Mastering Weight Loss: Sustainable Strategies That Stick!

Hunter 00:00:00  Either your goal is weight loss, weight gain, weight management, or just to improve your health and feel your best. Prioritizing protein is so important.

Sarah 00:00:12  Hey peeps, welcome to the Flexible Neurotic Podcast. I'm your host, Doctor Sarah Millican. Yeah, you heard that right. I'm a real PhD doctor. Long, long ago, like last fucking year, I was sitting in the midlife funk wondering, was this it for me? That day, I realized I needed to get off my ass and start my midlife remix. I dusted off my PhD, wipe the menopause sweat off my forehead, grabbed my golden shit shovel, and started digging deep to all my midlife bitches. It's not just luck, coffee, and hormones that get you through your midlife remix. It's action steps. Let's do this. Welcome back to the Flexible Neurotic podcast. I'm doctor Sarah Malkin, the flexible neurotic. Today I have a cool guest. He's much younger than us, and he is the founder of health with Hunter, a social media platform that he created to have Health made simple.

Sarah 00:01:12  He's a certified nutrition and health coach through the Institute for Integrative Nutrition. He coaches clients 1 to 1, and his philosophy is to do it simply and sustainably. It's not a diet, it's a lifestyle. He was a full time business analyst at American Express in New York City after he graduated from the University of Michigan. Go Wolverines go below. And his health platform was his side hustle until it blew up. And now it's a full time gig. His Instagram and TikTok are insane, with unbelievable content and numbers. He himself lost over £50 by taking charge of his health, and now he's helping others do the same. Health is your wealth, as he tells his clients and social media followers. Say hi to Hunter Stoler. I'm so happy you're here.

Hunter 00:02:02  That was one of the most insane intros I've ever heard. Me and you had everything. Everything was seriously perfect. So thank you for having me.

Sarah 00:02:11  Oh, my God, I'm so happy you're here. And I was just telling Hunter before we started that someone messaged me and was like, I'm friends with his mom and our kids are friends.

Sarah 00:02:20  And I'm like, okay, it's New York Jewish geography. Here we go. So I've been seeing you pop up. I saw that you were on Jenny Hotz radio, her podcast. That's amazing, I love her. I'm actually recording with her this week on her podcast, so that's going to be fun. I saw that you met the host of The Skinny Confidential. That's cool.

Hunter 00:02:41  Yeah. On Saturday they had a Dear Media, which is their company. Yeah, event where they had so many speakers and podcast host that they represent speak, and it was all about health, wellness, fitness and just so many things up my alley.

Sarah 00:02:54  Oh my God, I'm so excited to talk to you today. So obviously you're not a midlife woman, but I know that you have midlife women as clients.

Hunter 00:03:02  Exactly. I was just going to say.

Sarah 00:03:03  Yeah, so I want to use this, you know, next 40 or so minutes to talk about health, wellness, how you got into this, your perspective.

Sarah 00:03:12  Because it's kind of fun seeing a young man new on the scene. You started this as a side hustle. And although we're midlife women listening to the podcast, a lot of us are wanting to kind of do our midlife pivots. Our kids are moving out of the house, etc. and there's a lot of listeners who are like, wait, I would love to do something like that, but it's so fucking scary and I think you have an amazing story. So let's start with kind of how you got started and all of this.

Hunter 00:03:39  Yeah. So I'm 24. I graduated college two years ago from Michigan, like you said, and I went straight into working at American Express. I interned there over Covid. And just going back a little bit in my junior year of college. I just I mean, I tell the story all the time, but it was the Thanksgiving right before Covid and my mom and sister were just like looking at what I was eating and in the nicest way possible, where like Hunter, like your plate, like it's full of the carbs, there's no protein, there's nothing healthy on it.

Hunter 00:04:11  You know, it's just like the potatoes and whatever the hell we serve at Thanksgiving. And it really was like such a big wake up call for me. And I'm so grateful for it, because there's no way I would be here right now. Like, we're recording this at 4 p.m., I would be probably working at my office job right now if it wasn't for that. And that kickstarted my entire wellness journey. And over Covid, it really just became I don't want to say it took over me, but in the healthiest way possible. Like, I became so invested in my health that I lost £50 in the span of a year. I was £225 at my heaviest, maybe a little heavier, and I'm 511 six foot for reference. So lots of people. It's crazy because lots of people look at me now and are like, you were never that big. And then I show a picture and I'm like, and they're like, wow, I didn't no.

Sarah 00:04:56  No, no, that's like me pregnant.

Sarah 00:04:58  I'm five foot two. I'm a very small person. And people are like, oh, you must have been such a cute, pretty pregnant woman. I was like, no, actually I was it. And they're like, that's not true. And I pull out a photo and they're like, oh, right, right. I mean, I gained £70. It's crazy. Like, you would have thought I was taking a bath and donuts all day, like, what the fuck? But it was like PCOS, insulin resistance. My body, like everything I h is stuck to me. And I was like, what's happening here?

Hunter 00:05:28  Oh, I get it. And then so to continue on that I lost my weight in a very sustainable way where I wasn't focusing on restricting anything. I was focusing on eating the right foods, drinking the right drinks first. And as a result of that, it was sustainable. I've been able to pretty much maintain my weight within the same £5 range for the past two years, and I'm so grateful for that because that's very hard to do.

Hunter 00:05:52  Lots of people think that the hardest part is losing the weight. I personally think it's maintaining your weight loss because once it's over, people think they could just go back to their old lifestyle and old habits. But you can't do that if you want to maintain your weight. And there are so many goals that I have, like for my health and wellness going forward. But I became so inspired to become a health coach because I didn't know if I wanted to be a nutritionist, go back to school to be a dietitian. I majored in data information science in college, so it's nothing related to health. So this was a completely external thing from the rim, like you just mentioned in the intro. And I wanted a certification because I wanted to help people. And then I started with my Instagram, my TikTok, and it's just really taken off in the past few months, and I'm so grateful for it because I'm able to reach thousands of people daily, just like you.

Sarah 00:06:38  I love that story because it's like it kind of gives people hope and inspiration.

Sarah 00:06:42  Like, you can have the smallest idea, not think anything of it like it's such a big deal, and then it actually turns into a big deal because you didn't make it a big deal. And I and I when I was researching you, I, I, I watched and listen to a podcast that you were on and you were talking about how at first you started like making meals and you had like a random Instagram account that was private. And then a few people started following it, and then you made it not private. And you literally grew this into a crazy situation, just organically.

Hunter 00:07:15  I remember sitting on my couch in my college apartment senior year, and I remember the second, my following one from 999 2000, and I was like, oh my God, happened.

Sarah 00:07:25  To I didn't even have social media. I always tell the story like I was 45 years old and I wasn't even in like the midlife Facebook birthdays. Like, I've never I've never even been on Facebook. No. And my kids are like, wait, you're starting a podcast and Instagram? What the fuck? Like, that's so fringy.

Hunter 00:07:43  But something that I love now, and especially since you're you're following and your podcast listeners might be in their 40s to 60s, and they're mostly women. My following is mostly women, too, because mostly women care about their health online. That's not.

Sarah 00:07:58  And they're like taking care of their families, and they're the ones buying the stuff at the supermarket and all the things.

Hunter 00:08:03  And I have amazing male clients, too. I'd say my. It's funny because my one on one coaching is probably like 40% men, 60% women. But my group coaching, which I actually have tonight, it's like it's 18 women. There's zero man in it. So it's funny.

Sarah 00:08:17  It's amazing. That's so funny.

Hunter 00:08:19  It is funny. But people are very quick to critique when you at any age are starting your own thing online and they'll laugh at you, but you really just have to get past it because they're only laughing if they want to do it. Or they're like, jealous that you're doing something, it's triggering.

Sarah 00:08:35  Yes, exactly.

Sarah 00:08:36  Yeah, I totally get that now. How did you, like, go from having this, like, little private Instagram account to getting it to where it is now? You're like almost at 200,000 followers in a very short period of time. Like what? What was the secret sauce? Because everyone's so scared of Instagram and people ask me and I'm like, I have no fucking idea. And mine's half of yours, the third of yours.

Hunter 00:09:02  Now, what I say is you have to post, first of all, something that I took away from this weekend at the Gym Media Summit, which I've been thinking about, and I want to make a TikTok video about this. You have to post and entertain or educate your following. Stop worrying about the zillion other people out there. Focus on like expanding and deepening your relationship with your current following. Whether it's 5000 followers, 200 followers, a million followers and they will share your information on to other people along with the algorithm. That's something that I found that like, I really, really like and.

Sarah 00:09:34  Post every day.

