Good Energy: The Surprising Connection Between Metabolism and Limitless Health

I don't know about you, but I'm headed towards 60 and I am finding out there is a ton to learn so I don't feel my age. Right now I have high energy because according to this book I'm doing a lot of things right. I tend to keep fairly active and eat pretty healthy except for a few treats and I try to implement the healthy lifestyle choices in this book whenever I can. The section on the importance of sleep could be lifesaving for a lot of people who struggle with insomnia. I know one person in my life who nearly died because of lack of sleep and so I think he needs to read this book! I was sleeping for 12 hours but now I'm sleeping for around 8. That is healthier! While reading you may ask yourself: "Does one person really know the root cause of our obesity epidemic?" Casey Means believes your health is under your control and this is a very empowering message. Some of the questions this book answers include: What is metabolic dysfunction? Why is there so much chronic disease? What is the real cause of depression? Why do we need to treat disease at the cellular level? What is the difference between good and bad energy? How can you get more good energy? What I found in this book was a fascinating cellular biology lesson. This helped me understand the mechanisms of insulin resistance and more... What I admire about Casey Means is how inquisitive she is and how she is solution focused in curing the underlying condition of most diseases she discusses. Basically she teaches more sunlight, less sugar and more vegetables. I see nothing wrong with that! As I read this book I realized it will probably be the most important book I read this year! The Pros are that it is well organized, super informative and easy to understand. The Cons are that a lot of people can't afford to go the totally organic way but I suggest starting small and expanding into organic as you can. Often I've found organic food makes up for the cost by giving you superior taste. Like organic bananas and organic green beans really are so much more flavorful. As this book implies as the old adage goes: "You get what you pay for. AND...You either pay now or you pay later." Is your health not worth the cost? Too many people find out too late that illness is very expensive and time consuming!! While reading this book I realized I'm eating most of the food that are recommended for getting your key nutrients. I'm also doing well with foods with the highest polyphenol count. My count on what I'm eating as far as antioxidant sources go is 23! And I'm on a budget! So a lot of common foods are discussed. The section on the benefits of sunlight made me think I should eat breakfast outside in the morning! That has inspired me to look for an outdoor table. The section on cold and heat exposure makes me think I'm doing the right thing keeping the heat low during this winter and I feel more energetic because of it. Just wait until you hear how you can increase dopamine! Casey Means lives what she believes and gives lot of tips that prove she's a genius and that is not an exaggeration. Her understanding of mitochondria has helped me understand why I have more energy now than I did a year ago! How to Use this Book! 1. Read it from cover to cover with a highlighter in hand! 2. Read all the highlighted portions again. 3. Write down the foods you want to eat more of to get healthy. Write down the lifestyle changes you want to implement. 4. Go shopping! 5. Prepare healthier meals! That is about it! I personally put turmeric capsules in my shopping cart and looked at cookbooks that were recommended. I can see how this book will help me improve my life right away and in the future too. Sometimes you just need a little motivation and encouragement to do the right things, eat the right foods and leave the house to be in the sun for a few minutes! I feel inspired after reading this book and I think you will be too! I knew nothing about the author before reading this book. I know nothing additional about her except what I've read in this book. I think her book speaks for itself and is all you need to make some great New Year's resolutions! ~The Rebecca Review

Good Energy connects many modern health challenges back to basic biology. Rather than treating conditions and symptoms as separate issues, Casey Means links them to a shared driver: metabolic dysfunction at the cellular level. She describes the body as an interconnected system of trillions of cells that depend on a supportive internal and external environment to function well. The book frames modern disease as an evolutionary mismatch. Our biology evolved alongside whole foods, regular movement, natural light and darkness cycles, and restorative sleep. When that environment shifts in ways our biology did not evolve to handle, cellular function can break down, showing up as imbalanced biomarkers of health. A key strength of Good Energy is its focus on upstream drivers. Health is integrated across metabolism, the microbiome, cellular energy, and lifestyle. Food is treated as molecular information that shapes inflammation, oxidative stress, gut health, and metabolic resilience. The book provides practical guidance on lab tests, bioobservable data, and implementation, ending with recipes. Good Energy delivers for all seeking a clear, actionable guide to functional health grounded in human biology.

