#093 Muscle, Metabolism & Midlife Reset with Amanda Lim

Sharad Lal: Hi everyone. Welcome to How to Live, a podcast that explores ways to live a good life. I'm your host, Sharad Lal. This is episode 93.

When we hit our forties, our bodies start changing energy, sleep, recovery, and then when we look out for advice, there's so much out there that it's overwhelming to figure out what we should do today. We are cutting through the noise. Joining us is Amanda Lim, Harvard certified coach and co-founder of Singapore's first Metabolic Clinic.

She's advised companies like Google, Medtronic, and PayPal, and she's also been featured in channel Use Asia, the Straight Times and shape.com. Amanda and I talk about the keys of staying healthy, metabolic health, muscle sleep, lifestyle, what truly matters and what can you ignore. But before we dive in, a huge thank you.

With your support. We're in the top 3% of all podcasts globally listened to in one 40 countries. Thank you. Now let's jump in. Here's Amanda Lim.

Hi Amanda. Welcome to the Hard to Live podcast. How are you doing this morning?

Amanda Lim: Oh, I'm doing really well. Thank you so much for having me this morning.

Sharad Lal: Thank you for making time. I'm so excited.

Amanda Lim: Yeah, me too.

Sharad Lal: whenever folks like me and a lot of my friends, when we hit our forties, suddenly the issues around health start emerging.

Yes. Sometimes it's energy, lack of sleep, and then when we look around, there's so much around and we don't know what to do and many of us just get overwhelmed and forget about it. So how do you think folks who hit their forties and are starting to think about health, how should they approach it?

Amanda Lim: Yeah, and I love that question because I think, in our forties is a pivotal moment. In our twenties and thirties, we aren't often confronted with our health, meaning it lies under the surface. Most of us are maintaining what will be our lowest body weights for our entire lives. Most of us are still enjoying the benefits of youth.

our hormones are pretty stable at those ages, so it isn't until our forties that some of those layers of the onions start to unravel. When I like to think about health generally and where we should be focusing our efforts, I do draw from the pillars of lifestyle medicine.

Are you familiar with those?

Sharad Lal: No.

Amanda Lim: Okay.

Sharad Lal: Can you talk about that?

Amanda Lim: So, the pillars of lifestyle medicine are six, and they fall into these categories, exercise, nutrition, sleep, stress, management, the avoidance of risky substances, so referring to alcohol and drugs and social connection. So when we're thinking about what we can do to optimize our health in our forties, we need to audit through the lenses of those six categories.

And where can we improve?

Sharad Lal: So as people come to you, let's say in their forties, and maybe they have a symptom that I have low energy, and that you need to investigate what's going on, how do you go about figuring that out for people?

Amanda Lim: So if we apply the lens of those six pillars, right? So, okay. Your energy is low. First thing we go to is how's your sleep? Right? Because that's the most obvious and linear connection between feeling exhausted or low energy, and obviously the solution to that is adequate and quality sleep.

Then we would look at nutrition. Are you eating the types of foods that we know provide better and more accessible energy? Are you overusing underusing caffeine, for example, right?

Are you socially connected? So are you feeling exhausted from the stress of loneliness?We examine through those six lenses where we might draw out pieces that solve that equation.

And then what we do in the clinic is obviously we test each of those pieces using specified intervention.

Sharad Lal: So there's a questionnaire that folks fill out. Correct. And then there are testings and blood samples and those kind of things that happen

Amanda Lim: Exactly that

Sharad Lal: After which you're able to identify these could be potential issues that are causing problems, let's say energy or whatever there is.

Amanda Lim: Correct. And again, we are very much a clinic that has two mantras. Know your numbers and assess. Don't guess. So we don't just ask for example, you know, how's your diet, how do you feel about your diet? We look at the outcome measure, which is your body composition, your nutrient analysis from your blood work.

We look at the inside answer and the outside answer, and then we also get the qualitative data to kind of fill in the gaps. Yeah,

Sharad Lal: I love this inside and outside, and I've heard you talk in podcasts earlier, which is such a phenomenal concept that you might look healthy, but from inside you're not healthy.

I think that's also related to metabolic health. I don't know if I'm bringing it too early, but No, you're absolutely correct. I'd love to talk about that.

Amanda Lim: What you just said, I would say, is more sophisticated understanding than most folks that come into us. First, first glance. So Singapore is a wonderful testing ground for what you just said, which is just the way someone looks is not necessarily congruent.

