At 57, today’s guest Barbara Diaz DeLeon is healthier than ever after years of constant fatigue, body-wide joint pain, a case of hypertension so severe it required 2 different types of medication, painful digestive issues that led to trying out veganism, mood imbalances, and also, a complete loss of zest for life. But after years of suffering, Barbara is 30 pounds lighter, healthy, happy, and helping many others feel the same way.

Barbara founded Daily Wellness for You in the hope of helping women transform their lives after she experienced her own personal health transformation after years of suffering. In this episode you’ll hear about how Barabra successfully lost 30 pounds and her experience with chronic Lyme disease, Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis, elevated heavy metals, and genetic detox issues. You’ll learn how Barbara managed to cure herself of all the debilitating symptoms, got her blood pressure back to normal without any medications, kept off the weight she lost for good, and most importantly, how she regained her zest for life.

Barbara is a Health Coach through the Primal Health Coach Institute and the Institute of Transformational Nutrition, and previously worked in the Healthcare Administration sector for many years as an RN. As a coach, she utilizes simple nutrition and lifestyle changes to help women lose weight, regain energy and start living life again. Her clients enjoy more than just the benefits of sustained weight loss—they also experience improved energy, reduced inflammation, improved digestion, and increased strength and confidence.

TIMESTAMPS

Today’s guest is a woman who has had a complete turnaround from a lifetime of illness. [01:30]

Barbara’s health was deteriorating even as early as her thirties with fatigue and female problems. [06:06]

Not until Barbara adopted the primal lifestyle, did the “magic” happen. [09:23]

Diet was a big part of her transition. [12:02]

The turning point for her when she was struggling as a vegetarian was when she heard a lecture called “Delete the Wheat.” [17:36]

It is hard to change from rigid beliefs and try new foods. [20:01]

With her transformation, Barbara changed her physique. [24:26]

Her mindset was a big piece of the change. [26:51]

Serotonin is made in the gut and it has a huge function on our brain. [30:13]

If you feel like you are not getting the right answers from your medical provider, keep looking. [33:28]   

Why is chicken ranked below beef?  And what about plant proteins? [40:01]

When you are eating animal proteins, you are getting the vegetables that the animal ate as well. [43:20]

How did she heal the leaky gut? [46:50]

Her exercise regimen connected everything in the journey. She started slowly. [49:26]

Barbara is now a health coach using her life experience and training. [56:20]

LINKS:

• Brad Kearns.com
• Brad’s Shopping page
  Primal Health Coach Institute
• Daily Wellness for You.com
• Wheat Belly
• The Salt Fix
• The Framingham Study
• Monterey Bay Acquarium.org

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B.Rad Podcast

Brad(00:01:30):
Hi listeners, get ready for an amazing story of health transformation from Barbara Diaz DeLeon coming to you from beautiful Milwaukee, Wisconsin area, where she is a practicing health coach certified for the Primal Health Coach Institute. And she runs an operation called Daily Wellness for You. And boy, does she walk her talk because she had a real struggle for most of her adult life with an assortment of really disastrous health troubles that oftentimes evaded traditional medical treatment and diagnosis. She reports that she had constant fatigue, Body-wide joint pain requiring two medications for hypertension, all kinds of hormone imbalances, digestive problems, leaky gut syndrome, as it’s now known, but was difficult for her to figure out in these years past. Now at 57 years old, she’s healthier than ever. She’s lost 30 pounds and kept it off, helps other people do the same. And so we are gonna talk through a story which unfortunately seems to be, uh, disturbingly common, where people report similar vague symptoms of just malaise.

Brad (00:02:46):
She said her worst symptom was a complete loss of zest for life because she had this constant brain fog and fatigue. She’s gonna talk about her vegetarian slash wannabe vegan diet that she tried valiantly to adhere to for so many years and is believed to be the root cause of a lot of her suffering because of the depletion that occurred from that restrictive diet. And also the leaky gut brought about or exacerbated by a lot of grain consumption and the allergies that so many of us have to gluten and other offensive agents that cause gut inflammation. And so she discovered a more well rounded. She calls it a paleo style diet that was sort of the catalyst as well as going to some functional medicine. I love how she talks about mindset throughout the show and integrates that into her healing and her transformation.

Brad (00:03:43):
So it wasn’t just choosing the right foods, but it was also believing that she deserved to be healthier and that she could stand up for herself and assert herself with her rough journey through the medical establishment to find people that would actually continue to test further or not be shut off to some of the progressive ideas like, Hey, maybe diet has something to do with my thyroid function and all these other problems that I’m having. And there’s so many people that have stories like this, where they’ve turned everything around. They feel fantastic, reversing the biological clock literally in so ways. Here at 57, she reported offhand that she’s right around nine minutes for the mile, which is in the superior category for people at age 50 with the Cooper Institute’s vaunted test of health competency that is strongly predictive of longevity. And they found that this mile run test is superior to looking at blood values and all the things that we try to track our health outcomes in the future. So she’s fit. She’s healthy. She’s got her diet dialed in and she’s helping a lot of people do the same. I think you’re gonna love this conversation with Barbara Diaz DeLeon of Daily Wellness for you.com.

Brad (00:05:05):
Hi Barbara.

Barbara (00:05:06):
Hey, Hey there,

Barbara (00:05:07):
How’s it going? All right. Sorry. I’m late. I’m like, oh my gosh. Yeah, better check my schedule.

Barbara (00:05:16):
Oh, I’ve done that. I can relate. You get all involved and it’s like, oh yeah, I’ve got this calendar. Gotta deal with it.

Barbara (00:05:23):
Yeah. You live in Wisconsin?

Barbara (00:05:25):
Yeah. We have a nice blanket of snow occurring right now, so,

Barbara (00:05:28):
oh yes. What part?

Barbara (00:05:31):
Um, near Milwaukee. So I’m not, not up north.

Barbara (00:05:34):
So I have a lot of cousins in Milwaukee. You look in the phone book. There’s a lot of Kearns.

Barbara (00:05:39):
Okay. Okay.

Barbara (00:05:41):
Yeah. I’ve been there a lot.

Barbara (00:05:43):
Now I know. I’ll see it all the time. Now that you mentioned it.

Barbara (00:05:46):
Oh, sure.

Barbara (00:05:47):
Yeah, yeah, yeah. For sure. For sure. But yeah, it’s, uh, yeah, kind of a bad day weather wise here, but uh, you know, what are you gonna do? It’s just part of the, the life here. So

Barbara (00:05:57):
I guess so, um, and we got a lot to talk about yeah. Amazing health transformation, huh?

Barbara (00:06:06):
Oh my gosh yes. And it was a long, long journey. So my big goal is not to have anyone suffer, you know, as long as I did for right? Or be told, you know, over and over by doctors that you’re doing well, and you’re fine. And you’re really not, you know, and I, and I know you know, Elle Russ talks about that, too. You know, they sit there and say, you know, well, you know, exercise more, eat less things like that and not, not addressing the root cause issues. So, yeah. And so my mission is to just be a story of hope and that it’s not too late. And, you know, with small, simple steps, you can get this done. Like it can happen. And I did my transformation in my I’m 57, I’ll be 58 in June.

Barbara (00:06:52):
And I didn’t even start working out exercise was one of the last pieces of my journey. I didn’t even start working out. So I was, you know, 55 just after I turned 55. And people think, you know, sometimes when they see my videos on Facebook and things like that, they think I’ve been working out forever. And it’s like, no, I was never athletic. I was the last kid picked out on teams growing up. So, so it’s been fun. That’s been a fun part of my journey is the exercise piece. Now that I don’t have Body-wide joint pain and I have energy. So yeah, it’s, uh, it’s, it’s been fantastic.

Barbara (00:07:23):
So tell us how it started. You had a long history of just nagging conditions that were from mild to serious, but were a big mess for, I guess, a lot of your adult life, or when, when did we, when did we first start, uh, complaining about health problems?

