Transcript EP 285 – Intermittent Fasting with Cynthia Thurlow, NP

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Dr. Taz: Welcome back, everyone. Welcome back to another episode of Super Woman Wellness, where you know we’re determined to bring you back to your superpower self. I’m really excited about this next guest and this next topic. I feel like we can’t stop talking about intermittent fasting. So joining me today is Cynthia Thurlow. She’s a nurse practitioner, CEO and founder of Everyday Wellness project and an international speaker with over 10 million views for her second TEDx talk, Intermittent Fasting Transformational Technique. And with over 20 years of experience in health and wellness, she’s a globally recognized expert in intermittent fasting and nutritional health and has been featured on ABC, Fox 5, KTLA, CW and the Megyn Kelly show.

Dr. Taz: She hosts the Everyday Wellness podcast which is considered one of 21 podcasts to expand your mind in 2021 by business insider. Welcome to the show, Cynthia. We’re excited to have you here. Are you going to clear up all the confusion for us about intermittent fasting and women’s health? I feel like we see a different issue or a different study come up over and over again. Tell us how you got into this and what your thoughts are.

Cynthia: Well, thank you for that warm welcome. Sometimes when I have those long intros that my team sends over, I cringe because I think to myself, ” Oh my gosh, it’s just a lot of stuff.” But what it really comes down to is I became interested in intermittent fasting when in my early forties I hit the wall of perimenopause. I was doing all the wrong things, I worked for a very busy cardiology practice. I had two young kids, my husband did a ton of traveling and as you probably know women in perimenopause and beyond have to do things a little differently. So intermittent fasting was something that I started out of curiosity and I felt so much better so quickly that it literally bled into everything I was doing, not just personally but professionally. And that’s really how it started really as the N-of-1.

Cynthia: And then realizing that it was a really profoundly impactful strategy that so many of us could do. And I grew up Roman Catholic and so we were supposed to fast on high holy days that was part of our relationship. So I think for a lot of people that think that this is a newer novel or it’s trending, I just remind them it’s actually, not. It’s very aligned with ancestral health perspectives and very unaligned with our traditional mindset around meal timing and mini meals and snacks and as I think about the very traditional standard American diet regime that is certainly not doing us any benefits.

Dr. Taz: It’s so funny because our family’s Muslim and Ramadan is all about fasting so it is interesting that so many of these religious traditions included fasting as a form of purification not just spiritually but physically too. So you’re right, it’s been around for a really long time and it’s interesting to see it come around in all its different forms. Now, intermittent fasting as you see the science, what does the science say? Let’s go to that for just a second because I know there’s some great studies around it but then just as soon as a lot of that information came out, there were some studies saying it’s really not good for women’s health so paint the science picture for us for just a moment.

Cynthia: Yeah. I mean, I think it’s important to understand that men and women have to fast differently and a lot of the research that’s been done as it pertains to women has been done on live animals. And last time I checked, we are not rodents, we have a very different gestational cycle. A lot of the research has been done on obese menopausal women and also men. And so my hope and my endeavor is to ensure that we are doing more research in the area of younger fertile women obviously, being very mindful of their follicular and luteal phases. But when we’re really looking at the research and we really dive deep into the benefits, there is no question that we are going to see an up regulation in autophagy which is this waste and recycling process in the body which I think is one of the coolest aspects of intermittent fasting that many people don’t even focus on.

Cynthia: So many people are focused on aesthetics. Yes, you can lose weight, you can change body composition. If you start looking at biophysical markers, improvement in fasting, insulin, fasting, glucose, triglycerides, HDL, hypertension, waist circumference so the metabolic syndrome that we’re seeing so much improvement in inflammation and oxidative stress because we’re getting this mitophagy autophagy that’s going on. Some of the most interesting research to me is really looking at brain health and cognitive disorders and the reduction in risk for Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s and then also the reduction in certain types of cancers and even really good research on keeping women in remission after breast cancer which I think probably, almost every woman that’s out there, there’s a concern about breast cancer.

Cynthia: And so I have women on my team that are breast cancer survivors and they fast because they know that the research is suggesting and certainly, supporting that fasting is a really helpful and beneficial strategy to utilize post-treatment. So again, the biggest issue right now, I think is the fact that there’s not enough research done on human women that which has been done has been predominantly on yeast cells, it’s been done on rodents and then also men and obese menopausal women. But I do hope over time that our menstrual cycles are not looked at as inconvenience in research but it’s something that they can embrace.