With their metabolic health status. So Singaporeans generally, and East Asians generally tend to have smaller stature, shorter overall lighter body weights. But Singapore is experiencing a crisis of pre-diabetes and diabetes. So what is a disease that in the west is phenotypically correlated with?

Being obese or overweight is not so much the case here. So you can't assume that someone is or is not diabetic based on their phenotype.

Sharad Lal: Maybe we just go to the basics. What really is metabolism?

Amanda Lim: So metabolism and, and again, this is kind of a catchphrase in the wellness industry, right? I have a slow metabolism. I have a fast metabolism.

What do we mean metabolism as defined by, exercise physiologists and nutrition scientists is how your body intakes processes utilizes. And stores energy. So if there is dysfunction in any of those four stages, then you may have a symptom of metabolic problems.

Intake is what you eat. Processing refers to things like where that goes once it's in your body. So for example, once we've ingested, ingested a carbohydrate, where does it go?

Does it go to energy? Does it go to muscle? Does it go to a fat cell? So the processing, the utility,how your metabolism draws energy out to use it for your daily activities. And then of course storage, where does it go?

If you have an issue in any of those four areas, it will then manifest in a metabolic problem.

Sharad Lal: Where do you find the issue? I. Primarily

Amanda Lim: I literally can't say primary because we see all four mm.

But what I will say is what's the most controllable? Yeah. Intake, right? Intake is the most, it is the first one because it's the one that's easiest for us to actually control with lifestyle. And when you fix the intake problem, often you fix the processing, utility and storage problem. Are there any myths and new things that have come up about dieting which are important for us to take into account when we are thinking about intake?

What a wonderful day to ask this question Shad, because the Wall Street Journal and New York Times both kind of co published an article

About protein. Hmm. Why are we so obsessed with protein and why are we eating so much? And I think that the Wall Street Journal was the real clickbait one. It was like, you know, most people are overeating protein, and here's why. Here's what we gotta understand about the intake portion, the food portion.

There are three macronutrients and one non nutrient. The macronutrients are protein, fat, and carbohydrates. Any food that you eat is those things in some proportion. The non-nutritive compound is ethanol alcohol. Okay? So it provides calories, but no nutrition. But these four things, and again, really the macros, are the only things that are going to be the building blocks of your food. When we eat an excess of fat, it's stored as fat. When we eat an excess of carbs, it's stored as fat. When we eat an excess of protein to a certain level. It is not stored as fat. And this is why, if you look at the consensus opinion of nutrition science, it's that high protein diets within energy balance.

So either within, you know, an equitable balance or a slight deficit is the best way to lose fat while maintaining muscle mass. And I think what's problematic in that New York Times Wall Street Journal article, as well as just the understanding generally, is confounding weight loss and fat loss.

We need to separate those two terms as they are wildly distinct.

Sharad Lal: Let's talk about those two terms.

Amanda Lim: Yeah. So if we're losing weight and we're losing muscle, we are becoming metabolically less powerful. We are becoming unhealthy. We are absolutely affecting our health span in a way that is negative.

So if you've heard the rage around Ozempic GLP, one agonist receptor agonist drug, what those drugs do is induce satiety. What they really are is a satiety drug. So the feeling of fullness is simulated when the hormone is injected.

When we don't experience hunger, we eat less. When we eat less, we tend to undereat protein because without the stimulus of true appetite, it's hard to intake a diet that has adequate protein.

When we undereat protein and when we see the number on the scale going down without exercising. Our motivation to do resistance training that's meaningful decreases. So now we have a lower food intake, a lower protein intake, and a lower resistance training stimulus. We are now losing weight that is coming from muscle mass, it's pulling from our muscle.

It takes some fat as well. Absolutely. but unfortunately the muscle loss aspect is magnified with these drugs because the resistance training and protein are usually inadequate.

So back to the story of general people you know, that are looking to use high protein diets to lose weight. The reason that they're most effective is because they lose fat while maintaining the metabolically powerful tissue. That is muscle.

Sharad Lal: Let's talk about muscle mass. How do we build it? Why is it important?

Amanda Lim: Wonderful question. So first of all if I wanna be even more specific to metabolism, we're talking about skeletal muscle.

muscle that you can build, we're talking about the muscle along your arms and legs, right?

The summary total of this type of muscle gives you a number called SMI skeletal muscle index. So if body mass index BMI is your ratio of height to weight. SMI is your ratio of muscle to height. Hmm. And this number will give you better information about your potential metabolic function.

So just because you are light, which is what BMI will tell you mm-hmm. Does not mean that you are metabolically powerful, which is what SMI will tell you. Wonderful.

Sharad Lal: So, muscle mass is an important statistic

What are the other stats that we should look at?

