How to Heal Your Metabolism: Stop blaming aging for your slowing metabolism

by Kate Deering

How to Heal Your Metabolism will help educate you on how eating the right foods, eating the right amount of food, consuming the right food supplements,consuming the right amount of water, sleeping and resting, doing the right amount of exercise, and finding happiness will increase your metabolic rate and help heal your broken metabolism.How to Heal Your Metabolism will question everything you thought you knew about health and nutrition. If you are ready to understand nutrition and health in a completely different light, then you need to read this book.

Genres: Health, Nonfiction, Nutrition, Food, Self Help, Fitness, Bodies

392 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 9, 2015

Reviews

[Aneliya Petrunova · Rating 4 out of 5]

OK, this is my umpteenth book on health and nutrition (and life after a low carb or ketogenic diet), so I am getting a good idea of what more authors think apart from the ones strictly devoted to the low carb/keto/paleo cause. And this is what I think: this book is a good read, do give it a try, especially if you're struggling with a sluggish metabolism since going low carb/keto and especially if you are clinically hypothyroid. But do take the book and the author's recommendations with a pinch of salt and do make sure you read more books and authors, for example Paul Jaminet's "The Perfect Health Diet".

What I find positive about this book:
- Kate Deering takes her time to explain the science behind Ray Peat's and her own diet recommendations, but my opinion, based on other sources I have read, is that at times the explanation can be flawed, so do read it critically. For example it is stated that all cells can utilize fructose, because fructose does not require insulin to get into cells. This is simply not true. Fructose can only be metabolized in the liver where it is converted to glucose (which can then be used as fuel by all cells or stored) or fat.
- She recommends everyone step away from low carb or keto diets and go for a high carb (and relatively low fat) eating plan - this can be viewed as both a good idea, since many lowcarbers definitely feel better on a higher carb diet, and a bad idea, since there might still be many people who can't thrive on a high carb diet. But to help everyone minimize any negative effects, she recommends carb intake be increased very slowly, and this is definitely good advice.
- This is yet another book that tells us that PUFAs and a high muscle meat intake are bad, while saturated fat, cholesterol, salt, coffee, gelatin/collagen/bone broth and organ meats are good for us. Hallelujah! We need more books with this message.
- Fruit, even fruit juice, is exonerated. Yaaaaay! Lowcarbers could definitely benefit from adding more whole fruits to their diet.
- Dairy is vindicated as well. Thank God for that.
- Starch (except for white and sweet potatoes) and grains, as well as nuts and seeds and legumes (especially soy) are condemned. This message is not new, of course.
- Emphasis is on healing and not on weight loss.
- Readers are encouraged to eat more and exercise less. Hallelujah!
- The importance of balancing blood sugar (by eating the right kinds and amounts of carbs, combined with protein and fat) is emphasized - always a good idea.

What I find negative about the book:
- The message to drink a lot of milk and fruit juice and eat more sugar than most authorities would advise still seems suspicious to me. Then again, Kate Deering urges her readers to take it slowly and observe how their body responds.
- Having read the Jaminets' defense of starchy foods, I am slightly suspicious of this almost total condemnation of starch. People have been consuming (safe) starches for ages, they can't be that bad. On the other hand, I do agree that even starch intake should be moderated.
- The thing that bothers me the most about this approach is that you are still advised to count calories, even though you are allowed to eat more.

All in all, my opinion is much more positive than negative. But even if a low carb diet can be harmful for many people long term (and beneficial for others), do take it slowly, when you start increasing your carb intake. As with many things in life, your mileage may vary, so make sure you read your body's signals right and do not dismiss them.

[Marco · Rating 3 out of 5]

The good: based on the studies of Ray Peat, Kate convincingly argues against many of the dogmas present in current diets such as Paleo, low-carb, vegetarianism, veganism, etc.

