Get ready for a high energy guy who’s had an amazing journey from a Mr. Universe dream that took shape as a teenager in the deep backwoods of New Brunswick, Canada, and came true all the way to his landing spot in the bodybuilding epicenter of Venice Beach, CA.

Wade Lightheart pushed the limits of physical training, work ethic, and competitive intensity in the most extreme of sports and learned some hard lessons that helped shape a lengthy career in performance optimization and a health and nutrition supplement business with his company, Bio Optimization.

After reaching the highest levels of international bodybuilding, Wade completed a contest and his body went to heck. He gained an astonishing 42 pounds in 11 weeks! This launched his quest to align fitness pursuits with health instead of compromise health. Wade realized that we pursue fitness goals for three reasons: aesthetics, performance and health; and that quite often, our pursuit of the first two severely compromises the final one. Long before the emerging topic of gut health became the hot issue of the day, Wade realized that his digestion was trashed, largely on account of chronically excessive protein intake combined with a bodybuilder style starvation diet that lasted too long.

This free flowing show also touches on issues like performance-enhancing drugs in sports and how the increasingly sophisticated biohacking strategies of the day are closing the gap between a doped athlete and a clean athlete doing everything right. Wade proved this insight to be true when he returned to bodybuilding after a four-year layoff and performed better than his previous efforts as a less healthy human. You’ll also learn about the three issues that can be causing gut dysfunction and how to quickly home test for them.

Learn more about Wade and his operation, including a free 12-week peak performance program at BioOptimizers.com and enjoy his Awesome Health Podcast, including a 2020 interview with me!

TIMESTAMPS:

Wade talks about how he got into bodybuilding and was inspired by Schwarzenegger’s advice: He said you can achieve anything you want with hard work, self-discipline, and a positive attitude. [05:28]

After working for many years on his dream of becoming a champion bodybuilder, Wade was in Mr. Universe contest and immediately thereafter gained 42 pounds in 11 weeks. [09:27]

He realized he had built his body from the outside in and he had to learn to build the body from the inside out. [10:59]

Many of the bodybuilders eventually end up in some health crisis. [12:51]

Wade has learned from his experience and has applied this to his biological optimization formula. [15:33]

Athletes are fit, not necessarily healthy. We have sacrificed health in pursuit of performance. [18:03]

After Wade was in the contest, what happened that caused his body to blow up? [20:22]

The use of performance-enhancing technology is pervasive in the athletic community maybe going back 60 to 70 years. [25:15]

When traveling to India for a contest, he connected with like-minded people and started the BiOptimizers development. [32:11]

When you're in the midst of a highly engrossing competitive challenge and drugs are part of the game, it's easy to rationalize and join up with the pack to try to stay with the pack instead of get dropped. [34:21]

How did Wade learn about the gut microbiome so long before what we know today? [38:47]

A hundred million Americans on any given day are suffering from some sort of digestive distress that is either an over-the-counter or prescription medication for digestive related illnesses. [42:39]

The USDA allows 50 different chemicals on organic produce and we don’t get to know about genetic modification in many places. [44:11]

A person tries to eat healthy, selecting carefully, knowing that there are still problems. There are probiotics available in the stores. How do we know which ones are best? [45:53]

A one-degree difference in temperature in a probiotic stream is going to cause a doubling of the activity of that probiotic. You need a prebiotic. [47:00]

Wade and his partner have disparate dietary patterns. Is it important what genetic particulars are present when it comes to choosing the best diet? [50:01]

Three areas where people run into digestive issues are lack of proper enzymes in the food, being low in hydrochloric acid, and microbiome imbalance. [55:28]

Magnesium is the most common deficiency mineral in virtually everybody’s diet. [58:56]

LINKS:

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Sponsors

Check out each of these companies because they are absolutely awesome or they wouldn’t occupy this revered space. Seriously, Brad won’t sell out to anyone if he doesn’t love the product. Ask anyone.

Almost Heaven Sauna: Affordable at-home sauna kits for the ultimate relaxation and hormonal boost on demand
Brad’s Macadamia Masterpiece: Mind-blowing, life-changing nut butter blend
CAR.O.L bike: Cardiovascular optimized logic stationary bike for a highly effective eight-minute workout
Male Optimization Formula with Organs (MOFO): Optimize testosterone naturally with 100% grassfed animal organ supplement
Perfect Keto: The cleanest, purest, most potent ketone supplements and snacks
LetsGetChecked: At-home medical testing with great prices, quick results, and no hassles
Vuori Activewear: The most comfortable, functional, and fashionable gear, evoking the chill SoCal coastal lifestyle

Donations!

This free podcast offering is a team effort from Brad, Daniel, Siena, Gail, TJ, Vuk, RedCircle, our awesome guests, and our incredibly cool advertising partners. We are now poised and proud to double dip by both soliciting a donation and having you listen to ads! If you wanna cough up a few bucks to salute the show, we really appreciate it and will use the funds wisely for continued excellence. Go big (whatever that means to you…) and we’ll send you a free jar of Brad’s Macadamia Masterpiece as a thank you! Email to alert us! Choose to donate now, later, or never. Either way, we thank you for choosing from the first two options! :]

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224: Stepping off the Narrow Way