Barbara (00:07:39):
Yes, yes, actually it was a long time ago. I was in my mid thirties when I started to have some fatigue. And so I went to the conventional doctor and they did find, I was hypothyroid, did not check for any antibodies or autoimmune conditions. I was prescribed Synthroid and I got a little bit of relief, but not really. But my TSH common tests that they do, and they usually only do TSH. If you’re lucky, you’ll get a T4 done too. It came out in the normal range, so they just said, well, you know, everybody gets tired when they get older and you’re fine. And I’m like, I’m not fine. And so the fatigue was my main chronic for over 15 years. And then I started to develop female problems too, in my mid thirties, and that wasn’t addressed properly either. And I ended up with a hysterectomy at 39 and I was married in my mid thirties.

Barbara (00:08:32):
And so that took away the opportunity to have children. So that was a big emotional roller coaster as well. And while I’m still tired on top of all of this, and I’m having poor sleep, brain fog, my mood imbalances, body-wide joint pain, like I mentioned before, and I kept getting told that you’re fine and loved ones would say, oh, you’re just fine. Every everybody gets tired, you know, when they get older and it’s such an invisible thing. And then I finally turned over some rocks with different providers and Lyme disease was diagnosed. Hashimotos thyroiditis was diagnosed. I was also diagnosed with a lot of extra heavy metals in my body, more than any one should have. And I have genetic detox issues that was tested. So that was important finding to know. So it was great to have all these answers, right?

Barbara (00:09:23):
So I, I finally got them and I was treated for them, but I was trying to supplement my way out of my mess. And I really wasn’t getting great results yet. I had some improvement, but not that much. And it wasn’t until I adopted the primal lifestyle, I became a primal health coach, the primal lifestyle, and, you know, also, included mindset, practices, lifestyle, nutrition, and exercise, all four of those pillars. That’s when the magic happened. That’s when everything changed for me. And and it’s what I do on the daily that makes a different of my life. Even, even to this day, even though I’m treated properly and things like that, if I don’t keep those things in check, um, then things will start to flare up and the wheels start falling off the bus. And, um, yeah, so it’s, I feel fantastic now I was on two blood pressure medicines before I’m off both of them.

Barbara (00:10:14):
And my blood pressure is better now than when I was on the two medications. And some off of those prescriptions I have, I don’t have fatigue at all anymore. All the body-wide joint pain is gone. The brain fog is gone. And really the worst symptom I had before was I lost my zest for life and that’s really a dark bad place to be in. And I’ve, you know, that was probably the worst symptom of all. And now I just, I get up every day and I can’t wait to hit the ground running and literally too. That’s my new thing at the gym and I’m starting to run. But yeah, so just, it’s fantastic. And I like to be a story of hope because there’s so many women my age in their mid fifties, or even in their forties that are being not getting any answers and being told they’re fine.

Barbara (00:10:59):
And their family members look at them like they’re nuts sometimes and think they’re, you know just faking it and, you know, and I get that, there’s a lot of mindset things involved here and, you know, I’m all for it. But the conventional doctors were starting to tell me that I needed counseling and things like that. And I’m a hundred percent for counseling, you know. Been there. Done that. But I just knew there was a physical root issue. So and actually there were several, um, it was not just one thing. So that’s, you know, my story and that’s why I’m pretty much a zealot now for anyone who will care to listen to my, about my transformation.

Barbara (00:11:34):
Well, this story seems so common and these, these terms are, are banter around. You hear a lot of people getting diagnosed with Hashimotos and chronic fatigue and adrenal fatigue and autoimmune. And I’m just curious, why do you think it’s so common and how did you in particular start feeling these things in your thirties? Like, do you think it was strongly diet related or how, how did you, how did you get into this mess?

Barbara (00:12:02):
Yeah, I think, well, diet was a very big key for me. I was a vegetarian for many years thinking I was serving my body well, and I was actually a pretty healthy vegetarian. I mean, I had some junk food in there, but I had salads every day, tons of oatmeal, lots of whole wheat products, all of that. And that was a disaster for me, that was a disaster for my autoimmune conditions. And, and I know that can work for some people and I know we’re all different, but it did not serve me well. And I actually, probably half of that time I was vegan because I always strive to be vegan and I just couldn’t get myself to do it. And I think that was my body’s innate, you know, intuition to say, don’t do that. You need eggs, you need some, you know, animal products in your life.

Barbara (00:12:44):
So that was a big transition for me. And the second piece of that would be stress management and lifestyle, not putting enough attention on those kinds of things. And, and of course with the fatigue, I wasn’t moving at all. Like I had no exercise in my life. And when I first started at the gym, I could hardly get up off the floor, seriously. That’s how bad it was with the Body-wide joint pain and just being outta shape. And I would not have gone to the gym, had it not been for some kind soul that encouraged me to group class of all things. That was the last thing I wanted to do. I didn’t wanna be embarrassed. And, so it all mattered, but it did start with the nutrition piece for me. When I switched over to paleo based diet, that was a game changer, a hundred percent.

Barbara (00:13:29):
So you were vegetarian for, for how long?

Barbara (00:13:33):
Oh gosh. At probably 20 years. Well, over 15 years. Yeah.

Barbara (00:13:37):
That goes back into your youth. And I, I suppose you were inspired by just being cleaner and, and maybe having some sustainability ideals and, and things like that that are bantered around. I love how people now are countering that. Dr. Paul Saladino does a good job talking about sustainable agriculture and how, you know, a properly raised animal can have carbon sequestering effect. And that this whole thing is a lot of it’s propaganda to stand there and think that, you know, avoiding animal products is making you a better citizen and also healthier. But I suppose in your case, and I want to go to that comment you made that it can work for some people, which I think we’re now seeing an explosion of insight that things are, you know, individual and someone’s diet, probably the people who are shouting most loudly about it can work really well for them. But it is by definition, a restrictive diet and you’re restricting a lot of the, the foods that are ranked as the most nutrient dense. So I suppose you got into a tailspin over a long period of time where you started to get the issues with depletion of certain key micronutrients. And how did that what insight do you have there from unwinding this now?

Barbara (00:14:56):
Yes, that was a tough one because I was, I did belong to the, you know, animal group organizations that protected animals, you know, the vegan groups, I was a donor for all of them financially, and I was very wrapped up in it, you know, hundred percent. And so that was hard to turn my mindset around that. And I’m so happy now that, like you had mentioned, there’s people out there that are shedding light on the real truth about this, and you know, that what can happen, what happens, you know, with a purely vegan or vegetarian diet, those aren’t safe either. And then also, you know, the not to, you know, go are too far sideways, but also how, like a lot of people think chicken, when they do finally eat meat, they think chicken is the most clean for I’m talking about conventional .They think that’s the best one.

Barbara (00:15:39):
And actually if you’re gonna buy conventional meat, the beef is your better choice, like for clean meat and humanity humane things and all the whole, the whole thing, really. And then as far as the micronutrient depletion, I had also osteopenia at a very young age and that got my attention too. And.

Barbara (00:15:57):
What is that osteopenia?

Barbara (00:15:59):
It’s the stage before osteoporosis, so my bones were already go, you know, gonna start become brittle and weak. And I actually ended up with neck surgery. I had bulging discs, I’ve had steroid injections and my hip and my shoulders, all kinds of things. And I’m not, you know, I can’t prove it, but I’m quite sure if I had this way of living early on, I think I would’ve prevented that. And one of my doctors does feel that my vegan, vegetarian lifestyle did contribute to those muscular skeletal things. I had a shoulder surgery, and like I said, the next surgery was the big one that, that was like the final straw that, that, and my blood pressure kept going up. And I was about to go on a third medication and, and that, that got my attention. So, yes.

Brad (00:16:41):
And during this time you were adhering to this pretty strict plant based diet is what you’re saying.

Barbara (00:16:47):
Yeah. I was always trying to be vegan, so I think maybe 50 to that’s a good

Brad (00:16:53):
New category, Barbara. I like that. You know how people say, oh, I’m, I’m carnivore ish or I’m I’m animal based, but not all the way. And so you’re, you’re like a wannabe, or trying to be vegan. That’s a whole nother dietary category just invented. Yes.

