Shadowing Practice: Is Cottage Cheese a GREAT Source of Protein? - Learn English Speaking with Video

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Let's talk about cottage cheese.

Wow, cottage cheese is everywhere right now.

People are blending it into wraps, turning it into bagels, even making ice cream out of it. And why?

Because it's being hailed as a low -calorie protein powerhouse.

But is it really the health food everyone claims it to be?

Let's get into it.

All right, what is cottage cheese?

What causes all those lumps?

Well, cottage cheese starts with milk, and it's coming from usually cows,

but every now and then we do see cottage cheese from goat and sheep milks.

What happens is the milk is lightly heated, and then it's combined with,

in most cases, an acid or rennet, which, believe it or not, comes from the inside of cow's stomachs,

which then causes it to curdle.

Now, the curdling process separates out the solid curds from the liquid whey.

Most of us learn the expression curds and whey.

So the curds are primarily casein, and the whey, as you might expect, is the other main component of milk

which is whey protein the whey is also in the water

in the curds the reason they're kind of solid is

that they're pretty much solid casing the curds are then cut into small pieces they're heated further

and then they're stirred even more to expel more whey now

they're drained the curds are then rinsed in cool water usually lightly salted and that creates that signature texture.

Now, why does cottage cheese have lumps?

Well, those lumps are the actual curds.

They're clumps of coagulated milk proteins, casein.

Now, unlike smooth cheeses, cottage cheese curds aren't pressed together,

so they retain their loose, bouncy texture.

The final texture depends on how much the curds are broken up during processing some varieties have smaller finer curds

while others are larger and chunkier okay this is trendy

but this trend isn't new it was big in the adkins diet in the 70s

and it's coming around again there's usually nothing new it just becomes is a new fun thing to talk about.

So let's talk about cottage cheese.

Is it really healthy?

Well, at first glance, cottage cheese seems like a great option.

It's high in protein, low in calories, and packed with calcium.

But there are a few major concerns most people overlook.

In the United States, cottage cheese, for the most part, is made with A1 casein.

Casein A1 is a really interesting inflammatory trigger that can trigger inflammation,

can cause leaky gut, and even autoimmune problems in many people.

If you've ever felt bloated after eating dairy, A1 casein is likely to be the culprit, not lactose.

Now, there is such a thing as goat cheese

or sheep cheese cottage cheese i haven't seen it in america

but this would be a much better option

but here's my big problem with cottage cheese cottage cheese any

milk from a cow from a goat from a sheep is very high in a sugar molecule

that i've talked a lot about that i've written a lot about called NU5GC.

NU5GC causes inflammation and it correlates with an elevated risk of chronic diseases such as heart disease,

joint disease, neurodegeneration, and it's even associated with cancer.

When you eat NU5GC, and this has been proven in human beings,

you make antibodies to new 5gc as a foreign invader

which leads to long -term inflammatory responses does

that sound like a good idea i don't think

so well what can you do about that as i've written about

and talked a lot about the fermentation product of cow's milk goat milk

and sheep milk fermentation Haitian bacterial fermentation eats new 5GC.

they love it it's a sugar molecule and

so fermented cheeses traditionally prepared fermented cheeses don't have new 5gc there are fermented cultured cottage cheeses and

if you're going to use one i really ask you to

find them in my opinion it's the only safe cottage cheese Now,

cottage cheese does contain saturated fat.

Now, while some fat is good, conventional cottage cheese can often contain a lot of unhealthy saturated fats from grain -fed cows,

which may contribute more to inflammation.

Now, it usually depends on how creamy the cottage cheese is.

And let's face it, we kind of like creamy cottage cheese.

And that usually indicates how much residual fat is in that cottage cheese.

Now, it actually may have added sugars.

Many flavored or low -fat cottage cheese brands actually add sugar to enhance the taste,

which can spike your blood sugar levels and negate its health benefits.

All right, number two, is cottage cheese actually a good source of protein?

Yes, it contains protein

but folks we in america are over proteinized now many people don't believe me

and valter longo from usc about the fact

that we eat far too much protein

but i urge you to watch professor christopher gardner's videos from

stanford who's the head of nutrition at stanford i urge you

to watch one of his short videos about how the USDA protein requirements came about.

