The Carnivore Diet, Finding Motivation for Healthy Habits & Hydration

0:00This episode is brought to you by Facebook. So you were scrolling on Marketplace, and there it was, the bike you'd been searching for. You sent a message, and it turned out the seller was super chatty, kind of funny, and an avid cyclist. The next thing you know, you're in a cycling crew. Well, a community cycling group. The thing about Facebook, you might find more than what you're looking for. From a browse to a bike ride, this summer, find more on Facebook. I am genuinely so excited about today's sponsor because it's the way. Honestly, if you have listened to me any time over the last few months, you know I have become a little bit evangelical about this app and I honestly recommend it to everyone.

0:44My friends, my family, people on Instagram, everyone. And she recommended it to me, so it's true. I've heard so much about it. It's just because it has had such a big impact on me. I've meditated on and off for 15 years or so now, but using the way is honestly the first time I've become so consistent with this daily practice. And I've just seen the most unbelievable results as a result of that. The app is just incredible. And what I love is every day you open it and there's a meditation waiting for you. So you don't scroll, that you don't have to choose between hundreds of options. There's no wondering what to do.

1:18It just takes you on a path. Well, I think that's why it works so well, because, you know, most of us just don't need more big decisions every day to make, Ella. No, exactly that. We've got decision fatigue, haven't we? So this is so nice because you just follow this path of meditation, which is led by Henry, the founder, who's just the most amazing teacher. And he makes it seem somehow just incredibly simple, but exceptionally profound at the same time, which is a very rare skill. And I've been using it too. Yes, I've now finally begun my meditation journey and I've been doing some of the shorter practices on busy days because I completely understand why you talk about it so much Ella it really is a nice intro in for me yeah it is and I'm so glad anyway it's helped me feel so much calmer less reactive more present it all sounds like huge claims but I just say please please please try it if you're struggling with stress or overwhelm you just got to give it a go and the lovely thing is that everyone listening can definitely try it themselves.

2:16Exactly. So you can get a 30-day free trial. So just try it every day per month. It'll change your life. All you do is head to thewayapp.com forward slash wellness scoop. Yeah, that's thewayapp.com forward slash wellness scoop. Welcome to The Wellness Scoop, your weekly dose of health and wellness inspiration. And as always, we're both here as your hosts. I'm Ella Mills. And I'm Rhianna Lambert. And today we have the most incredible questions from you all and our top recommendations. So let's dive into it. I think the big question today is why do so many people say they feel better on the carnivore diet?

2:58That's very interesting. Coconut water and hydration, sea moss, is it worth the money? How can we create healthy habits that actually last and stay with us? Anything that people We should be doing pre-pregnancy. We've had loads of questions on there. And we have so many recommendations for you from us and then also from our listener community. So yay, it's going to be a good day. It is. Ella, what have you been up to? What are your recommendations for us this week? Okay, I feel like I'm really late to the party on this one. But when I was sick last week, I watched all of Tell Me Lies. Reeve was like, I watched that.

3:32And I was like, oh, right. I'm so late to the party. But it's really gripping and very binge worthy. and also how twisted super binge worthy I would say it's not as good as off campus but nothing is I'm gonna go read all her books next and the Emily Henry ones yes has anyone watched the on Netflix people we meet on vacation is it that's on my list it's really good rom-com I think it's called that anyways I've got loads of those books on my list I'm very excited but I really recommend it like I wouldn't say it's the best thing I've ever seen in my life but it's one of those shows If you are poorly or you are just having a quiet week where you're wanting to watch every evening and just like not leave the house with or your long journey or something like on the train or plane.