Hunter 00:09:35  So consistency as a next thing I was going to talk about, I am very, very consistent. And that's something that I will say very proudly. I batch videos just like how you might batch podcasts like two four in a week and then, you know, spread it out. I film with my assistant at a grocery store or even in my apartment sometimes, depending on whatever the content is, and I film 5 or 6 videos at once and then that's good for a week. I am very consistent on Instagram and TikTok, and that's something that I think a lot of people like, because I'm helping people and I'm showing them new products as I find them simple meals. I'm all about help made simple, like you said, and I'm trying to not interrupt or disrupt your current lifestyle, but make you healthier at the same time without sacrificing your favorite foods.

Sarah 00:10:20  I mean, that's like bingo. Bingo right there. Yeah, right.

Hunter 00:10:23  It's like are the other part is price. And I know that getting healthy might mean you have to spend a little bit more money.

Hunter 00:10:31  But what I like to say is you have to shift your budget. I used to be someone who would get a $7.50 cent coffee at Starbucks every morning. That not only was full of junk, but now I make mine at home and it's probably $0.50 a cup, so think about that adds up.

Sarah 00:10:44  And you and you don't have any mold.

Hunter 00:10:46  I have no mold in my coffee, and I have gum and no added refined sugar. It's all clean stuff and it makes me feel great. I know.

Sarah 00:10:53  Isn't that crazy? It's just all these little rituals that we have and we don't realize how much they even cost. And you're like, Holy shit. Oh yeah.

Hunter 00:11:01  I mean, everyone, what I do say is everyone spends our money differently. Some people spend it on clothing, some people spend it on perfume. Everyone spends it differently. I as if you follow me. You know, I probably spend most of my money on my health. And that's just what I like to do. I like to buy new workout clothes because that inspires me to work out more.

Hunter 00:11:21  I like to buy higher quality foods because I love the brands and I love their messaging. So it's all about where you allocate your budget to. But we're very lucky now that and this is something that I show is like shopping the sales places online, like Thrive Market, where you could get amazing discounts, you know, Thrive Market.

Sarah 00:11:37  Yeah, of.

Hunter 00:11:38  Course edible and like amazing are so accessible. And I love telling my followers to shop the sales and deals because. Your favorite company like Seattle or Simple Mills, for example, could be 40% off at Whole Foods. And I say stock up.

Sarah 00:11:51  Right? No that's great. Now, do you ever feel like you run out of ideas? Like sometimes I'm like, okay, what am I going to talk about now? Like, or you're talking about the same shit over and over again.

Hunter 00:12:01  It's a great question. And my answer is I try to switch it up all the time, obviously, but you have to remember that only a small percentage of your following sees your videos every time you post it.

Hunter 00:12:13  You might post about pregnancy and only 20,000 of your however many followers might see it. And then you could post again and you might have a 10% overlay overlap, but there might be another 10% that see it. Also, you never know where your videos or content they're going to be pushed out to, and I will say it takes a few times for things to stick in people's heads. So no one has ever going to say, Hunter, you just posted about how to make a clean peanut butter and jelly. Like, why are you doing that again? right? That's not happening. Yeah.

Sarah 00:12:41  And if they have time to do that, they need a side hustle themselves I think 100%.

Hunter 00:12:46  Yeah. If they're like yeah, remember like you're they're following you and that you're providing them with a wealth of information for free for the most part. And if you're making videos about similar topics like they must be important topics.

Sarah 00:13:00  Yeah. And I also think you're sharing things like we're all going to the supermarket, we're all buying food and you're breaking it down.

Sarah 00:13:08  You're like, okay, go to Trader Joe's and buy these six things. Like I had people messaging me this morning like, oh God, you're interviewing him. Maybe I got to go to Trader Joe's and stand in line for like, the sirloin that's in the box. I'm like, oh my God.

Hunter 00:13:23  It's all so funny because especially when you're making, like, health and wellness content, two things I want to say. One is people will like, I'll be posting at Whole Foods and they'll be like, I can't afford Whole Foods. Can you do Costco or Walmart? Then I'll go to Walmart and they'll say, I don't shop there. Can you go to Whole Foods so you can never appease and please everybody.

Sarah 00:13:39  Totally I agree. That's something that's very important.

Hunter 00:13:41  Very important. And also the second thing that I was going to say is, I just forgot it. You're.

Sarah 00:13:50  That's okay. And you're not even 50. That's cool. I totally get it. Because I'm going to forget I have.

Sarah 00:13:54  Yeah, I'm going to forget what I'm going to say in about five seconds. But so with your especially with like your midlife clients, the, you know, the women who fall into my age range, like what do you feel like is their biggest hang up. Is it like this is too hard? I don't want to count macros. Is it like, I want to eat junk food and you're making me eat 100g of fucking protein a day? Like, what is it?

Hunter 00:14:19  So I'd say that it all comes down to two things. And this is something that my what do you call it? Midlife.

Sarah 00:14:26  Yeah.

Hunter 00:14:27  Yeah, I guess that makes sense. Midlife.

Sarah 00:14:28  Yeah. Like whatever your mom is.

Hunter 00:14:30  Yes, exactly. So I see the same things over and over again. One is most women are very susceptible and very easy to fall into these quick fad diets where they might only, first of all, cost about money. Whether if you're doing something like Optavia or whatever it is like and you're eating, they're packaged foods like that that's so expensive.

Hunter 00:14:51  And like, I'm not saying you need to go make your own food and be a gourmet chef for yourself, but there's so many healthier options out there that are going to satisfy you more. It's not just about the calories and about the protein in them, but will they actually satisfy you? And do you like the foods that you're eating? I think lots of women think that, you know, running on the treadmill and eating zero grams of carbohydrates all day is going to lead to weight loss, but that's never going to happen. It's just going to lead to like a restriction and overeating cycle. And you're never going to be satisfied. So just like you touched on it when you just ask the question, but protein is so important. And this is something that I, I become a bigger protein advocate every single week.

Sarah 00:15:29  Like, oh my God, I have this whole thing on my Instagram now. Or I call it the midlife protein scavenger hunt because.

Hunter 00:15:35  I just thought you're you're thinking about chicken sausage or something.

Hunter 00:15:37  Yeah.

Sarah 00:15:37  I'm like, oh my God. Like, how do I get to 30g of protein in a meal? So then I'm like looking at every I'm like, how many sausages do I have to eat to get to 30? If I don't eat all the sausages, like, can I cover the rest with like, an essential amino? Like, you know, it's like this whole thing. And I try not to be crazy, but I'm like, how can I get to 100.

Hunter 00:15:59  100, 100% agree. And there's a few things I'll say whether your goal is weight loss, weight gain, weight management, or just to improve your health and feel your best. Prioritizing protein is so important depending on your age and your weight. I would really recommend getting close or a little bit less than around a gram of protein per pound of your goal body weight. So if your goal body weight is £130, I would try to eat between say 110 and 130g.

Speaker 3 00:16:26  So hard it.

Hunter 00:16:28  Is. But there's little tricks that you could really.

Sarah 00:16:30  Okay, we need this protein tricks Hunter because okay. protein shit is killing me. And I literally I could sort of protein like garage sale with all of my protein tubs in the kitchen. My husband's like, what are you doing here? And I'm like, I need one that doesn't taste nasty and that doesn't have weird fillers. And some of the scoops are so are so deep.

Hunter 00:16:55  In the packaging. Yeah, I'm like.

Sarah 00:16:56  Oh, that's scoopers five feet deep.

Hunter 00:16:59  I know if I ever need a protein powder, I will be sure that I like, figure out how to get the scooper on top of the lid, like, oh my god. Yeah. But then protein. I think hydration is so important. Water filtered water with around at least one serving of electrolytes a day. I have some right here. What's your.

Sarah 00:17:17  Favorite electrolyte? I feel like I've gone through a few.

Hunter 00:17:19  So I find that especially working with women, one of the reasons if they think they're doing everything right, but they're having electrolytes at night, it could be so much sodium for them that they see water retention.

Sarah 00:17:31  I would pee all night. Hunter.

Hunter 00:17:33  Yes, but my favorite. So I have two favorites. One of them is the brand Flavor City. They make amazing single serve electrolytes, which I love. If you're going to work, you're traveling, whatever. It is not high in sodium, but it is nourishing and full of all the essential electrolytes. And then my other favorite is just ingredients, which is incredible. It's based out of Utah. It's woman owned and they're both fantastic brands.

Sarah 00:17:54  Okay, I'm going to try those two. I've heard of both of them. I haven't tried them.

Hunter 00:17:58  And then the other thing for women and men and everyone with whatever your goal is, is you need to do something to challenge your body, whether that's something like Pilates, using heavy weights or strength training or doing bodyweight exercises, because that is how you're going to eventually build muscle and not get bulky. You're not going to get bulky, you're just going to be able to look lean.

