Pro-Tips to Maximize Success

Pro-Tips to Make the Most of Your Subscription

We all know that optimizing cognition depends on much more than diet, but nutrition is the MOST important strategy on the protocol and a wonderful starting place. Once your meals arrive, there are specific ways you can tweak your overall nutrition plan to maximize success.

• Cut Out Inflammatory Foods   Your success depends as much on what you eat as what you DON’T eat. It’s important to reduce inflammatory foods including: sugar, simple carbs, grains, and conventional dairy, before adding healthy fats. See Stop Inflammatory Foods to learn more.
  • Sugar
  • Simple Carbs
  • Grains
  • Conventional Dairy
• Adopt a Daily Fast   Slowly work up to a minimum 12-hour daily fast with at least 3 hours before bedtime. Research shows that fasting helps to promote autophagy, a cellular housekeeping process shown to promote cognitive clarity and overall health. See How to Transition to a Longer Fast.
  • Taking diabetes medications?  Taking diabetes medications?  Don’t begin a fast without talking to your physician to learn how to wean down your medication safely to avoid hypoglycemia.
  • Underweight?  Work to achieve a healthy weight before starting a fast. A suboptimal weight can increase your chance of developing sarcopenia (loss of muscle mass) and osteopenia (loss of bone), both of which are correlated with dementia. See Strategies for Gaining and Maintaining Weight. 
• Reheating Instructions   Trifecta provides instructions to reheat meals using your stovetop, oven, air fryer or microwave. If you choose to microwave your meal, transfer to heatproof glassware before reheating. We don’t advise heating in the plastic container. My favorite method to reheat is to simply sauté on the stovetop. This method helps the food stay moist and yummy and allows you to ensure perfect doneness. 
• Add Extra Virgin Olive Oil   Research shows that extra virgin olive oil (EVOO) improves brain structure, function, and even cognition. It also helps you to reach ketosis to optimally fuel your brain. Add up to 4 Tbsp to your meal after reheating. The key is to use the highest polyphenol EVOO that you can enjoy. Higher counts are peppery and an acquired taste. A decent grocery store brand is California Olive Ranch in a glass bottle. If you’re ready for higher polyphenol counts, check out the Amphora Nueva website.
• And Leafy Greens   Leafy greens slow the rate of cognitive decline through several mechanisms. First, they upregulate nitric oxide, a naturally occurring molecule in your body, which helps to relax blood vessels to promote vascular health and improve blood flow. They’re also rich in folate, which when combined with vitamins B-12 and B-6 helps to optimize homocysteine, correlated with healthy cognition. Buy a large bin of deeply pigmented, organic mixed greens every week and enjoy a few big handfuls with each meal.
• Don’t forget Cruciferous Veggies   Trifecta makes it easy with their Veggie Bundle, which includes delicious Asian Brussels sprouts and broccoli. Freely add these and other cruciferous options (e.g., arugula, broccolini, cabbage, cauliflower, collard, dandelion, mustard & turnip greens, kale, kohlrabi, radish, rapini, spinach, Swiss chard, and watercress) to each meal. Cruciferous are among the most powerful, nutrient-dense veggies. They have immune system effects as antivirals, antimicrobials, antioxidants, anti-inflammatories and play a major role in detoxification. To maximize health benefits, chop 10-45 mins before cooking and lightly steam or sauté.
• Enjoy Pastured Eggs   Yes, you can enjoy eggs as long as they come from hens that receive lots of pasture time to forage for their natural diet as opposed to exclusively being fed inflammatory grains. Use the Cornucopia Institute’s Egg Scorecard to find the healthiest eggs near you. The good news is that the cost of these premium eggs has stabilized, whereas prices for eggs from huge commercial poultry feedlot operations have skyrocketed. Eggs are rich in choline, which stimulates acetylcholine, a neurotransmitter necessary for memory formation. Despite the fact that the body makes its own choline, most adults are deficient.
• Include Wild-Caught Seafood   Seafood is rich in DHA, which is critical for brain health throughout the life cycle, but especially for aging brains. Our brains are unable to manufacture DHA but optimally maintain high levels primarily through a complex process that relies on our nutritional intake. Always look for low mercury, wild-caught seafood, which includes SMASH fish (salmon, mackerel {not king mackerel}, anchovies, sardines, and herring, among many healthful options such as scallops, cod, flounder, crab, oysters, etc.
• Add Fermented Veggies    Given the strong bi-directional relationship between gut and brain health, we have an opportunity to optimize our brain health by enhancing our gut microbiomes. Be sure to add a Tbsp or more of fermented vegetables (like kimchi, sauerkraut, or any of your favorites) to your diet daily to increase and diversify your healthy gut bugs directly. The leafy greens and non-starchy vegetables, rich in prebiotic fiber that you’re also consuming will help to feed the beneficial bacteria supporting your brain and overall health.