Meta Health: Mindfulness Meets Metabolism

Modern health culture is obsessed with leanness, discipline, and optimization. But many people are getting leaner—and feeling worse or suffering surprising health consequences.  In this episode, I share my personal experience chasing single-digit body fat and how it led to increased stress, glucose instability, and accelerated aging despite "doing everything right." We explore why body composition alone is an incomplete measure of health and why mental composition—the state of the inner body—matters more than most metrics we track. Key topics include: Body composition vs mental composition Why Blue Zones don't chase six-packs How fear-driven optimization fuels chronic stress How influencers often drive fear-based leanness and longevity goals The physiology behind looking older when you're leaner How to rebuild health in a more sensible way

In this episode, I uncover how family dynamics—both loving and dysfunctional—shape our stress patterns, emotional reflexes, and long-term metabolic health. I get personal, sharing my own experiences and those from the clinic and my program.  How your childhood emotional environment shapes adult health Recognizing 3 common family stress patterns  How family dynamics drive burnout, inflammation, and chronic dissease The concept of "Shamilies" and how it quietly affects so many of us The Roseto Effect vs the "Silicon Valley Effect" How to break inherited stress patterns and create a healthier family tradition. 

There's a quiet form of stress we mistake for normal — a constant readiness that silently drains our energy. I personally discovered it not too long ago, and in this episode I share how to spot it and take your power back. You'll learn: The brain science behind anticipation and anxiety How even a silent phone nearby burns glucose and attention Why this "always-on" state disrupts sleep and mood The benefits of phone-free walks and mindful mornings Simple ways to turn outward alertness into inward awareness Go to my blog at culturalhealthsolutions.com for related resources and show notes on most episodes.

Your mind never stops taking shots — so how do you defend your peace? In this episode I explore how to train your mind like an athlete, treating life as a continuous mental game where playing good defense is critical. We cover some of the following: Using an athletic framework to counter our conditioned self (aka ego) Learning to play great defense to protect the mind "Coach Ego" and the myth of multiplicity Simple drills to improve your mental fitness and wellbeing Everyday opportunities to improve awareness Go to my blog at culturalhealthsolutions.com for related resources and show notes on most episodes.  

Your mitochondria and microbes are ancient communities that mirror how we live, connect, and find purpose. We keep turning to the outside to learn from others, instead of tapping into this profound inner wisdom. In this episode, I explore what these inner networks teach us about resilience, loneliness, purpose, and thriving from the inside out. You'll learn: Mitochondria origin story Lessons we can learn from mitochondria and microbial behaviors How Survival fo the Fittest has led us astray How mitochondria and microbes communicate with the brain The loneliness myth and what might matter more than social connection Go to my blog at culturalhealthsolutions.com for related resources and show notes on most episodes.    

Prompting AI chatbots is a new skillset humanity has recently acquired. In this episode we use our understanding of how LLMs (Large Language Models) work to gain a deeper understanding of ourselves in an effort to free our minds from ego. We'll cover some of the following:  How AI engines mirror the way our ego runs on old scripts and algorithms Why middle-of-the-night "why" and "how" questions usually come from ego, not your authentic self Meet WAYDE, the imaginary AI Agent I created to help free me Prompts to break mental loops and rewire your responses How habitual self-prompting can help liberate your mind and optimize your physiology Go to my blog at culturalhealthsolutions.com where I post a brief summary and show notes for most episodes with relevant links.     

In my clinic, I'm seeing too many individuals with heart disease that's getting missed due to imperfect risk calculators and AI predictions. There are some serious blindspots in our current risk assessment tools. In this episode, we cover: The current risk calculators and why they often underestimate risk Typical examples of a mismatch between true and estimated risk Key blindspots risk calculators miss routinely What you can do to better assess your own risk Lifestyle areas to focus on Go to my blog at culturalhealthsolutions.com where I post a brief summary and show notes for most episodes with relevant links.   

