The Health Feast

Motivating Change

In this episode, Dr. Rak and Po delve into motivation, and specifically, they talk about self-determination theory, in addition to a discussion on controlling our food environment.   Self-determination theory is a psychological theory that focuses on the motivation behind human behavior and the importance of fulfilling innate psychological needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness in achieving well-being and personal growth. It posits that individuals are more likely to engage in behaviors that align with their own interests and values, and that supporting these needs can lead to greater satisfaction and thriving.First Dr. Rak and Po talk about relatedness, and Po and Dr. Rak both reflect on his prior exercise habits they developed that were fueled by community and connection. Next, they talk about autonomy and feeling in control of our life and our decisions.  They also discuss the benefits of movement in quieting the mind, particularly the Default-Mode-Network (DMN), a series of brain structures involved in self-referential and ruminating thoughts.They also discuss how we frame movement, as a gift versus a chore, and how that impacts our motivation.Finally, they talk about competence and the interrelatedness of competence and autonomy. The discussion then pivots to talking about the food environment, specifically, how Po doesn’t feel in control of his and the steps that Dr. Rak has taken to manage his.The two end by thanking the listeners and describing more of their vision for The Health Feast.Have a question or comment for Dr. Rak and Po?  You can submit them on our website at thehealthfeast.com Disclaimer: The Health Feast is provided for educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute providing medical advice or professional services. As with any changes affecting your health, we recommend and encourage you to consult your medical doctor or other qualified healthcare professionals before embarking on this journey.  The opinions expressed are our own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of our employers.

Manifesting MORE in Your Life with Melinda Joyner

When Melinda Joyner became a single mother as a young teenager, she took the experience as an opportunity to grow and help others.  As a result of understanding the difficult task of being a single mother, Melinda created a safe community of assistance and resources for other young single mothers in her community of Jackson, MS. She organized many events in the community to provide education and resources, and to tell other young mom’s her story, to serve as a beacon of hope. 
 
Underlying all of this is Melinda’s strong belief that we all have a MORE- that thing that we are good at, adds value to this world, and lights us up.  Melinda found her MORE after years of working as a Rape Crisis Counselor for Catholic Charities, a crisis pregnancy counselor, and an HIV/STD counselor/educator.  When her grown kids were off to college, Melinda decided to return to school as well, where she ultimately obtained her Master's in Social Work.
 
Currently, Melinda is working as a Social Worker in the emergency department of a busy community hospital in San Francisco. Her goal is to continue to assist individuals to grow and evolve into the person they may have dreamed of or, due to trauma and circumstances, the person they never fathomed.
 
Melinda came to know Dr. Rak when she sought out his assistance in taking control of her health.  To that end, we discuss Melinda's relationship with food and her body, and how her view of her health has changed in the past few years.  
 
This episode is a powerful one, and it really speaks to the power of having intention in our lives and manifesting our full potential. 
 
Have a question or comment for Dr. Rak and Po?  You can submit them on our website at thehealthfeast.com Disclaimer: The Health Feast is provided for educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute providing medical advice or professional services. As with any changes affecting your health, we recommend and encourage you to consult your medical doctor or other qualified healthcare professionals before embarking on this journey.  The opinions expressed are our own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of our employers.

Got COVID?

Po starts the conversation by sharing his experience getting infected early in the pandemic before there were vaccines and therapies.  Dr. Rak shares his experience caring for hospitalized patients with COVID for the first two years of the pandemic.
 
They discuss the protective effects of a plant-based diet on getting moderate to severe COVID.  The article Dr. Rak references can be found here: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8219480/
 
Dr. Rak then shares his experience with his recent COVID infection. To recover, he shares that he has been practicing the Wim Hof method, which he started doing around the start of the pandemic to boost his immunity.  The Wim Hof follow-along video he references to help you get started with the Wim Hof breathing can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLIoSNKaruA&t=1554s
 
Dr. Rak talks about deprescribing - that is, safely reducing and stopping medications, which is done in the setting of someone making lifestyle changes to address the root cause of disease.  This is something Dr. Rak regularly does in his medical practice with Mora Medical (mora.com). 
 
The two end by setting goals for the coming week.
 
Have a question or comment for Dr. Rak and Po?  You can submit them on our website at thehealthfeast.com Disclaimer: The Health Feast is provided for educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute providing medical advice or professional services. As with any changes affecting your health, we recommend and encourage you to consult your medical doctor or other qualified healthcare professionals before embarking on this journey.  The opinions expressed are our own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of our employers.

