older person’s condition because in China, the ones being hospitalized were typically over 65. In the US, we’re seeing a lot of 18–49-year-olds being hospitalized. New York reported that more than 50% of COVID-19 hospitalizations are people under 50.

And the reason? It all goes back to those ACE2 receptors on our cells. Remember, they’re expressed in people with chronic inflammation—which is much of our younger population. This includes people with poor diets (which tend to be highly inflammatory), plus those with diabetes, asthma, allergies, and autoimmune disorders.

Good Gut Health Is Key to Reducing Inflammation

About 80% of our immune tissue is in the gut, which means keeping the gut healthy is essential to improving resilience, as there is no treatment yet for COVID-19.

Tips to Improve Gut Health

• Practice intermittent fasting (great for cellular health)

• Whole-food diet (also supports cellular health)

• Moderate exercise (30-minute workouts are perfect)

• Spore-based probiotics (especially after antibiotics)

The best thing every one of us can do is to improve our health! The FASTer Way to Fat Loss teaches intermittent fasting, whole-food nutrition, and moderate exercise because it is our MISSION to help people get well, prevent disease, and fulfill their purpose with energy! Click here to learn more!

Boosting Your Immune System Naturally to Fight COVID-19 with DR. Amy Shah

Social media is passing around tons of misinformation and conflicting reports now regarding the Coronavirus. It seems like every day there’s a new miracle drug that will boost your immune system and keep you from being part of the outbreak. The reality: there is no quick fix.

But there are ways you can boost your immunity naturally to help your body fight this type of virus through nutrition and supplements, says Dr. Amy Shah. This is especially important for those who are immunodeficient or have underlying conditions.

Dr. Shah joined us for our most recent podcast episode to give her take on the pandemic and what’s she’s telling her family. Listen below.

When It Comes to Miracle Immune Drugs, Don’t Believe the Internet

Wouldn’t it be awesome if there was a magic fixer you could get in a bottle? Despite what the internet tells you, no such formula exists.

Boosting your immune system is all about:

·        Gut health

·        Reducing stress

·        Getting enough rest via intermittent fasting and sleep

·        Giving your body nutrients

But if you look at the current nutrition landscape, you’ll find tons of companies looking to capitalize on fear right now and convince you they have something that can protect you against COVID-19.

Instead of looking for a quick fix, zero in on whole foods, rest and exercise. Building your own immune system to fight disease will do more for you in the long run anyway.

Sugar Is Bad for Your Immune System

Sugar is inflammatory, especially white, processed sugar. It drives up insulin and glucose, leading to insulin resistance. It also makes your cells less likely to take in sugar when they truly need it, stressing your body out.

This doesn’t mean avoid it all together. In natural fruits, for instance, it can be perfectly fine. But grabbing a cola during lunch, loading up your coffee or eating too many desserts creates sugar spikes that can compromise your immune system.

How Does Intermittent Fasting Help You?

By now, you’ve probably forgotten what it was like to have lots of guests. But go back to just a few weeks ago when social distancing wasn’t a hashtag. You needed time to clean your home, take out the garbage, get mentally ready, do what you needed to do. 

Your body is the same way. It needs breaks. 

Each cell has a clock inside that schedules time for clean up. Intermittent fasting answers that clock, giving our bodies the ability to rest and build back up again. It’s a natural cycle that builds a healthy foundation.

What’s the Deal with Elderberry?

This is a trending topic right now and there is a lot of misinformation about this supplement going around. Elderberry is long known for its health benefits as a natural supplement. But supplements are extra.

When we get sick, cytokines travel through the body and sound the alarm when there’s a virus or other intruder. Elderberry works by increasing the cytokine storm (the overall alarm response). Increasing the signals in our body is a good thing. But this particular virus is a little different. Instead of the typical storm that comes with the flu, the Coronavirus seems to be creating a tornado. That creates an overload of information even without elderberry’s assistance. Adding more can create volatility and damage to our organs. Anything that ups that signal response can be unhealthy.

