The Mel Robbins Podcast - The 3 Day Nutrition Protocol: Exactly What to Eat For Your Best Body & More Energy

Episode Date: February 5, 2026

Ever stood in front of the fridge thinking, “What am I actually supposed to eat to get healthy?” Today you are getting your answer. This episode gives you a simple way to decide what to eat to stay healthy without complicated math, crazy recipes, or “bro science”. In this episode, Mel sits down with Dr. Amy Shah, MD. Dr. Shah is a leading expert in the role nutrition plays in health, longevity, and hormone regulation. She has been in clinical practice for 22 years as a double-board certified medical doctor with specializations in nutrition, internal medicine, and immunology. She has a degree in nutrition and trained at Cornell University, Harvard University, and Columbia University. She is the author of two bestselling books about nutrition, hormones, and lifestyle changes, including her newest book, Hormone Havoc. She’s also one of your favorite experts to ever appear on this show – and today she’s back with a brand new episode to give you a simple, science-backed framework you can remember even on your busiest day. It’s called 30/30/3. It’s designed to help you feel better fast, support your hormones, stabilize your energy, and make meals simpler without tracking, obsessing, or living on willpower. Mel and Dr. Shah talk about why these matter for women’s bodies and hormones, how to make it realistic with normal groceries, and what small shifts can start changing how you feel faster than you’d expect. By the end, you’ll know what to eat today to support your body, and the foods you should avoid. In this episode, you’ll learn:-The 30/30/3 protocol: 30g protein in your first meal, 30g fiber per day, 3 probiotic foods daily -Why protein is for more than muscles: it supports mood, focus, gut lining, and energy and cuts your cravings -The quick label trick to spot foods that claim protein but don’t deliver -Common “health foods” that quietly sabotage your goals. -How fiber impacts hormones, inflammation, and brain health -The probiotic foods that actually count (and why probiotic pills often don’t work) -Tiny food upgrades that can help your gut health improve quickly -How to eat healthy without tracking your life or living on salads. Almost all “healthy eating” advice is either confusing, unrealistic, or focused on getting smaller, not getting stronger, happier, and energized.This is a simple, research-backed roadmap that makes healthy eating finally feel doable. If you want clarity, simplicity, and a plan you’ll remember tomorrow, start here. For more resources related to today’s episode, click here for the podcast episode page.  If you liked the episode, check out this one next: The Body Reset: How Women Should Eat & Exercise for Health, Fat Loss, & EnergyTo learn more about Pure Genius Protein, which is discussed in the episode, click here.Connect with Mel:   Get Mel’s newsletter, packed with tools, coaching, and inspiration.Get Mel’s #1 bestselling book, The Let Them TheoryWatch the episodes on YouTubeFollow Mel on Instagram The Mel Robbins Podcast InstagramMel's TikTok Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ to listen to new episodes ad-freeDisclaimer Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Hey, it's your friend Mel, and welcome to the Mel Robbins podcast. Have you ever walked into the kitchen and opened up the fridge and thought to yourself? What exactly should I be eating to lose weight and gain muscle? I mean, what is the best breakfast? What do you eat when you're not hungry? What should I be eating for dinner tonight? I mean, what are you even supposed to eat today to make the healthiest choice for your body? I don't know about you, but I'm often very confused.

if you're like me and you've wished someone with a medical degree who has also studied the science of nutrition could just bottom line what is healthy eating and then tell us exactly what to do well you're in luck because our guest today has done that she has the answer she has the research she's going to tell you exactly what to do and can prove why this will work dr amy is a double board certified medical doctor who trained at Harvard Medical School and has degrees in nutrition and immunology. She is one of the leading medical experts in understanding the role that nutrition plays in your health, longevity, hormone regulation, energy, everything. She's been in clinical practice seeing patients for over 22 years and has come up with a protocol

that is evidence-based and easy to remember. So if you're ever wondering what you're you need to eat today in order to be healthy. All you have to do from now on is remember 30, 33. 3033 is Dr. Shaw's nutrition protocol that she has researched extensively. This is what she prescribes to her patients. And many of them, check this out, start feeling and looking better in just three days. And Dr. Shaw says the same thing can happen for you. So you can shut the cabinet and close the fridge, sit down and listen. You're about to learn why 3033 is the simple science-backed nutrition reset your body has been begging for. Hey, it's your friend Mel, and welcome to the Mel Robbins podcast. I am so excited you're here. It is such an honor to be together and to spend this time

with you. And if you're a new listener, or you're here because somebody shared this with you, I just want to take a moment and personally welcome you to the Mel Robbins podcast family. I am so excited for our conversation. I'm excited for you to meet our expert, Dr. Amy Shaw. Dr. Shaw has a degree in nutrition from Cornell University. She completed her residency in internal medicine at Harvard University's Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and completed her fellowship in immunology at Columbia University Medical Center. Dr. Shaw has been in clinical practice for 22 years as a double board certified medical doctor with a specific focus on nutrition, hormones, gut health, and energy. She is the best-selling author of three books,

including her newest hormone havoc. She's also the creator of a science-backed nutrition protocol that is so simple. It is designed for people like you and me because you want to be healthy, but you're super busy. Dr. Shaw's 30-33 protocol is going to boil it down to just three simple things that are probably in your fridge right now, sitting in your cabinets, waiting for you to find them. And by the time we're done with this conversation, you're not only going to be inspired by her 30-33 protocol, you will understand the research and evidence that explains exactly why this way to eat works to improve your mood, your energy, it'll help you lose weight and make you stronger. So please help me welcome Dr. Amy Shaw to the Mel Robbins podcast. Dr. Amy Shaw, welcome to the Mel Robbins

podcast. Thank you for having me, Mel. I always learned so much from you. And here's where I want to start. What will I experience in my life that will change for the better or could be different? If I take everything that you're about to teach us today and I apply it to my life, what's going to change, Dr. Shaw? Well, Mel, I'm going to give you the framework to feel better in your body, to feel more energized. And it is the simplest thing that's distilling down thousands of research papers, thousands of women that have come to me. And I'm, I am going to give that to you today. Wow.

So what is this framework? And where has it been my whole life? That's a great question. The framework is 30-33, okay? 30 grams of protein in your first meal. 30 grams of fiber throughout the day. And three probiotic foods every day. And each of these is based in deep scientific research.

and this is something that should have been given to us when we were in health class in whatever, six, seventh, eighth grade. It should have been maybe given to us at our doctor's offices, which it wasn't. It should have given to me in medical school, wasn't. And it is not until today that we are sharing this with the world. Dr. Shaw, I have interviewed you before, but you seem even more passionate than normal about the research and about the recommendation to women specifically that we be getting 30 grams of protein first thing in the morning, 30 grams of fiber throughout the day, and three probiotic foods, I think you said, throughout the day. Why are you so excited and passionate about this new protocol?

The reason why is I think that women have been ignored for far too long. Did you know that every single medication, procedure, diagnosis that doctors make is based on research that is mostly done on white men? And it wasn't until there was a female that actually came in as the NIH director in 1991. And she was like, none of these big research articles include women or minorities. And so she created the Revitalization Act in 1993 to actually make. mandate that they be included because there is this theory that women are complicated. We have hormones, pregnancies. And so they were thinking that it was a favor not to have women in there. But what ended up happening is that very, very big mistakes were happening. For example, heart attacks were never

studied in women. And so when women would have a heart attack, it would be missed 50% of the time. And this is still true because women present differently. They don't have. the like crushing chest pain to the left arm. It's like anxiety, like nausea. And you're just like, oh, you're fine. Go home. And 50% higher mortality. That's crazy. Isn't that crazy? I mean, I think women have always, always felt like we are not listened to. Like, I know that there are people listening and watching today who are feeling, hey, nobody's listening to me. I have all of these things going on for me. And that's why we're here. I want to fill this gap by giving people the tools, the blueprint.