Barbara (00:17:08):
Yes, that was the, and oh, and I was such a proponent of it, you know? I would just, you know, be preaching about it all the time. So, you know, so dogmatic and, uh, and then I had all this shame whenever I would eat cheese or eggs or anything like that on top of it. And I had to watch to help get me out of it, like a lot of YouTube videos of ex vegans. I mean, thank God for them just to get my head wrapped around it and, you know, move in that direction. So, yeah. Yeah.

Brad (00:17:36):
So what was the, um, what was the turning point? Did you come across a practitioner or have some sort of awakening from a book and how did, how did you start to say, Hey, I’m gonna junk this journey that hasn’t worked well for me and try something new?

Barbara (00:17:54):
Yeah. And what happened was, um, I was getting so desperate, so I was trying everything and believe me, I had all the vegan books and all the, the, like I said, the subscriptions to vegan, you know, influencers and doctors and things like that out there. And then I came across, a registered dietician who worked for Dr. William Davis, the Wheat Belly author.

Brad (00:18:13):
Oh. So you’re in Wisconsin, Milwaukee area, which is where Dr. Davis is based. Right?

Barbara (00:18:18):
That’s right. That’s right. And he didn’t give the presentation, but she did. And it was called Delete the Wheat. And I had no idea what it was about. I didn’t know it was gonna be a paleo thing. And I went by myself and, and she’s going over all these meals and every single one includes animal protein. And I’m just like, oh my gosh, what am I doing here? But I actually listened to her and I do, I do like, I mean, I do like science. I was just blind to the other side of science. And I actually have a registered nurse background actually, I’m still an RN. So I like science. I’m a, a bit of a geek with that. So I, so I listened to her. She and she had a great, she did a great job of explaining things in nice, simple terms.

Barbara (00:18:57):
And I thought, okay, fine. I’ll give this a try. You know, somehow I ended up at this, you know, in-person event, you know, called, Delete the Wheat. And I tried, so I went home, I bought some ground beef of all things. Ground beef was my first entry. I think my body knew it needed it and I made a taco salad and it tasted fantastic, and I had no problem digesting it. Cause I know that’s a big thing. A lot of vegetarians will say like, you can’t digest the food. Thankfully I didn’t wreck everything with my hydrochloric acid yet. I, I guess. But, it went, it was, but it was, there was a lot of emotional mental piece. Like I really, I would talk myself out of it sometimes and, you know, go back to eating all the grains and things like that. But I always felt better when I ate the paleo based diet. And, so I just, I’m so thankful for that web, for that in-person event that I randomly went to and had no idea it was gonna be, you know, that kind of an event. And, yeah, so that, that was the first step towards entering into this lifestyle that I have now. Yeah.

Brad (00:20:01):
Wow. The describing of deprogramming those fixed and rigid beliefs is pretty heavy because I think we all, we all harbor those. And when something comes to challenge them, it’s very, very difficult, whether it’s changing your political party or your views on whether these silly masks are saving the planet or a violation of personal freedom. And I, I don’t talk about those things on my shows on purpose, cuz I want to focus on, uh, on our important topics, but these are great examples that are floating and around now where boy, you stuck to your path for so long that it’s, and, and of course you, you did it for reasons of health and for, um, you know, self optimization. And now to, to knock those blocks over is, is a really tough challenge. I mean, it’s, I guess you were slapped in the face by feeling better after your ground beef. It’s hard to ignore the symptoms, especially when you’re going in there dragging your feet and saying, oh gee, I’m gonna try this, but it, you know, it’s probably not gonna work or whatever’s going on in your head.

Barbara (00:21:04):
Yeah. Yeah. And it, it’s still, it’s amazing now, you know, with the views on it, it does get intense, you know, the dietary things, even just within family members, you know, I have to learn, especially since I’m such a zealot, and my family members have seen my change and friends, but you can just see the veil over their eyes like, oh, they have so much fat in it. Or you know, that I, you know, I don’t eat red meat that often. And I’m very careful because I can tell I’ve learned a hard way that they’re not ready for a conversation and I don’t wanna have a, you know, waste their time or my time or get into an argument over it because they’re pretty set. But, um, a lot of my clients though, you know, or people who, family and friends who do ask me wanna have a meaningful conversation with me about my transformation is usually is because they’re at a down and out place and they’re willing. So same as me.

Barbara (00:21:54):
I was down and out and I was just starting to become open to anything I just was desperate. So, I’m always thankful about that. So I’m always trying to learn how I can best gently approach the subject if I think someone’s suffering because I hate to see it. You know, I see people randomly at the store or wherever, and I know they’re my age and they look completely different than me and they’re just dragging. Their eyes are lifeless. And I’m just thinking, it does not have to be that way. But then, you know, you look in their cart, their grocer, if it’s at the grocery store and they have all these foods that are, you know, seemingly healthy, you know, according to, you know, what we might see in on TV or the news and all of that. And, it’s, I just, you know, it, it, I have to hold back and just, you know, have compassion for them that they just don’t know yet, you know how to solve their problems. Yeah.

Brad (00:22:40):
Okay. So there’s the down and out category, the desperation where the person’s really willing to try something and they’re receptive, but short of that, what have you learned? What is your graceful approach to have that, you know, that opening at the social gathering or something, and maybe someone asking, asking you a couple, few questions about your new career path, and then you either pounce and you see the eyes glaze over, or, you know, what has worked for you? Especially, we’re gonna talk about how you built your business, but you know, bring, bringing in a client is a major accomplishment, because again, it’s people, people have difficulty departing from their fixed habits.

Barbara (00:23:24):
Yeah. So if it’s at the, you know, dinner table at a family event, usually I try, had to go with what I call permission based, you know, conversation, because I used to just say, here here’s a meal plan and I would send it to them and I would just basically shove the information down I’m here. I thought you would, you know, I thought this might be of interest and I’d send them a PDF or I’ll start talking about it. So now I’ll ask ’em, you know, would you like to know what I eat in a day? Or would you like to know what my routine is, you know, for the morning or whatever it may be. So it’s more permission based and I ask them if they would like to know. And I just, I measure the response on that to see, you know, I watch our body language and things like that, just to see if they really wanna have that conversation. And if they, um, if I can tell they’re very passionate about what they’re currently doing, I usually would say, well, I’m really happy to, you know, chat with you about that away from this event at a different time, if you like, you know, there’s a lot to say, you know, about the subject. So I’m very, very, permission based like I want, I ask them, would you like to know more? Would you like to know more about my transformation? Would you to know, you know, more about, would you

Brad (00:24:26):
Like to know more about my incredible, fantastic transformation? Yes. well also, um, you, you change your physique significantly. So I think that’s a pretty good business card. Right? Tell us about that.

Barbara (00:24:38):
Yeah. Yeah. That had changed a lot and I love that part of, well, I love all the parts about my transformation, but especially because they always say women who are older, you know, can’t gain muscle and things like that. And I’ve followed Dr. Gabrielle Lyons. And I understand now how important muscle is. And she was very integral as far as people who I followed when I started on this journey too. And, you know, it’s so important and I had no muscle before and I, like I said, I never worked out, you know, I was never, even as a child, I never was athletic. And now I’m basically, you know, I’m doing almost ready to do a pull up on my own without the band. I mean, I’m practicing pistol squats now I’m using TRX for them, but my goal is to be able to do them without it.

Barbara (00:25:20):
And now I’m just starting to do some things, some running it’s brand new for me. Um, so I’d like to try to get to my mile now the best is over nine minutes. But, just to show like you can do it. And that’s another thing I used to be very introvert. I wouldn’t show anything on Facebook now, but now I do it not so much as a not for a bragging and to say, Hey, look at me, but it’s more message of, you can do this too. Like if you, if you would like to do that, in fact, I had someone reach out to me this morning and we had a conversation, texting conversation about it. She wanted to know more. She goes, boy, she’s about my age. She’s like, you’re ripped, you know?