The bad: before even finishing her reflections on how she was brainwashed by past diet fads and how bad that was for her health she starts preaching her brand new dogma (which is basically a carbon copy of RP’s ideas). Nuts are bad for you. Salmon is a no-no. Pasta? What kind of monster are you?

Now isn’t that wild? How we can be so blind and dogmatic a nanosecond after recognizing that we had been blind and dogmatic for decades before we finally saw the light? What is it that keeps us from realizing that we’re doing the same thing all over again? Humans, man, we’re funny.

Also worth mentioning is the fact that Kate is clearly out of her depth here. It’s quite plain to see, especially if you visit her Facebook page and read her posts and replies, that she doesn’t really understand the science she’s paying lip service to. Which I totally get, since I’m kind like that too.

You see, we orthore... I mean, we health enthusiasts, we read a lot about nutrition and memorize some impressive mechanisms and fancy words like catecholamines, and can impress a great deal of people at the bar. But the pretense can only go so far, even more so if you expose yourself through social media.

All in all if you want to exorcise your sugar and carb phobia, this book is a good read and its prose much clearer than Ray’s. But if you think you can skip the stage of becoming dogmatic about something else all over again you might be better served by going straight to some intuitive eating literature, where people don’t claim some foods are intrinsically good or bad and teach you to listen to your body, the highest authority there can be on, well, you.

[Jessaka · Rating 2 out of 5]

She has a disclaimer at the beginning of her book, telling people that if they follow her diet And nutrition ideas not to blame her If they get sick . I have never seen this in a nutritional book before, so now I am worried. If she is worried, I am worried. So I am putting a disclaimer on my review. If you follow it, well, That's up to you. It would be smarter if you went to a real nutritionist. But you see, I have studied nutrition since I What's 21 and I am 81 now. I am on few medications. But don't listen to me either.

I really like her bone soup idea, so I have made up my own.

VOODOO BONE AND CHICKEN LEG Broth Or SOUP

Get a bag of bones. Get them from every everywhere or anywhere. The supermarket the slaughterhouse A farmer No for the chicken leg go to a farmer or 1 of those outdoor markets where they hang chickens from their legs. Add a couple of chicken legs to the broth. Simmer for hours, perhaps days.
Note. The chicken leg is to protect you from evil. If you don't believe me ask Alexa. It is used in VOODOOISM. Another note. She really puts a chicken leg in her soup. I just added 2 for more flavor.

She is against vegetables that grow above ground because they produce toxins to kill insects. You can eat anything underground even though it produces talks and also. I don't get it. She claims that nuts are bad for you because they're polyunsaturated. She claims that they cannot be digested and the proof is in the pudding, you know that stuff that comes out of you in the morning. You will find that it contains large chunks of nuts. My thought is people are not chewing their food. I will not stop Eating nuts because nuts are good for you. And so are vegetables that grow above the ground. You can eat fruit though all kinds of fruit and you can eat sugar because sugar is now good for you. And liver may be the best thing you can eat outside of that soup. I will not eat liver I will never eat liver. My mother used to make me eat liver and sometimes I knew how to not eat that liver. I would toss it under the table when no 1 was looking and my dog or my cat would get to it so nobody knew. So you see I was traumatized as a child and now this author is traumatizing me again so I end my review here and will not follow anything she has to say.

[Storystitcher · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book but I knock off 1 star because we have here yet another author seeing the devil in grain, nuts and legumes which once again is advertising a "diet" that removes food groups.

I am resting and refeeding after coming off of the destruction caused by Atkins and Paleo so why on earth would I want to do more of the same.

Just "EAT THE FOOD"!

[Marjorie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've been having some serious digestive / health issues for about a year. Visited the doctor to see what was up, thyroid and iron were a little whacked out, not horrible but yet I was always incredibly tired and everything I ate made me bloated. I figured I was allergic to foods but didn't know what they were and I found having to consume food torturous instead of an experience to look forward to. I was eating Paleo (and knew almonds made me sick) so wasn't quite sure what it could be.