So Dr. Shaw, you have now looked at the research. You have crunched the data and you have distilled it down into a brand new formula that you are recommending that women follow. What is this formula and why are you so excited about it? It's called the 30-33. 30 grams of protein your first meal. 30 grams of fiber throughout the day and three probiotic foods every day. And why are you making this recommendation?

Because women have gotten diets, weight loss plans. They have never gotten a framework to make them stronger and to make them happier and to make them more energized. I love it because I feel like a lot of people are like, oh, just eat healthy. And I'm like, well, what does that actually mean? And so I'm excited to dig into it. But I want to read to you from your. your best-selling book, Hormone Havoc, this is in the introduction. Wait to hear this as I read this.

After you've made the simple science-backed nutritional changes, I am recommending in the 30-33 protocol you can expect the following. Improve mood and less anxiety, better sleep, healthy digestion, higher libido, sharper thinking, diminished hot flashes and night sweats, a fitter figure. including around your waist, greater energy, less fatigue, and more. Your body is changing, cycling through completely normal phases of life that all women journey through. You cannot control how your hormones change, but you can control how you experience it. With the protocols and tools that you're about to teach us today, Dr. Shaw,

you have the power to reframe paramenopause, menopause, and your health in general, as an opportunity, not a curse. And Dr. Shaw, you're saying with just this protocol 3033, you can achieve those benefits? Yes, and it's grounded in research. It's a simple framework that anybody can do and is going to change your life. I want this. So let's dig into it. And you mentioned that the first course, element of the 30-33 protocol is getting 30 grams of protein first thing in the morning. Why is that the first part of this? It's the first step towards better health, better mindset, better energy. And if you can start to master that, then you can move on to the 30 grams of fiber.

And then lastly, go to the three probiotic foods every day. So step one is the protein in the morning. Okay, so here's what I want to do. I want to take each one of these of the 30-33. and I want to start with the 30 grams of protein, and we're going to go through each one, and I want you to really unpack why. Yes. What is 30 grams of protein?

What counts as protein? And more importantly, the research that explains how getting 30 grams of protein first thing in the morning as part of this 30-33 plan, what the research says about how it makes you healthier, how it makes you happier, what it does in your gut, how it works with the female body. I cannot wait to dig into this. Dr. Shaw, what is protein? Protein, Mel, is a bunch of amino acids. Now, what's an amino acid?

And I'll tell you, these are the building blocks. You probably heard about building blocks of muscle. You might have even heard building blocks of your gut lining. But did you know it's a building blocks of neurotransmitters in your brain like dopamine and serotonin? So what I'm saying to you is by eating protein, you are giving your, your body, the building blocks, to make more muscle, to make hair, skin, and nails, but also to make more gut lining and to make neurotransmitters like dopamine, which is our motivation,

our energy, and our focus. Okay. I want to make sure that I'm tracking because I thought that you're supposed to eat protein in order to just help you. with muscle mass, which of course is important, especially for women, especially when you're 35 and up and you're hitting perimenopause. Understand that. But you just added on a long list of other things that protein does from your neurotransmitters

to dopamine and serotonin to your gut lining. How is protein involved in those things? The reason why there's 30 grams of protein and fiber is that combination of protein and fiber, and we'll get into exactly what that looks like. Okay. The combination of protein and fiber is the perfect food for your gut bacteria. Our gut microbiome has trillions with the T, organisms that are helping us make decisions

like talking to our hormones, immune system, and they're starving to death. We're not getting enough protein. We're not getting enough fiber. And so putting them together is the perfect way to feed your gut bacteria. You want it to be a lush Amazon jungle. You don't want it to be a barren wasteland, which is what it looks like for a lot of us. Okay. And that protein is giving signals back to the brain that you're full.

And so we know that women especially who have protein in the morning, they have more of the signals to the brain that you're full. And it lowers that craving, especially that 3 o'clock, that post-lunch craving or that nighttime craving that happens, having protein in the morning helps you control that. So not only is it helping your muscles, which like you said, very important, especially as we face that decline in perimenopause. Just quickly, Dr. Shaw, why is eating protein for muscles as a woman super important? Yeah, that's such a great question because most of us, including myself, I was on that get smaller, get thinner, and we're on this bandwagon of trying to look

as small as possible. And what I want to tell women is, you don't want to be smaller, you want to be stronger. Okay. And the reason why for muscles, this matters is that our signaling for muscle growth goes down as we age. So from the age of 35, on. Wait, is that why everything's getting flabby? Yes, it doesn't mean that you're screwed. It just means you need a stronger stimulus. That stimulus that you used to have for muscle growth has blunted because our estrogen is going down. What is the health benefit of me having muscles? Listen, if you don't have muscle and your bones are brittle, when you fall, which you will inevitably,

we all fall at some point in our lives, we just get up, right? But if you are in your 80s or 90s and you fall, you don't have the muscles to hold you up and you don't have the bones to withstand the impact of that fall, that is a life-ending fall for you. So muscles are important for longevity. Muscles are important for you to feel strong in your body. And muscles also signal other things to other parts of your body and protein and the building block. you call it amino acids in a protein are essential for your body to be able to build and maintain muscle. When you exercise and you eat protein, the muscle becomes a sink for your glucose. It's like a sponge

that's taking up all the glucose in your system. What does that mean? So what happens is when we eat a huge meal, we get a big blood sugar spike. Okay. And the goal for all of us is to to make sure the spike isn't too big and that it comes down very quickly. Even if the spike is big, as long as it comes down quickly, your muscles suck that in. The muscles, actually,

they don't even need insulin. They have their own transporters called the Glute 4 transporter. So one of the best things I find about eating protein and exercising is that you're actually improving your metabolism. So your blood sugar will be lower. You'll have less abdominal fat.

you'll be more energized, less crashes. I mean, those are like the benefits we don't talk about enough with protein, is that connection with protein and exercise in the muscle. Wait, so just as I'm sitting here, and I've got some biceps and some quads, okay? And I've eaten my protein, which I did this morning because I knew you were coming. If I were to eat something that spikes my insulin, the mere fact that I have built my muscles up and I've fed them protein, which is critical to maintaining the muscle, means the muscles themselves almost act like a sponge to suck it out of my body?

Yes, and that's what... That's almost like exercising without exercising. That's right. That's why muscle mass is so important. And think about it. If you pair that with a quick, you know, I'm going to stand up and do a couple of squats or I'm going to go for a quick walk, you are actually creating a scenario in your body where those muscles are contracting and they know, okay, I got to.

going to pull some of that into my muscle and they're going to do such a great job that all of a sudden their blood sugar balances right away instead of being on a crash. Could you explain the surprising things that happen in your brain or your body when you eat protein, especially first thing in the morning as a woman? The surprising benefits is that it's actually the building blocks of dopamine and serotonin. Dopamine is so needed for us, especially when we're in that midlife and beyond, because our levels are lower, right? So that motivation, that feeling of energized, do you know when you feel like so excited to do something, that is dopamine? And it's like the one that keeps you going on the project because you want it to be done. It's the one that gets you

up out of bed. It's the one that makes you drive across town. Dopamine is so positive. It can be negative too because it's part of addiction. But in the mornings, we want to have our dopamine and our serotonin, our happy hormone serotonin is. We want it to be higher. You've heard of GLP1, neuropeptide Y. We want to have those high so that we can feel full and not have cravings for the rest of the day. So that's a natural way to boost those hormones in our body that make us feel full. And so not only are we more focused and we're more motivated, but we're also less likely to kind of be distracted because we're craving something. And so there's very good studies that show people who eat protein in the early part of the day will get benefits all day long because of the neurotransmitters

because of the craving and the satiation factor of eating. What is the recommended range? And obviously everybody's slightly different. But what is the general range for how much protein you should be getting? That's a great question. And that varies depending on what your goals are. My goal is to be healthy and wealthy and happy and to take advantage of all this research. Okay.

