The Energy Blueprint Podcast

Today, I'm excited to introduce you to Zora Benhamou, a gerontologist who studies aging and has some unique ideas about menopause, based on research and her gerontology background.
In this episode, we discuss her take on menopause, including the fact that it's technically a one-day event! 12 consecutive months without a period lead to your "meno birth date." But perimenopause - the stage just before menopause - lasts 5 to 7 years on average (10-15 years for some women!), and that's where the most difficult symptoms can happen.
The biggest menopause myth is that it's a concern for older women, that it's something you don't need to worry about until you're 50. 
But research shows women start losing progesterone around age 35, the calming, relaxing hormone that makes you feel good. The reality is that women should ideally begin thinking about menopause decades earlier, in their 40s and 50s.

Dr. Shivani Gupta comes from a family of people with diabetes, generation by generation, where she's seen the after-effects of suffering with chronic metabolic disease. 
Her new book, The Inflammation Code (launching, distills 20 years of studying Ayurveda into simple pillars you can apply to prevent the level of inflammation and disease we see today. When people tell her, "I have brain fog, I'm tired, my sleep is off, my digestion's off, I have stubborn weight gain…I guess this is just aging," her reply is, "No, it's not aging, it's inflammaging."
We had a really excellent, in-depth conversation that covered a lot of ground, from black pepper and the blood-brain-barrier to our detox experiences in India. I hope you enjoy the podcast!
In this podcast, Dr. Gupta and I discuss:
Her study of Ayurveda, a 5,000-year-old system from India that taught us the circadian clock, modern science discovered what Ayurveda taught 5,000 years ago about living in rhythm with nature

The three doshas or constitutions of Vata (air/ether), Pitta (fire/water), and Kapha (earth/water)—understanding your constitution helps customize your self-care practices and diet

The circadian clock in Ayurveda teaches that 10:00 to 2:00 PM is Pitta (fire) time, when you're most focused and energetic, and meant to eat your biggest meal

10:00 PM to 2:00 AM is the most important time to be asleep, when Pitta fire cleans and clears inflammation, the lymphatic system, and the glymphatic system (lymphatic system of the brain)

Vata people are always in motion and prefer jobs where they don't sit still—they're endurance athletes who can run through the day on coffee, green juice, and crackers (but their homework is three square meals)

Pitta people are fiery, passionate leaders who tend to crave hot, oily, spicy fried food…but that's the one thing they shouldn't eat because their digestive fire is already like a bonfire!

Kapha people are sturdy, strong, and very grounded, but can struggle with sluggish metabolism, low mood or depression, getting stuck, or not wanting to create change

Black pepper increases curcumin absorption by 2,000%—scientists at MD Anderson Cancer Center discovered this, which is why traditional Indian cooking always uses turmeric with black pepper

What it feels like to experience a Panchakarma detox in India: "massage that feels like abuse" with paper thongs—Dr. Gupta says, "I can't believe you're allowed to do this to me and I'm paying for it" (both she and I had this experience!)

Mental inflammation is the stress we create when forcing ourselves to be healthy; if you force workouts, force protein, force intermittent fasting, the stress alone causes the inflammation you're trying to prevent

Dr. Gabrielle Lyon argues we've been focusing on the wrong idea for 50 years…the problem isn't that we're over-fat, it's that we're under-muscled. 
Skeletal muscle makes up 40% or more of your body and is an underrecognized endocrine organ that secretes myokines (signaling molecules) when contracted, impacting the brain, liver, pancreas, and truly every body system. Yet skeletal muscle wasn't even considered an organ system until about 25 years ago!
The diseases we think of as obesity-related—type 2 diabetes, Alzheimer's, cardiovascular disease—are actually diseases of skeletal muscle first, decades before symptoms appear. When Dr. Lyon asked a PCOS expert what body fat percentage contributes to infertility, the answer shocked her: "It has nothing to do with body fat percentage—it has everything to do with the fat infiltrated into the muscle, the intermuscular adipose tissue (IMAT)."
The new US Dietary Guidelines (which Dr. Lyon witnessed being announced on stage) recommend 1.2 to 1.6 grams of protein per kg for the first time in history, a tremendous change based on randomized controlled trials instead of epidemiology. Her mentor, Dr. Donald Layman, wrote the protein portion of the guidelines, and 90% of those guidelines are reflected in her new book, Forever Strong Playbook, released on January 27th of this year.

Over 30 million women in the US deal with some form of pelvic floor dysfunction…nearly 1 in 4 women. 
In this episode, I speak with Jana Danielson, founder of Lead Pilates and creator of the Cooch Ball (and no, that's not a typo!), who reveals shocking realities about the urinary incontinence product industry. 
Even though they'll top $24 billion in profit this year, 9 out of 10 people could fix incontinence if they learned to breathe correctly and stopped being such literal "tight asses" (her words, not mine).
Listen to the podcast to hear all of Jana's insights.
 
In this podcast, Jana and I discuss:
 
Why over 30 million US women deal with pelvic floor dysfunction—nearly 1 in 4 women—and the urinary incontinence product industry will top $24 billion this year

The pelvic floor can be too tight (hypertonic) or too loose (hypotonic)—too tight causes one set of symptoms, while too loose causes another

About 90% of erectile dysfunction is actually a fitness/movement issue, not medical…when pelvic floor muscles get too tight, blood flow to the penis cannot happen

There are four grades of prolapse; some grades can be completely reversed, while others require surgery. Jana explains the anatomical and energetic underpinnings of prolapse

The diaphragm is the "roof" and the pelvic floor is the "floor" of your core—doing 10-12 diaphragmatic breaths daily will wake up the pelvic floor tissues, like giving it CPR

The pudendal nerve's Latin root means "ashamed"—it's the main sensory and motor nerve from your brain to your genitals/pelvic floor in both men and women

You can do all the fancy medical spa pelvic floor contractions, but without proper breathing, your results won't last—you have to create the environment for the solution to work

When you inhale into your diaphragm, the pelvic floor is in its restful/descension phase—when you exhale, it's in its lift phase, a key distinction for pelvic floor health

Posture plays a considerable role in pelvic floor health: mechanically holding weight in an optimal position takes unnecessary stress off your pelvic floor

If you chug water rapidly, your body will excrete more of it. Sip tiny amounts throughout the day so cells absorb hydration properly and your bladder functions optimally

In this episode, I am speaking with Dr. Loretta Breuning, who is the founder of the Inner Mammal Institute. She's the author of many personal development books, including the one that I have read of hers, which I highly recommend, and found fascinating, called Habits of a Happy Brain.