Ashley Drummonds

Anxiety and panic attacks can feel like they come out of nowhere — a racing heart, spiraling thoughts, a sense of dread that seems impossible to control. While medication and therapy can be life-saving tools for many, there’s another side to the story that often gets overlooked: the root causes of anxiety inside the body.

In this post (and in my podcast episode), we’ll explore how nutrition, gut health, blood sugar, nutrient deficiencies, lifestyle habits, and stress management all play a powerful role in calming anxiety at its source.

Why Anxiety Isn’t Just “All in Your Head”

The brain and body are deeply connected. When something in the body is out of balance — whether it’s your gut microbiome, blood sugar, or stress hormones — it can show up as anxiety. Instead of just addressing symptoms, looking at the root causes can open new doors for healing.

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1. Blood Sugar & Anxiety Spikes

Ever felt jittery, irritable, or panicky when you’ve gone too long without eating? That’s no coincidence. Blood sugar highs and crashes put the body into a stress state, triggering adrenaline and cortisol. This can mimic or even directly cause anxiety symptoms.

What helps:

* Prioritize balanced meals with protein, healthy fats, and fiber.

* Avoid starting your day with sugar or processed carbs.

* Consider regular meal timing to prevent crashes.

2. Nutrient Deficiencies That Fuel Anxiety

Certain vitamins and minerals play a direct role in calming the nervous system. Deficiencies in magnesium, B vitamins, omega-3s, and zinc have all been linked to anxiety and mood imbalances.

What helps:

* Eat a nutrient-dense diet rich in whole foods.

* Support with targeted supplements if testing shows deficiencies.

* Focus on leafy greens, fatty fish, nuts, seeds, and high-quality protein.

3. Gut Health & The Anxiety Connection

Your gut is sometimes called your “second brain” — and for good reason. About 90% of serotonin, a key mood-regulating neurotransmitter, is made in the gut. Gut imbalances, inflammation, or dysbiosis (too much bad bacteria, not enough good) can directly influence anxiety and depression.

What helps:

* Add fermented foods (sauerkraut, kefir, kimchi).

* Eat more prebiotic fiber to feed good bacteria.

* Work with a practitioner if you suspect gut infections or chronic issues.

4. Exercise & Movement

Exercise isn’t just about fitness — it’s a proven way to regulate stress hormones, boost endorphins, and balance brain chemistry. Even gentle movement like walking or yoga can calm the nervous system.

5. Stress, Mindfulness & The Nervous System

Modern life keeps many of us in a constant “fight or flight” state. Learning how to activate the parasympathetic (“rest and digest”) system is essential for long-term relief.

What helps:

* Daily mindfulness or meditation (even 5 minutes).

* Deep breathing exercises.

* Prioritizing sleep and rest.

Taking an Integrative Approach

True healing often requires looking at both the mind and the body. By addressing nutrition, lifestyle, and root causes alongside therapy or other treatments, many people find a deeper sense of calm and resilience.

If you’ve struggled with anxiety or panic attacks, know this: your body might be asking for balance. By nourishing yourself physically and emotionally, you can create the foundation for lasting peace.

You can download the Free Guide: 6 Steps to healing your gut & digestion that I mention in the podcast episode as the first step in healing the underlying root cause of anxiety and panic attacks here.

Listen to the full podcast episode on Apple, Spotify or Youtube here for a deeper dive into these strategies and practical tools you can start using today.

Thanks for reading Ashley Drummonds Substack! This post is public so feel free to share it.

Links mentioned in the podcast episode: Download the Strong, Fit & Lean Blueprint: 5 Hidden Root Causes Blocking Your Metabolism, Making You Store More Fat, Messing Up Your Hormones & Keeping You From Building Lean Muscle — Even If You’re Doing Everything Right here: https://myprfuel.com/strong-fit-lean-blue-print/

Download the Strong, Fit & Lean Blueprint: 5 Hidden Root Causes Blocking Your Metabolism, Making You Store More Fat, Messing Up Your Hormones & Keeping You From Building Lean Muscle — Even If You’re Doing Everything Right here: https://myprfuel.com/strong-fit-lean-blue-print/

In today’s PR Fuel Podcast episode, I want to share with you:

• My story and experience with anxiety and panic attacks and how I’ve alleviated them naturally

• How to use your nutrition to reduce anxiety and improve overall mood and mental health

• Micronutrient deficiencies that can cause anxiety, panic attacks, OCD, and sleep disturbances

• How your gut health affects your mental health and some tips on how to improve it

• How hidden food sensitivities can cause feelings of anxiety, brain fog, panic attacks, and trouble concentrating

Ashley Drummonds is an Integrative Health & Nutrition Coach specializing in lab based personalized nutrition, supplements, and workout programs to help build lean muscle and boost fat loss. She has over 15 years experience working with men and women in their 30s, 40s, and 50s optimize their health, reduce anxiety and panic attacks, build real strength from the inside out, and fuel their best self.

