Purely Chatting with Dr. Will Cole

When it comes to health and wellness, Dr. Will Cole DC, IFMCP knows it all. From making conscious eating choices during the holidays to daily wellness best practices. We sat down with Dr. Will Cole to talk about how food plays a major role in thriving in one’s wellness journey.

Q: Tell us how you got your start in health and wellness?

A: I grew up in a home that was into health and wellness decades before it was cool. I was the weird kid in school, in the 80s and 90s in rural Pennsylvania outside of Pittsburgh, not L.A., consuming herbal tonics and strange health foods before it was instagram trendy. No one wanted to come hang out at my house since they knew I wasn't going to have much in the way of junk food snacks. I am grateful for it now since it laid the foundation for whereI am today.

Q: What inspired you to specialize in functional medicine?

A: I really am passionate about being a part of someone's sacred journey to health and I wanted to do this by getting to the root cause of a person's health problem and give them answers and solutions they were looking for and not getting in mainstream medicine.

Q: You recently came out with a new book, can you tell us what it's about?

A: Ketotarian is taking the best of ketogenic diets and combining them with the best of plant-based diets to form one easy-to-follow real food plan to lower inflammation, boost energy ,burn fat, crush cravings, and more.I wanted to show people that it's possible to do a keto diet completely plant-based - something that wasn't much of an option in the wellness world. This was something that was born out of my own health journey and my clinical experience of seeing what worked and didn't work for my patients. Half of the book is the ethos of Ketotarian and exciting science on ketosis and being plant-based and the other half is over 80 plant-based keto(vegan, vegetarian and pescatarian)recipes, pretty pictures and meal plan.

Q: What major transformations are you seeing in health and wellness?

A: I am loving the plant-based conversation that is happening in the keto world and I am happy to be a part of it.

Q: How would you describe your wellness philosophy?

A: You cannot heal a body that you hate.Wellness is making peace with yourself and where you are at in your journey. True wellness isn't about rules and shame. It's about loving yourself enough to nourish your body with movement, rest, and delicious food medicine. We need to have a grace and lightness to health.

Q: What wellness practices do you swear by?

A: I really love yoga. Since I travel often it's something that I can do wherever I'm at and makes a huge difference in my stress levels.

Q: What rituals do you do every day that you will never give up?

A: In the morning I intermittent fast with a cup of earl gray tea. The bergamot enhances the benefits of intermittent fasting by increasing autophagy or cellular repair. Fasting also lowers inflammation, gives my gut a break and enhances ketosis which my brain loves!

Q: Can you give us one tip that will help our readers stay healthy during the holiday season?

A: Don't be afraid to eat beforehand or bring your own food to any event! There's usually guaranteed to be some sort of veggie tray if nothing else to snack on. But if you are unsure of what kind of food will be served, eat beforehand to avoid giving into the temptation. Or if you feel comfortable, bring your own food -main dish or dessert wise - so you have something that's nourishing and won't have you feeling left out.

Q: What foods do you load up on and what foods do you avoid?

A: As a follower of the ketotarian lifestyle I can't get enough of avocados. They are so versatile and can be added to almost any dish or eaten alone with some sea salt and pepper for a quick snack. When I was a traditional vegan I used to load upon gluten-free grains and legumes but now I avoid them as they are inflammatory, hard on my digestion, raise my blood sugar, and more reasons that I explain in more detail in my book.

Q: What are your favorite adaptogens and how do you incorporate them into your diet?

A: I love holy basil! Holy basil works to alleviate brain fog, calm stress levels and lower inflammation. I incorporated holy basil in my adapotgen holi (y o u t h ) with agent nateur along with superfoods like pearl, spirulina and marine collagen. I like to put this and other powdered adaptogens in my morning smoothies.

Q: Any words of advice for those interested in pursuing a career in wellness/ functional medicine?

A: Immerse yourself in learning. There are so many resources out there and people making big waves in the wellness world that you can learn from. Find what you are passionate about in this sphere and pursue it completely. There is the art and science of functional medicine, balance both of these and you can change peoples lives for the better.

Dr. Will Cole, DC, IFMCP, and author of Ketotarian

https://drwillcole.com/

https://drwillcole.com/ketotarian