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Hey, what's up? Welcome back to the podcast. Today we are continuing our mini series. We kind of have two mini series going on. And for the gut health one, next week will be the final episodes, at least for the gut repair blueprint mini series, and then we're going to change it up a bit. I want to talk more hormones, everything else. Um, Maishimotis is one that's coming up, autoimmune in general, uh, thyroid, that's a big one, lab work, those kind of things. Really want to expand our horizons here because there's a lot of topics we've never touched on on the podcast over these years. And um, just want to expand, you know. I want to always get you something new to learn. So, that being said, remember never stop growing, never stop learning. Real quick, you can always do me that one little mini massive favor by dropping me a quick rating and/or review on Spotify or Apple. You hear me say it every single time, but look, we're doing this for free. And I mean, one-man show, highly appreciate it. I'll put it that way. All joking aside though, so the last two mini-series, okay. We we kicked off the gut health mini-series on low stomach acid, then we covered leaky gut, gut dysbiosis, and then next week we'll talk about liver detox. Because especially that one I feel like is very you know uh misunderstood. You know, when you hear that word detox, you already think of the T's and stuff, right? But that's not what we're talking about. We're talking actual liver detox pathways one and two, okay. These are things that you want to support, okay. Right now, though, we're gonna keep it nice and straightforward with our nutrition lifestyle, fat loss goals, muscle gain, etc. Specifically, the differences between men and women when it comes to their nutrition and training. A question I got at the event that I did in also a couple months ago that really made me think before answered, and I was like, look, it's actually not that different, okay? And that's maybe not the answer most people will expect. But let me explain. You've heard about cycle sinking, you've heard about pushing your training specific moments of your cycle, or changes in your foods, and yeah, there are certain changes going on in a woman's body. But let's start here. As much as there is a natural ebb and flow in the estrogen progesterone, a lot of women are in birth control, which already removes that whole conversation because what happens with birth control, you're literally blocking the whole communication between your brain and the ovaries. You're not producing your own sex hormones. That's how this works, okay? You're not ovulating, you're not making your own progesterone. And once again, a progestin, right? Synthetic hormone is not the exact same. This will act differently than your natural hormones, bioidentical. Now, there are some bio-identical options out there, but understand, okay, and we're talking specifically like HRT, I should really say it. Sorry, but there's a difference between bioidentic hormones and birth control, synthetic, okay? These will act differently in a woman's body. And I want to start there because most women these days are in birth control. Knowing that we don't have that natural ep and flow in estrogen and progesterone, it kind of already takes this whole conversation of cycle sinking out the door, okay? Now, look, there's definitely changes between men and women, for sure. But over the 400 plus people I've coached now over the last six years, I've never made any changes to their nutrition or training or lifestyle routines for that matter, based on the week of their cycle. Because another thing we need to remember is as well that your symptoms may be very different from someone else. And so you might hear, you know, this is a terrible week for training, or this is a great week, but maybe for you is different, okay? Some people deal with a lot of cravings, for others, it's not that bad. Some people notice a lot of mood twins, and I will see say this. So, with a lot of PMS symptoms, okay, usually this indicates some hormonal imbalances, okay. And no, the pill will not fix that. The pill will not fix any hormonal imbalances, the pill only masks symptoms. A lot of people are put on it, and look, I'm not even against the pill, I'm just objectively stating how this does work. A lot of people are being put on the pill for acne and other things, or to regulate your cycle. Look, if your cycle's irregular, something's off, just some type of dysfunction going on, a hormonal imbalance, these are things you can address through nutritional lifestyle. What does your doctor do? They put you on birth control because well, you're not trying to get babies anyway. And then if you want, if you get pregnant at some point, you'll just be medicated for that too. No. You want to support your bodily systems, okay? And we're not gonna make this whole conversation about birth control, but understand that this whole cycle sinking thing already goes out the door if we're on birth control, okay? So if that's the case, ignore all of the advice about training around your cycle. Straight up. Now look, I mostly coach women, okay? Mostly pre-menopausal women, right? Before going into perimenopause and menopause, but a good chunk, maybe a third, also perimenopause and menopause. Okay. So I talk to women every single week, every single day in my coaching practice, okay? And I see a lot of differences from one client to the next. So would it really make sense for us to say, hey, we're gonna base our training and attrition with one standard approach for