Episode 85

Good Food = Good Mood

Published on: 17th March, 2021

We've all asked ourselves what we're in the mood to eat. And most of us have experienced feeling like we're not in the best mood and looking for food to help us turn it around. Did it work? For many of us, it worked for a few minutes and then not really after that. This week Jenn walks us through the biological connection between our mood and our food. Giving us the approachable science plus the tangible steps we can take to be our own best pick-me-up. Thank goodness for this episode; because it's more than just feeling hangry!

Outline:

  • Welcome back, meet Summer & intro to today's topic
  • Understanding the science & biology of our foods' connection to our mood
    • Neurotransmitters, neurotransmitter disruptors/disregulators
    • Blood flow to the brain & antioxidants
    • Alcohol, sleep, stress
    • Helpful supplementation: CoQ10, omega 3s, amino acids, antioxidants, minerals
    • BDNF (Brain Derived Neurotrophic Factor)
    • Recent study on connection between lifestyle choices & mental health
    • Synergy of nutrients: alpha lipoic acid, plant-derived antioxidants, CoQ10, B-vitamins, acetyl L-carnitine, amino acids, omega 3s (Essential Fatty Acids / EFAs)
    • Stress inducing foods
    • Stress mitigating foods  
    • Vagus nerve & toning the vagus nerve
  • The difference between knowing the things & actually doing them
  • Food is connected to emotions (mood)
  • Physical hunger, mental/emotional hunger, excuses
    • Tools to help us understand the difference: tracking, hunger ratings, mood ratings, energy ratings, self-esteem ratings
    • The role of a health coach
  • Wrap Up
  • Tip from Summer: declutter your pantry

Links:
Become a Member
Connect with us! FB Page & Private FB Group & Jenn's Instagram
Take the free Weight Loss Profile, Jenn will send you a Menu Plan  

Quotes:
"Antioxidants, vitamins and fatty acids—the synergy of nutrients is what supports strength and function of our brain chemistry over time." - Jenn Trepeck
"B-Vitamins are of massive importance when it comes to neurotransmitters, cognitive function and mood...stress depletes B-Vitamins." - Jenn Trepeck
"Essential Fatty Acids—your body can't make them, you have to take them." - Jenn Trepeck
"The Vagus Nerve is the biological connection between our gut and our brain. It's like a 5-lane highway with 4 lanes going gut to brain, 1 lane going brain to gut." - Jenn Trepeck

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About the Podcast

Salad With a Side of Fries Nutrition, Wellness & Weight Loss
What to eat and when to cheat! Let's decipher between all the “diets” out there. You know what to do but it itsn't working. In fact, your diet could be making you fatter.

Ever wondered if cryo-freezing your fat cells would really work? Should you try acupuncture? A hypnotist? If you do, how do you know if someone’s good?

Salad with a Side of Fries is the podcast that will answer all these questions and more! Talking wellness and weight loss for real life, because most of us are going to drink, eat out, skip the grocery store and who wants a life without fries or dessert?! Host Jenn Trepeck’s expertise as an optimal health coach, in practice for over a decade, along with experts in various modalities will clear up the myths, mis-information, bad science and marketing to reveal the truth of HOW TO EAT and HOW TO CHEAT!*



*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This podcast, its content and guests are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

About your host

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Jennifer Trepeck

“My passion for nutrition and helping others stems from “kicking my food issues” with my own weight management saga.” ~ Jenn

I believe that the greatest accountability is paying it forward! That’s why I teach the nutrition education we are all supposed to know but no one ever taught us, along with the science behind food, fitness, and health.

After I graduated from the University of Michigan Ross School of Business, I founded Better Life Now LLC while working full-time in hedge funds. In 2019, I took my practice from side-hustle to full-time self-employment and launched my podcast, Salad With a Side of Fries. On the show, we offer science-based tips and tricks for how to achieve wellness and weight loss for real life – because who wants a life without fries or dessert?!

Topics we tackle on the podcast include debunking fad diets, food myths, misinformation in marketing, bad science, and general nutrition. I encourage guests whose expertise is different from my own focus on weight management to bring their unique, fact-based perspectives to talk about subjects they are educated in and passionate about.

Due to my decade-long experience of working with clients, I have gained insight into the health and food industry and the how-tos of building a business.

Some specific health and wellness topics I can speak to include debunking fad diets, exposing the BS we are fed by the food and diet industry, how the people around us can positively and negatively impact our health journey, and shifting mindsets in order to overcome inappropriate barometers of success to instead achieve happy, healthy, and meaningful change.

On the subject of business, I can help you by teaching my critical pieces every entrepreneur should know, how to make your side-hustle into your full-time job, ways to sustainably achieve success without burning out, contemporary networking, and how to prioritize wellness while pursuing your projects.

When I find some free time, I’m typically working out at Physique57, discovering hidden gem restaurants in NYC, or traveling to spend time with friends and family.

I’d love to have an in-depth conversation with you, whether it’s leveling up in business or debunking food myths!