An entry from my journal and a passage from J.Krishnamurti inspired my latest episode, which views displeasure and discontent in an entirely new way. I share personal stories and lessons from my own life, and from the highly successful patients I see in my clinic who experience emotional and metabolic health challenges despite material success. Some topics include: The pleasure-displeasure cycle explained through my summer trips to India Why "extraordinary discontent" is often essential for growth Deep lessons from the movie, The Matrix (even if you haven't seen it) My own cycles of discontent and how they led to growth The link between metabolism and mindset Go to my blog at culturalhealthsolutions.com where I post a brief summary/show notes for most episodes with relevant links. 

In prior episodes we've talked about how suppressed emotions can activate the immune system and trigger disease. A critical skill is detecting these emotions and sensations as early as possible so you prevent emotional flickers from turning into full blown fires. In this episode we discuss some of the following:  Discover your body's "smoke detectors" (interoceptors) in the heart, gut, and lungs Understand bottom-up vs. top-down emotional signaling Explore how ancient wisdom aligns with modern science  One of my favorite techniques to improve interoception, intuition, and manage stress Go to my blog at culturalhealthsolutions.com where I post a brief summary/show notes for most episodes with relevant links. 

Why are so many seemingly healthy young men and women getting heart disease? These are individuals with seemingly normal labs, no family history, who might even be exercising and eating relatively healthy, but end up with a heart attack or visible plaque on a heart scan test. In this episode we discuss: Surprise heart disease in seemingly healthy individuals Brief science primer on heart disease using boats and tunnels Concept of arterial flammability Commonly overlooked risk factors  Common personality profiles for surprise heart disease The role of COVID-19 and Microplastics Go to my blog at culturalhealthsolutions.com where I post a brief summary/show notes for most episodes with relevant links. 

That relentless inner voice—the one that replays past conversations, plans your next move, and won't let you sleep—what if it's physically affecting your health? In this episode, we explore the science of inner chatter, its surprising impact on your body, and how to reframe it to improve resilience and your overall health. We discuss some of the following:  The hidden science of subvocalization—how your thoughts subtly activate your speech muscles MIT's AlterEgo device—the tech that can "read" your mind The mind-body connection—how inner dialogue affects digestion, immunity, heart health, and more Practical strategies—simple, science-backed ways to quiet the noise A special music experiment to help shift your inner voice  

If we only pay attention to typical risk factors, we will miss what I call the "surprise diseases" that affect so many of my patients and people I know. The heart attack or plaque (detected on a heart scan) in someone who exercises and appears otherwise healthy, the breast cancer in a woman with no family history, the autoimmune disease that appears out of nowhere. How can we avert these conditions? Understanding the mechanism of Emotional Immunity (EI) is critical so you can start breaking common thought patterns. In this episode, we explore the following: A Case Study of "Surprise Diseases" Emotional Immunity (EI) explained and linked to disease  The most common emotional patterns that overactivate and/or suppress immunity Key questions to identify if you're at risk How we inherit and pass on thought patterns that disrupt immunity

Meta Health is going to take a slight shift in direction with Season 2, as it incorporates more mindfulness, since it's not possible to fully optimize energy and wellbeing unless we recognize thought patterns that hold us back. I'm calling this the Season of Inner Change, and this episode gives you an overview on my refreshed approach to sharing my insights from the clinic, from my programs, and from my personal life. Some topics include: Why the shift? Reconciling modern research and ancient wisdom Format change to meet the demand of authentic human voices in an AI world Addressing youth

