- It's once again time to get gutsy with Liz Hall
and her expert guests on the Gutsy Babe Podcast.
- So, welcome Jasmine Rue.
I'm so excited to have you on The Gutsy Babe
with Liz Hall today.
I'm just gonna give a little bio.
So Jasmine Rue is a certified nutrition coach, the founder
of Glow Nutrition.
She specializes in helping busy women lose weight without
counting calories, restrictions,
or boring meal plans. Welcome Jasmine.
- Thanks for having me, Liz
- .
So we'll just get right into it, if you don't mind. Yeah, of
- Course.
- All right. So can you tell us, uh,
what has made you become a nutrition coach
for women's weight loss?
- Yeah. Um, I guess it really started with
my own personal story.
Um, like many women, I didn't always have
the healthiest relationship with food and exercise.
I played a lot of sports growing up.
Um, I was a competitive swimmer and soccer player.
I did ballet. But in my final year of high school, I decided
to take a step back from sports
and, um, focus on my schoolwork
so I could get into university.
Um, and with grad approaching,
I remember being hyper aware of what I was eating.
My best friend and I at the time basically were only eating
salads and sometimes we would exercise two times a day
because we want to lose weight and be toned for grad day.
I didn't really allow myself
to touch a single dessert actually until university,
which is wild.
Um, wow. But then when university hit, I was using exercise
to essentially punish myself for drinking too much
or eating treats or like chips,
which continued into my twenties.
And then I got into my first long-term relationship.
And he wasn't really big into exercise or health.
We also went out to eat a lot. Um, we were drinking a lot.
Uh, so I developed a ton of digestive issues.
Sometimes I had, bloating would be so bad that I would have
to go home early 'cause I was in so much pain
and I was getting a lot of UTIs, uh,
I would say sometimes twice a month.
Um, so I was also on a lot of antibiotics,
which exasperated my digestive issues.
So I, I was, had a lot of anxiety as well, um, just
'cause of everything going on,
and I just like couldn't figure it out.
I was going to a lot of doctors, um,
and yeah, no one could really figure out what was going on.
Um, they sent me to a pelvic floor specialist,
a bladder specialist, it kind of everything
and lots of, I did lots of blood work.
Um, and it just never really got resolved.
So my relationship eventually ended
and it was a pretty dark time for me.
And I look back on that
and I think it was the combination of a toxic relationship
and then then not eating the right foods
and then the pandemic hit.
And that's when I really wanted to make a commitment
to my health.
And I took my Precision Nutrition certification
and actually applied all of my learnings to myself
and really transformed the way I felt.
I really healed my relationship with food.
My bloating and digestive issues were pretty well gone.
Uh, and to this day I hardly ever get bloated
or have digestive issues.
And, uh, I started out working out for the right reasons not
to like get abs or to be thinner.
It was more so my mental health more than anything.
Um, and I started to see physical changes too.
I was actually getting more sculpted and clean and toned
because it wasn't really about the scale anymore.
It wasn't about looking a particular way.
It was for truly like my own mental health
and the way I was feeling.
And I had the most energy that I ever had in my entire life.
And I truly have felt the best that I ever have.
And I've been able to maintain that since then.
And I really wanted to share that
with all the other women out there.
I wasn't, I wasn't, wasn't counting calories,
I wasn't weighing myself.
Um, and I still was having some of the foods that I loved.
So it works. And if I was like, if I can do this for myself,
I can help so many other women also do the same thing.
And I just really wanted to change the narrative
around weight loss.
It doesn't have to be a diet that's like super restrictive.
You don't have to count calories.
Uh, it's really comes down to the relationship we have
with food and exercise.
And I really wanted to work on improving that
and also on the relationship that we have with our bodies.
So that's essentially where Glow Nutrition was born.
food is so intertwined with our emotions,
I think we really kind of forget about it
or we like don't even think about it.
And I had to really like sit in my feelings
and heal a lot of things that weren't even like, now
that I look back on that they were definitely related
to the food and exercise,
but um, at the time it was like more like emotional
and mindset work that I had to have.
Almost like a paradigm shift.
- Yeah, exactly. Which
- Really helped me with healed the relationship that I had
with food and exercise ultimately.
- Beautiful. That's so beautiful.
And I love now that you are, you've healed yourself
and now you're wanting to heal other women . Yeah.
- Yeah. It's, it truly, I'm living out my dream .
I've wanted to do this for years.
And um, you know, I started out part-time
as a nutrition coach, just kind of a side hustle.
Well, I had my corporate job
and then I got laid off in November
and I decided to go all in with it.
And it's the best feeling in the entire world. I like
- That's beautiful - Helping women .