I picked this book up as a recommendation from a blog I follow and I have to say was quite intrigued with what she wrote. It made a lot of sense to me and so I decided for the month of December I would cut everything out and reset my metabolism.

Wow, what a difference. 4 days into December I already noticed a difference. I was no longer bloated after eating, having whole milk didn't make me sick (it did before but maybe it was something else I was eating that did it) and I found I started to look forward to eating again. Have I lost weight, not significantly. I've maybe lost a lb or 2 but that's also because I haven't really worked out (holidays and all). I think once I start working out again I will notice more weight drop but boy, not being bloated is amazing.

I'm planning on re-introducing some of the foods I cut out in January and see how I feel (like a salad here and there). Maybe my metabolism is too sensitive for the foods I cut out, or maybe I just needed to reset myself. We shall see.

Either way, it's definitely an interesting read. Would recommend it if you are at your wits end and just want to experiment without having to take drugs (doc tried putting me on thyroid medicine, whoa worst mistake ever for me, actually made me 100% worst).

[Andreea Prundeanu · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read

Very educational, logical approach to explaining how our body works, lots of useful information.
I will probably re-read it after a few months, I’m sure there’s more to absorb.

[Ashten Swartz · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book and really learned a lot. Her tone was sometimes annoying which is typical with these sorts of books. But the best part by far was the explanation of how nutrients are digested and metabolized and what foods contain the highest level of AVAILABLE/DIGESTIBLE nutrients. I’m drinking coffee (with cream and sugar) and milk more frequently, eating raw carrots daily, and enjoying my eggs with even more delight (if that’s possible) because of this book. And hopefully, implementing some of what I learned will indeed help increase my metabolism!

[Hannah Stevens · Rating 3 out of 5]

Main gist: eat dairy, bone broth, liver, and orange juice! Jkjk.

Although her tone was often annoying (as well as her fake “testimonials”) and the good food/bad food dynamics aren’t always the most helpful, I did come away with a better understanding of how to support my metabolism/balance blood sugar/etc! If you’re looking into prometabolic eating and want an introduction, Deering’s book is a good place to start. She provides her main points at the end of each chapter to summarize, answers FAQs, and gives a little 5-day eating plan and recipes.

[Elaine · Rating 3 out of 5]

I can't decide what I fully think about this book. So much of it I love and think is right on, but some things go so against conventional wisdom that I have a hard time grasping it. (For example, I love that she supports drinking/eating full fat dairy, but it's hard to imagine that leafy greens aren't as good for you as everyone says they are.) I also found the material hard to follow sometimes. She goes through a lot of science and since I don't have a nutrition background, some was difficult to understand. That said, I really enjoyed reading and studying this book and have recommended it to friends.

[Jake Crenshaw · Rating 4 out of 5]

One week in and already feeling warmer after meals, happier, way better mood and tons more energy. Switched from a mostly keto diet to a metabolism based diet. Most helpful information for me were the ideas that processed foods, grains nuts and seeds should be avoided and the benefits of going organic. I'm excited to see what it does for insulin resistance as I struggle with type 2 diabetes.

[Emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is an awesome resource for anyone interested in Ray Peat's work and want an easy way to digest it. However, some of it is too extreme and though the author says she is over her disordered eating, when you demonize any food, it doesn't seem believable.

[Ura · Rating 4 out of 5]

im soooo fucked up

[Candice Woods · Rating 4 out of 5]

For someone who realized that a low carb hasn't been helping my body out at all, this was a good book backed with science to get me started in learning about the pro metabolic world.
Kate's story is relatable for those that have been over exercising, without realizing it, and under eating, again without realizing it.
I suggest reading this book and listening to the Freely Rooted Podcast, Kate is a guest in episode 12. These ladies have such knowledge and I'm thankful for them shedding light on this lifestyle

Likes: the science and stressing the importance of eating good sugar filled foods since that is our bodies main source of energy, especially eating multiple times throughout the day.