Sarah 00:18:18  People use that as an excuse to not have to fucking do it, because nobody I called the dumb and necessary weights.

Sarah 00:18:25  Nobody really wants to do it. I mean, maybe my son, he's 20 and like he loves it, but the average Middle-Aged woman is not like, yay! I get to lift weights today because you actually have to, like, think about it. And like, thankfully I have a trainer because if I didn't have a trainer, honestly, I wouldn't do it. And again, that's like spending money where like I need to, otherwise I would be Sofa city. Like scrolling through Instagram.

Hunter 00:18:51  Oh my gosh, I cannot agree more and I'm so proud of you for that because I know I have clients and they hire trainers too, because it's the only way they could push themselves to do it.

Sarah 00:19:00  And I worked out this morning before I came home shower to see you and I. So my friend, I was talking to my friend on the way to the gym. She's like, you're a beast. That's impressive. I would have fucking canceled. I'm like, I didn't do anything all weekend. It's my daughter's birthday this week.

Sarah 00:19:15  Like, I gotta just get it done.

Hunter 00:19:18  So you need accountability and you have to do your. Just think about you and anyone listening to this like you are investing money and yourself for the long run. If you're hiring a trainer, like it's amazing.

Sarah 00:19:29  Yeah. It's just. It's just like an obligation. It's like you got to get there, you know? It's a it's a whole thing. You got to commit to it. And if you don't do it enough, then you don't see results. And you know, when you don't see results, you don't want to do it.

Hunter 00:19:43  Also, time is time is money. And if whatever you're doing, if you're just going to the gym, so go to the gym with no plan or no direction, it's worthless. And you could be doing a million other productive things. So having a trainer is the best way to just familiarize yourself with gym equipment and also making sure the forms okay, because you don't want to injure yourself. I've been there, done that, and I hate being injured, which is why I'm very, very coerced.

Sarah 00:20:07  And especially when you're old like me, you're like, fuck, what's happening? But the other thing I'll say about the protein is if you're working out and doing the weights and you're not eating enough protein, you're wasting your time. Useless. Like, you know, it's not like I want to eat protein for fun.

Hunter 00:20:23  When you are working out and you're using weights or doing bodyweight exercises. You yourself are forming tiny tears in your muscle fibers and protein, which you ingest. You eat, you drink, whatever it is those are helping to repair those muscle fibers and build more muscle on top of the broken fibers, which don't make you bulky, I promise. Whether it's your son, it's me, anyone. You are not going to get bulky unless you are eating a zillion calories a day.

Sarah 00:20:48  Getting bulky is an excuse for not wanting to do it. Trust me, because I've been there. Done that. Yeah, exactly.

Hunter 00:20:55  Correct you if I guarantee if any of your listeners gained £5 of muscle, they would feel and look so much better because they're able to eat more.

Hunter 00:21:04  Because the more muscle you have, the more likely you are to lose fat because you're able to eat and drink more calories daily without gaining any weight, because your muscle works harder in your body and you are just, you feel better and your clothes will fit better. How did you.

Sarah 00:21:18  Get your clients to get their asses up?

Hunter 00:21:20  So what I say is I used to obviously when I first started with coaching, I did. I had some clients for free because I needed to familiarity, of course, and as I've become, just like as I've gained more following, I've realised I've recognised my worth. And this is not in a cocky way at all, but I don't want to have clients who are paying very little for me, and then they'll think that they could just half assed their day, and they're just going to have nothing to hold themselves accountable. Like, I believe that if I want to attract the highest quality and most dedicated the keyword dedicated clients, you need to be able to invest in yourself.

Hunter 00:21:58  And I am not a zillion dollars, believe. Obviously I'm not that I, but I will say my clients who are so much more dedicated and the ones who see results, they are the ones who were the ones who are like, I'm doing this whatever the price is, and I am going to see change. And I have clients in both my one on one sessions and my group coaching. One of them is down like £18 in eight weeks and she wow. I am like so proud of her. And it's all because she didn't know where to start. So I try to make health so simple from the second you wake up.

Sarah 00:22:27  Give me an example of like how you started with her.

Hunter 00:22:30  So she was such a active Instagram follower of mine. And then once I posted my group coaching opportunity, which was around probably two months ago because it started I October September, I think it started like two months ago and it's going until the week of Thanksgiving. So a few weeks, ten sessions total every week.

Hunter 00:22:48  She never. She some people I mean, I understand that finances could be very, very, very tough. And once group coaching came around, it's a lower rate than it is for traditional one on one coaching. But you still get so much personalized attention and I answer everyone's messages. That's something I also really pride myself on. I am I'm always in my DMs.

Sarah 00:23:08  Me too. I literally people are like, I don't understand how you do it. And I'm like, that's part of the reason why I've built like my such an engaged following is because if somebody takes the time to message me, I'm messaging them back, even if it's the same person every day.

Hunter 00:23:23  Exactly. Or the silliest question in the world.

Sarah 00:23:26  Yeah.

Hunter 00:23:27  Exactly. And eventually she was like, you know what? Enough is enough. I need to I need to stop my weight gain. And she signed up for my group coaching at the lower cost and one on one. And I was so happy. And she's honestly one of the most interactive people in the group.

Hunter 00:23:41  We have weekly, like Google meets, and she kills it. And I mean, she sells like three more weeks with me and I think she could get like £25 down. And she's I see what she's eating. She sends pictures of her meals, all of them, and they're killing it. They're not starving. They're eating high protein, high fiber, nutrient dense meals, lots of colors. They're exercising. They're getting their steps and all the basics that you have been ignoring for years, not you. I mean, in general. Yeah, yeah. People ignore for years those that's the formula for just do.

Sarah 00:24:10  You have people like track on those macros apps? I don't know, they're called.

Hunter 00:24:15  Like my fitness.

Sarah 00:24:16  Palette. Yeah. Yeah.

Hunter 00:24:17  So I have been someone who's like been pro tracking Anti-tracking. My friend actually just came out with an app. It's using AI, so you take pictures of your meals and it does all the tracking for you, which I've been loving. wow. But some people just hate that.

Hunter 00:24:32  And I don't even know if this client is tracking, but I get all of her pictures of her meals. But it works for some people who are more like OCD and more, you know, very detail oriented. And then for others, they don't need to track. But I say, if you're someone who's starting from zero and you have no idea how to build a balanced meal, but you want accountability tracked for a month and see what's working, what's not working, and from there, you don't need to track. Again, it's just to understand how much you're eating. Lots of people think, oh, I'm putting a scoop of peanut butter in my smoothie, but they don't realize they're putting five tablespoons in that one scoop. It's not one thing. Yeah, adding 5 to 600 calories to their smoothie. And that's not a weight loss friendly smoothie.

Sarah 00:25:11  Oh my god. I swear I feel like when you go on social media, you see so many like differing opinions and this and that. But the things that remain the same or the basics? It's like how much protein are you eating? How much fiber are you eating? And to be honest, those two things are really hard for me.

Hunter 00:25:28  Okay, so.

Sarah 00:25:29  What I mean, it's like getting to 30g of protein in one meal is not the easiest thing in the world, unless you're eating like an eight ounce grass fed steak. You know I'm not. And like, you see these people on TikTok with the carnivore diet. And I'm like, dude, I'm not eating steak three times a day and pasteurized eggs and blah, blah, blah. I'm like, oh my God, like, I would, I, I don't know.

Hunter 00:25:50  I'm someone who also goes in and out of an egg phase, so like.

Sarah 00:25:53  I do.

Hunter 00:25:54  Yeah. So right now I've been eating eggs the past two days. It's great. I love them, but sometimes I literally cannot even look at them without two.

Sarah 00:26:02  I want to like, gag. I'm like, get the eggs away from me. I don't care if they're hard boiled, scrambled, whatever they are, but I can't deal.

Hunter 00:26:11  So when it comes to protein in a day, if you are someone who wants 30g of protein 3 or 4 times a day.

Hunter 00:26:17  One of my things is I like structure with flexibility, which means that when you're building a meal, whether it's a breakfast, lunch, snack, dinner, whatever dessert, whatever it is, I keep my meals and my menu for my meals very similar. So I'll make a yogurt bowl every morning. Or if I can't do a couple for breakfast, maybe I'm out or whatever. I'll have one for a snack or whatever lunch. And I have Greek yogurt, very high in protein. I prefer the leaner ones, just taste wise. I could add half of a scoop of my favorite protein powder into my yogurt, which adds an extra 12 to 13g of protein to it.

Sarah 00:26:49  Time out Hunter that protein powder does not emulsify into the yogurt. It is like clumpy and clumpy.

Hunter 00:26:58  Never.