So for someone like you, I would recommend 0.8 grand. per pound. Okay, point eight. So between point seven and all the way up to one gram per pound is like the range for the high protein diet. And I said that for you because I know that you're working on building more muscle. Yes. So I know that you're working to maximize and it's so sad, but that's a lot higher than the RDA. So what the recommended amount is is much lower, but what your medical opinion is, is that if you're around 0.8 grams. So that's like, so I just need to make the math easy. So if I were to, so if you're working with, I don't know, 150 pounds. Yeah. And you are going one gram. Yeah. That's 150 grams. I'm just trying to like make this simple for

myself. And if you were to do 0.8, it is 120. 120. That's a lot of protein. It's a lot of protein. And here's the thing. You know, there's only so many egg bites and smoothies and bars and chicken and steak and fish and meal prepping and like that one can do. Well, that's why we're going to talk about it. We'll make some easy, easy kind of breakfast ideas. Okay. And I'll tell you some quick, easy things that you can add to your diet that is going to really amp up the protein. Okay.

There was one other thing that you said that I wanted to make sure that you explained, which was you said, if you are of an age, you're smiling at me. 57. If you're of an age where it's harder for you to maintain muscle mass, can you give me the age where you should be paying, you should start paying attention to this? Mid 30s. Mid 30s? I know. Is that just for women? Yes. It's more men's loss is more gradual. Okay. Women kind of face a little more accelerated muscle loss. You're so polite in your language. So we fall off a cliff at like in our 30s because of our hormone changes. Yes. So that makes sense.

Which means we are not going to build a maintain muscle the way the guys are because we are fundamentally different. As Dr. Stacey Sims always says, women are not small men. Yep. And so the protein first thing in the morning is critical because you need more protein so your body can break it down into amino acids that help you build and maintain muscle. You got it. Oh my God. I just got it. I just got it. Did you get it as you were listening or watching? I just got why this matters.

That's why it matters. It's so much more than protein for muscles. This is about your health as you get older. It's about your neurotransmitter. It's about your gut lining. It's about your hair, skin, and nails. It's about so much more. And it's about feeling good in your body. So could you be losing, I'm sorry, I'm going completely off track. But now I'm like, could you be losing hair because you don't have enough protein in your diet because you're missing? Yes. Here's what I got for the first time. For some reason, I had always thought about amino acids for some reason as something that your body is just kind of absorbing that's necessary. And when you explained it, so simply, you probably didn't even catch yourself saying it. And I want to highlight this because I really want you to leave this conversation, not just understanding 30, 33, and this framework for women based on all of the research and science that we now have. and based on hormones and based on everything else. I really want you to understand that when you eat a protein source, your body breaks it down into these amino acids. And the amino acids do all of this important work in your gut, in your brain, and in your muscles.

And that's why you're eating it. That's right. And, you know, one of the things I tell women especially is that we naturally lose muscle mass one to three percent per decade. Okay. But when we go into this phase that we call paramedopause, which is in your 30s. 30s all the way through your 50s, you have accelerated muscle loss. Okay, so it's no longer 1 to 3 percent. You're just naturally losing.

Yeah. So it's 1 to 3 percent per decade. And then when you get into perimenopause, it's 1 to 3 percent at the end of a menopause. It's per year. Per year? Yeah. This goes back to the original point. Women's bodies are different. Our hormones are different. the way we cycle are different. The amino acids that we need for our muscles to be maintained and to build and for our brains and serotonin gut, different.

And if we have accelerated loss of our muscle mass just naturally because of hormone changes in our early 30s, it's important to know that. It's important. And a lot of... Now I understand why you have a formula. Exactly. I love this. Okay.

So I want you to show us. what counts when it comes to 30 grams of protein first thing in the morning and how to get it? And I also want you to surprise us because there's probably a lot of things that I'm throwing in my mouth that I think are great sources of protein that might not be. You ready? Ready. Okay, great. So we're going to bring in some different foods.

Our executive producer, Tracy, is going to go grab it right now. I want to take a quick pause so we can hear a word from our amazing sponsors. And I also want to give you a chance to share this with everyone you know who needs to hear all about this research and this simple protocol. Text it to your sister, send it to your best friend, your daughter, your coworker, whoever needs this whole thing about healthy eating, just simplified and bottom line. This is simple, doable. They're going to get their energy back. And speaking of back, don't go anywhere because we will be right back with more specific recommendations. and the research from Dr. Shaw when we return. Welcome back at your friend Mel Robbins. Today you and I are here with Dr. Amy Shaw. She is a double board certified medical doctor, bestselling author, and she is here giving you and me her 3033 nutrition protocol and telling you and me exactly what we need to eat this year to get our energy back, to boost your mood, to live longer.

So let's just jump right back in. Okay. So we have all this amazing, like, food on the table. And now I'm starting to salivate as I'm looking at all this stuff. And why don't you walk us through every single one of the food items that you have in front of us and just describe what it is, how much protein there is and what you want us to know about it? Love that. All right. Let's start with an egg. Okay. Do you like eggs? I love eggs, but there's only so many eggs I can eat. You know what I'm saying? And I feel like this is my go-to for fast protein. It is the go-to for fast protein. What I love about eggs is that they have six grams of protein per egg. But that's it. That's it. Oh, I thought I was getting more. So two eggs is not enough. It's only 12? Yes. Most women are having two eggs for breakfast. That's what I had for breakfast. That's too little. You need to have an egg scramble. Okay. You can put one or two yolks because the yolk has a little bit of coline. and fat soluble vitamins in it. But then you can put in the whites. So then you can get like five eggs.

So three egg whites, two eggs. Exactly. Or you could do all eggs, but having all eggs amps up the cholesterol a little bit. So I like to add just like two egg yolks or one for taste and then the rest egg whites. And the great thing about eggs, they're so versatile. You can throw it in to a stew. You can throw it in on a side. You can eat it on the side of something else.

Whenever I'm in a crunch, that is a go-to, really easy food that you can make at home. And then we're going to go to one of my favorites is cottage cheese. Now, here, so you love cottage cheese. I know. I do. Shout out to my mother. She always had cottage cheese on the table growing up. It is cottage cheese, first of all, a good source of protein.

It is a great source of protein. You can get in about a cup with a little bit more. more than a cup, you can get 30 grams of protein. Wait, a cup of cottage cheese has 30 grams of protein? So a half cup has like 14. So a little more than a cup, you're getting all of the breakfast protein in one, cottage cheese. I like the probiotic type of cottage cheese because you'll, you know, you get to hit

that probiotic goal as well. And so what you want to do is if you add a little bit of fruit to this, this becomes a really delicious kind of parvet. You can add a little honey or you can add some. dates to this, and it becomes a really easy, quick five-minute breakfast. So a cup of cottage cheese with some fruit on top. Yes. That's about 30 grams of protein.

And as I'm eating it, my body is breaking it down into those amino acids, and I'm doing a good thing for my gut, my brain, and my muscles. And your hair skin and nails. And my hair skin and nails. Wow. One easiest way to get protein, honestly, is chicken breasts because you can get 26 grams at one serving. And how big is one serving? Like a deck of cards. You can- Oh, wait, hold on. A deck of cards. Yes. Is 30 grams of protein?

