SPEAKER_00: 0:00

Hello, Dr. Crystal Guavera. How lucky am I that you came back? Oh, shucks.

SPEAKER_02: 0:07

I'm always here. I'm always open for an awesome chat and to talk about ideas, and it's always a great time. So thank you so much for having me back.

SPEAKER_00: 0:15

Thank you so much. I want us to jump right in because you just released an ebook.

SPEAKER_02: 0:25

Yeah. It was supposed to be just sort of a small guide and then it sort of evolved into 130 pages. Not all text. Like I am not, I and I am one who uh I really I really enjoyed math classes in college just because I was not much of a huge like if I read just a block of text, I will start to fall asleep. So it is not like there's a lot of graphics, there's you know a lot of visuals in there, like the text is broken up, like there's little lists. So yeah, don't please don't, you know, you say 130 pages and feel like, oh my gosh. Um, you know, and there's sections that you can jump to. There's a page where it's like if you just want to learn about this, jump to this section. So want to just preface it by saying it's not like as overwhelming as it sounds off the bat.

SPEAKER_00: 1:17

Okay, okay. Well, I um you've been on the show and you talk about GLP1, and uh we've actually really dove into it um in our in our previous conversation. But if you could just maybe give us me um a little bit of uh of an intro to the book. Don't give it all away, just a little intro. Welcome to Body Holic with D. We don't do fads here, we give you the facts that move your body and health forward. Wait up, hold up. I'm not a doctor. The information in this podcast is for informational purposes only and not medical advice. So kick back and enjoy the show.

SPEAKER_02: 1:59

Yeah, so it's it it really just goes through an over a very basic overview of the kind of lifestyle that pairs very well for somebody who is taking these medications, you know, with when it comes to thinking about calories, when it comes to thinking about macronutrients, when it comes to thinking about strength training, which is super important. The, you know, despite that, you can still pick this up regardless of whether or not you are on a GLP one, because it nails all the basics. Making sure you get your protein in, making sure you get your fiber in, making sure you stay hydrated, making sure that resistance training is an important part of the process that isn't eliminated. And that's not to say that you can't do cardio, that's not to say you can't become a runner. But I also know that practically speaking, particularly women uh in, you know, ages 30 to 50, middle-aged, you've got stuff going on. Your moms, your wives, you have careers. So I always keep that in in the forefront of my messaging. So I just don't want, you know, people are like, well, I'm a runner and you know, yes, that is all important. But I am also talking about people who practically speaking have a hard time getting to the gym or picking up a weight because of, you know, time issues, or they, you know, have a lot of stuff going on at home. So rank priority, making sure if I had to pick something to do in the gym, making sure you lift the heavyweights would be number one for women, in my opinion.

SPEAKER_00: 3:37

Amen. Yeah. Um and I wanna I wanna zoom into the GLP one specifically, if that's okay. Yeah. Um if if, well, actually, sort of, if GLP one uh medications were to completely disappear off the face of the earth tomorrow, um what would you feel is the most important um habit that is actually will determine the long-term success of whatever you reached with the GLP one right now?

SPEAKER_02: 4:17

Oh, and I mean I can easily say that because I spent the, I would say, what is it, 10 years, 10 to 10 to 12 years doing all the things before the GLP one medication kind of showed up, I decided to go for it, is resistance training. Um I think all those times building building that muscle, making sure my tendons and my bones were strong so that by the time achieving a calorie deficit and being able to maintain a lower body weight was entirely possible. I had the foundation of muscle. Otherwise, and I've done this before where I have dieted down. I didn't do resistance training, I did a whole bunch of cardio because of reasons. And I think I mentioned this. Um, every chapter has a snippet of my like little bits of my life, like things I screwed up on or things that happened. And I very remember distinctly remember in the early 2000s doing this where I was on a commercial weight loss program. I didn't, I understood the concept of calories, but not macronutrients. I didn't need a balance plate, and I did a lot of cardio, and I remember getting sick all the time. I remember feeling very fatigued and burnt out. And uh my physique looked like a soft bag of, you know, and just like I just felt very like no muscle tone whatsoever. I felt softer than I did than when I started and just smaller. And I was like, what? What is this? And then after the third like head cold, I just decided to say, forget it, like this is not worth it. Maybe being skinny is not in the cards for me. Stopped doing what I was doing. My calories went up, my weight went back up, all of that. But the cold went away. So I was like, okay.

