Our guest today is living proof that anyone can change their life. Alishea Basson was a mom of four and creeping into dangerous territory in regard to her health by the time she was 30 years old. Severely overweight and plagued with seizures and high blood pressure, Alishea decided she couldn’t live with her emotional eating self any longer. She educated herself on how to eat healthfully and exercise, eventually adopting a whole food, plant-based diet. While her family didn’t support this choice, Alishea stuck with it.   Now 125 pounds lighter and full of energy, Alishea is an inspiration to anyone who thinks they can’t. Listen in to learn how this everyday hero made the switch for good, and how you can, too.   “Feelings are fleeting. They only come back stronger if you ignore them or push them aside with food. I pushed my feelings down for 30 years and it almost killed me.” - Alishea Basson   What we discuss in this episode:  - Alishea’s journey to her rock bottom - How binge eating stretches your stomach - How to deal with feelings without food - Learning what foods are actually healthy - Transitioning to a plant-based diet - How to not feel deprived of a whole food, plant-based diet - Discovering new foods - Finding a fitness routine that stuck - How to maintain a healthy lifestyle and parent 5 kids - How to navigate diet change when your family doesn’t support you - How to cook plant-based efficiently  - Sample of what Alishea eats in a day - Physical improvements Alishea experienced after going to WFPB   Resources: - Instagram @alisheabasson   ★☆★ Click the link below to support the ADD SOY Act! ★☆★ https://switch4good.org/add-soy-act/ ★☆★ Share the website and get your resources here ★☆★ https://kidsandmilk.org/ ★☆★ Send us a voice message and ask a question. We want to hear from you! ★☆★ https://switch4good.org/podcast/ ★☆★ Dairy-Free Swaps Guide: Easy Anti-Inflammatory Meals, Recipes, and Tips ★☆★ https://switch4good.org/dairy-free-swaps-guide ★☆★<img src= "https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/Ku8oHaXMwam9NdYhBUHQtGpGYOgjN8Yl7yVLACv-h_boz_AKZzGIuuBuQGEkYUoxVmlmZDQPxRYX9hIHJxqN0JXAT2iUjNXtsAeHcOKcuFjDfabBwDUPhiIxG-710kR2q9TZg6NqrZ0YJdpCxOzT3g" alt="

FLASHBACK FRIDAY - Weight Loss Success Story with Alishea Basson

Do you want to live a healthier and more robust life?  The key to living a full, healthy, and joyous life lies within the foods we eat—and our relationship to them. Because health isn’t accurately measured by the circumference of your waist or how much you can bench press- true vitality is measured by how you feel, not just physically but deep within.

Olympic medalist Dotsie Bausch alongside Baywatch actress and certified health coach, Alexandra Paul, take listeners of all ages on a journey to optimal health and stamina through plant based eating.

Dotsie and Alexandra, who both fought back from severe food addictions in their twenties, interview expert nutritionists, pro athletes, innovative thought leaders, physicians and plant-based celebrities. Through their stories, you’ll learn how to optimize your health and pave a path for a more meaningful life. 

So get inspired and join the Switch4Good revolution.

