It’s rare we get to dive into health-nerd mode with someone of the male persuasion. We’ve featured model and ultra-health geek, Crosby Tailor, in the past and you guys loved it – partly because of Crosby’s hard-core health info (and fat-burning cookies!) and possibly because we included photos of Crosby in full Blue Steel mode!
When you’re a working model, keeping skin and body in tip-top condition is more than just a personal care issue, it’s part of the job! That being so, we love hearing from models who are getting their glow on in healthy ways we can all learn from.
We asked Crosby to share which pantry staples he relies on regularly and boy did he have answers for us. Sink your teeth into these twelve wellness picks that are sure to give even the most hard-core something to learn and add to their routines…
BULLETPROOF COLLAGEN
If you were to come to my apartment and raid my cupboards, the one thing that you’ll always find is Bulletproof collagen. With 7 grams of pre-digested protein per tablespoon, a couple tablespoons in the a.m. in my Bulletproof coffee completes my morning tonic. I break my fast with protein in the a.m. because this is when I’m most active and I need the protein with a usual workout around 9:30 a.m. My Bulletproof coffee at 5:30-6:00 a.m. keeps me going until my post-workout meal. A post-workout green smoothie, at times, will also have a couple supplemental scoops of collagen.
Collagen is my most recommended source of protein powder because of how easily it digests and all the extra benefits it offers. Benefits of Bulletproof collagen include: weight loss, anti-aging (responsible for skins elasticity and strength, people who supplement with collagen have more supple skin), good for ligaments, tendons, cartilage, bones, teeth, nails and fascia.
Collagen is important in processing fat, and with more collagen in the body, the better you are able to use stored fat. Collagen can enhance the body’s restorative and rebuilding processes, which allows your body to have more energy to build more lean muscle while burning more fat. This is because collagen is rich in the amino acid glycine, which stimulates fat burning and reduces your appetite. It triggers the release of glucagon, a hormone that turns on fat burning in the liver, and generates pyruvate, a substance involved in energy production that enhances endurance and fat burning.
BULLETPROOF BRAIN OCTANE OIL
One of the new health buzz words for weight loss and cognitive function is MCT oil, and if you want to take it a step further and upgrade your life, try Bulletpoof Brain Octane oil. Brain Octane is a combination of isolated medium-chain triglycerides, 8 and 10 carbon chains, then concentrated to make up an oil 18 times more potent than coconut oil.
Everyone is different and will have different reactions to foods and supplements, but it would be to your benefit to give Brain Octane a shot. Bulletproof actually has new lab info that Brain Octane has a four times greater effect of getting you into ketosis than a regular MCT oil. So if you are living the keto life this is definitely worth a shot. Personally, I only need a couple tablespoons a day because I am so sensitive. One tablespoon in the a.m. in my morning coffee tonic, and one tablespoon later in the day on top of some veggies, in a smoothie, used in an icing for dessert or as my main oil for ice cream.
According to Dr. Laurie Cullen at the Women’s Institute, when MCTs are absorbed into the blood stream, they bypass the digestion process that longer-chain fats go through. MCTs provide quick energy for the body and are thus less likely to be stored in the fat cells. Further, Dr. Cullen says that when a meal includes medium-chain triglycerides, there is a significant increase in the number of calories burned (thermogenic effect). When more calories are used, fewer are stored as fat, which helps to reduce body fat levels.
Unlike other fats, MCT oil does not go through the lymphatic system. Instead, it is transported directly to the liver where it is metabolized, so it releases energy like a carbohydrate and creates lots of ketones (which can be used for fuel) in the process. The metabolic affect of using more fat as energy, as opposed to carbohydrates, is that you’ll eventually turn your body into a fat burning machine.
DRAGONHERBS REHMMANIA 6 & TRIBULUS
My two staple Chinese herbs, from one of my long time favorite spots, DragonHerbs, are Rehmannia 6 & tribulus.
We constantly deplete our bodies by overworking and daily stress internally and externally, so it’s super important to refill the tank everyday. My recharge comes from Rehmannia 6, which has been revered as one of the most important yin jing tonics. The combination of the six herbs in this formula supplies restorative energy to the kidney yin, supports your lower back, the brain and bone marrow. It also helps to nourish sexual energy, provides prostate support, benefits hearing function and strengthen the spleen for digestive function.
Tribulus is just an absolute powerhouse! Tribulus has an amazing affect of balancing hormones; it’s very neutral, but it will help bring you into homeostasis in your masculine or feminine power. Bulgarian tribulus works really well for both men and women. Tribulus contains plant saponins: dioscin, protodioscin and diosgenin, which support sexual health by boosting free testosterone levels in men – and it effects progesterone in women. It’s full of plant sterols that support prostate health and proprietary saponins that support the immune system. Expect improvements in hormone balance, sexual function, lean muscle, fat burning and immune defense, especially as an anti-viral agent.