Amanda Lim: VO two max. Hmm. VO two max. This is the outcome measure of cardio respiratory fitness. Mm-hmm. This is the number one predictor that we have of your lifespan. So this is the number one predictor of how long and how well you will live?

Yes. So if you don't know this number or if you know it and it's in the bottom quartile, you are doing yourself a disservice for your eventual long-term health.

It's basically your maximum oxygen uptake at your highest working load.

This is the heart rate at which you are burning fat.

So if you're someone who has fat to lose, working out within this heart rate zone will produce that result for you. Yeah, it's exact, you know, assess, don't guess. Right.

Sharad Lal: So it gives you the heart rate at which you maximize use by losing fat. Yes. And by doing these measures, you know what it is for you. Yes. And then you can customize your workout to that level.

Amanda Lim: Correct.

Sharad Lal: So you have VO two max. What are some of the other stats that we need to look at?

Amanda Lim: Yeah, so the SMI, which again is the outcome measure of body composition. Right. So how much muscle you have, and then, by default then how much fat you have.

Yes. So we need to know your ratios of muscle and fat. And then we also need to know within the muscle category how much of it is on your limbs. Because again, that's the one you can control within the fat category. We need to know how much of it is on your organs. So visceral fat is what that's called.

And that's kind of the risky fat. It's the one that you need to be aware of because it's the type that's calcifying around your organs that then leads to disease. So subcutaneous fat is the one that's, you can pinch an inch.

it's the one that you see. Yeah. But to be fair, it's not the one that's killing you. The third one is gonna be your hand grip strength, and that's gonna be your proxy measure of strength and function, right?

So separate from muscular size or the proportion of muscle you carry is what those muscles can do.

Sharad Lal: What's a good benchmark for people?

Amanda Lim: So if you're measuring it on a dynamo meter, which is the clinical tool we use, you just squeeze as hard as you can against this tool and it spits out a number.

as long as you're 50th percentile and above, no worries. Keep doing what you're doing and again, try to get stronger.

But if it is, it's more so that the weakness is the risk factor, not having exceptional grip strength is the key to success. It's more just don't be so weak. Right? The second way to test it, if you don't have a dynamo meter, is to hang off of a bar. Mm-hmm. So, support your body weight unassisted off of a bar.

90 seconds is the optimal standard for females. And two minutes is the optimal standard for males.

Sharad Lal: Two minutes. If you can hang off a bar, it means you're above 50% time.

Amanda Lim: Oh. Oh. Above 50th. You're above 90th at that point. Yeah. Yeah, you are. You are literally elite, right. If you can hang off a bar for two and then you don't need to.

And for those listeners who are like, I wonder how long I could hang. Yeah. Yeah, if you've not done it, two minutes is daunting. A lot. Okay. It's daunting. Yeah.

Sharad Lal: So if you're like at one minute or stuff, you're okay, I guess.

Amanda Lim: Yes, exactly.

Sharad Lal: And this is grip strength, but it's a proxy to your strength. Correct? Like, why is that important?

Amanda Lim: Yeah, it's, it's a functional proxy to muscular strength. Mm. So it's not just, again, what's the size of the muscle or the amount of muscle, which is what the SMI is telling you. What can the muscle do?

That is actually what's important in long-term health is what you can do performatively rather than what, how much muscle you have. just being a bodybuilder for example, doesn't necessitate fantastic outcomes.

But think of rock climbers. Think of someone with exceptional grip strength. Yes. Highly developed forearms. And a light body weight. Yes. That person is probably metabolically perfect.

Sharad Lal: So we have these three measures. What are the other measures that you should look at?

Amanda Lim: Blood work. Right.

If you have not had blood work, if you're over 40 and you've not had your blood work run in six months and again, high alert 12 months, then you do not know what's going on in your body. We need to be repeating our blood work at these shorter intervals than you previously did in your twenties and thirties, which is probably never, if you were like me you're like, yeah, I'm fine.

In order to not only know, number itself, but the delta. Right. You wanna watch for patterns. Exactly. You know, they always say, you know, obesity now was overweight at some point. Diabetes now was high fasting insulin at one point. So we need to catch these things and track the progressions even if you are healthy now, right?

So what are we looking at? We're looking at glucose.

We're looking at your lipids, triglycerides, cholesterol. We're looking at your hormones, sex hormones and thyroid, cortisol, insulin again, insulin, you know, including the glucose panel as well. And we're looking at your micronutrients, your iron, your vitamin D, your vitamin B12.