It turns out that our USDA recommended protein,

daily protein, is actually two times what the normal person would need on a daily basis to meet their protein requirements.

Why?

Because they want to make sure that 95 % of all Americans would actually meet their protein requirements.

But most of us don't need

that now the sad thing is americans eat twice the recommended amount

so most americans are actually eating four times the amount of protein

that they actually need

and just remember protein is only needed for tissue repair work for bone work

and if you're actively building muscle to actively build muscle.

In fact, again, look at some of Professor Gardner's work about, and we can quibble about this,

about 82 % of the protein that you consume is actually converted into sugar through what's called gluconeogenesis.

Why?

We do not have a storage system for protein we have a storage system for glucose

which is not very big but it's called glycogen

and it's in your liver and also in your muscles

but we have an unlimited storage system for sugar

if we convert it into fat and we do not waste calories

so if we're not building muscles if we're not repairing bones

and quite honestly we're not doing

that very much then any extra protein is converted to sugar

which we can burn as calories or store as glycogen

or store as fat

and that's why most of the protein we eat isn't becoming what you think it is now

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if you're looking for protein one of the things I urge you to realize is that many years ago,

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our ancestors, our great, great,

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great grandparents ate whole food and they ate the whole food whole.

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They had a piece of beef as an example of protein

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and it took them quite a long time for their digestive enzymes to break down

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that piece of meat into individual amino acids to absorb, which means that that protein actually trickled into your system.

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Now, imagine if you have cottage cheese, let's make sure you're getting cultured cottage cheese.

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You're still going to have some time to break down those lumps of protein into amino acids.

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That's fine with me, but that's very different if you then blend that cottage cheese into a protein shake,

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or worse yet,

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blend it with more protein powdered protein your body then instantly has these proteins literally pre -digested

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and your body is hit with a wham of protein with

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quite frankly no place to put it except to turn it into sugar for storage

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and that's one of the big problems with all of these

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other sources of protein are there better protein alternatives certainly pasture

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-raised eggs are a good source they're actually a complete protein with added choline

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and believe it or not arachidonic acid for your brain health most people find this hard to believe

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but your brain is about 60 to 70 percent fat

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and the two main fats in your brain are dha the long chain omega -3 fat

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and spoiler alert the long chain evil omega -6 fat arachidonic acid why is it evil

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because it's the inflammatory omega -6 fat if it's

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so evil then how come half of your brain is made up of this evil omega -6 fat The raisin?

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It's essential for brain health.

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And one of the greatest sources of this arachidonic acid is an egg yolk.

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So go for it.

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How about wild -caught salmon?

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It's got plenty of protein.

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It's got plenty of DHA.

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How about wild shellfish?

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Shrimp are a phenomenal source of arachidonic acid.

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Now, there are plant -based options like hemp seeds, like satchin seeds, for example, and sardines.

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You can do the boneless skinless if you'll start to eat them, and there's plenty of places to get it.

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All right, number three, how about all these viral cottage cheese recipes?

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A cottage cheese wrap.

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Number one, it's not approved.

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If it's made with casein A1 dairy and excess sodium and possible added sugars, why would you do that?

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I mean, try a cassava or an almond flour wrap

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or imagine this how about a lettuce wrap even better a cottage cheese bagel again

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if it's a1 based it's a no -go there are plenty

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of alternative ways of wrapping something in a bread -like substance and just check out my books for more examples

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the other thing is check out jamie maitland's unicorn buns they're made with egg whites

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and allulose they're a hamburger bun

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and you can also eat them kind of as a dessert they have a slightly sweet taste

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and you know i love allulose how about cottage cheese ice cream

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i mean come on really a1 dairy plus added sugar this is not a health food try blending frozen avocado allulose.

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I mean, check out my recipes on this YouTube channel for the best chocolate avocado ice cream you'll ever have.

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Number four, the best cottage cheese alternatives.

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Okay, if you love the taste and texture of cottage cheese, but you want to avoid the hidden health risks, here are some better options.

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Just use fermented cottage cheese.

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It will be fine get some parmesan cheese to make crackers to make wraps you just shred it

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and you can do most things you can do with any cottage cheese

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and remember just

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because the food is trending doesn't mean it's truly healthy more

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amazing episodes just like this one watch now low sugar low sodium whole grain,

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low fat, dairy free.

