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I am beyond excited to introduce you to my next guest, Dr. Gabrielle Lyon, who has played a transformative role in my life over the last six years. I very much know and believe I wouldn’t be where I am right now with my health if it weren’t for her expert medical care and guidance. 

She’s a friend, a mentor, a role model, a physician, and I’m so grateful that she has always pushed me to be the best version of myself. But before you listen in, let me give a little background as to who Dr. Gabrielle Lyon is.

After high school, Dr. Lyon moved to Hawaii to live with her godmother who was a world-class PhD, and it was during this time that she really learned about food-based healing and fitness. She later attended the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign to study nutritional sciences, leading her to Arizona College of Osteopathic Medicine to receive her doctorate in osteopathic medicine. 

Dr. Lyon also completed a research/clinical fellowship in nutritional science and geriatrics at Washington University in St. Louis. And, for the last two decades, she has studied and worked under the acclaimed Dr. Layman, owing much of her ground-breaking clinical philosophy to his research and mentorship. 

Today, as a functional medicine physician, Dr. Lyon has become renowned for her revolutionary Muscle-Centric Medicine® concept, which dramatically improves muscle health through a protein-smart diet, exercise, and lifestyle shifts. This entails:

  • Eating the right kinds of protein, and enough of them, at each meal to stimulate the body’s natural muscle-building process called “muscle protein synthesis.”
  • Muscle-targeting exercises for long-term health and to decrease the risk of chronic disease. 

I came to Dr. Lyon overweight with thyroid issues and without muscle, and she held the space for me to grow into who I am now. So if you’re ready to join me and jumpstart your own journey to maintain and grow muscle, here’s a summary of what Dr. Lyon recommends:

First meal of the day (and every meal after): 30-50g of protein

Your first meal should be protein-heavy because you’re coming off an overnight fast, meaning your body is primed to be stimulated. As Dr. Lyon shares, “when you feed the needs of muscles, everything else falls into place” — blood sugar regulation, cravings, satiety, the list goes on. 

This is preferably done through a combination of high-quality animal protein and plant protein. If you can’t have animal protein, you can increase your plant-protein intake to overcome the lesser amounts of amino acids. However, Dr. Lyon doesn’t recommend only relying on plant-protein long-term. 

Getting enough amino acids

But to fully understand protein, you need to first understand that protein is made up of amino acids. So by correcting your protein intake, you’re actually able to correct your amino acid requirements. The three most important ones in Dr. Lyon’s book are leucine, lysine, and methionine, which you can attain through foods like turkey, lean beef, skinless chicken breast, yellowfin tuna, lean pork chop, eggs, white beans, and so on. 

What do these amino acids do for us? They increase your ability to burn fatty acids, fuel skeletal muscle, generate collagen, build glutathione reserves, detoxify our body from metals, and so much more.

Resistance training

By engaging in resistance training, you’re able to stress your muscles — which, in turn, stimulates the processes of breaking down old/weak tissue and rebuilding newer, stronger muscles. Think of it like exfoliating your skin: you want to reveal a healthier, smoother layer, right? Plus, when your muscles are active, you’re more likely to have low blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar, etc. And if you’re able to make resistance training a habit, you’re more likely to have less body fat — and be less likely to gain it back. 

Dr. Lyon suggests you follow her protocol that focuses on muscle optimization and performance, and helps you gain muscle without bulking up. And lucky enough, you can download it for free on her website here. Overall, MUSCLE = MEDICINE, and it holds the key to optimal aging. 

As always, tune into the episode to dive deeper into these essential nuggets of information! And be sure to share your thoughts with me on IG: @shoporganicolivia.

Lots of Love,

Olivia

Connect with Dr. Lyon:

Website: drgabriellelyon.com 

IG: instagram.com/drgabriellelyon 

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