Barbara (00:26:01):
And so she was open to the conversation. And so I asked her, you know, would you like, you know, like to know what I do or what I eat and things like that. And she was open to it. And so I’m really hoping that she’ll, you know, take, make some changes and I think she will. So that is, you know, definitely something that sucks. A lot of people when, you know, I, they, especially people who knew me before people who know, meet me now think I’ve always been fit. And it’s like, no, that wasn’t the case at all. I was an inflammatory mess, you know, and plus I injured easily, you know, so I had to be really careful. I started off very slow. I didn’t dive in. I mean, sometimes with the bicep stuff, it was no weights, you know, with some of the movements, so, or two pound weight. Um, that’s it. So, yeah, so I do that, to be a message of message of hope and that anything is possible. So, yeah.

Brad (00:26:51):
So you became this hot inflamed mess over years of, uh, you’re you’re talking a lot about diet. Is there anything else that you feel like was adverse lifestyle practices that contributed to this demise and these conditions?

Barbara (00:27:06):
Yeah. Mindset was huge. There was a lot of mindset work on my end in terms of, you know, sense of worthiness, not feeling I deserve it and just, um, the world we live in is so negative. Right? And I think we’re just inherently negative as a protective thing, a primitive thing, you know, just to keep us safe from the, you know, the enemy tribe, if you will. But we have so much of it now and then toss on top of it, dings and all that on our phones, you know, everything’s an emergency or now. And I worked in the corporate world for many years and, you know, that was always, you know, you’re overworked and, you know, it’s a lean staff, they always pushing the envelope with that. And so it’s just like, it’s the mindset I had was so negative all the time.

Barbara (00:27:48):
And that really made a huge difference for me. I wish I would’ve put mindset practice in earlier on like in the beginning. I think that would’ve helped me with my journey, you know, for sure, because then I would start to be, have the shame, like if I would eat the meat, you know, like I said, that was a process. So sometimes I’d be like, oh, I shouldn’t have done that. And I would go vegan for a couple weeks just because I had so much shame about it, where if I had the right mindset that I’m doing this to fuel my body, because I love my body. It make a big difference. And actually I do, there are a couple of clients and, you know, one in particular comes to mind, you know, right now that we didn’t even touch nutrition for the first six weeks.

Barbara (00:28:24):
She came to me for weight loss, not for like life coaching or anything else. It was mainly for weight loss just because she had so much self-loathing and things like that. And there was, and there was no way she was going to, you know, have these mass for her. Would’ve been, it was massive dietary changes and, um, her mind needed to get. Right. And now she’s doing great now. She’s like, you know, , you know, doing a stellar job and feeling great, no more pain, losing weight, kind to herself puts herself, you know, first when it comes to health. And, uh, yeah. So it’s, mindset’s a big piece, a lot, at least with the audience or the followers that I’m attracting, the mindset is a big deal.

Brad (00:29:06):
Boy, I mean, it’s a difficult Catch 22 in a way, your mindsets, you’re not gonna have this glowing mindset. If you feel like crap all the time either.

Barbara (00:29:14):
Right.

Brad (00:29:15):
You know, you’re not gonna love yourself too well, if you’re tired and inflamed all the time.

Barbara (00:29:20):
Yes. And, and that’s what it’s, so it’s also connected and that’s, it’s just such a beautiful harmony because when you fix your gut, then your neurotransmitters come alive, now you’re producing serotonin and dopamine and now you feel like a human being and you’re happy again. So you can’t like that. That’s where the physical part comes in. So it’s, you know, you can only do the mindset will go so far. Just like the physical piece will just go so far. You know, when you have them all together, when you have the nutrition, the mindset, the lifestyle and the movement, all it’s a perfect harmony. You need it all just so you can function optimally as a human being and think optimally too, you know, as well. But yeah, I do impress upon my clients or any family or friends that a little about how important it is to heal the gut. Because if you don’t have that, your poor, body’s not making those neurotransmitter that it needs, plus you’re not absorbing the nutrients that you need to absorb. So of course you feel terrible. Yeah,

Brad (00:30:13):
Yeah, The gut brain connection, which probably anyone’s eyes would glaze over 10 years ago is now an emerging field of medicine. Um, what is it? 80% of serotonin is made in the gut and it has such huge function on our, on our brain chemistry. Yeah.

Barbara (00:30:29):
Yes, exactly. And then, tail onto that would be the glyphosate on the foods. It was Dr. Stephanie Senoff that talks about how glyphosate interferes with the pathway that makes the serotonin. And so with the glyphosate, like wheat being double sprayed. So if you’re vegan, you’re eating a ton of wheat and it’s not organic and it’s questionable to you, even if it is organic that some of that’s come over, but you you’re overdosing your body with this glyphosate. Well, no wonder, nobody feels good, you know, no wonder there’s, you know, so many prescriptions for, you know, SSRIs and things like that out there. And I not saying stop them. And I’m not saying don’t take them. I’m a hundred percent for Western medicine when needed. But my goodness, you know, when you think about it, that gut is so important when you’re interrupting all those pathways, it does make a difference. It’s an incredible, incredible.

Brad (00:31:17):
So it sounds like your long term adherence to this grain-based vegetarian slash wanna be vegan diet, you got depleted because you were eliminating a lot of nutritious foods. And then secondly, it sounds like you had some leaky gut condition from all the, uh, the gluten and all the things that are discussed at length and Wheat Belly and other books. And so now, um, not only are, are you devoid of nutrition, whatever you’re getting is not being absorbed well, because of the inflammation of the gut. You wanna talk about how, how that came into the mix with eventually your diagnosis and how you healed that.

Barbara (00:31:57):
Yeah. Yeah, and not only, you know, on top of all that with getting the sicknesses and feeling fatigue, you constant fatigue and the joint pain. I also gained about 30, 35 pounds, you know, of unwanted weight too. But I was feeling so poorly that I got to a point where I just didn’t care about the weight. And just a side note about the weight. I did go on popular weight loss programs, and I did lose the weight three times and I gained it back all three times and all three times I was still, you know, had my high blood pressure medicine. I still had joint pain. I still felt crappy. The only thing that was different was I could fit in smaller jeans, which is nice, but it wasn’t lasting. And I was hungry all the time because your body’s just starved for that nutrition.

Barbara (00:32:37):
So when I got like the osteopenia diagnosis and was starting to get super frustrated about people, not the doctor’s not hearing me and just constantly telling me my thyroid is fine, you know, to eat, eats less exercise, more, not even taking into account when I was eating. And if they did it anything to say about eating, they would say, go eat whole wheat and things like that whole grain, you know, it was the worst advice in the world and that inflammation, I’m surprised I got to, I’m surprised. I was able to think my way out of it and like attend that, you know, that event with Dr. Williams, Delete the Wheat event by his registered dietician. And, yeah, so, it just, it was a desperation point really. And actually, I went through a couple of different functional medicine providers, integrated providers before I found the one that turned over the right rock.

Barbara (00:33:28):
So, you know, that’s another thing too, you know, if you’re, if you feel like you’re not getting answers from your doctor, even if they’re integrative and functional medicine, you keep going until the rocks get turned, it’s not that they’re doing anything wrong. They’re just turning over enough rocks for you, you know. And, you know, they wanna solve the problem. But, um, you know, so that’s another thing I did too. I, I changed doctors and for somebody like me, where before I was such a people pleaser kind of person, it was very hard to do that. But I found the courage to, you know, say, sorry, I need to move to a different doctor and move on. Yeah.

Brad (00:34:00):
Yeah, that’s an interesting one because the medical industry is so well established. There’s such a tremendous level of trust. And I’m curious how the physicians that you saw were dispensing dietary advice and what you think about that in general.