COVID-19 is so new, we are still gathering information and creating a strategy. It’s best to practice caution and look to supplements like elderberry in moderation.

What Supplements Are Helpful?

·        Vitamin D3

·        Vitamin C

·        Prebiotics and probiotics

The Truth About Ibuprofen

Reports are suggesting that ibuprofen is a bad idea right now, but that recommendation only applies to patients who tested positive for COVID-19. If that’s the case, doctors are recommending using acetaminophen, or Tylenol. The truth is if you haven’t been diagnosed with the Coronavirus, it’s perfectly fine.

Don’t forget, the FASTer Way community is here to help you! It’s a challenging time, but you can lead your family with faith and perseverance. When you sign up for the FASTer Way to Fat Loss program, we support you with tons of information based on science to get your body in balance and prepared to take on whatever life throws at you.

Check out our blog for more Coronavirus tips, including ways to handle stress and anxiety or advice for working from home.

Find Dr. Shah at amymdwellness.com

COVID-19 Update with Dr. Stephen Cabral

Staying informed during the Coronavirus pandemic – two thumbs up.

Panicking over every bit of news on TV, radio and social media – two thumbs down.

With so many conflicting reports about risk levels, symptoms and prevention measures, we at the FASTer Way wanted to sit down with Dr. Stephen Cabral to sort through all the blah. Remember, there are three ways to address a crisis: Panic and fear, confusion and apathy and calm leadership. Guess which one we recommend? Leaders never waste a moment to lead.

With that in mind, Kareen sat down with Dr. Stephen Cabral to talk about the coronavirus pandemic. Symptoms the media is not talking about, how the virus spreads, and the best ways to protect your family. Here are the key takeaways. You can listen below or continue reading.

WHAT DOES PANDEMIC MEAN?

Pandemic just means widespread rather than contained to a certain area. The reason why it’s starting to be used is because it affects most continents in the world. The last time we considered something to be a pandemic was the Spanish Flu in 1918 with a mortality rate of about 1-3%, which is what we face today. While there have been other global health scares like SARS and H1N1, we haven’t seen something that rises to the level medical professionals believe the Coronavirus could get to.

WHAT IS THE CURRENT SITUATION IN ITALY AND CHINA?

This isn’t exactly news, but the two countries are going in different directions. Italy has been in lockdown for the last few weeks as it tries to grapple with a higher mortality rate than other parts of the globe. China is beginning to see improvement and new diagnosis fall every day. Every other country is somewhere in between. However, despite the grim numbers circulating around, it’s estimated the actual infection rate is about 10x the reported numbers, which is a good thing. That means the mortality rate across the globe is probably closer to 1%.

WHY ARE THERE SO MANY CONFLICTING STORIES OVER SYMPTOMS?

This is a topic that has been all over the place. Celebrities and sports figures who have tested positive are reporting mild symptoms to no symptoms at all. Other reports say younger people are at a very low risk for serious complications.

The truth is the Coronavirus can affect anyone at any age, but many people under the age of 30 will have no symptoms at all, so they won’t suffer from fever, cough, fatigue or trouble breathing. Young people are carriers pass it along unknowingly to others who are more at risk. Those are the people who tend to have the greatest complications.

Older people have less natural killer cell activity so they’re not able to destroy those virus cells with their mucus membranes because it’s much thinner. And they are typically more run down and have less basic nutrients such as Vitamin A, Vitamin D, etc.

Simply put, their bodies are less able to ward off disease.

THE MAIN RECOMMENDATIONS

Yes, Dr. Cabral believes everyone should be hand washing and hot water and soap IS enough to kill the virus. But the problem is, it’s not really spread by hand to hand contact. It spreads when the virus penetrates your skin or if you touch your eyes, nose, ears or mouth. That’s the most likely way it will enter your body.

But the best measure you can take is keep your hands off your face. That means minimal touching of your mouth, nose, eyes and ears.

