Today’s interview is on an array of subject matter that both those competing at an elite level, as well as those aspiring to be high-performers, can get a tremendous amount of value from. In this all-encompassing conversation with Dr. John Connor, we cover the best practices for pre-competition preparation, as well as appropriate training progressions. Dr. Connor dives deep into weight cutting, including cutting-edge therapies and a protocol for reloading. Dr. Connor is the Co-Founder of the Irish Strength Institute.  He is currently involved with the pro-team at SBG Ireland which includes current and former MMA & UFC fighters Conor McGregor, Cathal Pendred, and Paddy Holohan. He has also designed programs and trained NFL players from the San Francisco 49ers, Oakland Raiders and the Green Bay Packers. Dr. Connor holds a Masters degree in Exercise and Nutritional Sciences, and recently completed his PhD in the area of weight cutting for performance. You’ll learn: The TOP Weight-Cutting Techniques and How to Reload after Weigh-In How to Balance Strength and Dynamic Training for High Performers The KEY Supplements and Drills to Incorporate Pre-Competition or Pre-Fight The Most Effective Protocols for Maximum Recovery A Programming Progression that is Applicable to EVERYONE Plus, get the free guide at muscleintelligence.com/learn. Learn more about Dr. John Connor: Upcoming book: Scientific Weight Cutting Instagram @johnconnorphd Irish Strength Institute Support our Sponsors: Heroic: my favorite app for wisdom and self-mastery - get a free two week trial + 3 of my favorite Philosopher's Notes at heroic.us/mi

A very outdated, but still somewhat stereotypical, view of "eating to build muscle" is to load up on peanut butter, chicken, and eggs, and to eat as frequently as possible - often past the point of fullness. My tried-and-true muscle-building diet tactics offer a framing that incorporates health and longevity - first to improve digestion and clear inflammation, and then to teach your body to use stored energy (i.e. excess body fat). Finally, I build an individualized plan based on YOUR unique metabolic rate, nutrient needs, and exercise intensity. Today's episode gives you my EXACT plan, that you can use to construct your own muscle-building diet (or, you can tailor it to lose fat instead.) You'll learn: The Best Supplements for Gut Microbiome and Digestion Support How to Build a Diet Plan Specialized for Fat Loss or Muscle Building The Most Overlooked Aspect of Nutrition that Influences Hypertrophy A Six-Pillar Framework to Optimize your Body and Achieve your Goals Support Our Sponsors: Get 25% off of pure, organic mushroom powders from Real Mushrooms. Adaptogenic, medicinal mushrooms can help support cognition, recovery, immunity, and energy levels. Head to https://realmushrooms.com/ben to get hooked up!

A common framing around successful fitness is simply to "work hard." I get dozens of men who come to me, frustrated because they're putting in a TON of effort, and not getting the results merited by it... A successful training program does include hard work, but also lays a strong foundation for sustained, replicable performance.  Today's solocast will provide you with a framework that you can easily individualize to your body - to build muscle or lose fat, to avoid injury, and ultimately to maximally boost your progress. Don't forget to get the episode guide! You'll learn: How to Build Muscle Without Spending Hours in the Gym The Skill-Set You MUST Develop to Maximize Your Potential The Easily Reversible Mistakes You’re Probably Making ONE Subtle Tweak to Massively Improve Your Performance The Top Foundational Tools that Promote Hypertrophy Support our sponsors:  Organifi makes some amazing juiced vegetable, fruit, and adaptogenic blends.  I use Green and Red juice daily, and enjoy their Gold blend as often as I can.  Gold now comes in a pumpkin spice flavor too!  Head to https://organifi.com/muscle and use code MUSCLE for 20% off.

People often frame preparedness for exercise around warming up in the gym. While warm-ups are important, the concept of readiness goes much deeper: What are all the systems of my body that need to be properly prepared, to make my training the most effective it can possibly be? A fully optimized pre-workout protocol needs to consider everything from nutrient delivery into cells, to adequate ranges of motion at ALL involved joints, to balancing levels of excitatory & inhibitory neurotransmitters. Today's solocast offers a fully customizable framework around supplemental routines, injury prevention techniques, and performance-boosting tactics to adequately prepare you for top training results. Don't forget your copy of the episode guide. You'll learn: The Most Effective Pre-Workout Supplementation Program How to Avoid Disproportionate Body Part Dominance Warm Up Exercises to Encourage Maximum Training Effectiveness The BIG Levers to Help you Avoid Injuries and Setbacks How to Determine Your Own Need for Carbohydrates Support our sponsors: BiOptimizers MassZymes proteolytic enzymes are my top recommended supplement to clientele, the Muscle Intelligence Community, and to anyone looking to upgrade their digestion and overall health. Get MassZymes at  https://masszymes.com/muscle and save 10% with code MUSCLE10

