The Wise Consumer

Over the last few years I’ve learned more about hormone health than I have in my entire life. Truth be told, I wish I knew then what I know now about my hormones and menstrual cycle! Many of the unpleasant hormonal symptoms I experienced, i.e. painful periods, mood swings, fatigue, etc. could have been avoided, or at least managed with more ease had I been more aware of how my hormones impacted my overall health.

Here to help us break down a few things and to explore the ins and out of hormone health is The Period Guru herself, Jenna Longoria. Jenna is a board certified functional nutrition practitioner who specializes in women's hormones. Having herself experienced severe hormonal imbalances throughout most of her life, today Jenna is on a mission to help other women reclaim their hormone and digestive health.

If you’ve ever wondered what your period blood color means or why it matters, how to cycle sync, the importance of ovulation, or struggle with hormonal imbalances such as polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), then this is an episode you don’t want to miss. I should also share that while Jenna and I, of course, chat about all things hormones, we also take time to explore the winding journey that led her here and the unfortunate hardships she faced over the last year after the tragic passing of her husband.

Jenna is truly an inspiration. It's an honor for me to share her work, story, and knowledge with you. Happy listening!

Connect with Jenna Longoria on Instagram, Facebook, and online at www.jennalongoria.com

The Wise Consumer Show Notes: https://thewiseconsumer.com/how-to-optimize-hormone-health-period-blood-color/

Kathryn Kellogg’s career began on the stage. As a child she shares, she knew she wanted to be an actress. She loved storytelling, performing, singing, it was just a part of who she was. Today, although she’s no longer performing full-time on the stage, her passion for storytelling and creativity are still at the forefront of everything she does. But, these days rather than performing Shakespeare, Kathryn uses her talents and passions in her work as an environmentalist and zero-waste activist.

Kathryn is the founder of Going Zero-Waste, a lifestyle website dedicated to helping others live a healthier and more sustainable life. She’s also a spokesperson for plastic-free living for National Geographic, the Chief Sustainability Officer at the One Movement, and author of the book 101 Ways to Go Zero Waste. She is a creative and inspiring voice in the zero-waste living movement who has not only influenced my life but countless others as well.

I  am so excited and honored to share her story, mission, and work with you today. More importantly, I know you’re going to walk away from this conversation feeling uplifted, inspired, and ready to make simple guilt-free zero-waste changes in your own life as well. 

In this episode we explore:

• Kathryn’s journey from acting to becoming an environmentalist
• How living an eco-friendly lifestyle benefits both the planet and our health
• Defining “zero-waste” + debunking zero-waste lifestyle myths
• The importance of reframing our mindset and attitude around zero-waste living + why striving for perfection isn't necessary
• Simple and practical zero-waste living tips from pet care to menstrual hygiene, and more!

Connect with Kathryn on Instagram, Facebook, and online at www.goingzerowaste.com

The Wise Consumer Show Notes: https://thewiseconsumer.com/zero-waste-living-tips-with-kathryn-kellogg/

Do you ever feel as though nutrition is confusing? I know I do. I feel like we're constantly being bombarded with new diets and trends -- keto, intermittent fasting, macro diet, paleo diet, carnivore diet...who can keep up?! Between that, and  everything else we've got going on in our lives, it's no surprise that most of us end up feeling a bit perplexed. How much daily protein do we actually need? Should we be avoiding carbs? Is there such a thing as "bad" carbs? Here to help clear up some of the confusion is Kathleen Robins, MS, RDN, CSSD, CSOWM. 

Kathleen is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist, board certified in overweight and obesity, and a certified specialist in Sports Dietetics with more than 11 years of experience. Prior to launching Kathleen Robins Nutrition, Kathleen worked for the US Army where she ran nutrition and medical administrative clinics and worked alongside fellow military dieticians to help heal wounded warriors returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. She's also helped patients lose weight, fight cancer, and heal from transplants or heart attacks and has published research on the caloric needs of wounded warriors. 

So, needless to say, when it comes to breaking down nutrition in a simple and practical way, Kathleen is a pro! I absolutely loved chatting with Kathleen about all things protein and carbs and know you'll absolutely love this conversation. Press play to tune-in and learn why your body needs protein and carbs now.

• How protein impacts your body and why you need it
• The difference between essential and non-essential amino acids
• How much daily protein you should include in your diet
• What to eat pre and post workouts
• The importance of including carbs to your diet
• The difference between "good" and "bad" carbs
• And more! 

The Wise Consumer "Feel Good-Do Good" Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/feelgooddogoodclub/

The Wise Consumer Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thewiseconsumer/

The Wise Consumer Show Notes: https://thewiseconsumer.com/protein-and-carbs/ 

Creating an environmentally sustainable business can be really daunting! Oftentimes leading to questions such as: Can I afford to purchase sustainable materials? Do I need to get certified by third party organizations? What if I am just starting out, where do I start? And so on!

To help answer some of these questions I invited Shannon Kenny, a Sustainable Business Consultant and founder of Mama Eco, a business dedicated to helping eco-conscious people make better decisions for the environment, onto the podcast to chat with us!