4:14It's a very, very addictive watch where time disappears. But it does cover, again, almost domestic violence manipulation. There's a little bit of that in there just for anyone. Yes. Yeah, absolutely. Just to cover that. That is definitely the overarching theme. and then you were also making a load of broths obviously you were very poorly so it was really poorly and then I was coming out of it and I haven't made broths and I don't even know when I mean the heat I just haven't either yeah it's not really been the season but it just reminded me how good veggie broths are but there's a product that I bought from clear spring I really like clear spring you like their miso soups yeah I like the miso soup sachets I like the little toasted cracker things they do I just I just think they're a really nice company anyways they have this noodle this isn't sponsored they have this noodle broth there's like noodle mix basically it's a liquid but it's got kind of like mirin and those sorts of ingredients and the kind of things that really busy up your cupboard anyway you just had a couple of tablespoons of that delicious so good oh my gosh I was doing like dried mushrooms chili ginger garlic and then sweet potatoes and cherry tomatoes and broccoli all kind of simmered away for a couple of hours miso and that um noodle mix they should be on the airplanes because it's you have those noodle pots on the airplanes let's get let's get a brand like clear spring on all the planes yeah anyway it doesn't come with the noodles or anything no it's literally just a liquid you have to add it and that you add it into your broth but it just has all those flavors anyway it's really good yeah really good recommendation what about you well they're different today uh i've been fascinated because we have a solar eclipse coming up.

5:52I'm so excited. It will have happened by the time this comes out. It's the day I'm coming to yours. I know. I'm so pumped. I bought our glasses. Well, I've been watching lots of videos because I remember being a child watching the solar eclipse in my garden with my mum did that hole in the cardboard and you'd look up. Yeah. I remember exactly where we were stood. And I really want the children to experience that too. So alongside that, I don't know if Davina's just got an amazing team that timed this episode perfectly, but she had Professor Brian Cox on the podcast. Oh, cool. Davina McCall. Yeah.

6:22And it was on her Begin Again podcast. And it's on my list. I've got halfway through. Overwhelmingly, wow. If you want to take your mind off life at the moment and you want to learn a little bit about the theory of the planets and the solar system and space and all that sort of thing in an accessible way, it's remarkable. Oh my gosh, I can't wait to see. I mean, he does live shows, Brian Cox. I've never been. My uni friend used to be obsessed with him. Julie, if you ever listen, I remember your obsession with Brian Cox. But yeah, really top recommendation there. I thought what an interesting podcast for Davina to release.

6:57It wasn't her usual type of guest. I can't wait to listen. Yeah, I really like that. I am on Throne of Glass, the second book now. So I've moved through it quick. She is like a romantic-y queen, really, I feel. Although I discovered that Sarah J. Maas, she was only 16 when she wrote this initial series, which is why it doesn't actually have many romantic aspects within the book. Like there's a there's a thread of it, but it's not the same as the ACOTAR series she did later on. OK. But it's very girl power adventure led. And yeah, I'm really enjoying it. So thank you, everybody that's been writing about that.

7:34We've had so many Spotify comments, things about this Throne of Glass series. So thank you. Yeah, it's an obsession, isn't it? It is. It really is. OK, for other things to get obsessed with, Kelly and Natalie, our listeners have racks for you guys. Kelly said you were talking about off campus. If you liked this, you will love My Fault London and Your Fault London. Amazing. Actually, in my opinion, better than off campus. I think you'll love them both. They're on Disney. Oh, yeah. So I'm excited about Disney by good shows. I feel like there's so much good stuff on there at the moment. I mean, Disney have a reputation to uphold only the best.

8:08they do do you know what i watched actually um this is a kid's movie but hoppers did you watch hoppers no yeah you'll love it because it's about a girl who's trying to save animals i will love it so much and then she becomes an animal it's one of the best animated becomes an animal no no she like takes on this like robot animal suit it's so good i'll make sure the boys can watch it with me yeah it's it's a family movie i don't watch well you can't watch on your own but yeah it's one of the best animated films i've seen in ages bring it on okay and then natalie says she has a book recommendation she's moved on from romanticy sorry but this is maybe because she's finished it um she still wanted something really hooked her she recommends we solve murders from romanticy to murders i love it i know i like that too we're really covering all bases all of sex dragons yeah yeah murder what's next but no in all seriousness she recommends we solve murders and the thursday murder club they're both by richard osman um who's a wonderful tv producer from the UK and she says that he writes the most beautiful characters even when a character is objectively awful he describes them with so much wit and love for detail plus the chapters are really short and there's almost always a cliffhanger that keeps you reading I actually am really excited about that do you know what I'm love um the rest is entertainment which is the podcast that he co-hosts yes I was gonna say his podcast is always like number one in the UK it's incredible part of the rest is like the rest is history the rest is politics but he co-hosts it and it's one of my most listened to shows.

