Welcome to Episode 1 of the Bone Coach podcast. Kevin Ellis here. I’m really excited that you’re here for the very first episode of this bone health and osteoporosis podcast and what I think you’ll come to find is a very helpful resource on your bone health journey.
If you’ve made it here...if you were searching through podcasts trying to find information on osteoporosis and bone health, and you found this bone health and osteoporosis podcast, I know at least in part, you and I are similar.
Maybe you’ve just been unexpectedly diagnosed with osteoporosis…
Or maybe you’ve had low bone density for a long time and you realize things still aren’t right in your body for optimal bone health…
And you’re looking for answers…You’re looking for the information, research, and solutions to help point you in the right direction of better bone health.
That’s what this podcast is all about.
After I was diagnosed with osteoporosis...
There was this one single question, this pervasive question, (with many, often times complicated answers) at the top of my mind:
How can I improve my bone health?
And I realize this is a question, so many of us think about...
Sometimes it consumes us...and we still don't get the answers we're looking for.
I want to change that…
This Bone Coach Bone Health & Osteoporosis Podcast will be dedicated to helping you understand all things related to diet, lifestyle, bone health, and how you can live and thrive with low bone density and osteoporosis.
Drop the worry. Drop the stress. Drop the fear. Enjoy your life.
We’re going to cover a range of topics including: stopping and preventing bone loss, gut health, hormones, stress, sleep, diet, genetics, DEXA scans, bone mineral density, fracture risk, T-scores, lab testing, nutrients, exercise, celiac disease, Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, arthritis, autoimmunity, toxins, sugar, inflammation, medications and more.
And we’re going to do that through research, expert interviews (bringing in people who have experience over many many years and in some cases even a lifetime in their respective fields), through answering questions from our Bone Coach Community, and from sharing tips of what I’ve seen work well with my clients specifically related to things like diet and lifestyle, all to help you figure out how to get the conditions right in your body to better your bones.
My Osteoporosis Story
I also think it’s important for you to hear my story and to understand why I’m even speaking to you about bone health and why it has become a major focus and a passion of mine.
I’m not a medical doctor, I’m a certified health coach, diagnosed with Osteoporosis in my early 30’s, who made a career shift to focus on an area that I knew was going to be a major part of life that I truly care about. Because it not only impacts me, it impacts my kids, my family, my clients, my community members...the people I’m talking to and interacting with every single day.
Throughout my life there have been many factors that have no doubt contributed to me being diagnosed with osteoporosis in my early 30’s.
And for me, I always envisioned “30” as a time when most people were in their prime, enjoying their new families and young kids (which I have), reaping the rewards of business success from their careers, and living generally fulfilled and happy lives…
And I was not.
Due in large part to me feeling like my health just felt like it was spiraling out of control...
In my late 20’s I was diagnosed with Celiac Disease, an autoimmune disease that damages the small intestine when you ingest gluten. When the small intestine is damaged you can’t properly absorb nutrients.
I had a slew of other digestive issues contributing to maldigestion and nutrient malabsorption. My body just wasn’t able to properly break down and absorb the food I was eating.
I took Proton Pump Inhibitors (PPI’s) for a number of years to suppress my stomach acid because like most people who take PPI’s, I mistakenly thought I had too much stomach acid. This is a problem because we need stomach acid to extract nutrients from our food.
Most days my energy was non-existent. I remember there were days when I could barely get out of bed.…At a cellular level, I had nothing in the tank. That low energy kept me from waking up with a sense of direction and purpose. It was hard to work, focus, play, be intimate, invest in relationships and friendships, and even cultivate self respect.
Most nights my body and mind were exhausted, but I just couldn’t get a solid night’s sleep. I’d toss and turn throughout the night and I’d wake up exhausted.
My stress and anxiety were through the roof. It felt as if I was walking around with weights on my chest and the only way to get a full deep breath was to posture my arms on a piece of furniture in front of me.
My hormones were a mess. My cortisol levels were off, I had low T, elevated SHBG, and thyroid issues.
A combination of genetics, toxin exposure, and poor gut health crippled my body’s ability rid itself of all the bad stuff we’re exposed to everyday. Simply put, I was toxic.
All of these things contributed, and likely other factors, to me developing osteoporosis.
And I want to share something incredibly personal with you because I think it’s an important part of my story and why I’m so passionate about this.
When my mother was five months pregnant with me, my father was told he had cancer.
Two months after I was born he passed away. He was 35.
My entire life...I’ve had this fear that I would follow in his footsteps to an early grave and not have the opportunity to watch my kids grow up and to experience the joys of being a father.
And when I was diagnosed with osteoporosis at 31, and I was still struggling with all of these other health issues, I thought my fate was destined to be the same…
That’s where my mind was at.