Science

Health & Fitness

If you’ve ever wondered how to make nutritious food taste amazing or what foods boost your health by supporting your gut microbiome, then you’re going to love today’s episode!   Our guest is Desiree Nielsen, a plant-based recipe developer, podcaster, author, and registered dietitian with a focus on plant-based nutrition and gut health. In her new book, "Plant Magic: A Celebration of Plant-Based Cooking for Everyone," Desiree offers a wonderful collection of creative recipes that make incorporating more plants into your diet easy, convenient, and delicious.   If you're a returning listener, you might recall Desiree from her insightful appearance on episode 185, where she shared invaluable knowledge about the gut-brain connection, maintaining healthy inflammatory responses, and the truth about getting enough protein through plants. However, there's still so much more to explore, which is why we're thrilled to welcome her back to the show!   Tune in as Desiree dives deeper into the world of plant-based cuisine, gut health, and so much more. Get ready to be inspired and empowered on your journey to vibrant health!   “Our symptoms typically coincide with, ‘Oh, I ate a meal, and all of a sudden I feel so bloated, or I feel really gassy.’ We immediately blame the food. That’s our first thought with digestive health. And so much of the information that we receive online, you know, talks about, ‘Oh, well, if you’re gassy, that means you must be inflamed, and so you have to remove x, y, and z.’ There are a lot of different causes of bloating and gas, and otherwise, digestive troubles that actually have nothing to do with food.” - Desiree Nielsen   What we discuss in this episode: - Desiree’s secrets to infuse your plant-based cooking with mouth-watering flavors. - Common causes of bloating and tips to decrease bloating. - How to introduce more fiber into your diet. - Stress, the digestive system, and how to develop better gut health. - Desiree’s family’s favorite recipes from her new book. - Getting a variety of healthy foods in your diet. - Healthy fats and nutrient absorption.   Resources: - Desiree Nielsen’s website: https://desireerd.com/ - Her new book: Plant Magic: A Celebration of Plant-Based Cooking for Everyone: Nielsen, Desiree -  https://www.amazon.com/Plant-Magic-Celebration-Plant-Based-Everyone/dp/0735244901 - Instagram: Desiree Nielsen RD (@desireenielsenrd) • Instagram photos and videos - https://www.instagram.com/desireenielsenrd/ - YouTube: Desiree Nielsen RD - YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/c/desireenielsenrd - Twitter/X: Desiree Nielsen RD (@DesireeRD) / X - https://twitter.com/desireerd?lang=en - Switch4Good podcast episode #185: How to Get a Good Gut with Dietitian Desiree Nielsen -  https://switch4good.org/how-to-get-a-good-gut-with-dietitian-desiree-nielsen/ - BiOptimizers Magnesium Breakthrough: bioptimizers.com/switch4good - http://bioptimizers.com/switch4good   ★☆★ Click the link below to support the ADD SOY Act! ★☆★ https://switch4good.org/add-soy-act/ ★☆★ Share the website and get your resources here ★☆★ https://kidsandmilk.org/ ★☆★ Send us a voice message and ask a question. We want to hear from you! ★☆★ https://switch4good.org/podcast/ ★☆★ Dairy-Free Swaps Guide: Easy Anti-Inflammatory Meals, Recipes, and Tips ★☆★ https://switch4good.org/dairy-free-swaps-guide ★☆★<img src= "https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/Ku8oHaXMwam9NdYhBUHQtGpGYOgjN8Yl7yVLACv-h_boz_AKZzGIuuBuQGEkYUoxVmlmZDQPxRYX9hIHJxqN0JXAT2iUjNXtsAeHcOKcuFjDfabBwDUPhiIxG-710kR2q9TZg6NqrZ0YJdpCxOzT3g" alt="

279 - Dealing with Digestive Issues with Nutritionist & Cookbook Author Desiree Nielsen

