Feel Good Five
Five things we're thinking about, doing, eating, and feeling
Happy Sunday!
I’m excited to share this week’s Feel Good Five—a curated dose of inspiration, insight, and small shifts to support your wellness journey. Keep reading to discover:
🎧 What We’re Thinking About & Listening To
Your weekly dose of inspiring content—podcasts, books, or articles that sparked a thought, shifted a mindset, or made us think.
👟 Wellness Tip of the Week
One small, actionable shift to help you feel better every day—because the little things add up.
🍦 Product Swap We’re Loving
A better-for-you alternative we’re genuinely obsessed with. Simple, satisfying, and supportive of your health goals.
🧠 A Thought to Carry You Through the Week
A mantra, insight, or reframe to ground you when things feel hectic.
🫐 Nourishing Recipes to Try
Easy, nutrient-dense, and delicious. This week’s recipes are all about fueling your body and your joy.
🎧 What We’re Thinking about & Listening To
Functional Medicine For Longevity, Vibrance & Healing With Dr. Will Cole
What Is Functional Medicine and the Root Cause Approach?
We are facing a chronic disease epidemic in the United States—one that conventional medicine struggles to manage effectively.
The statistics are staggering: 93% of Americans are metabolically unhealthy, and 6 in 10 adults have at least one chronic disease, with 4 in 10 suffering from two or more. Mental health has also plummeted—the average young person today experiences the same level of anxiety and depression as a psychiatric patient in the 1950s.
Clearly, something isn’t working.
The Conventional Medical Model: Symptom Management
For decades, the dominant healthcare system has operated under a diagnose-and-prescribe model. Symptoms are matched with diagnoses, which are then managed with medication. While this approach has its place—especially in acute care and emergency medicine—it often fails to address the underlying imbalances that cause chronic illness in the first place.
Instead of asking “Why is this happening?”, we’re too often jumping to “What pill can fix it?”
Functional Medicine: Asking Why, Not Just What
Functional medicine takes a radically different approach. It asks:
What is at the root of this condition?
What imbalances or dysfunctions in the body might be driving these symptoms?
Rather than silencing the symptoms, functional medicine views them as clues—signals from the body that something deeper needs attention. It's an individualized, systems-based approach that considers genetics, lifestyle, environment, nutrition, stress, toxins, gut health, and more to get a full picture of what’s really going on.
It’s not about treating the disease in isolation—it’s about understanding the whole person.
Why the Root Cause Approach Matters
Chronic conditions like autoimmune diseases, cancer, dementia, heart disease, metabolic disorders, depression, anxiety, hormonal imbalances, and even skin issues don’t arise overnight. They often build up over years, fueled by poor diet, sleep deprivation, unmanaged stress, environmental toxins, sedentary behavior, and emotional trauma.
A root cause approach is about looking upstream. Instead of only asking how to suppress a symptom, we ask:
What’s disrupting balance in the body?
Where is the inflammation coming from?
What systems are under stress or dysfunction?
How can we restore function naturally and sustainably?
A More Empowered Model of Health
Functional medicine empowers people to take an active role in their healing. It focuses on education, prevention, and sustainable lifestyle changes that support long-term vitality, not just short-term relief.
This approach doesn't pit itself against conventional medicine. Instead, it fills in the gaps—especially when it comes to chronic disease, where the conventional model often falls short.
At Let’s Feel Good, we are focused on building a lifestyle of habits, routines, rituals, and behaviors that prevent chronic disease and shift away from the ones that contribute to it.
Ninety percent of chronic disease is driven by lifestyle. Let’s work together to create a lifestyle that supports health, vitality and longevity.
👟 Wellness Tip of the Week
Take one of your calls on a walk.
Whether it’s a catch-up with a friend or a work call you can take over the phone, use it as a chance to get moving.
The benefits of walking are endless: it helps build lean muscle, maintain a healthy weight, improve cardiovascular fitness, strengthen bones and muscles, boost endurance, increase energy, lift your mood, support your immune system, and lower stress.
Turning a call into a walking opportunity makes it much easier to hit 10K+ steps a day—without needing to carve out an extra hour for exercise. Look for small chances throughout your day to move, and notice how much better you feel.
🍦 Product Swap We’re Loving
Our favorite better for you ice cream!!
Ditch the chemical additives, refined sugars, corn syrup, gums, artificial flavorings, and non-organic dairy (often loaded with growth hormones and antibiotics). Instead, switch to whole-food-based, clean, better-for-you options.
Here are our top picks right now 😋
Dream Pops - The dairy-free, better-for-you take on a Dove bar
Ice Cream For Bears - Made with grass-fed dairy — the perfect better-for-you swap for your Ben & Jerry’s
🧠 A Thought to Carry You Through the Week
“When fear becomes your compass, you don't create a life.
You build a bunker.”
-Cory Muscara
🫐 Nourishing Recipes to Try
Turmeric Chicken Tenders with Sweet Potato and Carrot Fries
Pumpkin Miso Pasta with Brussels and Sausage
What do you want to see next week?
Drop it here!
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MEET THE FOUNDER
Hi, I’m Annie!
Work with me for lifestyle implementation coaching, book a discovery call here 🫶🏻
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