Peter was kind enough to allow me to re-release our interview from 2019 from his podcast, The Drive, Episode #69. Many people have found me through Peter and told me this was one of their favorite episodes. Aside from insulin resistance and metabolism, we end the discussion with a topic that really resonated with Peter, which is the impact of generational stress, social media, and devices on youth and how I've navigated this in my own personal life.  This is longer than my usual episodes since we cover a ton of important topics, so I included detailed timestamps below. I hope you enjoy this important conversation.  Peter's overview and perspective on our discussion (0:58) Surprise moment for Peter from our discussion (2:30) How a tough case of insulin resistance led Peter to my work (5:08) Metabolic disease in South Asian and East Asian patients (5:54) Triglyceride paradox in African Americans (10:38) Visceral vs subcutaneous fat and shortcomings of BMI (11:30) Cortisol and glucose variability (25:00) Mechanistic discussion of insulin resistance (27:20) Origins and evolutionary theories on insulin resistance (37:00) Brown adipose tissue and impact of climate patterns on insulin resistance (46:43) Vitamin D and hyperinsulinemia (50:38) Uric acid, high blood pressure, and fructose metabolism(54:05) VO2 max and Zone 2, including ethnic diferences (56:23) Zone 2 fitness testing to evaluate mitochondrial performance (1:01:15) Exercise for long-term functional health (1:01:00) Lifestyle changes to improve insulin resistance and other metabolic phenotypes (1:02:55) Aging and leg strength (1:09:59) Ron's approach to exercise and stress management for those with little time (1:10:00) Ron and Peter discuss stress management (1:13:00) Ron discusses his 5S approach to fatigue and stress management (1:16:00) The impact of family dynamics on health risk (1:17:00) PCOS (Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome) and its link to insulin resistance (1:18:34) Stress, adiposity, and weight loss resistance in females(1:20:00) Sleep apnea and insulin resistance (1:29:00) How a culture of achievement and expectations can lead to undue stress, unhappiness, and health problems in our children (a Silicon Valley case study) (1:30:10) The negative impact of devices and social media on children and Ron's approach to managing this (1:40:00)

Is alcohol really a low carb, keto friendly substance like many ads and influencers claim, or is there more to it? Even if the glucose on your CGM (continuous glucose monitor) doesn't budge after a drink, there are real metabolic effects on glucose and body fat you should be aware of. Non-drinkers will benefit from this episode too since we cover some key metabolic principles, along with the following:  Quick overview of the metabolic merry-go-round and liver metabolism Why your CGM glucose results may be normal or even low after drinking alcohol Pathways by which alcohol affects glucose and body fat The surprising impact of alcohol on muscle  How alcohol is disguised and advertised to be "metabolically neutral" My personal approach to alcohol consumption 

In this episode I answer a question from a listener who is confused regarding whether breakfast is optimal or not optimal for health. Although intermittent fasting made breakfast skipping a common practice, there is nuance to this question. We cover some of the following: Benefits of breakfast skipping and why it's so common Downsides of breakfast skipping and how it can backfire Why I personally have added breakfast back in on most days Balancing breakfast needs with physical and cognitive demands Optimal breakfast composition Approach to intermittent breakfast skipping 

Our body has become an obsession that many of us are consumed by day and night. Hollywood and the fashion industry started the movement of creating unrealistic body standards, but now the growing number of celebrity and health influencers have taken this movement and put it on steroids. In this episode I discuss the following: Reframing the human body so we don't take it so seriously Unrealistic body standards perpetuated by health influencers My own personal challenges with overcoming a Type A approach to health and fitness Putting an end to familial and cultural patterns of body shaming The disturbing impact of social media and AI filters Why body composition scans can be a problem Strategies for detaching from body/fitness/health/longevity obsession, including a visualization exercise

Eating more protein is currently the mantra being shared by many health leaders and big food has caught on. Are we missing any potential risks in the midst of the high protein movement? This episode covers some of the following topics: Lessons learned from the low fat, low carb, and fasting movements How higher protein diets are being misused by many Understanding the important mismatch between protein intake and energy expenditure What happens to excess protein in the body? Finding the goldilocks zone for mTOR activation Protein intake recommendations for different groups

Much of our emotional unrest results from the act of splitting our identity into multiple roles and different personas. In this episode I explore: What's the split? Why we split? Using imagery to visualize the split? My personal practices to quiet the mind Shifting towards unification  

I'm feeling an urge to shift my content in a new direction. I'm not giving up on discussing metabolism since that's a topic that is still very close to my heart, but at the age of 52 and after digging deep into insulin resistance for well over a decade, I'm sensing a different pull.  In this episode I discuss my internal transformation and how you too might have a different voice inside that is longing for a new direction.