Episode 246 : Do you want to feel amazing? Revisitng Glucose Revolution
Episode 246 : Do you want to feel amazing? Revisitng Glucose Revolution
Embedded Files
Do you want to feel amazing? revisiting Glucose Revolution - episode 246
Do you want to feel amazing? revisiting Glucose Revolution - episode 246
“Do you want to feel amazing?” Another book that I think is helpful to reread is Glucose Revolution by Jessie Inchaspé. I review in the episode (and go in depth in episode 122, Glucose Revolution our bodies and glucose) how our bodies process glucose. I remind you that our bodies need a lot of fuel but that we need it in certain intervals. I share the story of the conductor of the train and the coal that he is given to help the train keep running. I also share an update on how I have been understanding my blood glucose and which hacks I have been using since reading this book 3 years ago. It has been a good reminder to not worry as much about my size or scale but finding ways I can help my body feel amazing.
Show Notes: Hi Friends! I hope you enjoyed listening to this episode. Below are all the references.
Key Topics
Key Topics
Why I decided to revisit Glucose Revolution
Shifting the health conversation away from the scale
The question that reframed everything: Do you want to feel amazing?
Why we need glucose — and why too much at once causes problems
What glucose spikes are and how they affect energy, cravings, and aging
Letting go of shame around weight and trusting that our bodies are trying to protect us
Why information can be helpful — and also overwhelming
What I Learned (and Re-Learned)
What I Learned (and Re-Learned)
Our bodies burn an astonishing amount of glucose every second
Excess glucose leads to insulin spikes, inflammation, and fatigue
Fat is not the enemy — it’s one way our bodies protect us
Energy crashes and cravings are often tied to glucose spikes
Feeling “not great” doesn’t have to be our baseline
Personal Reflections
Personal Reflections
Revisiting Episode 122 and reflecting on what stuck — and what didn’t
Losing weight, gaining some back, and realizing that wasn’t the whole point
My very real love of licorice and dirty Diet Coke
Wanting to help my kids without forcing change
Accepting that information only helps when someone is ready
The Glucose “Train” Analogy
The Glucose “Train” Analogy
I share one of my favorite metaphors from the book — comparing our mitochondria to a train operator shoveling coal. When fuel comes at a steady pace, energy flows. When too much arrives too fast, everything backs up. This image helped me understand why flattening glucose spikes matters for long-term energy and health.
Glucose Hacks I Actually Use
Glucose Hacks I Actually Use
These are the strategies I return to most often:
Eat foods in a specific order: veggies → protein → carbs/sugar
Prioritize protein at breakfast to reduce cravings later
Save sweets for dessert, not snacks
Add “clothes” to carbs (protein or fat)
Use vinegar before meals when helpful
Move for 10 minutes after eating (or aim to)
A Compassionate Reminder
A Compassionate Reminder
Even when we eat well and take care of our bodies, health challenges can still come. This isn’t about control or perfection — it’s about doing what we can to feel better, have more energy, and support our bodies as they support us.
Closing Invitation
Closing Invitation
As you think about your own health, I invite you to ask a gentler question than “What should I change?”
Instead, ask: How do I want to feel?
And then consider one small experiment that might help you feel a little more amazing.
Sources & Further Reading
Sources & Further Reading
Jessie Inchauspé, Glucose Revolution
Episode 122 — Glucose Revolution: Our Bodies and Glucose (Finding the Floor)
Research on glucose, insulin, and metabolic health
Educational resources on continuous glucose monitors (CGMs)
transcript
transcript
Audio file
Audio file
Ep. 246 Listening to Glucose Revolution again.mp3
I am Camille Johnson, and this is Finding the Floor.
Stories and reflections of midlife motherhood, family, and finding meaning in it all.
Join me as I share a little piece of my life and figure out what I want to be when I grow up.
Hey everyone, welcome to Finding the Floor.
This is episode 246 and today I am going to re-remind you or talk about the book Glucose Revolution.
So that's kind of the question I want you to think about as you think about your health.
Sometimes we think about it so much with the size of our pants or the number on the scale.
And she's going to let you know some ways where you can
Okay, so that's what we're going to talk about today.
And for reference, I talked about this book three years ago, which feels crazy.
