The Total Entrepreneur: Mind, Body, Spirit

John M Torrens, Ph.D.
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Join Dr. John Torrens, an award-winning professor and entrepreneur, as he guides high-performing entrepreneurs, founders, and executives on a journey to redefine success. In The Total Entrepreneur: Mind, Body, Spirit, you'll learn how to balance business success with a fulfilling, healthy lifestyle. Each episode blends cutting-edge academic research with real-life insights from entrepreneurs, health experts, and researchers. Discover evidence-based strategies to prevent burnout, improve well-being, and create a life where purpose, productivity, and wellness thrive together.

  1. 3 days ago

    Longevity Habits for Entrepreneurs - Chris Burres

    Entrepreneurship is an energy game. Chris Burres, CEO of MyVitalC and co-author of Live Longer and Better, has spent more than three decades working with a Nobel Prize-winning carbon molecule, and he has strong views on the longevity habits that keep founders performing. In this episode, John talks with Chris about longevity habits for entrepreneurs, from the movement, nutrition, sleep, and mindset routines Chris follows at 57 to the path that took him from mechanical engineering, explosives, and improv comedy to a career in longevity. Chris also explains his company’s work with carbon 60 (C60, which his company calls ESS60), the rodent research that changed his business, and the “BOSS Theory” he uses to explain his own and customers’ experiences. John pressure-tests the science along the way and asks about the limits of what’s known. This episode shares Chris’s views, his company’s research, and his personal experience, not medical advice. Key Topics: How a Lamborghini poster at age 14 led Chris to study mechanical engineering to become an entrepreneur, and why he started his company while still in college.What it was like to work on downhole explosives at Shell, and the patents that came out of it.What improv comedy taught him about communication: Your job is to make the other person look brilliant.What C60 is, why it’s shaped like a soccer ball, and why his company has made it since 1991.Why he and his business partner put “Not for human consumption” on their labels and spent years refusing to enter the supplement industry.What changed their minds in 2017, and what it took to bring a product to market in 2018.What Chris says the 2012 rat study found, and what it does and doesn’t tell us about people.Questions on the science, including the lack of human trials, the 2020 light-exposure study, and product testing.Chris’s “BOSS Theory” (Buffering oxidative stress system), his explanation of how C60 may support the mitochondria, and the Mardi Gras analogy that goes with it.Why antioxidants that don’t blunt the body’s stress response are a topic of interest to him.How he approaches nutrition: roughly one gram of protein per pound of lean body mass, and his go-to sources.The tough-movement routine behind his DEXA results (about five pounds more muscle and two percentage points less body fat over 18 months): sprint intervals, the 4-3-4 bike protocol, and short strength sessions.Why he does one-meal-a-day fasting twice a week, and what he says about autophagy and “zombie” cells.Why mindset is the most important of his four pillars: Movement, nutrition, sleep, and mindset.The entrepreneur’s trap of giving up your health for success, then spending your success to get it back.Connect with Chris Burres: LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/chrisburres/Website - https://www.myvitalc.com/Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/myvitalcMyVitalC.com/DrJohn - Includes a free PDF of 18 biohacking tips from Chris’ longevity summit.Live Longer and Better by Chris Burres and Jerome R. Corsi Ph.D. - https://a.co/d/0d3V2jDPConnect with Dr. John M. Torrens: LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnmtorrens/Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/johnmtorrens/TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@drjohntorrensWebsite - Podcast.JohnMTorrens.com