For every 100 clients who tell me that the #1 thing holding them back is their nutrition... only 10 are actually correct. The other 90 are held up by habits and coping strategies that manifest in their day-to-day food choices, and their lack of ability to properly digest the food they take in. For these 90% of individuals, it's more about HOW they eat, and the common state of their body, that holds them back. You can have the BEST nutrition plan out there, but results will be minimal if you're consistently stressed out, eating to cope with your feelings, and battling suboptimal digestion. Today's solocast is a straight-to-the-point nutrition framework that you can immediately use to assess, and improve on, your nutritional baseline and habits. This framework will allow you to REMOVE the brakes that are showing up in your nutrition plan adherence, so that they can stop halting your progress. You'll learn:  The MOST Important Foods to Avoid for Any High-Achiever How to Make Any Diet Plan Feel Less Restrictive and More Fulfilling High-Impact Levers to Cope with Stress, and Stop Self-Defeating Habits Key Techniques to Improve Gut Microbial Diversity and Lessen Inflammation The Carbohydrate-Training Connection and How it Affects Hormones Don't forget your copy of the episode guide that maps out the key points of this framework. Support our sponsors: BiOptimizers MassZymes proteolytic enzymes are my top recommended supplement to clientele, the Muscle Intelligence Community, and to anyone looking to upgrade their digestion and overall health. Get MassZymes at  https://masszymes.com/muscle and save 10% with code MUSCLE10

Today's podcast is the third in our Six-Pillar Series, and offers a detailed look into training from both ends of the spectrum: physique optimization AND longevity. After reviewing the past year's most impactful interviews, I picked a handful that offer incredible training insight and easily implementable frameworks, to help you perform at your peak and sustain it for life. You'll hear from: Dr. Brad Schoenfeld, on key drivers of hypertrophy, as well as the full scoop on muscular soreness. Click here to listen to the full interview with Dr. Brad Schoenfeld. Dr. Pat Davidson, on structural and functional approaches that connect the brain and the body, so you can train SMART. Click here to listen to the full interview with Dr. Pat Davidson. Dr. Jordan Shallow, for a close look into an individualized, systems-approach to muscle building. Click here to listen to the full interview with Dr. Jordan Shallow. Don Saladino, on building intentionality into your programs as a coach, and as an athlete - no matter what age you are. Click here to listen to the full interview with Don Saladino. And I share three non-negotiable steps to build and sustain muscle - with muscle mass being a key predictor of longevity. Click here to listen to my full solocast on the Fastest Way to Build and Sustain Muscle Growth. You'll learn: A High-Impact Technique to Stimulate Hypertrophy at any age The Important Connection Between Your Muscular System and Nervous System The KEY Training Levers to Build and Sustain Muscle Growth The Customizable Framework to Support Muscle Building and Longevity The MOST Important Step to Setting & Achieving Your Fitness Goals this year Don't forget your copy of the episode guide with key takeaways. I highly recommend you take what you can, and apply it to your programming today! Support our sponsors: As a valued listener of the Muscle Intelligence Podcast, head to muscleintelligence.com/resources and get hooked up with ALL of our deals on my favorite products.

Today's interview covers an incredibly valuable and time-sensitive topic: managing mental health WITHOUT the use of addictive pharmaceuticals. Dr. Justin Feinstein joins me on the podcast today, to discuss how our fear responses work, effective tools to modulate self-defeating nervous system patterns, and why it matters when seeking optimal performance. Dr. Feinstein, an expert in the neuroscience of fear, is trailblazing a new solution for the treatment of anxiety. He has over 50 peer-reviewed publications in some of the top scientific journals and his research has been featured in the popular press including the New York Times, NPR, TIME magazine, and CBS National News. His current work is focused on studying the intimate connection between the body and the brain, and developing new technologies to help bring this connection to the forefront of awareness. As part of these efforts, his research has laid the foundation for novel therapies that can naturally alleviate stress and anxiety without the use of drugs including Floatation-REST (Reduced Environmental Stimulation Therapy) and the modulation of CO2 as a form of interoceptive exposure therapy. In 2021, Dr. Feinstein became President and Director of the Float Research Collective, a nonprofit organization that is playing a pivotal role in establishing Floatation-REST as an accepted medical treatment. In this episode, you'll learn: The VITAL Part of Every High Achiever’s Training Program Which Specific Breath Protocols to use for Optimal Performance Why Conventional Anxiety Medications are Often Ineffective Long-Term The ONE Therapy that has a Positive Effect on Stress Hormones How to Drastically Improve Your Mental State and Emotions Plus, get your free episode guide now at https://muscleintelligence.com/learn More resources from Dr. Feinstein: Clinical Float Interoception and Mental Health: a Roadmap Dr. Feinstein’s recent paper on CO2, anxiety, and the amygdala Documentary and fundraising campaign for Float therapy research Support our sponsors: Organifi is having a Fall promotion on some of my favorite products - their Gold series - until October 30th!  Buy one Gold flavor and get a second one at 50% off PLUS stack our 20% discount onto your entire order at https://organifi.com/muscle 

