The True Health Podcast

My guest today is the brilliant Dr. Anup Kanodia, whose practice KanodiaMD is the top functional medicine practice in Central Ohio, and you could go as far as saying he is one of the top functional medicine practitioners in the country.  With a passion for broadening the lens of medical care beyond the symptom/drug approach, he has built a unique and amazing model within his practice, where he and...

Today's episode is full-circle for me. I grew up in Columbus, and it is where many of my very unhealthy habits and negative relationship with food and body began. I began (yo-yo) dieting in middle school, and at my heaviest weight, I was 312lbs. My 130lb weight loss transformation changed my life, and while I haven't lived in Columbus in over a decade, it is both nostalgic and beautiful to...

Dr. Sara Thyr  is a naturopath based in Petaluma, CA who, in addition to her private practice, is a member of the California Naturopathic Doctors Association and the American Association of Naturopathic Physicians. She has co-authored several books on natural health, and is passionate about treating underlying causes of common illness, across areas such as food allergies, digestive issues, menopau...

Dr. Anita Johnston has been a pioneer in the field of eating psychology for over 35 years. She is a Depth Psychologist, Certified Eating Disorder Specialist, and author of the iconic book Eating in the Light of the Moon: How Women Can Transform Their Relationships with Food Through Myths, Metaphors, and Storytelling. She is co-creator of the Light of the Moon Café, an online resource with interact...

In this episode, we discuss where the concept of a "summer body" comes from, and go through an alternate approach to what a 3-month health roadmap could look like instead. This is for anyone wanting to challenge the disordered/dysmorphic thinking in our society, as well as get a practical step-by-step breakdown of how to build a sustainable health plan that will last beyond a season. Fin...

My guest today is Naomi Crawford, co-owner/chef at Lunchette, the acclaimed Bay Area restaurant known for hyper-local, seasonal food. For anyone familiar with Naomi already,  you might know her under the label “chef”, “business owner”, “activist” or “community builder”. But Naomi is the exact kind of human that I love: someone who cannot be labeled, or placed neatly into a box. In our conversation...

Getting super vulnerable in today's episode... because I will always be real with you all. Today I'm sharing an example of how the disordered mindset towards food and exercise showed up in my own life. The purpose of this episode is to remind you that I am human, and someone who walks the walk with you, as well as to share the tools I used to noticed and respond to myself as these things w...

My guest today is Garrett Nash, who made his global breakthrough with blockbuster hit “i hate you, i love you”, spending 39 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and accumulating more than 2B streams globally. He’s toured all over, performed on several late night TV shows, and been featured in outlets like The New York Times, Entertainment Weekly, and Vogue. But more importantly - Garrett has been...

My guest today is Darcia Narvaez, Professor of Psychology at the University of Notre Dame, Fellow of the American Psychological Association, the American Educational Research Association and many others. Her work is powerful, ground-breaking and vast. It scales from something as seemingly small as a parent’s interaction with their crying baby, all the way to the full scope of human evolution, and...

In this short episode, we're touching on an important reminder. We talk through the marketing messaging around "superfoods", and reclaiming simple foods. We walk through a few examples of how to identify real food, what to look for, and how to make healthy eating simple, affordable, and... super. Find Ethan Online: Optimized Health (Web): https://www.optimizedhealthcoaching.com/ Free...

This episode is a deep dive into snacking, cravings and mindless eating. We unlearn traditional diet culture messaging around snacking (what your snacks should look like, or why your snacking is a sign of a lack of willpower) and instead touch on everything from healthy snack ideas, to the deeper elements to explore to improve your snacking, like your home/work environment, relationships, food ass...

My guests today are Ashley Gonzales and Macy Swaim, two incredible dancers, choreographers and teachers in the dance world globally. Ashley was a semi-finalist on Season 2 of NBC's hit show World of Dance, where her performance won an Emmy for choreography, and collectively they have worked with artists like Prince, Taylor Swift, Jennifer Lopez, Nicki Minaj, Rihanna, Camilla Cabello, Justin Bi...