Sarah 00:26:59  What's your trick? You either. Wait. Do you mean it? No. I don't care about the pictures. I don't care what something looks like. I'll eat it even if it looks like a bowl of hell.

Sarah 00:27:08  I just don't want it to taste bad. But every time I dump protein powder in a yogurt bowl, it's, like, clunky.

Hunter 00:27:15  Oh, it's because it's because either you're doing too much protein powder for too little yogurt.

Sarah 00:27:21  But if you do one scoop, right.

Hunter 00:27:24  So if you're doing one serving of yogurt and one scoop of protein, and you keep mixing it, mix it for 30s it will become thick, fluffy, and so good, I promise you. Really? Protein powders are you?

Sarah 00:27:37  Maybe I just give up on the on the mixing part.

Hunter 00:27:40  I promise. Mix it for a minute, a 30s at least, and you will have yourself the best one. Or start with only a little.

Sarah 00:27:47  Is it because I'm using, like, the grass I'm trying to do? Like grass fed.

Hunter 00:27:52  On mine is grass fed.

Sarah 00:27:53  And it really because I was like, maybe it's like the meaty part of it that's like making it grow. No no no no okay I.

Hunter 00:27:59  Promise just keep mixing and it will make a world of a difference.

Hunter 00:28:03  So if you have double protein, whether it's the Greek yogurt or people of cottage cheese, I can never go near it.

Sarah 00:28:08  I know I have some cottage cheese issues, but I try to get over them because you can't have a cottage cheese and an egg issue. It's hard unless you're going to eat more turkey and steak.

Hunter 00:28:20  Yeah, but that yogurt bowl is a staple for me. And then I could add frozen berries. I could add some cinnamon. I could add a sprinkle of either a granola or a cereal. And you have yourself the best meal that will keep you so full. It keeps me full for 4 or 5.

Sarah 00:28:34  How do you manage the calories in a bowl though? I feel like you could get cuckoo mania with that and not really even know what's in that special surprise bowl.

Hunter 00:28:43  So just like what we were saying about peanut butter, like weighing, I don't weigh my meal. I have not weighed something unless I'm making, like, a cake. weighing is really important at the beginning just to understand how much you're doing.

Hunter 00:28:57  I dump in Greek yogurt from a big tub. I do probably a little less than one scoop of a protein powder. So a little less than one serving. And then I go in my berries, and I just do a little sprinkle of, granola or cereal. And to me, I know that my goal is 500 calories or fewer. And I also have to remember what you eat is different from what I eat, because I might like calories. Because you're six.

Sarah 00:29:22  Feet and I'm five two.

Hunter 00:29:24  Yeah, exactly. Yeah. so if so, maybe for you, only a quarter scoop of Greek, quarter scoop of protein powder might be, you know, so that's what I also try to work on with my clients. Like, just because you see me or anyone eating something online doesn't mean that you should be having the same portions, because we're all different.

Sarah 00:29:42  And how do you how do you. I know a lot of people aren't familiar with essential aminos, but maybe you could sort of do like the layman's explanation and tell us how you use them, because I've just started doing that and I haven't talked about it online yet.

Hunter 00:29:55  Okay, so I am pretty new to it too. I've been on and off of it in the past. Essential amino acids are basically just the parts of protein they have these capsule. Do you do a capsule or powder?

Sarah 00:30:06  I do both, it depends on what time of day it is because I have like gag. I don't know how.

Hunter 00:30:11  You did before this.

Sarah 00:30:12  Yeah. No, no, no, but before I went to the gym this morning, I did the seven capsules because I felt like my turkey sausage hit 20 and not 30, and that annoyed me.

Hunter 00:30:22  So those are amazing because it's going to just boost your, muscle muscle and growth production so much. It basically it is zero calories, but it helps drastically with building muscle and maintaining your leanness and just helping you in your workouts as well.

Sarah 00:30:38  Yeah, my understanding of it is that your body takes the whole purpose of eating protein is because your body extracts out the aminos from the protein, but depending on the quality of the protein you're eating, like if you're eating a shitty steak, which a lot of us eat a lot, you know, whatever.

Sarah 00:30:57  Not everyone's having, like a grass fed air. $149 steak, but you may not be getting the most amazing or maximum aminos. So when you take the actual aminos, like the pills or the powder that dissolves in water. You're giving your body what it's taking from a protein.

Hunter 00:31:17  Amino acids, the essential amino acids are what's actually helping your body build muscle, and you do not want to lack them. They also help with energy levels. They help with reducing your cravings. And they also are. They should definitely be taking consistently. So don't take them for two days, then skip a week.

Sarah 00:31:32  Totally.

Hunter 00:31:33  We all do it with we all start.

Sarah 00:31:34  Oh my god. I have like my whole life is like a scavenger hunt, honestly. So like in the kitchen there's like zones and I like, leave notes like don't touch my shit because if I don't see it, it's not happening. So like, my nighttime supplements are like in a baggie on my nightstand, then like in the morning, like my supplements are, like near the coffee.

Sarah 00:31:54  Like you have to habit stack and put things where, you know, like the creatine that goes in my coffee. The creatine is next to the coffee.

Hunter 00:32:02  I'm so proud of you for taking correction.

Sarah 00:32:04  Otherwise the creatine is not going in the coffee. If I have to go on a scavenger hunt to find it.

Hunter 00:32:09  I cannot agree more. Make life easier for you. There's no need to like so you know, have a zillion things in your supplement or and having to perform surgery to get them right.

Sarah 00:32:19  I know my husband's a little OCD and he's like, why is there all this shit in different places? And I'm like, you know what? Deal with it. I'm turning 50. Get on board. You do all your stuff and your golf and your this and your that. And you may not be on the amino train, but you will soon. You will.

Hunter 00:32:35  Be soon.

Sarah 00:32:36  Guys always come up like husbands in my opinion. Kind of come up on like a little bit later.

Hunter 00:32:42  Yeah.

Hunter 00:32:42  I mean I feel like I'm an outlier just because I'm like, in that world. Yes. If your husband is like also like Halsey and I see this a lot with a lot of like the men with their wives or women with their husbands or like boyfriends, whatever it is. And when they see, like their partner doing something.

Speaker 3 00:33:01  Totally friendly.

Hunter 00:33:02  They're like, they ask questions about it and then they want it. Like, for example, I gave my mom, multivitamin gummies that are clean and like, she loves them. And then my dad was like, I want them and make them for him, too. So it's like, it's always like that.

Sarah 00:33:16  I know, it's so funny. I'm like, I was like, I don't know, like, we should really be eating that bread anymore. It's not gluten free and it has a weird things in it. And then he's like, that's weird, that's weird bread. And then somehow he's like, eating my shit. Now, you know, I it's just funny seeing how it all happens.

Sarah 00:33:33  And then yesterday he was eating like an an egg burrito and I was like, dude, that's a lot of ketchup. Like, you could eat a donut almost for the amount of ketchup that you just put on that egg burrito.

Hunter 00:33:45  Oh my God, it's so funny.

Sarah 00:33:47  He hates me when I talk about it, but whatever. Okay, so take us through. Like you wake up in the morning, you do your yogurt bowl, like, take us through, like an average day of, like, what goes through your mind?

Hunter 00:33:59  Oh that's hard. Every day is so different. I like to break up my days into, like, different days. So Tuesday, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays are days when I have clients. Mondays I usually film with my assistant at a store. Wherever it is Fridays I just do whatever I need to do. But, what I think a lot of people don't understand about what I do, and also you do is like, even on the weekends, like you're I mean, I believe, like, I still share stuff on the weekends on social media, like it's a job and people think it's so easy being like a content creator.

Hunter 00:34:27  But I'm also a health coach, and I also I'm posting all the all day, every day. Like I try to lead by example and my meals are very similar every week. I have like actually like this brand new company that I'm trying. It's wagyu grass fed ground beef and I'm defrosting that like right over there. I'll share that on my story tonight. But, I really try to just I mean, like, I go to the gym every day. I have my coffee. I have 2 or 3 coffees a day.

Speaker 3 00:34:53  Wow.

Hunter 00:34:55  but some people can't do that because they like.

Sarah 00:34:57  But you're also very young.

Speaker 3 00:34:59  Yeah.

Sarah 00:35:00  You have a little more. You have a more a little more latitude.

Hunter 00:35:03  And so I have coffee, I have my breakfast, I try to go to the gym in the early afternoon. I come back, I do work, I get emails done, I film content and I am just answering client emails.

Speaker 3 00:35:16  I'm in.

Sarah 00:35:17  Are you because you're in food so much, do you ever feel like, shut the fuck up with food? Like get the food away from me.

