If you are a woman, I highly recommend reading The Hormone Fix by Dr. Anna Cabeca. I listened to an interview with Dr. Anna on one of my favorite podcasts (The Intermittent Fasting Podcast) and I immediately ordered her book. I’ll share some of the takeaways I got from reading the book.
Dr. Anna talks about her OB-GYN practice and the many women she has treated over the years, along with their hormonal complaints. She goes on to recommend that you “test, don’t guess” and she includes some questionnaires that help you identify exactly what hormonal issues you might be having. She recommends measuring your waist and your hips to determine your waist-to-hip ratio. (By the way, that ratio is W divided by H. A ratio of 0.80 or less is considered to be healthy or safe for women.) Dr. Anna recommends purchasing some pH trips and ketone strips at your local pharmacy and testing your urine daily. The goal is to get your urine pH in the alkaline range of 7. The goal for the ketone strips is to get your body into ketosis so that it is producing ketones. (More about habits you can implement to get those results below.)
Similar to implementing many other habits, Dr. Anna recommends down tracking your data and your habits daily. (I confess that I miss a day here or there, but tend to get back in the habit of tracking quickly. Habit tracking is very effective!)
Dr. Anna recommends tracking:
*your weight, waist measurement and hip measurement once weekly;
*your hours of sleep from the night before;
*your urine pH and ketones;
*your water intake;
*whether or not you added an alkalinizer to your diet, like Dr. Anna’s Mighty Maca Plus, baking soda, or apple cider vinegar;
*whether or not you had a bowel movement;
*what physical activity you enjoyed;
*writing down at least one thing you are grateful for daily;
*setting your intentions for the day – what you want to accomplish, enjoy, experience or improve in your life;
*choose a “cheer word”. Dr. Anna says: “This is a word that when you say or think of it, it brings a smile to your face. . . . . Say this word many times throughout the day so that you’ll smile, instead of ‘resting witch face.’”
*write down what or with whom you have connected with this day;
*write what oxytocin activity you did or plan to do (more about that below);
*she includes a brief positivity self-assessment where you rate yourself with the following scores: 0 = not at all; 1 = slightly; 2 = more often; 3 = absolutely. The positivity self-assessment helps reset your mood because the more often you say these statements to yourself, the more you will believe they are true! (Similar to saying affirmations daily. See my morning routine post about that HERE.)
Dr. Anna recommends following a ketogenic diet but making it more alkaline with greens and other veggies. A ketogenic diet restricts carbohydrates which is helpful to midlife women since we just don’t need as many carbs. Other benefits of ketosis: prevents insulin resistance, optimizes your blood sugar, tames your appetite, prevents disease, and improves memory.
“Lifestyle, from sleep habits to stress management, also makes a huge impact in the quality of our lives and relationships — which is what women really want upgraded at this point in their lives. . . . All of my experience and research had now come full circle. I discovered that the best way to lose weight and ensure optimal health is to combine an alkaline diet and lifestyle changes, along with getting into ketosis.”
Dr. Anna also recommends my personal favorite eating plan: intermittent fasting. Read my post about that HERE or read my favorite book about intermittent fasting, Delay Don’t Deny by Gin Stephens. It is a key component for getting into ketosis. Intermittent fasting accelerates fat burning and kick-starts the process of autophagy. Autophagy is the process by which the body cleans out the damaged cells and defends against stress and disease. Think of it as spring cleaning for your body, every single day. Dr. Anna lists other health benefits of fasting. She says that fasting can:
~reduce body weight
~slow down the growth of tumors and decrease cancer risk
~improve joint & bone health
~help manage blood sugar
~protect the heart
~reduce the risk for menstrual problems
~improve mental health during the menopause transition
~reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression
~ease stress levels
Dr. Anna is a proponent of eating a more alkaline diet. This is something that I am still learning to do. Dr. Anna says: “In general, fruits, vegetables, certain vegetable oils, herbs and spices, and nuts and seeds are the most alkaline, due to their nutrient content. Meat, poultry, dairy, sugar, processed foods, caffeine, alcohol, and so forth are the most acidic. Of course, there are some outliers: grains, which grow from the ground, are slightly acidic. And some carbs, such as potatoes and sweet potatoes, are alkaline.” Dr. Anna says that staying alkaline also has a huge lifestyle component. These factors include your level of hydration, how much you sleep and exercise, how positive you are, how often you have bowel movements, and how much time you spend in nature.