Again, washing your hands IS a recommended step, as is household vinegars, peroxide and disinfectant.

CAN IT LIVE ON SURFACES?

It’s important to keep surfaces clean because, contrary to some news circulating, COVID-19 can live on surfaces for about 72 hours. Some are different like copper, which can hold the virus for about four hours, but in general, surfaces hold it for about 72 hours.

CAN I GET IT FROM FOOD?

Here’s the good news. Food is not a carrier. Nor are vitamins, supplements or anything else you take to support your health and wellness.

The benefit of the FASTer Way program is you can follow your meal plans, you can do your workouts from home and you can stay safe. With so many gyms closing down, the FASTer Way provides digital workout and meal plans to keep your body moving.

BUILD YOUR FOUNDATION FIRST

A lot of talk has centered around elderberry syrup and the cytokine storm, or hypercytokinemia. To make it simple, TH1 and TH2 part to the immune system. TH1 is used for acute based illnesses like viruses, etc. It increases cytokines to help destroy pathogens in the body. Elderberry does increase cytokines, Lukens and white blood cells. This helps the fight against the flu virus. What people AREN’T speaking about is elderberry itself coats the virus and doesn’t let it replicate. We don’t know that it works against COVID-19, but we know it works against the common flu. What we need to do is look at other foods and supplements that increase TH1.

Elderberry is not a foundational piece in treatment if you believe you have COVID-19, but it’s a good recommendation to use beforehand to boost your immune system and help ward off disease. But again, it’s just an extra. You should also be taking all of your daily foundational vitamins and supplements detailed in the podcast.

WHAT IS DR. CABRAL’S RECOMMENDED ROUTINE TO BOOST YOUR IMMUNITY?

Tune into the podcast and find out.

Our mission is to prevent disease. We truly believe we are going to come out stronger. Stick close with our FASTer Way community. We want to be our one-stop shop. Your resource. We want to be that place you can go to feel connected.

You can come here to boost your immunity and continue your workouts. We’re going to continue to publish blog posts and podcasts. We’re going to connect with you via text. We don’t want you to feel like you’re going through this alone and we don’t want you to be glued 24/7 to the TV or radio. We want you to stay positive.

Why Community Matters

More and more, we’re recognizing that communities are powerful places that help people feel a sense of belonging, provide support, and even help us reach our goals more successfully. If you’ve wondered why community matters, the research is in—it’s better for everyone!

Jim Rohn famously said, “You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.”

What does that have to do with your wellness goals? Well, as it turns out, quite a lot.

Community isn’t often a major consideration of people looking to achieve certain goals, whether it be health, business, educational, or financial aspirations. That would be a mistake though, as we see more and more evidence that a strong community is a contributing factor to our success.

As humans, we need to belong to something bigger than ourselves. This belonging gives us connection, helps us form relationships, and often provides a greater sense of purpose. Communities offer support, encouragement, resources, and keep us more engaged.

Is it any wonder then, that when we join a community of supportive, like-minded people who are working toward the same goals we are, that we are much more likely to succeed over the long term?

We spoke with Mike Ritter on the FASTer Way Podcast, and he confirmed our thoughts. Community—and the lack thereof—has had a major impact on his health journey. Mike started out as an athlete with a consistent and disciplined schedule, but when he lost that community and structure and was inserted into a new environment, his friends changed, his habits changed, and he gained about 60 pounds.

This is a common problem for both men and women, but men are often slower to connect with a new community. Mike has worked with a lot of male clients in his practice as a certified personal trainer, and functional diagnostic nutrition practitioner, and a fitness coach. He’s observed that men are reluctant to connect because they tend to adopt the “hero mentality.” They don’t want to appear vulnerable and weak, which really results in feeling isolated.

The answer is seeking out a community that will support you, encourage you, and stick with you for the long term. That’s exactly why we created the FASTer Way VIP Membership communities for men and women. It’s a safe place to ask questions, celebrate wins, seek encouragement, and stay accountable.

