#26 - ASK JORGE: If you have chronic fatigue and low immunity discover why you need to use MACA daily to get your edge back with guest co-hosts @navitaszach and @megadelmanrn.

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Welcome everyone to the podcast. This is Jorge Cruise, and I'm super excited to be back here with the Jorge Cruise Podcast. During this pandemic, we took a little time off to reset, and literally I had to kind of recenter in California. You guys know I'm in New York for the most part, and it's been an interesting few weeks to say the least. I know all of you have been emailing and direct responding to me on social, and I'm just so happy to be back. I'll tell you, I did a webinar a few weeks ago and for me this is a time in my life where I feel like, and it's been 30 years since I felt this passionate about health. I mean, my dad was given a bit of a sad news that he had a year to live when I was 18 years old and that kind of planted a seed in me that has never stopped seeking health. And right now, I was a big advocate then, but I feel like I'm 18 again because the The stakes are that high right now. It could be life and death. And I want to share with you a podcast today that I believe will give you an edge. And right now, you know, I've been telling all my celebrity clients that we gotta go to zero. And that metaphor for me, go to zero, means, you know, as much as we want to have a strong immune at a 10 or 100, imagine you don't have one right now. And, you know, I've worked with celebrities that have immune issues and all that and have a lowered immune. Compromised immune. And I know we hope for the best always, but if we can have that mindset right now that our immunes need to be bolstered no matter how healthy we think we are, that'll give us that edge. And so on today's show, I have two dear friends that, that are joining me, Zach and Meg Adelman, who are the creators of Navitas. And if you don't know what Navitas is, it is a brand of organic truly, in my opinion, the best organic foods that you can get, superfoods. And you know, I was introduced to them because I became a big fan of chia, and obviously for Flat Belly Meals and Flat Belly Waters, but today on the show, as much as I love chia, we're not gonna talk about that. We're gonna talk a little bit about how Zach started this with Meg, and they're on the line. Guys, can you hear me okay?

Sure can, Jorge. Thank you for having us on your podcast today.

Oh my gosh, I'm so honored to to have you and Meg and give us a little bit of— Meg, are you there? I'm gonna test your audio, make sure everyone can hear you at home.

Yeah, I'm here. Thanks for having us.

Of course, you sound great. And Meg joined me on this webinar we did a few weeks ago. And I'll tell you, Meg, your background in health and nutrition and medicine was incredible. People were so, I think, hopeful learning that there's a lot we can do with the food we eat to bolster immunity. And for me, I've been working with my inner circle of clients, my family, and we've been really removing the sugar. I've told them it's step 1, get that sugar out. It doesn't mean you can't have sweetness in your life, just try to not make it sugar or honey or agave. As much as I love fruit, I've been embracing avocados and tomatoes and maybe limes and lemons, but that's about it. I've been doing a lot of green vegetables, healthy fats, and all your superfoods, guys. There's so many great ones out there, but I love that your guys' story started with 17 years ago, if I remember right, with maca. Maca is something I've been using for 10 years. When I turned 40, I felt like 50, and even though I'm almost 50 now, I feel better now than I did 10 years ago. It's because of maca. Maca, I know for you, Zach and Meg, was kind of like your kickoff food for the company. I feel like to share that with everyone because I think today, today, people are wanting that edge. I think energy is power, and I love that Navitas means in Latin energy, right, Zach? It kind of was your—

Yeah.

—your naming it. Tell us a little bit of that story maybe. Let's start with that because I kind of love the origins of Navitas itself and how you picked it and why you and Meg started this because I feel like people always like to hear that story. Maybe before we get into maca and why it's something people should incorporate, and I'm going to share at the end of the show, guys, my recipe. I do a little dessert at night with maca that is super delicious, has no sugar, uses stevia and your keto cacao and all that. But tell them about Navitas and how you guys came up with this, because I mean, to create a company that is the leader in organic superfoods, I mean, there aren't too many people that can say that. So welcome Zach and Meg, and give us a little bit of that background if you would, Zach and Meg, please. Sure.