Barbara (00:34:14):
Yeah. Yeah. They not, one of ’em, you know, recommended the, well before the functional medicine doctors, you know, did, but they weren’t identifying my Lyme disease. That was a big thing. They identified the Hashimotos, but the genetic detox issues I have, and the heavy metals that wasn’t diagnosed by the first couple of functional medicine providers, integrative medicine providers. And, finally when the Lyme and the detox genetics were, um, identified that made a big difference for me. Cause then I knew what I was dealing with and were to target. But before that, the conventional medicine doctors would basically say, don’t eat, you know, red meat. If at all eat you know, whole grains, um, you know, oatmeal is fine and I was always hungry, you know, on that diet it too. And it didn’t matter how many beans or anything I ate.

Barbara (00:35:04):
I was never satisfied. And I think all those years where I didn’t have fat, and it’s like, it’s amazing how well my body does with fat. And I’m not keto because I tend to like a lot of carbs. I work out hard too, so I eat a lot of carbs and I just like blueberries and stuff. I’ll just say it. I like my complex carbs, but my non-processed carbs, I should say. But, you know, it’s, uh, it was never any, you know, advice. And then they would say, I remember even at the first appointment, I think it was, I was 33, the doctor saying, well, we all get tired when we’re older and it’s like 33 years old. Are you kidding? You know, I’m, I wanna, you know, have babies soon like this. You know, like I’m still young yet, you know, and it’s interesting now at 57, I feel so much better than even before when I, you know, before I got ill and, you know, things came, you know, to a head for me. So, um, it’s just, it’s an amazing if you give the body the things that it needs, it definitely will do it. But yeah, it’s unfortunate with the conventional doctors. You know, I still hear that to this day from, from people, you know, that they say, well, I follow a good diet. You know, I bought this low fat or no fat cream cheese and sugar free jelly, and put it on a piece of, you know, whole wheat toast and a like, oh, that’s a disaster. Right.

Brad (00:36:19):
But it’s, it’s widely regarded as being healthy. And, same with vegetarian. Veganism has a tremendous reputation in general society as being, you know, superior to the average, Joe, who’s just driving up to a fast food joint. And it’s fascinating. I wonder how long it’s gonna take to unwind some of these things, particularly that a medical professional who’s highly trained in the areas that you might very well need desperately so when you’re, when you’re, when you have a disease., But they’re still dispensing dietary advice, which they, not necessarily have any training your knowledge in. And that’s where I don’t know how we, we got to this point where someone who has no expertise, it’s like going to get your car fixed and, and taking some notes about dietary recommendations from the mechanic.

Brad (00:37:10):
It’s no different. And I, I hope I’m not offending. And if I am offending any physicians, Hey, write in. Email us, tell us how you feel. But, you know, some of the physicians because of their immersion into medical science and the human body are tremendous resources for diet and health expertise. Some of ’em who have a, have a different opinion than people on the other side, there’s the, you know, there’s still strong support for, uh, vegetarian veganism and doing it properly and, and getting your supplements that you need, if you’re gonna have a restrictive diet and all that, stuff’s wonderful. But, um, for those who have no knowledge and no background to dispense dietary advice, that’s who I’m gonna call out right now and say, yes, you know, come on, shut your mouth and, and suggest that your patient and educate themselves further about diet perhaps. And maybe if you’re interested, since you see patients all day, maybe you could also educate yourself further before you give advice.

Barbara (00:38:09):
Yeah. Oh, absolutely. It drives me crazy. You know, when I hear about, you know, the, well, the doctors I’m saying, and also how, you know, the plant protein is fine, and they’re just convinced of this. And, you know, and it’s like, the proof is, you know, just look at the people, just following even a paleo diet. There’s countless people worldwide that have gotten off diabetes medicine, blood pressure medicines, and, you know, all kinds of things. And, and they’re doing fantastic. And it’s, and it’s like, and it’s many blessings to the doctors that have taken the time to educate themselves beyond medical school and residency, you know? There’s so many of ’em, well, like, you know, Dr. Gabrielle Lyon, you know, she’s got tons of education post, the regular medical school, you know, Dr. Cambari, all of ’em, you know, that took the extra time.

Barbara (00:38:53):
My person, you know, my, I have two doctors that, you know, I see now that they take the additional time and it’s unfortunate, it’s not taught in their program. And I get that. But like you said, if you didn’t, if you don’t know it, don’t dispense it, like don’t dispense that as a prescription, you know, food advice , you know, for sure. No, absolutely. Um, and another one too, is that and I had high blood pressure and, you know, was on, like I said, two medications for it, just to keep it at high normal. And my another thing is the salt thing, when they say decrease your salt and isn’t it, like, there’s just like a small percent of people, per the author of The Salt Fix that our salt sensitive that we truly does affect their blood pressure. So why, why would you tell everybody that when it only affects a small percent of people, when they have that genetic, you know, propensity, you know, for salt to bother them. And so that was another thing too. I’d starve myself of salt of all my minerals. And I wonder if my, you know, hair wouldn’t grow my nails and just, well, I had osteopenia, like I mentioned. So, um, that was another necessary component, you know, I added in my life and now I salt everything pretty, pretty liberally. And I do really well yeah.

Brad (00:40:01):
Right. I, I think a lot of this information is 30, 40, 50 years old. And it’s what was known back then and is still printed in the textbooks or the, you know, the rigid, straightforward education that’s dispensed that takes so long to evolve. And so when, when we’re saying cut back on your eggs, because your cholesterol is too high, that’s what was believed in the rudimentary research from, from 50 years ago. Yeah. And now we know that you manufacture whatever cholesterol you need in your dietary cholesterol has no association with blood cholesterol per the Framingham Study, the longest and largest, most respected epidemiological of all time. But if that’s kind of causing someone to blank over, um, back to our context, you know, find another doctor if you make some quips like that. And, um, yeah, they get shot down. Uh, but I’m, I, I like some of your, um, quick comments I want to ask you more about why is the, the chicken ranked below the beef when we’re talking about the health consequence of eating meat, and then second, what about these plant proteins and how they compare to, you know,

Barbara (00:41:05):
Right. Right. Well, first of all, my understanding is that all beef, even conventional beef that the cattle do have time outside. So right there, they have some time outside, so fresh air and sunshine, just like for people , you know, it’s very necessary and it makes a difference, you know, for you, for sure. So they do have that time. And then also, you know, one cattle can produce a lot of meat, one, you know, cow can where chickens are. You know, I, I have a hard time watching them, but I saw a documentary about that. And I only watched a few pieces of it, but where they’re just cramped together, they’re not, you know, fed right at all, where at least the, the cattle, like I said, they do have some natural part part of their life is semi-natural where the chickens it’s totally not.

Barbara (00:41:51):
Aand chickens, you know, they, they grubs and worm, you know, worms and things like that. They’re certainly not vegetarians. Oh. And that drives me crazy when I see eggs at the store and they say, you know, vegetarian fed I’m like, stay away from those at all costs, you know, it’s not a good egg. So, but yeah, they’re, you know, cramped together and they’re not, you know, they’re definitely not getting any of their, anything that we would, what they would do out in if they were natural, you know, out in the world or out in the farm, you know, wherever. And, um, as far as plant protein goes, the absorption rate. Well, first of all, I can’t remember the amino acid. Dr. Gabrielle Lyon’s really good with this stuff. She’s of course the expert. But, you know, there’s a certain I think it’s, lycine, it’s very tough to get from the plant proteins.

Barbara (00:42:33):
And then also, if you are going the plant protein route to get the amount of the certain amino acids that you need, you would need a ton of beans, like a lot. And then let’s think about like, what happens to the rest of your body when you’re doing it, like the blood sugar consequence of things like that. If you did manage to eat all of these beans, and I know she’s got a really good chart comparing at an adequate protein source i., And then there’s a question of, even if you’re going to absorb them, you know, with lectins and things like that in the way you might not absorb them at all. And that that’s my case, you know, because I actually, you know, I ate a lot of food as a vegetarian vegan, and I kept, you know, eating and eating and eating. So it wasn’t because I wasn’t eating enough beans. I wasn’t absorbing any of that protein to, to any meaningful capacity now.