As someone who has spent years studying health, nutrition, and longevity, I can confidently say that Good Energy by Dr. Casey Means is the most profound and transformative books on health I have ever read. This book is not just another wellness guide, it’s a paradigm shift in how we understand the root causes of disease, the power of metabolic health, and what it truly means to thrive. Even more so, her insight into regenerative agriculture, spirituality and environmentalism is profound. Dr. Means masterfully weaves together cutting-edge science, ancestral wisdom, and practical strategies to help readers reclaim their health at the cellular level. Her insights on mitochondrial function, inflammation, and how our modern lifestyle is hijacking our well-being are eye-opening. Unlike many health books that focus on quick fixes, Good Energy provides a holistic framework for sustainable vitality, one that is empowering, deeply researched, and actionable. What sets this book apart is Dr. Means' ability to break down complex concepts in a way that is both accessible and inspiring. She doesn't just tell you what to do, she explains why it matters, making it impossible to ignore the profound impact our daily choices have on our long-term health. Whether you're a seasoned health enthusiast or just starting your wellness journey, this book will change the way you think about food, movement, stress, and sleep. I’ve read countless books on health, but Good Energy stands out as the best. It’s not just a book, it’s a blueprint for a life filled with energy, clarity, and true well-being. If you care about your health, this is a must-read.

Questo libro mi ha letteralmente aperto gli occhi, non solo sul sistema sanitario e le sue contraddizioni, ma anche sull’importanza di tornare a essere protagonisti della nostra salute. È un libro che fa riflettere, ti mette di fronte a verità scomode ma necessarie e ti dà strumenti concreti per migliorare le tue abitudini. Mi ha ispirata a prendermi più cura di me stessa ogni giorno e credo possa davvero fare la differenza per chiunque voglia capire meglio il legame tra energia, benessere e vita quotidiana

Very interesting read and learned a lot from this book about how the healthcare system works and taking your health into your own hands/not relying on doctors.