FOUR SIGMATIC CHAGA
I try to shroom every morning… but don’t get it twisted: I’m talking about Four Sigmatics super-potent chaga extract packet. I love throwing a packet in my morning coffee tonic or experimenting with some sugar-free chaga chocolate. It actually has a nice flavor, unlike a lot of the other mushrooms that are quite bitter. Chaga is an amazing immune-system modulator. It has a rich source of 1-3 beta-glucans, polysaccharides that are quintessential for the immune system, enhancing the body to produce natural killer cells (NK) that destroy pathogens. It also regulates antigen-specific antibody production that scavenge the body for viruses and bacteria. These activities are very similar to my other favorite mushroom, reishi, but chaga wins me over with its ability to be an antioxidant powerhouse! It is a much more potent free-radical scavenger than other top antioxidants like blueberries or acai, with an ORAC value of 146,700, while blueberries are 9,621.
Chaga also produces large amounts of high-molecular-weight phenolic pigments known as melanins. Melanin is an antioxidant pigment throughout the surface of the body that protects us from the sun. For the amount of stress and free radical damage we face on the daily, it’s important to have a go to that keeps your immune system strong and your body in free-radical defense.
LAKANTO MONK-FRUIT SWEETENER
Lakanto is my favorite zero-glycemic, zero sweetener on the market. It tastes just like sugar without the insulin spike and with no negative side effects. Lakanto is made from a combination of monk fruit (luo han go), and non-GMO erythritol. Unlike the sugar alcohol, xylitol, I’ve found that erythritol doesn’t cause any stomach issues. Lakanto is a staple in my pantry because I use it for every baked good, ice cream and chocolate I make (they also have an amazing brown sugar one to use in recipes that call for the brown sugar exclusively). This sweetener boasts zero calories and if you are really trying to avoid blood-sugar spike, it can be a perfect substitute for the normal sweeteners you might have in your cupboard, like agave, honey or coconut sugar. For those of you on high-fat low-carb diets who want to satisfy that sweet tooth, this is your answer. Monk fruit is prized for being the sacred fruit harvested by Buddhists monks, and is actually used as an herb in Chinese medicine to increase Qi and well being.
LAURICIDIN
Lauricidin is a highly purified and super-potent monolaurin discovered by Dr. Jon Kabara. When lauric acid attaches to glycerine it forms as monolaurin, which is much more powerful than just pure lauric acid. Monolaurin has proven to be effective against many viruses, bacteria, yeast/fungi, and protozoa. I have been taking monolaurin off and on for a while now. I started taking it after a round of antibiotics I had to take to fight any overgrowth of bad bacteria or the candida that could have come from it. I took one serving of these tiny pellets before bed every night, and also replenished with a good probiotic and had zero bacteria symptoms post antibiotics. After that, I did a deep clean with lauricidin to clear out any bacterial, fungal or chronic viral things that might still be lingering in my body and constantly triggering my immune system.
Lauric acid is a C12 fatty food found in coconut oil, but it would take 300-900 grams of coconut oil a day to reach the benefits of lauricidin, and at that point you’d make yourself sick. As a first-time user, dosage is very important, as too much can cause a herx effect where you get worse before you get better. This usually manifests as flu like symptoms and can persist depending on how much gunk you need to clean out of the body. If you are someone that always craves sugar, lauricidin would be very beneficial. As monoluarin, and not just pure lauric acid, there won’t be any stomach irritation or gastrointestinal problems either because of its chemical bond to glycerin. Unfortunately, we are faced with pathogens trying to invade our systems on a daily basis, and there are so many superbugs that resist antibiotics too, so in my opinion it’s worth giving lauricidin a shot.
FUSI BCAAS
Branched chain amino acids (BCAAs), valine, leucine, and isoleuicine make up approximately 1/3 of muscle protein and help the body absorb protein as well. I put a serving of BCAAs in my workout drink that I take to the gym and sip on during my workout. I then do another serving directly after my workout. As I am breaking down my muscles during my workout, I have to make sure to build them back up and this will insure muscle recovery following my workout. BCAAs also give your muscles more endurance for longer durative exercise so you won’t fatigue, making it great for long-distance runners, if that’s your jam. I particularly like Fusi BCAAs from AJIpure because they are gluten-free, vegan, unflavored, non-GMO and fermented! For the supplement industry that’s as pure as you are going to get since most BCAA products contain some kind of weird filler and are sweetened with something toxic. For hard gainers, you might want to supplement BCAAs a couple more times throughout the day to keep you more anabolic, so you can preserve muscle mass better. And ladies, don’t be afraid of using this either, because guess what burns fat the most? Muscle.
HEALTHFORCE LIVER RESCUE
We are bombarded by toxins daily from our environment, in our food and water, so we are constantly in a state of defense – it’s our liver that takes on a lot of this. It’s one of our main organs that needs to be looked after so the rest of our body can operate optimally.
