The TELOS Podcast

TELOS

The TELOS Podcast records inspirational stories & in depth interviews from high performers from the sporting, business & health/fitness worlds. These humans are literally that - Human. Take inspiration from their humble beginnings, world class success & inevitable failures. We all have the power to be the Creator's, Explorer's & Hero's of our lives!

  1. MAR 4

    Testosterone: What Nobody Is Telling You (And What the Industry Is Selling You Instead)

    Most men over 35 are walking around with suppressed testosterone and blaming age. Age is one factor. Lifestyle is the one you control. In this episode I break down what testosterone actually does, why the clinical range is misleading, and what chronic stress is quietly doing to your hormonal environment. He covers the lifestyle fundamentals, the honest science behind cold plunge, sauna, and breathwork, and why the TRT industry is selling a prescription before anyone asks you about your sleep. No shortcuts. No agenda. Just the information you need to start building the right foundations. SHOW NOTES What we cover: What testosterone actually does and why it matters beyond the gymWhy "in range" is not the same as optimalThe cortisol steal and why stress is a hormonal issue, not just a mental oneSport, competition, and the hunter: why your body needs real challengeSleep, alcohol, training, and nutrition: the four levers that actually move the dialCold plunge, breathwork, and the sauna problem (including the Bryan Johnson ice pack protocol)The TRT conversation: what the research actually says before you consider itThe only supplement stack worth your moneyFree PDF: The TELOS Testosterone Audit Key blood markers to get tested, the 5 lifestyle levers, and the honest supplement stack. Get in touch to receive it: 📩 info@yourtelos.com 📱 Instagram: @rob_telos Studies referenced: Leproult & Van Cauter (2011), JAMA — sleep and testosterone Pilz et al. (2011) — Vitamin D and testosterone Lopresti et al. (2019) — Ashwagandha KSM-66 and cortisol Samplaski & Nangia (2020) — TRT and azoospermia Liu et al. (2006) — recovery timelines after TRT cessation Fanara et al. (2013), Human Reproduction — sauna and spermatogenesis Fincham et al. (2023) — breathwork meta-analysis across 12 RCTs About TELOS TELOS coaches driven men over 35 to build physical capability that compounds with age, not against it. 🌐 www.yourtelos.com 📱 @rob_telos 📩 info@yourtelos.com

    45 min
  2. FEB 23

    The Gap Between Rehab and Real Strength That Nobody Talks About

    *Note -we had an internet issue half way though.. but it resolves quickly. Rob Gallagher sits down with TELOS Head of Programming Colman Corrigan, who joined as a client in 2021 dealing with back pain, ankle issues, and the frustration of training with the handbrake on. They dig into the physio loop that keeps people stuck, the gap between easy rehab exercises and real-world strength, and why most people are stretching their weaknesses instead of building them. If you're training consistently but your body keeps letting you down, this conversation will make a lot click. Episode Overview:Rob and Coleman break down the patterns they see in clients who train hard but keep breaking down, and why the typical rehab model leaves massive gaps. Key Topics Covered: The Physio Loop Exposed — Why cycling through practitioners, release work, and temporary fixes never produces lasting change. Rob's own experience spending thousands on manual therapy and learning absolutely nothing. Training With the Handbrake On — That nagging voice in the back of your mind during every session. Coleman explains why so many people train timidly long after they should have progressed, and how that creates its own problems. The Rehab Gap — The space between banded exercises at home and getting back under a barbell that nobody bridges properly. Why most people get stuck between "easy rehab" and "real training" with no roadmap in between. Stretching vs. Strengthening — Why people stretch what's tight but never strengthen what's weak, and how training your strengths while ignoring weaknesses creates the exact disparity that causes injuries. The Three-Legged Stool — Physical training, nutrition and lifestyle, sleep. Take one away and the whole thing falls over. Why a movement assessment alone can't fix someone whose protein is low, stress is high, and sleep is wrecked. Physical Poverty to Physical Freedom — Rob's journey from being unfit at 35 to swimming 12k, doing close to 20 pull-ups, and planning surf trips at 49. Why the less fit you are when you start, the more progress is available to you. Expanding Your Vision of What's Possible — Client stories including Patter (wouldn't lift more than 5kg, now squatting and deadlifting over bodyweight), Cathal (hadn't run in 10 years, now training for a triathlon), and Aine (labelled "injury prone," now training without fear). Coaching vs. Programming — Why the Novak Djokovic model of coaching applies. Programming matters, but the collaborative relationship, the feedback loop, the different perspective, that's where the real change happens. Mentioned: TELOS six-phase system, functional range conditioning, the "expand, control, execute" approach, pain science and fear-based movement patterns. Connect: info@yourtelos.com | @rob_telos on Instagram