- I'm so happy to hear that because that's
what I'm all about empowering women
and you know, the whole, that's a whole,
whole other podcast story
or subject is like the side hustle, right?
The whole side hustle thing.
I think that's like such a negative term.
It's more, it should be your passion, right?
Your passion project job that now you've totally, uh,
inspired it to be your full career now . Yeah.
- And like I'm a firm believer
that you can make your passion like your full-time gig.
Your, you can make it your life
and you can totally make money with it too
and and help people.
Yeah. Uh, I think that that's a common misconception a lot
of people don't understand.
And um, yeah, big believer in that .
- Amazing. That's amazing.
So now that you've been coaching women mm-Hmm.
, you've been helping them with relationships
with their food and I guess, um, with weight loss.
So with so many weight loss books
and experts out there, what makes your approach different?
- I honestly don't believe in a scale
or body measure measurements or counting calories
because truly I don't think it's sustainable
for the majority of the population.
And to be honest, that Gail isn't really an
indicator of overall health.
I mean, I feel like some coaches will be like,
not agree with me on this.
There's a time and a place I guess for like being precise
with measurements and stuff.
So if you are like a bodybuilder or like an elite athlete
or you're like, uh, a model
or something like that, yes, for sure you would need
to be a little bit more precise and,
and probably count like your macros and calories just
because there isn't really another way around it.
It, that's just kind of how science works.
But for the majority of the population that want
to live healthier lives, live longer,
and then also like lose some weight.
You don't need to be tracking your macros on an app
or like be measuring every single food that you eat.
It's just, it's not necessary.
And I feel like it tends to, especially with women to kind
of mess with our mental state
and we tend to get very like, obsessed
with these numbers on the scale.
And when they either increase
or don't move, we get super discouraged and frustrated
and then we will get stressed out
and then it's like almost hindering your progression.
So I think that's what sets me apart.
And I also focus a lot on behavior change, like meal plans
and recipes are great, but not a ton of fitness
and nutrition professionals out there focus on the
behavior change component.
And that is really like the foundation of everything else.
So I use, I can't remember who the books by,
but like my whole precision nutrition
really focuses on this.
It's like a very deep health health approach,
but I use the motivational interviewing technique
for fitness and nutrition,
but that's essentially how I work with clients.
- Can you share a couple of success stories from clients on
how you've through the program with them
and how it's changed their lives?
- Yeah. So a client I worked with last year,
she had a lot of bloating and gut issues
and we had seen so many different specialists.
She went to a naturopath
and her bloating like never really seemed to go away.
Naturopaths can be great.
What a lot of them do is they do all these testings
for like certain foods to see what your sensitive
or like elevated for,
and then they just tell you
to eliminate everything you're elevated for.
But a, it doesn't work because you'll never actually know
what you were elevated for in the first place
because you're not isolating those foods.
You're literally eliminating everything all at once.
And then b, it isn't sustainable for the long term
to like eliminate all those foods.
So essentially what I did is I added more protein
to her diet along with the right carbs and fats and veggies.
And then we that some veggies
that were like more lower food map.
Um, and then got her on a regular exercise routine over the
course of the 12 weeks
and she noticed a huge improvement with her bloating
and her belly size went down to nearly half
and she had a huge improvement in her overall
energy in the summer.
She actually messaged me
and this to me was like everything,
when she first started working with me,
she maybe was working with a trainer like one
to two times a week.
Mm-Hmm. . And in the summer she was up to four
to five times a week, uh,
working out like on her own consistently,
which is like everything to me.
So hearing those kinds of stories is just like so rewarding.
And then this one's like a little bit more personal.
My dad had a heart attack in 2022.
It was pretty scary and like shocking
because he's not really a big guy
and he exercises a lot like three to four times a week.
I considered him healthy.
So I was really surprised when he had a heart attack
and he got a scent put in his heart.
So after that I helped him with his nutrition.
We focused on a lot of whole grains, fibers, veggies,
and then lean proteins
to lower his LDL cholesterol and keep it that way.
And not only did he lose weight,
but he also quit drinking entirely.
And he is so much more conscious now
of like ingredients in things and reading nutrition labels.
And he even buys like organic veggies all on his own now
without even consulting me first.
So I take that as a huge win
and it's just so good to see
those results from clients and then family. Oh,
- 100%.
That is a huge win and you've helped change your dad's life
and helped around, so that's beautiful.
Yeah. I wanna, um,
go back when you said naturopath for a second.
I think that it depends on, just like any doctor,
it depends on who you are working with, where you have
that strong relationship with
because there are some amazing naturopathic doctors out
there who personally have changed my life.
Yeah. And I think that it conne if you're connecting
with the, your clientele that you're changing their lives,
but you have to have that connection.
