2568: Tips to Keep Your Energy Consistent Throughout the Day AND 3 Ways To Improve Gut Health Naturally by Chalene Johnson

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[00:01:44] episode 2568. Tips to keep your energy consistent throughout the day and three ways to improve gut

[00:01:52] health naturally, both by Chalene Johnson of chalenejohnson.com. And I'm Dr. Neil, your very own host and narrator.

[00:02:01] Hey there, happy Monday and welcome back to Optimal Health Daily where I act as your narrator

[00:02:05] of the best health and fitness blogs all for free and always with a bit of my commentary at the end.

[00:02:11] But with that, let's get right to today's two articles and start optimizing your life. Tips to

[00:02:21] keep your energy consistent throughout the day by Chalene Johnson of chalenejohnson.com.

[00:02:28] We've all heard of it, the 3 p.m slump where your energy levels drop and everyone in the office

[00:02:33] reaches for a snack from a candy bar to another cup of coffee. Maybe you felt it when working on

[00:02:40] a big project or cleaning the whole house in one day. Eventually we run out of fuel and it leaves

[00:02:46] us feeling drained, overloaded and maybe even stressed. If you're feeling like this and still

[00:02:52] have a lot of work that needs to get done, you need to feed your brain. By giving your brain energy,

[00:02:58] you will recharge yourself and get your focus and drive back. While it's important to take regular

[00:03:05] breaks besides those trips to the bathroom throughout the day, sometimes our workload

[00:03:09] doesn't really allow for it. From college students needing a cram session to working parents needing

[00:03:15] to finish the errands, there isn't always time for a break to relax and recharge but your brain

[00:03:21] will eventually demand it. Your brain can be fed in three ways – with glucose, with sleep and with

[00:03:29] daydreaming. No matter what your schedule or workload, these things are important and you

[00:03:34] must find a way to work them into your day and lifestyle. 1. Glucose. Glucose is usually referred

[00:03:42] to as sugar and is necessary for decision-making in the brain. If you think it's as easy as reaching

[00:03:47] for a candy bar or sugary treat for a boost, think again. Simple sugar may feel good going down but

[00:03:54] usually leads to blood sugar spikes which may help you in the short term but will eventually result

[00:03:59] in another crash later in the day. Instead, look to add complex carbohydrates into your diet.

[00:04:07] Complex carbohydrates are usually in things like whole grains so adding something like brown rice,

[00:04:13] sweet potatoes or extra servings of green veggies will help boost your brain and can do wonders for

[00:04:20] your waistline. 2. Sleep. Sleep is when your brain rests and recovers from the day so getting enough

[00:04:28] plays a huge role in your focus and energy for the next day. Sleep to feed your brain may come

[00:04:33] in the form of getting 8 hours each night or a 20-minute nap somewhere in the day. Both are

[00:04:39] great to helping your brain rest and recover as well as letting your whole body recharge. Don't

[00:04:44] count sleep out as something vital to your productivity. People often skip sleep by staying

[00:04:50] up late or waking up extra early to get things done but keep in mind, sleep is also important

[00:04:55] when it comes to maintaining focus and productivity. 3. Daydreaming. Another option for feeding your

[00:05:03] brain is daydreaming. Daydreaming increases glucose and decision-making which helps your

[00:05:09] brain recharge by taking the hyperfocus away and allowing you to relax. Daydreaming can come in

[00:05:15] the form of meditation, prayer or taking a walk around the block. It's important to give your

[00:05:19] brain a break so it can recharge and even as little as 15 minutes will help you rest and refocus.

[00:05:30] 3 ways to improve gut health naturally by Chalene Johnson of chalenejohnson.com

[00:05:37] Improving your gut health is one of the most effective ways to improve your hormone levels

[00:05:42] and by extension, give yourself relief from many day-to-day disruptions. From weight gain

[00:05:48] to anxiety to joint pain to sleep. Yeah, sleep! 80% of serotonin is made in the gut and serotonin

[00:05:58] regulates your sleep. Because there are a bunch of ways to better gut health, let's just focus

[00:06:04] on the 3 most important ones. 1. Cut back on inflammatory foods.

[00:06:10] What are inflammatory foods? It's the fake stuff. The fake stuff your body doesn't recognize and

[00:06:16] may be sensitive to. For me, taking out these foods was a gradual process. I didn't do it cold

[00:06:22] turkey as many diet plans suggest. Can you see me? The whole 30? No, I'm not that person. I just

[00:06:29] lived my life and slowly cut back on inflammatory foods. The more I removed, the better I felt. And

[00:06:36] the better I felt, the more I was motivated to take additional triggers out of my diet.