Today, we’re joined by Dr. Christopher Gardner, a renowned nutrition researcher and Professor of Medicine at Stanford University. In this episode, Dr. Gardner shares his wealth of knowledge and valuable insights into nutrition science, from dissecting popular diets like ketogenic vs. Mediterranean to discussing his groundbreaking study on cardio-metabolic effects in identical twins randomly assigned to vegan or omnivorous diets, featured in the Netflix documentary "You Are What You Eat: A Twin Experiment."    Throughout the episode, we delve into Dr. Gardner's research, uncover the truth behind diet trends, and hear his practical advice for achieving optimal health.   “So the basic design is it's a randomized dietary trial. It happened to be identical twins, which was very unusual. I've never done it before. Identical twins are absolutely hilarious, but the two diet choices that they had to be willing to be part of either way, whichever way the coin was flipped, was a vegan or an omnivorous diet. And I want to clarify just for kicks here, a healthy vegan and a healthy omnivorous diet. There's a lot of bad ways to do any diet, and good ways, or better or worse, for any diet that you want to be on. When we looked at the metabolic risk factors, we had signed up on clinicaltrials.gov stating that LDL cholesterol was our primary outcome. And that dropped by about 15 milligrams per deciliter, more so in the vegans than the omnivores. We also saw a drop in insulin. We saw a drop in weight. Decrease in trimethylamine oxide. Their biological clocks got a little bit younger. Their telomeres stayed a little bit longer if they were vegans.” - Dr. Christopher Gardner   What we discuss in this episode:  - Telomeres, veganism, and longevity. - Chronological age vs metabolic age. - What fuels your brain? - Healthy foods and weight loss. - What makes a protein high quality? - Dr. Gardner’s thoughts on intermittent fasting. - Fermented foods and the microbiome. - Microbial diversity and inflammation. - Dr. Gardner’s recommendations for living a healthy life at a healthy weight.   Resources: - Nutrition Studies Research Group | Stanford Medicine - https://med.stanford.edu/nutrition.html - Dr. Gardner’s Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/GardnerPhD -  https://twitter.com/GardnerPhD?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor - Instagram: Christopher Gardner (@cgardnerphd) • Instagram photos and videos - https://www.instagram.com/cgardnerphd/ - YouTube: Stanford Nutrition - YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@StanfordNutrition - Watch You Are What You Eat: A Twin Experiment | Netflix Official Site - https://www.netflix.com/title/81133260 - BiOptimizers Magnesium Breakthrough: bioptimizers.com/switch4good - http://bioptimizers.com/switch4good   ★☆★ Click the link below to support the ADD SOY Act! ★☆★ https://switch4good.org/add-soy-act/ ★☆★ Share the website and get your resources here ★☆★ https://kidsandmilk.org/ ★☆★ Send us a voice message and ask a question. We want to hear from you! ★☆★ https://switch4good.org/podcast/ ★☆★ Dairy-Free Swaps Guide: Easy Anti-Inflammatory Meals, Recipes, and Tips ★☆★ https://switch4good.org/dairy-free-swaps-guide ★☆★<img src= "https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/Ku8oHaXMwam9NdYhBUHQtGpGYOgjN8Yl7yVLACv-h_boz_AKZzGIuuBuQGEkYUoxVmlmZDQPxRYX9hIHJxqN0JXAT2iUjNXtsAeHcOKcuFjDfabBwDUPhiIxG-710kR2q9TZg6NqrZ0YJdpCxOzT3g" alt="

278 - What Science Teaches Us About Losing Weight and Boosting Energy With Stanford Nutrition Researcher Dr. Christopher Gardner

In this episode, we welcome Dr. Rachael Hunter, a distinguished clinical psychologist and senior lecturer in psychology at Swansea University. Dr. Hunter joins us to delve into her groundbreaking research on "Plant-based Recovery from Restrictive Eating Disorders." Drawing from her wealth of experience working closely with individuals grappling with eating disorders, Dr. Hunter offers valuable insights into the transformative potential of plant-based diets in promoting recovery.   Throughout our conversation, Dr. Hunter shares her deeply personal journey, including her courageous battle against Multiple Sclerosis. We explore the intricate connections between nutrition and mental health, gaining valuable insights into how a plant-based diet can nourish not only the body but also the mind and spirit.    “When I was diagnosed, I came across all of this research, and luckily for me, Professor Jelinek had pulled that work together into the Overcoming MS program. So there were dietary recommendations around a whole food plant-based diet, and the program also includes stress management, which is anti-inflammatory. So meditation, mindfulness, and regular exercise. I came across that program, and that was really what led me to change my diet immediately to pretty much plant-based.” - Dr. Rachael Hunter   What we discuss in this episode:  - How plant-based eating can improve one’s relationship with food. - Dr. Hunter’s symptoms before being diagnosed with MS. - The connection between inflammation and MS. - The lifestyle changes Dr. Hunter made after her diagnosis and the results of those changes. - How the human body responds to optimism. - Stress and the nervous system. - The importance of removing toxicity from one’s life.   Resources:  - Overcoming MS: https://overcomingms.org/live-well/circles/ - Instagram: Dr Rachael Hunter (@drrachaelhunter) • Instagram photos and videos - https://www.instagram.com/drrachaelhunter/ - Twitter/X: Rachael Hunter 