SPEAKER_00: 6:10

Right, right. But also I have to say, this the thought of skinny um is is like I I find it little a little like I don't I don't aim to be skinny. I um and you know what? If you're super, super skinny, it's all I mean, maybe that's just you the way you are, which is great. But then I would actually say, please, my dear super skinny friend, hit the gym and lift the weights and make sure that your super skinny frame has, you know, is being held properly.

SPEAKER_02: 6:47

Yes. And I've seen that where I do follow certain uh Instagram accounts where these women are, you know, print models or runway models and or um even One Miss Universe that I do follow. Um, and I see them lifting the weights, and I think that's really awesome because you have to still build that strength. And what that strength is going to look like is going to be different for somebody who is naturally skinny compared to, you know, somebody who does have a thicker frame like myself. And it's all good. I do remember in the 90s though, the I wanted the muscles and I wanted the lean frame. But the only time I ever saw women gaining weight, lifting heavy weights was a skinny person trying building muscle and then you know, having like this sort of shape that I thought, like, oh, that looks really cool to have the muscles. And so, and then when it came to people who lost weight, it was like, I just lose the weight first and then I'm gonna build the muscle later. And I just the concept, so I took that to the extreme, and that's why I did the all that cardio because I was like, okay, well, I'm gonna get to this size first, and then I'm gonna raise my calories and figure out how to build the muscle later. But I never got to a lean enough state because I didn't realize I had to preserve whatever muscle I had, you know, at the my starting size.

SPEAKER_00: 8:14

So But I don't think, I don't think it was because um you in generally, like you specifically, were misinformed. I actually think looking back 20 years, um, I think we were all kind of misinformed. And that was really uh also, you know, the the major cutting phases and then the the bulking phases uh and being so extreme with it, and women were just like, yeah, I'm gonna cut. I'm gonna cut. Um the public conversation around GLP 1 is so fascinating to me because it's polarized like crazy. I feel like the last time you and I spoke, it wasn't as polarized, actually.

SPEAKER_02: 8:58

Really, really.

SPEAKER_00: 8:59

I I'm it's uh the last time we spoke, I was getting, you know, like mixed messages from people.

SPEAKER_01: 9:06

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 9:07

And but now I'm there's a lot of bad press all of a sudden. And I want to talk about how oversimplified the GLP1 conversation is, and do you find it misleading? And just tell me about that.

SPEAKER_02: 9:25

Man, I I guess I would say that I for myself, I do cut try to keep tabs on the news as far as GLP1s. As far as TikTok goes, I actually don't have a TikTok account, which is good and bad. And then for Instagram, I purposely tailor my algorithm such that I try and stay away from the rage bait, uh, you know, green screen commentary, just because and there's only so much I can and handle for my own personal sake. Um, you know, somebody had asked me the other day of what do you think about celebrities who may or may not be on a GLP one who are seemingly much thinner? And to that, I say uh I don't really have much to say about these celebrities because I don't know them. I don't know their medical history. I don't like unless I have a personal interaction with them, I do not believe what anything that anybody else writes about them. But also I have the confidence now. And I when I work with women, I help them build the confidence such that they can just look at what somebody else is doing and move about their day. Like the like I think, or at least for myself, that's where I enjoy spending my time and energy is to building people up and not having to tear people down or play the comparison game or put these, you know, other people in a position of like you are here in this position, like you have to be an advocate or a, you know, not every celebrity wants to be put in that position. Like they're there to go do their job, sing their song or act their movie. And I think it's unfair to automatically put those, you know, labels on them or requirements on them that they never asked for.

SPEAKER_00: 11:23

Correct. Yeah, absolutely. Um, so the your ebook. Yeah, yes, were you gonna say something? I'm sorry. No, no, no, no. Oh, your ebook um is actually uh it's a GLP one guide for beginners, but it's also um how to think about nutrition and training while on the medication, but anyone who's starting out. Yeah, and that's so I think that's really important too. Yes, you you definitely have a strong voice in the in the GLP one conversation, but also you're not only talking to the people who are taking the medications, you're actually talking to people who are starting out.

