Nourished Living

22 - The Energetics of Food

• Courtney Podany

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Today’s episode is a deep dive into something that has completely shifted the way I view nourishment: food energetics. This is about way more than labels, calories, or macronutrients—this is about the life force behind your food and how it impacts your energy, emotions, and healing.

In this episode, I’ll walk you through the vibration of different foods—from pasture-raised meats to wild fish to fresh greens—and how they support your hormones, nervous system, and overall vitality.

Whether you’ve been feeling scattered, heavy, or just disconnected from your meals, this episode will help you reconnect and make more intuitive, nourishing choices that align with how you want to feel.

In this episode, we cover:

  • What “food energetics” really means (and why it matters)
  • How the quality of animal products impacts your mood + energy
  • Grounding vs. expansive foods—and when you might crave each
  • How to tune into your energetic cravings, not just your hunger cues
  • Why food is more than fuel—it's communication with your body

If you’ve ever felt like something was missing from intuitive eating or nutrition advice, this could be the piece that finally clicks. This conversation will help you stop obsessing over food rules and start listening to your body on a deeper level.

If this episode resonated with you, please subscribe, leave a review, and share it with a friend who needs to hear this message. Your support means the world!

Connect with Courtney: 

Welcome to the Nourished Living Podcast, where I'll be diving deep into nutrition, holistic wellness, and practical tips to help you live your healthiest, most vibrant life. I am Courtney Podany, a nutritional therapist, certified personal trainer, type one diabetic and mom. And I'm here to help you take charge of your health with ease and confidence. Together we'll explore how to nourish your body, mind, and soul in a way that feels good and sustainable. So grab your favorite beverage. Take a deep breath, and let's get into the episode. I. Welcome back to the Nourished Living Podcast. I am your host, Courtney Podany, nutritional therapist and personal trainer. And it's funny, so once this episode airs, it'll only be about one week until my daughter starts kindergarten, which is so exciting. But you know, between. Me and all of my mom friends were like, oh my gosh, I can't believe the summer is almost over. It flew by, which it did, but it's just funny because the real summer season has only been amongst us for one month, right? So we are not anywhere near actual summer ending, but the school summer is coming to a close quickly. So it's just kind of messing with my head a little bit. And then we've had a cold front come in, and right now it's only been, you know, low eighties where I live, where usually at this time we're around like 110, so things are just kind of feeling off. But anyway, today we are talking about a very cool topic, which has totally changed the way I approach. Food healing and my own energy. We are talking about the energetics of food. Specifically, how the quality of the food you eat affects your body, your energy, and your emotions. This goes far beyond what's on the label. I'm talking about the life force of the food on your plate, how it was raised, grown, or processed, and how that impacts you. So if you've ever felt drained or heavy after eating something out of a package, or energized and clear after eating a farm fresh, nutritious meal, there is a reason. So let's get into it. First up. The energy from the animals we eat. When we eat animal products, we don't just absorb the protein or the fat, we're taking on the energy of that animal's life. If an animal spent its life confined, never seeing sunlight, fed unnatural grains or pumped with antibiotics, it lived in a stressed state. And when we consume that animal, we are also consuming that stress. We take it on. On the other hand, animals that were grass fed, pasture raised or wild caught and allowed to live more in alignment with how they were designed to. Those animals carry a very different frequency. There's less inflammation, more nutrients, and most importantly, more energy and life force. So choosing grass fed beef and bison, pasture raised poultry and eggs, and a wild caught seafood is not just a food choice. It is an energetic upgrade. You're literally raising your vibration when you choose better sourced foods. And if you're wondering how to actually find these higher vibration foods at the store, let's talk about labels when you're buying beef or bison, look for the label. 100% grass fed or grass fed and grass finished. This means the animal ate what it was meant to eat grass for its entire life. Sometimes you'll see just grass fed without the grass finished piece, which can mean the animal was switched to grain near the end. So the more complete label is better, if you're aiming for the most nutrient dense, high vibe option for chicken and eggs, seek out pasture raised. This is a step above cage free or even free range. Pasture raised animals have access to the outdoors and can peck scratch and forage naturally, which makes a huge difference in both their nutrient profile and their energy. You might also see certifications like certified humane or animal welfare approved, which are bonus indicators that the animal lived with less stress. And when it comes to seafood, the phrase you want to look for is wild caught. This means the fish lived in its natural environment, not in a crowded tank or fed a soy based pellet diet. Wild caught fish, especially fish like salmon, sardines, or cod, are typically more nutrient rich and have a