Change Your Brain Every Day - A Nutritionist’s Guide on What You Should Be Eating Every Day Pt. 3 with Zoe Davis

Episode Date: June 27, 2018

It seems like every day we’re told what foods are good and bad for you, but it’s often difficult to translate all this information into a grocery store run and eating schedule. In the final installment of a series with BrainFitLife nutrition coach Zoe Davis, Dr. Daniel Amen and Zoe give prime examples of healthy meals for breakfast, lunch, snacks, and dinner, as well as how to make these healthy choices a habit.

Welcome to the Brain Warriors Way podcast. I'm Dr. Daniel Amen. And I'm Tana Amen. Here we teach you how to win the fight for your brain to defeat anxiety, depression, memory loss, ADHD, and addictions. The Brain Warriors Way podcast is brought to you by Amen Clinics, where we've transformed lives for three decades using brain spec imaging to better target treatment and natural ways to heal the brain. For more information, visit amenclinics.com.

The Brain Warriors Way podcast is also brought to you by BrainMD, where we produce the highest quality nutraceutical products to support the health of your brain and body. For more information, visit brainmdhealth.com. Welcome to the Brain Warriors Way podcast. And stay tuned for a special code for a discount to Amen Clinics for a full evaluation, as well as any of our supplements health.com. Welcome back. So let's get really practical. I am here with coach Zoe Davis, uh, who has answered goodness, hundreds, maybe more questions on brain fit life. Um, you've been doing that for a long time now, haven't you? Yeah, it's been a couple of years now. Yeah, it's awesome. We have about

14,000 people in our community. We want to create brain fit people. That's our goal. So what are options for breakfast? Let's start with the morning what are things that are nutrient dense that taste great yeah so yeah my favorite my favorite meal of the day so um yeah my favorite in the morning is eggs uh with lots of dark leafy greens so kale is my. I know a lot of people wince at kale, but I think when you make it right, it's delicious. So using, you know, whatever vegetables you like, but lightly cooking them and then adding them to your eggs. And you can do that in lots of different ways. I like, you know, asparagus and broccoli and onions and mushroom, but always using a lot of fresh garlic. And I usually use avocado oil if I'm going to put any oil in. That's my

favorite. That's my favorite breakfast. And then, you know, other options that people really enjoy are like a protein smoothie. So sometimes people aren't hungry in the morning and they feel like they're in a rush. They don't have time to cook eggs, even though they're super fast to cook. But smoothies are really a great option because you can put a lot of nutrient density in there. You can use a high quality plant protein powder. You can use almond milk or coconut milk as your liquid. And then you can add all kinds of deliciousness. I mean, we have great recipes, you know, for all sorts of delicious. And then Tana's cookbooks, especially the Brain Warriors Way

cookbook. There's so many shake recipes and they taste awesome. They're amazing. Yeah. And they taste awesome. They're amazing. Yeah. And you can hide, for kids, for example, so you can hide the taste of kale or spinach. And for kids, you can put, you know, vitamins in there. You can put probiotics in there. You can, like, you can totally, you know, muscle it up and have it be a really strong breakfast for kids.

Or our new Bright Minds powder, which so many people don't want to take capsules. I don't want to take 10 capsules in the morning. You can take a scoop of the powder and put it in a shake and sort of hide the taste. Although it tastes reasonably okay. But that's often my go-to in the morning and we make a super clean, super healthy protein powder, uh, one vanilla, one chocolate, and we do it just, it's, it's a way to say, look, it can taste great and be good for you. You just have to be thoughtful. Um, yeah. And that's a great, you know, for kids, that's a great after school, you know, small meal too. Because kids are always starving after school.

And, you know, they want something that tastes good, but, you know, you don't want them to have any junk. It's like that's a great way to have something, you know, really tasty, slightly sweet, and really nutritious for them as well. Yeah. So it's funny. Parents give kids Oreos and a Coke and then they expect them to concentrate. Right. So they give them a sugar burst. And what happens in your body is your pancreas then sees the sugar produces insulin. And so you get a sugar spike oh i feel great and then 30 minutes later it drops you and your brain is now mud and it's like come on get your homework done what's the matter with you don't you care why are you doing this to me which is just nuts when it's the parents allowing it to happen to the child and And just not being aware of it,

like not putting those two things together, which is just, it seems like when you start talking about it, it seems like common sense. I often have that conversation with people where it's like, oh yeah, that makes sense. I didn't realize drinking coffee at 10 o'clock at night would make my sleep disturbed, you know, but just not putting it together.