We're looking to see if all of these things are optimized for better health and or if there's any red flags. I understand

Sharad Lal: Many folks who might be listening to do this, do the annual checkups where they get quite a few of these measures. Yes. What do most annual checkups do? Get and where do they miss out and stuff which people need to supplement.

Amanda Lim: Insulin tells us about utility and storage. Those two questions are unanswered with a simple fasting glucose read.

Right? So I always say, make sure your glucose panel includes fasting insulin. In addition and again, have one C as well, because that's a longer measure, that's a three month measure versus a moment in time, which is what fasting glucose is.

When we're talking about the two types of cholesterol, HDL and LDL, the one that actually contributes to metabolic syndrome is HDL.

Meaning if you don't have enough, so it's not, is your bad cholesterol too high? It's, is your healthy cholesterol too low? That's actually the diagnosis. So first, first of all, there's that. If your HDL is wherever, and your LDL is high. And if you have high triglycerides, then we're seeing a lipids profile that is probably unfavorable, but these three things interact and then again, with the massive X factor of your body composition and body weight.

Yeah, yeah. That then obviously moderate that process. So you know when people are told they have high cholesterol, it's not great. Okay. That's not something that we love to see on a panel, but it's not necessarily a problem in the sense that having low muscle mass is necessarily a problem immediately a problem.

Sharad Lal: if you measure the muscle mass around your limb and it's not that good. Yeah. What should people start doing in their forties?

Amanda Lim: So two things you want to think about if you are looking to build muscle, if you have been told that you're under muscled, sarcopenic at risk of low muscle mass, two things that you must do now. One is to load the gun with a protein dominant diet. And two is pull the trigger with resistance training that is progressively loaded over time.

Hmm. So again, using the gun analogy, and it's not 'cause I'm American guys, it's just 'cause it works. All right. So if we load the gun with protein, so we're eating a protein forward diet, but we're not lifting, then we're not creating muscle tissue.

Yeah. Okay. We're, we're not, it's not going muscle Protein synthesis isn't gonna happen simply because you ate protein. Yeah. Secondly, if we're resistance training, but we're not eating enough protein, then what is the muscle going to build from? Yeah. When will it come? We have to actually produce the food that goes into the muscle tissue to then grow it again.

So we need those two things. A protein dominant diet. When I refer to that for clients, what I mean is within those three macronutrients, protein, fats, and carbs. So three, right? 33%. 33%, yeah.

Protein needs to be slightly dominant. 40%, 35 to 40 35. 35 to 40. Yep. So as long as it's, there's more protein, slightly more than the other two things. Right.

So when it comes to protein ingestion, a few things that we know, we do know that. The first meal is important. Mm. The first meal is important. So you wanna make sure that that first meal that you eat has at least 20 grams and really 30 grams if you're gonna work out that day.

So 20 to 30 grams in that first meal is important. We know that the protein in the last meal is Yes. It is important. Oh, okay. It is important. Yeah. Because that's the one you sleep on. For the function of repair, you definitely wanna have some protein in the afternoon. The middle one is kinda where we have some fun, right?

So it, not to say that you shouldn't have protein in your lunch, you should really have protein in every meal.

Remember that protein, like carbohydrates, only has four calories per gram. Fat has nine calories per gram, so it adds up quickly. Alcohol has seven calories per gram. It adds up quickly and provides nothing. But protein is relatively low.

Cal, and again, because it's so satiating. Yes. It's actually a little bit difficult to eat. It's difficult to eat so much. Yeah. So it is one of these things where one of the first things that I do with clients is help them strategize their go-to protein sources that they execute every day, and then they can work in the other.

So I'll give you an example, right? We get a protein forward breakfast. So the one that I had this morning, I have 65 grams of protein enhanced oatmeal, which by the way, guys is simply oatmeal, where they pair down a little bit of the carbs to make the protein part of the oat more dominant.

Then I put in a 30 gram scoop of whey isolate, which is an isolated protein. So your lowest calorie, highest protein powder. I put in a little bit of full cream milk because it tastes good. And it also contains protein.

It also contains protein. Okay. And then I put in some blueberries thereAnd I heated them all up in a glorious bowl. Top it with a little bit of cinnamon for antioxidant and anti-inflammatory power. And that's my breakfast.

So I leave the house with 45 grams of protein. So it's not hard. And I have that breakfast. Three to five days per week. On the days I don't have that breakfast, I have something with slightly less protein, but still with protein.

So two slices of protein toast with cottage cheese on top. What is protein toast? Protein toast is just, they have certain types of bread. There's a brand here in Singapore called Aben brought. and it refers to a higher protein, denser style of bread versus a higher carbohydrate, fluffy style of bread.