SPEAKER_01: 12:10

Yes.

SPEAKER_00: 12:12

And so you were mentioning the fact that there is uh the prioritization. Like, what are you gonna do? How are you gonna uh basically make sure that you get the strength training in? What else is um I know we don't want to have a spoiler, but like what else would you say is is one big tip for people who um are starting out, whether they're on the medication or not, other than the strength training?

SPEAKER_02: 12:46

Oh, I mean, you can um, yeah, this is all free too. So I we can go. Um, the the other things as far as training goes, um, how why it's important to repeat the same exercises over, you know, a period of weeks at a time and not necessarily having a different workout every single like every time you go to the gym. That way you can actually progress. And with the progression comes the you know, potential the adaptations that your muscle, it's gonna tell send that signal to your muscles, hey, like we still need to be here, even though you may or may not be in a calorie deficit. So like don't get rid of us, is basically what we're trying to say. And then also um kind of, you know, what a sample two to three, you know, times per week, like doing just something very simple, a full body, um, something for your upper body, something for your lower body, um, what where you could maybe find some helpful tips on like what exercise form looks like, um, if you need to hire a personal trainer, but I would say just it's gonna look boring. It's got you're gonna have to, the progressive overload, you're gonna have to challenge yourself um what effective reps would look like, and not necessarily like what the RPE R I R scale would look like. Like you're gonna actually have to start paying attention. So, like if you get to the end of a set and you're like, I could do another 10 to 20 reps, that weight is way too light. If you're like using, you know, your whole body to swing things around, and that usually doesn't happen. I usually see that more often with male counterparts, no offense. Um, you know, maybe the weight's a little too heavy, you got to put it down. But if you're just like, okay, you know, the 10th rep comes around, like I have to actually pay attention, like I can't scroll on my phone and hold a dumbbell at the same time, you know, I would say you're probably doing good. So, and just putting a lot less emphasis on like this hyper optimization of like, oh my gosh, if I don't get to two R I R on this set, it's over, it's you know, the watching the the kind of science uh wars, the the studies online is just for the last decade. I'm just like, this has never been my thing. Because how is that gonna help me with the person I'm talking to right now who's afraid to go to the gym, isn't sure what to do? How am I gonna get them to buy in to doing this consistently? And this like randomized control trial study is not like gonna help. In fact, it's probably gonna drive her away from lifting it forever.

SPEAKER_00: 15:27

Thank you so much for saying that. Thank you so much for saying that. We need to like as you know, you're a doctor, you're a physician, I'm a trainer, I I have a team that works with me. And um, you know, a lot of a lot of the people who work for me are actually 40 plus, but I have this adorable 23-year-old who I just believe in her. I just think she's a rock star. I know, I know it's gonna be good. Um, but I often say, like in in our meetings, I'm like, look at the person in front of you. Just look under listen, really listen. Don't talk about the latest study that just came out that was posted on the Schreerfer or a germ or jerk germ. No exactly. Yeah. Um I'm I'm curious. Um, should training volume and uh intensity change with the change in appetite that comes with the GLP one? Like is or really are you just saying just listen to your body? Or should there be a change when you start with the GLP one?

SPEAKER_02: 16:37

So that that is the that I think that is kind of the main difference between being on a GLP one and not is that now that you're removing that food noise aspect and the hunger comes down to, you know, from an 11 to what, a three or a four. And sometimes they overshoot it and people's appetites disappear completely. So now the frame that it starts to shift, right? You've gone from being having to battle your biology your entire life to having that noise completely shut off, and now you're left with silence. And now you have to be very intentional about your nutrition. It doesn't become just a I eat whenever I'm hungry, because now that signal has been blunted. We totally, you know, yes, you're gonna have some hunger, but it fluctuates. There are people at when they first start out, it's like I can't eat anything. I'm struggling. I'm going to, you know, have to resort to shakes, I'm gonna have to resort to kind of higher density foods like nuts to like get some calories in because it's 5 p.m. and I have a headache and but I'm not hungry and I feel kind of nauseous. So wow, you really and and and that's all part of the process, right? Like, especially if you have a very good team of people that are kind of helping you with this and kind of walking you along the way. But that's the big main thing that you have to keep in mind when you're on these medications, that your goal with nutrition nutrition has to be a lot more intentional than if you weren't on it, because before we had these cute hunger cues that, you know, were and these signals that for people who are on these need these medications are very hyperactive. The, you know, hedonic eating, the pleasure-seeking reward that they get from that we get from food is just very much higher than somebody who, you know, may have not ever struggled with weight in their entire lives. They're just like, I just eat less, and then weight just naturally drops.

