Midlife Conversations with Natalie Jill: Fat Loss, Hormones & Health for Women Over 40

What if the protein you've been so carefully tracking is giving you a fraction of the muscle-building benefit you think it is?
That question stopped me in my tracks, and I think it's going to stop you too. I brought Angelo Keely back to the show for exactly this conversation. Angelo is the CEO and co-founder of Kion, and he works alongside the top scientists in protein and amino acid research. Our last episode together changed how I think about protein entirely, and this one went deeper.
Here's what we get into: your protein needs don't decrease as you age, they actually go up, and most of us don't know why. Angelo explains what's happening at the cellular level when you eat protein, why a smaller amount of steak eaten alone can outperform a much larger portion eaten with your vegetables, and what that means for how you're fueling your body every single day. He also breaks down why BCAAs are largely a waste of money (and might actually be working against you), what the research actually says about creatine for women (it does not make your muscles bigger, and the bloating fear is mostly myth), and how to think about leucine, essential amino acids, and what to look for on a supplement label so you're not getting ripped off.
If you're on a GLP-1, dieting, or just trying to hold onto muscle as you age, the section on caloric deficits and amino acid needs alone is worth the entire listen. The research Angelo shares from Department of Defense-funded studies will completely reframe how you think about cutting calories and preserving muscle at the same time.
This one is practical, science-backed, and genuinely eye-opening. Angelo is one of the clearest voices in nutrition science when it comes to cutting through the noise, and I always leave our conversations with something I can actually use.
 
Visit https://getkion.com/nataliejill for 20% off your order!
 
Catch the full episode on YOUTUBE HERE: https://bit.ly/MidlifeConversationsYouTube
 
Learn More About KION
Instagram ➜ https://www.instagram.com/kion
Website ➜ https://getkion.com/nataliejill
 
Thank you to our show sponsors: 
COZY EARTH: Discover how Cozy Earth turns everyday routines into moments of softness and ease. Head to https://cozyearth.com and use code NATALIEJILL for an exclusive 20% off

 
Free Gifts for being a listener of Midlife Conversations!
Mastering the Midlife Midsection Guide: https://theflatbellyguide.com/

Age Optimizing and Supplement Guide: https://ageoptimizer.com

 
Connect with me on social media!
Instagram: www.Instagram.com/Nataliejllfit
Facebook: www.Facebook.com/Nataliejillfit  
For advertising inquiries: https://www.category3.ca/ 



Disclaimer: Information provided in the Midlife Conversations podcast is for informational purposes only. This information is NOT intended as a substitute for the advice provided by your physician or other healthcare professional. Do not use the information provided in this podcast for diagnosing or treating a health problem or disease, or prescribing medication or other treatment. Always speak with your physician or other healthcare professional before making any changes to your current regimen. 
Information provided in this podcast and the use of any products or services related to this podcast does not create a client-patient relationship between you and the host of Midlife Conversations or you and any doctor or provider interviewed and featured on this show. Information and statements may have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent ANY disease.
Advertising Disclosure: Some episodes of Midlife Conversations may be sponsored by products or services discussed during the show. The host may receive compensation for such advertisements or if you purchase products through affiliate links. Opinions expressed about products or services are those of the host and/or guests and do not necessarily reflect the views of any sponsor. Sponsorship does not imply endorsement of any product or service by healthcare professionals featured on this podcast.

What if the cholesterol medication your doctor insists could save your life is actually increasing your risk of the very disease it's supposed to prevent?
A board-certified cardiothoracic surgeon who has personally performed over 3,000 open-heart surgeries joins us this week with a message he says most cardiologists will not say out loud: the majority of his patients should never have ended up on his table. Dr. Philip Ovadia lost nearly 100 pounds while operating on other people's hearts, reversed his own prediabetes, and spent the last decade asking a question his colleagues are not comfortable with: what is actually causing heart disease?
This episode goes deep. You will learn why your LDL number tells you almost nothing meaningful without particle size testing, why statins lower the wrong kind of cholesterol, and why insulin resistance is a far bigger driver of heart events than anything showing up on a standard lipid panel. Dr. Ovadia also walks through the most important heart tests most women have never had, including the coronary artery calcium scan he calls "the mammogram for your heart," and gives his take on every medication in the conversation from statins to Zetia to Repatha.
If you have ever left a cardiology appointment more confused and scared than when you walked in, this one is for you.
 