Dr. Taz: Oh, it’s such a great point because I think that is how it’s looked at, that you can’t standardize anything because we’re fluctuating all the time but we are going to always fluctuate all the time. And I do think for everyone listening and watching the research is saying, yes to intermittent fasting. If you are menopausal and obese, it seems to work for those women. It works for men, it seems to work for men pretty well. It doesn’t, the research is saying currently, maybe not necessarily the best idea for younger women or even perimenopausal women that haven’t completely lost their cycle.

Dr. Taz: So let’s break down the right way to fast and what that chemistry is and I think the foundation that we can lay for everyone listening and they’re probably, tired of me saying this but the foundation we can lay is that it’s blood sugar and insulin regulation and inflammation that continue to be the repetitive themes for all women, 13 to 70, I would say even above. And those are the things we’re seeing over and over again. How does intermittent fasting come along, insert itself into this very common public health issue and become a solution when we’re talking about women and women’s health?

Cynthia: I think it really starts with the lack of meal frequency so I’m not sure how old you are but when I was training in the 1990s, we were telling our patients, “We want to stoke our metabolism. We want to have three meals a day and snack.” So when all of a sudden you are removing the snacking, you are restructuring your macros so your protein, fat and carbohydrates. You are going to allow your body to actually, utilize stored food or whether it’s stored as glycogen or stored as fat. You’re going to be able to get to a point where you’re utilizing stored fat as in energy source. And so when we’re looking at insulin utilization, we understand that when insulin levels are low, we have the ability to go in and tap into these fat stores as a resource point. And one of the really cool things when we’re looking at specific types of fatty acids or ketones is that they can cross the blood brain barrier.

Cynthia: So we start looking at a reduction in inflammation, we start looking at lowered insulin levels which are going to improve the metabolic machinery of our bodies. People are not going to have energy slumps, they’re not going to get sleepy after meals. They are going to learn how to properly structure their macros, protein, fat and carbohydrates depending on where they are in their menstrual cycle but also dependent on the frequency of fasting that they’re doing. You alluded to the fact which I think is really important, women under the age of 35 that are still at their peak fertile years, especially lean smaller women should not be fasting every day. I really do encourage women to lean into their follicular cycle. Certainly women that are PCOS, polycystic ovarian syndrome or are obese. And one thing that’s important to note is that 25% of women with PCOS are thin, there’s a thin phenotype.

Cynthia: So you don’t have to be obese to have PCOS and so really explaining to people that a lot of the chronic diseases that we’re seeing even in women are related to insulin resistance. So really looking at that specific population and saying, we want to be most protective of your fertility even if you choose not to have children at that point in your life or ever your body is acutely sensitive to the cues that we take in from the environment from food. So follicular phase from the day we start bleeding to right before ovulation, that is when we are in the position where we can fast may not be every day for a woman at that stage of life but that is the time you can push your workouts, you can have a lower carb, ketogenic diet. Certainly, it is very important to understand that it is very different because that’s when estrogen predominates more insulin sensitivity after ovulation, women have more fluctuations in progesterone and this is a very different type of hormone.

Cynthia: We tend to be a little more insulin resistant. If a woman is in a position where they’re still trying to lose weight and still at peak fertile years, I completely tell people to back off of fasting the week before their menstrual cycle, very important to understand so that’s one specific subject. But really understanding that insulin resistance is a byproduct of meal frequency, meal choices. So a lot of that can be improved upon by not eating as frequently. I’m not saying not to eat, making better food choices and we as a nation, don’t talk enough about this. It’s like women don’t eat enough protein, they eat too many of the wrong types of carbs and too many of the wrong types of fats. And then perimenopause this 10 to 15 year process with 35 to 50, when women are going through reverse puberty, that’s the easiest way to explain it.

Cynthia: Do I think that women at that stage of life can embrace intermittent fasting? Yes, but the caveats are this, they have to be more mindful of their sleep quality. They have to be more focused on anti-inflammatory nutrition, stress management, and the right types of exercise. A woman at 47 cannot exercise the way she did at 27 and a lot of it’s, my mitigating a lot of these hormonal changes that are happening in our bodies especially, with this loss of progesterone or we’re having petering amounts of progesterone, anovulatory cycles, we have relative estrogen dominance. Our bodies don’t handle stress as readily as it did when we were younger and so that can be, I call it the reverse puberty years. There are women that can absolutely embrace intermittent fasting at that life stage however if they lose their menstrual cycle, if they suddenly can’t sleep at night, if they feel poorly they lose energy.