SPEAKER_00: 18:34

So that brings me to another um, so what signs uh tell you that a patient is actually doing too much or going too far. Um, like the scale is moving in the right direction. And you know, the person is probably taking GLP one to lose weight. So um we I want to understand, like, where is the uh-oh, we need to put a break on this or something along those lines.

SPEAKER_02: 19:05

Yeah, the when I check in, when I when I do check-ins, I'm really making sure I ask the question, are you finishing your meals? And like I will have a plan, like looking at the nutrition plan, looking at kind of the things that they're eating. And yeah, out of how many meals, you know, per day, because we actually go over like what what kinds of stuff are you making? Like what are you making in the kitchen for the week? How are you setting yourself up for success? And how many of those meals are you not finishing at all? And I don't mean like, you know, you have a meal and then you eat it later on in the day. That's totally kosher, but there are some times where people will not, you know, finish the meal and then, you know, have to throw it away because it's the next day or something like that. And so then we start talking about like, is it appropriate to decrease the dose or are you feeling nauseous? Are you just not hungry at all? What is going on in your life? Or is your job just super busy that you can't, you know, get to it? Because especially in healthcare where you can't really, you aren't supposed to eat at your desk, but we do it anyway.

SPEAKER_00: 20:15

I'm sure. Right? I feel like so many people in healthcare don't actually get up from their desk enough. But yeah.

SPEAKER_02: 20:20

Yeah. So what is actually going on? Because it's not always just a hunger issue. There's like so many other things that are going on. And the so that's when, and and then when you take a look at how your lift's going in the gym, I think, you know, the your gym performance is also a big thing. Taking a look at sleep and your stress levels. Uh, I very much remember when I had overreached myself, uh, you know, very early on from dieting and like my sleep started like when you wake up in the morning and you've got like your heart racing, you feel this adrenaline rush. And I thought this was the most amazing thing ever because I'm type A. Uh, and my lifts were totally in the gutter. And my coach was like, You need to back off. We're gonna take a D load. I want you to just relax for this entire week, no gym, and then we'll get we'll reassess. So um, gym motivation to train in the gym, gym performance, all of that matters. And so if those are in the tank, sleep is terrible, stress levels, I am anxious and all over the place. I'm not eating meals. Uh, also looking at the weight, because sometimes there can be shifts, but I don't put much stock into I put more stock into trend weight trends over two to three weeks than any type of, you know, like day to day or even a a within a week. So those would be the types of things where I'd be like, mm, let's double check to see like what's going on. But I always, but I'm always checking in to see what's going on in your world, in your gym, in your kitchen, in your home, your family life. And that doesn't have to always be like you can get that done in a 15 minute like check-in. Like with your cell phone.

SPEAKER_00: 22:06

Like with yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah. Um so I you're you're triggering all these questions because it's just amazing. Um the calorie like would calorie tracking be part of the protocol or is that something actually that could backfire?

SPEAKER_02: 22:25

I think it really it depends. It can very well be and I think it it makes things easier but for some people it might not be all that simple and depending on where they're starting because if they're starting off with a whole lot of processed foods a whole lot of takeout you can really get a whole lot of stuff done with just trying to get them to cook food and getting less takeout. Yeah. So and there's a lot and you'd be you know there's a lot I know that we're online and that seems like there's a vast majority a lot of people online in the fitness space but that is still a very very small percentage of the total population. So there are plenty of people who get takeout for every meal. And yeah, so it really depends on the situation. It really depends on where people are at um and you got to find out where their starting point is and go from there. So for somebody who has no idea what a macro is no idea what a calorie is they're getting takeout all for every single meal probably not want to overwhelm them and start off with macro tracking and all of that stuff. Let's just pause and let's see how we can get you in the kitchen a little bit more often.