9:37I absolutely love it. And I've always thought I should read his books because I've become a big fan of his. So I think I'm going to get them on my list. Good.

9:48Now our first question today is from Lisa. Hello Ella and Rhee. I tried coconut water today and it was really refreshing in this hot weather. I chose what was available in the shop and I went and looked into it. But since there are lots of things to choose from now, what's actually good for me? what do I need to look for when I'm choosing a coconut water? That is such a great question. Rhi, tell us a little bit about it. I am obsessed with coconut water. I have been for so long. I just absolutely love it. To me, it's a 2015 thing. Oh, interesting. Like from kind of peak wellness vibes. Yeah, and starting.

10:22So when I worked in Harley Street frequently, like multiple times a week with the nutrition clinic, I'd always walk around the corner and there was a kind of health food revital shop. Oh, yes. I know the exact shop you mean. That's where I first bought Coconut Collab and that's where I first bought, yeah, coconut waters and all that sort of thing. They're not all equal, which is actually important to raise. Kind of like everything. Kind of like everything. But let's just talk about what coconut water is. It does naturally contain electrolytes, particularly potassium, which is why some people enjoy it after, you know, exercise.

10:53And on hot days, it's really beneficial. It's actually going to be packed in my hospital bag for labor. okay this is so funny you said that because in my first labor i literally forgot to eat or drink anything and then i was in this really warm pool for a few hours and when i got to the end i felt so ill i think much less from the labor much more that i had just been through this like incredibly strenuous physical exercise for 14 hours whatever it was and i hadn't eaten or drunk anything and I felt so dizzy and shaky and just like depleted oh my gosh so my second labor I was like right I have to eat and drink like I have to remember that and I was saying to Matt I was like we have to remember like I have to eat and drink you have to make me do it because like it's up to someone else to make you sip things oh my gosh I would try and drink myself and vomit and it was disastrous anyway I remember like sipping um coconut water and Matt being like this is so on brand you're like in a paddling pool at home with like yoga music a little coconut water it should have been a coconut actual coconut stay on brand at all times I love that but Ella it was a good choice for you because you know it it is really good for um hydration so everyone I'd keep it simple just look for 100 coconut water you know you don't want flavorings and colors and sugars and all sorts of things added if it is just literally coconut water that's probably a really good choice and with the hydration let's just discuss these electrolytes because there's obviously a trend I want to talk about electrolytes in a second when we get to the end of this because I've just reminded myself of something okay all right hold that thought write it down coconut water is hydrating because it's 95 % water and then it contains those additional minerals like your potassium smaller amounts of salt sodium and magnesium and it just helps the homeostasis in your body stay really regular so you know it's not the same as buying an isotonic sports drink but it is a really nice natural way if you're not on a kind of marathon plan of just staying hydrated i love that okay i want to talk about staying hydrated so i had such an interesting experience over the weekend i obviously was very well very sick and i got matt to buy me some diorolite oh yeah now sorry guys i did tell you i said i hope you're on rehydration i just vomited up the der the second i had the der light i had tiny sips it just came straight back up again so then once i'd stopped being sick i was like i can't have diorolite you know when you have the trigger the flavor oh it's so you just can't that black currant yeah i know i still i still have the so i was like i'm so sorry i actually can't drink any more of this I just triggering anyways so I said okay I really need I couldn't eat or drink anything so I was like I think I need I actually do really need some electrolytes and probably really helped me I had such a bad headache and things anyways so I bought some one of the brands that advertise a lot I bought it online it came the next day so I obviously used it to see if it would help who knows it might have helped me it might not have helped anything you can get in at that point is going to help you exactly so but I then had it in my kitchen counter and we had some family over this weekend and my sister-in-law said to me they are advertising to me all the time at the moment on Instagram do I need it like do you think I should buy it like I'm just worried I'm not going to be hydrated and and her and I had such an interesting conversation about and I was like how interesting that there's this whole industry that's persuading people clever super clever well-informed people that they're not hydrated unless they're adding things to the water and obviously it's obviously as we always say if you are like an intense athlete you know amateur or not like but you know you're really training for iron man and things we're talking about something completely different we're talking about people like day to day go to the gym twice a week have a desk job and that hydration aspect is in to aid recovery and performance by the way that's why athletes take it it's not for everyday hydration losing so much because you sweat so much because you're exercising so hard and again that's your blood pressure your kidney function you know all that sort of like i said the balance in your body yeah anyway i just thought it was so telling of how effective this industry is that there's now concern that like you need help being hydrated obviously we all need to be hydrated but like water coconut water like put some watermelon in your blender anyway I thought that was so telling but I then kept taking it I've had it for like what a week now that's probably enough yeah yeah then I kind of kept going the last two days out of curiosity right like I needed some help the first few days to recover but the last few days I was like well I have this I am really curious now that I feel normal again if I just drink here am I going to actually feel any different I can tell you I feel no different not even half a percent I'm sorry nothing I know disappointing but it just so shows right like you these ads are so compelling and it's like this will change your life you're going to be have glowing skin you're going to be so hydrated or say goodbye to this say goodbye to that like yeah I'm the same yeah just the same person I've just recovered from my illness just not sick anymore oh dear you're right they make you believe but that is clever marketing make you believe there's a need do i need this to be hydrated yes it's such an interesting question anyway it is thank you for bringing that up that's the exact problem with the wellness industry that's why we're here on the wellness scoop kimberly has said um i just wanted to say um my wife and i are both big fans of the podcast we listen every week i was wondering if you could share your thoughts on cmos i went back to cmos um my wife recently got sucked into instagram and spent 45 pound on two jars even she's wondering if it was an impulse buy my gut feeling is that it's probably just another wellness trend and that you're better off getting your nutrients from a very plant-rich diet but I'd love to hear what the evidence says is there any benefit to it so sea moss alla we've covered haven't we before is there any evidence on sea moss what does it taste like have you ever tried it well yes because I think I gave this story of how I was asked to help with this new sea moss brand when i was working at the food doctor clinic many years ago i may have told this story before what do you taste like if you like matcha you can stomach sea moss it's not the same as spirulina yeah it's not spirulina has a very distinct taste like very grassy but most of these products are sea moss added to a juice or added to sugar or added to an extract you know um sea moss does contain minerals like iodine of course but also you have to check the packets that it actually is CMOS and is what it says it is.