Opinions: Well I can't fully agree that it's a good idea to cut out gluten and grains. Well I see her point, I'm trying to not have a food list of things to eliminate, that's what got me here in the first place. I do think it's a good idea to eat gluten less. Most in the pro metabolic sphere shy away from a food list at all, which while that is trained in our mindset, I'd like to attempt to get away from.
I'm also hesitant on eating that amount of fish every week, but again, yes we should be eating more fish. I just worry that her suggestion could cause higher levels of mercury in the body, I personally need to do more research.

[Sarah Eustache · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a treasure trove of information.

I have been learning a lot in the pro-metabolic circle of health and there is such good information in this book!

If you have ever been curious about your metabolism, if nuts & seeds are really all they are cracked up to be (ha!), and if you are eating the right foods to support your body - read this book!

Highly recommend!

[Amy Black · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very informative and interesting read. While it didn’t feel like new information to me it seems to bring together so many things I’ve read over the years while also bringing a few new things to light. It seems to be a manageable and realistic way to eat a healthy and balanced diet.

[Jane Tan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Redefined what a healthy body means for me. I had been doing/eating a lot of things that I thought were healthy for me, including loading up on soy milk, soy products, healthy nuts, etc. If you're health-conscious or struggle with weight loss and rebounce, this is a book to read. You don't have to follow everything in this book but your perspective may shift. Takeaway: Good metabolism is key.

[Jacob · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've seen people discuss Ray Peat's work in the corner of the internet that I frequent, and I had a general gist of what his philosophy towards nutrition and bioenergetics was about. However, I always wanted a more in-depth understanding beyond everyone posting their meals and asking "if this is peaty or not".

Kate Deering's book does a great job bridging that gap. She is a follower in Ray Peat's philosophy and provides a simple yet thorough explanation on why we should avoid PUFAs, processed foods, nuts, etc. and why we should consume more saturated fats, sugars, protein (from clean sources), and overall live a life that is more inclined to optimizing the metabolism. Deering mentions many studies to back up her claims, and through my own dieting and exercise experience, I can say that optimizing for metabolism function is probably the most efficient way to get on track for a healthy lifestyle.

Deering provides stories throughout the book of the other paths people have taken in order to get to the fabled "healthy lifestyle" and how they were ultimately sacrificing their metabolic health, which would always rear its head in the long run. Examples include veganism, extremely high protein diets, over-exercising, and weight-loss diets.

I also enjoyed how Deering rarely completely ruled foods out for consumption (I believe she only explicitly called for not consuming recreational drugs, although PUFAs were a close second). Some people can become way too engrossed in what is and is not allowed in a healthy diet. Thankfully, most foods can be enjoyed as long as they are done so in moderation. This is with the caveat, however, that ones thyroid is functioning well. For those whose metabolic health is not where it needs to be, then cutting down to the bare essentials that Deering describes and slowly reintroducing other foods may be the way to go.

Overall a great book on learning why metabolic function is so important to overall health. Give it a read if you are interested in what it means to optimize human health and energy.

[Lyaman Agabekova · Rating 4 out of 5]

I find the book pretty radical. Of course there should be balance in the consumption of fats (it’s not so good to overeat any of them) but for her polyunsaturated fats and some types of greens are the types of the food that should be avoided. Some of the references that she had, are the researches that were done on animals or on small group of people, so not all of them are reliable.

But on the other hand, the books gives the detailed view on internal processes that happens in our body and how to heal/improve the metabolism.
Also I liked that in the book she focused a lot on thyroid and on the importance of it. She emphasised which type of diet can cause inflammation and what to avoid if you have thyroid problems.

After reading couple of books about diet, I realised that the authors are writing based on their personal experience since most of them don’t even have a proper degree in medicine. So it’s good to read these books just as reference, but to understand that each body is individual and the response to different kinds of diets could be different. It’s better to find the balance and not to strictly follow what each author says.