SPEAKER_00: 23:45

So it's it's um going down to basically adequate almost learning what adequate nourishment is. And um and we're no longer looking at appetite it's just really like how do we give the body what it needs what does it look like and then take it from there. Yeah um I'm super curious what happens when a person stops the medication all the people I've spoken to are actually starting or on the medication I don't I never actually really got into what happens when the person stops um so your book is actually more for the starting out but what happens after that?

SPEAKER_02: 24:33

Yeah the well if the you're removing that food noise and you're it makes it that much easier to one achieve a calorie deficit and two to maintain you know your maintenance calories at a smaller body size is going to be lower than where you're starting from currently so uh the hunger is going you know sometimes most often comes back and according to the literature majority of the people gain majority of the weight back over a very slow period not it's not immediate um but that actually makes sense with biology. So that that's to say that the person in front of you is not necessarily doomed for failure. That is not a failure on their part. I have seen people who have started the medication stopped it and still continue to maintain themselves and and their progress and and moved on. So it is not going to be the end of the world it is going it might be a little bit harder to with as far as the nutrition part goes because you have food noise back your hunger is a little bit much higher levels than when you were on you know compared to when you were on the medication but if you still continue the resistance training if you still you know are paying attention to your body weight at you know certain intervals like you check in on a regular basis excuse me and continue to fill your body with fiber with protein um the likelihood that you will gain the weight back is a lot lower than if you just decided to you know screw it like I'm hungry I'm gonna just go back to the old way I was eating so you're gonna do much better if you continue on those behavior habits that you were doing when you were on the medication. But however I've seen some people who are on these medications not do the you know the behave like the lifestyle stuff and yeah the you have a much higher chance of gaining the weight back and then some if you just you know don't focus on that. So it's all part of the process. You have to you still have to go to the gym you still have to lift the weights so taking this medication is not an easy way out. You still have to do the work.

SPEAKER_00: 26:58

I that is um absolutely I think the take home message it's it's um using the time on the medication you know whether you're uh maybe you're not planning on going off the medication but definitely this is the time to shine a light on habits yeah and and really changing your lifestyle and actually putting your health first which is such a gift. So um I'm gonna link your your book if that's okay with you. Of course I would love to and uh I think it's really important. I think uh that's a gift. So hey everybody please please check it out because it's so worth it whether you're on the GLP one or not.

SPEAKER_01: 27:45

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 27:46

Uh thank you so much for all your insight and and your generosity thank you.

SPEAKER_02: 27:52

Oh you're so welcome yeah I just and thank you for just being in the fitness space and giving people the tools to actually be able to thrive I've been so blessed with being in this space and being I just I feel like 2026 I'm excited to really bridge that gap between the fitness space and the medical community. I feel like you guys do such an amazing job of the lifestyle aspect of it and the training and the nutrition that I have gotten most like all this ebook stuff I mean I, you know, hats off to like this is all stuff I picked up from you know being in this space while in medical training, you know, doing the thing and I just be like okay I really just want to lift weights right now. Like it was just a really good place to I love it. Yeah. And I think more physicians yes there's plenty of experts who you know are really knowledgeable on medications and how and like the side effects and managing that. But remember that like this whole lifestyle part is also just important and we need to like find a way to get together and combine forces so we can all get patients to where they need to go. I've seen heard so many stories from people who downloaded this book about what their experience has been, what their support system has been like and it just really makes me sad and just but also excited because now this it's an opportunity. It's a huge opportunity to like here it is let's let's get to it.

SPEAKER_00: 29:26

Oh my God I've got the chills because yes that's like my agenda that is my agenda guys follow Dr. Crystal Grovera she knows she I did actually confess I am her like number one stalker. She's amazing she's smart she's wise and it's definitely that beautiful intersection between medicine and fitness and lifestyle so bravo yes yes yes