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Spandex & Wine
Spandex & Wine is a podcast for finding balance between being healthy & living a happy life. Hosted by Robin Hackney, a 23-year veteran in the fitness industry & wine consultant, this is a place to be our authentic selves as we have real conversations exploring wellness and all things wine! Subscribe now so you don’t miss an episode.
Spandex & Wine
From Garden to Gut: Understanding Your Microbiome
Join my monthly Zoom Call on Gut Health: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1ATg43EDXh/
Dive deep into the fascinating world of gut health with dietician Elizabeth Arensberg from Grateful Gut Nutrition. This enlightening conversation reveals how your gut microbiome affects virtually every aspect of your wellbeing—from energy and digestion to mental health and immunity.
Elizabeth breaks down the critical difference between probiotics (the beneficial bacteria in your gut) and prebiotics (the fiber that feeds them), using a beautiful garden analogy that makes complex science accessible. You'll discover the emerging science of psychobiotics and how specific gut bacteria actually produce neurotransmitters that communicate with your brain, directly impacting your mood, anxiety levels, and mental wellness.
We tackle the uncomfortable-yet-necessary topic of bowel health, exploring how different types of fiber serve different digestive needs. Elizabeth shares practical wisdom about gradually increasing fiber intake, ensuring proper hydration, and how protein consumption (including collagen and bone broth) supports gut wall repair. You'll learn why most Americans consume less than 15 grams of fiber daily when we need at least 25 grams, and how processed foods and modern lifestyles have damaged our gut diversity.
The most exciting revelation? The first benefits people notice when healing their gut aren't necessarily digestive—they're improved energy and better sleep quality. For those navigating perimenopause or menopause, these improvements can be life-changing. Elizabeth emphasizes that gut healing doesn't require extreme measures; small, consistent steps like incorporating more whole foods and balanced meals can lead to significant improvements.
Ready to transform your health from the inside out? Listen now and discover why gut health truly is the foundation of overall wellness. Share your own gut health journey with me at info@spandexandwine.com—I'd love to hear from you!
Find Elizabeth on Instagram: @gratefulgut_nutrition
Thanks so much for listening!
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Web Site: www.spandexandwine.com
Hello and welcome to the Spandex and Wine podcast. I'm your host, robin Hackney, and I'm so happy that you're here. This podcast is a place for conversations about balancing a healthy lifestyle and being happy more specifically, happy hour. Together we'll explore all things wellness and wine. I hope you learn a little, laugh a lot and, along the way, know you're not alone on this balanced wellness journey. Ready to jump in? Pour something in your glass that makes you happy, because it's time for Spandex and Wine. Hey everyone, welcome back to the Spandex and Wine podcast. Thanks for being here.
Speaker 1:In today's episode, I sat down with the incredibly bright and bubbly Elizabeth Arnsberg from Grateful Gut Nutrition to talk all things gut. You all know I've been focused on healing my own gut and helping my clients do the same, so having an expert like Elizabeth back up what I've been preaching was not only reinsuring but empowering. We get into the science of it. So prebiotics, probiotics, psychobiotics yes, that's a thing, and we even talk some good old poop because someone's got to do it right. Elizabeth is young, vibrant and crazy knowledgeable and I loved our conversation. So if you're wondering how gut health connects to your energy, hormones, mood, metabolism and more, this episode is for you, let's get into it. Well, hey, elizabeth, it's so nice to meet you.
Speaker 2:Yes, you too, Robin. Nice to meet you.
Speaker 1:Thanks, I love your background, I like your artwork. Yeah, nice vibe, oh goodness. Well, I mean I found you via Instagram and I loved your content still love it not didn't mean make it sound like in the past and I think mostly because, like I, last summer, I was on this journey of, like, removing endocrine disruptors from my skincare, from my house I'm still working on clothes, you know that kind of thing and then, after health care with my husband, I'm like we have got to really focus on our gut health, and so that's where I've been focusing right now and I'm so happy that I found some products that I like. But I'm excited to talk to you and learn from you, because I'm just starting this journey and almost every guest talks about gut health. So if you wouldn't mind just kind of introducing yourself and then let's talk about why it's so important to heal and make sure that your gut health is in check.