Living without community is a dark place for many people, and as Mike told us in his interview, “Whatever you hide in the dark grows and controls you. Whatever you shine the light… loses its power. It loses power mostly when you shine the light on it with a group of people.”

We couldn’t agree more!

What Your Doctor Didn’t Tell You About Birth Control

Birth control is a hot topic, especially when it comes to hormones and IUDs. Most women choose their birth control based on their doctor’s recommendation, but when doctors don’t fully educate their patients, it’s not an informed decision… one that can have unexpected consequences. Find out what your doctor didn’t tell you about birth control.

Birth control is a topic that affects nearly every family at some point, but it’s not a topic that gets much public discussion. In fact, from what our FASTer Way clients tell us, it seems most doctors don’t take the time to educate their patients about the potential risks or negative side effects that may be caused by hormonal birth control. That makes it impossible to make an informed decision, which is really what most women want.

Holistic health and sex expert Jess Brassington joined Amanda on the FASTer Way Podcast to talk about this important topic. Listen in (or keep reading!) to learn what synthetic hormones are actually doing to your body and what you can do about it. 

Jess Brassington entered the holistic health world about 10 years ago. She decided at that time that she needed to become an advocate for her own health. She began looking for ways to live life in a less processed way and started her journey toward a holistic health approach. She is now a holistic health coach, a certified sex educator, and a sex and intimacy coach.

Jess talks to many clients about sex and sexual health. This can be a hard topic for a lot of people to approach because so many of us were raised either not talking about sex or associating sex with shame. Jess’s mission is to help others take control of their health on a more holistic level, including sexual health and birth control.

She joined us on the podcast to talk about hormonal birth control and what it’s actually doing to our bodies. Most doctors don’t give this information to their patients, and we’ve heard from hundreds of FASTer Way clients that this lack of information has had a major negative impact on their health and their lives. We want women everywhere to make informed decisions about their health!

What Your Doctor Didn’t Tell You About Birth Control

This topic affects nearly all women at some point in their lives, but we are surprisingly uninformed by our conventional doctors about what hormonal birth control is actually doing to our bodies.

Amanda Tress, founder and CEO of the FASTer Way to Fat Loss, was pushed by her doctor to get the Mirena IUD. This OBGYN also told Amanda there were no known side effects (which, according to the manufacturer, isn’t true! Click here to view Bayer’s list of possible side effects).

Amanda’s Symptoms on Mirena

• Compromised immune system (sick for 7 weeks)

• Heart palpitations

• Chest pains

• Less stress effective

• Burnout

• Depression

• Less motivated

• Anemic

• Weeks of spotting

Additional Mirena Symptoms Reported by our FASTer Way Community 

• Extreme Anger/Rage

• Abnormal lack of patience

• Anxiety

• Social withdrawal

• Migraines

• Low libido

• Cystic acne

• Hair loss

• Weight gain

• Brain fog

• Increased midsection fat

Amanda’s functional medicine doctor has even seen some extreme cases where women lose their ability to see or walk!

Not every woman experiences these symptoms in conjunction with a hormonal IUD, but many women do—we’ve heard from hundreds JUST in our FASTer Way community!

Does the Science Support the Symptoms?

Amanda has her blood work done at regular intervals, so it was easy to compare her results before and after the Mirena (which she had removed after about five months after placement).

According to her doctor, Amanda’s hormones were abnormally low across the board after the Mirena. Testosterone, estrogen, progesterone—even her white blood cell count—were all extremely low. At 33 years old, she was in an induced menopausal state. 

What’s Happening in the Body?

Hormonal birth control changes your sex hormone levels, which most people probably expect, but it has a BIG impact on the body, which most people may not expect. For example, progesterone is called “nature’s chill pill” and when it’s suppressed, you’re prone to stress going up, your anxiety going up, and you might feel tired all the time. Jess told us that a friend confided in her, “I can’t be the mom I want to be.” When she stopped the synthetic hormones, her symptoms subsided almost immediately.