And it's episode 122, Glucose Revolution, Our Bodies and Glucose
and it's my most downloaded episode.
I don't know why it is my most downloaded episode.
I don't know if like someone's using it in a class.
So I listened to it today to be like, wow, how amazing was this episode?
And it actually is pretty good.
It gives you so much information from the book.
Obviously, reading the book, I would always say is better, but if you need a pretty good synopsis,
I'm not going to try to chew my horn too much, but like it's actually pretty good.
And I even listened on like 1.7 speed.
And so I got all the information.
Okay, first of all, how's everybody doing?
And we still get like a little bit of like sprinkling of snow each day.
But we've had school off Monday and Tuesday because first of all, we had this big storm.
I feel like Cleveland didn't get quite as much as like
southern to middle to southern Ohio, there was like a lot more.
I got probably like 12 or more inches.
But then we got these like super cold temps.
So but then it's still been cold, like wind chill, negative 6.
when you read, you're like, the temperature is 6 degrees, real feel, negative 3.
So it's definitely winter here in Cleveland and it's cold.
And so we got to do some things like watch extra episodes of Hometown Cha Cha Cha.
And I had been struggling to find a time to get my daughter in to get her hair cut.
And luckily, our hairdresser had like an opening on the Tuesday when there was no school.
when it's so nice and warm and how you can appreciate that.
Don't forget days like this in the summer, and then don't forget summer days like this.
Helps you going in the winter.
Think about health goals, because sometimes that's like always a thing at the beginning of the year.
I want to lose this many pounds, or I want to feel this way.
So this book is called Glucose Revolution by Jesse and Chaspe.
And really the question is, how do you want your body to feel?
And I think that's really important.
This is not as in-depth as the episodes, because I divide them into three.
And today I'm going to just talk about it in one episode, just so you're aware.
So one thing she points out is that we as humans need glucose.
And so she says, every second your body burns 8 billion billion molecules of glucose.
Suffice it to say, humans need
Eight billion, billion molecules of glucose.
And to have that visual of like all the sand in all the beaches on the earth?
So we do need fuel to make all our organs function and our muscles and our brain, all those things.
And she just wants to point out that the way we're getting our fuel is important.
And then that can create all sorts of issues.
And to follow up, so it's three years later, have I kept those 15 pounds off?
And so this book was a really good reminder for me, like trying to find the balance.
I found this new licorice brand.
I don't know if it's new, but like the Wallaby licorice.
And oh my gosh, I could eat a whole bag in like a second.
And then I also love getting a good dirty Diet Coke.
So I add cream to my Diet Coke.
And oh my gosh, that was like my favorite thing lately.
And I don't know if that's really the issue, but you know, a combination of a lot of things like
Then I was really determined to figure this out.
And I shared with him information and that's all I can do.
I just have to realize they're not ready.
My life was a little bit different.
Isn't it funny how you think 15 pounds is a lot?
And then maybe I don't even notice when people lose 15 pounds.
Like, have you been working hard?
Like, what's the balance of saying that instead of like, you didn't look good before?
Like, So it's like this little balance.
And do you want to help yourself age better?
And are there things you want to avoid if you can?
that maybe as you get that under control, it can like help with different issues in your life.
Do you want to just wake up in the morning and just be excited for your day and feel amazing?
And I think we get used to not feeling that way and that's just like normal.
And so she's just saying there's more if you're willing to maybe try some of these hacks.
uses these hacks as a way to solely help us get into it.
Because sometimes it feels like a lot to change our eating habits.
We're worried about cravings, but she just helps us understand all those things.
Like cravings really happen when you are coming down from a big glucose spike.
So let's say I eat a whole bag of licorice in like 1/2 hour.
that's going to give me a really big glucose spike.
And as I'm coming down, that's also going to increase my cravings.
So that's probably why I want to keep eating it.
And now there's some over-the-counter glucose monitors.
And then it lasts for like 2 weeks.
And I think there's two like monitors or little needle things for each package.
everybody's a little bit different.
But then also sometimes I'm like, do I want to know?
Do you guys ever feel like that sometimes?
Like I'm actually okay not knowing.
And I just want to eat my licorice and drink my diet Coke and still feel amazing.
Anyway, so there's that question.
A couple other reminders about this book, okay?