17:38But any claims have no human evidence behind them. And that's obviously why I didn't get on board. Most of the results or studies are on animal studies. That's sad in itself. There's nothing to relate about humans, no high quality clinical trials. But I do think the iodine element is something people need to be aware of because that impacts our cognition, our thyroid health massively. But also you don't want to take too much of it because excessive iodine could also impact the thyroid negatively. I don't think it's something we need to be supplementing routinely at all. So if I understand the claims made around CMOS as a superfood is that it, as you said, supports thyroid function, which is involved in regulating our metabolism, boosts, everyone's favourite word for this, boosts our immunity, improves suggestion, enhances skin moisture and increases energy.

18:29Anything you can say about skin will sell a product these days. is that's my electrolytes would when i was targeted with the i was like always have you know like when you get crocodile legs oh yes it will make it go has not made it go it's just a good exfoliant everybody i mean it's something we just don't have enough time to deal with i'll tell you what you do need to buy for that going off topic on amazon you can buy these korean exfoliating mitts oh the one i've got them i bought them they're like 17 pounds or something thing um feels a bit more expensive for an exfoliating mitt like versus what's your body brush a lot and that helps oh my gosh you scrub with those yeah oh it's like the nice thing in the world you do feel like it's a bit red raw scratching but actually once you've you realize it's probably good for your circulation but basically loads of very general we could say claims being made about it and as you said very few high quality clinical trials to show 45 pound probably um i think you're probably right you don't need to do it again but iodine remind us we have mentioned this before but actually probably quite an under talked about underloved thing where do we get it from if you're vegan you'll probably know because it's one of the things you're recommended to supplement because you only really get it in dairy and fish and i have to say those are the two food groups that most people either avoid or you know don't consume probably the quantity of.