Benefits of becoming more alkaline: impacts bone health, helps your heart, improves fat burning, maintains lean muscle mass and youthfulness, prevents magnesium deficiency, reduces pain, and improves detoxification.
Some of Dr. Anna’s tips for getting and staying alkaline:
*test, don’t guess!
*drink morning alkaline water (½ T. lemon juice, ½ to 1 T. unfiltered apple cider vinegar, 1 pinch cayenne pepper, and ½ tsp baking soda
*double veggies in a salad
*slow down your eating & chew your food well
*drink bone broth
*hydrate!
*drink ½ tsp to 1 T apple cider vinegar before meals
*use MCT oil or extra virgin olive oil as a base in salad dressings
*take magnesium at bedtime
*avoid constipation
*do your best, but give yourself grace (a mindset tip)
*get quality sleep
Dr. Anna includes a keto-green 10 day quick start detox diet plan. The specifics are in her book, but here are some quick start eating guidelines:
*get rid of sugar
*no more diet sodas
*avoid gluten and grains
*ease off caffeine and alcohol
*stay hydrated
*drink less water WITH meals (drink between meals instead)
*chew your food well
She also recommends doing the following every day when you wake up: test your urinary pH; drink a large glass of warm alkaline water; drink coffee or tea; spend time in meditation, prayer and expressing gratitude.
Supplements that Dr. Anna recommends include:
*a multivitamin/mineral
*omega-3 fish oil
*vitamin C
*magnesium
*a probiotic
*a liver detox supplement, such as milk thistle
*fiber supplementation, such as flaxseed or chia seeds
*maca
Check out her book for more specifics about brands and dosage. You’ll also want to read her information about the benefits of maca!
After the 10 day detox, Dr. Anna gives tips, menus and great recipes to help you eat keto-green all or most of the time. She recommends familiarizing yourself with alkaline and acid food choices (she includes a chart in the book) and eating macros of 55-70% fats, 5-15% carbs and 20-30% protein. She suggests eating protein at every meal, avoiding gluten and grains, drinking half your bodyweight in ounces of water, taking supplements, keeping carbs around 30-40 grams per day, and daily intermittent fasting.
In addition to the keto-green eating guidelines, Dr. Anna includes chapters about several other important lifestyle elements. These include how to protect yourself from toxic overload that disrupts hormones, how to deal with stress, what to do about midlife vaginal changes, recommendations about exercise and sleep, and how to boost oxytocin.
In the chapter about reducing toxin overload, Dr. Anna suggests avoiding deodorants that contain aluminum. I have read about this in many places and have made the switch to Kopari deodorant. My daughter loves the Native brand. Try one of these and see what you think! Dr. Anna also suggests using natural cleaners such as Thieves or Seventh Generation. I also use a supplement that she recommends called DIM. This is a compound that is found in cruciferous vegetables (such as broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage) and is used for hormone balance.
Other ways to protect yourself from toxic overload: buy organic fruits and vegetables; buy organic, free-range, grass-fed, hormone-free meats and eggs; eat fish low in mercury; emphasize cruciferous vegetables; stay alkaline; drink more water; exercise at high intensity (sweat is a natural detoxifier); use a steam room or infrared sauna.
In the chapter on reducing stress, Dr. Anna recommends several strategies but she emphasizes that you need to incorporate activities that you love into your daily routine. Some of her personal favorite strategies are taking a walk, going to yoga class, taking a bath with essential oils, reading a devotional, and meditating. Other recommended activities include creating some kind of art, exercising, being in nature, listening to music, changing your thoughts to positive ones, connecting with people you love, and reading a good book. Once again, staying nutritionally alkaline plays a big role in helping our bodies heal.