Yes. Roughly. Yes. Oh, I love that. Isn't that awesome? That's a great visual. It is such an easy way to get protein in your diet. This, maybe you don't want to have it for breakfast, but maybe you're having it for lunch or dinner because you really want to get 30 grams in each meal. And if you're like you, which we calculated out to be 120 grams, you're going to have to get even more. Maybe so this is maybe a snack. Wow. Well, when I first met you, I was two-thirds deficient and what I needed to get. What else do you have? Do I see, are there lentils over there? Yes. Okay. Surprising one for high protein is lentils. Okay. You get 18 grams of protein from lentils, one serving. Is that a really? Wait, okay, so doctor, hold that up. So Dr. Shaw is holding a bowl

that is full of just the basic green lentils that you can buy anywhere. Yeah. 18 grams of protein. From one cup? Yeah, isn't that crazy? That's really crazy. I actually love that because lentils, I think, are inexpensive. They're easy.

Like, even if you're not a chef, like, I'm not, you know, the biggest chef, but it's easy to cook them. You just have to soak and boil them. They're like an easy, and they're just inexpensive, especially for those people who think eating healthy or eating protein is going to be super expensive. This is a great option. Wow. Dr. Shaw, I'm so glad you're giving us a bunch of different options. I do want to ask a quick question, though. Is there a reason why you didn't bring up bacon? It's not. The problem with bacon is that it is an ultra-process food in most cases. You can get bacon that's not ultra-processed

meaning you buy it from a local farmer. Yeah. I wanted to focus on things that could be easy switches that people could make very easily and get their high protein in. And that's why I focused on these foods. More whole foods. Yeah. Because the ultra-process has chemicals and other stuff in it that sort of counteracts what you're going for. That's right. The more ultra-processed food is, the more likely it is to cause inflammation in your body

and long-term health issues, which is why you want to have as little ultra-processed foods in your life as possible. Now, I'm so glad I asked that question because, my typical breakfast, especially if I'm traveling, because I find it to be not only surprisingly hard to get 120 grams of protein in, but I find it particularly hard when it's a work week or it's a super busy day and I'm racing out the door. And so I would be ordering at a restaurant in the morning or getting takeout and adding bacon in. And now I'm realizing, while I'm trying to fill the protein gap, I'm actually working against myself because I'm eating something that's ultra-processed,

even though I'm not considering it. Yes. What are some other ways that you want us to think about filling that gap, especially on those mornings that it's busy or you're traveling? Well, that's where, that's why I set out some quick options. So here's the thing. Not everyone is going to have time to make a full breakfast. And often we are trying to figure out smoothie, but it's jam juice. and you're like, how do I even get enough protein without getting 800 calories in my? And so you want to pick options that are good to go. Like this Pure Genius has 23 grams of protein in one shot. And so you can get something like this on the go that actually helps you reach your protein goals.

Now, in full disclosure, I am one of the co-founders of Pure Genius, and you are on the founding scientific advisory board. As a medical doctor, why is it that you got involved? in this? And what is it that is, that you want people to know about it? Well, I got involved, first of all, because just like you, I'm struggling every single day to get enough protein. And so what this kind of does is gives us an option to have protein in a, and I love that it's in a small container. And I loved that I got to be involved to help create something that is something you can be proud of putting in your body and not being like, oh, God, I feel so sick and I really

shouldn't have done that, which is what I usually feel like when I'm at an airport or trying to figure out what to eat for protein in the morning when I'm traveling. So this was such a great solution. And I got to work so closely with the team and you and we got to see how it's being made. And so we know what's happening inside of it. That's, that made me really proud. Well, it made me proud, too, because the thing that surprised me the most when I really started to pay attention to this is how hard it is to get the amount of protein that you need and the fact that there are so many hidden calories. Yes. When I saw how much my smoothie, I mean, no wonder it tasted delicious. It was basically the same amount of calories as a freaking milkshake with ice cream.

I know. I mean, I'm going to share with you kind of the biggest mistake that we're making with protein. Okay. And that is thinking that things like peanut butter. Oh, good. Don't go for my peanut butter, Dr. Shaw. I love peanut butter. It's a super healthy fat.

Okay. But you would have to have eight tablespoons of peanut butter to get enough of protein to be considered 30 grams. Eight tablespoons? Yeah. So your morning peanut butter, you're using maybe one or two on your choice. I like my peanut butter. So I'm probably racking up the calories there with peanut butter. And that's.

issue also with nuts. Okay, so nuts, I love nuts. Like, I eat nuts all the time, right? So she's holding a, you're holding a thing of almonds. But the problem with nuts is that you would have to eat 800 calories worth of nuts to get 30 grams of protein. Okay, hold on. Let me just present why that's a problem. Because it just hit me. 800 calories and you've only done 30 grams. Yep. But you still have, for me, I still have another 90 grams of protein to go. Yes. And so if you're eating 800 calories in nuts, think about how many total calories of the day you'll get if you're including these kind of lower protein foods. Whoa. So there are high calorie and low calorie proteins. Is there a hack for how we can evaluate protein?

Okay. I have a hack for you. Tell me. Look at the label here. Okay. Okay. Yep. Look at the label. Yeah.

And look at the protein grams. Okay. Protein grams. 23 grams. Okay. Add a zero to it. Add a zero. So 230.

230. Is that more than the calories? Yeah, because this, the pure genius has only 100 calories. So that's a high protein food. You're kidding. So a really easy hack and it's not perfect, but you pick up something. Yep. And you're like, is this?

high protein food or not, and you're like, all right, let me just add a zero to the protein and look at the calories. So like in this case, it would be 230 way more than the calories. This is a very high protein food. That's incredible. Isn't that a great hack? My son, 18-year-old son was like, I use this all the time now because we get bombarded with things that say that they're high protein, good for you. And he's like when I use this trick, I feel like half the stuff doesn't even match. Now I know the answer to the follow-up question I was going to ask you, that protein is having a moment. Yes. It's in everything. It's in bread. It's in popcorn and chips and desserts and cereals. And now we know if you go and you add a zero and something says, you know, five grams of protein,

you're like, okay, now it's a 50. Is it more than 50 calories? Probably. It's probably 200 or 300 calories. Now you know that's a low protein source, not a high protein source. And, you know, there are exceptions, a few exceptions here and there, but for packaged food, this worked so well. Wow. What are the foods that people really make a mistake with because they think you're eating a high protein food, but you're actually eating a very low protein food when it comes to calorie versus protein? Well, I'm picking up these avocados, not because I love avocados. Okay, avocados are beautiful sources of healthy fats. They're a high source of fiber. But they are a low source of protein. You need like nine or ten avocados to get 30 grams of protein. Nine or ten? I mean, I love avocados, but I don't want to have ten of them to get my protein. I'll be honest with you. I didn't even know there was any protein on an avocado.

Okay. Well, speaking of things with low protein, I'm sorry, Mel. I'm sorry, but... You're holding red wine. Yes. We're talking breakfast. Who is drinking red wine at breakfast? That's a different. medical problem, I think, if you're having red wine for breakfast. Pretend this is a mimosa, which you would have for breakfast. Potentially. People have that for breakfast all the time. You, I mean, I'm not telling you to do this at home, but you would need 30 bottles of

wine to get 30 grams of protein. It has virtually no protein. Wow. So can you imagine? No. No. Unless you put milk in it. Yes.

Okay. So basically people are thinking that maybe it has a little bit of protein, right? It has virtually no protein. So this is a not a good source of protein. Okay. Another surprising one is oatmeal. Okay. So oatmeal.