Speaker 2:Perfect, Well, good, I'm excited to be here and talk everything gut health. I know it's becoming very popular, which is fantastic because it is so, so important to understand. Um, but again, I'm Elizabeth. I'm a functional dietician and I've gotten into a big rabbit hole to specialize in gut health and helping a lot of people with digestive symptoms overcome those issues by repairing their gut, so it's been a very fun journey, um, and with the gut in general.
Speaker 2:Like the biggest thing I say about the gut is it impacts everything in your body, from digestion to nutrient absorption, to your skin health, inflammation, chronic disease, even our mood and mental wellness and, of course, our immunity too. Right, we know there's about 80% of your immune system is in the gut, so it's crazy to think we would ever overlook the health of our gut when we're working on anything from longevity to energy, to our day-to-day life. I think the gut is the base where we want to start as a big foundation.
Speaker 1:Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes. And a lot of people. When they think of gut health, it comes to mind probiotics and prebiotics. Can you talk about the difference between those?
Speaker 2:Yes, I love this. So probiotics I think that gets highlighted often. We see all those probiotic supplements, tons of versions out there. The biggest thing to think about a probiotic is this is going to expose you to the living microorganism, so essentially that living bacteria that then can take home in your gut. And then a prebiotic is something that we have to eat to keep that probiotic alive. So prebiotics are going to be a lot of your fibers, your fruits and your veggies and we have to eat a variety of those to keep that probiotic then that's taken home, alive and flourishing. So a good way to think about it is just like a garden. You want to have a variety of flowers. You want to have the flowers be growing in healthy soil and a way to do that is by plant, you know, by feeding it with those prebiotics, that fiber that helps it grow.
Speaker 1:I love that analogy. That's fantastic, yeah, and I was taking a class this past weekend and they mentioned psychobiotics. And I was taking a class this past weekend and they mentioned psychobiotics and I'm like, okay, that's so cool. So talk a little bit about that.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so that is something new. I've been learning a little bit more on in regards to psychobiotics with that one. I guess what? What mechanisms were you learning about with the psychobiotics?
Speaker 1:Well, I was just listening to like a little webinar about some of the products that I'm taking, and so they were just saying that there are psychobiotics in there as well that can help with mood swings, it can help with anxiety and depression, and it's just so fascinating to me I was just like, oh my gosh, I love this.
Speaker 2:Okay, I love that. So that is something that I found to be really cool of the impact that the types of your gut microbiome can have on mental wellness too. So we know that different types of bacteria support different neurotransmitters in our gut and those neurotransmitters we'll talk back to the brain. So, again, like you were saying, like anxiety, depression, mood swings, mood disorders we're learning a lot more that the type of bacteria we have in our gut can influence these mental conditions too. So, with you know, like the quality of our probiotics and those prebiotics, that influences the type of bacteria that we have flourishing, which in turn, is going to influence the mental health too. So it was really impressive to see like the shift we can have when we start to feed a healthy gut microbiome, the shift we can.
Speaker 1:Yes, and I mean it's so true when you hear you are what you eat, because really you are what you eat and in your opinion, like with all of the genetically modified foods and all of that, like where did we go wrong? Was it that? Where do you see that shift? When did that happen?
Speaker 2:Yeah, I would say with the tons and tons of processed foods, because that's just stripping the nutrients and the fiber. Essentially, most Americans average about 15 grams of fiber a day, which is extremely low when at baseline we want 25 grams of fiber a day, but we should definitely be way above that as well. So I think a lot of it is that diversity or gut has been wiped. We don't have as much of a diverse microbiome anymore, which is then going to impact our overall health. So I think a big part of it is the processed foods. Also our environment. Like you were talking about removing endocrine disruptors, that can absolutely impact the gut health too. So I think from our environment to food and even lifestyle, like we're pretty much inside, a lot of people are sedentary all day, stuck inside. We're not out in the soil, in the grass. We don't grow up on farms as often anymore, where you get exposure to different bacteria that can help grow a really diverse microbiome.