Ovulation is the 5th Vital Sign

Ovulation is now recognized as the fifth vital sign, after body temperature, blood pressure, heart rate, and respiratory rate. Ovulation is a sign of health and it’s important for women to ovulate regularly—even if they aren’t planning to conceive a child. According to Jess, “You’re basically cutting off the communication between your brain and your ovaries when you take hormonal birth control.”

“You don’t want to keep managing symptoms and not get to the root cause.”

-Jess Brassington

Coming Off of Hormonal Birth Control

Coming off of hormonal birth control may seem straightforward, but eliminating synthetic hormones is only part of the equation. Many women report that they feel an immediate difference after cessation or removal, but many also report that they don’t—they feel a very gradual improvement that sometimes takes years

It’s important to know that when you come off of birth control, even if you feel great at first, things can change around six months. This is when your body begins to detox from those synthetic hormones. You could start experiencing symptoms such as anxiety, depression, Hashimoto’s, hyperthyroidism. 

Jess’s best advice is to listen to your body AND find a doctor who will listen to you. “If you can’t go to your doctor with anything and everything about your body, find a new physician.”

Options for Non-Hormonal Birth Control?

Fertility awareness (also called Natural Family Planning, the Sympto-Thermal Method, the Ovulation Method, and the Billings Method) does not require any drugs or devices. Using your basal body temperature, cervical mucus, and tracking your cycles to determine ovulation, you’ll know when you’re most likely to get pregnant and can either abstain or use a barrier method (like condoms).

Parting words from Jess

Give your physical and mental health the attention they need. Get your head right and your body will follow. It’s important to get all these areas right and to be able to talk about it with your partner.

Further Reading about hormones, birth control, and ovulation:

• Beyond the Pill: A 30-Day Program to Balance Your Hormones, Reclaim Your Body, and Reverse the Dangerous Side Effects of the Birth Control Pill

• The Fifth Vital Sign: Master Your Cycles & Optimize Your Fertility

• This Is Your Brain on Birth Control: The Surprising Science of Women, Hormones, and the Law of Unintended Consequences

• Period Guru @JennaLongoriaHealth on Instagram (tell her Unprocessed Jess sent you!)

You can find Jess online at UnprocessedJess.com or at her podcast Naked Talk With Jess.

How Tiny Habits Lead to Big Changes

There are a lot of myths surrounding habits and how to use them to improve your life. The real key to success is forming tiny habits that lead to big changes.

Have you ever heard that it takes 21 days to create a new habit? Or that repetition creates habits? Or even that more motivation is all you need to stick to new habits?

There’s good news—these are all myths! These (and many other) habit myths have held countless people back from making simple changes that can lead to big results.

We recently invited Dr. BJ Fogg to chat with us on The FASTer Way Podcast all about how tiny habits lead to big changes, and he shared truly insightful information that’s literally changing lives. Listen to the full episode here:

TINY HABITS

The fastest way to see BIG changes is through tiny efforts. This may sound counterintuitive, but research shows that it’s much more effective than trying to make big changes all at once. 

If you’re trying to set a new habit, this means making one small change that you can make into a regular habit that doesn’t take a lot of thought effort. In fact, Dr. Fogg suggests scaling back habits so they’re super tiny.

For example, if you want to create a habit of flossing every day, the goal shouldn’t be to floss your entire mouth every night before bed, it should be to floss ONE tooth. You can always do more than that, but don’t change the goal of the habit, just consider it extra credit if you go above and beyond.

Keep the habit alive by keeping it super tiny. If the behavior is easy to do, you don’t need a lot of motivation, and if tiny habits are easy, motivation swings won’t derail the habit.

B=MAP

Dr. Fogg’s behavior model says that behavior is made up of three things: motivation, ability, and prompt. 

B = MAP

This is a universal model that applies to all ages and cultures and works for starting OR stopping behaviors or creating habits.

