The Healthy Exception

THE 40: Goodbye Sweet Spuds + Skincare, Chemicals and Natural Personal Care Products

It has been real spud muffins, but alas, it’s time for me to move on from podcasting, but never fear, I’ll still be around the place, and you can definitely stay connected via the Facebook page; www.facebook.com/realsoupfortherealsoul or the blog; www.realsoupfortherealsoul.com
Also … watch this space, because my book is getting published in the foreseeable future, if you want non-cliched, cheeky, relatable health-related anecdotes – an eclectic mix of recipes, autobiographical vibes, guidance for healthy living (but not as you necessarily know it) and an almost inappropriate amount of humor, then get keen … because my book baby will be coming to you real soon.
Thanks for being a part of the healthy exception fam and supporting me with these episodes, I’m sorry if you’ll miss the show, but am excited to bring you way more enlivening content via mediums that light me up more than this one.
Anyhoo … enough melancholy, end-of-an-era-style sadness, let’s talk chemicals, skincare and personal care products. This episode is just the tip of the iceberg, but an important conversation starter … do you know what you’re applying to your body? Most of us don’t even think about it, and the number of synthetic is every bit alarming as it is frightening. Of course, being healthy exceptions, we do hate a freak-out … so what to do? As always sweet spuds, the bloody best we can! Making our own, investing in quality brands and using them sparingly and eating foods that make our skin glow without the need for too many lotions or potions in the first place.
I hope you enjoy the final ever episode, for the last time … “thank you for trusting me with your time, and ears for day, and for tuning in … I’ll see you on the other side”.
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THE 39: Plant Based Diets – Do it Right with Elly McLean

Vegetarian and Vegan diets are good for us and good for the planet right? Yes … and no, but mainly yes! They can be extremely therapeutic, nourishing and sustainable, but you need to know what you’re missing out on and where to get it instead. Listen in sweet spuds, because on this call you have two nutritionists (one far more experienced than the other … I’m in my final year of uni) that want to equip you with the most empowered headset and vital information to serve you well if embarking on a plant-based diet is something that sounds groovy for you. We discuss common deficiencies, ideal supplements, and the instances where vegetarianism or veganism might not be the way to go … for right now.
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THE 38: Not Just A Pill – Exploring the Oral Contraceptive Pill with Dr Andrea Huddleston

This is an important one spud muffins; if you are thinking of taking the pill, on the pill, know someone on the pill, or have simply heard of the pill, then this is a great episode to listen to. Find out the merits, the risks and everything in between as I interview the unofficial ‘period Listen In
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THE 37: Digestion Revisited

I’m back from my break spud muffins – and today, we’re talking digestion. Yeah, I know, been there done that, but today is different … we are literally walking through the digestive process step by step. It is so much easier to appreciate the gut and your food when you understand just how much work goes on when we digest, absorb, metabolize and eliminate. Let’s get our nerds on in an easy-to-understand, but still “sciency” enough sort of way.
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THE 36: TTFN, Don’t Worry Though I’ll Be Back

It’s time for this chicken to take a break. There’s been some recent upset in the family and life has been getting hectic. I can feel myself getting stressed, even over little things and I feel it’s time for me to take a break. In this little mini “podcast holiday” I’m going be networking with school counsellors, teachers, principles and youth workers to try and better reach my target audience of teenagers. I’m also going to still be doing interviews to prepare some exciting content when this podcast comes back early 2018. There’s so much more I want to do with this show, but in order for me to be my at my best and give my all to you, I need to give some time to myself and the fam bam. If I’m going to bang on each week about being gentle with yourself and listening to your body then I also have to put this into the practice – the time has come.
I appeciate every single one of you awesome listeners so much and am humbled to have your attention each fortnight. I know it can be tricky keeping up with podcast releases. I also am also always thrilled to receive your feedback via the Facebook page www.facebook.com/realsoupfortherealsoul – it makes my day to hear from you.
In this, our final episode for a while, I talk you through the last 36 episodes of content so you can either go back and listen to the ones you missed, or re-listen to the ones you loved.
If you love the show, find the info useful, or know of a mate, family member or even acquaintance, that needs some help with their health and happiness game, please share your favourite episodes with them. Word of mouth can be powerful – you never know what might trigger an a-ha moment for someone. I can’t tell you how much it lights me up when someone says they love the show and get their loved ones to tune in too.
I’m not really going anywhere too far lovely ones, I’ll still be active on the Facebook page and blog (www.realsoupfortherealsoul.com) so please keep following my antics, commenting on my posts and dropping by to say “heydidly doodily neighbour” (insert nerdy Ned Flanders wave here).
Hugs, Hi-5’s and thanks for making this show worthwhile xxx
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THE 35: Intuitive Eating