Sarah 00:35:23  You know, like when you work at an ice cream store and you're like, do you eat ice cream all day? Like, do you get sick of this shit?

Hunter 00:35:29  Oh, honestly, no. I love it so much. And like, I think that's really important. A good point, but like, people ask me questions and believe it or not, I get so many dumb questions. And when I say dumb like I'm not, I'm not calling the person out. But I know I get a DM yesterday and I'm showing like the app that I was just talking about my friends like, I food tracking app, I write in cold.

Sarah 00:35:50  Can we look it up?

Hunter 00:35:51  Yeah, it's called synopsis. Synopsis. I and I write in it on my story. I'm like, it's $5 a month. and it's blah, blah, blah. And the person goes, does this cost any money on the story? And I'm like, and there's times when I'm just like, what's going on?

Speaker 3 00:36:07  But, I just.

Hunter 00:36:08  Write, I write, read the read my picture like it's.

Speaker 3 00:36:11  So sometimes what I do.

Hunter 00:36:14  Things like every single day. It's similar questions, but it's because people are always beginners. And like, I realize not everyone's going to be as knowledgeable as I am or you are about whatever topics we share. So you just have to remember that. And like, I remember how grateful I am to be able to have a platform to share about this. I get messages every week saying how my content or my swaps have changed their life, or they lost weight, or they feel amazing and like it just makes me want to keep going.

Sarah 00:36:41  Now, obviously part of health and wellness, there's like a whole inflammation gut microbiome, like that's like 19 other episodes. But like, do you find that some people are just eating too much food out of packages and not willing to, like, make the fucking steak.

Hunter 00:36:58  So everyone will benefit from eating more real whole foods where you know there's only one ingredient, like the real food, whether that's like chicken or something, like whether it's steak or Greek yogurt, whatever it is, like something like that, or fruit, you know, so many people are going for the cream and like, there's ultra processed foods like Pringles and Doritos and the crappiest ice creams known to mankind and chick fil A.

Hunter 00:37:22  And then there are traditional ultra processed foods like popcorn or, the better for you cereals like seven sundaes or lovebirds. Who doesn't?

Speaker 3 00:37:34  I'm obsessed, but I had to, like.

Sarah 00:37:36  Stop buying it because I thought my husband, like, thought it was a food group.

Hunter 00:37:39  Oh my God.

Speaker 3 00:37:41  But.

Hunter 00:37:41  So yeah, the portions of those matter and that I live a very like 85, 15 lifestyle where 85% of the time I'm making my meals at home or I'm going out to healthy seed oil free restaurants and I'm eating very healthy. But there is that 15% where maybe it's a friend's birthday dinner or I'm having dessert with friends and I'm not someone to just like, I'm not restrictive in that way, but I have a very good understanding of balance, and I understand that I'm not buying things like Pringles and seed oils for my home. You know, my apartment and my family's definitely become like, impacted by this because at home in Long Island, like, our house is like just like my apartment now, you know, like we used to have all the junk.

Hunter 00:38:20  And now, like, we like my parents have also lost weight. My sister feels good. And her college apartment, her college house, like they're all the same. It's sort of the same food. It's funny, but, And I love that. Like, it just shows the ripple effect. And I really try to keep my home environment as clean or healthy as possible so that when I'm out, I don't stress. I go with the flow because I know the majority of my meals are coming from my apartment and my environment where I can control what I'm eating.

Sarah 00:38:48  Do you ever feel like, are you one of those people where you're like, oh, I eat spaghetti now I feel like shit. See, I'm not really like that. But I have some friends who are. So it's. It's weirdly almost easier for them because they're feeling like symptoms. But like, for me, I'm like I'm not like, feeling like the stomach ache from the.

Hunter 00:39:06  No, but I, I mean, some people have celiac.

Speaker 3 00:39:09  Or like yeah.

Sarah 00:39:09  I know, but like my gut shows it gluten. No bueno.

Speaker 3 00:39:13  Yeah. Like floating.

Hunter 00:39:14  With bloating. Yeah.

Sarah 00:39:15  No, but I'm saying I don't get symptoms. But like, I just did this whole gut test, and they're like, your body doesn't like gluten. I'm like, that's weird. I say, my whole life you.

Hunter 00:39:26  Go off of how you feel and the dose determines the poison. The dose determines how like, awful it is for you. For example, like, people will say, oh, Chipotle is the best. Chipotle is amazing. I used to each probably every day, but.

Speaker 3 00:39:40  That's when I had.

Sarah 00:39:40  My kids eat.

Speaker 3 00:39:41  Too.

Hunter 00:39:42  And now I when I've totally which is probably once every four months, just because sometimes I really want it. I get the worst acne breakouts and it's crazy, but and people think I'm crazy for it. But I say like whether it's a combination of the ultra sodium, the rice bran oil, the additives in their foods.

Hunter 00:39:59  Like. It doesn't agree with me, but some people might go to feel great, have abs afterwards. I don't know how you.

Speaker 3 00:40:05  Do.

Hunter 00:40:05  And they'll feel great. And for me, like you have to understand that nutrition is not a one size fits all and different people feel different after eating other foods.

Sarah 00:40:15  So how does your group coaching work? Like you, they the people come to the zoom meeting and like, what happens? Are you speaking? Are you answering questions? Are people sharing like what their kind of wins and losses for the week?

Speaker 3 00:40:29  Are you set up perfectly?

Hunter 00:40:31  But at the beginning, I really spend the first session going over an intro. Everyone introduces themselves. Each session is around an hour long. and I have a few packets. Whether it's I give them all my guides, I give them other random packets that I have a group coaching packet that I put together and edit whenever I have a new group. and that's like a baseline. And then every single week we have a group chat where like we go over where, like, people send pictures of their meals, we go over, like people celebrate their wins or questions.

Hunter 00:41:01  If someone finding out and wants to know how to order healthy at ECS restaurant, I'll help them with that. and then in the actual sessions after that. So every other session after the first one, people, I just ask questions and we just go off of that because I could like, teach, but it's also a lot more meaningful and helpful when Roseanne, for example, is asking, like, I, I'm not losing weight, and I want you to look at my food log and see, like, what is working, what what I could improve. And I'm like, like, how do you cook this, that you add a lot of oil and she'll be like, yes. Then I'll be like, okay. So like that's something that like, you might not realize, but oil could be oil is such a calorically dense food. Like maybe try using a spray oil on your vegetables next time. And they taste just as good, but they're hundreds of calories less. So like, I really try to find, like I find myself a food auditor where like, I'm able to, like, detect where people might need to change things.

Hunter 00:41:54  I go over everything from exercise to products to lifestyle swaps for your home, laundry detergent and.

Speaker 3 00:42:02  Oh my God.

Sarah 00:42:03  We've gone through the laundry detergent thing. We've gone through the dishwasher detergent.

Speaker 3 00:42:08  Does your husband think you're psycho?

Sarah 00:42:09  Of course he does.

Speaker 3 00:42:11  Yeah.

Sarah 00:42:11  He's like, how do you think people lived for all these years? And I'm like, I don't really give a shit. But this is the new program.

Speaker 3 00:42:17  And what I will.

Hunter 00:42:18  Say is we look at a very we look at our society as a whole, and especially in America, like the obesity rate is so much higher than it was ten years ago. The, you know, everyone has illnesses and it's so sad. But I really believe that, like you need it's never too late. Also, speaking to everyone who listens to this podcast like it is never too late to start getting 1% healthier every day. And whether that means swapping out your dishwasher detergent or, you know, switch. Stop using, plastic cups in your house and going for things like glass.

Hunter 00:42:53  or to start making your own coffee or just to start exercising or walking like things that are free. it's never too late at any age. I've had clients who are 80, and they.

Speaker 3 00:43:03  Love that they're thriving.

Hunter 00:43:05  Yeah.

Speaker 3 00:43:06  I mean, there's.

Sarah 00:43:06  Things I'm adding all the time, like the essential aminos. I've only been taking those for a week, but I'm like, sticking to it. I walk with a weighted vest. Is it a pain in the ass, I guess, but like, it adds an extra £10. It makes something a little bit harder. So it's like, I kind of feel like you can't get everything right all the time, but if you can get some of the things right some of the time.

Hunter 00:43:29  And what I will say is there's no better feeling than knowing that you're enjoying the meals that you're having. You are happy. And also you know that you're like on your way to getting healthier. Like, there's no better feeling than that because you feel light, you feel strong, you feel confident.

Hunter 00:43:43  And it's just overall a great feeling.

Sarah 00:43:46  At any where are you like on the gluten, sugar, blah blah blah train like, cause I feel like there's so there's there's a lot of extremes. Like, I have so many friends who are gluten free, strictly gluten free.

Speaker 3 00:44:01  So I personally.