If you don't have those conversations you don't sometimes think about it um so drinks in the morning that's interesting because and and you have you've alluded to this a couple of times is what people do is what they're going to do that the brain actually gets in a rut and so so I, you know, so what's the healthy thing I can get at Jack in the Box? Nothing. Except maybe iced tea probably works. But I used to get a chicken fajita pita because it was 350 calories, so it was calorie smart and healthier than most.

But the more I would allow myself to do it, the more trouble I would have not doing it. So whatever you allow yourself to do, it builds tracks in the brain. And so it makes it more likely to happen. So you want to find things you love that love you back and do it over and over because i actually think it's okay to get into a routine most people are in a routine that's bad for them and so you know i usually cook eggs for tana and chloe in the morning and i'll have a couple blueberries often throw some spinach in there as well for, you know, get my green stuff. Yeah. The more you can find a routine you love that loves you back, then you become a brain warrior. Absolutely. And you make that new routine really accessible and doable and realistic.

Right. So often people say, I don't have time to cook in the morning. I'm not, you know, so that's why I have to have, you know, whatever is at work or what I grab at the drive-thru or whatever. But if you have, for instance, I always talk to people about having some vegetables prepped and at eye level in the refrigerator. So when you open the refrigerator, there they are in all their colorful glory and they're ready to go. So there's no excuse not to just throw them in with whatever you're eating. It's a way to just make it that

much easier. So, you know, you're right. I mean, the routine really helps. So when you go to the store, come home, prep some food so that there's no reason not to eat well. It's the excuse of, oh, I don't have time to, or I'm rushing, so I'm not going to cut up any veggies. Well, if they're right there, then it's easy to add them to whatever you're eating. So what about, so let me just, and I think I've said it on the podcast before. So this is how I tell Tana. I love her every morning. I make her a pumpkin spice almond milk cappuccino.

So half caff coffee with unsweetened almond milk with pumpkin spice, about a teaspoon of that with a little bit of chocolate stevia. Put it in a blender, frost like crazy. Yeah. Top it with cinnamon that has a little bit of erythritol in it. And it's just amazing. She used to make it for me every morning. And then she went away on a trip. And I'm like, well, who's going to make this?

And she's like, you have an MD. I'm sure you can follow the directions. You can figure it out. Right, right. And so she taught me how to make it. And now she's so sneaky because now I make it every morning. But, you know, it's like my way of saying, I love you by something you love that loves you back. Yes. Yeah, absolutely. And that's the goal. So what about snacks?

Yeah. So yeah, great. So snacks always, you know, easy to carry with you is what people want to, want to know. So, you know, raw nuts and seeds, I think are a great option. I will, um, again, like preparation, I'm always talking about preparation. Um, you know, I'll get a bunch of different kinds, pumpkin seeds, walnuts, almonds, you know, um, sunflower seeds, just dump them all together, mix them up, maybe put a little bit of dehydrated coconut unsweetened in there. And then when you've got it pre-portioned, you can just take it with you for, you know, for your day. Then you've got a couple of servings of really healthy fat along with some

protein, you know, between meals that can be really simple. And, you know, again, I love the berries, you know, it sounds like you love blueberries as well. And I will do the same thing with berries because they, you know, they have great benefit. Blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, I'll mix them up and then take those with me as well. So having a little bit of healthy fat and protein with a little bit of good carbohydrate in the, in the fruit can be really simple. Other options that are delicious are almond butter and celery or almond butter and apple. Really easy if you've got it, again, already ready to go in the morning.

That makes it so much easier to take. And I'm a big fan of raw veggies. So I will bring raw veggies as well with some hummus or salsa along with the nuts. And that's actually a really good pair as well. Really simple whole foods. Guacamole too. Avocados are just amazing. I guess I should disclose my father is an avocado grower.