Today's episode offers a unique insight into best practices to sharpen your focus, learning capacity, and overall intelligence...  I often view intelligence in terms of that of a muscle - trainable, but also subject to atrophy if underused. If you seek to not only maintain, but improve on, your mental capacities as you age, this interview is a must-listen. Dr. Scott Barry Kaufman joins me on the Muscle Intelligence Podcast today, for an episode that will push your limits of your own perceived brainpower. Dr. Kaufman, within his well-developed philosophies and witty, relatable manner, offers an approach to mental and creative performance that will leave you wanting to explore more. Dr. Kaufman is a cognitive scientist and humanistic psychologist exploring the mind, creativity, and the depths of human potential. He is a professor at Columbia University and founder and director of the Center for the Science of Human Potential. He also hosts the #1 psychology podcast in the world— The Psychology Podcast— which was included in Business Insider’s list of “9 podcasts that will change how you think about human behavior.” Dr. Kaufman is interested in using his research to help all kinds of minds live a creative, fulfilling, and self-actualized life. His early educational experiences made him realize the deep reservoir of untapped potential of students, including bright and creative children who have been diagnosed with a learning disability. You'll learn: How to Train Your Mind and Stay Sharp as You Age The Important Factor to Improve Your Productivity The ONE Trait Most Correlated with Increasing Creativity How to Pull Yourself Out of Perfectionist Tendencies The Tool to Hone Your Focus Despite Increasing Distractions Plus, get your FREE copy of the episode guide, as a downloadable reference of the key points and implementable actions from this interview. Learn more about Dr. Kaufman: The Psychology Podcast scottbarrykaufman.com Center for Human Potential Choose Growth by Dr. Scott Barry Kaufman Support Our Sponsors: Get 25% off of pure, organic mushroom powders from Real Mushrooms. Adaptogenic, medicinal mushrooms can help support cognition, recovery, immunity, and energy levels. Head to https://realmushrooms.com/ben to get hooked up!  

Interested in the 90-Day Body Transformation Program that I spoke about in this episode?  Doors are OPEN until Saturday, October 22, 2022. Head to https://muscleintelligence.com/lean There is a lot of conversation in the health, fitness, and personal development spaces about men today being "soft," "weak" or "less masculine" than our forefathers... On today's solocast, I share my views on this topic to bring a new perspective and shed light on a potential solution. The fact of the matter is, the modern-day man is navigating a lot of NEW challenges that no previous generation has encountered. This means that, to arm ourselves properly for the constant battle on our time, attention, and motives, we must be intentional about how we set goals and conduct our lives. If you are called to, and ready to, step into the greatest version of yourself - whether through health or business, relationships or community - this episode is for you. Plus, I've compiled some of the episode's most useful practices and action items into a free guide. Pick up your guide here! You'll learn: How High-Achievers Can Maximize their Productivity Why Men are Ill-Equipped for Today's Challenges (and our Responsibility in it) The Key to Balancing Health, Business and Relationships Over Time The Trap of Emotional Reactivity and How to Break Out of it How to Structure Your Life for Total Optimization

Today's interview is with a guest who found that the secret to lasting body transformation is often most discernible in how we relate to our mind and emotions - rather than just within the confines of training & nutritional programming. Drew Manning joins me to discuss his biggest takeaways from "Fit2Fat2Fit" - his journey to gain and then lose 60+ lbs TWICE as motivation to better understand and empathize with his clientele. On the episode, he discusses his own revelations about transformation within his process. Plus... Drew provides a LOT of immediate action items to help any high achiever take their transformation (and life!) to the next level. If you're a coach, trainer, or anyone interested in engaging with your GREATEST potential, this episode is a must-listen.  Plus, unlock the full episode guide at muscleintelligence.com/learn. You'll learn: The Surprising Truth about Gaining and Losing 60 lbs twice How to Overcome the Biggest Challenges in Body Transformation The Key to Optimize Every Fitness Program. The #1 Greatest and Under-Utilized Lever that Most Trainers Skip Over. How to Adapt Your Training and Nutrition to Your Lifestyle As You Age. Connect with Drew: https://fit2fat2fit.com https://instagram.com/fit2fat2fit Support our Sponsors: BiOptimizers MassZymes proteolytic enzymes are my top recommended supplement to clientele, the Muscle Intelligence Community, and to anyone looking to upgrade their digestion and overall health. Get MassZymes at  https://masszymes.com/muscle and save 10% with code MUSCLE10