It can be super-tricky to navigate all the “diets” out there, especially as a young, vulnerable teenager. We’re only just beginning to have control and choice around the foods we put into our body and we are bombarded with conflicting nutritional information. Let’s quieten the noise and start listening to our own cues. Your body, when given the chance to, is more than capable of letting you know what it needs. We often shut off these cues because they don’t match what our favourite blogger, podcaster or media nutritionist “recommends”. I’ve been there and done that and have now come full circle and have learned to respect my body enough t trust it. This is a fun, laid-back and informative chat that gives you full permission to step away from all of the research, trends and “shoulds”. I hope you enjoy.
I’d love your feedback, come hang out with me at www.facebook.com/realsoupfortherealsoul
or jump on the blog
www.realsoupfortherealsoul.com and have a look around.
Until next fortnight, keep questioning, get intuitive and remain genuine always, hugs and hi-5’s xxx Rachie
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THE 34: The Real Food Athlete With Steph Lowe

Steph Lowe is one of my favourite people to learn from – the work she does is thought-leading, educational and so very, very needed in this world (so thanks Steph – keep going you good thing). She’s one of Australia’s leading sports nutritionists, a lady that loves to get real on current research, debunk food myths and educate as many people as she can about how to just eat real food.
Today we talk about fuelling teenage athletes with real food. It worries us that so many teens (and athletes of any age really) are given the message to load up on simple carbohydrates and/or protein shakes, whilst the message to prioritise veggies, quality protein from actual food sources, and quality, energy-giving fats and only then include some beautiful whole food carbs; banana, sweet spud, buckwheat etc. has fallen by the way side.
We’re bringing real food back. Listen in to hear Steph’s simple but so very powerful message about how to fuel your body not just for today but for the future. In this episode we discuss;
the current mainstream guidelines around sports nutrition
why is this approach flawed
an alternative fuel source to glucose
the difference between refined carbs and beautiful whole-food based carbs
becoming “metabolically flexible”
why no one is really getting away with excessive high-carb diets in the long run
the metabolic grey-zone and how to push through
everyone is an individual
it’s all about keeping it simple – getting back to real foods is the number one priority, not necessarily counting grams of this and grams of that
how to source protein from foods post-training, rather than relying on shakes (and what shakes to go for if you really must use them)
I hope you fall in love with Steph’s humble and common-sense nature as much as I have since I started following her.
Want more of Steph?
Follow her on all the social media platforms as: The Natural Nutritionist
Listen to her podcast 
Head on over to her website
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THE 33: What Exactly Do Nutritionists Do?

Last fortnight we chatted with one of my fave ladies Jules Galloway, and we had a good ole’ chin wag about the world of naturopathy – debunking the myths of the profession and opening up many a discussion about all the potential ways in which a naturopath can help you, not just to heal and survive, but to THRIVE!
This week it’s just me behind the mic, and we switch the focus to nutritionists. I’m in my final year of uni before clinical placement and so I thought wheat better way to follow on from last fortnight’s topic than to talk about who nutritionists are and what we do.
Many people hear “nutritionist” and think of weight loss, meal plans and bikini bodies. To be truthful, this is a very, very small part of our jobs. Every physiological process occurring within the body every second of every day requires nutrients to be carried out efficiently. So nutrition is relevant across the board, no matter what condition you do or don’t have. And as nutritionists we always believe that prevention is better than cure; looking after yourself before you fall ill.
Listen in to learn
the sorts of conditions nutrition can address
how I came to fall in love with nutritional medicine
the importance of knowing that your nutritionist is university qualified (as Jules and I said last time, there are people that do short-courses on the internet and claim to be health professionals – DO YOUR HOMEWORK!)
the difference between nutritionists and dieticians
my stance on supplements
I hope you learn something new from this episode, and become excited about the potential of medicinal food!
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THE 32: The Truth About Naturopaths with Jules Galloway

Today we are lucky enough to be joined again by one of my favourite health professionals (and one of my favourite kiddlets in general), naturopath Jules Galloway. Last time she was on the show, we talked about different eating styles and avoiding trends “just ’cause”. She’s got an awesome approach to health, practical, common sense living and is very switched on indeed. I definitely see her as a role model going into the natural medicine field myself. So today, especially in light of the constant stream of media bashing natural medicine, I thought “let’s talk all about naturopaths”.
Do you really know what a naturopath does? Or are you just going on stigma and stereotypes? Jules enlightens us all on what therapies she uses a study a naturopath, the types of clients she sees, how she envisions natural and allopathic medicine working together (in an ideal, utopian world), her stance on supplements (and supplement QUALITY), the role of internet in health promotion and how she feels the rise of health coaches and well-meaning self-taught experts is impacting her profession. It’s a great conversation covering many areas and hopefully it opens your mind up to the potential of natural medicine in you research own life.
Bottom line, as always, don’t wait for something to get out of hand before seeking help. If your still feeling awful, despite your GP saying that your tests are normal, getting a second opinion from a naturopath can be a great step, as they interpret pathology results a bit differently. It’s not a matter of choosing between the doctor or the naturopath, but having both on hand for different conditions, to get the best of both worlds. At the end of the day, any genuinely caring health professional has your optimal health in mind, and just wants to see you thrive.
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THE 31: Keeping Rituals Real

