Back to Basics: The 6 Essentials for Longterm Health and Weight Loss [Ep. 114]

0:00 This is the Eat well, think well, live well podcast. I'm Lisa Salisbury, and this is episode 114 back to basics. The six essentials for longterm health and weight loss. Welcome to Eat Well, Think Well, Live Well; the podcast for women who want to lose weight, but are tired of counting and calculating all the food. I'm your host, Lisa Salsbury. I'm a certified health and weight loss coach and life coach, and most importantly a recovered chronic dieter. I'll teach you to figure out why you are eating when you aren't hungry, instead of worrying so much about what you are eating Hello, everyone.

0:41 Thanks for joining me today. I have a sort of revamped episode from something I talked to you about about a year and a half ago. So I think. Either you are new to the podcast and you're going to love this episode, or it's been a while if you're a diehard fan and it's always good to get a review of these six essentials. So let's cut through the noise. There is no single thing. That will magically transform your health overnight? No one size fits all solution. From the quick fixes to the trendy diets. Many of us have fallen into the trap of looking for that secret key.

1:24 But the truth is it's never just one thing. It's about mastering a few simple basics and doing these consistently. And he, yes, it's boring. I'm so sorry, but weight loss just isn't sexy when you do it. The old fashioned way when you do it with health in mind, when you do it without looking for the next. Quick thing. So today I want to shift your focus back to these fundamentals, the building blocks that will make the biggest difference in your health and weight loss journey. We're not talking tiny tweaks or short-lived cleanses here. We're talking about the six core practices that when done regularly. I will truly move the dial on your overall wellbeing.

2:07 Once these are in place. You'll have the foundation needed for long term success. Reed maintenance, right? Because it's not just about weight loss, it's about maintaining that weight loss. And that is what is considered long-term success. You may have seen posts and just articles and whatnot recently about how to say not spike your blood glucose while eating certain meals or. Maybe certain greens powders being touted as the, be all end, all of health. Here's the thing. Unless you have the six basics I'm going to talk about today in line. None of those other things matter. Seriously, no supplement, no food combination, no belly blaster tea will make a difference.

2:52 If you don't have these foundations in place. It's not so much eat less and move more, but it's the basics that are more foundational to overall health and wellness that will in fact, help you shed excess weight. If you have weight to lose. Once you are doing these six essential habits, 80 to 90% of the time. Then, if you want to add in something more nuanced. Go right ahead. But like they say you can't outrun about diet. Really? You can't out supplement you can't out greens powder, you can't out hack these basics. All right. Number one is sleep women. You need seven to nine hours of sleep a night.

3:34 That means that you need to give yourself at least seven and a half hours of sleep opportunity. If your needs are on the lower end for me, I know I need eight hours to function at my best, which means I really need to be in bed for eight and a half hours. If you're not familiar with sleep opportunity, it has to do with your sleep efficiency. So sleep efficiency is the amount of time. You spend sleeping, divided by the amount of time you were in bed. You want to aim for 85 to 95% sleep efficiency? Which means if you have 15 to 30 minutes on either end of your sleep to be kind of resting. Either trying to fall asleep or the waking time in the morning.

4:17 Essentially sleep opportunity is the amount of time you are spending in bed with sleep being the goal. There are thousands of reasons why sleep is important. I read the book why we sleep several years ago. I probably need to read it again because it was super impact impactful. The very first interview I ever even did on the podcast was with a sleep coach. I have several episodes dedicated, strictly to sleep. earlier this year I interviewed a board certified sleep specialist. That's Dr. Joy, John, if you want to listen to that. His book is called nobody's sleeping. The seven proven sleep strategies. Um, and that's a great episode if you need more on this topic, but truly there are too many benefits to list here.

4:58 So just briefly I'll mention the ones related To our weight loss efforts. There are hormonal impacts to our ghrelin, leptin and insulin. Which are the main hunger hormones, and those are impacted by lower sleep or poor sleep quality. But the main thing you're really going to notice is that your cravings are going to increase specifically for highly processed foods. That are higher in sugar and processed flour. You're going to be less emotionally regulated as well because when you lack sleep, The amygdala and the prefrontal cortex, don't talk to each other very well throughout the day. So essentially you have less capacity to follow through with your plan and intentions.