To start, we need to be more responsible for what we are putting in our bodies voluntarily because it’s all going to get filtered through the liver. Take a step back and observe how much sugar, toxic foods, alcohol, trans fats and dirty water you are consuming, and start to make some changes to increase your quality of life. The next step is looking into a good supplement to help your liver filter out all this muck that we are forced to take on. I love Health Force Liver Rescue, and frankly I don’t go off of it. I take two caps before bed every night to provide a nice aid to help my liver cleanse throughout the night. It has a nice concentration of milk thistle and dandelion root extract to detox the liver and increase bile flow to dump out toxic waste. Milk thistle is also a powerful antioxidant and can increase glutathione levels. Chanca piedra has been added to support the channel of detoxification of the liver by enhancing the effects of the bladder, kidneys and gallbladder to purge these toxins. It helps to increase bile secretion of the liver, which helps the digestive process of fats especially, and then overall is an amazing aid to the whole filtration process of the bladder and kidneys. It can even be used to support the elimination of gallstones and kidney stones.
GARDEN OF LIFE DR. FORMULATED PROBIOTICS
Dr. David Perlmutter is a boss and, in my opinion after trying tons of different probiotics, he’s formulated one of the top lines of pre- and probiotic supplements on the market. At the moment, I am personally taking the men’s formula that yields 50 billion microorganisms of 15 different strains, with a small prebiotic blend that helps feed the good bacteria I’m putting in so it can multiply. It’s tailored to support men but there is an amazing range of formulas in his Dr. Formulated line to choose from, like a 90 billion once daily, prostate and urinary-tract specific, a mood-enhancing one, among others.
A large range of health benefits or health issues start in the gut, so it’s very important to make sure that your good bacteria outweigh your bad. The benefits of maintaining healthy gut flora are good digestive and urinary health, reducing allergies, a more stimulated immune system and weight loss. If your bad bacteria has taken over, you can expect any or all of these areas to be a problem. Heal your gut, heal your life. There are a ton of studies out now pointing to the gut as the main issue behind many diseases. The probiotic side is only half the battle though because they need their own food to multiply and grow an army of healthy protectors to fight off the invasion bad bacteria. Which brings me to my final pantry item that I love, prebiotics.
PREBIOTIC FOODS + RESISTANT STARCHES
Probiotics are an extremely essential part of our diets, but we also must not forget that we need to feed these beneficial microorganisms – enter prebiotics. Dr. Perlmutter has a Dr. Formulated Organic Fiber derived from mainly acacia, with some organic orange peel, baobob fruit, orange peel and cranberry. Research suggests that this blend supports healthy blood sugar and elimination and is a great feeder of good bacteria without any stomach upset. Prebiotic foods, like this blend, play a huge role in allowing our probiotic bacteria to grow and flourish into a micro-biome that we are in positive control over.
Another prebiotic snack that I keep around is tiger nuts. Peeled tiger nuts – or you can even get tiger nut flour to bake with or throw in a smoothie – are loaded with prebiotic fiber. Also, they aren’t actually nuts but tubers. Tiger nuts are rich in phosphorus, potassium, magnesium, vitamin E and C. Unlike some types of fiber, resistant starches get fermented when they reach the large intestine. This process creates beneficial fatty acids, including one called butyrate, which may block the body’s ability to burn carbohydrates. “This can prevent the liver from using carbs as fuel and, instead, stored body fat and recently consumed fat are burned,” explains Janine Higgins, PhD, nutrition research director for the University of Colorado’s Adult and Pediatric General Clinical Research Center. In your body, carbohydrates are the preferred source of fuel, like gasoline that powers your car’s engine. Butyrate essentially prevents some of the gas from getting into the tank, and your cells turn to fat as an alternative. One study found that replacing just 5.4% of total carbohydrate intake with resistant starch created a 20 to 30% increase in fat burning after a meal. Who doesn’t want to burn fat while also feeding their good bacteria at the same time?
While there are tons of benefits to eating tiger nuts but the biggest one is that they are 40% resistant starch. Resistant starches are the new trendy food in the health community. It gets its name because it “resists” normal digestion, which keeps your body from secreting insulin. Instead, it acts as a prebiotic – the food that your probiotic bacteria live off of, increasing your good gut bacteria, which has a whole other list of health benefits. It increases your body’s ability to burn fat, and fills you up to reduce overall hunger.
THERE’S A LOT MORE IN THE PANTRY!
Trust me, if The Chalkboard asked me for a top 20, I’d still be writing. There are endless amounts of goodies in my pantry and I’d love to talk about so much more! Healing the gut is my main focus right now, so if you’d like to do a personal consultation to learn more about how you can fix your gut, please contact me by email: crosbytailor@gmail.com.