Surprising in what way? It is not a high protein food. I always thought a big bowl of oatmeal had a lot of protein in it. So a big bowl of oatmeal is great in other ways. It has fiber. You know, it slows the gastric emptying. It's great. But the problem is, is that if you're thinking you're going to get your 30 grams of protein

from oatmeal, you are wrong. I had no idea oatmeal was a low protein source. And then like an idiot, I'm throwing like tons of peanut butter on top because I think I'm adding more protein. So that's why I wanted to bring this because oatmeal inherently is a healthy food, right? But if you're taking this oatmeal, this cup of oatmeal, and then you're adding peanut butter to it and you're trying to get to your, you know, 30 grams of protein, then you're adding some nuts to it. And then all of a sudden you have this like 800 calorie breakfast. But it tastes good. It tastes like dessert. That's why I'm eating it. Which is amazing. Now I know why it's not working.

Right. Like definitely if you're looking for a high impact, high protein food, that's not it. You know, a lot of us, I'm just speaking on behalf of myself and women everywhere, have been socialized to believe that you should start your day on an empty stomach, that you should exercise without eating, that fasting in that regard is the way. to have better health. But as a medical doctor and somebody with a degree in nutrition science, what do you say about protein first thing in the morning for women in particular? Here's the thing about fasting. We have found that women and men, people who skip a lot of meals, especially when they're eating late into the day, they just have worse health outcomes.

And it's been so hard because I love intermittent fasting. But for me, it was like study after study after studies saying that people who intentionally or unintentionally skip meals. I was more in the unintentional phase. No, just I'm being honest. Like I feel like getting your protein in and getting a good breakfast first thing in the morning is really hard. And when I stop and think about it, I would never send my kids to school without a healthy breakfast. Yeah. Because there's no way they would make it through the school day. So why on earth am I sending myself into the day without prioritizing getting in a high-impact, high-protein meal that's going to fuel me for the rest of the day?

There's many, many studies that show that getting your protein early in the day is beneficial not only for muscle growth, but it's also more likely to help you get to your goal. So people who have protein in the morning, they're more likely to be. to get to their protein goals. They're more likely to make healthier choices all day long. They're less likely to have cravings and more likely to feel satiated and energized through the day. And so I thought to myself, well, that makes sense. When you start your day like this, make it simple for everyone because if you're doing nothing else and you do this, you're going to make a big impact in your life. All right, here's what I want to do. I want to have the team come in and

pull the food off the table. So let's get somebody in. here to pull this out. All right. And I also want to take a quick pause so we can hear a word from our amazing sponsors. Don't go anywhere because we will be right back with more specific recommendations and the research from Dr. Shaw when we return. Stay with me. Welcome back at your friend Mel Robbins. Today you and I are here with Dr. Amy Shaw. She is a double board certified medical doctor, bestselling author, and she is here giving you and me her 3033 nutrition protocol and telling you and me exactly what we need to eat this year to get our energy back,

to boost your mood, to live longer. So let's just jump right back in. One of the things I'd love to have you talk about, Dr. Shaw, is as you're looking at your label and you gave us that great hack for is this low protein or is this a high impact, high protein food by add the zero. And if the protein count is higher than the calorie count,

we're in the high protein, great payoff. But what should we also be looking for? like as you're scanning the label that sneaks in there? Okay, so the biggest thing is added sugars. Okay. So a lot of things, like we mentioned smoothies earlier, and if you actually look at the amount of sugar that a smoothie has, sometimes it's like the same as a Coke.

So like you wouldn't necessarily have a can of Coke first thing in the morning, but you would definitely go for a smoothie. Right. And that has just so much sugar. Now you could argue, oh, it has fruit, sugar and like all the things. But at the end of the day, you really do want to watch how many total grams of sugar that you have in a day. So you definitely want to watch that. And then, of course, you want to be looking at the calorie count, the fat, especially trans fats.

Those are the most dangerous types of fats. And so that's another thing if you're like just scanning a label that you would want to look at. Can you just tell us what should we be looking for in terms of proteins? Since protein is now finding its way into everything, what are we actually looking for? A lot of the proteins that we get out there are not complete proteins. What does complete protein mean? So a complete protein means it has all the amino acids in order to build muscle. Okay. There's a special amino acid called Lucene that actually is a great stimulus for muscle growth. That's not in all protein food. And so you want to find a complete protein and you want it to have lusin if you're really trying to build that muscle.

And what are the forms of protein that don't have lusine in it? A lot of vegetarian proteins, I'll have to say, are incomplete proteins. But that's why you eat lentils with rice, for example, because lentils are incomplete, but you pair it with rice. But some things that are surprising that are not complete proteins is like collagen. I mean, a lot of people are using collagen and thinking it's a repleteer. for protein, and it's great for your hair skin and nails, okay? But it's not a complete protein. So on its own, without it being fortified, it's not having the benefit to your muscles in terms of the amino acid profile? That's right. It is in the pure genius shot. It is, but it's also,

it has a combination of collagen with BLG, which is a component of weight protein. And so that actually makes it a complete protein. You mentioned way. Yeah. Talk to me about way protein. So way protein is so great. So it's derived from milk. It's made from cows milk. Okay. And so the thing I like about way is that not only is it a complete protein, which a lot of proteins are not, it's also less processed, meaning to turn milk into a white powder that you're going to be consuming on a daily basis, it's not that hard, right? But to turn peas that are green with the taste. And then you're going to be consuming. You're paste into a white powder is a lot harder. And so I've really changed my own personal stance on protein powders and also what I recommend to patients because I used to think, well,

if it's a vegan source of protein, it must be better, right? But what I learned is that you have to process that pea or that hemp a lot to get it to be that white powder, flavorless powder. And oftentimes, pee in particular, can be contaminated with heavy metals because of where it's grown. And so a lot of vegan and vegetarian project powders, you really want to watch that make sure they're tested for heavy metals because that is an issue and less of an issue with the way proteins. You mentioned BLG. Talk to me about way protein and the BLG aspect in particular. BLG is actually the richest source of leucine and you can really get that muscle stimulus that you want in that BLG portion.

And so it seems to be a really great way to add more protein to your diet in a way that stimulates muscle in the right way. Can you eat too much protein, Dr. Shaw? Yes, absolutely. And you can also eat very, very poor quality protein just to get to your goals. So the way I counsel my patients is your goal is to get around 30 grams per meal. You don't need to go way higher than that. you don't need to win the contest of the most amount of protein, it can be something that you can

have in excess, and that's happened. So you really do want to try to get it 30 grams per meal or a snack, and that's your ideal amount. Got it. So if we do 33 meals a day and you get it in in the snacks, you're done. It doesn't have to be so complicated. Let's just simplify this, get enough, and then it becomes easy. It doesn't have to be like a full-time job. Can you talk just a little bit about what should the person listening expect to feel if you get 30 grams of protein in for breakfast after a week of doing it? That's a great question. Our body changes very quickly. People don't understand that within three days, you can start getting noticeable changes in your gut health, for example, in your energy levels. You're going to start to have more

building blocks, amino acids in your system. And so you're going to feel more energized. You're going to feel so a week is enough to start noticing those little changes. So I always tell people, try for a week. And the plan in the book is honestly a seven-day plan because it's so simple, even if you're really hypercritical and you're like, this is not going to work for me. You can do anything for seven days and see how you feel. Make a decision based on that. Well, if I'm going to feel more energized after just focusing on 30 grams of protein every morning, I'm doing it. There is a significant difference between the days where I wake up and couldn't get the protein in and the days where I prioritize doing this and how I feel fueled. I have more energy. I can focus better. I do better work.

I can control my emotions a little bit better. I'm more present. And if you really think about it, it makes sense because it's fuel. Yeah. It is. fuel for your body, and I actually echo that completely the days where I just scramble out of bed and I'm going to the thing to thing to thing and I'm not eating until late in the day, I just feel like my emotions, my mood, my energy levels, the way I show up in the world is so different. So the next part of your 3033 research back protocol is fiber, specifically eating 30 grams of it per day. So let's talk about why is fiber so important and what does it do in the body?