Cynthia: That could be a sign that it’s too much stress for the body and I’m sure your listeners are super savvy about the concept of hormesis. But fasting is a type of beneficial stress in the right amount at the right time but that doesn’t mean it’s the right strategy for everyone. And so I love that you’re creating that distinction and then menopause, we don’t have as much hormonal flux week to week, day to day. And so for a lot of menopausal women, it can become a pretty impactful strategy, provided all those other lifestyle pieces that I mentioned earlier are also dialed in. But what we’re talking about consistently, when we’re looking at women in teen years, young adults, older adults, the key thing is it all starts with food. And meal frequency is a huge component related to that. It’s interesting, I was reading a research article the other day and it was talking about how insulin resistance starts on our muscles.

Cynthia: So I always feel that it’s really important to make sure people understand irrespective of what stage of life you are in, not only is it related to nutrition but you have to maintain and build muscle because after the age of 40, we start losing it. I would say lose, it’s not a question of if but when… But sarcopenia, which is the muscle loss of aging, becomes even more important. And so that ties in with that as well, the protein macros and making sure you’re getting enough protein in during your feeding window. And if you’re not, you may need to change up the amount of hours that you’re doing it.

Dr. Taz: I think that’s all such important information but just breaking it down real quickly for everyone listening. So days one through 14, if you’re menstruating and still at that stage, it’s okay to fast and we’ll define what that means in just a minute. When you hit post ovulation so days 15 through 28, assuming you have a 28 day cycle, that’s where it’s questionable because progesterone and the instability of progesterone creates a lot of blood sugar fluctuation. It also creates a lot of sleep fluctuation and underneath that conversation with stress and lifestyle and all that other stuff, if you’re in what we have been calling adrenal fatigue, where you’re just crashed out, that’s also not a great time to begin intermittent fasting because we don’t need additional stress to the body. So that’s what I got out of it and what I’ve been practicing as well, is most of that in alignment with what you’re saying?

Cynthia: Absolutely. And I think you bring up a good point that not every woman has this perfect pristine 28 or 30 day cycle. And so there are strategies I talk about in the book for people that don’t have regular cycles but yes, estrogen is our insulin sensitizing hormone and progesterone is the opposite. And you’re right, as you get closer to menstruation as you’re getting to last 21 today’s 21 through 28, this is one of those faltering progesterone levels. It may impact GABA, can impact sleep, anxiety and depression may get exacerbated. You may not feel quite as fantastic as you would otherwise would but this is a time we start tweaking macros and understanding that this is sometimes where those cravings that we get right before a menstrual cycle are really our body’s way of ensuring that we’re changing and adjusting our macros at that time.

Dr. Taz: Yeah. And it’s so tricky because we are these cyclical creatures so again, dialing into your hormone situation, I think is so important. And that’s why I keep ringing that bell. You’ve got to know where you are, you’ve got to know what’s normal for you. And you’ve got to manage those six or seven hormones that we keep talking about over and over again. All right now, intermittent fasting itself, there’s a hormone world and there’s adrenal fatigue and there’s thyroid and there’s all that stuff. But straight talking about intermittent fasting, I have heard and seen everything, 24 hours, 18 hours, 16 hours, 14 hours, 12 hours. What is the right way to intermittently fast and how would you define it?

Cynthia: Well, I would define it as eating less often. It is really that simple and when people are new to intermittent fasting, if you are on a standard American diet eating couch potato, you are going to start fasting very differently. So the way that I look at when I’m peeling back layers, if someone has been eating three meals a day and snacks in between and is physically sedentary, we first pull the bandaid off. We take away the snacks because no one should be eating snacks that’s not benefiting us. It’s not benefiting our insulin and glucose regulation and so explaining to people that we are going to learn how to structure our macros and macros are our macronutrients so protein, fat and carbohydrates. So the very first thing we’re going to do is we are going to restructure focused on protein, non-starchy vegetables. If your protein has a healthy fat, like if you have a rib eye or a salmon, you don’t need that much fat for your meal.

Cynthia: And really looking strategically because that protein is going to keep you satiated, it’s going to help with muscle protein synthesis, very important. And I find when people hit the right amount of protein, they don’t get hungry in between meals so that’s step one and two. And then it’s going from dinner at night until breakfast the next day and so that can be frightening. People think they’re going to starve, they’re going to get hypoglycemic, they’re going to feel poorly. And I just remind them, we really are starting with a 12 to 13 hour digestive rest. And from there, we determine how much leeway someone has. Some people go from 12 or 13 hours to 15 to 16, fairly easily. I like most of my female patients to work up to 16 hours if they’re able to. That may take four to six weeks for some people depending on how carbohydrate dependent they are.