Speaker 1:Yeah yeah, I want to get a little gross for just a minute and talk a little bit about poop and fiber, because I know like okay, I want to hear, want to hear all of it.
Speaker 1:So you're warned, everyone listeners, you're. You're being warned right now. Okay, so different types of fire, fiber, soluble, insoluble and I know that some people, depending on you, know their digestive system. They need to have more of one and less of the other because it really mess up their system. Need to have more of one and less of the other because it really mess up their system. So let's talk about poop and what it should look like and what kind of fiber we should be having. So there we go.
Speaker 2:Okay, I love it. So, of course, bowel movements are huge. So what I tell people if we're leaning more towards the constipated side, you typically do better with some of those more insoluble fibers. And then, if we're more on the the looser side, you want more of those more insoluble fibers. And then if we're more on the the looser side, we want more of those bulking fibers, so that can be more of the soluble options. Now I will say some of them do cross over because of their skin and the type of fiber form.
Speaker 2:The other thing I always encourage is anytime you're working on strategically getting more fiber into the diet, you want to go slow. You shouldn't be going from zero grams of fiber a day to 25. You'd want to slowly work your way up with fiber foods, and having a variety of fiber foods is just as important. And then, in addition to that, I think the one thing that we all forget is you have to have water and you have to hydrate when you eat fiber, because if we don't, it can backfire and cause a lot of the uncomfortable conservation gas bloating. So it's kind of that perfect storm. If you're going to incorporate more fiber, you want to go slow and you also want to make your hydration matches it.
Speaker 1:Yeah, give us examples of both types of fiber.
Speaker 2:Yes, so whenever I think of like soluble, for example, I always think of a lot of like our mangoes, our, our fruits, our apples, some of those pectins and bananas and then some beans will fall into that category too and then some of those insoluble I always think of like flax seeds, for example, or some psyllium husk as well.
Speaker 1:Oh, I think the internet cut out. Okay, you hear that last part. You said flax seeds and then it was like, oh, she's gone. Yeah, flax seed in a silken mask.
Speaker 2:Yeah, the other one you said was a silken mask.
Speaker 1:I am sorry, like we have had the hardest time. I don't know if it's the storms right now or what, but our internet just keeps going in podcasting. I'm like ah.
Speaker 2:That's all good, but I can still see.
Speaker 1:Okay, that's good when I freeze and I'm like, ah, tell us about all of your services, because you do all kinds of things. Hey friends, okay, real quick. Every month, I host a laid back Zoom call where we dive into something that's changed my life and my clients' lives Gut, health. No corporate pitch, no pressure, just me sharing what's been working, what the science says and how you can start feeling your best, whether that's more energy, fewer hot flashes, better sleep or even a little help losing that stubborn extra fluff around your middle. And let's be real, formal isn't my thing, so bring your questions, your curiosity and maybe even your coffee or wine. No judgment, because these calls are all about real talk and real results. One in make sure you're subscribed to my newsletter and follow me on social media so you don't miss the next one. Okay, back to the podcast. Let's do this so you don't miss the next one.
Speaker 2:Okay, back to the podcast. Let's do this For services I offer again, I do. I have some functional medicine training with my dietetic, so I like to combine everything from lifestyle, nutrition and lab testing.
Speaker 2:One lab test that I'm very, very passionate about you've probably seen on my Instagram is stool testing.
Speaker 2:So I think that is a test that provides us with so much insight, especially because I get a lot of people who come in with digestive symptoms and all they've been told is to either remove food or that it's all in their head, and so the test brings so much clarity to these clients who just feel like they've been dismissed or don't know what to do.