Okay. And that just happens to have way more protein per slice. so I'll have two slices of protein toast with some cottage cheese that's gonna get me about 28 grams of protein in the morning.

Fantastic. Like I said, 20 to 30 is the normative range that works.

Sharad Lal: What do eggs do? Because a lot of people have eggs in terms of grams and proteins.

Amanda Lim: Yeah. This question I wish I was asked more often, which is what you're asking is an egg a protein or where does it lie? and I'm assuming it's a protein I'm, yeah.

I'm gonna answer it a little bit differently. So when someone asks me, is this protein? The question I wish you'd ask is, is this majority protein? Ah. Right. So when I talk about what makes a protein source, I'm talking about more protein than any other macronutrient in that food. Right?

Protein, I'm not saying it does or doesn't, and I'll give some examples, but primarily protein. So an egg is primarily fat, egg white. Egg white is all protein. So the albumin is exclusively protein. The yolk is where we contain Yes.

The healthy, lutein rich fats. So I'm definitely not saying to hit it with all the egg whites all the time, but when we think of an egg, we have to think that it is a fat food that contains protein. Yeah. Same with nuts. It's a fat food that contains protein and carbs. Lentils are a carbohydrate food that contain protein.

Protein. So what is the type of food when we're talking about what is predominantly protein? There are six. Okay. You got your meat. Hmm.

Yeah. Right. Fish. Mm-hmm. Eggs, egg whites, egg white. You know, if we wanna be very specific about it, tofu, Tempe, meat substitutes in the soy category. Yeah. And again, check your labels. 'cause not, not every meat substitute is created equal, but some of, you know, many of them are great. For, for vegetarians and vegans.

Your dairy. Okay. Right. So your low fat and non-fat are gonna have a higher proportion of protein. Your full fat is gonna be slightly lower, but at least you know it's about equal or, or close. And then six is gonna be your protein supplement. So talking about your powders, your bars, your again, products generally, but check your labels.

Yeah.

Sharad Lal: And just rough cut. Let's say two egg whites. You have a boiled egg, two egg whites. How, how many grams would that be?

Amanda Lim: Yeah, so the thing about egg whites. Is, you gotta load up big. That's the issue. To get it, I dunno, you need to have five eggs. Yeah. Five, six. Yeah. Five six is what I would consider. Yeah.

Your portion. And that's like 20 grams or 30 grams. Yes. And what I recommend so that we're not wasting eggs Yeah. Is getting the pred albumin. So, or you can get that Yeah. You can get it pasteurized or unpasteurized. So meaning you can get it fresh, ready to roll, or you can get it pasteurized where you can even blend it into shakes.

Sharad Lal: How often do you do supplements? Protein supplements?

Amanda Lim: Daily.

Sharad Lal: So you do it twice a day or just the morning thing before you go off?

Amanda Lim: I'll, I'll tell you.

My big supplementation comes during my intra and post-workout shake. Right, right.

So, intra meaning during my workout, I have a blend of whey protein called Clear whey, so it's not milky. Yeah. It's juicy, if you will. I have clear whey protein, creatine and maltodextrin in my bottle. So Maltodextrin is just a straight up sugar. It's just glucose to power my workout. And then after my workout, I'll have another scoop.

Of whey protein. Right? So in that case, potentially it's either whey protein or Cain protein, depending on the timing of my workout. Cain is a slow digesting, slow release protein. So if my workout's in the evening, I'll choose Cain because then that'll help me with muscle repair overnight.

Sharad Lal: Alright, So now we've got a sense of the diet. Yeah. Now let's do, when we are shooting the gun, let's talk about exercise to build muscle.

Amanda Lim: and by the way, you don't need to take any supplements. You can exist on food-based protein forever. Yeah. I use supplementation because of the nature of my schedule. Right. It's just, you know, it's a lifestyle that I lead and, and so I made the solutions that work. What we can't be so flexible on is weight training.

Yeah. Okay. The resistance training, the strength training. I'm gonna use these terms interchangeably, but they all mean one thing, which is putting your major muscle groups. Through the fundamental movement patterns, with a progressively heavier or higher volume load that then allows for muscular growth.

That's what I'm talking about. So to be clear, I'm not talking about spin classes, even the ones that use little weights for five minute intervals. I'm not talking about that. I'm rarely talking about HIIT. So I'm rarely talking about a heart rate 180 7 inducing exercise where you just may happen to be holding some weights.

I am talking about a progressively loaded slow, and with recovery intervals program that gets more intense over time.