Here’s how it works: motivation goes up and down over time. If it’s hard to do, it requires high levels of motivation—so if motivation sags, you won’t do it. If it’s easy to, you’ll keep doing it. You’re building skills of change, motivation, momentum, and increasing your ability to do harder things. 

Success Momentum

Rather than doing one big thing once, do small things lots of times. This gives you lots of small opportunities for success, which is actually more important than one opportunity for larger success.

It may seem trivial to think in these terms, but you feel almost as successful with tiny achievements as you do with one big one, so give yourself lots of little wins by making those tiny changes!

“It’s the frequency of success, not the size of success, that matters.”

-Dr. BJ Fogg

The Pearl Habit

A “pearl habit” is a great tool that can change your mindset quickly, especially if you’re trying to promote a positive habit change.

You can form a pearl habit by taking something that’s irritating you and use it as a reminder or prompt for something positive.

For example, if someone cuts you off in traffic, say to yourself, “Everyone is doing the best they can do. No one is trying to screw up.” It shifts the mindset and helps remove the anger toward the annoying thing or person. You can use this in any situation where the negative habit is caused by something out of your control.

Promoting New Habits

Some habits are best changed if you can do it as a family or household. This matters most with:

• Nutrition

• Sleep

• Media consumption

• Stress management

The people we live with have a huge impact on us in these areas, so if you can make the effort to set tiny habits together, you’ll see better results! Because we all know what happens when someone breaks out the chips and you’re in the corner trying to eat kale. The chips usually win, right? When you’re all working toward the same tiny habits, no one has to feel deprived or frustrated.

Keep It Positive

The best change comes when you feel successful, not when you feel guilty or threatened. Celebrate your wins, and make sure you’re winning often so you can keep building on that success! 

Dr. Fogg’s book Tiny Habits is out Dec 31, 2019. Be sure to pick up a copy so you can dive into the details of making tiny habits work in your life. Visit tinyhabits.com/book for more information! To learn more about Dr. Fogg and his research, visit bjfogg.com or connect on Instagram @bjfogg.

A Better Way to Treat Cancer: Exercise Oncology

Exercise during cancer treatment is one of the most powerful ways to aid in recovery and get better faster. Exercise oncology is an emerging field when it comes to treating cancer, but the results are nothing short of incredible!

Karen Wonders, PhD of the Maple Tree Cancer Alliance is on a mission to help patients work out during cancer treatment because it helps with every aspect of their recovery. The problem is, most oncologists aren’t prescribing it and most cancer patients don’t even know exercising with cancer is an option.

Love podcasts? Listen to the full episode below.

That’s where MTCA comes in! They specialize in helping people with cancer improve their quality of life by providing free individualized exercise training and nutrition counseling. Patients can utilize these services during treatment and in remission (because they still deal with the effects, even in remission) and exercise can help alleviate those cancer symptoms.

“If you were to take the benefits of exercise and put them in a pill, it would be a miracle drug.”

It may seem counterintuitive to exercise during an intense illness, especially when rest is so heavily promoted as part of treatment, but the science shows major benefits of maintaining fitness during cancer treatment. If you’ve ever heard that increased blood flow will spread cancer cells, rest assured that this is NOT true! In fact, if you look at all of the negative side effects of cancer, exercise helps to relieve every single one of them. 

Let’s talk about two of the big symptoms.

Fatigue: this is a BIG one. Fatigue during cancer treatment is different from feeling exhausted. This is a consuming whole-body fatigue that makes even the simplest tasks (like eating) seem impossible. But the good news is, research shows that activity, even a 5-minute walk, can boost your energy levels. 

Cardiotoxicity: when the chemotherapy drugs get into your system, they enlarge the heart (we’re talking about a disease state) and it loses its pumping effectiveness. Exercise strengthens the heart and makes it as though the heart had never been exposed to chemotherapy!

Other benefits of exercise during cancer treatment include:

• improved muscular strength

• improved pulmonary function

• improved kidney function

• improved liver function

• decreased depression & anxiety 

• improved sleep

A cancer diagnosis can feel completely overwhelming, so if that’s where you are right now, just remember Maple Tree’s motto: something is always better than nothing.

