Culinary Researcher Ushio Rie Practices a Life of Strength & Bacteria Training to Keep Her Mind and Body in Shape

Once we pass a certain age, many of us start to notice not-so-subtle changes in our bodies, like feeling heavy or finding it harder to keep off weight than in the past or losing our figure. It’s likely many people have resigned themselves to the belief that fighting aging is a hopeless cause.

Ushio Rie, a culinary researcher and nutritionist, became mindful of the importance of physical fitness for the first time just before turning 40. We spoke to her for this article about how she reached her best physical condition ever through strength training and diet management and how maintaining good gut health and the power of fermented foods laid the foundation for her reinvigorated mind and body.

Getting back to her 20-something weight through hard work just before turning 40

Ushio slowly but surely gained weight in her 20s and 30s while working in the food industry. By the time she turned 39, she had put on a full 10 kilograms since she was 20. A major turning point for her at that time was overseeing a book featuring low-carb recipes. “I definitely didn’t want to turn 40 with the body I had at the time, so I started a diet based on the book.”

She wasn’t able to cut out carbohydrates completely because of her work, but she did limit her carb intake at dinner. And when she adding in running and other aerobic exercises, the results gradually materialized. “I lost 10 kilograms in eight months. I was able to celebrate my 40th birthday at the same weight I had when I was 20.”

Based on her own experiences, Ushio shares an increasing number of recipes for dieting and physical fitness

Her epiphany was to concentrate on building a good body over losing weight

Ushio made exercising and eating well a habit, to the point where she ran a full marathon at age 42. “I sensed there was more I could do. So I changed up my exercise regime and my diet with the aim of not just slimming down but also building a good, toned body.”

She switched the focus of her exercises from aerobics to strength training. Four or five days a week, after finishing her evening meal, Ushio heads to a neighborhood gym. “Most days, I’m hunkered down working at home. So getting in a proper workout in the evenings gets rid of fatigue and helps me fall sleep feeling refreshed.”

Strength training has more benefits than just physical fitness. Strength training releases serotonin, one of the so-called happy hormones that put you in a better frame of mind. “I certainly don’t have a body like a model or the slimness that many women desire. But thanks to this positive hormone, I’ve come to accept my body and myself.”

Ushio seems to always be cheerful and full of energy, the secret of which is strength training

Stretching in spare moments while working or doing chores

Although she has made a habit of doing full workouts in the evenings, Ushio is also conscious about making time to stretch during the day to keep her muscles from tightening up after staying in the same position for long periods. She gave us two stretches she recommends that are easy for everyone, even people who are not particularly adept at exercising.

Stretching during breaks at work are essential to building up good muscles. “If the muscles in my shoulders or around my shoulder blades get stiff, I put extra focus on my back, which otherwise would slouch and show my age.”

This stretch is great when working at a desk. Sit on a chair and fold one leg onto the thigh of your other leg. Lean forward while keeping your back straight. “This exercise stretches the back of your legs and helps with back pain too.”

Practicing “bacteria training” with fermented foods for efficient nutrition

Ushio also reexamined her diet. “To get better muscle quality, you need to consume fat as well as protein. And carbohydrates are necessary to fuel exercise. At the end of the day, I realized that a good balance is more important than restricting one food group or another.”

As well as a toned body, Ushio also wanted her body to be energetic and resilient against fatigue. She tries new ideas nearly every day to obtain good nutrition more efficiently from her meals. “I deliberately set out to work on my gut health to achieve more energy and stamina, and I began eating fermented foods more often.”

Proactively incorporating more fermented foods in your diet could be considered a kind of “bacteria training”. What’s great is anyone can start bacteria training right away.

Ushio looks for rice koji malt or saké lees at department stores or while travelling, as making new discoveries is fun. For saké lees, she chooses the dough type because it is easier to use than the sheet type.

Besides readily available foods like miso soup or natto [fermented soybeans], she routinely has saké lees or homemade amazake [a sweet drink made from koji rice malt] as a snack when she gets a little peckish. “Saké lees and koji are high in nutritional value and are rich in the much-talked-about protease-resistant proteins that help regulate your gut environment. They are so much better for you than snacking on sweets.”

Add cardamom, cinnamon, or other favorite spices to amazake and freeze for a delicious sherbet. The piquancy of the spices goes well with the mild sweetness of amazake.

Ushio often eats dough-type saké lees straight by the spoonful. “It tastes delicious, especially if you turn it into a kind of tiramisu by topping it with cocoa powder, honey, or maple syrup.”

Fermented dishes are the ultimate fast-and-easy meals

Ushio says that salted koji and soy sauce koji are excellent fermented foods when whipping up quick recipes, as they are easy to season with and ideal for marinating and tenderizing meat and fish. “They are handy because just one of them can take the place of several other seasonings, and they add in umami flavor as well.” Making your own fermented foods is also simple and hassle free, as you only have to let them sit and marinate. “I think fermented dishes using fermented ingredients are the ultimate fast-and-easy meals.”

Ushio’s original fermented food recipes

Chicken milk stew with saké lees and salted koji

Eating the added torn-up saké lees sheets in their lumpy form tastes lovely

Easy homemade fermented onions

Fermented onions are fantastic as toppings on boiled eggs or salads as well as an ingredient in soups

Place fermented onions on boiled eggs with some black pepper and you have a quick appetizer

A wealth of fermented food recipes from Ushio Rie

The Homemakers’ Friend 365-Day Side-Dish Planner: 2023 Edition
「The 2023 Edition of the long-seller Side-Dish Planner, which contains 250 healthy and economical recipes, went on sale on October 11. The book’s opening chapter — “Ushio Rie’s Seasonal Fermented Dishes” — contains 36 recipes for homemade fermented foods and dishes using salted koji, saké lees, amazake, and other fermented ingredients. The book costs 979 yen (10% sales tax included) from Shufu-no-tomo Publishing.