Cynthia: And I always like to remind people, we’re all bio individuals. So if you’re watching this and saying I’ve tried to do fasting and my friend was able to fast 18 hours effortlessly and I could barely get to 14. My first question is where are you in your menstrual cycle? What are your macros like? Because those two things can really impact your success, so when I look at intermittent fasting a 16/8, so a 16 hours fast with an eight hour feeding window is a good ideal to work towards. And as I stated earlier, women in the follicular phase can really push that provided they’re slowly working up to it. But also not apologizing for physiology. Unfortunately, I think that’s one of the things about intermittent fasting. It’s the inconvenience of having a menstrual cycle but really that’s our superpower.

Cynthia: So that’s a good starting point and once someone has mastered the basics, once they are fat adapted, meaning their body can utilize both carbohydrates and fats as a fuel substrate and that’s important then they can go on longer fast. But there’s the law of diminishing returns, there are people who think, “I’m lean, I’m fit, I want to fast for three days.” And I always say there’s not a lot of good research to suggest that it’s going to be beneficial. In fact, the law of diminishing returns suggest that you actually, lose some muscle mass but if you are obese 50 pounds, you need to lose 30 pounds. You have plenty of fuel around, you can do some of those longer fast once you’ve mastered the basics. And I think that’s an important distinction. And certainly, that’s why your patients work with you and my people work with me so that we can carefully guide them into determining what the right strategy is for them to utilize.

Dr. Taz: Such important information. And do you have guidelines on what those macros should look like if you’re doing a 16 hour… I mean, some of you guys like grams, some of you don’t actually, like them. But how many grams of protein, how many grams of carbs are fat? If somebody wanted to track that, what would you suggest?

Cynthia: Well, I think the one thing I have learned is that we grossly under eat protein women, in general. Remember I talked about sarcopenia muscle loss with aging, it’s not a question of if but when. So I encourage people to aim for a hundred grams a day. Now, there are probably people saying, “Oh my gosh, I don’t know how I could get to that. I’m eating 40.” Eat more, so maybe you’re having four ounces of protein with your meal, aim for six. Slowly work your way up, I didn’t start off eating 50 or 60 grams of protein with my meals. I’ve been doing this for a while, I can do that and I know exactly how I feel after I eat. I’m completely satiated, I have no issues with wanting to go snacking or doing anything else. So starting with protein hundred grams a day but the US RDA is terrible, it’s 0.8. Yeah, it’s terrible. So it’s grossly underestimated. It underestimates what we want, if you’re familiar as with Dr. Gabrielle Lyon’s work, she talks about one gram per pound of ideal body weight that freaks people out.

Cynthia: So I say aim for a hundred that’s a good starting point, slowly work your way up. As it pertains to carbohydrates, I think it really depends on how much weight someone is looking to lose. If you are a hundred pounds overweight, guess what? You really do need to carbohydrate restrict, the average American consumes 200 to 300 grams a day. And for most people it is not from low glycemic fruit and non-starchy vegetables. It is made from processed bread, pasta, rice, et cetera. So you really have to get real with yourself and I’m talking about total carbs, I want under a hundred grams. For some people, they need to be less, they need to be under 50 or under 75.

Cynthia: But under a hundred grams for a lot of people is a big stretch. Now, when it comes to discretionary healthy fats like avocado, coconut oil, MCT oil, I do encourage women to at least be cognizant of portion sizes because some people don’t digest their fats well. I do much better with leaner meat and some plant-based fats that’s just my body. I have other people who can eat a big fat rib eye and they do just fine. So I think a little bit of experimentation is key but when you are measuring whether it’s macadamia nuts, avocado, coconut, MCT oil, lard, duck fat, whatever it is that you like. At least initially I would start measuring portions because we know that fat is much more nutrient dense than protein or carbohydrates so you don’t need to have two avocados a day.

Cynthia: You don’t need to have half a bag of macadamia nuts as I know they’re delicious. And so really starting with a hundred grams of protein, getting under a hundred grams of carbohydrates which where people blow their mind, I’m talking total carbs not net. Net is cheating, is a really good first rung of the ladder to really work towards. And then I find once people realize a hundred grams of carbs is not no carbs then we can tailor it down. I try to get people to under 75.

Dr. Taz: So let’s get folks some visuals. A hundred grams of protein, how would we get that in if we’re only getting in two meals a day?