I remember the day the doctor sat down with me and confirmed I had osteoporosis. Her exact words “this is going to be an issue for you.”
I walked out of the office afraid.
For the people who know me well, they know that I’m not typically the most emotional person and there are very few things that strike fear into my heart.
But that did…
When I was walking out to my car, I actually carefully sat down in the driver’s seat for the first time in my life, because I was intentionally think about trying not to fracture the vertebrae in my spine.
When I got home that night, I was laying on the couch across from my wife, my daughter was upstairs sleeping.
I looked up and saw my favorite picture of her on the wall.
She was a little over one year old, wearing this cute polka dot dress, standing in front of a white picket fence, blonde hair, blue eyes, innocent and sweet as could be…
And I just broke down crying...and I cried hard. It was the the kind of cry that just empties the sum of life’s burdens....and after I was done I looked over at my wife and said “I just want to dance with my daughter on her wedding day.”
She needed her daddy...and I questioned whether I’d even be alive to be there for her.
For that first couple days and weeks, I just kept thinking:
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Why is this happening to me?
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This doesn’t make sense.
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How is this possible?
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Is this my fault?
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What will my life be like moving forward?
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How will my life change?
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Am I the only person my age going through this?
I was angry, upset, overwhelmed and I was scared…I had no idea where to start and just I wanted to know that everything was going to be okay...
After a great deal of reading and research and working with different doctors and consulting with many different people, my mindset started to shift.
Those feelings and emotions of fear and overwhelm evolved into determination.
My mindset became: I’m going to be there for my family and my kids. I’m going to take the information I learned and start making progress. I’m going to improve my bones.
When you get to that point where your mindset shifts...it’s empowering, it’s liberating, and it allows you to view your circumstances from a different perspective.
I share this with you because I want you to understand that I’m familiar with those feelings and emotions that come with being told you have a condition for which you have little understanding...
And this mindset shift and the ability to view your circumstances from a different perspective is such an important aspect of our bone health journeys...and it’s what leads us to move from a life of worry and fear to one of joy, empowerment, and inspiration.
So...if you’re listening (or reading this transcript)...and you have those same kinds of feelings, and fears, and frustrations, just know that you’re in the right place and the information you find here can serve as a guiding light to better health.
And you know what, I may not know your exact journey, or the exact cause of your low bone density, and you may not know that yet either, but I can relate to some or many of the struggles you’re probably facing right now…
Something I wish I would have understood better from the start is that there are no acute solutions to a chronic condition. I’m going to say that again, there are no acute solutions to a chronic condition like osteoporosis.
There are no quick fixes. Bone remodeling is a slow process…we’re talking weeks, months and years. So going out and doing anything drastic or making quick decisions without first researching and understanding them thoroughly…
That won’t be helpful and could potentially be harmful.
But at the time when I was first starting this journey, I would have given anything for the “right answer“ or the “one solution” or the magic bullet…
But there is no one solution or magic bullet. They don’t exist.
Our bodies are all different and they respond to foods, and supplements, and exercises, and lifestyle practices differently.
It took a lot of work, and reading, and working with the right people, and making positive diet and lifestyle changes that led to improvements in my health.
If you haven’t already done so, make a commitment to yourself to be your own health advocate.
Work with a team of people who get what you’re going through.
Be open to trial and error of new foods and lifestyle practices.
And don’t give up when things don’t go right the first time. They rarely do.
Your body and your bones can get better and that’s what I want for you...it’s my goal to help you achieve health and happiness.
That’s why I became a Certified Health Coach through the Institute for Integrative Nutrition.
It’s why I started bonecoach.com
It’s why I launched the bone health and osteoporosis podcast.
It’s why I pulled together experts from their respective fields and brought them together in our coaching programs (apply here).
So, the very first thing I’m going to recommend that you do, is head over to bonecoach.com and Claim your FREE 7-Day Osteoporosis Kickstart!
For each episode of this Bone Health & Osteoporosis podcast, I’ll be providing:
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Detailed show notes so you can easily reference the information being discussed.
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Links to all of the resources mentioned during each show including various research articles, websites, products, services, or other information discussed that may be important.
I want to make this an enjoyable, informative place for you to come and learn about bone health…
I’m grateful and excited for you to be joining me on your bone health journey...Be sure to check out the next episodes that give an overview of our bones, how they function, what bone remodeling is and why you should care and so much more…
Thanks for listening to the Bone Coach Bone Health & Osteoporosis Podcast. I’m your Bone coach, Kevin Ellis. I’ll talk to you soon.
The Bone Coach Bone Health & Osteoporosis Podcast Credits:
Music from https://filmmusic.io "Werq" by Kevin MacLeod https://incompetech.com)License: CC BY (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0)