5:40 Now there's a couple caveats to this sleep section because I know it is. It can be really emotional as well. For those of you that are new moms are in that toddler, mom phase. Just give yourself the grace that you deserve. I know you're not sleeping seven to nine hours. I know that this is not the time for you. Do your best. It will come. For those of you in the mid lifetime where you think great. Now I have teenagers that are sleeping in and the perimenopause keeps you from sleeping at all the hot flashes, the night sweats. Again, give yourself grace. Figure out some things that work for you. A couple of things that have helped me are number one first and foremost is getting on bioidentical hormone replacement therapy.

6:24 I am no expert, nor am I a doctor. So I would just encourage you to ask your doctor if you are a candidate. It has dramatically dramatically helped my sleep. Our second core principle is protein. I have been talking more lately on the podcast about specifically what your plate should look like. I've been talking about fiber and added sugars to, but without a doubt, The first and foremost, pillar of nutrition you need to get down is every meal should include a hefty portion of protein. Prioritizing protein in your day is going to balance your hunger as well as your hormones and not just your hunger hormones, but your female hormones as well.

7:09 You will find yourself getting hungry less often when you increase your protein intake. You'll also notice your sugar cravings go down when you are getting adequate protein. If you've listened to my earlier episode on neat, N E a T N energy expenditure. You'll remember that protein has a high thermic effect. It takes more energy to digest. This means you stay full longer and your body burns more calories. Just breaking it down. So you want to aim for 25 to 40 grams per meal. If you're eating three meals a day, as I typically recommend that you do. Getting 25 to 40 grams per meal gives you 75 to 120 grams per day.

7:52 You really don't need to wait and measure your protein, though. If you were to eat four ounces of chicken, for example, that's about half a chicken breast or a generous Palm of your hand. A Palm. As typically three ounces. So maybe up to the first knuckle. So that's why I say a generous poem. Is about four ounces. So that is going to give you 30 grams of protein. If you were to include that much protein three times a day, you would be in a great range. If you are in a weight loss phase, you could do even more. Now I want to add a caveat here. A lot of times people say, I just, I can't get that much protein in and stay within like my calorie goals.

8:32 If you're counting calories or just staying within your intake goals. If we're going to talk about energy, which is the calories, it's the measurement of the energy and the food. Protein is four calories per gram. So if you're aiming for a hundred grams of protein per day, that is only 400 calories. It is not that much volume of energy to be able to include that much protein in your day. So I really want you to think about it, like. Oh, gosh, a hundred grams. That sounds like a lot of protein. Like, it sounds like a lot of volume, but when you, when you break it down and go, oh, that's really only 400 calories worth of food. It's surprising how easy it is to fit that in.

9:14 I'd like for you also to focus on complete sources of protein, which means they have all nine of the essential amino acids, which are the building blocks of your body. So these complete sources of protein include meat, fish, eggs, dairy, soy, like tofu Tempa or soy milk. quinoa buckwheat. And hemp and chia seeds. I always recommend getting your protein from animal sources first, because it's just so much more nutrient dense and it's more bioavailable, which means you absorb it better. Also, it's just really hard to get enough protein from other sources. Chia seeds, for example, pack a punch for what they are.

9:56 But in two tablespoons, you're getting just five grams of protein. You would have to eat three quarters of a cup of chia seeds to get 30 grams of protein, like in that half a chicken breast. It's just not practical. Um, just for reference too. So you can kind of visualize this two tablespoons of chia seeds is the amount in a typical recipe for chia seed pudding that then, you know, balloons up. They're like little sponges. So they expand. So you're not measuring the expanded chia seeds in three quarters of a cup, you would be measuring for protein based on the dry seeds. So things like keenwah and chia seeds are definitely supplementary to your main animal sources.

10:37 Remember, also that eggs only have about seven grams of protein per egg. So if you typically have two in one serving. You'll want to eat those in conjunction with another protein source as well. Like a piece of Turkey, sausage, or some Greek yogurt, something like that. Like I said, I don't want you going out and weighing and measuring all your protein from here on out and forever. Just think about making it a priority in your meals and you'll likely be doing enough, especially to get started. Once you have the protein down, or maybe if you're already doing great with protein. Cause you've been listening to me and you've been focusing on that. The next nutritional building block I'd love for you to tackle would be fiber. So I'm not going to get into that as a foundation today, but if you're like, I've got protein, I'm already doing that, then I want you to look at your fiber aim for at least 25 grams of fiber per day.