Great question. All right, Mel. How many Americans do you think are getting 30 grams of fiber? Like what percentage? I don't know. Like less than 5%. Less than 5%. Yeah. So 95% of us are not getting enough fiber? Yes. What does fiber do? Okay, so let me explain this. So a lot of people think of fiber is like the thing that helps you go poop, which it is, it is one of the things that help you go poop. But what it does is that we have organisms that live in our gut, and their main source of food is fiber. And by not eating enough fiber, we are starving that entire ecosystem. And it's so bad, Mel, that among generation to generation, we have lost so much of our gut bacteria that we have like 50 percent.

of what our ancestors had because of our modern diet. Those bacteria, they regulate how much hormones we have in our system. So when you don't have enough bacteria that are healthy and functioning, you get all kinds of hormonal imbalances. You get all kinds of GI issues because our gut is constantly talking to our brain. And so feeding that gut bacteria becomes extremely important. And here's what happens. when you eat fiber, it actually doesn't get digested fully until it gets to the colon.

And the gut bacteria there, they will eat that fiber. And most of the other food that we ate has already been absorbed. And so the only food left for them, that whole entire ecosystem, is when you're eating fiber. And when you prepare protein and fiber, that's when they get super happy. they produce these things called short chain fatty acids. These are the magical, anti-aging, anti-inflammatory compounds that go all over our body, including our brain and lower inflammation. Wow. Well, I want to bring out some fiber foods. So let's bring in a bunch of examples of what fiber is. And then you're going to explain to us what we should be eating in order to get 30 grams of fiber a day.

Let's do it. Okay. So if you're watching on YouTube, you can see that there is kind of an odd assortment of things in front of Dr. Shaw. I'm going to just tell you as you're listening, I see a carrot, a kiwi hummus, pistachios, a pear, and some things in bowls that you're going to explain, Dr. Shaw. So walk us through. What does 30 grams of fiber in a day look like? All right. I have some really easy things that you can add to your diet.

that have a lot of fiber. And some of them might be surprising. For example, here's a pear. Okay. So the best thing about a pair is that it has like six to seven grams of fiber, which is like double an apple. Is that crazy? I'm sorry, I'm just sort of shocked. Do I have to, do I eat the peel? Do I do the inside? You eat the whole thing like you would eat an apple. Okay. But it just is a powerhouse of fiber. Wow. And so I, pears, and the next thing I'm going to show you, Berries is like the secret hacks to getting more fiber. So I love blueberries and blueberries are amazing because they have tons of polyphenols, but raspberries are the real fiber powerhouse. Raspberrys. Raspberrys. They have eight grams per serving.

Raspberrys are one of the highest fiber foods you can have and so easy to add these to like a yogurt or cottage. Berries are such an easy way to add more fiber to your diet. So if I were to throw frozen blueberries or frozen raspberries into a smoothie, do you still get the fiber benefit? Yes. Okay. As long as you're not juicing it. No. Yeah.

Just blending. Yeah. Okay. We're throwing them on top of the Greek yogurt or throwing them a handful in your mouth. That's right. Wow. Isn't that amazing? That's almost a third of your daily dose.

Yeah. Once you start doing this, you're like, okay, I understand why 95% of people don't eat enough fiber, but it's not so hard to actually eat. And mind-blown stat, okay? for every 10 grams of additional fiber you add to your diet, you are improving your longevity by 10%. Every 10 grams of fiber you add to your diet, you're improving your longevity by 10%. That's right.

Why? Okay, so fiber is that important, not just for constipation, it's for everything in life. So we know diseases, inflammatory diseases, we know brain health. And so most average Americans are getting 12 grams of fiber. And so you add 10 grams to that and you are changing their life. Wow. Okay. What else you got?

My favorite hack, this. Chia seeds. So chia seeds are my favorite because one tablespoon is going to give you five grams of fiber. And so you add a tablespoon, two tablespoons to your yogurt. And there you go. You got your 10 grams. you got a 10% increase in your longevity just from a little seed. And I love chia seeds because you can add it to water, you can add it to yogurt.

They're very like versatile in the way that you can eat them. And there's this amazing. This recipe is just insane. A raspberry chia jam. So you'd want to cook the berries, right? Let them kind of simmer and get into that jam like consistency. Add a little squeeze of lemon, a little bit of honey. And then you add your chia seeds and it gels up just like a jam, like a store-bought jam.

So you make jam by taking a couple tablespoons of chia seeds and some raspberries and blend it up with honey. Yes. And then you add it to everything and you basically have almost your half or almost all of your serving a fiber for the day. That's right. It's amazing. Okay. Another hack, kiwi fruit. Okay.

Kiwi fruit, if you eat it with the skin like an apple, just bite into it. Are you supposed to do that? You are supposed to do that. Mel, the skin increases the fiber content by 50%. Oh. The crazy thing about kiwi fruit is that there's really great studies looking at constipation and even looking at sleep and looking at mood. That these are all the things that it can help you with.

And so if you eat it with the skin on, you can bite it in like an apple, you are adding fiber, but you're also getting all the phytonutrients that kiwi has. It's like a superfood. So how much fiber is in an average kiwi? Kiwi fruit with the skin is about four grams of fiber. Okay. And adding the skin is the magic. Okay. So you're going to have that kiwi fruit. And then other powerhouses, black beans. Okay. Black beans? Do you like black beans? I love black beans. Black beans? Black beans has eight grams. Eight grams? In one serving. A half a cup of black beans has eight grams of fiber.

Wow. Isn't that impressive? I'm starting to realize I could do 30, 30, 30, 3.3. math. So I could have my egg yolk and egg white omelet. I could throw in some black beans that are left over from Taco Tuesday. That's right. And now all of a sudden I'm combining the 30 grams of protein and making my 30 grams of fiber. I could take my cottage cheese or my Greek yogurt or I could drink one of these pure genius shots and get my protein in and then I could take a handful of blueberries, raspberries and some chia seed, and boom, there you go. I got my fiber and my protein first thing in the morning. The other thing I love about fiber is that it's actually really delicious. So hummus is something you might. Hummus is a fiber? Yes. How is it a fiber? Isn't that crazy? It's because it's made of

chickpeas and that's a high fiber food. And so something easy that's six grams of fiber. Yes, in hummus. And so you could take this out of your fridge. You might have you take a carrot, got four grams here. Got some hummus. You got six grams there. Got 10 grams right there. Wow. And I see pistachios. Do you like pistachios? Pistachios are a high fiber food. 13 grams in a serving. I know. It's like a high impact high fiber food. And that's just for a quarter cup of pistachios. Is that crazy? 13 grams? Like if you look at it, you take these berries and you take the pistachios or you take and you make up yogurt parfe with the berries, the chia seeds, and the nuts, and you got yourself 30 grams and one serving. So you could be better than 95% of people. And not because it's going to just make you

poop, which is an amazing side effect, but because it is going to make you smarter. It's going to balance your hormones. It's going to improve your immune system. This is going to help you live longer, lower inflammation. I mean, fiber is the key for our. gut-brain connection. And so when you eat enough fiber, you are improving your overall life. All right. Talk to me about bread. Is bread fiber? Is there a hack for bread and fiber? Okay. So bread is a trick question because the white bread, you know, the typical bread that you're getting in sandwich shops, that is not a high fiber food. But the thing is bread can be a high fiber food. If you get an Ezekiel bread or sprouted grain bread, they're...