Learn More About Dr. Philip Ovadia
Instagram ➜ https://www.instagram.com/ifixhearts 
Website ➜ http://ifixhearts.com/ 
Preorder Stay Off My Kitchen Table ➜  https://stayoffmykitchentable.com/ 



Thank you to our show sponsors: 
TIMELINE: Timeline is offering 20% off your order of Mitopure! Go to https://timeline.com/NATALIEJILL 


 
Free Gifts for being a listener of Midlife Conversations!
Mastering the Midlife Midsection Guide: https://theflatbellyguide.com/

Age Optimizing and Supplement Guide: https://ageoptimizer.com

 
Connect with me on social media!
Instagram: www.Instagram.com/Nataliejllfit
Facebook: www.Facebook.com/Nataliejillfit  
For advertising inquiries: https://www.category3.ca/ 



Disclaimer: Information provided in the Midlife Conversations podcast is for informational purposes only. This information is NOT intended as a substitute for the advice provided by your physician or other healthcare professional. Do not use the information provided in this podcast for diagnosing or treating a health problem or disease, or prescribing medication or other treatment. Always speak with your physician or other healthcare professional before making any changes to your current regimen. 
Information provided in this podcast and the use of any products or services related to this podcast does not create a client-patient relationship between you and the host of Midlife Conversations or you and any doctor or provider interviewed and featured on this show. Information and statements may have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent ANY disease.
Advertising Disclosure: Some episodes of Midlife Conversations may be sponsored by products or services discussed during the show. The host may receive compensation for such advertisements or if you purchase products through affiliate links. Opinions expressed about products or services are those of the host and/or guests and do not necessarily reflect the views of any sponsor. Sponsorship does not imply endorsement of any product or service by healthcare professionals featured on this podcast.

What if the belly fat, the exhaustion, and the 3 a.m. wake-ups were never about willpower or effort at all?
In this episode, Dr. Siobhan Mitchell, a neuroscientist with 25 years of nutrition and cellular health research behind her, breaks down exactly what is happening inside the body during midlife and why the same habits that worked at 35 stop working at 45. Dr. Mitchell is currently the Chief Science Officer at MitoQ, a cellular health company with over $60 million in research, and she brings a level of scientific depth to this conversation that is genuinely rare.
What unfolds is not the standard hormone health conversation. Dr. Mitchell explains the critical difference between the two estrogen receptor types, why visceral belly fat is actually a metabolic warning sign and not just a cosmetic frustration, and the truth behind decades of fear-mongering around soy. She also introduces a compound called S-equol that most women have never heard of, despite research showing it may outperform soy isoflavones for menopausal symptoms, joint pain, blood sugar, bone density, and brain health. The catch? Only 20 to 30 percent of Western women can produce it naturally, and the rest need to approach it differently.
The conversation goes deeper into mitochondria, aging, oxidative stress, and why protecting your cellular energy production may be one of the most important things you can do in midlife. Natalie also opens up about her own experience with cortisol, soy, and the mom guilt she carried for 18 years over a decision she now knows was completely fine.
This one is packed. Whether you are on HRT, avoiding it, or somewhere in the middle, there is something in this episode that will change how you understand your own body.
Learn More About Dr. Siobhan Mitchell
Instagram ➜ https://www.instagram.com/mitoq  
Website ➜ Visit https://www.mitoq.com  and use code NATALIEJILL to save
 
Thank you to our show sponsors: 
TIMELINE: Timeline is offering 20% off your order of Mitopure! Go to https://timeline.com/NATALIEJILL 

COZY EARTH: Discover how Cozy Earth turns everyday routines into moments of softness and ease. Head to https://cozyearth.com/ and use my code NATALIEJILL for an exclusive 20% off




Free Gifts for being a listener of Midlife Conversations!
Mastering the Midlife Midsection Guide: https://theflatbellyguide.com/

Age Optimizing and Supplement Guide: https://ageoptimizer.com

 
Connect with me on social media!
Instagram: www.Instagram.com/Nataliejllfit
Facebook: www.Facebook.com/Nataliejillfit  
For advertising inquiries: https://www.category3.ca/ 



Disclaimer: Information provided in the Midlife Conversations podcast is for informational purposes only. This information is NOT intended as a substitute for the advice provided by your physician or other healthcare professional. Do not use the information provided in this podcast for diagnosing or treating a health problem or disease, or prescribing medication or other treatment. Always speak with your physician or other healthcare professional before making any changes to your current regimen. 
Information provided in this podcast and the use of any products or services related to this podcast does not create a client-patient relationship between you and the host of Midlife Conversations or you and any doctor or provider interviewed and featured on this show. Information and statements may have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent ANY disease.
Advertising Disclosure: Some episodes of Midlife Conversations may be sponsored by products or services discussed during the show. The host may receive compensation for such advertisements or if you purchase products through affiliate links. Opinions expressed about products or services are those of the host and/or guests and do not necessarily reflect the views of any sponsor. Sponsorship does not imply endorsement of any product or service by healthcare professionals featured on this podcast.

What if the bloating, brain fog, sleepless nights, and stubborn weight you've been blaming on menopause are actually a gut problem in disguise?
Nurse practitioner Cynthia Thurlow has 25 years of clinical experience, a TEDx talk with over 15 million views, and the number four nutrition podcast in the country. But it wasn't until a near-death experience in 2018 — a ruptured appendix, 13 days in the hospital, and a perimenopause nobody had caught — that she truly understood what declining estrogen does to a woman's gut, immune system, and entire body. That experience became the foundation of her new book, The Menopause Gut, and this conversation goes deep.
We cover the estrobolome (the estrogen processing center inside your microbiome that almost no one has told you about), why your ovaries age two to five times faster than every other organ in your body, the gut-bone connection and what fiber actually has to do with bone loss, why 90 to 95 percent of serotonin is made in the gut and what that means for mood and depression in midlife, how HRT really works and who deserves to be having that conversation, and what the practical menopause gut plan actually looks like in real life.
 