Sharad Lal: How do people start on a program like that? Yeah. And what could those programs look like?

Amanda Lim: So the good news is they start real easy.

So the minimum effective dose for strength training. Yes. It is two bouts. Yeah. Of at least 30 minutes per week. Okay. So I need two. It's not a bad exercise session that lasts for about 30 to 45 minutes. Don't get hung up on the time. Yeah. Like, oh, this took me 28 minutes, or this took me 32 minutes.

Here's the real deal. Yeah. We need to get every major muscle group involved and we need to put them through the fundamentals, which are squatting. Yeah. Hinging, which is gonna be your deadlift or your hip thrust, some variation therein. Pushing, which is gonna be your pushup, your bench press, your shoulder press pulling, which is gonna be your pull up, your rows rotating, which is gonna be anything that obviously causes some sort of torque here from the torso.

And carrying, which back to our grip strength. Yeah. Yeah. We gotta carry heavy stuff in order to develop that dimension of functional strength. in my training programs, like I don't love straps. And apparatus that just lets you hook onto the thing that you're lifting.

I like you to actually grab the thing that you're lifting. Yeah. Okay.

I want people doing things that are directly functional to those outcome measures. VO two max, body composition and hand grip strength. How does your workout compare to, let's say, traditional old school work? I'm gonna do CHEST today, some. Bench press, I'm gonna do shoulders, I'm gonna do back.

I love it. I wish more people would go back and watch the Arnold Schwarzenegger documentary that I love so much. Yeah, no, it is, I would say my style particularly. Yeah. And, and again, the style that we prescribe to many of our lift clinic clients is the old school bodybuilding way.

'cause they got it right man. They knew how to progress sets and reps. They knew how to rest between sets. They knew that volume produced results. Have you seen the Arnold Schwarzenegger document? I haven't seen the movie, no. Okay. Can we put this in the show notes? 'cause like, I'm gonna need people to watch as, all right, there's this wonderful scene.

Yeah. Where he's working biceps. I think it's biceps, it doesn't matter. But he's marking his sets on a chalkboard and he's doing 2020 sets and he does one mark. It does his, you know, prescribed rest. Pick the weights up again. Set number two marks it. This is something that's now known as German volume training.

Okay. And it's basically lots of sets, lots of reps, right? It takes a long time. It's very intense. It's incredibly effective for building muscle. I am not saying that everyone listening needs to do German volume training. What I'm saying is volume or the sets and reps that you do cumulatively is what needs to progress.

I am not saying that you have to do these one rep maxes or these super heavy lifts all the time, and in fact you kind of never have to do them as long as you are progressing the overall load.

I wonder when. The, the, the catchphrase now, especially, you know, for women is like heavy lifting. Heavy lifting, yes. Heavy in the sense that the last one or two reps of what you are lifting should be challenging. If you pick up a weight, lift it 10 times and put it back down, you're not out of breath.

Your heart rate hasn't gone up and you feel no strain in, in the grip area, you're probably not lifting very much. Mm-hmm. And you know, with women specifically, because that is about 80% of my clientele, I'm always like, how old is your kid? Do you pick up your kid? If you can pick up a 6-year-old, I promise you, you can pick up a 30 kg barbell.

Sharad Lal: I think it's really important to get the right trainer, especially if you're getting into weight and, and figuring out technique, posture, all these things. Yes. Was it just killing yourself and being tight everywhere?

Amanda Lim: Before you are ready to embark upon two sessions of 30 minutes of full body strength training, you have to correct imbalances and you have to learn proper form. Mm-hmm. So form before function? Yeah, form before load.

Half. Squatting a heavier load is not only much worse for you overall, but produces way worse results than full squatting, a much lighter load. This is something that you absolutely need to master. And secondly is correcting those imbalances. So if you are someone who has it, and this is in our forties, so common, right?

Yeah. Niggling shoulder, lower back pain. Lower back. Yeah. I can't, can't squat 'cause my knee, folds inward at a certain point. Correct. Those first. Take the time.

Correct. What ails you And then progress on form.

Sharad Lal: What's a good way to correct? You go to a person who checks out everything

Amanda Lim: correct.

have someone look at your, someone squat, a fitness professional, squat, hinge, push and pull. Have somebody watch you bench, watch you pull up, watch you squat, and watch you deadlift and master the fundamentals of that technique and let your ego go if you're doing it on an empty bar, so be it.

If you're doing it on a PVC pipe, so be it. in 2009. I was brand new to Olympic weightlifting. I had already been a trainer for three years, certified personal trainer, but I was just learning Olympic weightlifting, clean snatches, whatever.