Dr. Anna includes a daily spiritual assessment with six questions. She suggests sitting in a quiet place without interruptions and meditating on the questions. Review your day with gratitude and look optimistically toward tomorrow.
In the chapter on vaginal health, Dr. Anna addresses issues such as dryness, painful intercourse, and incontinence. If you are having any of these symptoms, check out her book or website for tips and resources.
In the chapter on movement and sleep, Dr. Anna emphasizes that exercise and sleep are very effective hormone fixes. Benefits of exercise, especially at midlife, include:
*stronger heart
*greater bone density
*more energy and stamina
*natural detox of system
*elevated mood and positive feeling about your body and life
*reduced intensity & frequency of hot flashes
*protection against creeping weight gain
*help with prevention of dementia
Dr. Anna says that the best exercise is whatever you love and will stick to doing! If you do not currently have an exercise plan, she recommends starting slowly, with a 15-minute walk for instance, and to keep the habit going. The power of small amounts, done consistently, will change your life for the better. (See my posts about small changes that lead to big results HERE, HERE and HERE.)
By the way, if you’re interested in getting support with healthy eating and great workouts, consider joining Faster Way to Fat Loss with Amanda Tress. Read my post about it HERE. The next round starts June 3!
Two types of exercise that Dr. Anna does recommend are yoga, strength training, and boxing! All three have different benefits, but they do have some of the same benefits:
*relieve stress
*increase strength
*improve bone density and balance
*increase overall well-being
Dr. Anna recommends getting seven hours of sleep every single night. That in itself can be a challenge for many of us, but sleep is so important for balancing your hormones and for regenerating your body. Here are her tips for improving your sleep:
*establish a healthy morning routine that starts your day off right.
*commit to intermittent fasting
*break your fast with healthy protein and fats, but very low carbs
*supplement with melatonin (taken at sunset, which seems to work better than taking it at bedtime)
*turn off electronics by 9 p.m. or at sunset
*avoid caffeine, sugar, and alcohol
*create an environment conducive to sleep (cool, dark, uncluttered)
*establish a healthy evening routine that leads to good sleep. (See my post about establishing an evening routine HERE.)
While there are many hormones in your body and they all have important benefits, Dr. Anna says that oxytocin is the most important because it is our most powerful and healing hormone.
When you read this list of what oxytocin does for you, you’ll want to boost it as soon as possible!
*enhances your sense of optimism, mastery, and self-esteem
*creates sexual arousal
*helps overcome social inhibition and fears
*heals wounds and relieves pain
*may be responsible for beneficial metabolic effects that help weight loss
*decreases health-damaging inflammation
*strengthens memory
*potentially helps with depression and anxiety
*reduces stress
*increases generosity
Now, how to boost oxytocin? Besides orgasms (the #1 way to boost oxytocin), here are Dr. Anna’s suggestions:
*cuddling with your significant other during a feel-good movie
*cuddling with your kids
*massages
*hugs
*increased sweating through a sauna, steam bath, hot yoga session, being in sunlight, or exercising
*socializing
*nurturing friendships with other females
*caring for a pet
*volunteering your time or being generous in other ways
*taking supplements of vitamin C., vitamin D, magnesium, and melatonin
*practicing self-compassion (talking to yourself as you would talk to a good friend; extending grace to yourself)
Some of the most powerful parts of this book are when Dr. Anna shares some of her own personal stories and experiences with hormone issues and great tragedy in her life. You can tell through her writing that she is very “real”. Her website, dranna.com, has great resources and products to try. I highly recommend the book and hope that you will find it helpful as well. I’ll end with part of Dr. Anna’s final message in the book:
“I believe every woman deserves a life filled with good health, happiness, and overflowing with love. With the right nutrition, an optimized I lifestyle, and simple, loving actions, you can dramatically alter and balance your hormonal chemistry. I wrote this book especially for you. I want you to live the most beautiful and vibrant life that you absolutely can.”
If you’ve read the book, let me know what you think!
Very informative. Thanks for sharing
http://greathealthylife.com/