Today's episode is all about proper nutrition for:

• Pre and Post Workout to Fuel Your Body & Boost Fat Loss
• How to do a Caloric Deficit or Increase Properly for Metabolic Adaptation
• Proper Nutrition to Fuel Strength & Performance
• Functional Nutrition for Mental Health to Reduce Anxiety, Stress & Get Better Sleep

To get personalized nutrition supplements based off your personal functional labs head to https://myprfuel.com 

We are going to get deep into the anatomy, physiology and science behind the difference in workouts, nutrition, and supplementation between men and women for optimal body composition, overall health and optimal hormonal health. This is going to shed some light on diets like keto, fasting, high carb, low carb, and macro counting as well as talk about hypertrophy strength training, power strength training, hiit, and crossfit style training. Lastly, we will get into some details around supplementation from a sports nutrition perspective as well as the different supplement needs of men vs women. If you’re new to this channel, my name is Ashley Drummonds and I Have been in the health and fitness industry for over 15 years as a personal trainer, a nutritionists, a women’s integrative health coach, a strength and conditioning coach, and as the founder of a natural nutrition food product line and now I am passionate about helping athletes and fitness professionals/enthusiasts become educated on their own bodies so they can make the best choices around their training, nutrition, and supplementation not just for their performance inside the gym, but also for overall physical and mental health so let’s dive in.

📱Follow Me On Instagram: https://instagram.com/ashleydrummonds

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Today I am going to show you a step by step guide on how to calculate your macros for your fitness goals based on your body type as a mesomorph, ectomorph or endomorph so you can lean out, build muscle, and overall it makes nutrition very easy. First, you need to know what your body type is: a mesomorph is someone who is naturally athletic and muscular it’s very easy for you to build muscle, an ectomorph is someone who is naturally skinny/thin it’s very hard for you to put on weight, and an endomorph is someone who naturally tends to be thick all around so you may constantly struggle with your weight. So for example, if you are 150lbs and your goal is to get to 135lbs and you workout 3-4x a week. You would take your goal weight of 135lbs and multiply it by 12 and get 1,620 then multiply 135lbs by 14 and get 1,890 and your daily caloric range would be 1620-1890. Now, I usually tell people to aim for the higher end of that range on your active days. Now there is some math of figuring out the exact macros now of how many carbs, fats and protein to get in that caloric range. Once you know your body type of a mesomoprh, endo or ecto morph the easiest thing in my opinion is simply to go to something like MyFitnessPal and under goals put in your calorie goals and then change the macro % ratio to fit your body type needs.

Connect with me on youtube: https://youtube.com/ashleydrummondstv

📱Follow Me On Instagram:   / ashleydrummonds  

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Curious what a functional doctor has to say about how to lose fat, build lean muscle, reduce anxiety and optimize your hormones? In today’s episode, Dr. Jessica Norton ND based out of Seattle, Washington and I get deep into the truth about:

Keto, Intermittent Fasting, and Paleo Diets

Should You Track Your Macros

Why Does Crossfit & HIIT Training Give you Anxiety

Natural Ways to Reduce Anxiety & Overwhelm

Key Supplements and Vitamins Every Active Person Needs

The Science Behind What Meditation Does to Your Brain

I hope you enjoy this conversation! Leave a comment and let me know what you loved or if you have a specific question for Dr. Jessica Norton.

CONNECT WITH ME:

📱Follow Me On Instagram: https://instagram.com/ashleydrummonds

->Check out this episode on Youtube: youtube.com/ashleydrummondstv

💪 RECOMMENDED PRODUCTS:

Get 25% Off Your Personal Lab Based Nutrition — Ready to take your health and fitness to the next level? Get your custom lab work done with over 40+ biomarkers for optimal health using my partners at InsideTracker Link: http://shrsl.com/22uo2-20z6-vw28 discount code for 25% off: DrummondsPro25

In this video, I am going to explain to you how your metabolism works and how you can improve it. We will get into the science behind how your body takes the food (protein, carbs, and fat) you consume and “metabolizes” or converts them into energy in the body. We will also talk about some vitamins deficiencies that can affect your metabolism along with how to structure your workouts to help your metabolism.