everyone? No. Now, what I do with my clients is approaching this as an individual case, and we will pay attention to their symptoms, their energy, their hunger, cravings, all those things, their mood. And sure, we're gonna maybe base things off of a symptom, but not based on where they're at in their cycle. Okay. Now, I want to continue this conversation a bit more, but I also want to acknowledge the following. Because people will often say, yeah, women are so different from men, and that's very true. Okay, that is very true. But at the end of the day, the habits we all need to build, the routines we all need to install, they go for both men and women. Men and women do the same thing to build muscle, the same thing to lose body fat, and periodization-wise, we go about it the same way. Now, per individual is gonna look different, maybe, okay? And a lot of people may not be in a place where they should be dieting. Okay, those people are going to spend a lot more time working through maintenance, okay, doing that properly. And especially once you go through perimenopause, absolutely, there's going to be hormonal changes, right? At some point, estrogen and progesterone are going to go down because your ovaries stop producing them. Now, testosterone is also partially produced by the adrenals, which is why it usually stays up a little bit longer, but also that will eventually go down, which is also where testing comes in. Because when you're on HRT in the future, if you want to, you're still gonna want to monitor that so that you're getting the right dosages and the right amounts, okay? Both estrogen and progesterone as well as testosterone. Women also need testosterone. This is not just a male hormone. That should be another topic for a podcast. Look, even like I feel like almost every episode we've done here in this mini-series has sparked a new idea for another podcast, which is kind of fun. But look, at the end of the day, we all need to eat protein, we all need to eat fruits and veggies, we all need to get our steps in and sleep seven to eight hours a night consistently. We all need to manage our stress and lift weights, support those strong bones as well, build muscle. Your metabolism does not slow down through menopause, your metabolism does not slow down as you age. This is just a lifestyle and muscle mass conversation, plus the fact that most people are dieting away too much, and even if their goal is not fat loss, many, many women come into my coaching practice under eating. So that's the first thing we fix, okay? So between men and women, are there physiological changes or sorry, differences? Yeah, 100%, obviously. Physical also, obviously. But look, it's not that different, okay? It is different though, per individual for both men and women. What are your symptoms like? How do you feel in week one, week two, week three, and week four of your cycle? If you have a natural, once again, natural without birth control, a natural cycle. Also on the pill, how do you feel? Okay, and then we're gonna base it off of that. So I like to still use the same principles as we would for, by the way, once again, men and women, but I like to go off of symptoms a lot more in that okay, you might have heard that this part of your cycle this happens with your metabolism. And yes, when you ovulate, there's a increase in metabolic rate, okay? Which is why also, by the way, fun fact, you can track your body temperature to get a pretty damn accurate reading of when you're ovulating and when it's you know, week one and two, right? You're gonna see that body temperature being pretty flat line for two weeks and then a bump, and then it'll stay there for two weeks and then drop again. But once again, that is with a natural cycle only, okay? Yes, there's the increase in metabolic rate. Now, does this mean that every single time you ovulate, you need to make changes to your targets and flip your around your whole meal plan? I personally don't think so. Now, what we will say is let's say a client of mine is going through a specific week of their cycle and they notice extra hunger. Okay, well, how about we do a little bit extra protein? We bump up your fruits and veggies, we just double down on the whole foods. Okay, what are you currently eating? Well, actually, you know what? This meal, this meal, we can make these food swaps. Let's see how we feel tomorrow. Feels better? Okay, perfect. Hey, we're a little bit low on energy specific time of the month. We notice, oh shit, you know, my workers are not feeling that great. Okay, we're just gonna give ourselves a little bit of grace here and say, okay, maybe today we're not gonna push as hard. Also, understanding that as we go through these different seasons, that is where the biggest changes are made. Okay. So yes, I'm saying, hey, maybe you want to go a little bit more protein. Hey, maybe that's not even the case. Maybe we're just gonna go off of meal frequency and how often you're eating per day. Hey, I notice at this specific time of day, I notice that I'm more hungry. Okay, let's maybe change something up there. Okay. So whether it's mood related, whether it's energy related or hunger or anything in between, I'm gonna base it off of the individual, both men and women, right? Obviously, with when we're talking cycles, it's for women. And we're gonna base it off of symptoms so that this is not a general blanket statement of everyone should be doing this in week one of their cycle and week two and week three. And no, you don't have to seed cycle either, okay? Yes, healthy fats are great for our hormones, we would want them, but