My coach didn't let me touch a barbell, a real barbell for 12 weeks. because I did not have the mobility to hold a proper front rack, which, for weightlifters, it's not easy.

And I didn't have the thoracic mobility because of my scoliosis to hold the overhead position with an elbow lock. So until those two things developed, I was not able to lift barbells. And this beautiful coach knew it. And what felt embarrassing and shameful to me, oh my gosh, I'm using the medicine ball and the PVC pipe.

Everyone else is using a freaking barbell. Now I'm 42. I'm third ranked in Asia. Wow. In my division, because I don't have shoulder problems. Hmm. I have. Perfect mobility. I have squat depth, I have pain-free movement. If I hadn't corrected it with her back then in 2009, do you think I could possibly come out the other side where I am now?

So take the time to correct the imbalances before you load.

Sharad Lal: Let's talk about mobility. Do we need to develop mobility as well? Do we need a separate sub routine for mobility, whether it's yoga or other mobility things?

What do you think of mobility?

Amanda Lim: So when we give out our know your numbers list at live clinic, there's like 23 questions

One of the questions is how many minutes of mobility are you doing per week?

if it's a zero, then we have an issue, right? And if it's like about 60 or whatever. So the way that I think about it is like, if you can gimme five good minutes before your workout. Mm. So if you're lifting three times a week and you're giving me 15 minutes of total mobility, five minutes per lift, you know, per lifting day, that's okay.

That's a good start. You know, 'cause it's not zero. Right. If you are doing a weekly yoga, a weekly palate, a weekly physio, something that would check the mobility box, yeah. Perfectly great as well.

Sharad Lal: What's a good simple five minute mobility? Routine to do.

Amanda Lim: Cat cow, spinal mobility, what's called the World's Greatest stretch. I know. That's really embarrassing. That's the actual name of it. No, it's literally called the World's Greatest Stretch's World Greatest.

You get into it like a lunge and you put one hand down and then you twist the other arm up. Oh, that's so good. Yeah, it's, I do that. That's so good. It's the world's greatest stretch. No, but really it's fantastic. It's so good. So that's gonna get into your hip mobility, your upper thoracic. Right. I really like what's called thoracic rotations against the wall.

So you put your back against the wall and you assume a lunge position. Mm. And then you rotate this arm. Imagine the walls, I'm touching the wall and then rotate it back so it almost looks like an archer. Right? Right. Okay. Rotating back and forth. So again, you can look at these thoracic rotations against a wall.

That's another great one. And then I love your good old fashioned downward dog and your downward dog into Upward Dog. Many folks in their forties are playing sports as well. So let's say tennis, racket, sport and stuff. And suddenly it is things like if you go back to tennis after maybe five, 10 years in your forties, things start going weird like wrist.

Sharad Lal: Shoulders. So how should sport and fitness come together?

Amanda Lim: Yeah, I think again, mobility is the missing piece here, right? I think if you are considering a reentry to sport after time off, yeah, it is worth your time to see a sports focused physio.

so let a professional Yeah. Do the work that doesn't need to be occupying your mental space. Yeah. Yeah. Do you need to be thinking about sets and reps and load and stuff while you're doing your day job?

No, probably not. But let that person do it because that's their job. Similar thing, use the couple hundred bucks to do a few physio visits before you get into this sport. That's a good one.

Because otherwise you're gonna be spending those same hundred bucks on the physio to fix your injury. Yeah.

Yes, strength training's, important, muscle development, all these things we've been talking about. But if you're not functionally ready for the demands of that activity, then it's always gonna be an uphill battle. And you'll do yourself more harm than good. Yeah.

Sharad Lal: Maybe let's talk about busy people.

Folks in Singapore we know are traveling all the time. So one, they need to do their workouts elsewhere, but they want good energy. and maybe let's say somebody has just 30 minutes a week. Let's just put it at that. What should they do in those 30 minutes just to get,

Amanda Lim: for exercise?

For exercise, we're exercise. We're specifically talking about exercise, strength training. Exercise strength, strength training. So if you just have 30 minutes. Yep. Squat at three. Squat, deadlift, bench, press, and row. Yeah. If you don't have a bench, press in a row, pull up and push up.

Literally do those four things please. Like that's gonna be your best bang for your buck. Right. Okay. And, and mobilize. And mobilize. So spend five minutes mobilizing. Yeah. Then 25 minutes. And do the five minutes exercising. Yes.