#inspiration #motivation #mindset #selfimprovement #motivationalvideos #motivationalMonday #fitness #nutrition #mentalhealth #workouts #weightloss #fatloss #fitness #diet #strengthtraining #strengthandconditioning #supplements

CONNECT WITH ME:

🎙️ Phoenix Rising Podcast: https://www.ashleydrummonds.com/phoenix-rising-podcast

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/ashleydrummondstv

Instagram: https://instagram.com/ashleydrummonds

💪 RECOMMENDED PRODUCTS:

Join my PR Fitness Tribe for daily custom workouts to get you strong, fit and lean, direct expert support from me, and a community of fellow fitness enthusiasts dedicated to hitting their goals: https://www.ashleydrummonds.com/pr-workout-tribe

Get Your Personal Lab Based Nutrition with 25% Off — Ready to take your health and fitness to the next level? Get your custom lab work done with over 40+ biomarkers for optimal health using my partners at InsideTracker Link: http://shrsl.com/22uo2-20z6-vw28 discount code for 25% off: DrummondsPro25

It’s time for you to make some changes. You know it and I know it. Enough is enough and this is going to be the year when you finally change your life and stop repeating your patterns and habits from the last few years that keep you stuck. Right? My question is: I know you want to make change and are tired of things being the same, but what is your actual plan? You can talk about change, dream about it, and get fired up about it, but what are you actually going to do this year that’s different from the rest to make change and create the life you want in 2024? 

In this episode, I am going to share with you 4 things you absolutely must do in order to make change, but also not to just for this year but to really change your entire life.

CONNECT WITH ME:

📝 Get a Free Week of Workouts & Mindset Coaching Videos Designed to Help You Build Physical and Mental Strength here : https://ashleydrummonds.com/signup

🎙️ Phoenix Rising Podcast: https://www.ashleydrummonds.com/phoenix-rising-podcast

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/ashleydrummondstv

Instagram: https://instagram.com/ashleydrummonds

Twitter/X: https://www.twitter.com/ashleydrummonds

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@ashley.drummonds

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ashleydrummondsabs

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashleydrummonds

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Get 8 Week Transform Workout & Mindset Program — 8 Weeks of Strength training workouts to boost fat loss while building lean muscle that takes less than 20 minutes, and you can do anywhere with just a pair of dumbbells. Over 40+ workout tutorial videos to show you exactly how to do each workout and modify to your fitness level. Plus, 8 Weeks of Guided Meditation and Mindset Coaching Videos with me as your personal coach to help you reprogram your mindset to become your strongest and most empowered self. Get the 8-Week Program here: https://www.ashleydrummonds.com/transform

Get Your Personal Lab Based Nutrition with 25% Off — Ready to take your health and fitness to the next level? Get your custom lab work done with over 40+ biomarkers for optimal health using my partners at InsideTracker Link: http://shrsl.com/22uo2-20z6-vw28 discount code for 25% off: DrummondsPro25

PS: Some links in this description are affiliate links that I do receive a commission from for sharing with you 🥰

I’m sure you have found yourself in the middle of a conversation trying to talk through something you were struggling with and in an effort to encourage you someone told you the popular line of “Time heals all things”. Is this true though? In my experience working with clients and in my own life, time does NOT heal all things, but there are specific things that do. In today’s video, we are going to talk about why time does not heal all things and why you continue to reflect and have flashbacks of the past, but also specific exercises and things you can do to finally heal, let go, and move on with your life instead of just waiting for time to pass.

#inspiration #motivation #mindset #empowerment #mentalhealth #selfimprovement #motivationalvideos #motivationalmonday #lifecoach #inspirational #goals #success #entrepreneur #personalgrowth

CONNECT WITH ME:

📝 Get a Free Week of Workouts & Mindset Coaching Videos Designed to Help You Build Physical and Mental Strength here : https://ashleydrummonds.com/signup

🎙️ Phoenix Rising Podcast: https://www.ashleydrummonds.com/phoenix-rising-podcast

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/ashleydrummondstv

Instagram: https://instagram.com/ashleydrummonds

Twitter/X: https://www.twitter.com/ashleydrummonds

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@ashley.drummonds

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ashleydrummondsabs

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ashleydrummonds

💪 RECOMMENDED PRODUCTS:

Get 8 Week Transform Workout & Mindset Program — 8 Weeks of Strength training workouts to boost fat loss while building lean muscle that takes less than 20 minutes, and you can do anywhere with just a pair of dumbbells. Over 40+ workout tutorial videos to show you exactly how to do each workout and modify to your fitness level. Plus, 8 Weeks of Guided Meditation and Mindset Coaching Videos with me as your personal coach to help you reprogram your mindset to become your strongest and most empowered self. Get the 8-Week Program here: https://www.ashleydrummonds.com/transform

Get Your Personal Lab Based Nutrition with 25% Off — Ready to take your health and fitness to the next level? Get your custom lab work done with over 40+ biomarkers for optimal health using my partners at InsideTracker Link: http://shrsl.com/22uo2-20z6-vw28 discount code for 25% off: DrummondsPro25

PS: Some links in this description are affiliate links that I do receive a commission from for sharing with you 🥰