So I have avocados all the time. It's his way of saying he loves me. Every time I go over there to work out he send me sends me home with a bag of avocados uh so i just love that and they're so good for you yeah i used to think not but 60 of the solid weight of your brain is fat they call you a fat head say thank you um it's just it's a critical part of what should be in our diet. Absolutely. Yeah.

Okay. What about fruit? Yeah. So we talked about berries and berries are good. I have every day one cup of frozen blueberries and I like frozen blueberries better than non-frozen blueberries because it's sort of like candy. In fact, I actually say it's God's candy. And a cup of frozen blueberries is 70 calories. So it's calorie smart. It's loaded with fiber and color. And so why is the color important? It is, you know, they're phytochemicals or

they're basically plant medicines. Right. Absolutely. And blueberries specifically, I mean, they're just like a superfood. I mean, if there is such a thing that that would definitely be one of them. And frozen, I don't know if you've heard this, but the frozen actually are better digested because they break a little bit in the freezing process. Is that something you've heard? I haven't, but no. Yeah. So, I mean, I don't usually eat them frozen, but I think about that sometimes. Like, I like them fresh.

But, yeah, I think, you know, a couple servings, depending, of course, on what your goals are, but a couple servings a day of really, you know, low sugar fruits, especially the berries, because you're eating the seeds as well in berries. That's great. I think we're used to these like huge bananas or huge apples or huge oranges. You know, we don't need that. Half of a watermelon, which is really a high sugar fruit or pineapple. But there's a difference. We don't have time to talk about it today, but glycemic index and glycemic load that we usually talk about.

But, you know, apples, oranges, pears, if you're going to have a banana, have it greener than brown. And pairing it with the protein is going to help that blood sugar uh response right so you're talking about the glycemic load so pairing it with a protein will slow that down so it's a good idea to always that's why i like to always eat fruit with a protein or you know at least some nuts that's got some protein in it slow that down so that you're not getting that spike and then drop, right? That's what we're all trying to avoid. And then for dinner and lunch, you know, I would just tell people, think of a plate, 70% should be plant-based foods, 30% high quality protein and

mix in of those numbers, healthy fat. But what about dessert? You know, since we only have a few minutes left, let's talk about what everybody gets unhappy about. And so BrainMD actually makes two chocolate bars. Oh, they're so good. Brain and Love, which melts. It is amazing. It's amazing. And you just need a little piece. It's like all you're needing is like. And you just need a little piece. It's like all you're needing is like, if you just want a little sweetness, have a little bit, really enjoy it, like savor it. You know, you don't need even the whole bar.

You can just have a little piece. And then Brain on Joy, which is our coconut chocolate bar, which we just love. And it's symbolic of there is no suffering in getting well. You just got to use your brain. And you can use that, like you said, melted and then dip your little, you know, berries in it. And you've got this like just luxurious dessert.

But I know Tana and you have some great recipes in there for cookies, you know, that are made with almond meal. And I've used those at holidays. People don't even notice the difference. It's not, you know, it's not a loss by eating well, for sure. Although, you know, the difference is if I had an Oreo, I would really want four or five of them. Oh, sure. If I have one of Tana's cookies, I'm happy with one or two of them. The level of satisfaction goes way up. Well, it's been just such a joy to be with you. Thank you for your work with Amen Clinics and with Brain Fit Life and being a brain warrior with me. I'm just super grateful for you.

And I know our community is as well. If you want to interact more with Zoe, join BrainFit Life. Zoe answers virtually all of the questions on our forum. So anytime you ask a question, usually you have an answer that day or the next day. And it's either coming for me or Zoe. And most commonly lately, it's been Zoe. So thank you so much, my friend. Absolutely. Take good care. Thank you. All right. Say hi to everybody in Walnut Creek for me. Use the code podcast 10 to get a 10% discount on a full

evaluation at amenclinics.com or on our supplements at brainmdhealth.com. Thank you for listening to the Brain Warriors Way podcast. Go to iTunes and leave a review and you'll automatically be entered into a drawing to get a free signed copy of the Brain Warriors Way and the Brain Warriors Way cookbook we give away every month.