Dec. 16, 2025

372: Inflammation Isn’t a Willpower Problem. It’s a Strategy Gap.

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Lack of willpower is not why inflammation keeps coming back. You are disciplined where it counts. You lead teams. Build vision. Carry spiritual responsibility. You do hard things without blinking. So when inflammation, fatigue, joint pain, or rising labs keep resurfacing, it creates a deeper frustration. Because your body is supposed to support the assignment God gave you, not slow it down. For high-capacity leaders, inflammation is rarely about lacking effort. It is due to a real st...

Lack of willpower is not why inflammation keeps coming back.

You are disciplined where it counts. You lead teams. Build vision. Carry spiritual responsibility. You do hard things without blinking.

So when inflammation, fatigue, joint pain, or rising labs keep resurfacing, it creates a deeper frustration. Because your body is supposed to support the assignment God gave you, not slow it down.

For high-capacity leaders, inflammation is rarely about lacking effort. It is due to a real strategy gap.

Restriction, more supplements, and pushing harder do not resolve chronic inflammation. They exhaust disciplined people while leaving the real drivers untouched...

In this episode of Power On Plants, we unpack what inflammation actually is, why it becomes chronic, and how whole food plant based nutrition works with the body to calm it naturally and sustainably.

You will learn:
• Why inflammation lingers even in disciplined, faith-filled lives
• Why removing foods alone does not restore health
• How whole plant foods actively address healing… at the root
• Why supplements and restriction fail leaders long term
• How upgraded meals create consistency without deprivation

We’re sharing the practical examples for upgrading your familiar comfort foods in the simple, exciting way. This is the system for restoring energy, reducing inflammation, and simultaneously meeting high flavor standards! Your calling deserves food you genuinely enjoy and the body that can fully carry it.

This episode is for Christian leaders and Kingdom entrepreneurs who know their calling is bigger than their body’s current physical capacity.

Do you refuse to let you body become the bottleneck in their Kingdom impact?

If inflammation, fatigue, joint pain, or a growing list of diagnoses have been quietly limiting your capacity, this conversation will bring hope, clarity, and the optimal way forward.

Listen now and take the next strategic step toward food that finally works with your body and your calling.

💃🏻 Ready to love the meals that fuel your purpose? Inside Accelerator, you’ll master our proven 5-Step Whole Food Plant-Based Framework to gain steady energy, clear focus, and lasting joy for your God-given calling. 🌿 Join the Waitlist - doors open soon! 💕 Not yet in our Peak Performance Network? Join today for the faith-filled support and simple strategies that last. 🥣 Craving flavor? Grab our Cookbook Bundles and discover how delicious healthy can be! Click here to get our favorite dried fruits and frozen berries shipped directly to you.

00:00 - Removing Triggers Isn’t Enough

00:32 - Power On Plants Mission And Promise

02:18 - Why Willpower Fails Against Inflammation

05:02 - Acute Vs Chronic Inflammation Explained

06:18 - You Must Actively Shut It Down

08:01 - Plants As Built-In Anti-Inflammatories

09:06 - Make It Sustainable With Flavor

10:29 - Whole Foods Beat One-Off Supplements

12:15 - Herbs, Spices, And Shopping List Wins

14:02 - Ditch Deprivation: Get A System

15:39 - Recap And Next Steps

WEBVTT

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We always think about removing the thing that's causing a problem.

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This time the problem's inflammation.

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So you're thinking about what do I need to stop doing?

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What can I no longer do?

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And you're not thinking about what's actually going to get in there and take care of the process that's already been put into place.

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So the inflammation has begun.

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The army's already been sent out.

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So even if you remove the things that cause it, the process has already started.

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We have to shut down the inflammation that's already there, that's already going on.

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How are we going to do that?

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Well, you can't just do that by removing the thing that caused it in the first place.

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Welcome to the Power on Plants Podcast, the home of kingdom-driven men and women who refuse to let their body become the bottleneck to their God-given calling.

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If you're building a business, raising up the next generation, and carrying vision, but behind the scenes, your energy is fading, inflammation is rising, your labs aren't great, and you're wondering how much longer can I keep pushing like this?

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This is where everything shifts.

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Because here's the truth: you don't lack discipline, you don't lack drive, and you're not just getting older.