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You will see these buzzwords on packaging all over the supermarket aisles.

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166 sentences

Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson

This video has 155 sentences and 1788 words to shadow. The speech runs for 14:00. The speaker talks at a steady 128 words per minute, a comfortable pace for shadowing. Only 78% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is demanding.

Key vocabulary in this video

15 words from the video worth learning, with pronunciation and meaning:

Word	Pronunciation	Meaning
cottage noun	/ˈkɒt.ɪd͡ʒ/	A small house.
acid noun	/ˈæsɪd/	A sour substance.
wrap verb	/ɹæp/	To enclose (an object) completely in any flexible, thin material such as fabric or paper.
muscle noun	/ˈmʌs.əl/	A contractile form of tissue which animals use to effect movement.
sheep noun	/ˈʃiːp/	A woolly ruminant of the genus Ovis.
dairy noun	/ˈdɛə.ɹi/	(also dairy products or dairy produce) Products produced from milk.
goat noun	/ɡoʊt/	Any ruminant of the genus Capra.
blend verb	/blɛnd/	To mingle; to mix; to unite intimately; to pass or shade insensibly into each other.
texture noun	/ˈtɛkst͡ʃə(ɹ)/	The feel or shape of a surface or substance; the smoothness, roughness, softness, etc. of something.
omega noun	/oʊˈmeɪ.ɡə/	The twenty-fourth letter of the Classical and the Modern Greek alphabet, and the twenty-eighth letter of the Old and the Ancient Greek alphabet, i.e. the last…
lump noun	/lʌmp/	Something that protrudes, sticks out, or sticks together; a cluster or blob; a mound or mass of no particular shape.
calorie noun	/ˈkæləɹi/	A non-SI unit of energy, equivalent to 4.184 kilojoules, that can raise the temperature of a kilogram of water by one degree Celsius. This is the unit normally…
requirement noun	/ɹɪˈkwaɪɹmənt/	A necessity or prerequisite; something required or obligatory. Its adpositions are generally of in relation to who or what has given it, on in relation to whom…
convert verb	/kənˈvɝt/	To transform or change (something) into another form, substance, state, or product.
urge verb	/ɜːd͡ʒ/	To press; to push; to drive; to impel; to force onward.

Phrasal verbs you will hear

Word	Pronunciation	Meaning
check out verb		To record the departure or withdrawal of someone or something (such as guests, employees, books, etc.).
break down verb		To stop functioning.
break up verb		To break or separate into pieces.
come around verb	/kʌ.məˈɹaʊnd/	To change one's mind, especially to begin to agree or appreciate what one was reluctant to accept at first.
turn out verb		To end up; to result.

Grammar in this video

The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:

Structure	In the video
Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it	being hailed · are then cut · are then rinsed
Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now	you've ever felt · haven't seen · i've talked

Pronunciation to watch

The speaker uses 32 contractions and reduced forms, such as they're, you're, don't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.

The “th” sounds: smooth /smuːð/, unhealthy /ʌnˈhɛl.θi/
The “sh” and “zh” sounds: sheep /ˈʃiːp/, inflammation /ɪnfləˈmeɪ̯ʃən/, shake /ˈʃeɪk/, tissue /ˈtɪʃ.(j)u/, conventional /kənˈvɛnʃənl̩/
Long words — get the stress right: inflammation /ɪnfləˈmeɪ̯ʃən/, inflammatory /ɪnˈflæmət(ə)ɹi/, primarily /ˈpɹaɪ.mə.ɹə.li/, unlimited /ʌnˈlɪm.ɪ.tɪd/, traditionally /tɹəˈdɪʃ.ə.nə.li/

How to practise with this video

Listen to the whole video once without speaking and note the words you do not know.
Shadow it sentence by sentence at normal speed, repeating each one until your rhythm matches the speaker.
Record yourself and compare with the original, paying attention to words like cottage, acid, wrap.

What is the Shadowing Technique?

Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.

Shadowing technique: read the full step-by-step guide →

Shadowing Practice: Is Cottage Cheese a GREAT Source of Protein? - Learn English Speaking with Video

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