Sharad Lal: Okay. That's a good one. Let's talk about sleep. That's another big one. What have you noticed in sleep for folks in their forties, and what are some things that we need to take care of?

Amanda Lim: Yeah. Well, first of all, something I said in the very beginning of this interview, which is now, I want you to paint a different picture for you.

The six pillars of lifestyle medicine. Yes. When you think of that metaphor, you are literally thinking of six equitable sized pillars that might be holding up some sort of roof. Unfortunately, that's not exactly how it works. They're not all equitable and they don't all have the same functionality.

And what you really wanna think about is the pillar of sleep. Is actually the foundation of the wellness house. So without sleep, the exercise doesn't do what you think it's doing. Without sleep, nutrition is almost impossible to manage because your appetite and everything is so far off.

Without sleep, your stress management becomes much poorer. So sleep is actually the foundation. So turn that pillar on its side and then let that hold, you know, be the candelabra of sorts for all of these other pillars, because that's how important sleep is.

Sharad Lal: Perfect. What are maybe one or two little hacks that people may not have, which are not too obvious that Yeah. We should kind of incorporate, I'll give you may, in a Singapore schedule, like Yeah. Busy, stressed work. Yeah. Hyper, hyper.

Amanda Lim: 10, 3, 2, 1. Mm-hmm. Okay. So this is an easy device 'cause it's easy to remember. 10, 3, 2, 1 for better sleep. So 10 hours before bedtime, no caffeine. Cut the caffeine. Okay. Yeah. Three hours mm-hmm. Before bedtime.

Finish up your exercise. Yeah. So try not to get your heart rate spike in more than three hours. Two hours before bedtime. Mm-hmm.

The kitchen is closed. Mm-hmm. So that's food, that's beverages. That's good. That's good. Yeah.

and one hour before. And this is the kicker screen. Yeah. Off. So, so blue light exposure ends one hour before bedtime,

Try it for two weeks. Try to adhere to what I just said for two weeks. and let me know if this, you know, kind of mystical outcome measure of energy, which is hard.

Yeah. You know, we can't quantify that super well. It's obviously very subjective. Tell me if that improves.

Sharad Lal: What do you do for that one hour where you have no screens, read about, no television, you read, you you're reading.

Amanda Lim: Yeah. So reading, reading is a great, like an, optimized use of this time. Yeah.

You might also just be talking to your partner. Yeah. Just like having a conversation. It's a good thing to do. Yeah. If there's a partner in your life, you might also be meditating and or using one of those sleep tracks. One of those sonic meditation vibes. Yeah.

These are all great options. You might be bathing.

Sharad Lal: Excellent. Everyone talks about health span.

Is there something that we should think about when we think about lifespan versus healthspan?

Amanda Lim: So lifespan is the years in your life. Yeah. Health span is the life in your years.

Oh, that's interesting. I love that wording. Thank you. Thanks grandma. But yeah, so basically how long you live without the burdens of chronic disease, with the ability to do your ADLs, your activities of daily life, toilet yourself, change yourself, take a bath, et cetera. And I'm gonna add the third one is how long you're living with the level and type of social connections that you want.

So I would say health span represents your ability to function, your ability to be free of chronic disease and injury. And then also that you know that you are enjoying the level of social connection that you prefer.

Sharad Lal: the things that we talked about kind of cover things to have a better health span. Mm-hmm. Is there anything we missed,

Amanda Lim: like, I don't know, intimate fasting or anything else that could be more interesting?

Muscle is the key. Muscle is what keeps us from dementia. Muscle is what gives us that function. The ability to, to do our activities of daily life. Muscle is what takes us away from osteopenia. Sarcopenia and obviously the, the, osteoporosis, the eventual outcome of, of osteopenia.

These are the things that muscle protects for us. That is the biggest gap in people who live long, but not well. If they do not have, they're, they're under muscled. They're inadequately muscled. And that is the big game changer. So if there's one thing you could do in the service of your own health span, it's load the gut and pull the trigger on protein and weights.

Sharad Lal: Yeah. Wonderful. Is there anything we haven't spoken about?

Amanda Lim: There's another saying that I absolutely love and I use in behavioral change work all the time. The best time to start was 10 years ago, but the second best time is right now.

I love that. Get it done. There is no such thing as too late, not until you're on the ground. There's no too late and there's no too small.

getting out in the sunlight for 10 minutes of your day, which you haven't done at your office job in years. Do the smallest step and do it today because it does matter.

So you've gotta build, build a path. It is so empowering. Thank you very much, Amanda, for spending this time with us.

Extremely informative. I love your energy, and thank you very much for this. Thanks so much.