Sarah 00:44:02  Zero sugar, you know, all of this.

Hunter 00:44:05  Yeah. So I keep it very sustainable. And like unless you have like a very big like allergy to gluten or whatever, obviously be gluten free. But like me personally, like I'm not gluten free like I, I eat foods that are gluten free just like you and everyone.

Speaker 3 00:44:19  Right.

Hunter 00:44:20  But like, I, I mean, like, I'm never someone to, like, buy bread for my, like, I'm not a bread person. Or believe it or not, I'm like, not a rice person. Like I get my carbs from other places. but.

Sarah 00:44:30  What are your favorite carb sources? Because I feel like that's hard because everything feels like a shitty carb.

Speaker 3 00:44:36  I understand, so like.

Sarah 00:44:37  I just want shitty carbs all day.

Hunter 00:44:39  So obviously I love for I love for it. So that source of healthy carbs, some vegetables, whether it's a sweet potato or butternut squash or any type of squash like those are. I love them, especially this time of the year. and then when it comes to other carbs, I mean, it really varies based on where I am, but like, I'm not a pasta person. Like, believe it or not, I'm not a pizza person. Like, I like healthier alternatives for them, but I'm never someone to, like, crave traditional carbs like that.

Sarah 00:45:09  Do you like are you a sugar person? See, I'm a sugar person, so?

Speaker 3 00:45:13  So, I.

Hunter 00:45:13  Mean, I love things like popcorn, and I like some types of, like, tortilla chips. So those are other good carbs ones made with, like, avocado oil or like masa chips that use grass fed beef tallow, things like that. But like when it comes to carbs, like, I mean cereal, I love the seven Sundays, things like that.

Hunter 00:45:30  Like, what are other, like, unhealthy carbs that you think?

Speaker 3 00:45:33  No, I'm just.

Sarah 00:45:34  Saying, like, breads and starches and pastas. Because, like, somebody messaged me to ask you about, like, healthier pastas. Okay? And part of me is like, for me, if I was going to eat pasta once a week. Like I want the real deal. I don't want chickpea weird pasta. But you tell us.

Speaker 3 00:45:52  Yeah.

Hunter 00:45:52  So what I say is like, you have to do what's sustainable. I think that for some of my clients, they have, you know, half a half a serving of traditional pasta, and then they also have half a serving or one serving of whether it's spaghetti squash or they have, what is it called? the jovial.

Speaker 3 00:46:09  Yeah.

Hunter 00:46:10  The jovial is a great pasta. If you're like gluten free or grain free or they do something like one of my favorites is Kaizen. Kaizen is a pasta. I don't know if they have an airline, but the founders become my friend.

Hunter 00:46:20  He's great. And it's a high protein, high fiber pasta that uses Lapine beans. So it's like doing a mix of both of them. Like, I like I'm I've never been someone to, like, ever make pasta like traditional, but like, I get my sweets in other ways.

Speaker 3 00:46:33  Yeah.

Hunter 00:46:34  I love like, better for you cookies and brownies like, those are things that I love. And I make my ninja creams. You know that machine?

Sarah 00:46:40  Oh, yeah, I have it, but I've never used it. I need, like, While it's a little overwhelming, I look at it and I'm like, oh.

Speaker 3 00:46:46  No, no, no, no, no.

Hunter 00:46:47  It is heaven on earth and you think you're bad with protein? Wait until you start making protein ice creams and you will be over your protein.

Sarah 00:46:54  So but even though you hate cottage cheese, you don't use cottage cheese to make the ice.

Speaker 3 00:46:59  I've never.

Hunter 00:46:59  I've never had cottage cheese in my life.

Sarah 00:47:01  It just makes you gag because it's like a weird.

Speaker 3 00:47:03  Looking at it.

Sarah 00:47:04  Oh, see, that's how I feel about, like, pickles, sauerkraut, coleslaw, anything that's like a weird deli food. I'm like.

Speaker 3 00:47:12  Do you like.

Hunter 00:47:12  Mayo?

Sarah 00:47:13  No.

Hunter 00:47:14  Okay. I hate now.

Sarah 00:47:15  Like, I can't do that either. Like, I don't know. Again, it's like weird deli food.

Hunter 00:47:21  But it's so easy to make an inch of creamy. And for everyone. I get asked this every time I post about it. Even if I write it on the post. Like they'll say, how do you make it?

Speaker 3 00:47:28  You're going to.

Sarah 00:47:28  Have to do a tutorial later because it's like there's so many pieces.

Speaker 3 00:47:32  Okay, yeah, you.

Hunter 00:47:33  Have your creamy base, you put a cup of any milk, I do unsweetened almond milk.

Speaker 3 00:47:37  And I just.

Hunter 00:47:38  Scoop of any protein powder, one serving of a protein powder. I shake it, put it in the freezer for at least 24 hours. Take it out. You put it in the machine twice, let it run, and then you add your mix ins and you mix it in.

Hunter 00:47:48  Then you're done. That's it.

Speaker 3 00:47:50  So easy.

Sarah 00:47:51  Do you eat it?

Hunter 00:47:52  So I go in phases. Sometimes. I don't have it for months. Sometimes I have it 2 or 3 times a week. I had it last night and the night before. I don't know if I'm going to have it tonight, but like, it's always there in my freezer and, like, it's so good. And that doesn't mean you can ever have real ice cream. It just means that when I'm home, I don't need an Uber Eats. Ben and Jerry's like.

Speaker 3 00:48:09  I know, I know better for.

Hunter 00:48:10  You option there and like it works for.

Speaker 3 00:48:13  Me.

Sarah 00:48:14  And does it have like my brain knows when something's like not real sweet. Like it's like this is not the real dopamine. Get the shit out of here. Like, does it love it?

Speaker 3 00:48:23  Does it taste.

Sarah 00:48:24  Like frozen yogurt?

Hunter 00:48:26  It depends on consistency.

Speaker 3 00:48:27  Like, if it's.

Hunter 00:48:29  If it's too, like, icy for you. You might need to add a little bit more almond milk.

Hunter 00:48:32  If it's too liquidy, you probably didn't freeze it for long enough. So it's it I, I love it, I love love.

Sarah 00:48:39  I guess I'll have to figure out what the perfect ratios.

Speaker 3 00:48:42  Are.

Hunter 00:48:42  Go on TikTok and search it using whatever protein powder you're having. And it's so easy you'll love it.

Sarah 00:48:47  Okay, okay. Because it's been staring at me in my kitchen and my son was laughing because he was home from college. He's like, are you going to use this?

Speaker 3 00:48:53  I'm like, that's it right there. That's it.

Sarah 00:48:58  I'm like, okay, what's happening? Okay, now before we wrap up, like, obviously there's a ton of people and there's a lot of information about GLP one and semaglutide and all of that. We could do like 96 episodes on that. But do you find that any of your clients are using those, or do you feel like they're coming to you because they're like, been there, done that, or that's too extreme for me, and I want to figure out like how to do the actual food.

Hunter 00:49:27  Amazing question, because I have clients who have been on it in the past and came their way back, plus more. I have clients who are on it and started started with me while they were first on it, and I have clients who have never considered it or clients who want to do it. And what I will say is for the clients who have been on it, gained their way back and are so frustrated. It's because you are not improving your lifestyle while you're on it. It might be suppressing your appetite, leading to weight loss, but if you are not exercising, building, trying to build muscle because believe it or not, you lose a lot of muscle when you're on these drugs. but you also lose some fat. But you need to preserve that muscle because muscle is key. Whether you are a man or a woman, you are 90 or you are 15. So it's really important muscle and you need to eat high protein and you want to eat a healthy, sustainable diet. My client, I have one client shout out to him.

Hunter 00:50:20  He is incredible. Lives in California, never met him in person, but we have our every other week biweekly facetimes and he is killing it down £35, doing amazing, losing his weight in such a sustainable way and he exercises 2 or 3 times a week, heavy on the protein, heavy on the strength training. And he's trying to walk in between his two jobs, similar to me. He works, he works at a company and he also has a essential oil business. So he is busy, but he gets it done and he's lost so much weight and he's on this drug. But he does his embodies which is the machine that measured.

Sarah 00:50:52  Yeah, that is a body weight.

Speaker 3 00:50:54  Yeah.

Hunter 00:50:54  He's barely losing any muscle and he's losing so much fat. Which makes me so happy because he loves the way he eats.

Sarah 00:51:00  So it's because I feel like so like I had this one woman messaged me today and she's like, oh, I saw you're interviewing Hunter. I'm taking a semaglutide and I've lost £7.

Sarah 00:51:09  But the protein is really hard for me to eat.