Brad (00:43:20):
Yeah. Much more difficult to absorb. I think, um, Paul Saladino had a, how to quip about you you’re eating the plant or you can eat the animal that, that ate those plants and digested them and converted ’em into a perfectly formed protein, the same biological machinery as the human. So you’re just kind of going up the food chain to get a higher quality protein when we’re comparing plant proteins to an animal based protein. And then with the cow, right. That’s such an interesting point. Like all cattle are grass fed for most of their life. And then they go into the feed lot and their grain fed and their fed all that crappy stuff that the chicken gets too. But, but as a ruminate. an animal, right, with their four stomachs or whatever they have, yeah. They can better handle this nasty food that they get at the end of their life far in a far superior manner to the chicken or the pork who have these elevated profiles of the unwanted fatty acids in their blood because of their feed lot raising.

Brad (00:44:19):
And the cow is not optimal either, but you’re much more protected from those adverse nutritional profiles when you’re choosing meat. And then if you’re choosing grass fed or a hundred percent grass fed, if you can find it or an alternative animal, like the buffalo, the bison and some of that less popular stuff, then you’re doing really well. But that’s an interesting one to kind of correct when people are saying, well, I don’t eat red meat. And they, they say with that tone of voice, like, I’m pretty healthy. I don’t eat red meat. I just eat chicken and fish. Oh, good for you. And then let’s look at half the fish that are offered in the market where, how they score on Monterey Bay, Aquarium Food Watch. And a lot of them are unsustainable. They have those heavy metal concentrations and things that you should never eat certain fish. And so, boy, just go get your ground beef, like Barbara did. Sit down, And, you know, go to town, try it out.

Barbara (00:45:14):
Yeah. And, and chickens too, if I understand correctly. If I read this correctly, they have a lot of arsenic in them, too, you know? So speaking of bad things, you know, like who wants to overdose on that? You that’s another thing, but yeah, go get that ground beef. You won’t be sorry, you know, for that, for sure. But yeah, it’s such a, you know, yeah. Chicken’s really just a, a poor quality meat. And even, even now, like when I eat chicken, I’m not nearly associated, I do eat it. I enjoy some chicken dishes and things like that, you know, for sure. But, and turkey and things like that. But, but the beef is what’s most satisfying for me and yeah. I don’t limit it, you know, and that’s another thing if people either are told not to eat it eat at very little, and that, that drives me crazy.

Barbara (00:45:54):
And, but also, it’s interesting is like, you know, the cows, like you said, with the multiple stomachs that they can, the whole digestion is different. And so a lot of times the vegan advocates compare to, you know, a heavy plant animal, you know, eating animal or a cow that, you know, is a herbivore. It’s like, no, they they’re, you know, they process it completely different. We can’t be compared to them. We’re, we’re complete, we’re, we’re a different animal, you know, you simply put, you know, and, you know, we just can’t do that. And, yeah. So it’s, um, it’s, it’s very important. Like for me, it’s for my clients, you know, if it’s very important that they eat animal protein, you know, for sure, you know, to help them to give them the nutrients that they need, because usually they’re, they’re pretty down and out by the time they, they come to me, you know for help. So, you know, they, they do need that. So, or at least eggs for sure, you know, 100% mm-hmm

Barbara (00:46:50):
So how did you heal that leaky gut and, and what did it feel like to come back from chronic inflammation? I assume digestive pain and a lot of things that are associated with leaky gut.

Barbara (00:47:01):
Yeah. I had a lot of bloating. I had a lot of symptoms that weren’t digestive, but the one I had was bloating and, and digest and, you know, things like constipation and that all resolved pretty quickly. One of the big things when my gut was healed, and it took time, it wasn’t overnight. I did have some benefits right away, but, you know, some other things took some, you know, longer periods of time. But it was like a veil was lifted over my eyes. And it’s back to that gut brain connection. That veil was just lifted. I felt like a human being, again. Like I had energy and all of that, and it was almost like a drug, you know, and I didn’t realize, I knew I didn’t feel well. And I knew that, you know, I was ill that there was some physical component, but I forgot how good it felt to be well.

Barbara (00:47:42):
Like, I, it was, it was, you know, just if anything, do it for the mental health. Yeah. The losing the weight is great and don’t get me wrong, you know? Fantastic. I’m glad I did. And, and I’ve easily kept it off, by the way. I’m never hungry. I’m never starving. It’s probably from all that red meat I eat. Right? But the but seriously, I’m never hungry or starving cuz my I’m getting the nutrition that I need because the stomach is absorbing everything. You know, you get more bang for your buck when you do that. And you know, just that, that mental piece is huge, huge. I got to a point where at the end of my career at my corporate job, I was having to write down things or put important things in three different areas. And, and that’s another thing people say, oh, we all get like that when we get older.

Barbara (00:48:25):
And, and I just wanna say, just because something’s common or someone says, oh, that’s common and we all get that. It make it normal or right. Don’t accept it. Like, you know, move, you know, move on to the next doctor or to the, the next thing. But I would’ve to write, you know, post note it be in my electronic calendar, you know, put it on a post note, put it on another calendar and I was able to get away with it. No one picked up on it, but I was really losing my mind. you know, so my sharpness, yeah. That was kind of scary area. I even went and got a brain a cognitive test on just to make sure, because I thought this is serious stuff you hear about Alzheimer’s and, you know, I thought I better get a baseline. It came out. Okay. So I’m happy about that, but that’s how, how worried I got about it, about that brain. So when the gut was healed, that made a huge difference for me personally, in my, in my brain, for sure. I haven’t had a follow up scan on my bones. It’d be interesting to do that because like I said, I did have the osteopenia for, you know, the bone density and so I need to, um, get that recheck just really for, for fun, just to see where I’m at. Yeah.

Brad (00:49:26):
So the exercise didn’t come in until quite a ways down the road of your healing and tell us how that slotted in

Barbara (00:49:32):
There. Yeah. Well, in the brain, the pathways that you set in your brain are so solid really. So I had this fatigued brain. So I got used to not moving and not doing anything. It was easy to sit on the couch. And even though I was healed, it was easy to get dopamine hits and things like that from watching Netflix or whatever. And, you know, scrolling, social media, things like that. So, I knew I needed to move around and I was feeling up for it because I had the nutrition dialed in the lifestyle was better. And like, this is time for me to start moving in, but I was afraid of getting injured because I had the neck surgery with the disc fusion and the shoulder surgery and cortisone injections in my hip. So I just, I was afraid to move really.

Barbara (00:50:13):
And, it’s, like I said, one friend nice kind encouraged me to go to the gym with her walk, literally walk me through the door. , you know, with that. And I, I started, I was blessed with the place that they do a lot of modifications for you. So if you don’t have to be, you know, when you do a group class, you, they they’ll challenge you, but then if you don’t need to be challenged, they’ll give you what you need. And so I did that and the trainer that I had, I did some personal training just to make sure I did things correctly. He had a physical therapy background. He wasn’t a physical therapist, but an assistant. So he very, um, you know, keen on me doing the exercises, right. He was very, you know, honed in on that. So I was blessed with that and I just started slow and I just would, if I would start to hurt something, I would just give it time.

Barbara (00:51:00):
Like I didn’t rush back into it. And it was, I was a bit impatient at first because it was a bit of a grind at first, you know, it was, I was getting, I, you know, bit impatient, like, gosh, why can’t I do that? Like, you know, why can’t I do that? But if you just stay with it, those small steps, and that’s another thing with all of those things with healthy habits, if anything, start with small steps and build up over time it’s. And for me with exercise, it was safe to do it that way and it was effective. And now, you know, I do all kinds of things, you know, at the gym. It’s amazing. It’s just amazing. I, I can’t believe it sometimes myself and I enjoy it now. It’s a new, fun thing for me. I never thought I would say that ever in my life that I enjoy fitness and that I have certain goals now and you know, that are fitness related. So yeah.