19:55There's lots of aversions to those particular food groups. So seaweed, of course, is beneficial. And over in Asia, that's where they get the majority from fish and seaweed type of produce. But over here in the UK, we're not good with iodine. So look for it to be fortified when you go for a plant-based alternative. Love it.

20:20okay our third question today comes from elizabetta who has said hi from italy oh love that oh her and her husband are getting married in a few weeks so huge congratulations to you guys she said we're hoping to start trying for a family shortly afterwards and i would really love to hear your thoughts on trimester zero the period before pregnancy i've never heard it called that but i think that's really interesting yeah i've just always called it officially like when i wrote the pregnancy book preconception yeah but i like that i like trimester zero okay she said there seems to be so much information out there about what to do once you're pregnant but less about what to focus on beforehand from a nutrition perspective are there any supplements nutrients blood tests lifestyle habits health checks you'd recommend addressing before trying to conceive or any common misconceptions that you see around preparing for pregnancy.

21:10We have had quite a lot of questions on fertility. Yeah. And if it's, you know, in people's mind, like how they can best look after their body. So it's a really interesting topic. I will delve into the basic ins and outs, but I've actually got a voice note from one of my colleagues who I completely adore, Roe Huntry. She specializes in fertility nutrition and And she's actually got a lot to contribute on the latest research, Ella, as in literally this year, last year. Oh, fantastic. So I'll play that for everybody in a moment. But we are looking at a new epidemic of infertility and it's a really emotional area.

21:49So firstly, I want to say to anybody that I understand this might be triggering. It's a difficult conversation to have, but I think it's important we do speak about it because we can't just put off questions like this for that reason. and when I was writing the pregnancy book there's some things that are so interesting I don't think people realize that the first few weeks of pregnancy even the early on stage is like 0 to 6 weeks where you know it's just negligible you think but that's actually when the organs start to develop and all the foundations are laid down and you need to have things like your vitamin d or folic acid stores actually created before you conceive and that's where lots of people don't realize so three months prior to having a baby trimester zero trimester zero this is what we're discussing you actually want to be optimally healthy also because when you go through trimester one and if you have extreme sickness and nausea and i mean thank goodness you've built the stores previously so don't feel too bad i actually think this is such an interesting point really which is that we don't maybe talk about enough is that you know with all the best will in the world and you know we both know how frustrating it is we're just like pregnant women should do x it's like yeah okay in their dreams you can't control it like the level of nausea or food aversions etc like you can't just override those it's debilitating completely and you're bed bound totally and you can be like i might need to eat broccoli but i will just vomit it up so but actually you have got control of that period oftentimes beforehand and i think we probably don't make enough of a thing about that because actually it's very hard to control when you are pregnant but actually trimester zero i love that terminology i think maybe we do need to talk more about this and about how we can support our body and our folic acid stores for example as you just said the guilt also because this is what i have a real issue with on social media with these certain accounts recently that discuss pregnancy saying oh women aren't eating enough choline women aren't eating enough of this i'm like yeah but they've built the stores before they had the baby and that is also part of the issue yes of course diet matters in pregnancy but i want to reassure people that having a healthy body before you conceive is perhaps the larger goal you should be thinking of before you have the baby.

24:03And that includes, of course, maintaining a body shape or size that's working for you because that does impact fertility outcomes. We can't disclose that fact without being honest. I know it's triggering and I know it's difficult, but being underweight can equally affect this just as much as being overweight. And that's something that we have to mention. There's also links with certain genes being carried through to the baby with their predispositions to their weight shape or size as well. And that's research that's emerging as well. So just follow a Mediterranean style eating pattern and also take your multi vits or your prenatal supplementation three months at least prior men and women if you are in that state where you're currently really thinking about it because you want those 400 milligrams of folic acid, you want the 10 micrograms of vitamin d is just so key but i think roe will explain all the latest research um far more effectively than i really quickly before we hear from roe though we have in the notes and i think super important to jump out which is that male nutrition is often overlooked this does not all fall on you um as the woman for sure so diet smoking alcohol sleep maintaining a healthy weight for example all influence sperm quality so preconception health is a shared responsibility and I think that's really important.