The Health Feast as a Mindset

Dr. Rak and Po start their conversation by exploring what The Health Feast signifies and means. “It’s a mindset.”The two explore how The Health Feast mindset can be applied to exercise as an example. Many people turn exercise into a health chore.The two also discuss the illusion of challenges in our life.  There is an illusion that we are in control.  Life happens, and we can either experience it for what it is or we can resist it. It is navigating the ups and downs of life that is the real challenge.Dr. Rak goes on to talk about how his career has evolved over the last 15 years and how he now practices Lifestyle medicine for a healthcare startup, Mora Medical. Mora wants to democratize lifestyle medicine care across the country.  You can learn more at Mora.com.
Dr. Rak also describes the current epidemic of burnout, or as it is now described as a moral injury in healthcare, and why we are seeing unprecedented numbers of healthcare professionals leave the profession.  Lifestyle medicine, the therapeutic use of lifestyle habits to prevent, treat and reverse chronic disease, is the antidote to this crisis.The two then discuss mindfulness and how it changes how you experience life. Dr. Rak then does some health coaching for Po, and they reflect that Po is not certain of his worthiness for good health.  They also discuss the burnout or fatigue that Po’s health journey has caused him and his family.  Po resolves to have further conversations with his family about how he can move forward in a productive way in taking control of his health.Have a question or comment for Dr. Rak and Po?  You can submit them on our website at thehealthfeast.comDisclaimer: The Health Feast is provided for educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute providing medical advice or professional services. As with any changes affecting your health, we recommend and encourages you to consult with your medical doctor or other qualified health care professional before embarking on this journey.  The opinions expressed are our own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions our employers.

How meditation changed Jay Chodagam’s life (and how it can change your life too)

On this episode of The Health Feast, Dr. Rak and Po welcome their first guest, Jay Chodagam.  Jay is a good friend and spiritual teacher of Dr. Rak.
Jay's story really exemplifies the unexpected nature of our lives and the power of meditation in changing the trajectory of our lives. If you've contemplated starting a meditation practice but don't know how to start, this conversation is for you. 
Before welcoming Jay, Dr. Rak and Po do their usual mind/body/spirit check-in.  Dr. Rak shares he is working with a virtual Spartan SGX trainer to help him prepare for his next Spartan race.  Dr. Rak’s coach is Keith Stockwell, and you can learn more about Keith’s training plans and services at runliftwin.com
The two then welcome Jay to The Health Feast. To begin the conversation, Jay shares his story of going from being an engineer at a Fortune 500 company to becoming a monk and meditation teacher.  While getting his master’s degree in Engineering, Jay realized that a life of fulfillment and service to others trumps a life of achievement. He eventually left a lucrative career in engineering to move into an ashram in San Francisco, where he practiced, taught, and lived as a yogi for 14 years.
Jay has centered his life and career around asking how he can be in service to others, and he reflects with Dr. Rak and Po on what a purposeful life in service to others looks and feels like. 
As Jay reflects on pursuing his passion, he notes how ignoring the whispers of your calling can be a form of suffering, as your truth will haunt you if you choose to ignore it.
Jay talks about why meditation is needed in our lives, particularly with all the distractions we are bombarded with regularly. He shares why everyone should aim to start their day with reflective silence and meditation.   
Jay also talks about consistency and getting to a point where your mind and body want to meditate because of how good it feels, which can take some time to develop a habit.
The conversation ends with Jay discussing his next pivot in his career, where he looks to fulfill a vision of creating intentional urban villages that will create community and address the epidemic of loneliness our society is experiencing. 
To help you get started with a meditation practice, Jay offers a free 21-day meditation challenge to start the New Year, and you can sign up for and access a daily meditation at his website joywithjay.com.  Jay also has hours of free guided meditations available through online videos and apps, which you can also find on his website.  You can also watch Jay's illuminating TedX talk on YouTube here. 
Have a question or comment for Dr. Rak and Po?  You can submit them on our website at thehealthfeast.com Disclaimer: The Health Feast is provided for educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute providing medical advice or professional services. As with any changes affecting your health, we recommend and encourages you to consult with your medical doctor or other qualified health care professional before embarking on this journey.  The opinions expressed are our own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions our employers.

Got Resolutions?