11:29 All right. Number three. On our basics is eating in the correct energy balance. So this is where people, again, want to go out and weigh and measure and track all their food. And you can do that if it's right for you. You know, I don't do that anymore because it did make me too anxious. After years and years of tracking, but I don't regret what I learned doing it. So it is a useful exercise. If you've never done it for a limited period of time, like say two to four weeks, just as a learning exercise, counting calories and weighing and measuring your food. Was never meant to be the way we want to live every day for the rest of our lives.

12:10 So if you aren't going to wait and track and measure, which is absolutely fine, you know, I don't encourage that. But you'll know if you're in the correct amount of food or eating in the correct energy balance for you. If you are waiting for hunger, waiting to get at least a negative three on the hunger scale before beginning to eat. And then eating just to a positive three or eating just to enough. Remember this is not full. This is just too enough using tools like the hunger scale can really help you naturally regulate how much food your body really needs. You can expect to lose about a half to one pound per week with this method. Not every week because weight loss isn't linear, but overall.

12:54 If you're wondering if you're eating in the right amount, ask yourself, could I take a 10 minute walk after this meal without feeling uncomfortable? If the answer is yes, you're probably hitting that enough goal. Another way, you know, if you're eating in the correct energy balance for you is if this scale is moving in the direction you want it to right. I know a lot of people hate to use the scale and hate to weigh themselves. So you can see if the same pair of jeans still fit. If you are maintaining your current weight. You are eating in the energy balance that maintains that weight. If you want to reduce your weight and use some onboard fat stores for energy, you'll need to reduce the energy you're bringing on board.

13:36 Reduce your intake. I know that sounds like I'm getting back to eat less, move more, but the truth is that. The laws of thermodynamics will apply. Whether you have hormone issues, whether you are not sleeping well, we still have to eat in the correct energy balance. So. Uh, there's a couple of ways that we can sort of reduce our intake. That. Are pretty easy. Number one, just truly beat a few bites behind at every meal this week and see how you feel. This can be a good test too, to see if you're eating past enough as well. You may be eating what you're used to eating and not realizing that you're getting to be past enough.

14:17 When you test it out by leaving a few bites behind, you'll be eliminating some energy you typically would bring on board. Without a lot of effort. Another fairly easy way to reduce your intake is to stop snacking between meals. Stop grabbing things on your way through the kitchen. Stop grazing. Every time you go to fill up your water. Another place you can stop. Snacking is probably after dinner. this is rarely a time you're actually physically hungry. So take a look at that time and see if this is an easy way to reduce your intake. All right. Number four. I'm all about doing the exercise you love. But we can't ignore the massive benefits of strength training.

14:57 Okay. So strength training is our fourth basic whether you're trying to lose weight or simply stay healthy. Building muscle is essential for maintaining a high quality of life as you age. A New York times article highlighted a fascinating study showing that strength training just twice a week can reduce mortality risk by 40%. Here's what it said. After adjusting for factors such as age, gender, income, education, marital status, and whether they have chronic conditions such as diabetes, heart disease, or cancer. Researchers found that people who engaged in one hour of moderate to vigorous aerobic activity a week had a 15% lower mortality risk.

15:39 Mortality risk was 27% lower for those who did three hours a week. But those who also took part in one to two strength training sessions per week had an even lower mortality risk. A full 40% lower than those who didn't exercise at all. This was roughly the difference between a non-smoker and someone with a half a pack a day habit. I thought that was like absolutely amazing. But the difference between adding in strength, training equaled the difference between being a smoker and not being a smoker. So the benefits just really go well beyond weight loss.

16:19 With strength training, it improves bone density, balance coordination reduces the risk of injury and even boosts your mental health. It's the secret sauce to stay in strong and functional. Well into your later years. So aerobic exercise is protective, but adding in strength training has a significant impact. And the reason I'm bringing this up is because the studies showed just 24% of participants did regular strength training. As opposed to 63%, who said they did aerobic workout. So we're doing fairly well more than half the majority are doing aerobic exercise, but only 24% are doing the strength training.