25:22I'm really fed up of everybody saying it's on the woman it's on the women and we know now that some outcomes from infant health and conditions of course are linked back to the sperm just as much as the egg so let's just get a joint effort there into doing our best to be healthy for the baby especially if you're undergoing any IVF treatment and things as well actually there's a different set of nutrition guidance for that as well things like CoQ10, Omega-3 and I'll hand over to Ro. Hi guys, my name is Ro Huntress. I'm a specialist fertility dietitian and author of Deliciously Healthy Fertility.

25:57So talking about coenzyme Q10 or CoQ10 as it's otherwise known, it's basically an antioxidant that our bodies naturally produce but also we can find it in small amounts in food and we can also get it from supplements as well and it plays an important role in the mitochondria which is essentially the energy producing parts of our cells. So interestingly with CoQ10, as we age, the levels of CoQ10 in our body tend to decrease. And there is a lot of interest about the role of CoQ10 in fertility and for good reason. And basically to date, research has shown that CoQ10 has the potential to improve the quality of both our eggs and our sperm cells.

26:37And one of the main reasons for this is that being an antioxidant, it can help to reduce oxidative stress. So the oxidative stress can be damaging to the egg and the sperm. So therefore, this antioxidant in CoQ10 can help to improve the quality. And research has actually also shown that CoQ10 supplementation may actually improve pregnancy rates for women who are undergoing IVF. So in terms of can you get enough of it from your diet? So it is naturally found in some foods, but actually the amounts are quite small compared to the doses that we see in fertility research. so if you're wanting to get this benefit from CoQ10 for fertility generally we need a therapeutic dose that you would get from a supplement so it can be a worthwhile choice there is some evidence to back it particularly in women who may be age 35 plus but like with any other supplement it isn't a magic bullet and it won't guarantee success but it can be part of the management plan when we're looking to optimize fertility if you prefer not to go down the supplement route and you just want to focus on food, you can do this as well.

27:36But think about all the antioxidants that you're able to get from your diet. So plenty of fruit, vegetables, nuts, seeds, herbs, spices, those kind of things. Your overall diet can also play a role in supporting healthy eggs and fertility. That was so helpful. Thank you, Ro. Okay, we next have Chloe, who said, it's possible that I'm quite literally a number one fan. Yay. Thank you, Chloe. My question is about the carnivore diet. From listening to you both and from lots of other information I've come across the internet I know that it's not good for our bodies and not the right lifestyle to follow however like many many women I've spent nearly my whole 30 years on this planet trying to lose weight with very little success I went on the carnivore diet when it was all the rage and it was the only time in my life I managed to successfully lose weight and feel great in myself I had incredible mental clarity and the pounds were falling off me I know in terms of nutrients the body needs it is not the diet to follow but I can't help but miss how it made me feel is there a reason it makes you feel like this and is there a reason why I struggle to lose weight even if I'm eating a fantastic diet with lots of fiber veggies healthy fats etc thank you Chloe we're going to hand over to you but I really just want to say Chloe thank you so much for being so honest because I just think these are the types of thoughts and questions that so many people have it is really a very common thing to have this mindset and so you're not alone in it and I just think that addressing this in a really transparent way is so so helpful it's unbelievably helpful because the first thing i'd say is that i believe you you know you you would have felt better from following something that's that strict and um the regime is pretty much you can't divulge off it but it's very similar to the ketogenic diet and i've supervised these things in my clinic before in the past and have always said to my clients this will be a short-term outcome if this is what you're I'm concerned about your overall health status, your fiber that you're not now getting when you exclude carbohydrates and vegetables from your diet.