Right. And there has to be some trust ly. Yep.
So, um, I agree with you that it does start
with the gut, right?
Like your, your whole
microbiome in your gut is it's your second brain, right?
So when you heal your gut, you're healing your entire body.
And it sounds like that's what you are helping, uh,
your clients do by achieving eating the proper foods, right?
Yeah. Your client needed more protein
and needed more vegetables,
or your dad is now going to the grocery store
and picking up vegetables all on his own when
before he hadn't.
And now for him to even not, you know,
stop drinking altogether, I mean,
drinking alcohol is such an inflammation, right?
It's so poisonous. Oh yeah.
But that's what we do in the us right.
To loosen up, like take off some stress, they'll like, oh,
I'm gonna have a beer or a glass of wine.
Yeah. It's not necessarily great for you . Yeah.
- And you know, everyone has their, has their bite.
And I'm not saying that like, oh, you need to quit.
Everyone needs to quit drinking.
But it's in moderation we're, I feel like society is
so like zero to 100 and it, it doesn't have to be that way.
I, I don't drink anymore.
But like I was able to enjoy alcohol in moderation.
I just decided not to
because of, you know, the heart disease in my family.
And then my mom also has Alzheimer's.
So there's a lot of health underlying health things
that I just really want to optimize.
I, I want to, if, you know, if those,
I do end up getting those things, I want
to do everything in my power to reduce the risk
of getting those diseases.
And my whole program is really about showing people
that you can live in a life of moderation and balance.
It doesn't have to be so extreme.
- 100%. No, I couldn't agree with you more.
Life is all about moderations, right? .
- Absolutely. You still have to have fun .
- Yes, exactly. So many weight loss approaches help people
lose weight, but they tend
to put the weight back on when they stop.
How do you help women take off the weight and keep it off?
- Again, it comes back to fostering
that healthy relationship with food and exercise
and then obviously like ditching the scale mentality
and focusing on building those healthy habits
through eating the right foods.
And like not eliminating entire food groups as well
as exercising regularly.
And what I focus on a lot
with them is eating more whole foods
and less processed foods.
- That's huge right there. - Yeah.
Processed foods and sugars.
I feel like in North America we eat way too many of those
and just by telling someone to eat less of them,
that's gonna be already in like the back of their mind.
But people don't like being told what to do.
So , my so the immediately,
like when you tell someone you can't eat something, they're
- Gonna go and eat it . Yeah, exactly.
- Exactly. So once you tell clients
to eat more like whole foods and more veggies and proteins
and they realize how good they feel, they end up wanting
to make healthier choices, right?
They don't longer wanna eat the processed sugars
or fast food
because they know how crappy they're gonna feel.
And I think that's ultimately how you get people
to sustain weight loss.
- I love that. That makes a lot of sense.
- Mm-Hmm. - . So I feel that I have been very fortunate
that I've always had a healthy relationship with food,
but I've gotten better through the years
of eating even healthier.
Yeah. And I've been very cautious of my sugar intake.
That has been a big shift in my life. Yep.
Because I've noticed like the whole glucose spikes
and when I experience like a crash, like, oh,
I need some sugar, right.
Um, where I'm like, I am depleted of energy and that was all
because of my sugar intake and,
and it was little changes of like, instead of, you know,
teaspoon of sugar in my coffee,
I started doing like a little bit of chocolate
and then eventually weaning myself off all together.
And now I just do coffee and some coconut milk .
- I know. And that's literally what I teach my clients too.
It's like be more mindful of our,
of our choices at the end of the day.
So instead of, you know, putting the
sugar cube in the coffee, maybe you're replacing it
with like Stevia or instead of, you know, getting the burger
with fries, maybe you get the burger with the salad instead.
It's just making tiny little changes each day
and then building on those, those lead
to much bigger results over time
that will like actually last.
- That's beautiful. So
what are your thoughts on weight loss supplements
and do you recommend any specific ones to your clients?
- In my opinion, which you probably have already guessed,
there are no shortcuts to weight loss.
Um, you have to be here for the long haul truly.
And that means making healthy food choices
and exercising consistently.
My job really is to help clients that see
that they are very much capable of doing that
and bringing the enjoyment back to food
and movement so much
that they would never not want to do it again.
Mm-Hmm. . Um, I don't really believe in weight loss
supplements per se,
but I do think that there are certain supplements
that are essential for optimizing health such as like,
- Oh, 100%.
- Yeah. Like vitamin D, um, proin, prebiotics, collagen,
Omega-3, creatine, eaas.
Those are kind of like, I think stuff that
everyone can take.
