128. Kristen Holmes: The TRUTH About Women's Fasting Windows (Science Says You're Doing It Wrong)

The Ultimate Human with Gary Brecka

Gary Brecka

Health & Fitness

4.8 • 2.5K Ratings

🗓️ 2 January 2025

⏱️ 15 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Most women are told that narrower eating windows = better results, but according to Whoop’s Global Head of Performance and Science Kristen Holmes, this common advice is causing more harm than good — especially for women’s hormones. In this short episode, Kristen Holmes breaks down the science behind circadian rhythms, metabolic health, and the crucial connection between eating patterns and the menstrual cycle. What eating window works best for your body? Share your experience in the comments below, and join the conversation about women’s health and nutrition timing! Connect with Kristen Holmes: Website: https://bit.ly/4fAFT5m Instagram: https://bit.ly/41MYiIK TikTok: https://bit.ly/3Ph0qRx LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/3ByxiCl 00:00 Intro of Show 02:10 Eating Window during Menstrual Cycle 06:14 Impact of Food or Alcohol on Stress 07:57 Benefits of Circadian Alignment 10:36 An Average American is Eating in a 15-Hour Window 12:20 Mental Clarity Achieved from Fasting 13:16 Time-Restricted Eating and Hormones WHOOP - GET 1 FREE MONTH WHEN YOU JOIN!: https://bit.ly/3VQ0nzW ECHO GO PLUS HYDROGEN WATER BOTTLE: https://bit.ly/3xG0Pb8 BODY HEALTH - USE CODE “ULTIMATE20” FOR 20% OFF YOUR ORDER: http://bit.ly/4e5IjsV BAJA GOLD - 91 ESSENTIAL MINERALS PER PINCH! 10% OFF USE CODE "ULTIMATE10": https://bit.ly/3WSBqUa EIGHT SLEEP - SAVE $350 ON THE POD 4 ULTRA WITH CODE “GARY”: https://bit.ly/3WkLd6E ELEVATE YOUR WORKOUTS WITH THE ULTIMATE HUMAN STRENGTH TRAINING EQUIPMENT: https://bit.ly/3zYwtSl COLD LIFE - BOOST RECOVERY & WELL-BEING WITH THE ULTIMATE HUMAN PLUNGE: https://bit.ly/4eULUKp MASA CHIPS - GET 20% OFF YOUR FIRST $50+ ORDER: https://bit.ly/40LVY4y PARKER PASTURES - GET PREMIUM GRASS-FED MEATS TODAY: https://bit.ly/4hHcbhc GET GARY’S WEEKLY TIPS ON HEALTH AND LIFESTYLE OPTIMIZATION: https://bit.ly/4eLDbdU SHOP GARY’S TOP-RATED PRODUCTS & EXCLUSIVE DEALS: https://theultimatehuman.com/amazon-recs Watch the “Ultimate Human Podcast” every Tuesday & Thursday at 9AM EST on YouTube: https://bit.ly/3RPQYX8 Connect with Gary Brecka: Website: https://bit.ly/4eLDbdU Instagram: https://bit.ly/3RPpnFs TikTok: https://bit.ly/4coJ8fo Facebook: https://bit.ly/464VA1H X.com: https://bit.ly/3Opc8tf LinkedIn: https://bit.ly/4hH7Ri2 SUBSCRIBE TO: https://www.youtube.com/@ultimatehumanpodcast https://www.youtube.com/@garybrecka Download the “Ultimate Human Podcast” on all your favorite podcast platforms: https://bit.ly/3RQftU0 The Ultimate Human with Gary Brecka Podcast is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute the practice of medicine, nursing or other professional health care services, including the giving of medical advice, and no doctor/patient relationship is formed. The use of information on this podcast or materials linked from this podcast is at the user’s own risk. The Content of this podcast is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Users should not disregard or delay in obtaining medical advice for any medical condition they may have and should seek the assistance of their health care professionals for any such conditions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	The average American is eating over the course of 15 hours.
0:04.0	It was astounding to me.
0:05.0	It puts a lot of stress on our system.
0:07.0	Like, digestion is effortful.
0:09.0	That's why your sleep is so messed up because your body's having a prioritized digestion.
0:12.0	So all the restoration and repair that should be happening, like has to basically take a back seat while we digest.
0:17.0	Sometimes the women that have the most narrow feeding window have the highest level of hormone
0:23.6	disruption.
0:24.6	These really narrow eating windows put a lot of stress on the body.
0:29.6	When people restrict their feeding window to 10 hours, they have better markers of sleep and
0:34.6	better markers of recovery, regardless of what phase of the menstrual cycle
0:37.7	they're in. Fueling for your activities to me is the principle that all women need to be think about.
0:42.4	I'm really excited to hear what comes out of your research with WOOP. If I was to hypothesize,
0:48.1	we're going to see the big data at Woop support what we're seeing in lab values and whatnot for
0:53.2	women. I think there isn't a lot of research on.
1:04.8	Hey guys, welcome back to the Ultimate Human, where we go down the road of everything
1:11.5	anti-aging, biohacking, longevity, and everything in between.
1:16.0	Kristen Holmes, who's been on the podcast before, came back for a short because we just thought
1:21.0	it was so important to do a short anecdotal review of our discussion on time-restricted
1:27.1	eating and the female menstrual cycle.
1:29.7	She's working on some really interesting things at Woop, which aren't ready for public
1:34.9	dissemination yet, but using big data to look at how wearables can actually track the menstrual
	...

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