Well, thanks again for having us on the show today. Yeah, back in 2003, in our little house in the Hollywood Hills, you know, Meg and I were at a bit of a crossroads in our life, and we were early adopters of plant-based or plant-focused lifestyles and had a lot of curiosity about health and wellness. And we were introduced, as you said, to our flagship product, maca, which is a root vegetable that grows up in the Peruvian Andes. It's known to be one of the highest, if not the highest cultivated crop in the world. So it grows up in a very harsh land. And yeah, it's a very nutritious tuberous root vegetable that helps nourish our endocrine system, which provides balance, hormonal balance, natural energy. So not a stimulant like caffeine, you know, and it's just a really good healthy food for our bodies, boosts libido. And when you put all that together, it has, you know, it helps to strengthen our immune system naturally. I love that. Which is incredibly important right now as we're faced with this global pandemic. Oh my gosh. And so for after the, over the last 17 years, we've been one of the pioneers in the superfood, organic superfood category, bringing out many different superfoods and value-added products of snacks and smoothie blends, a lot of different products in our portfolio now. Yeah, I know.

I think what you guys have done is created an arsenal. And I always think of the companies that I love, that I use every day in my life, and I feel like you guys have created— it's like 50 or 60 different types of ways to use superfoods. But I feel like maca for me was the thing 10 years ago when I was 40 that made me feel like I was young again. And I feel like So many people I talk to are feeling tired. A lot of my celebrity clients are gaining weight because they're not moving. And I feel like if you need that edge, and as much as I love coffee, it's acidic and you have to balance it because it can be acid-forming. Maca is so powerful. And Meg, can you give us your insight on this? Because I know, tell them a little bit of your background, Meg, because you have a different background than Zach. Zach's more kind of the business side of it, and you're a little more in the health and medicine world as a, I don't want to say former nurse, you're still a nurse, right, Meg? Yeah, I'm still a nurse.

I work— I'm not currently working clinically, although I've kind of heeded the call to action to perhaps go back and help on the front lines right now. To be continued on that one. But yeah, no, I— we both just were really health food junkies, so to speak, from an early age, and we sort of sought this lifestyle out. Maca was a great fit for as our first product because it's, it's an adaptogen. It's got adaptogenic qualities, which essentially works to correct any deficiencies that might be going on within the body. And that can be anything from hormonal imbalances to vitamin and mineral deficiencies. It's— so it sort of helps to kind of help promote homeostasis in the body so that we can kind of live optimally and, you know, that our immune system functions at its highest level possible. Yeah. And through those sort of anti-inflammatory antioxidant benefits of all of our foods, that's really the golden ticket there as far as maintaining your health in the face of these, these challenges that we're going to continually start to face. Unfortunately, that's the new world we're living in. But it is— you can do so much with the food that you eat to to sort of fortify yourself in these times.

Yeah, and you were part of that live event we did on Zoom, which I was just so happy to have you on kind of the 11th hour. And I think people are— I mean, I am. I'm in a place where I feel like, you know, let's— I'm planning for the worst. I'm planning to kind of be here at home with my family for the next couple of months. And even though summer hopefully is a time that we can all get back to normal, I think moving forward, we're all going to be a little more cautious and careful with our news system since this is an immune issue and we want to bolster it. I've upped my ante. When I break my fast, I usually tell my clients, "Have your wine, have your chocolate cake, have whatever you enjoy in that window where you're eating your meal and enjoy it." But I've been even more cautious than normal. For me, I've cut out most fruit drinks. I've cut out most fruits other than, like I said, avocados, tomatoes, limes, and lemons. Just embracing the green foods and the chlorophyll. And I know next week we're going to talk about chlorophyll, and I'm excited about that because for me that's an incredible healer, the chlorophyll and the wheatgrass and all that. But with maca, Meg, I mean, I know you guys, your story is a little different than Zach. You had, like me, I mean, I, my dad was not well when I was younger. Was, was that part of what kind of got you going in this direction? And not that we have a lot of time, but Share with everyone a little bit of that, because I remember you sharing with me your personal story and how your family at one point had kind of a health crisis as well, right, Meg?

Yeah. You know, we all sort of have something that's touched us at an early age where it really changed the course of the way we lived. And I think your story and mine are similar. Yeah. My family, I come from a really long line of people with diabetes, and my maternal grandmother ended up dying of type 2 diabetes complications. And it was, it was an unnecessary death in my opinion. But, you know, it's the, it's the perils of being really overweight and then subsequent chronic disease diagnosis that follow. And all of these things are within our control. So that for me was a really motivating factor for how I was going to live my life and then also ended up being the passion behind why I, I pursued, you know, both the health food company that we created and, um, and nursing as well, more, more towards the angle of preventative care.