Brad (00:51:42):
Yeah. You have to break through when it’s difficult and frustrating and probably fatiguing when you’re first start out, and then get to that point where it’s invigorating. What kind of stuff do you do? What’s your schedule like?

Barbara (00:51:53):
Yeah, well, currently I do group class four days a week, and the reason why I like the group classes is because, well, first of all, they design ’em really well. They’re, you know, you can modify as needed within the classes and the gym. I go to the trainers, all get together, the coaches and they come up with the, a plan for the group classes the next week. So it’s not just one person, it’s a lot of, you know, a few different people that are designing them. And then also I do, I sometimes have a bit of a lazy brain, so I don’t have to think, you know, I just do. And so that’s kind of nice too. I’ve been kinda guilty of that all along truth, be told with my fitness journey, you know, I get a little lazy and like, what was that exercise called again with that called again?

Barbara (00:52:29):
And, anyway, I have something to say about that in a minute, but so, um, I do group classes and they they’re different themes like one’s base, which is general one’s build, which I love, you know, it’s building the muscles, of course. And then one, one is burn. So I do two burns a week and the build and a base. And then also, I do, pull up practice right now. I’m working on a lower body because that’s been a, more of a, I don’t wanna say weakness, but I’ve neglected it. My upper body’s fine. You know, I just need to maintain that. But I do a lot of, I was doing a lot of upper body work before I love the weights. I love, I love that stuff endurance is, the aerobic stuff. I, I have a, I’m still working on. I tend to, um, not, I don’t wanna say I tire out easy, but, um, I’ve been so focused on the weight lifting. I kinda let the other things go. So I do like to mix it up with a little bit of everything. I don’t wanna be just stuck on, you know, one area and that’s what those classes help me with that because they, they actually forced my hand to do different things. So, yeah.

Brad (00:53:28):
Yeah. Well, geez, you said you’re near a nine minute mile, which is spectacular, uh, at, at your age, the Cooper Institute has wonderful data, uh, asserting that one’s time in the mile run at age 50 is strongly predictive of their longevity in their health span. And you know, their chances of living, uh, feeling healthy and strong, uh, to age 80 and the superior category at age 50 is sub nine for the female and sub eight for the male. And then it goes to you know, in the, in the needs to improve category. And then in the, uh, you know, the danger category would be like worse than 13 minutes, worse than 12 minutes for a male at age 50. So you’re, you’re past that mark and you’re, you’re probably in the superior category if you’re, if you’re under 10. And, um, it’s, it’s really interesting to note that this is, you know, rated as better than blood panels to predict someone’s, you know, future. And there’s also, similar research with squat competency, push up competency. There’s a great study with firefighters’ grip strength is strongly correlated with longevity. There’s a great study out of Hawaii. And so if you’re getting in and, and putting work in, it’s contributing as, as good as anything else to, um, to all those goals that we have to, you know, age gracefully.

Barbara (00:54:49):
Gosh, I love those numbers. I did not know about any of that. That’s fantastic. And my whole goal is to do reverse, reverse and aging because I aged not just aesthetically, but physiologically so much from all those years of illness. So now I’m in this big thing of, I’m not in denial. I actually think it’s fun. The older I get, the more I do, you know, it’s kind of a fun, fun internal competition with myself, you know, and like I turn 58 in June, so I’m like, I’d wanna do this, this and this by the time I’m 58. So it’s an internal competition. But those numbers are fantastic. Like, I had no idea about that. That’s excellent.

Brad (00:55:21):
That’s something to shoot for, for sure.

Barbara (00:55:23):
Yeah, yeah, absolutely. Yeah, yeah. Just, um, yeah, I’ll have to, you know, gosh, I love that. That’s so good. And, and speaking of fitness, I do want to, because I mentioned before, I have a bit of a lazy brain with the fitness. I kind of just follow along and I really need to be a bit more sharp about that. So I do wanna look at getting a fitness certification and I’ve heard on one of your podcasts that you’re coming up with one. So I am gonna hold off.

Brad (00:55:47):
Get ready. People. Get ready. The primal fitness certification is coming soon. It’s very comprehensive. It’s incredibly diverse,, you know, type of content where we’re not just talking about how to lift the weights in the gym, but we’re integrating all manner of, of healthy living and lifestyle practices. So I think you and the other coaches and people interested in fitness are gonna love it. So you started feeling better, you lost your 30 pounds, kept it off your life, turned around, and then tell us about how you got into the business of helping others.

Barbara (00:56:20):
Yeah, well, I’ve always, you know, I’ve, I’ve always liked helping people. And, um, and I, when I was a clinic nurse. When I worked on a clinic side of things in the hospital, a clinician side of things, I didn’t care for it. And I got out of the clinic side of things pretty early on without knowing that I, you know, that deep down I was more into integrative gets root cause. And I just remember just hanging, you know, the, hanging IV antibiotics over and over for like these young people that were just not getting any better. It was so discouraging. And, and it was just, you know, it broke my heart. And so I went into the admin side of things with my nursing background. I worked in compliance and things like that. And yeah, hospitals are a business that was my job for many years just to make sure we got our money. So we won’t get into the COVID thing with that. But anyway, yeah. Um,

Brad (00:57:06):
Yeah, I like when they came in, when I was still recovering from surgery and under the effects of anesthesia and someone came in to check on me and it was from the billing department and they wanted my thousand dollars copay. And I’m like, why don’t you talk to me when I’m, when I’m recovered, you know, get outta my room. Now it was so offensive. There’s, I mean, I know it’s a business, but I just had to throw that in there, cuz I’m like, wait a second. This is why you’re here. You’re checking. And they’re very, you know, she came in really sweet. Hi, how you doing? I’m like, I’m feeling pretty good. The IVs in nicely and everything’s fine. Well, we’re, we’re, I’m here to, you know, collect your money. I’m like, oh my God. Yeah.

Barbara (00:57:43):
Oh my gosh. And your still, you were just coming out from under there’s some things like in that about not, not getting signatures or anything from people while they’re on drugs, like in the,

Brad (00:57:51):
Well, maybe I should have signed away, you know, here, go and charge me and then, then challenge the, the

Barbara (00:57:55):
Transaction that would later that would’ve been a big deal. Yeah, for sure. That’s like, you know, one of the broke rules that shouldn’t be broken, but oh my gosh. But I’m not surprised and that’s so sad, you know, for sure. You know? Absolutely. But I always knew, you know, I wanted to help people. And then when I worked in the corporate setting, I got so sick. I was just a machine. Like I just worked you know, went home and slept. And then I had a, a mother who was very ill off and on for five years that lived in the Chicago area. So that was a two hour commute each time. And, you know, that’s all I did. And, I, that time with boundaries too. So that that’s another mindset piece that was real important for me because I had no boundaries, you know, with that.

Barbara (00:58:32):
But what the beauty is with the health coaching is I’m back to where I can help people and really help them, you know at the level where, you know, they can definitely make improvements in their life and not be a bandaid, you know? And, of course I had my own transformation and so I am like a triple zealot when it comes to this stuff. And especially, you know, people who are really down and out and lost hope. I, those are the people who I wanna reach. I just, I really have a passion for people not suffering for 15, 20 years. Like I did, you know, at all. Like let’s narrow that window. that would be good. Yeah. You don’t have to lose your life cuz now yeah, I’m enjoying my life. I’m, I’m making up for lost time. Like I said, I’m, you know, an race against myself all the time with things, you know, trying to reverse that aging, that accelerated aging that occurred. And um, but I really don’t want people to get that far, you know, and right. You know, and there, there is always hope, but sometimes when things get so far, you can mitigate symptoms, but you have a much better chance if you, you know, get in there early on. For sure. Yeah.

Brad (00:59:28):
How did you detox from the heavy metal accumulation that you were found to have?