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Your body simply needs a strategy that fully matches the level of assignment you're carrying.

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The way to eat that fuels focus, stabilizes energy, quietly reverses inflammation, and the most common diseases of our time, and still lets you enjoy every single bite.

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We're Jared and Anita Roussel, Christ followers, healthcare professionals, parents of four.

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And once upon a time, we were exhausted, inflamed, and told that's just age and genetics.

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But God led us to the research and back to his original design.

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And what we discovered unlocked the high-performance, kingdom advancing level of help we'd been praying for.

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No dieting, no deprivation, no hours in the kitchen.

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Just simple, completely enjoyable plant-based meals, snacks, and desserts, the way that lets you reclaim maximum energy, mental clarity, and real physical freedom.

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So your body finally amplifies your purpose instead of holding it hostage.

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So if you're done being slowed down, done settling for low energy, foggy thinking, or feeling older than you are, and you're ready to show up strong, think clearly, 10x your productivity, and actually enjoy the meals that move you to optimal health.

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You're exactly where you need to be.

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So pop in your earbuds and let's maximize your power on plants.

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You are a purpose-driven leader with a calling that is not slowing down.

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And if you've ever felt your body lag behind the assignment God entrusted you, you are in the right place.

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This is Power on Plants, the podcast where we make high performance health simple, enjoyable, and sustainable for leaders who cannot afford to run out of strength.

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I'm Anita Roussel, a nurse and certified integrative nutrition health coach.

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And I'm Jared Roussel, a physician assistant and certified lifestyle medicine professional.

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In every episode, we show you how to fuel your body in the way it was perfectly designed to thrive.

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So inflammation fades, energy rises, labs improve, diagnoses fade, and your physical capacity finally matches the size of your calling without any exhausting dieting, restriction, or need to willpower through.

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Your calling requires a strong body.

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So let's build it.

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Recently, we had the honor to be invited as guest speakers for the plant-based inflammation support group hosted by Sid Nodder.

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If that name sounds familiar, we had her on our podcast not long ago, episode 368.

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Be sure to go to our YouTube channel at PoweronPlants, where you can find the whole video interview with Sid Nodder.

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It's something you don't want to miss.

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Now, during our presentation to the Inflammation Support Group, we discussed the topic of why willpower fails, the real path to calming inflammation.

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We discussed a lot of great information, but there was a key element that stood out that we wanted to highlight in today's episode.

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I just have to stop with the title because why willpower fails.

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And then the rest of the title is about inflammation.

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And you think, what does willpower have to do with inflammation?

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Well, we think that we just have to willpower through more of the same things that got us in the situation we're already in.

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For example, we've had multiple people tell us that the reason their spouse or someone they care about can't get healthy is because they just like brownies too much or they just can't get over their pasta habit.

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So it's been ingrained in us that we keep falling short of our health goals and we keep having problems with inflammation because we just don't have enough willpower.

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We're not disciplined enough.

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But what we know is willpower and discipline are not the problem.

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The problem is not having the way to eat the most nutrient-dense foods on the planet, those foods that calm the inflammation in the way that we actually enjoy that works with our busy life and our schedule.

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And when it comes to getting healthy, one of the big things you need to understand is inflammation.

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What's causing it?

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Why is it such a problem?

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And how do we calm it down in the way that actually is sustainable so that your body finally feels good enough to back you up in fully living your calling?

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So to start with inflammation, what exactly is it?

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It is our body's response to try to heal from either an injury or an infection.

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We hear the term used in a negative sense, but really it's actually a good thing because it allows our body to heal.

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If there's an injury, you twist your ankle, you damage a ligament in your ankle.

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The body needs to get rid of the damaged tissue and lay down the framework for new healthy tissue.

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This is a good thing.

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What we need to understand is that there is acute inflammation and chronic inflammation.

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Acute inflammation typically lasts a few days to a few weeks.

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Once everything is healed, it goes away.

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It shuts down.

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But if that process fails, then that inflammatory process can move into chronic, which goes anywhere from a few months to years.

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Now we know for inflammation to stop, we need to stop doing whatever's causing it.

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Quit twisting your ankle, quit whatever the injury process is.

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But just as important as that is we also must shut it down.