Um mm-Hmm. , you know,
I'll customize based on client specific needs.
Like if someone has more gut issues or like SIBO
or something like that, then I would recommend
or suggest Mm-Hmm.
different supplements than that.
Um, but yeah, I mean, those ones can't hurt.
Um, oh, also folic acid is really good if you are in like
your reproductive years as well.
- Okay. - I actually take all those supplements myself.
But if we're talking about weight loss drugs, Oz
- Oh yeah, I was gonna mention ozempic, like
that's the hot topic these days, . I know. I think that I,
- I probably should touch on it. I feel like it's
- .
- I don't want people to like get it twisted,
but, um, , it's definitely not a magic
pill and I wanna make that very clear
and I find that it's being overly abused
and glamorized in Hollywood.
- I couldn't agree with you more.
- Yeah. In my opinion, uh, it doesn't
and will never heal someone's relationship with food.
Uh, however, it could be a really good starting point if
someone is very obese in conjunction with working
with a nutrition coach and a, um, certified trainer
or dietician, whatever, someone within with that expertise
and establishing a better relationship with food
and exercise at the end of the day to help them lose weight.
Um, but yeah, I don't, it's not
- That's fair to say.
- Yeah. I think, I think it's more
of a bandaid solution than anything which I'm not a fan of .
- Yeah. No, you wanna heal,
not just put a bandaid on it just
for, for health in general.
I'm all about healing the proper way.
- Yeah, - Totally. Um, my personal journey is okay, I feel,
I feel I have a healthy relationship with food.
Mm-Hmm. , but I don't feel
that I have a healthy relationship with working out .
How can you help someone, uh,
add some little tips right.
To working out. I mean, I, I've had my own personal journeys
of like, okay, I go through stages
or phases really of like, okay, I'm on working out
with this person, or I do my 10, 20, 30 minutes online
workouts, or I'll try to start going for walks,
but then I, it's hard for me to continue with that path.
I'll be good for a week and then the next week I'm horrible.
- Yeah. Like you're feeling like you can't stay consistent
with your exercise.
- Yeah. - That's a,
that's a pretty common issue I would say that I,
that I see with, with clients.
Mm-Hmm. I'd say you have
to enjoy your exercise that you're doing.
Like I always tell clients that yes,
there are certain things that will, certain types
of exercises that will do like, get you to a specific goal.
Mm-Hmm. . However, if you don't like doing them,
you're not gonna, you're not gonna ever do them
and you're not gonna do them on a consistent basis.
So I always tell clients it the best exercise has
to be the one that you enjoy doing.
Mm-Hmm. . So if that's, that might look like going swimming
or maybe it's, uh, playing outside with your kids
or maybe it's gardening like it, it truly doesn't have
to be, you have to go to the gym for 60 minutes, um,
every day kind of thing.
Mm-Hmm. it could even be 15 minutes.
And like with the consistency component,
it's just starting small.
So if that means you are only doing
a walk on a treadmill for five minutes and
because that's all the time you have
and that's like you've never exercised
before, then start there
and then start like gradually increasing.
Um, that would probably be my best advice
for building up those habits.
- That's great advice. So thank you .
- Yeah, you're welcome. - How can women learn more about
your program and book a session with you, Jasmine?
- Yeah, so they can either go to my website,
glow nutrition coaching.com
or you can follow me on Instagram.
That's probably the best place to get in,
like direct contact with me.
Mm-Hmm. Um, and it's Glow Nutrition on Instagram.
Um, and then they can send me a DM
or they can book an initial consult
through the link in my bio.
- What area are you outta?
- Just I'm in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
- awesome. - Lots of cowboy hats and cowboys. .
- Hey, Beyonce is bringing it back to everyone. .
- I know. I, uh, yeah, I,
I own probably four cowboy hats.
- We love it. - Eat every year.
So, um, yeah, it's really fun.
So if you ever get a chance to come down here, it's,
it's like a party for 10 days and it's so much fun.
- I'll definitely hit you up when I'm there.
Well, thank you very much.
It's been such a pleasure getting to know you
and hear all about Glow Nutrition.
- Thanks so much for having me. It was so fun. .
- Yay. Well that is it with this episode
of the Gutsy Babe podcast with Liz Hall, with Love and Ease.
Have a great day.
- Is it hard to go when you are on the go?
Well, you're not alone travelers.
Constipation affects millions daily.
Don't let irregularity ruin your next trip.
Try travel Ease, especially formulated
to keep you going on your next vacation or business trip.
Unlike common over the counter therapies for constipation,
travel ease is all natural.
Doesn't produce cramping and won't dehydrate.
You wanna find out more? Go to easy natural health.com.
That's ee ZE natural health.com.