higher vibration than farmed options. I like to think that when the animals live the way they were actually designed to, they nourish us in a way we were designed to receive. That's the type of protein and fat that truly supports your energy, your hormones, and your healing. Let's talk about food vibration. You might not hear that phrase with conventional nutrition, but once you feel it, let me tell you, you cannot unfeel it. Foods that come from the earth, like plants, roots, fruits, and seeds carry a living vibration. They've been connected to the soil, to sunlight, to rain. They were alive, and when you eat them, you feel alive too. On the other side of the spectrum, foods that sit on a shelf for months wrapped in plastic or made with lab ingredients. They feel dense and lifeless. I know when I eat those kinds of foods, I feel heavy tired, and I'm usually hungry an hour later, never feeling satisfied. That's because there's very little actual nourishment in these foods. They're calories for you. Sure, but they don't carry that energetic charge. Your body, mind, and nervous system actually need. This is also why high vibration foods are so satisfying, not just physically but energetically. When I eat a grounding meal like grass fed meat with roasted root vegetables or wild salmon with some greens, I feel deeply nourished content, and my mood and energy levels are stable. So try paying attention to how you feel after you eat. Do you feel clear or are you more cloudy? Do you feel calm or wired? Are you satisfied or still hungry? That awareness can completely shift how you grocery shop, how you cook, and how you take care of yourself. And this is why intuitive eating isn't just about hunger cues. It's also about your energetic cues. Sometimes your body craves grounding foods, not because you're lacking calories, but because your life feels chaotic. Okay. Maybe your schedule's been all over the place. Your nervous system just feels fried, or you've been stuck in go, go, go mode. In those moments, grounding foods can help bring you back into your body. This could be root vegetables, like sweet potatoes, carrots, beets, parsnips, warm stews, soups, or broths cooked grains like quinoa, oats, or rice. And grass fed meats, organ meats and legumes. These foods carry downward stabilizing energy. They feel warm, secure, and calm, and they're especially helpful in colder seasons, stressful times, or when you just need a little extra comfort. On the flip side, your body might crave light expansive foods. If you've been feeling stagnant or heavy, either emotionally or physically, maybe you're stuck in a rut, lacking creativity or just need a shift in momentum, that's when you might feel pulled towards foods that are more uplifting. Examples of expansive high frequency foods are fresh fruit like berries, citrus apples, or melon leafy greens like arugula, spinach, or micro greens, sprouts, and fresh herbs like cilantro, parsley, or mint raw or lightly steamed veggies and green juices or smoothies. These foods offer upward, airy energy. They're great when you want to feel more mentally clear, emotionally open or energized without feeling weighed down. So now when choosing what to eat, you could consider, what am I craving energetically? Or maybe your intuition will guide you to exactly what your body needs. This is a thousand percent more powerful for you than any food rule a diet could ever offer. When we talk about nourishment, it's not just about what we eat, it's about what our body actually absorbs. And when food is low vibration, when it's processed, stressed, or stripped of its nutrients, our body struggles to get what it needs. So we keep reaching for more. And that cycle of eating but not feeling full often it's because we're trying to meet an energetic need with food that has no energy. This is where food energetics meet intuition. When you eat real food that's grown or raised in alignment with nature, your body stays in alignment with nature as well. Which it is extremely easy to become disconnected from in today's world. So you will feel grounded, centered, and supported. And that energy ripples into how you show up in your relationships, your work, and for yourself. So if you've been feeling disconnected from your food, your body, or your energy, maybe it's time to look beyond the label. Start asking, where did this food come from? Was it alive? Does it feel nourishing? Or does it feel heavy and empty? Am I choosing food that supports the energy I want to bring into my day? Because food isn't just fuel, it's communication. It's a vibration, it's energy, and the whole goal of eating food is to energize yourself. Am I right? Okay, hopefully this is helpful and maybe changes your perspective on how to fuel yourself, and we'll maybe give you a little bit more insight into what your intuition has been guiding you to, you know, rooting or grounded foods or light and airy foods. Alright. Thank you so much for tuning in today. If this resonated at all, please don't forget to hit that subscribe button and leave a review. It is so, so appreciated and it helps me get connected to those who need this. Until next time, keep nourishing yourself, not just with what's on your plate, but with how you choose to get your life force. Thanks for hanging out with me today and tuning into the Nourished Living Podcast. I hope you enjoyed today's episode and found something you can start implementing right away to kickstart your nourished transformation. If you loved this episode, don't forget to subscribe, leave a review, or share it with someone who could benefit from these insights. You can also connect with me over on Instagram at Nourished Living for more resources and support. Until next time, stay nourished.