Yeah, well, talking about that preventative care, I think you said it right there. Right now, obviously, people are like, what the heck do I do? We've talked enough about what to avoid, like sugar. So, you know, I, I thought, you know, with your guys' support here to talk about maca We've talked a little bit about it, but if people were to find this, I know the taste is strong, so we always start small with it. Maybe, I always hear Zach say about half a teaspoon to a teaspoon. I add it to yogurt. I like high-fat yogurt, not low-fat, definitely not brands that are full of aspartame or cut out all the sugar or cut out all the fat. But what I've done, guys, everyone listening, is I take Greek yogurt at night, high fat, I'll add your maca powder, I'll add a little stevia, and if I'm feeling like I want that little chocolate kick, I'll add your Keto Cacao, which is also another superfood. And paired with maca, cacao, and stevia, and Greek yogurt, I don't know if you guys have tried something like that, but it is absolutely a game changer for me. And you know, it's something that even my kids will do, and the stevia masks that taste that is a little powerful, but For anyone trying maca, for example, if we're going to try to get them to try that, because I feel like— how many years were you guys doing maca before you introduced more products and all that? Because I feel like I haven't heard from maca in 10 years, you know? And I feel like I want everyone listening to embrace this and give it a shot, because I feel like it can give you that edge, both in energy, but also help bring that balance and be that adaptogen, which I think, I think it's a big fancy word, but bring that balance. That I think the world is experiencing now that we're at home and slowing things down. But what are your thoughts on how to use it, Zach or Meg? Like how would we, if anyone's listening out there, I mean, I gave my little recipe, you know, for a dessert that's kind of yummy without too much sugar. Any suggestions or anything you guys want to add to that maybe on how to use the maca?

Yeah, I mean, the most common way is to make it in a fruit juice or a smoothie. Yup, yup. And can be paired well in those formats. It's the most common way. Certainly adding it to yogurt like you do, or granola. There's a lot of different ways. It's nice to sort of enhance the flavor with something else. You know, bananas often— I know you try to keep everybody on low sugars, so probably an avocado could really pair well with it.

Yeah, that's actually really good.

If you want to make it in a smoothie, adding avocado has become pretty popular to get healthy fats in there. The other thing I would just add is just that maca, being one of our flagship, or our flagship product, is often one of our base ingredients in a lot of different value-added products. So in our Essential Blends, which— Yeah, tell us. You know, is a ready-to-drink, ready-to-blend smoothie mix. You can just add it to milk of choice and put it in a shaker or a blender, what have you. And that has upwards of 40% vitamin C content that is largely driven by camu camu, which is something you've talked a little bit about lately.

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Oh no, I love that product. It's to brag, right? It has 10 times more vitamin C than a single orange. Camu, it's C-A-M-U. You guys are Googling it, but tell them about that because we didn't talk about that. I'll add that to the Greek yogurt as well, Zach, but go ahead.

Yeah. Yeah. So it, it's, it's known to be one of, if not the highest natural source of vitamin C from a food anywhere that you can find. The berry that grows in the Amazon River basin, and it's got a kind of sweet but tart flavor to it. Um, can you get into water or juices, add it into granola, yogurts, what have you, and you'll get more than enough vitamin C from a half teaspoon to full teaspoon, and more than your body can probably absorb because it's plant-based source. It'll, it's highly absorbable. We just take the berries and we dry them out, and then we mill them and freeze dry it. It's a pretty easy-to-use product. It's incredible.

I mean, you make it sound like you're doing it at home, and I know you have an army of people. For anyone out there that has loved ones and are part of a community, whether it's church, work, or they just have a big family, I mean, what are you guys doing with your own team right now to keep them healthy? Any tips on that? Maybe we can end on that because I want everyone to take home some really good useful information. I hope they'll try the little yogurt recipe, and I'll put it on social and share it with everyone here. I think camu is a great product to pair with maca, but is there anything else that you guys have been suggesting, whether it's with your own family, your, your team? I mean, I know you guys have a big army of people that work with you guys. What would be some tips, Meg, maybe, or Zach, that that you're kind of doing beyond superfoods or maybe with superfoods, either way, but give us some inspiration here at the end on how we can, outside of these products that we just talked about, can bolster immunity further and keep that shield around us safe and strong, that immunity strong.

Yeah, I mean, I think I'll talk a little bit more about some of the other products that we have. Please. And some that we've been focusing on lately. Certainly you mentioned the Keto Cacao, which is a— a high-fat cacao powder where we keep all the fat in and give a metric to it. Most cocoa powders or cacao powders have 10% to 12% fat, where this one has 50% or more. I love that. All healthy plant-based fats. And then what you get in the cacao is you also get a lot of antioxidants from the flavonols. And then another product that you've been talking a little bit about lately is açaí powder. Yes. Another Amazonian berry, really dark purple powder full of polyphenols and antioxidants as well. So another two great products to boost your immunity. Megan uses a lot of different stuff that she could share as well.