    Longevity Habits for Entrepreneurs - Chris Burres

  2. 23 Oct

    Balancing Business and Family Life - Larry Hagner

    What’s the point of building an empire if your home life is a house of cards? Larry Hagner, Founder of The Dad Edge and Author of The Pursuit of Legendary Fatherhood, says many entrepreneurs have the best intentions of providing for their families while the people they’re providing for go hungry for their presence. In this episode, John talks with Larry about balancing business and family life, and about how to become the husband, father, and leader you want to be before it costs you the things that matter. Larry shares his path from a medical device sales career to a Facebook page called The Good Dad Project, which grew into The Dad Edge, a podcast, and a community for men. He explains his Brave Man Code framework, why he believes a strong marriage lifts every other part of a man’s life, and the story of a client who sold his company for $42.5 million and realized he’d lost sight of his family. The conversation also covers the “content zombie” trap and what the research Larry cites says about the power of accountability. Key Topics: Why Larry calls “meeting the man you could have become” the definition of hell, and what he means by “the drift”.How a life and marriage can be comfortable and uncomfortable at the same time.What Larry cites on “roommate syndrome” in marriage and why he wants to disrupt the idea that it’s normal.How Larry met his biological father at age 12 through a chance encounter at a rec center, and the unexpected coffee-shop reunion that followed in 2005.The hardest night of his parenting life in 2012, and the question that led him to start The Good Dad Project.How a Facebook page grew to 100,000 followers, led to his first speaking invitation, and became a blog (2013) and a podcast (2015).The Brave Man Code: Bond, Raise, Amplify, Vitality, Enjoy, Movement, Action, and Network.The four pillars of a great marriage: Individual care, partnership, friendship, and intimacy.Why the goal is to become your kids’ 3 a.m. call, and why safety isn’t the absence of discipline.Why Larry teaches “married first, parent second,” and what he means by it (his view, and one he says draws strong reactions).The entrepreneur trap: The $42.5 million exit, the donuts-with-Dad moment, and how the client turned it around.Why Larry built the Dad Edge Business Boardroom Brotherhood for entrepreneur dads.What to expect at The Men’s Forge, a three-day event near St. Louis (April 22–25, 2027).The “content zombie” trap, and why experiential learning and a standing accountability appointment change outcomes.One thing to do today: Stop trying to figure out marriage and fatherhood alone, and treat them as skills you can learn.Connect with Larry Hagner: LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/larry-hagner-a82b8715Website - https://thedadedge.com/Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/larry.hagner.3/Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/thedadedge/The Dad Edge on YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@TheDadEdge25 Intimate Conversation Starters -  TheDadEdge.com/25QuestionsConnect with Dr. John M. Torrens: LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnmtorrens/Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/johnmtorrens/TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@drjohntorrensWebsite - Podcast.JohnMTorrens.com

    Balancing Business and Family Life - Larry Hagner

  3. 16 Oct

    How to Feel More Productive with Mridu Parikh

    You can be busy from morning to night and still end the day wondering what you got done. Productivity expert Mridu Parikh, known as “The Stress Squasher,” says the problem is how we measure productivity. In this episode, John talks with Mridu about how to feel more productive by treating productivity as a feeling, the emotional payoff of making real progress on what matters, rather than a count of checked boxes. Mridu shares the practical system behind her TEDx talk: pick your top three tasks instead of facing a three-page to-do list, keep your ideas on a separate list, and protect a daily “power hour” for the thing you’ve been putting off. The conversation also covers her path from client services at a marketing agency to professional home organizer to productivity coach, the difference between being organized and being productive, and why soothing activities like scrolling aren’t the same as self-care. Key Topics: Why Mridu defines productivity as a feeling, and how to measure your day by how you feel at the end of it.Why high achievers never feel like they’ve done enough, and how a top-three list fixes itThe difference between an action list and an idea list, and why mixing them leads to overwhelmWhat a “power hour” is, how to start with 30 minutes, and the math on 10 to 20 focused hours a month.Her path from client work for brands like Mercedes and American Express to starting a professional home organizing business.The difference between being organized and being productive.Why your environment matters for focus, and the desk trick that keeps your eyes from wandering.How she became “The Stress Squasher,” and why her real goal is lowering your stress.Soothing vs. self-care: how to tell whether an activity actually restores you.How becoming an empty nester changed the way she thinks about time and energy.Why you should plan around your energy, not just your time.The one change to make tomorrow: Protect small pockets of focus.Connect with Mridu Parikh: LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/mridu-parikh/ Website - http://lifeisorganized.com/YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/user/mriduparikhTEDx Talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N2fwApS0L6AAccomplish It By Mridu ParikhConnect with Dr. John M. Torrens: LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnmtorrens/Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/johnmtorrens/TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@drjohntorrensWebsite - Podcast.JohnMTorrens.com