[00:06:42] You will need to do some testing and lots of trial and error. Trust me, there are healthy

[00:06:47] foods everyone says you should eat that are actually inflammatory for you and your body.

[00:06:53] 2. Reducing stress. Engage every day in something that has the same impact as meditation. Something

[00:07:01] that falls into the category of pure joy that you're doing for you. Where your brain goes

[00:07:06] elsewhere and you can't even recall what it was you were stressed out about. You're not thinking

[00:07:10] about work at all. Emails can wait and notifications on your phone are taking a nap.

[00:07:16] What does this meditation look like for you? Maybe it's spending time every morning in prayer.

[00:07:22] Or maybe it's exercising, or painting, or singing, or playing an instrument,

[00:07:27] or maybe learning a new language. And exploring on social media doesn't count.

[00:07:33] And 3. Pay attention to your macronutrients. Nothing is going to disrupt your hormones more

[00:07:40] than having a diet which consists of inappropriate levels of macronutrients. We were never designed

[00:07:45] to eat massive amounts of carbohydrates, for instance. Now, that doesn't mean carbs are bad.

[00:07:50] They are great. But the amount of options we're consuming, like in the forms of sugar, alcohol,

[00:07:57] and breads, and cereals, etc., is grossly unhealthy. If you dial your carbs back to a regulated level,

[00:08:05] that alone is going to dramatically have a positive impact on your body.

[00:08:13] You just listened to the posts titled,

[00:08:16] Tips to keep your energy consistent throughout the day and

[00:08:19] 3 ways to improve gut health naturally, both by Chalene Johnson of chalenejohnson.com.

[00:08:26] And I'll be right back with my commentary.

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[00:09:39] Dr. Neil here for my commentary. Today's author, Chalene, talked about

[00:09:43] too many carbohydrates in our diets. And for many of us, that's absolutely true.

[00:09:48] But for others, it may not be the total amount of carbohydrates that's the problem.

[00:09:54] It might be the types of carbohydrates we're consuming that's the bigger issue.

[00:09:59] Now, one of the best ways to keep our gut healthy is to eat the recommended amount of dietary fiber

[00:10:05] each day. And ideally, the sources of this dietary fiber are whole foods like whole grains.

[00:10:11] Now, when it comes to how much fiber in general we adults should get each day,

[00:10:15] the US Food and Drug Administration recommends we aim for 28 grams of fiber total each day.

[00:10:22] Now, these 28 grams include all types of fiber, both soluble and insoluble. That's because

[00:10:29] both soluble and insoluble fibers are good for us and help the gut microbiome

[00:10:34] stay at its healthiest. Now, if we want to increase the amount of fiber we're getting in

[00:10:39] our diets, we want to do that slowly. It's been estimated that about 90% of Americans

[00:10:46] are not getting the 28 grams we should be getting each day. Most Americans get around 10 to 12 grams

[00:10:53] of fiber a day. So again, if we're thinking about increasing our fiber intake, it's best to add it

[00:10:59] in slowly. Here's an example. Instead of having one full cup of cooked oatmeal for breakfast

[00:11:06] topped with a banana and some nuts and seeds, it may be better to start with a quarter or half a

[00:11:12] cup of just plain oats, maybe with a little bit of cinnamon added for flavor. Adding fruit, nuts,

[00:11:18] and seeds is going to add extra fiber to that meal, which then may lead to feelings of discomfort.

[00:11:24] Again, especially if we're not used to eating that much fiber in one sitting.

[00:11:28] Next, if you're increasing your fiber intake, think about increasing your water intake too.

[00:11:34] This may help ease any gastrointestinal discomfort. So whenever someone asks me,

[00:11:39] Dr. Neil, what's the best way to keep my gut microbiome healthy or how should I reset my gut

[00:11:44] microbiome? The advice I always give is try to aim for that 28 grams of dietary fiber each day

[00:11:52] and if you're nowhere close to that, add in some fiber slowly through whole foods ideally.

[00:11:59] All right, that's it for today. Thank you so much for being here. I hope you have a great

[00:12:03] rest of your day and I'll see you tomorrow with another article and where your optimal life awaits.