Aug 26, 2021
Shawn Wells is on the Girlfriend Show to talk about why purpose and intention, when combined with exercise and nutrition, is the foundation for a healthy long life. Learn how to detox your body and your life with the ENERGY formula, how to biohack your body with powerful natural supplements, and the secrets to making the most of the ketogenic diet.
- [1:25] Writing a book is a major undertaking. Shawn recently spent the last year and a half of his life working 30-40 hours each week, getting all of the pieces together for his latest book.
- [3:05] The ENERGY acronym stands for Experiment, Nutrition, Exercise, Routines, Growth, and Your Tribe. For the last 20 years, Shawn has been accumulating and amassing all of this knowledge and the book was his attempt to put it all into one easy-to-consume format.
- [5:35] What does biohacking mean? There are shortcuts to improving your vitality and biological function, like bulletproof coffee, sun gazing, cold plunges, and red light saunas. It’s the mashup term for hacking your biology.
- [7:10] Hacktivism is the use of hacking for the greater good and Shawn used this idea for the basis of the book. The more you are energized and alive, the more you can connect with the world around you.
- [8:00] Before going to medical school, Dr. Anna worked with the military training deep sea divers. This experience came into play in Dr. Anna’s own journey of being stressed and depressed after going through early menopause and living a difficult, fast paced life.
- [10:00] The less mitochondrial function you have, the less energy you have. Not having sufficient cellular energy will lead to more inflammation and stress the mitochondria even further.
- [11:20] There is a psychological component at play. You can be your own placebo by shifting your mindset and reframing a situation in a positive light. The trouble is that most people reframe things negatively by default.
- [13:40] There is a positive or negative charge to your thoughts and those thoughts can affect the smallest physiological processes in your body.
- [16:10] Exercise snacks are a unique idea that’s floating around where small bursts of movement spread out throughout the day are more impactful than one hour of concentrated activity. So many of our physical issues are a result of the typical sedentary lifestyle as our bodies adapt. It’s important to keep our bodies in motion, whether that’s planks or squats for a few minutes each hour.
- [20:30] 88% of the population is in a state of metabolic dysfunction and heading toward insulin resistance. This resistance will exacerbate the energy gap and the fastest way to solve this issue is having an alternate source of energy in ketones. This is where the keto diet comes in.
- [22:45] Insulin resistance is the hallmark of all biological aging. Around 1% of disease is genetic; the 99% is metabolic and driven by being insulin resistant. The standard American diet and lifestyle is mainly to blame for why so many people in the West are getting sick and tired.
- [26:10] When Dr. Anna shifted to a ketogenic diet, she saw a major shift in her energy level and focus. Getting into ketosis is incredibly powerful for healthy brain function.
- [27:10] If you’re not getting the results you want from your keto diet, you are probably not eating enough fat. You have to shift away from the idea that “you are what you eat,” to “you burn what you eat.” If fat is the number one macronutrient in your diet, your body will optimize to become a fat burning machine.
- [28:40] The latest keto snacks and treats may also be a source of problems. Trying to eat a ketogenic version of the traditional Western diet may put you in the awkward state of not being optimized for either mode. It’s also very easy to go overboard on these types of products.
- [30:15] Your energy level is your best indication that you’re succeeding on the ketogenic diet, not your level of ketones. If you’re not testing your ketones, you’re guessing.
- [32:40] Don’t worry too much about your glucose levels going up after eating food; the important thing to watch is how quickly it comes back down. Feast days are good for making sure you don’t become metabolically inflexible.
- [34:05] Snacks destroy men’s and women’s metabolisms. The idea of balancing your blood sugar by snacking all day has not worked out well for people.
- [35:50] The number one place to start is to dump ultra processed food, move your body, stop snacking, and stop thinking you need dessert after every meal. Eliminating the snacks before you adopt a ketogenic diet will only make it more effective once you do.
- [37:55] Nootropics are substances that grow your mind and enhance brain function. One of the reasons that keto is so effective for most people is that it turns the lights back on in your mind so they don’t have to compensate with caffeine and sugar.
- [38:40] Healing your metabolism and allowing it to properly use glucose is going to enhance your energetic states and grant better brain function.
- [41:30] When your mitochondria can’t get the fuel they need, everything in the world starts shutting down. With the ketogenic diet, it reduces oxidation and inflammation, and without it, the cells become overworked and stressed and just break down into disease states over time.
- [43:40] MCT oils, especially C8 MCTs, are effective ketogenic supplements. Berberine has also been shown to be effective at helping type-2 diabetics, but it also has effective anti-aging properties.
- [48:00] Metformin was originally brought to the market to combat influenza and not type-2 diabetes. There is a chance that Metformin and Berberine may actually help with viruses like Covid-19. If diabetes and obesity are comorbidities for Covid-19, they should be focused on as therapeutic pathways to treat the virus.
- [51:15] Dr. Anna goes over her favorite supplements. Creatine is associated with reproductive health and is naturally found in red meat. Shawn discusses a trace amino acid that is being considered for vitamin status.
- [54:10] Shawn’s typical morning routine starts with going to sleep at the right time the night before. We are the only species that deprive ourselves of sleep on purpose. Be mindful of your light exposure and proper sleep hygiene so you can get to bed on time.
- [57:35] Not getting enough sleep makes you acutely insulin resistant. When you chronically don’t get enough sleep, you are chronically insulin resistant, which leads to 2-3 times higher risk of heart attack and being 5 times more likely to have diabetes.
- [1:00:35] If you ease into waking up, everything is different. Start with gratitude and begin your day with positive thinking and affirmations, some light stretching and a glass of water, and you’ve got a good foundation for a great day. To change your life, you have to change your morning.
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Always seek the advice of your own physician or qualified health professional before starting any treatment or plans. Information found here and results are provided for informational purposes only and are not intended to replace a one-on-one relationship with a qualified healthcare professional and are not intended as medical advice.