Megan, give us some of your tips because I feel like the cacao powder is powerful, the açaí, the camu, I mean, the list is long, but these are my favorites. And I know next we're going to talk about wheatgrass chlorophyll, but I feel like for, for anyone out there that is a mom, and I know you are, and they're worried about their kids, what have you been— any suggestions for parents out there with kids to keep them healthy? Anything that you can suggest maybe?

Yeah, I mean, I would suggest smoothies are a really incredible way to feed your family with, with great, um, nutritious, uh, ingredients. And this is an interesting— it's an interesting way to sneak things in as well. To their diet. I put our superfoods, I sprinkle them on pretty much everything, including salads, yogurts, oatmeal, cereals. I mean, whatever you are eating, you can really use as a base for enhancing it with some of the superfoods that will bring those vitamins and minerals to, to the meal and just sort of get that into your kids. And sneaking it in is the best way, really. The kids don't even notice it. I just Fed my 11-year-old some yogurt with our cacao nibs and mulberries, which is another product we haven't really talked about with you, but it's a great low-sugar alternative, like a sweet berry, a dried berry. But that's for, you know, a substitute when you're craving something sweet, but you don't want to totally blow your diet.

Yeah. I love that. I love that. Well, I'm just super excited that we're going to be doing this together for the next few weeks here and sharing each show a little bit, a different way to create that super immunity. And obviously, there's more resources, recipes, all that, and that's at your website, guys. Zach, would you give us the URL? And I know there's a special discount of 40% for everyone, correct? You guys are just really encouraging everyone to obviously embrace some superfoods right now. And we need that, Zach. But tell us where to find you and your social, if you would too, please. Sure, yeah.

So you can find us at Navitas, that's N-A-V-I-T-A-S, organics.com. And yeah, we are offering, when the pandemic started to really unravel in mid-March, we decided the best thing we could do to help our communities was to provide our superfoods at a big discount. So, this is something that we're trying to get on. We're really trying to nourish the country as much as possible. So, everybody gets 40% off when they use the code SUPERFOOD40. That currently goes through the end of April and we'll see how it goes from there. Social, you can find me at Navitas, N-A-V-I-T-A-S, Zach, Z-A-C-H, on Insta and Twitter. So come and find me there. I often share lots of different articles that I find fascinating and where you can find our great Navitas products and how to help nurture your life and your families.

I love that. And I'll just add my two cents that there are superfoods out there and not all of them are the same. And I just want everyone listening to know that what you guys have done here is created a caliber of superfood that is, is the most potent in my opinion, and Organixx being a part of that. And, and I know how much you guys have put your time and sweat and blood into really keeping that caliber high for us. And as much as people appreciate it throughout the year, I can't appreciate it more than now with this, that with this coronavirus going on right now, we need the best— I don't want to call them weapons, but the greatest shields out there to protect us from this. And it's really about building immunity over time time, and I hope it's something people will be drawn to right now. You guys listening, get this product. Start with maca right now, in my opinion, and start using it because the more you use it, the stronger you get, and it only gets better. Your body will create this place where— 10 years ago, I was broken, and I feel like maca really gave me that edge in midlife. Now that I'm almost 50, I'm 49, I feel like You know, my energy has never been better, and if anything, people think I have too much energy, which is a compliment, right guys? Yes, it is. Yeah, and I wish that for everyone listening here is just good health, and I wish you guys the best, and thank you for all that you've done, Zack and Meg, for giving us tools that we can get literally online and have them delivered and go on the website because you can get that discount, which is amazing. Obviously, your products are everywhere in the stores as well. Are they in all the health food stores like Whole Foods, etc.?

Yeah, you can find them at Whole Foods Markets, Sprouts Farmers Markets, your independent natural retailers, and of course Amazon.com if you want to get it shipped right to your door. Thrive Market is another one. Which one again? Say again? Thrive Market.

Oh yeah, Thrive. Love Thrive. Yeah, you know, and I think right now we're all online. I mean, I, I'll go into the stores and I'll do a little videos, but I mean, you guys stand in a line for 20 minutes and wear a mask. It's kind of crazy these days. And so stay online and stay safe, everyone. We'll be back next Monday. Thank you, Meg.

Thank you, Zach. Thank you.

Thank you. All right, peace and purpose, guys. Take good care.

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