Back pain is the most common source of disability in the world, and today you get a masterclass episode straight from someone I think is brilliant. Born and raised in South Florida, Alyssa Mecoli has dedicated her adult life to helping people heal and prevent injury, with a specialty in Pain Free Strength Training, Low Back Pain and Mobility. Our conversation today covers everything from the most...

Today's episode helps us confront the root cause of our behavior, rather than treating the surface level. We explore the science of "stress-eating" and learn what is actually happening in our body when that arises. We also talk about coping mechanisms of all kinds, and explore parallels between treating addiction and treating the root cause of our health behavior. This episode is a k...

Shannon Cury was "thriving" in her high-intensity, East Coast job and life... until a cancer diagnosis forced everything to pause. Life became a forced reset, and her treatment and recovery journey caused a forced removal of her old ways in favor of a new full-time job: healing herself. That healing extended way beyond her cancer recovery and into how she lives her self. In this conversa...

Caroline Dooner's book "The F*ck It Diet" brought me to tears multiple times while reading it, and today she and I explore why. In a vulnerable and educational conversation, we touch on topics like losing trust in your body, lying to yourself about hunger cues, intuitive eating, the nervous system, restrict/binge cycling, disordered eating in all sizes, the scale, exercise as punishm...

Motivation is often the source of giant, Instagrammable moments. But what happens between those moments? Today we're examining how Momentum, not Motivation, is actually the source of behavior change. This applies to anyone, no matter where you are on (or off!) your health journey. Let's dive in. ______ Free Health Coaching Consultation:  https://calendly.com/optimizedhealth/consultation Co...

In today's conversation, Annika Wells leads with vulnerability, opening up about her relationship with food, movement, and self. In a world where so many people hide their struggles in pursuit of a shiny exterior, this conversation reminds us that true power begins with conversation, and true healing begins with confronting your self. We explore diet culture and our societal relationship with...

Diet Culture has conditioned our society to feel like they are not enough. This leads to vulnerability, and to then being sold a magic supplement, diet, or detox to get to their dream weight or body as fast as possible. Exercise becomes a tool to punish yourself for what you ate, or for having the body you have. Today we are examining and unlearning this belief system, and offering some new belief...

Nadia Estefania had it all: a high-power tech job in NYC, along with a great salary, benefits, and title. She was in "hustle mode" and achieving all the things she was supposed to... and then, she realized none of it was her doing. It was what had been put on her by societal expectations, and the definitions of success we're all raised to believe should be the goal. She became burnt...

Melissa Louis-Jacques (lovingly known as "MJ") is a complete gem, who embodies someone who has done the work to unlearn negative self-talk, as well as wellness myths, to reclaim her health. We worked together for 10 months, from May 2020 to January 2021, and today we sit down to see how her health journey has been going two years since we stopped together. In this beautiful conversation,...

"Self-Care" is a term that gets thrown around a lot, especially in wellness culture. The reality, though, is that self-care is often a rare luxury. An escape from our lives. Why aren't we exploring what's happening during the other 99% of our lives instead? Let's dive in. FIND OPTIMIZED HEALTH ONLINE: Book a Free Consult: https://calendly.com/ethan-schiff/consultation Web: https://www.optimizedhea...

Are you familiar with Forest Therapy? Have you ever wondered why a walk engulfed in nature is calming to us? Today I am thrilled to have Emily Wolf McMane as a guest. Emily is a close, real-life friend, and every time we chat I leave refreshed and enlightened - as if I had discovered an oasis of thoughtfulness and calm in a sea of clutter.  Emily Wolf McMane is a Licensed Clinical Social Work...

Becca King (aka "The ADHD Nutritionist") a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist from Charlotte, North Carolina. As an adult with ADHD, who struggled for years with disordered eating, Becca is passionate about helping other adults with ADHD who struggle with binge eating, chronic dieting, and disordered eating heal their relationship with food and find food freedom. She uses the Principles of Intuitiv...

Have you ever started a diet while feeling motivated, then found it fall apart as motivation faded? Or maybe you're great on weekdays, but thrown it out the window every weekend to "start again on Monday"? Or find yourself in a restrict-binge cycle? Today's episode is for you.  We are talking 3 Reasons Your Diet Isn't Working, and focusing on specific areas you are probably not thinking about...