also carbohydrate, also very important. But I've never made any changes to someone's macros based off of their cycle. Okay. The basics go for everyone, whether we have a cycle or not, whether we're a man or woman. And what I will say is that women do have a more sensitive immune system. Okay. We see women mostly struggle with other immune conditions. Okay, so that's something we've got to keep in mind. At certain stages of life, yeah, we're gonna have to rest a lot more, we're gonna have to manage our stress a little bit more, and especially when we go through those phases of perimenopause and menopause, this is yes, where I do believe there are some bigger changes. Obviously, I literally coach people through perimenopause and menopause right now. But first off, are we gonna say, well, this is just my hormones, or are we gonna actually test and see on paper where your hormones are actually at? And almost every single time I've had people say, Hey, I feel like this and this and this. My PMS symptoms are crazy. I am so cranky around that cycle. Okay, let's actually check our hormones. I'm very anxious, etc., right? We check estrogen dominant, progesterone is in a tank, or a combination, or both sex hormones are low. Hey, we do a dutch test. Hey, your adrenals are fry too. We're dealing with stage three adrenal dysfunction. Now it all makes sense, you see. So once again, and I know this is a bit more of a kind of like a ramble episode, but look, I don't want you to go online and read something or hear something. Also, my podcast, right? I also want you to be critical here. I'm just telling you what I know and what I've seen work with literally 400 plus people by now over the years, mostly women right now, mostly people who are getting closer to perimenopause, going through it, or are in menopause, but understand that online you're gonna find general info. Online, you're gonna find influencers and trainers and coaches who usually mean well, but not everyone, usually mean well, but might spread advice that may not apply to you as an individual. That is why, as much as all of the habits that we need to build, and I'll repeat them one more time, right? You gotta manage your stress. We're gonna sleep seven to eight hours a night, we're gonna drink plenty of water, we're gonna salt our foods for that electrolyte balance. We're gonna eat our proteins, we're all gonna eat a whole food-based diet, anti-inflammatory, Mediterranean-based diet, okay? We're gonna lift weights mostly and we're gonna cut that cardio down. We're gonna make sure that we don't diet all the time. We're gonna spend most time at maintenance or building, and then yeah, a couple months every now and then, we'll go into fat loss, okay? Those things all go for everyone. Now, the changes based on you should be individualized. And that is where if you truly want to find out what works best for you, which is also one of those statements where I actually don't love it because people will use this like I just need to find what works for me. This is not something you find, it's something you build, okay? And every individual comes into my coaching practice is completely different. And everyone has their different things that we're dealing with, whether it's autoimmune or thyroid issues or hormonal imbalances or endometriosis or digestive issues, IBS and leaky gut, gut dysbiosis, adrenal dysfunction, or just your general health goals, your general lifestyle changes, your fat loss, your muscle gain. Everyone comes in at their own level, their own stage in the journey, in the Odyssey. So I would much rather you focus less on the hey, what do I need to do as a female versus a man? I would have you focus on what will work for me. Paying attention to you, your energy levels, your hunger, but also even the mindset stuff, okay? Don't think that online advice will always go for everyone. And some of it may, absolutely. Right? When you see me post these kind of basic habits, yeah, that's gonna go for everyone. But the the the order in which we work may change, okay? The symptoms you may be dealing with are gonna be different from the next person. So that's what I want you to start with, okay? Take it further than just saying I want to lose fat, I want to build muscle. Go beyond, hey, I just want to be healthy and live long. Really look at what are my flaws? What are some character traits that I want to improve as a person, as an individual? What are some things I struggle with? Oh, so it's weakened benches. Okay, let's actually work through that. It's emotional ease eating, okay. Let's work through that. Is it stress eating? Okay, let's work through that. Do we have low self-belief? No confidence. Do we get frustrated with little things in life? How do we show up? Are we the best version of ourselves? And if not, okay, cool, that's totally great. You have the awareness now. Now there's awareness, now we can start changing it. Are we dealing with a lot of hunger? Is it cravings? Okay, let me reflect on my day of eating. Where could I do better? But you get it, right? This is an individual journey that you're on, whether you are male or female, the basics will go for everyone. And then your journey with your personal periodization plan, the habits you still need to build. And of course, if you do have a natural cycle, the symptoms you are dealing with, that is the stuff I would base it off of. I'll keep it at that today, a bit of a shorter episode, but I like those as well. I'll talk to you again next week, where we're gonna dive into liver detox and bile, and then I'll talk to you again soon. All right.