Hunter 00:51:11  So you have to find the protein sources that work for you. I know he makes this, like, protein chia pudding for breakfast every morning. Like, whatever you currently like, find a way to sneak in protein, and you might be so sick and tired of the word protein, but you guys have to figure it out. There are hundreds of protein sources out there and just keep going with the ones that you love. I love protein powder because if you have a high quality one, there's so many different flavors out there, you could change up your meals every day. I mean, I know he has a Greek yogurt bowl every day. He actually, since he is very busy, he has this meal prep company and I don't know if it's LA, it's called meal prep on the fly, meal prep on the go.

Speaker 3 00:51:47  And.

Hunter 00:51:48  They cook an avocado oil and you could get all your stuff delivered. And he gets like just proteins a little bit, whether it's chicken, steak, shrimp, tofu, whatever it is.

Hunter 00:51:56  And it makes his life so much easier and there is no better investment in yourself and your health. And like, this gets it done for him. He has a trainer once a week, and he's investing in all the right places. And it's really about the lifestyle and making sure your meals are you're not starving yourself while you're on these GLP ones, and you're not so nauseous every day that you're throwing up and like it's all about what you like. You have to make similar meals that you love and that make you feel good. And the progress that I've seen with him is actually incredible. I'm so happy for him. and for my other clients who have been considering it, I mean, they're considering it, but they've never really worked with me or another amazing health coach, dietitian nutritionist, and they don't know where to begin. And I think that's the only resort. And like my biggest case to you is like, think about how much money you've spent on like, fad diets or diet foods and how crappy you felt.

Hunter 00:52:52  And you'd need someone to help you with your meals and structure and just overall a healthier lifestyle.

Sarah 00:52:58  So if you had one piece of advice for listeners, if they just like, where do they start? Where do you start?

Hunter 00:53:05  So it's one it's not a one size fits all. You could lose the weight, but you need to do something after it. You're not going to be on it for the rest of your life. You have to do something once you're done to maintain that weight. And the easiest thing is to try to build your muscle and eat healthy while you are on it. Because I've seen way too many times, it's so sad. People go off of it and they their weight skyrockets, right?

Sarah 00:53:25  I guess for some people it's a lifetime drug. But what about one piece of advice just for the average person, the average client, like somebody who's like, oh my God, like I have an extra ten, £20. Like, I don't know where to start. This person's doing carnivore and this person's doing paleo and that person's taking ozempic like blah blah, blah, blah.

Hunter 00:53:45  Don't identify yourself with one diet, whether it's carnivore, the lion diet, paleo, low carb, whatever it is. Prioritize three things. Prioritize your protein. The same things I tell my group coaching clients and the ones who follow it. It works for things. Prioritize your protein. Drink water with electrolytes every single day, whether you're working out or not. Strength train at least three times a week to make sure that you're building muscle. And also, it's so amazing for everything your heart health, your mental health, your your overall well-being. It's so, so important. And number four is 10,000 steps a day.

Sarah 00:54:21  It's so long, Hunter. That's like me, like, oh, I feel like I'd be walking for an hour.

Speaker 3 00:54:26  Okay, well, that's.

Hunter 00:54:27  What what I was just going to say is, if you're currently someone, you look at your phone, you're getting 3000 steps a day, work for 4000 a day.

Speaker 3 00:54:33  For a.

Hunter 00:54:34  Week, and then try for 5000.

Speaker 3 00:54:36  And it's just.

Sarah 00:54:36  So much that I'm like, if I fucking get to seven, I know.

Speaker 3 00:54:39  That's right.

Sarah 00:54:40  You know what I mean?

Hunter 00:54:41  I understand everyone has different criteria.

Sarah 00:54:43  Totally, totally. But I'm like, I did the weight today.

Speaker 3 00:54:46  And I.

Hunter 00:54:47  Do. Yes, exactly. And I have clients who they either have like hip injuries or whatever it is, and they try to walk around their yard or whatever it is, and any movement is good movement. You have to remember that. And also you have to understand that, like so many people are laying on their couch scrolling social media, find the treadmill and go and go on social media, multitask, you know, like.

Speaker 3 00:55:06  That's me.

Hunter 00:55:08  It's me sometimes too.

Sarah 00:55:09  But I though it's funny, I, I live in a beautiful neighborhood, but it doesn't have sidewalks, so it's like I'm dealing with cars, whatever. And everyone's like, why do you stay inside and walk on the treadmill? You live in L.A.? First of all, I deal with sun.

Sarah 00:55:24  You know what I mean? Like, no matter how big the visor, like you're still nailing your skin. Second of all, there's no air conditioning outside. And third of all, I gotta walk my ass home.

Speaker 3 00:55:33  Uhhuh.

Sarah 00:55:34  Well, like, when I'm walking forward, I'm like, okay, it's 20 blocks home, but when you're walking on a hamster wheel, like it's different, it feels easier.

Hunter 00:55:42  From your Instagram, you seem like you're you're doing all those things. You're prioritizing your protein, you're doing strength training. And are you doing electrolytes?

Speaker 3 00:55:49  I am.

Hunter 00:55:50  Awesome.

Sarah 00:55:51  Every single day. Every single.

Speaker 3 00:55:53  Day.

Hunter 00:55:54  No one's perfect. Like no one's going to know everything every day.

Speaker 3 00:55:56  And like, I know I can't.

Hunter 00:55:58  So the last thing is people are so hard on themselves and like, they think that if they overate one day or they had a big carb heavy dinner, they can't eat the next day. And like I say, you need to just remember, like it's not one day you'll achieve your goal.

Hunter 00:56:10  You have to start at day one and today could be your day one. Right now could be your day one. And it takes one meal to get back on track. And then you'll feel, I mean.

Sarah 00:56:17  I give you a lot of credit because losing £50 during Covid, that's when everyone was gaining 50. I know.

Speaker 3 00:56:23  And that's what I don't.

Sarah 00:56:23  Know how you stayed home and zipped your mouth shut because that was like the way that most of us entertained ourselves.

Hunter 00:56:31  It was hard. And I had like, you know, when you have a photographic memory of certain events, like I remember like my workouts in my room, on my floor during YouTube workouts, the peloton bike, I remember just I did Weight Watchers at the very beginning, and that helped me understand what food really was like. Food groups. but everyone starts at different places. And like I if I wish I could have hired a nutritionist or a health coach because I didn't even, like, think of that at the time.

Sarah 00:56:55  Right.

Sarah 00:56:55  You're also really young, so it wouldn't be like a forefront of your mind. Maybe if you were a little bit older would have. But before we wrap up, if there are listeners who are wanting to like, get started in like a side hustle, an Instagram account, whatever it is like, what's your what's your source? What's your.

Speaker 3 00:57:13  Biggest piece of.

Sarah 00:57:14  Advice?

Hunter 00:57:14  I think everyone needs to look at their day at a whole. Maybe you're waking up right before your you start work or right before, or you're sleeping in on the weekends. Like everyone, I don't care what you do. You you can find some time to allocate towards whatever you want to do on the side. It happened to me when I was working a full time job, and I also was trying to build my social media and health coaching business. I said I am not posting anything during the workday. I am not doing anything. I am not like answering work like, help with Hunter emails during the workday. Like I had two separate things because I never wanted to.

Hunter 00:57:47  It's like disrespectful if I'm working. So I allocated time and there is always going to be something that you unfortunately have to sacrifice, whether that's a little bit more sleep, maybe 1 or 2 social events or just, you know, I never was someone to sacrifice social events, but I definitely, like, got my exercise done in the morning. I went to work or work from home, whatever the day was, and I really focused on my side hustle after work. Like, I really prioritized this because I knew that this was something I was literally obsessed with in an amazing way. Like, I wanted to do this full time, and I just kept going and I kept posting consistently. I kept making graphics that I, as a consumer, would want to see or like learn on my health journey. And if you look at the very bottom of my Instagrams, where I am now, it's completely different content, like content. But it's gotten so much better and like, so much more real. And I realized I was trying to appease people who never heard of me when I needed to be focusing on the people who are following me, because those are the people that I want to grow a relationship with.

Sarah 00:58:51  Now do you how do you keep yourself out of, like the social media comparison? Like, oh my God, that real got a thousand likes and this one only got 200. Like, how do you do?

Speaker 3 00:59:01  You just it is it is.

Hunter 00:59:02  Something that I will say I, I would say I still struggle with it but I don't struggle with it. I still deal with it like it's not something that bothers me. But you have to remember, like some posts are going to do better than other posts than you. I would never, I never, I used to, I never know, compare myself to other people's following because it's all about your your relationship with your community. Like people, either people either follow you just because they like some things you do, or they love you as a personality, or they really trust your product recommendations. And I feel like very lucky because I share, like, everything. Like if I'm out for dinner and I'm having a few bites of pasta, like I'll share that, like I'm not someone to hide, like the, you know, unhealthy moments.