🔗 Episode Links: 
Which Midlife Gut Type Are You? http://themenopausegut.com/midlife-gut-guide?am_id=natalie2640 

Pre-Order Cynthia's Book The Menopause Gut at https://themenopausegut.com/?am_id=natalie3286 

 
Learn More About Cynthia Thurlow 
Instagram ➜ https://www.instagram.com/cynthia_thurlow_  
Website ➜ http://www.cynthiathurlow.com 



Thank you to our show sponsors: 
QUANTUM: Try Quantum Upgrade completely free for 15 days—no credit card required. Use code NATALIEJILL at checkout on https://quantumupgrade.io/start 

COZY EARTH: Discover how Cozy Earth turns everyday routines into moments of softness and ease. Head to https://cozyearth.com/ and use my code NATALIEJILL for an exclusive 20% off.

MITOQ: Take control of healthy aging and longevity. Get 10% off using code NATALIEJILL at checkout on https://www.mitoq.com/ 




Free Gifts for being a listener of Midlife Conversations!
Mastering the Midlife Midsection Guide: https://theflatbellyguide.com/

Age Optimizing and Supplement Guide: https://ageoptimizer.com

 
Connect with me on social media!
Instagram: www.Instagram.com/Nataliejllfit
Facebook: www.Facebook.com/Nataliejillfit  
For advertising inquiries: https://www.category3.ca/ 



Disclaimer: Information provided in the Midlife Conversations podcast is for informational purposes only. This information is NOT intended as a substitute for the advice provided by your physician or other healthcare professional. Do not use the information provided in this podcast for diagnosing or treating a health problem or disease, or prescribing medication or other treatment. Always speak with your physician or other healthcare professional before making any changes to your current regimen. 
Information provided in this podcast and the use of any products or services related to this podcast does not create a client-patient relationship between you and the host of Midlife Conversations or you and any doctor or provider interviewed and featured on this show. Information and statements may have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent ANY disease.
Advertising Disclosure: Some episodes of Midlife Conversations may be sponsored by products or services discussed during the show. The host may receive compensation for such advertisements or if you purchase products through affiliate links. Opinions expressed about products or services are those of the host and/or guests and do not necessarily reflect the views of any sponsor. Sponsorship does not imply endorsement of any product or service by healthcare professionals featured on this podcast.

What if everything you were taught about building wealth was designed to keep you exactly where you are?
Hannah Hammond became a self-made millionaire before 30, not because she had a head start, but because she stumbled onto a completely different framework for money at age 13 and refused to let go of it. In this episode, she breaks down the asset vs. liability distinction that most of us were never taught, why your house probably isn't building your wealth the way you think it is, and how compound interest can still work powerfully in your favor no matter where you're starting from in midlife.
Hannah also opens up about something few people talk about: hitting rock bottom emotionally in her early 20s despite her early financial knowledge, and the internal shift that changed everything. She shares the exact morning routine she uses to protect her "peak state," why your energetic state determines your outcomes, and the AI prompt that could replace a $50,000 coach for getting started.
This one is for every woman who has worked hard, done the "right" things, and still feels like real financial freedom is just out of reach.
 
Learn More About Hannah Hammond 
Instagram ➜ https://www.instagram.com/hannahbhammond  
 
Thank you to our show sponsors: 
BEAM: Level up your health with BEAM Minerals HERE https://midlifeconversations.com/beam and use code NATALIEJILL to save!  

BIOPTIMIZERS: Get the digestive enzymes I take with every meal here https://www.bioptimizers.com/nataliejill


 
Free Gifts for being a listener of Midlife Conversations!
Mastering the Midlife Midsection Guide: https://theflatbellyguide.com/

Age Optimizing and Supplement Guide: https://ageoptimizer.com

 
Connect with me on social media!
Instagram: www.Instagram.com/Nataliejllfit
Facebook: www.Facebook.com/Nataliejillfit  
For advertising inquiries: https://www.category3.ca/ 



Disclaimer: Information provided in the Midlife Conversations podcast is for informational purposes only. This information is NOT intended as a substitute for the advice provided by your physician or other healthcare professional. Do not use the information provided in this podcast for diagnosing or treating a health problem or disease, or prescribing medication or other treatment. Always speak with your physician or other healthcare professional before making any changes to your current regimen. 
Information provided in this podcast and the use of any products or services related to this podcast does not create a client-patient relationship between you and the host of Midlife Conversations or you and any doctor or provider interviewed and featured on this show. Information and statements may have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent ANY disease.
Advertising Disclosure: Some episodes of Midlife Conversations may be sponsored by products or services discussed during the show. The host may receive compensation for such advertisements or if you purchase products through affiliate links. Opinions expressed about products or services are those of the host and/or guests and do not necessarily reflect the views of any sponsor. Sponsorship does not imply endorsement of any product or service by healthcare professionals featured on this podcast