Barbara (00:59:32):
Yeah, that’s a tough one. The big thing for me is to not let more bad things in. So I’m very selective about like I drink coffee and I eat strawberries. So those are highly pesticide, you know, those are, have a lot of pesticide in those crops. So those all I can do organic for sure. Um, I did have over 40 IV curation treatments and you know, I did do the follow up labs and it did move it somewhat, you know, little bit, but I was still in the highly elevated ranges. So it’s, and it, it can be really tough on your kidneys. And so my thing for detox now would be more things like activated charcoal. You know, that’s a big one, you know, for me, for sure. And mostly not letting more in, I just don’t get rid of the metals, like a, like a regular person.

Barbara (01:00:15):
I know we all have metals in our body. I’m just not excreting them like other people. So the heavy metals, I will probably go back into the IV stuff again. They would give me like IV glutathione and B12 to help me along, cuz it was really rough on my body and I would get really tired. And when I was first doing that, that was in the early stages of my transformation. So I was still tired, you know, with that. And I was, I’m doing it under a, the care of a physician who knows what she’s doing, you know, with this stuff. So it’s totally safe, you know, for me. But interestingly, like I’ll really burn it at the gym. You know, my heart monitor, I watch it closely cuz I don’t wanna stay in the red zone too long. I have an aneurysm too, so I need to make sure, you know, like I keep all that in check. But I’ll burn, like I’ll have a special burn class on Thanksgiving morning and I remember I burned 900 calories and I barely sweat and, and my hair looked the same and everything and, and everyone’s dripping wet.

Barbara (01:01:08):
That’s not normal though. So now I am starting to sweat more, which is good. And that, that’s what I like about the running too, because that’s when I actually do start building up a sweat, you know, when I, when I get at it like that. So I know that’s really important, you know, for a detox too. I want to do infrared sauna, but I’m not sure about having the titanium in my neck now, you know, and I can’t find someone an answer about that. I’m if that would get too hot near my spinal cord, I know that’s a strange thing.

Brad (01:01:36):
I’ve never heard about that,

Barbara (01:01:37):
But I’m just worried about that. So, I am gonna look at the red light therapy as a next tool because I do, this will be an ongoing thing for me. So I do need to keep, keep up with that. The longer we live, the more metals we’re gonna get in our body. And for me it’s just more so than a, you know, person who doesn’t have those genetic detox issues. Yeah.

Brad (01:01:57):
So when you have a client, I assume mostly are entirely remote where you’re, you’re working with them from different cities and how is that relationship work?

Barbara (01:02:07):
Yeah, it’s really good. They really it’s, it’s, I’m an online coach, so everything’s online, but some people are local. I did have a couple local people where, you know, we can get together after COVID, you know, when people felt more safe, you know, to have a lunch when the establishments were open and things like that again and have coffee, you know, or meet for a walk. Sometimes I’ve had walking coaching sessions, but otherwise it’s online. And what it is is for the, I generally do 12 week programs. I don’t do the short programs anymore. I used to and I just feel like true transformation does take time and I’m not against 21 day programs. They’re great kickstarts and things like that. But I, I really wanna be with somebody to get them really going on those habits and get them established.

Barbara (01:02:49):
So 12 week is my minimum and then I have retention clients too, that will stay on. If someone has over a hundred pounds to lose or over 60 pounds of weight to lose. And a lot of other issue, it’s a slow going process and losing weight the right way, of course, it’s gonna be slower. It’s gonna be, you know, lasting, you know, that’s the good part of it, but it’ll be slower. And just to get those habits ingrained because the wheels do fall off the bus. Most of my clients are very busy. They have no time to spare their moms grandmoms with full-time, you know executive jobs and just busy all the, the time, you know, with that. But we do meet once a week, whether it’s on zoom, a call, um, you know, however they wanna do it. We have a check-in once a week for every week of the 12 weeks.

Barbara (01:03:29):
And then I do have an app. It’s not my own app that I created. It’s when I subscribe to that has healthy habits in it. We designed the healthy habits, customized ’em to that particular client and decide also what the non-negotiables are gonna be because sometimes the wheels fall the bus. Well, they’re guaranteed you at some point they’re going to, and that’s the whole point of learning how to still maintain a healthy lifestyle, you know, while you’re going through all the bad stuff that’s gonna come off, you know, in your life. For sure. And so you just need to keep that momentum, pick a few things that are non-negotiable. And then I text we do text check-ins, um, daily, especially for the beginning clients. So that way the, my hands. Fingers always on the pulse, if you will, you know, and it does, it does make a difference, um, to have someone, um, that you know, is watching in a non-judgmental way.

Barbara (01:04:18):
I had a client that did, um, just recently she did the 12 week program and came back, you know to resume. She said she just needs the accountability and it’s not a bad thing. Like, it doesn’t make you like a less of a strong person or anything. It just, you know, our brains are powerful and society’s powerful. Like it’s easy to gravitate. Like it took you a long time to walk in the grocery store. They have all the bakery goods right there. I used to be a sugar addict too. I would plus I was so tired. So the sugar would gimme that two minutes of energy. I would buy that stuff and eat it like on the way home and throw the garbage away before I walked in the house. And no one knew I had it. You know, things like that. So I know that takes a long time, you know, to get over. So there’s no, you know, guilt or shame and someone needing to spend more than 12 weeks, you know, out for sure. It’s a, it’s, this is a life changing journey, really. And so it’s like three months to get the habit set down and then three additional months for it to become a lifestyle is generally speaking. Yeah,

Brad (01:05:14):
I love it. And you you’ve been through it. So the client has instant comfort and openness with you. It’s great. It’s amazing what you’re doing. Um, tell us how we can connect further with you and learn more about your, your operation.

Barbara (01:05:28):
Yeah, absolutely. Well, my website is Daily Wellness for You.com and you can reach me through there. There’s a good way to connect with me. Just, you know, the contact button on that webpage or on Facebook, just with my name, Barbara Diaz DeLeon. I think there’s just a few of us in this world. I’m probably the only blonde one, maybe. I don’t know. Anyway, that’s my husband’s last name, not mine. And then also I have a group Facebook group that’s pretty active called Primal and Pink. And right now I’m doing owns right now with, with the ladies it’s for that one’s for ladies only I tend to work with women, but, you know, so that group that I have is for the ladies, but probably the best way would be Daily Wellness for You.com. And, yeah, I can get a seven day meal plan from there that, you know, comes automatically with subscribing to my email and, yeah. And, you know, happy to chat anytime I do a lot of discovery calls and things like that. You know, as a courtesy, you know, without charging, just to get people, people on the right path find out right.

Brad (01:06:27):
Nothing to lose people

Barbara (01:06:29):
Yeah. Right.

Brad (01:06:31):
Barbara Diaz DeLeon. Thank you so much for spending time with us and, and talking us through your amazing journey. Keep up the good work. And if anyone scoffs, when she’s talking about trying to reverse the aging by almost every literal biological definition, you are younger and healthier than that person who was suffering at age 30, 37 38. Yeah. It’s it’s fantastic. And you can keep, keep going, keep, keep carrying the torch for anti-aging.

Barbara (01:06:57):
Oh, well, thank you so much for that. Thank you for having me on your show. Thank you.

Brad (01:07:01):
Thanks for listening everyone. Thank you for listening to the show. I love sharing the experience with you and greatly appreciate your support. Please. Email podcast, Brad ventures.com with feedback, suggestions and questions for the Q and A shows. Subscribe to our email list at bradkerns.com for a weekly blast about the published episodes and a wonderful bimonthly newsletter edition with informative articles and practical tips for all aspects of healthy living. You can also download several awesome free eBooks when you subscribe to the email list. And if you could go to the trouble to leave a five or five star review with apple podcasts or wherever else, you listen to the shows that would be super, incredibly awesome. It helps raise the profile of the B.rad podcast and attract new listeners. And did you know that you can share a show with a friend or loved one by just hitting a few buttons in your player and firing off a text message? My awesome podcast player called Overcast allows you to actually record a sound bite excerpt from the episode you’re listening to and fire it off with a quick text message. Thank you so much for spreading the word and remember, B.rad.

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