Can’t cancer patients just work out on their own?

Exercise Oncology isn’t a regular workout regimen. You won’t see high-intensity interval workouts or heavy strength training. This is a program unique to the individual—it’s a very individualized, customized approach. Within exercise oncology, there is no one-size-fits-all answer. MTCA has broken it down into different phases to use as a guide when creating customized plans for each patient.

The Phases of Cancer Treatment

These phases help determine where each patient is in their recovery. A fitness test is done at the beginning and end of each phase. 

Phase 1: The patient is undergoing intense treatment like chemo or radiation (or both). Fatigue and nausea are prominent issues. Immune function is prioritized, lowering exercise intensity when necessary. 

Phase 2: The patient has completed chemo/radiation (or didn’t need it). A little higher intensity. The goal is to increase strength and help them maintain a normal life (as much as possible).

Phase 3: By the end of Phase 3, the goal is to be in an apparently healthy status (in other words, in remission from cancer).

Phase 4: The patient is in remission. They receive one-on-one personal training with the goal of staying in remission (for many types of cancers, the more active you are during remission, the more likely you are to stay in remission).

Nutrition

There’s a frustrating lack of nutritional direction in the oncology world. Some oncologists tell their patients to eat whatever they want—including junk food! Here at the FASTer Way (and at Maple Tree!) we believe nutrition is key to any healthy lifestyle. We completely agree with Karen Wonders, who said in our interview, “FOOD IS MEDICINE.”

Karen believes in whole-food nutrition, Intermittent Fasting, and a plant-based lifestyle. There are so many benefits when patients adopt a vegan diet and eliminate sugar and processed food!

Intermittent Fasting and Cancer

Many cancer patients want to know if they can practice Intermittent Fasting while undergoing cancer treatment. While research in the cancer population is limited, all the research so far is very positive! Listen to your body, but don’t be afraid to try Intermittent Fasting (while making sure to fuel properly!),

How to approach loved ones who have been diagnosed with cancer

This can be tricky because everyone is different. While there is no one-size-fits-all answer, there are some good guidelines to follow when trying to support a loved one after their cancer diagnosis.

What should we say and what should we NOT say?

You know your loved one, do your best to read the person. If they’re open and asking questions and want help, then help! If they don’t want your opinion, only offer help if it’s asked. Be ready to share, but don’t further burden them with information they aren’t ready for—or don’t need or want.

Cancer can feel overwhelming so offer your loved one some quick wins. 

These quick wins may include: 

• scheduling a walk with them 

• arranging for meal delivery

• encouraging them with a quick text

• helping when you can—do they have young kids you can watch? 

• withholding opinions if they don’t want/aren’t ready for them

• creating a care package (fluffy blanket, fuzzy socks, etc.)

Resources you *may* consider passing onto loved ones battling cancer:

• The American College of Sports Medicine Exercise Oncology textbook

• The Maple Tree Cancer Alliance blog (with new articles weekly)

Want to do more to help individuals with cancer? Become a Certified Maple Tree Exercise Oncology Instructor! This certification is for those with:

• a current NCCA-accredited fitness professional certification

• or a college degree in a health-related field

• or you’re in your final semester of course work for a health-related college degree

If you are a FASTer Way to Fat Loss Certified Coach, you are eligible for an exclusive discount with the code fasterway.

Less than 5% of cancer patients are exercising, but Maple tree is on a mission to make exercise part of the standard of care for cancer. They’re growing quickly with 17 current locations and about 20 more planned in 2020! Please check the map for current locations.

Find Maple Tree Cancer Alliance online:

• MTCA Website

• Instagram 

• Facebook

If you’d like to assist more patients in receiving cancer exercise care, please consider donating through the Maple Tree website! 

Learn more about Intermittent Fasting:

• Why Intermittent Fasting is Necessary for Optimal Health

• Intermittent Fasting: Fad or Fact?