Speaker 2:And stool tests is it really shows us everything from your healthy bacteria, it can show us if you have overgrowth of unhealthy bacteria, and then it even shows digestive markers so are you breaking down your food as well as we need to be, and it can show us inflammatory markers. So it's really giving a very good, almost like a gut health checkup to see what's imbalanced in your gut and how can we fix it. So from that test alone we can start to identify what foods can help bring that bacteria back up to where we need it to be, and then we also use some antimicrobials, depending on bacteria we find and specific strains that we want to remove if it's causing some of those digestive symptoms too.
Speaker 1:Oh, I love that. Oh my gosh, I mean, that's such a good service. I mean I don't think people realize they go and get their blood tested with their regular doctor, but that doesn't show everything.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's like we're missing such a big piece of the puzzle. And even you know, I always even think with blood testing of, unfortunately, a lot of times, depending on who we're going to they use a conventional range with our blood labs, and those ranges are so big, there's so much room for error to where we don't catch it and then we have the disease. So other thing that I like to look at is, with blood labs all around, is we have a much tighter range. We're using the functional optimal range, so we're testing to get you to feel optimal versus, you know, when you're in a disease state. So that's always a difference, too, of like we want to get you feeling your best before something progresses.
Speaker 1:All right. So when you were focusing on someone healing their gut, like I know everybody is different, but what's the first thing that you notice with people?
Speaker 2:everybody is different, but what's the first thing that you notice with people when we start to heal their gut yes, yes, I would say one big one that goes all across the board is their energy levels always improvement, energy and sleep, which is such a good bonus, because most of them come in and be like I'm having blow, I have diarrhea. So it's always fun when you have these unexpected wins for them. So I'd say first thing is usually energy, that sleep quality, and then, as we progress through healing, a lot of times it's resolution and those uncomfortable digestive symptoms they've had forever, daily, regular bowel movements, predictable bowel movements, and then even things where they feel like they can go to more social outings. They don't have a lot of anxiety around food anymore. So tons of ways to start to heal the gut.
Speaker 1:Yes, oh my gosh, it's such a wonderful process. I bet that you just. It's so rewarding, probably for you to watch all of that, and you're right, like the first thing that I noticed, and I'm a high energy person anyway, and so I'm like whoa, I might have to bring her down a little bit. I'm going to have to hurt my clients.
Speaker 1:Sorry everybody, but yes, it's so true. And you know, when you get to my age, you're not there yet, you have a long ways to go. But sleep can be so frustrating when you're going through perimenopause, menopause. So for to get that relief, is it's phenomenal, like just the energy and to be able to sleep. It's yeah. So many people will just take that, but then there's so many other benefits as well. And what? What changes would you say that people should start with in their diet? I mean, I know you mentioned fiber and processed foods, but you know what else would you recommend?
Speaker 2:Yeah. So in addition to that, I would say, thinking through each meal of you, know how much of a whole food can you have at those meals? So in addition to that, I would say, thinking through each meal of you, know how much of a whole food can you have at those meals? So I know you had a past guest and she touched on blood sugar a little bit and, as baseline as that seems, that is the biggest foundation we can do for our body and it aligns well with our gut health too. So, thinking of you, know, if we're having breakfast, can you have a protein and a fiber present there? Thinking of your lunch, exact same blueprint we want to have some protein, we want to have some veggies and some starchy fiber carbs there. Same thing at dinner. So trying, if you're wanting to jumpstart your gut health, it really is starting back at those basics of even building a balanced plate, because that's going to basically force you to have fiber, no matter what, when you're building a balanced plate.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and I'm glad you said protein, because I make sure that all my clients have plenty of protein and I think that people just think about that as building muscle, but there's so much more to that, so tell me about what you think everyone should get the amount, because there's so much conflicting information out there.