[Ryan Burgett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic!

For the last 10 years I've been in a journey to heal my body. I feel like the final piece to the puzzle just clicked into place. I knew Paleo diet left my blood sugar a wreck and didn't feel right. I knew the healing power of bine broth and gelatin and have used daily for 2 years. I have been mostly grain free (except for white rice with ghee) for a decade now, I can't tolerate any other grains. I've been doing a lot of the things advised in this book, just by feeling out what felt right for me. I learned the benefits of working out from a place of rest and focusing on lymphatic flow and fascia health (T-Tapp for the win). I've seen huge improvements in my body temperature and gut health...but I still kept tanking with energy and blood sugar. And despite eating well, being active but not too active. I still carry extra (I feel unnecessary) fat stores at my hips and thighs. Thanks to this book I now understand how to create a balanced meal to finally get my blood sugar and metabolism where I want it! I'm excited to out these ideas into practice.

[Megan Sybrant · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really fascinating & scientific exploration of our metabolism. The author debunks many fitness and wellness myths out there while providing scientific resources for many different nutrients and foods that are often absent from our diets.

I will say she seems to take a really strict approach to metabolism health. So i think there are definitely parts of this to apply & parts to realize that it may not matter for some of us. I read most of the book thinking, “well what should i actually eat?” And the only explanation for that is her example meal plan, which, in my opinion, doesn’t give a whole lot of guidance.

Nonetheless the resource itself would prove valuable to anyone interested in nutrition or in the wellness or medical industry.

[Monyka · Rating 2 out of 5]

My main gripe with this book is that Deering commits the same offences she warns against. For example, warns against “big soy” “big pharma” “big health” etc but seems completely oblivious to “big beef” or “big diary”. She also cherry picks data and omits articles that do not support her claims. She also makes statements like “there is very little evidence for [insert claim]” and turns around to say something was “proven” that supports her stance and cites only 2 articles.

There is a lot of good information in Deering’s book, For example, how to monitor your health, foods you should eat to access certain vitamines and minerals, prioritizing whole foods, when to eat and how much, exercise. But I advise consulting SEVERAL sources before taking her word on mechanism of action.

[Miss · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent book which I no sooner finished and turned back to the first page to start again. To me this is post paleo and although I was doing really well with paleo, my son told me about Ray Peat and how he addressed the metabolism and took it all step further and pointed out that just because I thought all was well, it didn't mean it couldn't be even better. Ray Peat is very difficult to understand so I went to Amazon to see what I could find that would bring it all down to my level and came upon Kate's book. I know this book will change my life and improve my health, daily well being and hopefully longevity. Well done Kate!

[Funderburk · Rating 2 out of 5]

There was a little too much fiction in this book for me, but it had some good points. Just make sure you research behind what this book says

[Leslie Portu · Rating 2 out of 5]

Kudos for the concepts.
Did not work for me.

[Melissa Barrett · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easy to read, helpful info.

[Kate Heinz · Rating 5 out of 5]

A quick read with a wealth of info

I read this book through Kindle Unlimited. Fairly short and sweet, How to Heal Your Metabolism reads as part biography and part self help. After losing faith in contemporary diet culture, Deering took a closer look at the legalistic nature of these diets, noticing that most of them required cutting out nutritious foods, e.g. fruits, saturated fats, dairy, all in the name of a quick fix. What she began to research and realize is that the thyroid plays an important role in regulating hormones, and if we don't feed the thyroid, our hormones are disrupted causing uncomfortable symptoms: low body temperature, low pulse rate, painful PMS and periods, acne, hair loss, etc.

Following a balanced approach, Deering offers a welcome solution: eat the foods needed for your body to run efficiently and well, foods like fruit, butter, milk, vegetables, organ meat, collagen and so much more.

More importantly, it's a book about reading the body. If something brings your temperature and pulse too low, you know your body needs something different to run well.