    How to Feel More Productive with Mridu Parikh

  4. 8 Oct

    Yoga Nidra for Trauma Recovery with Danielle Matthews

    At 24, Danielle Matthews was told by her neurologist that her brain injury was as healed as it was ever going to get, and that she needed to build a new life around it. In this episode, John talks with Danielle about the head-on car accident that upended her life, the mild traumatic brain injury that followed, and how a daily yoga nidra practice became the tool that carried her through the darkest stretch of her recovery, and ultimately opened the door to a spiritual awakening, an entrepreneurial career, and a new understanding of what “success” actually means. Danielle shares how yoga nidra for trauma recovery became more than a coping mechanism, tracing her path from competitive college swimmer and snowboarder to brain-injury patient to network marketing entrepreneur to spiritual coach, trained directly in the lineage of Kripalu founder Amrit Desai. It’s a wide-ranging conversation about post-traumatic growth, presence, letting go of external validation, and building a business and a life in alignment with something deeper than achievement. Key Topics: The car accident that caused Danielle’s traumatic brain injury, and the year it took doctors to properly diagnose it.What it’s like to be told by a doctor that your “new normal” is permanent at 24 years old.How a daily yoga nidra practice helped Danielle sleep, regulate her mind, and eventually access a deeper sense of presence.The philosophy behind yoga nidra as a tool for enlightenment, not just relaxation.What “post-traumatic growth” means, and how adversity can become the catalyst for becoming a stronger version of yourself.Why Danielle walked away from the traditional “top school, top job” path after her accident, and what she realized mattered more.How Danielle built an entrepreneurial career through network marketing, including the mindset shifts and consistency it took to grow it.The launch of her coaching practice, Inner Management Mastery, and what “enlightened entrepreneurship” looks like in practice.Why leading yourself has to come before leading a business, and how unresolved mindset and trauma show up in entrepreneurship.Lessons on resilience, judgment from others, and redefining what success actually feels like once you arrive.Connect with Danielle Matthews: YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/@healwithdanielleFacebook - https://www.facebook.com/innermasteryguideInstagram - https://www.instagram.com/_daniellematthews_Connect with Dr. John M. Torrens: LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnmtorrens/Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/johnmtorrens/TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@drjohntorrensWebsite - Podcast.JohnMTorrens.com