Good Energy written by Casey Means offers a deep dive on the deteriorating of health of North Americans. Means paints a picture of horrible health outcomes noting statistics like, “six out of ten adults are living with a chronic illness” and “Seventy-four percent of adults are overweight or have obesity.” Means notes that “preventable lifestyle conditions are responsible for 80 percent of modern human deaths.” To Means what ails us isn’t a complicated mystery but a clear byproduct of lifestyle. Our choices have consequences. She notes that many of the health problems share a common element: metabolic dysfunction. Healthy metabolic function or what Means considers Good Energy is the goal for happy health. Means defines metabolism as “the set of cellular mechanisms that transform food into energy that can power every single cell in the body.” Over the past 100 years, the types of foods we consume, quantities, and our living environments have changed dramatically, not for the better. Means points out that “we are consuming astronomically more sugar (i.e., up to 3,000 percent more liquid fructose), working in more sedentary jobs, and sleeping 25 percent less. We’re also exposed to over eighty thousand synthetic chemicals in our food, water, and air.” There are consequences to these exposures. Our metabolic markers are reflective of our health. “93 percent of Americans are in the danger zone on at least one key metabolic marker.” Means points out, “No animals in the wild suffer from widespread metabolic conditions, nor did humans as little as seventy-five years ago.” We’re consuming 20 percent more calories and eating too many processed foods. The average adult now eats 70% of their calories from processed food. We’re missing numerous necessary nutrients and our metabolic function is compromised as a result. Coupled with increased calorie intake is our decreased activity. We eat more and do less. We get fatter and sicker as a result. Additionally, our lifestyles are also more stressful. This has hormonal impact which impacts our health. The costs of making catastrophic choices is calamitous. Means notes, “more than 75 percent of deaths and 80 percent of costs are driven by obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and other preventable and reversible metabolic conditions we have today.” Means takes her readers on a detailed description of each of these areas highlighting what the consequences are to the body of negative choices. Unfortunately, virtually all aspects of healthcare are incented to manage disease as opposed to promote health. Money is made by treating ailments not in having a healthy population. From medical schools to hospitals to insurance companies and pharmaceutical businesses, all benefit from managing disease as opposed to preventing it. Means writes, “Every institution that impacts your health makes more money when you are sick and less when you are healthy.” Means suggests the solution lies in owning responsibility for our health. Know this NOCLYS: No One Cares Like You Should. Your health is yours. Don’t leave it to the hands of experts or professionals. Care enough to care about your own healthcare. Medical intervention is great for acute emergencies like broken bones. However, we can take greater ownership of “regular” healthcare. Means writes, “You are the primary person in charge of understanding your body.” This is easier now with technology. We can get real time information about what’s going on inside. Means presents five accessible bio-markers we can seek to have tested by our doctors: blood sugar, triglycerides, high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol, blood pressure, and waist circumference. She provides values or targets for these bio-markers that are much “stricter” than what the medical industry considers normal. Means writes of the importance of nutrition to our health. “What we put into our bodies is the most critical decision for our health and happiness.” Food is what drives everything inside of us. All of our bodily functions require energy. That energy comes from the nutrients we consume. Unfortunately, what most of us are consuming is not ideal. Our choices as to what to consume are compromising our health. “Refined added sugar causes astronomically more deaths and disability per year than COVID-19 and fentanyl overdoses combined. We need to see refined added sugar for what it is: an addictive, dangerous drug that has been included in 74 percent of foods in the U.S. food system and for which the body needs zero grams in a lifetime.” Amidst the backdrop of deteriorating health of the average person, Means offers an optimistic path forward. She suggests technology and knowledge is available to help us help ourselves. Seek to have the bio-markers she suggests measured by your physician and work to improve these to target levels Means sets out. Then patiently work to integrate more of her suggestions into your daily life. Means suggests monitoring food intake by keeping a food journal, setting nutritional goals like consuming 50 grams of fiber daily, adding fiber to each meal, eating more of daily calories earlier in the day, seeking to narrow the number of hours a day in which food is consumed down to a goal of ten, and to aim for a fifteen-minute walk after eating. She suggests three “rules” of nutrition: avoid refined sugars, refined grains, and seed oils. This narrows down food choices away from processed to natural foods. Sleep, too, becomes a key factor supporting our health. Our sleep quantity and quality has been impaired over the years. We should be aiming to get seven to eight hours a night of quality sleep. Keeping our bedrooms dark, phones far away, and controlling temperature are all factors to assist the quantity and quality of sleep we enjoy. Sleeping and eating better will provide a boost to our energy which can be further enhanced by making movement a part of our day. We’re moving much less than past generations. Means suggests more frequent bouts of exercise throughout the day are more valuable than one vigorous session. We don’t have to go full out to get benefits. Moderate activity works wonders. Moving for a minute or two here and five minutes there several times during the day adds up to material health. There is no right way to exercise. Anything that you’ll do regularly is ideal. Beyond eating, sleeping, and exercising, avoiding chemicals becomes a goal. Chemicals from air, water, packaging, cosmetics, and other hygiene products can all contain things which we either know little about or are developing evidence that exposure over time leads to negative health consequences. Reducing exposure to stress, too, will help our bodies. We become a byproduct of our inputs. The information we absorb has biological impact. Most news is negative and causes cortisol to swim around our bodies resulting in health consequences. Means writes, “A cell living in a body experiencing chronic fear is a cell that cannot fully thrive.” Technology can be addictive which fragments our attention and impacts our bodies as well. Good Energy is a worthwhile read that will give you as much insight as you want to explore related to the threats to our health our modern world offers as well as a detailed and practical approach to taking responsibility for and regaining our personal health.

✍️ Good Energy by Dr. Casey Means is a must-read for anyone who wants to take control of their health. I first heard her on Jay Shetty’s podcast talking about why we should all become the CEO of our own health—and I couldn’t agree more. 📖 The core message hit hard: stop outsourcing your well-being. You know your body better than a doctor who sees you for 10 minutes. Medical professionals should be there for emergencies and acute care, but day-to-day health? That’s on us. She explains how glucose, metabolism, and energy affect everything—and why small changes can transform your life. 📗 I loved how she broke down blood test numbers and wearable data in a way that finally makes sense. No jargon overload (well, almost). The 4-week program? I didn’t follow it—I just made improvements as I went. Most recipes were not for me (hard-to-find ingredients and I’m not into cauliflower rice or lettuce wraps), but there are a few I’ll try.

I cannot recommend this book enough. The author has thought it through from start to finish and makes the science language easy to understand. There are concrete steps you can take to improve your health. I had always wondered why I have mild health issues and the doctors can never really get to the bottom of it or don’t even try!