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We have internal systems in place that actively shut down the inflammatory process once the healing has happened.

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When your white blood cells get activated, they are men with a purpose.

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They go in there and they fight until they can fight no more.

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And our body has a system to actually kill off those activated white blood cells.

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So you're saying that an inflammation, when it first starts, it gets triggered by something.

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And once it's triggered, then your body sends out the army to take care of whatever is causing the problem.

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So if you remove the thing, because we always think about removing the thing that's causing inflammation, we always think about removing the thing that's causing a problem.

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This time the problem's inflammation.

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So you're thinking about, what do I need to stop doing?

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What can I no longer do?

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And you're not thinking about what's actually going to get in there and take care of the process that's already been put into place.

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So the inflammation has begun.

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The army's already been sent out.

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So even if you remove the things that cause it, the process has already started.

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We have to shut down the inflammation that's already there, that's already going on.

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How are we going to do that?

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Well, you can't just do that by removing the thing that caused it in the first place.

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Yes, that's the first step.

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But I think that comes from the fact that we're trained from a very early age, especially when it comes to health.

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You can't do this.

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You need to shut down that.

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And this goes back to what I was saying in the beginning, the will powering through, the disciplining yourself more.

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It's almost like a poverty mentality or poverty cycle that we've been trained in.

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And we have to let that go and move on to the fact of what am I choosing to release?

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And then what am I going to get back into its place?

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Because it's what you get into its place that's going to take care of the inflammation that has already begun.

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So once it begins, there is a momentum, there is an inertia.

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So we're no longer causing it, but now we need to actively stop it.

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A failure of those internal processes to stop inflammation is a cause, a key driver of chronic inflammatory disease.

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Science and pharmaceutical companies have been working on all kinds of therapies, all kinds of medications, but we already have them in plants.

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We already have key components found in plants to do this very thing for us.

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Now you may be asking the question, well, what are these compounds?

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I don't know that I've ever heard of them.

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Well, first of all, excellent question, and I guarantee you've heard of at least one of these.

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So first group, polyphenols and flavonoids, compounds like quercetin found in onions, apples, and tea, resveratrol found in grapes and berries, and one I know you've heard of curcumin, because we've talked about on this podcast before.

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It's found in turmeric.

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Now, maybe you don't like Indian food, maybe you wouldn't eat turmeric that commonly.

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We have a wonderful recipe that uses it, our Hollandase yolk sauce.

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You are not going to want to miss this one because if you've ever tried to make tofu scramble and you think I hate tofu scramble, I don't like how it tastes, it's nothing like eggs.

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Trust me, you need the sauce.

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Things like this are the keys that you've been missing to make plant-based sustainable.

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It's why we so many times have clients come to us and they say, I've tried to eat plant-based so many times, I should have a nutrition degree by now, but they never gained the strategies that allowed them to make it stick.

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And having these flavors and these things that actually upgrade to the things that you like.

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If you like scrambled eggs, your tofu scramble, just putting a little orange or yellow on it with a turmeric, like Jared says, is not going to make it taste like eggs.

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You need something like the sauce that's going to replicate that creaminess of the egg yolk.

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And that's exactly what the sauce is going to do for you.

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It's going to make you happy and feel like, ooh, I have a new favorite.

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And so now what you've done is you've removed one of the things that's causing the inflammation, the eggs and the animal products, right?

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So you've not just only taken it out and you're not left thinking, I can't have, you've now replaced it with something that's going to shut the inflammation down that's already started.

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So now we've removed the thing that's causing it and we're shutting down by replacing with a meal upgrade the inflammation that had already started, that was already ongoing.

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So we need to shut down both.

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So it's about removing the things that were sabotaging your health and immediately getting those meals back into the place of those old sabotaging ones that will actually fuel your body well, literally.

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So then the question is what are the foods that I need to get rid of?

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What are those things that are actually sabotaging my health?

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What is turning on the inflammation in the first place?

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These are super easy to identify.

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Animal-based foods like meat, chicken, fish, eggs, dairy, and we can't forget pressed out oils because there are tons of, especially seed oils, tons of omega fats in there that are pro-inflammatory.

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So we don't want you to just think about removing these things.