277 - Fight MS & Disordered Eating with a Plant-Based Diet! with Dr. Rachael Hunter

Today, we're diving into the world of sustainable, mouthwatering cuisine with none other than the culinary visionary herself, Carleigh Bodrug.   Carleigh's journey is nothing short of inspiring. Growing up on a farm where meat reigned supreme, she later discovered the alarming truth about red and processed meats being classified as carcinogens by the World Health Organization. This revelation, coupled with her personal experience of her father's battle with colon cancer, propelled her toward a transformative shift in her diet. Fast forward to today, and Carleigh has become a household name, captivating millions with her blog, Plant You, and her latest cookbook, "PlantYou: Scrappy Cooking: 140+ Plant-Based Zero-Waste Recipes That Are Good for You, Your Wallet, and the Planet."   Now, what sets Carleigh's cookbook apart? Well, it's all about scrappy cooking—making delicious, nutritious meals while minimizing food waste. Ever wondered how to turn those food scraps into culinary gold? Carleigh's got you covered!   So join us as we explore plant-based recipes that not only tantalize your taste buds but also make a positive impact on your wallet and the planet!   “Food waste creates more emissions than the airline industry. So that gives you a scale of how much impact this has. And then sort of your mind goes to, okay, where is this waste coming from? Is it restaurants? Is it grocery stores? Is it happening on farms? And shockingly, the largest percentage is in consumer’s homes. So I felt really, as a plant-based food vlogger, that I needed to talk about this. So, one day, I threw up a candied orange peel recipe, and it was really funny because whenever I put up a video, I kind of walk away from it because I don’t want to know what the first reaction is. I get very nervous. So I walked away from my phone, and I came back to it about a couple hours later, and it had a non-exaggerated million views.” - Carleigh Bodrug   What we discuss in this episode: - How food waste contributes to global warming.  - The destructive power of methane vs. carbon dioxide. - Carleigh’s tips to reduce food waste and save money. - Aquafaba and its uses. - How to make an amazing broth. - Making use of seeds. - How to make delicious vegan bacon. - Growing food from food scraps.   Resources: - PlantYou: https://plantyou.com/ - https://plantyou.com/ - Instagram: Carleigh Bodrug (@plantyou) • Instagram photos and videos - https://www.instagram.com/plantyou/?hl=en - YouTube: Carleigh Bodrug - YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCiE57zg8KxrZpV_eWMjluVA - Twitter/X: Plant You (@carleighbodrug) / X - https://twitter.com/carleighbodrug?lang=en - Facebook: PlantYou - https://www.facebook.com/PlantYouBlog/ - Carleigh’s new cookbook: Scrappy Cookbook - https://scrappycookbook.com/ - BiOptimizers Magnesium Breakthrough: bioptimizers.com/switch4good - http://bioptimizers.com/switch4good   ★☆★ Click the link below to support the ADD SOY Act! ★☆★ https://switch4good.org/add-soy-act/ ★☆★ Share the website and get your resources here ★☆★ https://kidsandmilk.org/ ★☆★ Send us a voice message and ask a question. We want to hear from you! ★☆★ https://switch4good.org/podcast/ ★☆★ Dairy-Free Swaps Guide: Easy Anti-Inflammatory Meals, Recipes, and Tips ★☆★ https://switch4good.org/dairy-free-swaps-guide ★☆★<img src= "https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/Ku8oHaXMwam9NdYhBUHQtGpGYOgjN8Yl7yVLACv-h_boz_AKZzGIuuBuQGEkYUoxVmlmZDQPxRYX9hIHJxqN0JXAT2iUjNXtsAeHcOKcuFjDfabBwDUPhiIxG-710kR2q9TZg6NqrZ0YJdpCxOzT3g" alt="