    57 min
  3. FEB 16

    You Can't Out-Train a Stressed Life

    You train consistently. You eat well. You do the work. But your body is tight, always niggling, and recovery takes longer than it should. In this episode, Rob breaks down the real reason your training isn't working: unmanaged stress. Backed by research from Stanford, The Lancet, and the Mayo Clinic, this is the episode that explains what cortisol is actually doing to your muscles, your joints, your injuries, and your sleep. Plus the "false taps" you're reaching for that are making it worse, and the practical tools that actually fix it. FREE WEBINAR — Thursday 19th February on Zoom "Why Fit People Keep Getting Hurt" Free to attend. Limited spots. Link below to register. Episode Summary Why unmanaged stress is the hidden reason you're tight, stiff, injured, and not recovering, even when your training and nutrition are dialled in. What's Covered How the stress response works: adrenaline, cortisol, and why your body stays stuck in fight or flight. What chronic cortisol does to muscle repair, recovery, injury healing, immune function, and sleep. The research: high-stress individuals recovered significantly slower over 96 hours post-training (Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research). Stressed individuals healed 24% slower from wounds, dental students 40% slower before exams (Kiecolt-Glaser, The Lancet). The stress bucket framework: stressors, your umbrella, release valves, and false taps. False taps: alcohol, doom scrolling, caffeine, stress eating, staying up late, over-training, and why they feel like relief but make things worse. Why stress management is a skill that expands your capacity to train harder, recover faster, and sustain performance for decades. Practical tools: breathing protocols, journaling, the mind dump, weekly planning, boundaries, non-negotiable routines, and sleep as the master lever. Rob's personal story: from chronic stress, smoking, and drinking to peak fitness at 49. Client stories: how addressing stress, sleep, and boundaries resolved recurring injuries that programme changes alone couldn't fix. Experts Referenced Dr. Robert Sapolsky (Stanford University), Dr. Gabor Mate, Prof. Janice Kiecolt-Glaser (Ohio State / The Lancet), Mayo Clinic, Columbia University, Dr. Matthew Walker (UC Berkeley), Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, StatPearls, ScienceDirect, MD Anderson Cancer Center. Your Challenge Identify one false tap. Name it. Write it down.Replace it with one real release valve. Start this week.Connect Instagram: @rob_telos FREE WEBINAR — Thursday 19th February on Zoom "Why Fit People Keep Getting Hurt" Free to attend. Limited spots. Link below to register. https://yourtelos.com/the-injury-loop

    43 min
  4. JAN 22

    Why Fit People Keep Breaking Down (& What You are Missing)

    If you train 4-6 days a week and your body still keeps failing you - tight hips, recurring back pain, that thing in your shoulder that never quite goes away - this episode explains why. It's not effort. It's not age. It's a missing foundation that nobody's taught you. Rob breaks down the evolutionary mismatch between how we live and how we were built to move, why "functional exercises" aren't actually making you function better, and exactly what to do about it. Whether you're stuck in the physio loop or just tired of feeling tight despite doing all the "right" things, this one's for you. What we cover: The three questions that changed how I approach training (and why most people have no answer to the third one)Why fit, active people who show up consistently still keep getting injuredThe difference between "functional training" and actually training your body to function betterJoint independence before joint interdependence—why your squat won't improve just by squattingFlexibility versus mobility: why passive stretching gives temporary relief but never lastsThe hardware versus software concept—why foam rolling and massage are just hacksEnd range strength training: what Bruce Lee understood that most gym-goers don'tWhy I feel fitter, stronger, and more mobile at 49 than I did at 35Key takeaways: Movement comes first. Everything else comes second.Sport is chaos—it breaks bodies, it doesn't build them. Your training should prepare you for the forces you're putting your body through.The "physio loop" isn't bad luck. It's usually missing prerequisites.Expand your ranges of motion. Build control in those ranges. Then execute.Train for the next 40 years, not the next 4 weeks.Connect with Rob: Instagram: @rob_telosEmail: info@yourtelos.comBook a discovery call here: https://yourtelos.com/platinum-application

    44 min

About

The TELOS Podcast records inspirational stories & in depth interviews from high performers from the sporting, business & health/fitness worlds. These humans are literally that - Human. Take inspiration from their humble beginnings, world class success & inevitable failures. We all have the power to be the Creator's, Explorer's & Hero's of our lives!

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