Happy New Year from The Health Feast! After a regular mind-body-soul/spirit check-in with Dr. Rak and Po, they first take an opportunity to thank their growing audience and reflect a little more on why they started The Health Feast. Then they get into today’s topic of New Year’s Resolutions.  Dr. Rak reviews some of the stats around resolutions and how most are unsuccessful.  The two discuss why this is and how the best resolutions are process-oriented instead of outcome-oriented.The two also reflect on the importance of grounding your resolutions and goals in your WHY and intention, and Dr. Rak reflects on some of the reasons for wanting to make change that he hears from patients.Dr. Rak helps Po think about his behaviors in terms of ideals (what I’d ideally like to do most days) and standards (what I do every day regardless of how I’m feeling and what else is going on).They also discuss Po’s recent feelings of lower mood.  Dr. Rak screens Po for depression using a standard survey called the PHQ-9.  You can access this inventory at https://www.mdcalc.com/calc/1725/phq9-patient-health-questionnaire9. The two reflect on the role of mental health in our overall health and how it affects our ability to change our habits.The show ends with Po reflecting on his prior goal to incorporate regular meditation and how he wants to approach the coming week. 
Have a question or comment for Dr. Rak and Po?  You can submit them on our website at thehealthfeast.com Disclaimer: The Health Feast is provided for educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute providing medical advice or professional services. If you or someone you know is experiencing depression or any mental health concerns, please seek out care from a licensed professional. 
The opinions expressed are our own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of our employers.

Motivation and Meditation.

Welcome back to The Health Feast, hosted by Dr. Rak ("rock") and Po. After our regular mind, body, and soul/spirit check-in with Dr. Rak and Po, we get into motivation this episode- inspired by Po's feelings of lack of motivation in his life. Does motivation even matter? Where does it come from, and how can we tap into intrinsic motivation to aid our habits? Dr. Rak reviews the three sources of intrinsic motivation- autonomy, mastery, and purpose. Rak reflects on purpose and how one can craft an aspirational self-identity to help motivate desired behaviors.Dr. Rak also discusses the downside of self-identity in the form of attachment to ego and self- a common source of all conflict. The two then reflect on the value of meditation for building awareness and allowing us to respond to our lives rather than constantly reacting. The conversation ends with Po reflecting on and making goals for the week ahead, including exercise and meditation goals. Available where you get podcasts and at thehealthfeast.com Follow us on IG: @thehealthfeast Check out The Health Feast YouTube Channel here
Disclaimer: The Health Feast Podcast is provided for educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute providing medical advice or professional services. The opinions expressed are our own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of our employers.

How Dr. Rak turned his life into a Health Feast

For our second episode, Po interviews Dr. Rak! We learn about Rak's upbringing and how this shaped his relationship with food and his body image. We also learn about why Dr. Rak made big changes to his lifestyle habits after a difficult conversation with his wife, ultimately leading him to adopt a whole-food plant based diet.  He shares he has lost over 70lbs over the last 5 years and reversed his prediabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol.  Dr. Rak ends by sharing how he views the state of healthcare today and how lifestyle medicine is the solution to our current reactive sickcare system. 
You can watch this episode (including additional photos) on YouTube by clicking here. 

Welcome to The Health Feast and Meet Po!

In today's conversation, we take a deep dive into all things Tupotu.  We talk about Po’s childhood in American Samoa and how this shaped his early relationship with food.  We talk about Po’s relationship with his body image and being a “big person” and how that has shaped his identity and career path.    And we’ll get into Po’s struggles with his weight and his health, and his history with dieting.  In addition to his recent reality TV experience in Abu Dhabi, Po and I also discuss his previous foray into reality TV: a 2010 show called Money Hungry, where Po and his friend teamed up to lose as much weight as possible for a chance to win $100,000. We also discuss Po’s relationship with health and how his view and goals for his health have changed over time as he’s had children and gotten older. and we touch on his thoughts about getting weight loss surgery. Also I’ll note one big realization I had as a result of this conversation is that the Universe keeps pulling Po more and more into lifestyle medicine, and our meeting was just a further manifestation of that. I’ve come to love Po like family, and I think you'll grow to love him too.  What strikes me the most about him is his genuineness and ability to openly express his vulnerabilities. He’s humble, affable, and kind.  Po and I talk a lot about our intention for starting this podcast. And his intention, which is also my intention - is to support each other and now to support all of you, in leading healthy lives. 
You can watch this episode (including additional photos) on YouTube by clicking here.