276 - Tips & Tricks to Using Food Scraps in Your Recipes with Plant You Cookbook Author Carleigh Bodrug

Our extraordinary guest today is a true adventurer at heart. From hang gliding to paragliding, from flying small planes to training for the US Olympic team as a luger, Caroline Paul’s life is a series of thrilling escapades.   As one of the first female firefighters in the San Francisco Fire Department, Caroline faced challenges head-on. Her autobiography "Fighting Fire" chronicles her remarkable 13-year journey with the department as one of 15 women out of 1500 men. She was also the very first woman on the Rescue team, which was tasked with getting people out of collapsed buildings and finding bodies in the bay. These days, she takes to the skies in a gyrocopter, surfs the San Francisco Bay, and zips through the city streets on her electric skateboard – proving age is just a number.   With seven books under her belt, including a New York Times bestseller, Caroline explores the intersection of outdoor adventure and aging in her latest work, "Tough Broad: From Boogie Boarding to Wing Walking, How Outdoor Adventure Improves Our Lives as We Age.”  Through science-backed insights and inspiring stories of women in their 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s, and even 90s, she shows us that the best adventures lie ahead.   Join us as we discuss Caroline's latest book, delving into the exhilarating world of outdoor adventure and discovering how it enriches our lives as we age. Get ready to be inspired!   “People have come up to me and said it starts as young as 40 or even 30, that our older age is going to be a time of frail bones, cognitive decline. We're going to be boring. We're going to, we're becoming culturally irrelevant. And why this is so dangerous is because, well, first of all, we start pulling back, but second of all, it really makes us dread our own aging journey.” - Caroline Paul   What we discuss in this episode: - The five pillars for fulfilling aging.  - What inspired Caroline to write Tough Broad. - The health benefits of outdoor adventure. - How mindset about aging can predict how we’ll age. - The power and importance of experiencing awe. - How novelty keeps your brain healthy. - What does using GPS do to your memory? - How to unearth your inner explorer.   Resources: - Caroline Paul’s website: Caroline Paul - https://www.carolinepaul.com/ - Her new book: Tough Broad — Caroline Paul - https://www.carolinepaul.com/tough-broad - Her TED Talk: Caroline Paul: To raise brave girls, encourage adventure | TED Talk -  https://www.ted.com/talks/caroline_paul_to_raise_brave_girls_encourage_adventure - Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carolinembpaul/ - Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/carowriter - Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/caroline.paul.750/ - BiOptimizers Magnesium Breakthrough: bioptimizers.com/switch4good - http://bioptimizers.com/switch4good   ★☆★ Click the link below to support the ADD SOY Act! ★☆★ https://switch4good.org/add-soy-act/ ★☆★ Share the website and get your resources here ★☆★ https://kidsandmilk.org/ ★☆★ Send us a voice message and ask a question. We want to hear from you! ★☆★ https://switch4good.org/podcast/ ★☆★ Dairy-Free Swaps Guide: Easy Anti-Inflammatory Meals, Recipes, and Tips ★☆★ https://switch4good.org/dairy-free-swaps-guide ★☆★<img src= "https://lh7-us.googleusercontent.com/Ku8oHaXMwam9NdYhBUHQtGpGYOgjN8Yl7yVLACv-h_boz_AKZzGIuuBuQGEkYUoxVmlmZDQPxRYX9hIHJxqN0JXAT2iUjNXtsAeHcOKcuFjDfabBwDUPhiIxG-710kR2q9TZg6NqrZ0YJdpCxOzT3g" alt="

FLASHBACK FRIDAY - Weight Loss Success Story with Alishea Basson

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