• Intermittent Fasting FAQs

Will Coffee Break Your Fast?

It’s a hot topic in the world of Intermittent Fasting: will coffee break your fast? We invited Dr. Stephen Cabral to share his insights with us on our FIRST EPISODE of the brand-new FASTer Way Podcast! We are beyond excited to bring you this incredible resource for upper-level information about all things health, wellness, fitness, nutrition, and so much more! 

Dr. Cabral is a naturopathic doctor, Ayurvedic doctor, functional medicine and integrative health practitioner, and Intermittent Fasting expert; naturally, we wanted to gain his insights about coffee and fasting!

It’s one of the most frequently asked questions we get from our FASTer Way clients, Will Coffee Break My Fast?

And the answer to that is, it depends. 

We get it, this isn’t a very helpful answer for understanding right now if you can drink coffee without breaking your fast, but luckily there IS a way to find out without going to a doctor for testing.

But first, let’s find out why coffee may or may not break your fast.

It all starts with hormones. When the body is stressed, it releases cortisol (also known as the “stress hormone”), and the only way to cut cortisol is with carbohydrates, so the body will release glucose (sugar!) into the bloodstream. If there’s glucose available, the body will use it for energy rather than tapping into fat stores—even if you are still fasting.

So, what does that have to do with coffee? 

Well, a lot, actually. When you drink a cup of coffee, even if it’s black and has zero calories, it can spike your cortisol and adrenaline, which we now know will prompt the body to release glucose, the body’s go-to fuel source (if it’s available, it will get used first!).

How do you know if coffee is breaking your fast? 

Luckily, it's super simple. With an inexpensive glucometer (which you can find for about $20 on Amazon or at your local drug store), test your blood about 30 minutes after drinking your coffee. If your number is above one hundred, you’ve spiked your blood sugar from the coffee. This may only last for an hour or so, maybe less, but it’s important to know that you’ll be pulled out of your fat-burning state.

Another (less scientific) sign that coffee may be breaking your fast if you need coffee to start your day. This is a sign of adrenal fatigue, a condition in which the adrenals can’t produce enough of the hormones you need, especially norepinephrine and cortisol. The adrenals need a boost, and caffeine is the kick that makes them produce more of those hormones you need. 

What can I do if coffee spikes my blood sugar?

If black coffee spikes your blood sugar and you suspect you’re dealing with adrenal fatigue, then please get tested by your naturopath or functional medicine doctor and pursue treatment under their guidance. 

Connect with Dr. Cabral by visitng stephencabral.com or equilibriumnutrition.com, listen to his podcast here, or follow him on Instagram.

To learn more about

• Micronutrients (can we actually get them all from our diet?)

• Carbs (are they really that important?)

• Intermittent Fasting (is the 16/8 protocol best for everyone?)

• The law of diminishing returns (when it comes to IF and HIIT)

Then be sure to listen to the full episode it is packed FULL of helpful information that will give you clarity and direction for living your healthiest life!

Does coffee break YOUR fast? Tell us in the comments below!

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Show Notes

Will coffee break your fast? If this question is holding you back from trying Intermittent Fasting, then don’t miss today’s episode so you can feel confident that you’re getting the most out of your fasting window!

Dr. Stephen Cabral is a naturopathic doctor and an expert in Intermittent Fasting. In this episode, he and Amanda discuss IF, micronutrients, the importance of carbohydrates, and modifications to the Intermittent Fasting protocol.  

• [06:49] intro to Dr. Cabral

• [12:08] Intermittent Fasting

• [20:21] why carbs are important for hormone health

• [30:27] will coffee break your fast?

• [35:15] all about micronutrients 

• [41:49] Dr. Cabral’s best advice

• [44:05] where to find Dr. Cabral

Links mentioned in this episode:

• stephencabral.com 

• equilibriumnutrition.com 

• The Rain Barrel Effect

• Dr. Cabral on Instagram

• FASTer Way to Fat Loss