Cynthia: Would have to have substantial protein sources. So for me, I mean, today I had two bison burgers so almost 10 ounces of protein and a stretch but an eight ounce steak is going to get you 50, 60 grams easily. Now, did I start off with that amount? Absolutely not. I’ve slowly worked my way up, for a lot of people it can be 30 grams from having a large chicken breast or they can get a nice piece of salmon or some tuna. And for some people they want to utilize a scale to get honest with themselves so they can eyeball those protein choices. I’m not opposed to that at all because for a lot of us, we’ve been under-eating protein for such a long period of time. I’ll give you an example, my husband today, I have teenage boys so they eat everything and anything.

Cynthia: My husband had tuna fish, he had two cans of tuna fish that was 40 grams of protein and he easily ate that. So don’t be afraid if you are undereating protein, don’t be afraid of like, “Oh my gosh, there’s no way I could finish a can of tuna.” Okay, slowly work up to that but when you take the junk out, when you’re not filling it up with bread and pasta and rice, all of a sudden you do have room for high quality protein intake and maybe it’s tracking like Cronometer is an app that I like and I recommend track on your macro tracker so that you know what you’re eating. What are you deficient in? Are you really struggling with getting your protein in? Maybe have some bone broth, maybe you can have a high quality if you tolerate dairy, there are high quality… And I’m very picky about ingredients.

Cynthia: I don’t like a lot of junky fillers, I don’t like any artificial sweeteners. So I encourage you to feel if you’re going to choose to have a protein shake, make sure it has a very limited ingredient list and it’s not something that’s replacing a real meal. I’m a realist, I certainly have days. I’m sure you do too where you’re just trying to get your macros in but really I want you to have food that you chew, you swallow, it hits your stomach and then your body registers that you’ve eaten a meal because I think that’s significant.

Dr. Taz: So what do you say, and this is not me so this is not a question from me but from probably, the audience. I love how I speak for the audience and then not here but anyhow. But from the audience, the whole push towards plant-based foods, the whole push towards being vegan, how in the world are these folks supposed to get these macros there? I still haven’t gotten my head around it. How do they get their macros where they need to be whether they’re intermittent fasting or not?

Cynthia: I have strong opinions about plant-based agendas and veganism. I respect people that want to consume a plant-based diet obviously, but at the detriment to your macros because most vegetarians have to consume quite a bit of carbohydrate whether it’s lentils, beans, soy, et cetera, in order to get those protein sources in. And I find they’re not satiated so they keep eating. So it really wrecks your insulin, your fasting glucose. Because I have women track all the time I’m like, “If you can’t afford a CGM, continuous glucose monitor then you need a glucometer.” And when they start tracking their blood sugar, they realize like, I really need to change things up. I can’t have this massive two cups of quinoa is not equivalent to a steak and so the immuno acid profile is very different so I think it can be very challenging.

Cynthia: And I do have a few ketogenic plant-based people in my sphere that work with me and they’re chronically under protein. And we talk very openly about it. I get concerned because they’re thin, they’re middle aged women and they feel a tremendous sense of guilt about consuming animal based sources. And so I try to, “Can we do a little bit of egg? Can we do a little bit of dairy if you tolerate dairy?” So I try very hard sometimes to get people to eat some fish or some lean turkey or chicken. So at least they’re getting some sources of additional animal based amino acid profiling but that is the challenge. And I find for a lot of people when I really lay it out for them I’m like, “I want what’s best for you. I want to respect your choices that you’re making. I just want you to understand, make a fully educated decision and understand that you are not benefiting, we know insulin resistance starts in our muscles.”

Cynthia: Really emphasizing to people that it’s so important as we’re getting older to make sure we’re hitting those protein macros and people get creative. I have a lot of vegetarians that start eating eggs and they’ll do a little bit of cheese and then maybe they then foray over into a mild white, flaky fish. And they’ll do that because they realize that there is value in supplementing their diet with some additional protein options.

Dr. Taz: Yeah. I just came back from a girl’s trip and it was fabulous but the group of women actually ate very little. No one ate a lot, but I didn’t have access to all the stuff that I have to have, my 30, 40 gram protein shake in the morning. And you know what I mean? I have this little regimen going most of the time. And I was telling my husband, I came back and my belly was hanging even though collectively through any given day, I had eaten less. And so it’s just interesting that chemistry is very real. It’s sarcopenia and muscle and insulin relationship and the storage of belly fat and protein and all of this other stuff. All right, we’re getting close but I have to do this. The carbs, so hundred grams of carbs staying under that, does that allow us to have half a plate of vegetables with every meal, what does that allow? And then really how much damage do we do with that cup of rice, the cookie, all of that other business that sneaks in?