It's never legalistic, it's never rule based. Rather, it's about combining the right carbs, right fats and right proteins to make to body a well oiled machine.

It requires a lot of patience, as many of us are coming off of years of buying in to the notion that carbs are bad.... Fruit is bad.... Butter and eggs are bad... But our body needs these fuels to ensure our thyroid is working and therefore our hormones are working.

Recommended for anyone looking for a new perspective on diet culture. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

[hannah cottrill · Rating 4 out of 5]

|| 4.5 ⭐️ ||

A fantastic introductory book for pro-metabolic eating. I found the explanations about how each of the macronutrients contribute to the body’s functioning to be quite clear and helpful, especially in the case of carbs (which are unfairly demonized in most nutrition books). The information was organized well.

I’ve personally followed some combination of a pro-metabolic diet combined with an ancestral diet for the past two years, developed through a lot of trial and error while trying to heal from chronic health issues and now just maintaining my health and vitality. There are certain things in this book that I personally haven’t found to be helpful for me on my food/health journey, just as there are certain things on the ancestral side that don’t work for me. I doubt I’ll ever 100% agree/resonate with one nutrition camp due to bioindividuality, but the concepts in this one are pretty close. Having been on keto in the past, I can definitely relate to the drop in energy, hormone function, muscle/bone mass, sluggishness, etc. that comes with depriving the body of its preferred energy source… and the healing that can happen when that source is brought back. Carbs rock (when paired with enough saturated fats and protein).

I do wish she’d mentioned nature’s effect on metabolism—especially sunlight! That’s such a foundational factor too!

[Serena Craig · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well laid out scientific approach to how our metabolism works and what supports or suppresses our metabolism. I still don’t know how I feel about not restricting sugar, but it’s definitely eased my mind on some of the principles regarding carbohydrate consumption.

It’s not a one size fits all “diet” book which I appreciate. Every person is unique and therefore needs to eat different things in different ratios.

Worth the read when there’s so many “restricting macronutrient” diets out there. She recommends restricting grains, legumes, and beans, due to their ability to act like estrogen in the body and their metabolism suppressing nature, so there’s at least a scientific reason for it besides “you’ll lose weight because you’re starving yourself!”

Read this book and you’ll be surprised at how your suppressed metabolism is behind a lot of your issues!

[Stephanie Weisgerber · Rating 4 out of 5]

So a diet book which finally says I'm doing a lot of things right! I was shocked to discover that many of the habits I have created are diet book author approved such as drinking bone broth and milk and eating healthy carbs such as sourdough bread and sweet potatoes.
Kate Deering happily admits her many past failures, foibles, and fads which led to her lean frame but low energy/ high stressed body and mind. She bravely recalibrated and challenged herself as she embraced change to her credit. She went on a new journey of learning to heal her wrecked metabolism finding some surprising things along the way.
She details topics such as why saturated fats are good for you, how your body uses sugar, dumping grains and gluten, thyroid suppressing vegetables, how much protein you really need, milk as a perfect food, and learning to balance your blood sugar among many other interesting topics. As a physical therapist myself with a pretty decent understanding of anatomy, I enjoyed the highly detailed medical topics which correlated into what she describes the body doing with that particular food group and its chemical structure. I would recommend this book to anyone older than 30 who wants to heal their metabolism through natural means and enjoy losing weight in a well paced and well fed manner.

[Judith · Rating 3 out of 5]

My neurologist recommended following the dietary advice in Kate Deering’s book and prescribed vitamins — B1 and B2 and magnesium tablets — as well, and my health has improved steadily since then. I highly recommend it to anyone else with hypothyroidism, as I have.

Deering addresses a much wider audience in her book than just those of us with hypothyroidism, particularly folks who have been dieting or just trying to eat healthy foods. Although her book contains some mistakes, does a good bit of pontificating, and I found most of her recipes ludicrous, it seems to me it contains some useful information for everyone