She says, when we eat our food and we chew it, gets turned into glucose, okay?
And our glucose, again, our body needs that glucose to like run.
And it puts it in two, well, three places.
First, it puts it in our liver.
The other place the insulin will put it is in our muscles.
And the last thing it'll do, it will turn it into fat.
And she says, sometimes we have this like interesting relationship with fat,
But she says, our bodies are working.
And as we actually keep on getting fatter, that's good.
Many of us have complicated feelings about fat, but it's actually very useful.
We shouldn't be mad at our bodies for putting on fat.
The more you're able to grow the number and size of your fat cells,
just really a good reminder as you think about that.
Your body is doing a good job.
So then he just stops working and the train stops going.
And so that is what happens when we have too many glucose spikes that our body can't handle it.
And then that's when we have not as much energy.
Tiny molecules with large consequences are released.
Free radicals are a big deal because anything they touch, they damage.
They poke holes in the membranes of our cells,
turning normally functioning cells into malfunctioning ones.
So that's another good reason to think about, okay, how do I want to treat my body?
which gives us this big dopamine hit and we like that.
And then we think we really should have that.
So it's just kind of like this catch-22.
Like I love eating the licorice.
day, or I just allow the licorice.
And then I've been allowing my Dirty Diet Coke a lot of days.
But the licorice, I've been putting that down to like one day.
Not like the whole day, but like I can give myself a small pack each week.
And that is kind of helping to satisfy me.
Okay, so as a reminder, in this book, she has like 10 hacks.
that kind of help you as you are trying to flatten your glucose curve.
It's going up and down, and you have a safe amount of glucose that our body's going to use.
But if you don't want to add all the extra glucose, then
So I'm going to tell you over the three years kind of what I've used the most.
Okay, so first one I use a lot is the hack number one, which is eat your food in a certain order.
If you eat your food in a certain order, that is going to hit your stomach differently.
So when you are processing your food, it's not going to hit your bloodstream as quickly.
So she says you eat your veggies or fiber first, then your protein, then your carbs and your sugars.
Just simply changing the order you eat, not like
And she felt so much better and I think lost weight.
The other thing that she says is hack #4, which I use a lot.
And I tell my kids to do this because I feel like her main point is to flatten your breakfast curve.
You're not going to have as many cravings.
You're not going to have as much crashing happening.
Most of the breakfast food that we love is basically all glucose spiking food.
Donuts, cereal, oatmeal with brown sugar and fruit.
All those on an empty stomach, that's going to automatically spike your blood sugar.
And then when you're coming down from that spike, you're more tired, you're craving more.
Eat more protein in the morning.
Okay, so I try to start my day either with just a protein shake.
So she said to have dessert rather than a sweet snack.
And I've been using that a lot.
Okay, hack #7, I actually use a lot.
So the vinegar has a special acid in it that somehow helps your muscles like
turn the glucose into glycogen faster.
So maybe I should bring like a flask of vinegar with me when I go out.
Okay, hack #8 I use a lot and I've been wondering about this.
I haven't tried it yet, but she says move after you eat for at least 10 minutes.
Move after you eat and that's going to help reduce your blood sugar or flatten your glucose curve.
So your body wants to use the energy.
And your muscles love to move.
So that gives you a pretty big window to just move for 10 minutes.
her hack for #10 is put clothes on your carbs.
So you're not just eating it without any clothes.
So a pure, just having a snack that's only carbs, that's going to, especially on an empty stomach,
So those are the hacks I use pretty regularly.
I think that they might come anyway and to be prepared for that.
You can also fill the measure of your creation and not feel awesome
but maybe it'd be easier to feel better while you're doing it.
And I think that's going to motivate me more this year as I think about how this year wants to go.
How do I want to, you know, base my meals or think about food?
Because I think we all have different issues with food.
I'm probably not going to have an episode because I'm going to be out of town.
And I don't know if I'll get it done.
But if I do have an episode, yay, surprise.
If not, go back to Glucose Revolution and listen to those.
Atomic Habits by James Clear, or this book, Glucose Revolution by Jesse and Chaspe.
Okay you guys, have an awesome week and thanks for listening.
I hope you enjoyed today's episode.
Special thanks to Seth Johnson,
for creating and performing the theme music.
Come back next week and thanks for listening.
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