Cynthia: No, that’s a great question. I think what I suggest to most people is that they carb cycle and this is another thing I talk about in the book that you have days of lower carbs and then maybe one day of discretionary, higher carbs along the medium carbs and that allows better compliance so let me be clear about that. This is where I think having a glucometer is really helpful because I did experiments with an eighth of a cup of rice all the way up to a cup and my body does not do well with rice even though I’m thin and fit. And so I think people need to really do the experiment of N-of-1, find out for yourself what and how your body reacts to certain types of carbohydrates because it may surprise you. I don’t tolerate plantains and rice but I can eat tropical fruit like there’s no tomorrow which makes zero sense to me quite honestly.

Cynthia: So I think there’s a degree of experimentation, I do recommend carb cycling because it helps with compliance. Under a hundred grams is really not all that challenging. I think once people get used to it, I think what gets challenging is when people try to drop it to 75 or 50 just even for experimentation because there are so many discretionary carbs. Can you have a big salad and still get under a hundred grams? Absolutely. But you have to work diligently. I always say the consistent lever is protein and then you’re deciding, is it a higher carb day? So I’m going to increase my discretionary carbs from low glycemic berries. Maybe today you’re going to have some sweet potato or root vegetables versus a day when you’re lower carbohydrate and maybe it’s the day you push that fat lever.

Cynthia: Maybe you’re having half an avocado, maybe you’re having a little bit more extra virgin olive oil on your salad. So I think it’s really a bit of experimentation that I found helps with compliance and then people look forward to a special celebration. I do think flour, anything whether it’s a gluten-free flour, almond flour, regular wheat flour, when you think about how that has been so processed down, it’s like mainline cocaine. I’ve never tried this, I’m just saying in my mind it’s the same, that effect into the bloodstream. You get that instant dopamine hit. That’s why it’s hard to have just one cookie or one piece of cake. And so I think flower based products, obviously, if you can’t moderate, you eliminate that’s just my mindset. On my birthday do I have cake? Absolutely. Do I make it a regular occurrence? Absolutely not.

Cynthia: But I do like dark chocolate and I can enjoy dark chocolate and I can moderate my intake and so I think that’s the recognition. Each one of us has our kryptonite and we need to determine if I can’t moderate, I need to eliminate. But I also need to find, my methodology is always good, better or best. So if you can’t pick the best choice, pick the next best choice but with the understanding that we want to enjoy our lives, I feel like the last two years have really shown to so many of us that there are things we really enjoy in our personal lives. And so I’m not suggesting you not enjoy a party, a celebration but if you know something’s your kryptonite, don’t indulge in it and then end up having like… It turns into not a cheat meal but a cheat week and the next thing you feel really poorly.

Dr. Taz: Goodness, I could talk about this for so much longer. This is such great information. I really appreciate it. I hope you guys have a better understanding of maybe how to approach intermittent fasting and what may work and what may not work. And of course, Cynthia, if they want to reach out to you, I know you’ve got a book, we didn’t even talk about your book. Intermittent Fasting Transformation is the book. What can they learn in the book and what other resources do you have for folks just trying to get more information?

Cynthia: Yeah, thank you. Well, I’d start with the book. So Intermittent Fasting Transformation IF 45 is the first book designed for women. What makes us unique, allows us to embrace our physiology and not apologize for it. So I talk about the science in a way that’s super accessible. I talk about ways to strategize utilizing this and then there’s a 45 day program along with delicious meal plans that I created with Beth Lipton who’s an amazing chef. The easiest way to connect with me is off my website so www.cynthiathurlow.com. I have a great podcast as you mentioned earlier, Everyday Wellness podcast and I’m now actually, the co-host of the Intermittent Fasting podcast of Melanie Avalon. But I’m very active on Instagram, I’m a little snarky on Twitter and you will find me, it’s a free private Facebook group called Intermittent Fasting Lifestyle backslash my name. It’s a really great community so if you want to just get to know me better, get to know my team better, that’s certainly a great place to start. But all of those things are accessible off of my website.

Dr. Taz: Wonderful. Well, thank you for taking time out today. I appreciate it. And for everybody else, thank you for listening and watching this episode of Super Woman Wellness. Don’t forget to rate and review it and share it with your friends and we will see you guys next time.