    Yoga Nidra for Trauma Recovery with Danielle Matthews

  5. 1 Oct

    Fix Leaky Gut Naturally with Dr. Sulaiman Bharwani

    Most people think gut health is just about digestion - Dr. Sulaiman Bharwani says that's the smallest part of the story. In this episode, John interviews gastroenterologist and nutritionist Dr. Sulaiman Bharwani ("Dr. Sal") of Gut Rewire to unpack how the gut microbiome drives everything from heart health and brain function to anxiety, ADHD symptoms, and long-term disease risk - and exactly how to fix leaky gut naturally through food, sleep timing, breathing, and fasting. Dr. Sal breaks down his "7 Pillars" framework (A–G: Avoid ultra-processed food, Breathe diaphragmatically, Count colors and plants, Drink water, early sleep, Fasting, and Go with movement), explains why the body can't actually digest fiber (the microbiome does that work for us), and makes the case that 30 different plants a week matters more than counting macros.  The conversation also covers the surprising, research-backed link between ADHD and gut symptoms, what really happens to the microbiome during a course of antibiotics, the current (and future) state of fecal transplants, and why the hours between 10 PM and 2 AM may matter more for gut repair than how many total hours of sleep you get. Key Topics: Why the gut microbiome is now considered the body's most influential organ system, and its role in heart, brain, and immune health.The real reason fiber matters (hint: it's not for you, it's for your bacteria).Why "eat more vegetables" isn't useful advice anymore, and what 30 plants a week actually looks like.What antibiotics do to your microbiome, and how to proactively protect it.The gut-brain axis: how microbiome health shapes anxiety, sleep, focus, and decision-making.A surprising research link between ADHD and GI symptoms in kids and adults..        What leaky gut actually is, how it develops, and its downstream effects on inflammation, heart disease, and cognitive decline.Fecal microbiota transplants: where the science stands today, and the open questions that still worry Dr. Sal.The physiology of intermittent fasting, why 12–14 hours is the evidence-backed sweet spot, and why fasting may help your body clear out damaged cells.Dr. Sal's "7 Pillars" (A–G) framework for rebuilding gut health.Why the window between 10 PM and 2 AM may be critical for gut and brain repair.Rising rates of fatty liver disease and gut-related symptoms in children, and what's driving it.Connect with Dr. Sulaiman Bharwani : LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/sulaiman-bharwani-613653283Email - doctorsal@gutrewired.comInstagram - https://www.instagram.com/gutrewiredWebsite - gutrewire.comConnect with Dr. John M. Torrens: LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnmtorrens/Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/johnmtorrens/TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@drjohntorrensWebsite - Podcast.JohnMTorrens.com

    Fix Leaky Gut Naturally with Dr. Sulaiman Bharwani

  6. 25 Sept

    How to Build Real Relationships (Not Just Network) - Nida Leardprasopsuk

    If you've ever collected 5,000 LinkedIn connections and still couldn't think of who to call at 2 a.m. in a crisis, this episode on how to build real relationships is for you. Nida Leardprasopsuk spent years in corporate roles at L'Oréal, Unilever, Reckitt, and Coach before leaving to become a certified executive and business coach, a Gottman-trained couples therapist, and a medical-school-trained sex therapist - an unusual combination she says all comes down to the same underlying subject: Human psychology.  In this episode, she sits down with John to break down how to build real relationships in a world that's made us busier, more "connected," and lonelier than ever, and shares the practical framework she uses to audit, grade, and intentionally grow her own relationship portfolio. Key Topics: The real difference between networking and relationship building, and why the digital world has made us worse at the latter.Why the average human can only meaningfully maintain 150 - 250 relationships, and how that number holds up (or doesn't) in the age of social media.Nida's relationship "grading system", from A's (your closest people) to G's (general acquaintances), and why misclassifying people creates unnecessary hurt and wasted energy.How to do your own relationship audit, and what a healthy relationship portfolio actually looks like.Why "how you do anything is how you do everything", and what her dual work as an executive coach and sex therapist taught her about the same underlying human patterns.The surprising link between trauma and high achievement, and why so many successful people privately feel unfulfilled.What Harvard's longest-running study on adult development found is the #1 predictor of a long, happy, healthy life (it's not diet or exercise).How to "make new old friends" as an adult, including Nida's simple, repeatable dinner-hosting strategy.Why she believes being an initiator is one of the most underrated skills in business and life.What IRL is, the app Nida built to help people turn digital connections into real relationships, using AI to make the introductions humans rarely make for each other.Connect with Nida Leardprasopsuk: LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/nida-leardprasopsuk/Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/nidaleardofficial/Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/nida.leardprasopsuk/Website - joinirl.appConnect with Dr. John M. Torrens: LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnmtorrens/Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/johnmtorrens/TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@drjohntorrensWebsite - Podcast.JohnMTorrens.com