17:00 It's just not as common. Which is why it needs to be repeated over and over and over that we need to be doing it more. Most of us women have been afraid of weights or just not sure what to do. We've been cardio bunnies and mostly told, oh, don't lift weights. You'll get bulky. I guarantee you won't. You won't. Ultimately I think this quote from the New York times article suns that up nicely. It was from Dr. Bruce Moseley. He said you will function at a much higher level for longer. If you have good muscle strength. All right. Number five is walking. Let's talk about walking. This is separate from your dedicated workouts.

17:42 Walking is about staying active throughout the day. Simple things like walking after meals or just increasing your step count can make a big difference. Remember that episode on neat. The non-exercise activity thermogenesis. 15% of your daily energy comes from these small non-exercise activities. If you've got a fitness tracker, look at your seven day average and try increasing your steps by just 100 to 200 per day. Start small and watch your activity level gradually increased over time. The fact is women who walk more, have an easier time burning fat period. That's just the truth.

18:23 I'm not going to give you a step count number to shoot for since I don't know where you are starting because on this one, I want you to just aim for an increase from wherever you are. Okay. Just try to prioritize movement. And work on increasing a little each week. Something that I've added. And I've mentioned it a thousand times, but is that after dinner walk, I added this about a year ago. And I have really enjoyed it. I don't get out every single day. But more days than not. I take our dog on a little after dinner, sometimes 15 minutes, sometimes 30 minutes, if we're really feeling energetic and it's really helped to increase my step count.

19:03 All right. Lastly, number six is stress and mind management. This is where we talked nice to ourselves. Whatever works for you in this department that truly decreases your stress. So it could be meditation writing in a gratitude journal, doing coaching models on yourself. Getting coached by someone like me talking on the phone to your best friend. Having committed sex with your partner, yoga hot shower or bath cold plunge. If you're into that or hot tubs. Yay. That's me taking long walks. There's a thousand ways to truly decrease your stress. And I guarantee you that none of them include eating an entire tub of ice cream. Really get honest with yourself.

19:44 About what our true pleasures and stress relievers in your life and do more of those. Do last of the false pleasures, like overeating. Or over drinking or over consuming social media, the continuous scroll. Thinking that this is going to solve for your stress. I know this can be a difficult one for women in the mid lifetime. We are going every which way, often with little kids and then teenagers. And sometimes even, even aging parents. And then careers and social life. And the idea of taking something off your plate just goes out the window or even worse, adding something you want me to add a gratitude journal? Ah, But the way you manage all this stress has a huge impact on your overall health.

20:29 So I encourage you to give it some serious thought before jumping into another fad diet, that's only going to spike your stress. And leave you feeling defeated again in six weeks. Okay. Just to recap that list. We talked about sleep. Prioritizing protein. Eating the correct balance of energy for yourself. Strength training added to your aerobic training, walking and stress management. These are your core priorities. Your essentials when it comes to weight, loss and healthy living. Once you are doing these things, then we can dial in smaller nuances in your diet, or maybe in your supplement routine. You'll notice that each of these fall under my main pillars of the podcast eat well, includes the prioritizing protein and eating and the right energy balance for yourself.

21:17 I think well includes the stress and mine management. And live well includes the sleep strength, training and walking. I know it can be hard to get started. Even when I've given you just the basics here. So if you just need one first step to do. Go download my free go-to meals guide. This will help you dial in some of your basic meals. So you aren't constantly trying to come up with new things to eat, to keep you on track. I give you some examples of my go-to meals and a few recipes as well, and then a blank worksheet for you to come up with what works best for you, for your family and your schedule. Link is in the show notes. Lastly, if you don't follow me on Instagram, which I mean, why not?

21:59 But you may not know that this week is my birthday. If you want to know what I really, really would love to get for my birthday. It's a few more reviews for the podcast. So if you want to give me a little treat. And help more people discover the podcast. I'd love to get your feedback. Here's how you can do it. If you're on apple podcasts, scroll to the bottom of the show page. Tap the stars to rate and then write a few words about what you enjoy. If you're on Spotify, just tap the star icon. It's the fifth one over. To rate the show. Your support means the world to me. And I'm grateful for each and every one of you listeners have a great week. And thanks for listening to the eat. Well think, well live well podcast.