I am a sucker for some ace affirmations. I love dreaming big and jotting these ambitions down in my manifestation journal. I try to live mindfully for my own stress-levels and sanity and whilst I certainly can’t claim to religiously sit down and meditate everyday, I love getting into that flow state when I’m jogging, washing up or singing. There are so many health and wellness rituals that are surrounded by stereotypes and stigma galore. Truth is though, we don’t have to start wearing hippie threads to recite affirmations or join a cult to partake in some playful manifestation. Meditation needn’t become your religion and if you needn’t spend all your hard earned dollars on mindfulness retreats or courses (unless you seriously want to). It’s about keeping it real and making it your own. Listen in to how I stay genuine whilst engaging in rituals that have become a bit cliched – even if that means adding a cheeky swear-word or two to my affirmations or combining manifestation with meditation (two birds, one stone). At the end, I touch briefly on my five other favo tools that just keep me feeling safe, grounded and trusting; essential oils, crystals, kindness, biophilia and oracle cards (again I know that sometimes these things sound a bit woo-woo but they are honestly loads of fun and make any day brighter). Stick with me and allow yourself to be open-minded.
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THE 30: The Skinny on Fat

I’ve been wanting to do this episode for over a year now, but I’ve put it off because I thought “Rachie-bear, you really should get someone a bit more qualified on with you to nut this one out”. But then I figured, “hey, I’m almost a qualified clinical nutritionist myself, I can probably tackle the subject of fats by myself, after all I’ve been researching them like crazy since high school days”. So here we go. Let’s have a good ole’ discussion about this vital macronutrient.
In this episode we talk about;
how the fats gets their names; saturated, monounsaturated, polyunsaturated, trans fats etc.
why are we so scared of fats? The cholesterol myth, weight gain and the calories in and calories out debacle etc.
what are the functions of fat; hormone production, vitamin D synthesis, antioxidant function, cell membrane renewal and protection etc.
how can we start to desensitise ourselves to our life-long fear of eating fats? Think starting small, reading a little article about the benefits of nuts, olive oil, avocado etc. each day to keep yourself on track, choose your faves and slightly increase the portion size (whilst lowering or eliminating refined carbohydrates e.g swapping a piece of white toast with a thin smear of low-fat peanut butter for a sliced apple with a heaped spoonful or two of 100% natural peanut butter)
This is just the beginning of the conversation. There’s so many other podcasts out there that do this topic more justice. There’s documentaries and youtube videos and countless articles written by academics and health professionals.
In the show I mention some articles I’ve written on fats
here and here
And the fantastic resources The Natural Nutritionist and her podcast The Real Food Reel (particularly for athletes of very active individuals)
This page has some great audio resources too
I hope this episode has clarified some things for you and opened your minds up to a new way to view nutrition. I’d love your feedback so please go ahead and comment or chuck me a message on the FB page .
Until next week, stay well and enjoy a little extra avocado (or whatever nutrient-dense high-fat food floats your boat), hugs and hi-5s … thanks as always for listening
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THE 29: Malissa Fedele – Regaining Self Esteem

Today is a quick but happy and bubbly podcast with one of my close friends Malissa. Malissa is one of the kindest, brightest and most genuinely confident (not to be confused with cocky – she’s very humble) people in my life. However for a short period at the end of high school, Malissa who had always been quite popular and happy, suddenly found herself without a close group of friends around her – she was starting to venture outside her comfort zone and become more independent and her friends weren’t supportive of this. Malissa became self-conscious, she still hadn’t really discovered who she was and now was questioning whether she had made the right decision in taking a different life path to her old friends.
It wasn’t until her godmother suggested she read”you can heal your life” by Louise Hay that Malissa was able to snap herself out of her rut. She learned that if she changed her thinking; stopped being fearful, wondering “why me” and second-guessing herself etc. and started replacing those draining thoughts with positive affirmations (like just telling herself that she loved herself – even if she admits this did sound a little strange in the beginning), that she could re-wire her thought patterns. By thinking differently she was able to start tackling the areas of her life that needed attention.
She started paying more attention to the quality of her foods, committed to daily exercise and went out and signed up for the activities she wanted to do.
Does she still have bad days? Uh yeah, she’s human, however she’s now knows how to nurture herself when life gets tough. Her parting advice. Just breathe. Life does get better, and you can play a huge part in that by first loving yourself and surrounding yourself with people that value, live, inspire and respect you.
Are you now as in love with Malissa as I am?
Check out her website www.malissafedele.com and follow the links to her social media accounts or purchase her cookbook (think recipes for sticky date pudding, passionfruit icecream and pesto salmon with roast veggies – yes plez)
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