Shannon's mission? To help businesses become environmentally sustainable without sacrificing profit. If you run a business, or are thinking of launching a business, this is an episode you don't want to miss! 

In this episode you'll learn:

• How to make your website eco-friendly + why it matters
• How your business can reduce its carbon footprint 
• Low-waste packaging options for product-based brands 
• The benefits of implementing a sustainable business model
• Where to purchase eco-friendly office supplies 
• The importance of transparency over perfection
• And so much more!

The Wise Consumer "Feel Good-Do Good" Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/feelgooddogoodclub/

The Wise Consumer Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thewiseconsumer/

The Wise Consumer Show Notes: https://thewiseconsumer.com/make-your-business-sustainable/ 

I’ve been fascinated by gut health for a few years now. And, while still a relatively new field of research, the current findings on how the microorganisms found in our gut, also known as gut microbiota, can influence and affect our immune system, metabolism, digestion, mood, and even possibly our heart, just amazes me! 

But, what I didn’t know until recently was just how important our gut health was when it came to supporting our hormones and fertility! My guess is, this isn’t something you're super familiar with either!  So, here to explore this topic in more detail with us is Brooke Boskovich, MS, RD, LD, a.k.a. The Fertility Dietician.

Brooke is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist and Functional & Integrative Practitioner who is passionate about women's health & fertility and who over the years has helped dozens of women with irregular cycles, PCOS, unexplained infertility, endometriosis & other fertility struggles, regulate their cycles and take home healthy babies!

In this episode we cover the journey that led Brooke to becoming an RDN and Functional & Integrative Practitioner, the importance of tracking your cervical mucus, the pros and cons of caffeine, and, of course how gut health is linked to hormones and fertility. Press play to listen now! 

• How gut health is linked to our hormones and impacts fertility
• How to support gut health through diet and lifestyle + how to test gut health
• Why women should track their cervical mucus
• Brooke's number one tip for improving cervical mucus
• The myth of the “detox” cleanse
• Her three favorite health tips
• And more!

The Wise Consumer "Feel Good-Do Good" Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/feelgooddogoodclub/

The Wise Consumer Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thewiseconsumer/

The Wise Consumer Show Notes: https://thewiseconsumer.com/gut-health-and-hormones/ 

Did you know that 80% of women are most likely wearing the wrong bra size?! Crazy right? Weirdly enough, I never really gave much thought to bra sizing until I came across Laura Tempesta’s TedTalk “You’ll Never Look At Bras The Same Way Again!” But, after watching her TedTalk and realizing that everything I thought I knew about bra sizing was wrong, I just knew we had to explore and unpack this topic in more detail on the podcast. So, here to help us clear up some of the confusion around bra sizing and to provide us with some helpful solutions is the bra expert herself, Laura Tempesta. 

Laura is a world-renowned bra expert, apparel innovator, and an inventor of multiple patented products. In fact, she is the only American with a Master’s degree in Lingerie Design, and the only person in the world with a custom-designed degree to study the engineering, design, performance and innovation of Sports Bras. Prior to founding Bravolution, a consumer advocacy group and resource providing bra reviews and education, Laura was Nike’s Sports Bra Innovation Director where she helped guide and develop sports bra innovation. She has been featured as a bra expert in Vogue, Insider, and Better Homes & Gardens and is a TEDx speaker. In short: Laura is on a mission to change the world one poorly fitting sports bra at a time and I can not wait for you to hear from her! Truly, you will never look at bras the same way again!

So, if you’re tired of continually wasting money on bras that don’t fit and aren’t comfortable and want to learn how to finally find a bra (or sports bra) that fits and properly supports your 'girls' then tune-in because we chat about all this and more in today’s episode!

• The myths and facts around everyday bras and underwire bras.
• Why so many women are wearing the wrong size bra
• How to find a bra that properly fits and supports + what to be on the lookout for
• The difference between stretch and non-stretch bras 
• How to extend the life cycle of your bra + the challenges around sustainability in the bra manufacturing industry
• The importance of wearing fitted and supportive sports bra
• Sister sizing, and more!

The Wise Consumer "Feel Good-Do Good" Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/feelgooddogoodclub/

The Wise Consumer Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thewiseconsumer/

The Wise Consumer Show Notes: https://thewiseconsumer.com/does-your-bra-fit/ 

Do you have a morning routine? Do you know what your chronotype is? Have you ever thought about syncing your morning routine to your menstrual cycle? For the longest time I believed that in order to have a “successful” morning routine I had to get up at 5am every morning, do an intense workout, take a cold shower, and mediate for 30 minutes. While there are definitely mornings where I still follow this structure, over the course of my hormone healing journey I’ve come to learn the importance of syncing my morning routine to my infradian and circadian rhythm, and honoring my chronotype. So, what are the benefits of syncing my morning routine to my internal biological clocks? Well, that’s exactly what we’ll be exploring in this episode. 