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The next part, the thing that you need to understand is how do I get those things back into their place that I'm going to love just as much or even more than my old favorites that were sabotaging me that make me feel amazing, that love my body back, and that I actually like how they taste.

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And this takes us right back to the list that Jared's talking about.

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The Hollandaise sauce has turmeric in it, which has curcumin.

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But then you hear all these things that you know, okay, Jared and Anita said these things are going to shut it down.

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So I need to get a resveratrol supplement and I need to get a curcumin supplement, and I need to get this supplement and that supplement because we think that's the quick, easy way to get these things.

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But what we know is when they're one-off nutrients, they do not work in the same way as if they're in their whole package, the whole plant food, the way that God designed them to be used optimally.

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This is going to next level your ability to show up for your calling when you start getting these phytonutrients that were created to work in the package with all the other nutrients that are in there, tens of thousands of which have been identified by scientists, but not even named yet.

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Think of the hundreds of thousands that are probably in there that God put in there that we don't even know exist yet.

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And we're worried about reservoir, right?

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I think about how years ago our supplement cabinet used to be filled with supplements.

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So don't feel bad if you've been doing that.

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We get it.

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We understand.

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We're taught that.

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You've been taught that you need these one-off supplements.

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But what they're finding is that over time, unless you know that you're low in something, we don't recommend buying supplements like that and having your cabinets filled with them.

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Look at the foods that have them.

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And even better, just start finding the ways to get the variety that's easy and that you actually enjoy.

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This is the key.

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It's the big key.

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It's not just about removing those things that you shouldn't be eating.

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It's how do I get healthy meals in their place that I like just as much or even more than my old favorites.

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It's going to replace that for me so that I never miss it.

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That's how you make this sustainable.

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And if you can get around the people who already know how to do this, it is going to skyrocket you to feeling your absolute best so that your body starts showing up fully for the big calling that's on your life.

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While we know there are many nutrients found in whole plant foods, things like anthocyanins.

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These are responsible for those bright red, blue, and purple colors found in berries, phenolic acid, such as rosemarinic acid found in rosemary.

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This is important because these compounds are even in our herbs and spices.

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Don't forget your herbs and spices.

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They're what give food so much added flavor, so that whole plant foods should never be boring.

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Another compound, ginger all.

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Can you guess where those are found, Anita?

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Ginger all.

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Many specific foods have been documented to have anti-inflammatory effects.

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Onion, oregano, sweet potatoes, cinnamon, clove, even citrusest.

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What does this look like?

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It looks like our shopping list.

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It looks like our shopping list.

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So the point here, the big takeaway is if you're trying to fight inflammation, you need to look no further than your refrigerator or your pantry.

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And if they're not in your pantry, go to your local supermarket and stock up on these foods.

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And even more importantly, learn how to use them in the way that you genuinely enjoy.

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So you don't have to keep willpowering through because it just does not work long term.

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If you think, I literally have tried this before, or I don't have time to figure this all out because my calling is too big.

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I have a lot going on.

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I'm building a business.

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I'm a leader.

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I'm a mom.

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I'm a dad.

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I'm just, I don't have time to figure this all out.

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Get inside our accelerator program at powerimplants.com forward slash accelerator.

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We walk you through our five-step system for making the most nutrient-dense foods in the world, the things that you love and look forward to eating every single day by teaching you the simple strategies that make it quick, simple, and completely delicious so that you never have to worry about falling off the plant base wagon.

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Because if you don't feel deprived and you don't have to count your calories or keep up with your macros or eat nasty tasting foods in the name of health, and you can look good and feel good and see the diagnosis start to drop off, it's a no-brainer.

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This is what we love to do.

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We love to help you get well because Jared and I went into healthcare not to help you manage disease, but to help you prevent and even reverse it.

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And that's what we're blessed to be able to do every single day.

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So to recap, if you are dealing with inflammation, know that you must actively stop this inflammation.

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And you can do that easily and deliciously with whole plant foods, the most nutrient-dense foods on the planet.

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And to start implementing these foods in your daily life in the way that's simple and delicious, go to poweronplants.com forward slash cookbook and grab the cookbook bundles.

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This is going to help you start gaining the momentum you need fast.

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That's poweronplants.com forward slash cookbook.

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And until next time, know that you are loved, you are prayed for, and we will see you again very soon.