Speaker 3 00:59:39  Yeah. You're like a real human.

Hunter 00:59:41  Yes, exactly. I try to share a 360 degree like approach to who I am, and I think that people really trust me because I keep it very real. And I know lots of people personally who don't. so I just remember, like, I only want to follow someone who's really authentic and like, that's what I try to be every day. And I'm sure you're the same way.

Sarah 01:00:01  I mean, my kids and my husband are like, you're a little too authentic for us. like, could you a little TMI? But my kids have been pretty cool. I mean, my son was like 16 and my daughter was 14, kind of when I started this. And they were like, what's happening here? And I'm like, guess what, guys? You're part of the story and you're not going to be featured all the time, but you are part of the story, so you will be featured sometimes.

Speaker 3 01:00:26  And then.

Hunter 01:00:26  Non-family things like you posting your protein plate of like chicken sausages like that might really like resonate with someone and be like, oh.

Sarah 01:00:34  My God, do you know how many messages I've gotten about the fucking chicken sausage? I'm like.

Speaker 3 01:00:38  Really?

Sarah 01:00:38  This is not that interesting. But people are like, wait, that's like your breakfast? And I'm like, recently. Yeah, because I wasn't, like, hitting my protein goal.

Hunter 01:00:48  That's the thing I just want to end on. Like, so many people think their meals need to look gourmet and they need to be like beautiful guys. Not everything needs to look pretty. And being a.

Speaker 3 01:00:57  People, that's what I.

Sarah 01:00:58  Always say. Like last week I was posting, I was like, if you're looking for like a Pinterest piece of toast where the butter, you can't see the bumps, that's not my feed. If you want to see the burnt pan with the smoking sausage, that's all ill shaped, come to my feed. This is like real life, you know. It's I love it.

Speaker 3 01:01:17  I'm not sharing. I'm not.

Hunter 01:01:19  Sharing. People washing my produce every single minute. Because sometimes, believe it or not, I don't wash my.

Hunter 01:01:24  I know this might get me in trouble, but like, I don't always wash my produce, sometimes I just eat it because I'm starving and I just don't. But like people, everyone has their things.

Sarah 01:01:32  Like totally. I know some people feeds are manicured beautifully and that's their feed is the pristine photography minds like, this is what it fucking is. It's kind of just like who you are as a person. I've loved having you here. Congratulations on I don't know, I was going to say being such a young person and having created this, but for any age, I think it's amazing following your passion. Love it. if people want to find you, where can they find you?

Hunter 01:01:59  It's never too late to start. And my Instagram and TikTok are both at health with Hunter my Facebook's health with Hunter and my ex. Or Twitter is health healthy with healthy w Hunter. My assistant posts my old stuff on LinkedIn, Facebook and X, so like, some people just aren't on Instagram or TikTok.

Speaker 3 01:02:20  So all the.

Sarah 01:02:21  Amazing I'm Twitter is like way outside of my league. I'm like, I'm like, what? I can barely do what I'm doing. I'm like, thank you so much.

Speaker 3 01:02:28  For having me on. Thank you so.

Sarah 01:02:30  Much for being here. We'll talk soon and I'll, I'll text you when I'm in a fight with the ninja tonight. The ninja, please.

Speaker 3 01:02:38  And also.

Hunter 01:02:39  I will let you know when I'm in Palisades, because, I.

Sarah 01:02:41  Mean, duh, we're going to go to air one together.

Speaker 3 01:02:44  Can't wait.

Sarah 01:02:45  Love it. All right. Talk soon.

Speaker 3 01:02:47  Thank you.

Sarah 01:02:47  Bye. Hey, peeps, it's me again. I listen to this episode with certified health and nutrition coach Hunter Stoler, so I could summarize the golden nuggets for you to have actionable items to start using today. I know that when I listen to a long episode, I'm like, oh my God, I love that. But then I can't even fucking remember the specifics. This is why I come back and do a golden nugget.

Sarah 01:03:10  Summary. In this episode, we dig deep with our golden shit shovels in a conversation about the importance of consistency, the role of personalized nutrition, better health swaps in the supermarket, weight loss, and practical and sustainable tips for health and wellness in midlife. Golden nugget number one make protein your new quick fix. You know I'm always talking about that on my Instagram. It's like the midlife fucking protein scavenger hunt. Hunter says that he's noticed a lot of women are getting caught up in, like, quick fix fad diets. We've all been there. I'm definitely guilty of it myself. And yes, these approaches might work momentarily, but they're often not sustainable and they leave you feeling unsatisfied and propelling the diet circle even further. Yo yo city, we really have to kind of incorporate it into like a full lifestyle and not dread it and hate it. And it's just the new lifestyle. Hunter's secret to flipping the script on the fad diet concept is protein. Yes, peeps. Midlife protein. You know I'm talking about it.

Sarah 01:04:18  It's in the same category as the dumb but necessary weights. For me, protein is often ignored as a weight secret, and Hunter wants his clients to make protein. Your new midlife BFF. Why? Because it helps with weight loss, muscle maintenance, and feeling full. Trust me, I'm on a personal mission. As I just said, the midlife fucking protein scavenger hunt. It's tough, but doable with some tricks and a sprinkle of determination. Hard and good. Plus, your future midlife self will thank you and Hunter will later. Golden nugget number two the dumb necessary weights. When you want to see weight loss results, you need to challenge your body. Period. It's part of the process. It doesn't matter who you are or what your goal is, you need to push yourself. Whether it's Pilates with resistance, lifting heavy weights, or even bodyweight exercises or bands. This is how you build muscle that makes you look lean. Hunter emphasizes the not bulky. That's not a real thing, you guys.

Sarah 01:05:19  I think a lot of us use it as excuses to not do the dumb and necessary ways facts are. You're not going to get bulky. The truth is, challenging your body will get you stronger, healthier, and closer to your health goals. Honestly, muscle is the new longevity thing right now. It's all the rage and it's proven in all the research. And of course, the protein goes right along with this because you need the protein and the aminos to build those muscles and make repairs in your body. Tears as they're forming while you're working out. Okay. Golden nugget number three, Whole Fucking Foods. Believe me, this is a nightmare for me. I love packaged foods. Hunter says that people will really benefit from eating real whole foods. We're talking about stuff with just one ingredient. I know, mind blowing, right? Whether it's chicken, steak, Greek yogurt, or fruit, this should be what makes up the majority of your diet. He said that so many people default to processed foods because they don't want to put in the effort to cook that steak or prepare that chicken egg.

Sarah 01:06:22  I know because I don't cook. So you know that I get this even better for you. Processed foods, you know, those fancy cereals or healthier packaged snacks, they're still processed, but the more you know, the better the choices you can make. I love this Hunter says that he lives with the 8515 rule, so 85% of the time he does home cooked meals or eats from places that he knows. Keep it clean, like seed oil free restaurants. The other 15%. That's for birthday dinners, desserts with friends, and spontaneous moments like just life and having fun, he said. He's not strict to the point of stress, because he knows that the core of his diet is balanced and healthy. And Hunter did lose £50 during the pandemic. Golden nugget number four GLP ones we know Ozempic Munjal, blah blah blah and the real deal behind them. Hunter says that these drugs are getting attention for weight loss, as they should, and that some of his clients come to him after trying them and regaining the weight back, and some come to him to maintain their weight loss.

Sarah 01:07:26  And then they finally actually learn to build healthy, long lasting habits that are basically a new food lifestyle, he says. These meds can help with appetite suppression, but that is not a magic wand. If you're not focused on building muscle, eating enough protein, and making sustainable lifestyle changes while on them, the weight will likely come back and then some. And then if you consider trying them to also be ready to put in the work before, during and after. It's not just magic. This means building muscle, eating nutrient dense meals, staying active and drinking water with electric with electrolytes and or Celtic sea salt. Okay you guys, you know the drill. The gold is dripping off these nuggets. Grab it, use it. There are three things you can do. First, subscribe to the fucking podcast. Don't just listen to it one off, because when you do that, the podcast doesn't grow. Second, share with some friends. It's fucking free friends like midlife shit, just like you do, and write an Apple review.

Sarah 01:08:27  Writing reviews is so annoying. Trust me, I know it's an extra step, but guess what? My podcast is free, so if you write a review, it really helps the podcast grow. Okay, you guys know that I have listened and I am putting these episodes up on YouTube. Not all of them. I'm trying trying to do all the scenes behind the work. To do that, you ask for it, I'm doing it. So if you want to watch, you can go back and check that out on YouTube. And of course, follow my Instagram at the flexible, neurotic duh. Love you talk to.