29:35But you will lose pounds. And it's a really difficult thing to question, first of all. And the next step is understand, of course, why it happened rather than telling everyone to go and eat carnivore. And the first thing is that it's so heavily restrictive. and actually when people are embarking upon these diets especially a keto I'm referring to them under the same umbrella because they both involve low intake of vegetables fruit and carbohydrates and high intake of protein and the protein factor is key because a lot of people want to get into a state of ketosis which is when their body starts using fat as an energy source rather than available glucose which comes from carbohydrates and then they have these pea sticks every week where they have to check because if you just have one mouthful of carbohydrates you can get out of that ketosis and you've blown the whole thing it's a really bad diet for that whole failure thing you start you have one bad you know day or one it's not even bad but you know you eat a normal piece of food you've got to start again from the beginning yeah you have like a piece of toast and it's you and you're undone yeah yes yeah you're toast literally you've undone your whole thing because your blood um your urine test will then say that you're not in ketosis and you're not burning fat and it's a vicious cycle it's so effective short term because protein obviously increases fullness preserves your muscle mass while you're doing the body fat loss which is why short term that's successful but the initial weight on the scales is often water weight because glucose and sugars and carbs have molecules of water that bind to them around every muscle in your body your glycogen stores so your energy stores are depleted and that's what also holds initial weight on the scales.

31:17It's not that you've lost body fat in the first week or two, but you will feel better because you'll see these instant results. You will be on a high from it. Your body will be like, wow. And you can't divulge from the diet because everything's off limits, but animal produce, it's a really intense diet. You know, some people will notice symptoms, particularly if they've always struggled with different food intolerances or gastric symptoms like your bloating or IBS all sorts of things because they've not had any fiber in their diet they're not having strains that actively interact and perform alongside your body so it does lead to rapid weight loss but it's so unsustainable so unsustainable imagine two weeks of just eating eggs meat but you start to feel nauseous there's so many symptoms skin health starts to deteriorate you're not getting those vitamins and minerals hair may start to fall out you will notice you may become very deficient in certain vitamins and minerals and antioxidants fiber i cannot emphasize the risk of bowel cancer heart disease and type 2 diabetes the risk on a carnivore diet is immense it increases it tenfold if you follow this for a prolonged period of time the more saturated fat you consume you're harming your arteries and you're not getting any fiber I think it's actually really serious that we have this discussion because you will get short term benefits.

32:43You'll see rapid weight loss. It's what all the models in the 90s and early noughties were following pre-photo shoot. Yeah. And obviously it's slightly different, but that's where the Atkins diet or the Dukin diet, which obviously, you know, it's not exactly the same. But it's essentially, you know, obviously you're moving away from carbohydrates, which has this huge impact. and as I said like I love that you're so honest about it because I think one of the big challenges and Rhi you talk about this so well is this idea of kind of the set point of our weight and that we are all different shapes and sizes within a continuum naturally and so you know a certain aesthetic and a certain size just may not be viable for us within a healthy range of the way that we eat but we are so often shown images of people who are so so slim so thin and it's so easy for that to kind of percolate into our subconscious and to think that that's what we want to emulate but our body simply can't be there while being healthy I think you've hit the nail on the head that you can look a certain way and not be healthy and that's what lots of these people say they go on this diet for a specific occasion, a day, an event, a shoot.

33:58And there are medical factors, of course, there will be exceptions to this rule where this diet perhaps may help a specific medical condition. But for most people, it's so restrictive. There are still sadly clinics on Harley Street and places that run these services. And they just prescribe laxatives alongside a carnivore diet and will give you a shot of B12 or anything just to keep your energy high. I've seen it. I've literally seen it all. Thank you for being so honest because yeah, you'll have lost weight and you'll have felt great short term, but it's just not something you can maintain to be healthy long term.