In this episode you’ll learn the benefits of establishing a morning routine (regardless of the time you wake up -- shoutout to all my night owls!), what your chronotype is and why it matters, and how and why syncing your morning routine to your menstrual cycle can help support your hormones. I’ll also be sharing simple tips and strategies you can implement to help you establish a morning routine that will help you win the day, feel more energized, and in sync with your body. And, most importantly, that will work for you! 

The Wise Consumer "Feel Good-Do Good" Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/feelgooddogoodclub/

The Wise Consumer Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thewiseconsumer/

The Wise Consumer Show Notes:   https://thewiseconsumer.com/create-a-morning-routine/ 

Making time for yourself to rest and recharge is a must for your overall health and mental wellbeing, especially these days when we’re all juggling so much both professionally and personally. If there’s one thing I’ve learned over the years it's that Flight Attendants may actually be onto something when they instruct us at the beginning of a flight to “put on our own oxygen masks before assisting others!” When you think about it, this is a lesson we should all be implementing in our day-to-day lives. And yet, for some reason, most of us really struggle with making rest and self-care a priority. As a result, many of us experience burnout -- something my guest today, Allison Callaway, the founder of Activist Skincare, an eco-friendly, natural, and socially conscious driven skincare line, is all too familiar with.

In fact, avoiding burnout and making self-care a priority was one of the reasons why Allison launched Activist Skincare. She wanted to create a skincare line that would support all you change makers, activists, and beautiful humans as you continue making a difference in our world; a skincare line that would give you a guilt-free, indulgent self-care ritual to help you start and end your days by taking care of yourself so you can continue actively taking care our our world and its people.

In this conversation Allison is not only super candid about her own personal experience with burnout and how it inspired her to launch Activist Skincare but she also shares how her struggles with acne over the years taught her to love and heal her skin from the inside out. We also explore how she went about creating a refillable packaging option to help reduce waste, tips to help you keep your skin healthy, and the importance of truly believing in yourself.

This was such a great chat and one I know you're absolutely going to enjoy! Happy listening! 

The Wise Consumer "Feel Good-Do Good" Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/feelgooddogoodclub/

The Wise Consumer Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thewiseconsumer/

The Wise Consumer Show Notes: https://thewiseconsumer.com/the-importance-of-avoiding-burnout/ 

Question: Do you track your period? I am embarrassed to share this but I didn’t start tracking my period until just a few years ago. And truth be told, I wish I had started tracking my period ages ago. I’ve learned so much about my body simply by tracking Aunt Flo. In fact, it wasn’t until I started tracking my menstrual cycle that I started noticing irregularities in my period and began to suspect that I might actually have a hormonal imbalance. What I’ve come to learn throughout my health and hormone healing journey is that our menstrual cycle can tell us so much about our health.

And who better to explore this topic with us than Valerie Agyeman, RD, LD!? Valerie is a Women's Health Dietitian and Founder of Flourish Heights -- an online platform dedicated to empowering women in their health and wellness journey through education. And educate she does in this episode!

I loved chatting with Valerie and can’t wait for you to learn from her. In this conversation Valerie shares why so many of us struggle with poor body image and why we should be celebrating our bodies, how stress can impact your period, why you might get food cravings the week before your period, why you should track your menstrual cycle, the importance of self-care and listening to your body and so much more!

Ok, friend are you ready? Press play now.

The Wise Consumer "Feel Good-Do Good" Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/feelgooddogoodclub/

The Wise Consumer Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thewiseconsumer/

The Wise Consumer Show Notes: https://thewiseconsumer.com/why-you-should-be-tracking-your-period/ 

What if I told you that spending less than 35 min a day in nature could help boost your immunity? Or, what if I told you that the Japanese practice of shinrin-yoku, also known as forest bathing, could help reduce stress and improve your overall health? Have I peaked your interest?!

If so, then you’re going to want to tune-in to today’s podcast episode with Dr. Suzanne Bartlett Hackenmiller, an OB-Gyn, Integrative Medicine physician, certified forest therapy guide, and a medical advisor for AllTrails. Suzanne also happens to be the award-winning author of “The Outdoor Adventurer’s Guide to Forest Bathing” and “A Friend Like John, Understanding Autism” and speaks nationally and internationally about autism, integrative medicine, and nature therapy. 

I’ve been wanting to learn more about the practice of forest therapy and its health benefits for quite some time now, so when I came across Suzanne’s work and book I just knew I had to invite her to share her expertise with us on the podcast. 

In this conversation, Suzanne shares how the practice of forest bathing helped her cope with grief after the loss of her husband, what forest bathing is, how forest bathing can improve our immunity and overall health, how to 'forest bathe', and why children should spend more time in nature. If you’re struggling with stress, feeling overwhelmed, and/or looking for a budget-friendly way to add a bit of self-care to your daily routine, then press play because this episode is packed with practical tips and tricks to help you implement the practice of forest bathing into your own life. 

The Wise Consumer "Feel Good-Do Good" Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/feelgooddogoodclub/

The Wise Consumer Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thewiseconsumer/

The Wise Consumer Show Notes: https://thewiseconsumer.com/how-forest-bathing-can-improve-immunity/