You mean the stuff with seeds in it. Exactly. And or sprouted greens. What about sourdough? Sourdough is a really great bread as well because it's fermented and there's some benefits of that fermentation for your gut. But it's not exactly the same fiber as the seeded breads. Exactly. Sour dough that's with sprouted wheat is actually a really great option. And then I have a hack. Tell me the hack. store your bread in the freezer, whether it's sourdough, whether it's Ezekiel, whether it's regular bread, there is a process, a biological phenomenon that happens when you freeze bread that makes it healthier for you and your gut. What? What happens is some of the starch

in the bread turns into resistant starch. And resistant starch acts like fiber in our body. Our gut bacteria, the ones that eat the fiber, they also love resistant starch. And when they eat that resistant starch, okay, when they're eating that frozen and then thawed bread, it has less of a glycemic impact on your blood sugar. And it's actually less caloric. And you get the benefits of the gut healthy benefits of it. Okay, hold on a second. So if I throw my bread in the freezer, you're telling me that because something biologically big words happens to the bread, when I take it out and toast it or thought or whatever, it's going to have less of a glycemic spike, is going to act as a better

fiber because it's turned something starch resistance, whatever. Yes, it's better for your blood sugar and it's better for your gut. Wow. People ask me, what about gluten-free bread? What about all kinds, sourdough? If you keep it in the freezer, it's a little bit in the freezer, it's a good. It's ends up just being a healthier version of that bread. So if you're going to, I'm not telling you to have bread morning, noon, and night, but when you are having that bread to have it in that way, it is such a better for you food. Okay, this may sound like a dumb question, but I have to ask it. What about greens? Like having a salad or spinach or something like that counts towards fiber? Leafy greens are an amazing source of fiber. I feel like leafy greens have so many benefits for us. Our gut bacteria

I love leafy greens because that fiber kind of gets to them and they can chew on that and really thrive. They create these amazing short chain fatty acids. Those are like magical compounds. So let's just say I'm making a typical salad, right? Yes. And just got some leafy greens and some other stuff on it. Like how much fiber is in like your average lunch salad? So, okay, well, that was also a trick question, like the bread question, because the typical salad is using iceberg lettuce. Okay. And that is not a high fiber food. Okay. You want to be using kale or spinach or these higher kind of density greens. You're coming for my wedge salad. I'm not having it, Dr. Schall. I'm coming for your rand.

We got to make the wedge with kale and spinach and like denser. So think farmers market greens. Right. Not your iceberg lettuce, you know, just with ranch dressing. We're not looking for that. How much fiber is in? Let's just say I'm making a salad and I've got a cup of spinach. One cup of spinach is actually quite low. It's like 0.7 grams. What? You need like four to five cups of spinach. But you know what how spinach is. I have four to five cups of spinach is only like four grams and I got to get the 30. But you know how spinach is, right? It shrinks. It becomes like a little bowl. So if you have cooked spinach, you're good. You need to have cooked greens. I thought that the raw was better, Dr. Schro? But I can tell you. cheat this. Yes.

Cook down one big bag and boom, now I got my serving. And honestly, putting olive oil in your veggies is a great way to get some of those fat soluble nutrients. And so people will say, like, do I not add dressing? Do I add dressing? You can, as long as it's just very simple, olive oil and vinegar, you're good to go. Okay. I feel very bummed about how little fibers actually in the Spanish salads.

I'm typically having for lunch. But this was super helpful because I can now make different choices. I think berries, chia seeds. What about the key? You're not going to eat it like an apple? I'm going to try it. I'm going to slice it and then eat it at the skin.

And you can get the sun gold that don't have the fuzzy skin. I've got to just have to go for it and just try it. So we're going to remove this because I want to get to the third part of your 3033, which is probiotic foods. Let's do it. So the last part of your protocol, for women, 30-33, is three probiotic foods. What is a probiotic food and why do they matter? Probiotic foods is something that existed in every culture around the world. Okay, before we had

refrigerators and microwaves, that was how we preserved things. There's this theory that people, even when we were hunter-gatherers, we would pick up kind of rotting fruit and food and eat that because that was fermenting. And our body, we knew even back then that we needed that bacteria, that good bacteria to go to our gut. Because we did so many. We were starving. So we ate it and rolled the dice and then we adapted. And the gut bacteria, I mean, they do so much for us.

They are the super moms of our bodies. I mean, they're coordinating all of the signals. So what does the probiotic thing do? So probiotics is bacteria. It's like adding more bacteria to that ecosystem that so badly needs it. And so I am like, you know, 95% of people don't get enough. fiber. Can you imagine the percentage of people in America that are not getting enough probiotic foods? It's probably like zero, right? Like most people... So it's like fertilizer for that Amazon forest in your gut.

So the way I think about it actually is like fiber is fertilizer for the sproutlings that are already there. Probiotics are like seeds where you're going to add more seeds to your garden because now it's fertilized and now it's going to grow more. And so probiotics are actual. foods that have bacteria in it that can reach our colon and seed there. The problem with probiotics is, and this is the problem with the whole probiotic industry, it is really hard to get our body not to destroy bacteria when you eat it. So when you eat bacteria, your body just wants to get rid of it because it's like, oh my gosh, she's trying to, she's eating something that has bacteria in it. Let me kill it. But when we eat it within a kimchi or a probiotic cottage,

cheese or a yogurt, your body knows to let that through. And so the power of... Because they recognize it as a food group? Yes. It recognizes it as part of kind of in the net of the food. And the thing about probiotics that I love is like it lowers inflammation, but it also improves mood. And so you are eating something that is improving your gut health, but it's actually also improving your mood. There's this whole world out there called psychobiotics, where they think, that by improving your gut health through probiotics, you can actually improve mental health conditions, including depression, anxiety, ADHD.

I do believe that. I believe that our gut is the conduit to better mental health. And we know through our fecal transplant research that that's the case. But it's really hard because our American diet is devoid of fiber, protein, and probiotics, especially probiotics. I mean, how many people do you know personally and yourself included that eat enough probiotic foods every day? Probably nobody. Even I struggle with,

especially when I travel. So we have good data that to lower inflammation, to improve brain health, to improve gut health, we've got to get these probiotic foods in. Why are probiotic foods so important for getting your energy back? Our gut is directly connected to our brain. when your gut feels good, when it's being nourished, when your gut bacteria are dancing, they produce chemicals that go to your brain to tell it to be happy and calm and focus and energized. And we know that the gut changes within three days. What do you mean? There was a landmark study where they were looking at how much they could change the gut with just dietary changes. So they changed the diet completely. So it was a landmark study.

So it was a huge, it's like taking a, you know, processed McDonald's drive-through shake diet and turning it into a high fiber, high probiotic food, high protein diet, okay? And they found, they thought it was going to take two weeks or even two months and they were going to monitor them every day. Every day they monitor them. They found by day three, their gut looked completely different than it did at the start. Wow. That's how fast you can. That's how fast you can. change it. And have you ever noticed, if you go on a three-day weekend where you eat really poorly

and you sleep really poorly and you do? Yes. Don't you feel kind of. You feel it. You feel it. And so the opposite is true. If you take this, what we've talked about today, you share this with a friend, you share this with your daughter, with your husband, and you start eating this in your daily meals, you're going to see a difference within three days. Wow. All right. Well, let's bring in some probiotic foods. Let's do it. So in front of you, Dr. Shaw, you can see this on YouTube, but if you're listening right now, she has a, what is that, Greek yogurt? Greek yogurt. Yep. And we have Kiefer. Keefer. What the hell is Keefer? It's a little more sour than yogurt. A lot of people, this is my trick, okay? And I learned this trick from one of the lead researchers

in gut health. What he does is, you know how Creek yogurt is really thick? Yes. And it almost like Sometimes you don't like the texture. The texture is kind of like very dry almost. So you mix a little bit of kefir into your Greek yogurt. Okay. And you can mix that and get the right texture. And this is an amazing source of probiotics. And then we have our beautiful kimchi, which is, you know, obviously it's an acquired taste,

but you can do sauerkraut. You can even do something as simple as raw apple cider vinegar. That is a probiotic food. And so you can add. these things into your day. It's not so hard. Even people who are lactose intolerant, by the way, here's a trick. You're lactose intolerant and you want to have more dairy. One of the best ways you can do that is take a probiotic food like a kefir and you take one spoon every single day and you start to add those bacteria into your gut. But if you're lactose intolerant, isn't keifer for milk?