34:32We're going to actually talk on Monday's episode a little bit about this pressure of weight, which will be really interesting. Okay. Our final question today comes from Gabby. Rhi, will you read us what Gabby's got? Yes, of course. So whether you know it or not, you have been a huge part of my wedding journey. Oh, she said, I sent a question about how to feel my best for my wedding day and you ended last year's podcast on my question I'm so happy to hear that and she said it meant so much to me and gave me such validation that I was doing all the right things we got married on the 17th of July oh congratulations and our wedding day was incredible truly the best day of our lives and so much fun I've been with my partner for 13 years and I told him I wanted to marry him when we were eight years old so you can imagine for how long eight years old is just i can't imagine our kids now it's so adorable oh well my nearly six-year-old proposes on the regular she has been engaged since she was two so let's see maybe she's gonna be like you gabby she does doesn't she it's so funny um the wedding high is definitely dwindling though she said i'm feeling so many post-wedding blues i'm finding it hard to stand up on my routine especially exercising and grieving deeply the loss of my grandfather father who died two weeks before our wedding oh that's tough um I'm so sorry should I realize that the wedding was a huge motivation for me and a distraction after his death but now it's obviously sinking and I'm feeling low on energy and unmotivated and I recognize that sometimes our bodies need a slower pace but I'm not comfortable with where I'm at any advice for a wife and a rut she's written I think that feeling well first of all obviously huge congratulations Gabby and I'm so incredibly sorry um for the loss of your grandfather the obviously those are specific things but i think this being in a rut is very familiar um for so many people and so everyone is different completely i think for me and i'm so curious what re thinks there's two things i would say first of all i totally agree with you that sometimes our body needs um a slower pace and sometimes we just need to lean into a little bit more kind of restful habits versus like go, go, go wellness habits.

36:38And that's okay. And I think you can find things within that, that probably, it's not like they give you huge motivation in terms of like, yes, I'm going to go to the gym, but just give you that sense of peace and calm and comfortableness within yourself. You all know, I love meditating, but you know, and I love mindfulness, but that, you know, calm yoga classes, like maybe there's a yin yoga class or restorative yoga class at a studio near you or there's so much online and those can be so beautiful it's like an hour of lying quietly but kind of guided and held so I think leaning into that but in a way that's deliberate can be a really nice way of doing it or having like a really cozy night in cooking a delicious meal maybe with a friend or with your partner you know you snuggle up with some lovely tea watch a movie so it's kind of it's really leaning in in a deliberate way to a little bit calmer cozier more nourishing I think that's a great great thing so I think that you can kind to be motivated to really nourish yourself in a slow way can be really lovely.

37:34And then the second thing I think is always when it comes to finding motivation, I think you've got to go back to whatever it is you love because your motivations do change. And I totally get it. Like if it's your wedding, you're kind of wanting to look gray and feel gray, you know, as normal, completely normal. And those aren't going to be there in the same way. Like in your work clothes, you're probably not going to have that same drive. That's so normal. And I think it's okay to just say that out loud. But when it comes to things like exercise, like or cooking, like find the things you love, you know, and that I think will motivate you to keep going because you'll really enjoy it.

38:04I think that's really helpful. And I think also just remembering as human beings, we're not technically meant to have these massive highs followed by the normality afterwards. And I think a lot of people, if you go through any life event, like a wedding, I mean, you know, singers get it coming off stage. We've spoken about it before you get these youth euphoric highs and then life returns to normal and it is a difficult adjustment suddenly to make and you've had your mind set on planning one thing for such a prolonged period of time also grief can come out of the blue and hit you in many different ways shapes or forms some days you may not think about it as much as others and one of the things I think we tend to do as human beings and you can go either way and just from speaking to psychologists a lot is that we either go towards social interaction or away from it and actually what ella said about trying maybe a community thing as well sometimes the last thing we want to do is talk to people but actually we often find when we are distracted in that way and we have a bit of social interaction it can really help bolster our mood so it's hard what you've described is a massive life event a massive life loss that will stay both will stay with you forever yeah it's normal not to feel a hundred percent and i think that i think is one of the biggest myths of the health and wellness world that we're all meant to feel 100 % 100 % of the time we're not no it's so normal to have peaks and troughs so thank you for sharing that with Gabby because I think it will relate to so many listeners and Ella and I obviously not therapists we're just just here to discuss the fact we can relate to the fact that life does gosh does it throw highs and lows everybody to everyone so we never really truly know what people are going through behind the scenes but a bit of kindness a bit of social support and anything that you love like i said go back to what you love can help yeah be gentle on yourself and otherwise thank you all for being here on monday we're going to be talking about could eating less protein be the answer to slowing aging the opposite of everything you've had for a long time so loads to talk about there we're going to talk a little bit about body image and pressures we have got so much to talk about the rise of tea so much going on so we will see on monday we can't wait as always thank you guys for being here thank you so much thank you for your comments keep them coming in our inbox and we'll see you on Monday bye