Speaker 2:So let's talk protein just a minute. Yeah, so what I tell people baseline is you want about 0.8 times your body weight. That would give you grams per day, so that's usually baseline. I'm like first try to get that, because most likely people aren't even hitting their baseline, and then, once they hit there, seeing how they feel. If they feel like they could go up a little bit, we'll go up, depending on their physical activity. Um, but with the protein too, you know, like you said, we always think of just like muscle growth. But other things I have people examine is like how long are you feeling sustained and full from from a meal? And if it has enough protein, it will sustain you for three to five hours. So that's always a really good clue in knowing if you're getting enough protein at those meals for your personal needs.
Speaker 1:How do you feel about collagen protein?
Speaker 2:Yeah, I love it. Like I think it's an easy add in and it has really good qualities. And again, I think sometimes if we're trying to hit our protein goal and we can use collagen peptides as extra bonuses, it's great and even thinking, you know, tying it back to the gut health, collagen can help with gut wall repair, which is fantastic. Yeah.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and I like, I love bone broth. I know some people are like oh bone broth. I happen to enjoy it.
Speaker 2:No, I'm in the same boat with you. I think it's good.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah. And I and a part of it is like if I know it's good for me, then you know I can do that. It doesn't. Food doesn't have to taste fabulous to me all the time. I don't know if I'm weird like that or not. Just knowing that it is giving me the right fuel, that's enough for me.
Speaker 2:Totally. When you can feel the benefits of it, yes, nice reward for sure.
Speaker 1:Yeah Well, do you have any like challenges or anything like that that you do, or courses?
Speaker 2:Yes, so I have a few free resources that I do offer. A lot of them are based around digestive symptoms. So if you struggle with like bloat or just the baseline of wanting to gut reset, so those are my website under resources. They're just little freebie guides and then typically about once a quarter I run kind of like a seven day challenge and typically do it through Instagram and my email list and essentially just seven days of actionable steps we can take together from both like nutrition and lifestyle, to help support our gut health overall.
Speaker 1:Okay, awesome. And then remind the listeners how they can find you.
Speaker 2:Yes, so I'm over on Instagram at grateful gut underscore nutrition, and then I have a website as well, called eehrensbergcom or eehrensbergnutritioncom.
Speaker 1:All right, I'll make sure I put that in the show notes for sure. Is there anything else that you would want the listeners to know or that we didn't touch on?
Speaker 2:No, I mean I would just say you know, if you're feeling like lost in the world of gut health, there's so much stuff on social media you don't have to overcomplicate anything. You know, trying to tune into your body, you can take really small steps to get started. You don't have to overhaul your whole diet or supplement protocol. You can just take baby steps and you'll see the really positive improvement over time.
Speaker 1:Yeah, oh, that's awesome. Well, thank you so much for being here. I appreciate it. Thanks for having me. Yes, a big thank you to Elizabeth for sharing her time and knowledge with us. Do you understand now why I'm so focused on gut health and helping everyone feel their very best? My deep dive into healing has been a transformation. I didn't know that I needed, but I am so grateful for it. I say all the time that I want everyone to feel as good as I feel, and I truly mean that. If you're ready to start your journey, or just curious about what I've been doing, I am happy to share. I know it's hard to get all the nutrients you need to support your microbiome with diet alone, and that's where I come in. I am here for you. You can email me at info at spandexandwinecom. You can use my text line 913-392-2877. We can schedule a time to chat or I can just send you more information. And if you're interested in working with Elizabeth, reach out to her on Instagram at thegratefulgut underscore nutrition. So thanks for tuning in and remember good health starts in the gut, but it radiates through your whole life. Catch you next time. Thank you for listening.
Speaker 1:If you're enjoying this podcast, be sure to follow Spandex and Wine so you don't miss an episode. To do this, just go to the podcast and click subscribe or follow. Wherever you're listening, look for the plus sign or follow button. This is one of the best things that you can do for the podcast. If you'd also be willing to give a five-star review, that would be amazing and much appreciated. Lastly, please share an episode with a friend or five to keep the love going, and join the Spandex and Wine community in our private Facebook group by searching Spandex and Wine. Feel free to reach out to me at any time by emailing info at spandexandwinecom or text me at 913-392-2877. I appreciate you. Thank you.