    How to Build Real Relationships (Not Just Network) - Nida Leardprasopsuk

  7. 17 Sept

    Understanding Chronic Inflammation and Free Radicals - Samuel Shepherd

    Understanding chronic inflammation and free radicals starts with a question most of us never think to ask: why does the same biological process that keeps us alive also seem to slowly wear us down as we age? Samuel Shepherd spent decades as a chemist and engineer, holding 42 patents, working with NASA, and solving technical problems for government and industry, before a serious health diagnosis sent him deep into the biochemistry of free radicals and antioxidants.  In this episode, he shares his personal story with John and walks through his perspective on understanding chronic inflammation and free radicals: what they are, how they differ from the acute inflammation that helps the body heal, and the antioxidant chemistry he spent years studying afterward. Key Topics: Samuel's personal account of his health diagnosis in 2003, and the path that led him to study free radical biochemistry.His explanation of the difference between acute inflammation (which keeps us alive) and chronic inflammation (which he connects to age-related disease).A breakdown of the four free radicals he focuses on, and the basic biochemistry of how antioxidants work at a cellular level.His explanation of astaxanthin, a carotenoid pigment, and why he found its molecular structure compelling from a free radical chemistry standpoint.His personal research process, including how he arrived at the compound that became the basis of his company.His views on fructose, fruit, and inflammation, a more contested nutritional position worth weighing against mainstream dietary guidance.The story of his mother's experience with type 2 diabetes, told from his personal perspective.His account of the product's use during COVID, offered as his own observation, not a clinical finding.Connect with Samuel Shepherd: Website - https://valasta.net/ Connect with Dr. John M. Torrens: LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnmtorrens/Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/johnmtorrens/TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@drjohntorrensWebsite - Podcast.JohnMTorrens.com

    Understanding Chronic Inflammation and Free Radicals - Samuel Shepherd

  8. 13 Sept

    Peptide Therapy for Longevity: What's Real vs. Hype - Dr. Jeff Gross

    If you've heard the word "peptide" on a skincare label or a biohacking podcast and wondered what it actually means, this episode on peptide therapy for longevity breaks it down from someone who's spent his career at the intersection of neurosurgery and regenerative medicine. Dr. Jeff Gross is a former Berkeley biochemist, virology researcher, and spinal neurosurgeon who founded ReCELLebrate after growing frustrated with how little the traditional "sick care" system offered patients who wanted alternatives to surgery and prescription drugs. In this episode, he sits down with John to explain peptide therapy for longevity in plain terms - what peptides actually are, how they differ from stem cells and exosomes, and why the FDA's regulatory relationship with these compounds is more nuanced than most people realize. Key Topics: What a peptide actually is, and why your body makes them naturally throughout your life.The real story behind the BPC-157 "FDA ban" headlines, and what it actually means for patients.Why most of medicine isn't FDA-approved, and why that doesn't mean what most people assume it means.The difference between stem cells, exosomes, and peptides, and how they work together.What peptides are used for in musculoskeletal repair, skin health, immune resilience, and mitochondrial function.Dr. Gross's take on the health insurance industry's incentives, and why "insurance doesn't cover it" isn't the same as "it doesn't work"Why sourcing and third-party testing matter enormously if you're considering peptide therapy for longevity.A case study on chronic fatigue, brain fog, and mitochondrial repair.Why working with a qualified, experienced clinician is essential before starting any peptide protocol.Connect with Dr. Jeff Gross: LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeff-gross-md-5605605/Website - https://recellebrate.com/Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/recellebrateConnect with Dr. John M. Torrens: LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnmtorrens/Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/johnmtorrens/TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@drjohntorrensWebsite - Podcast.JohnMTorrens.com

    Peptide Therapy for Longevity: What's Real vs. Hype - Dr. Jeff Gross
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About

Join Dr. John Torrens, an award-winning professor and entrepreneur, as he guides high-performing entrepreneurs, founders, and executives on a journey to redefine success. In The Total Entrepreneur: Mind, Body, Spirit, you'll learn how to balance business success with a fulfilling, healthy lifestyle. Each episode blends cutting-edge academic research with real-life insights from entrepreneurs, health experts, and researchers. Discover evidence-based strategies to prevent burnout, improve well-being, and create a life where purpose, productivity, and wellness thrive together.

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