So fermented dairy because it has the probiotics in it has less of an impact. and is very low lactose, right? So you take a little bit of this, just a spoon, and you train your gut. And then over time, we've seen in studies that people develop their own lactose fermenting bacteria. And so then when you have a slice of pizza, you're not in the bathroom or rolling in bed

because you're in pain. Got it. So you're getting the fiber from the keifer, or you're getting the probiotic benefit, plus you're also socializing and training yourself. You're kind of adding more friends to that Amazon jungle, more organisms, and that can help you digest. And a lot of people feel like they're able to eat way more foods once they start to incorporate more probiotics in their life. So one of the first times that I sat down with you and learned so much from you on this podcast was three years ago.

And you told me that joy and connection change your gut help. that when you're laughing, you get healthier. Can you explain Dr. Shaw how your gut bacteria responds when you are laughing, when you're feeling joy, when you're connecting with people that you love? Mel, the gut is, as I told you, kind of the master regulator of our bodies. And it loves connection. It loves it when you spend time with other people. In fact, you catch bacteria from the people that you spend time with.

What? What? Isn't that crazy? How? There are studies where looking at twins that were separated at birth, identical twins. And they looked at their gut microbiome. And their gut microbiome looked closer to the people that they connect with, that they spend time with than even their identical twin. Huh.

So the people that you love, that you respect. that you think are doing a great job in different parts of their life, you need to connect with them because not only are you spending time with them and enjoying yourself, you're actually catching some of that bacteria. So how does the bacteria respond when you're laughing and when you're feeling joy in those things? They are dancing. They dance and they produce these beautiful chemicals that go all over our body, including our brain, calm inflammation, make you feel happier. This is the magic. And people always say, like, how could the gut bacteria have so much control over our emotions? Our gut bacteria control our emotions. Like, when our gut bacteria are happy and they're producing all of these short chain fatty acids, we feel happier and calmer.

That is amazing. I love that. And the kimchi is getting kind of stinky. So I want to get these probiotic foods out of here because I have a few more questions. All right. So Dr. Shaw, you have taught us so much, and I want to make sure we kind of bottom line all of the amazing science, the 30-33 protocol. You write about a seven-day plan to help you get started in hormone havoc. What do you think is the most important thing you could do in order to implement everything that you just taught us about this 30-33 protocol? Mel, that's a great question. the reason I wrote hormone havoc is because I feel like women are sitting there and they're feeling miserable and they don't get the advice. 80% of women don't feel like they're getting enough food and lifestyle advice from their doctors. And we're left with looking on the internet where we feel

overwhelmed. And so what I want you to do is I just want women to try it. Just try the 3033 for seven days. Give it a shot. I've laid it out for you in the book with exact meals that you could have so there's no thinking or calculating involved. So if I can't get the book because it's not published where I'm listening because we're in 194 countries, what specifically would you recommend I do to get started? Okay. So the first thing you're going to do is you're going to have 30 grams of protein in your breakfast. So you're going to have an egg scramble with veggies or with cottage cheese on the side or with Greek yogurt on the side. You can't get your 30 grams right there. Okay. Then you're going to have a salad and you're going to put black beans and you're going to put another source of protein tofu. If you want chicken, if you want,

you're going to get your protein, your fiber. And maybe you use a apple cider vinegar salad dressing. And then for dinner, you're going to have another source of protein. Maybe it's a fish. Maybe it's a chicken if you haven't had it. Maybe it's black beans. Maybe it's a soup. And you're going to have maybe a side of cottage cheese. Maybe. Maybe. you're going to have some kimchi or sourcrow in your meal so that you can get that. And all you have to do is do that for seven days and see how you feel. When I follow this framework 30-33, what changes will I see in my body and my mindset? Mel, you'll feel more energized. You're going to feel happier because you're going to have more dopamine and serotonin. You're going to feel more motivated. You're going to feel

stronger. And remember, I told you all my life and all of your life and all of everyone's life, you've been told to get smaller. Get smaller. Think smaller. Be smaller. And what I'm telling you is to get stronger. Be stronger. Eat things to make you stronger. Well, what I love about 30, 33 is it's dead simple. I can remember 30 grams of protein first in the morning, 30 grams of fiber throughout the day and three probiotic foods. I can do that. I cannot tell you how good that makes me feel because there is no framework currently in textbooks for doctors, in handbooks, in women's health books. There's never been an accepted framework for women, and we're creating it today. Dr. Amy Shaw, what are your parting words?

Mel, we get 4,000 weeks in life, if we're lucky. And most of us, including you and I, are done with 2,000 of them. So the question I want to ask everyone here is, what are you going to do that you're going to be proud of? That makes you feel the best version of yourself. That makes you do all the things that you meant to do. Well, I just want to thank you for giving us a formula and explaining the reasons why this works and the benefits. And, you know, if nothing else, I want to feel more energized. I want to be clearer. I want to be stronger. And I got to eat anyway. And so if there are simple changes I can make and 30, 33 is a very simple roadmap that I'm certainly going to put to use and try and I will report back and I want you to report back too,

I believe you when you say that we're going to feel all those things. So thank you for distilling the science. Thank you for jumping on a plane. I really appreciate your ability to simplify all this stuff that is based in research so that we can apply it to our busy lives. Thank you so much for giving me a platform to talk to so many people and women that need it. You're welcome. And thank you. Thank you for being interested in your health and your well-being. Thank you for being interested in science. Thank you for watching and listening all the way to the end and sharing this with the people that you care about. I love that you're that kind of person. And in case no one else tells you today, I wanted to be sure to tell you as your friend that I

I love you, and I believe in you, and I believe in your ability to create a better life. And I love the science. I believe that if we focus on getting our protein in and getting our fiber in and getting these probiotic foods in, it's a way to tap into the wiring in your body so that you can feel better, which is going to help you live a better life, and you deserve that. All righty, I will see you in the very next episode. I'll be waiting to welcome you in the moment you hit play. I'll see you there.

Definitely. Is there no way? Is there any way to get... Okay. Let me see. This thing did. It's normally, I think, like this, so that I have, like... Great.

My water. You will understand the research and evidence. It explains exactly why this protocol works to... Why this diet, this eating plan... Something... Are this eating... ...this... ...neut...

...this nutrient... nutrition protocol, this eating, this way to eat? This way to eat. Okay. That explains exactly why this way to eat. Okay, great. Now we're talking. All right.

Okay. And if you were to do point eight, I mean, how do you figure that out? That's like some hard math. No. What's that? Yeah. How did you figure that out? You can use a calculator?

Okay, gotcha. So Tracy just used a calculator. It is 120. 120. You're going to try the kiwi? Probably not that one, but I'll try one. Not that one. Oh, you're waiting on me.

I'm sorry. Okay. Well, you know what I love about pistachios? I love to pop them open. Yes. Right? I love to just pop them open. It feels so satisfying to just like snap one open and then throw it in.

And so I love it because the shell also slows me down. Am I even saying it right? I feel like I'm saying it wrong. People are going to write it. It's not how you say it, Mel. No. Let them. Let them.

Oh, and one more thing. And no, this is not a blooper. This is the legal language. You know what the lawyers write and what I need to read to you. This podcast is presented solely for educational and entertainment purposes. I'm just your friend. I am not a licensed therapist. And this podcast is not intended as a substitute for the advice of a physician, professional coach, psychotherapist, or other qualified professional. Got it? Good. I'll see you in the next episode.