Health Is A Skill with Todd Vande Hei

Todd Vande Hei
  • 5.0 (65)
  • HEALTH & FITNESS
  • UPDATED WEEKLY

Welcome to the Health is a Skill podcast with host Todd Vande Hei! Todd is the CEO of Stark, which exists to change the future of health and fitness in the communities they serve. For the last 15 years, Todd has been on a journey to discover what it means to be in a state of peak health. After suffering from a series of seizures and being diagnosed with high blood pressure and atrial fibrillation in his early 30’s, Todd decided it was time to make a change. Those changes fell into one of four categories: lifestyle, exercise, nutrition, and stress management. But the biggest thing Todd learned through it all? Health is a skill. You’re not born with it, like some would like you to believe, and it isn’t acquired by simply buying another product or starting that new diet. Health is something you can create for yourself, and over time it is possible to attain peak health.

  1. 6D AGO

    Why VO2 Max Improvements Are Hiding Your Real Health Crisis — The Testosterone, Sleep & HRV Truth

    He sits in the silence after asking the question—the one that makes high achievers stop scrolling. If the number goes up but everything else breaks, what exactly did you win? On Health Is a Skill, Todd Vande Hei examines the dangerous assumption embedded in modern health metrics: that the data leaders chase hardest are the ones most likely to destroy them. VO2 max has become a status symbol—executives post it, founders compete on it, wearables turned it into a leaderboard. But four to five weekly high-intensity sessions stacked on strength training, calorie restriction, and chronic sleep deprivation don't produce better health. They produce testosterone crashes, HRV collapse, sleep destruction, and abdominal fat accumulation while the watch celebrates the win. This conversation separates hard from effective. Leaders in their forties and beyond are playing a completely different game than the athletes they're trying to imitate. You'll leave with a reframed understanding of what optimization actually costs—and what it should deliver instead. Todd Vande Hei built Stark because he learned this the way most people do: by breaking first. His seizures, his firing, his financial collapse—they taught him that the assembly line model works for bodies the same way it works for Fortune 100 operations. Sustainable. Measurable. Built to last. Your health is a skill you can build. Start with the free resources at podtodd.com or explore team-based health optimization at stark.health

  2. MAR 19

    Epigenetic Clocks: Can You Actually Reverse Biological Age?

    What if your body is aging faster than your birthday suggests? In this episode, Todd Vande Hei breaks down the science behind epigenetic clocks, DNA methylation, and biological age testing. These emerging tools attempt to measure how quickly your body is aging at the cellular level — not just how many years you’ve been alive. But do these tests actually measure aging? And does lowering your biological age score really mean you’re reversing aging? Todd explains how methylation works, why biological age testing is promising but still limited, and why true longevity is driven by system-wide resilience, not a single biomarker. In this episode • What DNA methylation actually is and how it affects gene expression• How epigenetic clocks estimate biological age• The difference between chronological age and biological age• First-, second-, and third-generation epigenetic clocks• Why lowering methylation age does not mean “reversing aging”• How lifestyle changes influence biological aging signals• Why longevity is a systems problem, not a single metric• The functional health markers that matter most for lifespan Biological age testing can provide interesting insights, but it shouldn’t become the North Star. Longevity is about building resilience across multiple systems — metabolic health, cardiovascular fitness, recovery capacity, and cognitive clarity. To learn more about how Stark approaches real, measurable health optimization, visit https://stark.health. Your health is a skill you can build. Start with the free resources at podtodd.com or explore team-based health optimization at stark.health

    12 min

  3. MAR 12

    Mental Fitness: The Health Metric No One Is Measuring

    Everyone wants to optimize their body. Very few people are training their mind.In this episode, Todd Vande Hei breaks down the concept of mental fitness — the ability to maintain clarity, composure, and forward movement under pressure.You can track HRV, dial in your macros, and train relentlessly, but if your nervous system collapses under stress, your health will eventually collapse with it.Mental fitness isn’t about avoiding stress. It’s about training your nervous system to handle it.In this episode:• Why mental fitness is upstream from physical health• How stress perception drives cortisol, sleep, testosterone, and inflammation• The difference between mental fragility and mental resilience• Why modern comfort makes people neurologically weaker• The four pillars of mental fitness• How voluntary discomfort strengthens the nervous system• Why high performers often live in chronic fight-or-flight• Simple daily, weekly, and monthly ways to train mental resilienceMental fitness isn’t about eliminating stress.It’s about becoming larger than the stress you experience.To learn more about Stark’s approach to building real, sustainable health, visit https://stark.health. Your health is a skill you can build. Start with the free resources at podtodd.com or explore team-based health optimization at stark.health

    15 min

  4. MAR 5

    Why Your HRV Is Low (And What To Do About It)

    You track your HRV. You try to eat clean. You train. You supplement. You optimize.But your numbers still won’t rise.In this solo episode, Todd Vande Hei explains why HRV often drops in modern life — not because you’re weak, aging poorly, or genetically broken — but because your stress cycle never completes.Stress isn’t the problem. Incomplete stress is.If you don’t physically or emotionally discharge activation, your nervous system stays partially “on,” and HRV reflects that immediately. This episode breaks down the biology of stress completion and how to restore adaptability at any age.In this episode:• What HRV actually measures (and what it doesn’t)• Why stress must complete its cycle to allow recovery• The difference between activation and discharge• How modern life keeps the nervous system partially “on”• Two versions of the same stressful day — and why one restores HRV• What it really means to metabolize stress• How movement, sleep, and emotional resolution improve HRV• Why HRV isn’t a trophy — it’s feedback• The single most powerful lever to improve HRVIf you’re tracking HRV but not seeing progress, it may not be your age, your hormones, or your genetics.It may simply be that your stress isn’t finishing.To learn more about how Stark measures and improves nervous system adaptability, visit https://stark.health.Complete the cycle. Let your body recover Your health is a skill you can build. Start with the free resources at podtodd.com or explore team-based health optimization at stark.health

    11 min

  5. FEB 26

    Why Fasting Is Making Most Americans Weaker — Not Healthier

    Fasting has become one of the most popular health trends in America.But what if it’s quietly making most people metabolically weaker?In this solo episode, Todd Van De Hei challenges the modern obsession with intermittent fasting and explains why, for the majority of Americans, it may be doing more harm than good.After years of using fasting protocols inside Stark — and later integrating DEXA scans into their system — Todd and his team noticed a troubling pattern: people were getting smaller… but they were also getting frailer.The real issue isn’t calories. It’s muscle.Todd breaks down why muscle is your metabolic currency, how protein intake underpins nearly every system in your body, and why fasting layered on top of stress, low protein, and sedentary living often accelerates insulin resistance, hormone dysfunction, and chronic disease.Fasting isn’t evil. But for most unhealthy, under-muscled Americans, it’s mistimed.In This Episode, You’ll Learn:• Why intermittent fasting often leads to muscle loss — not just fat loss• What DEXA scans revealed about fasting inside Stark• Why most Americans are “under-muscled,” not just overweight• How low protein intake contributes to insulin resistance• Why fasting is a physiological stressor — and why that matters• The connection between muscle mass, hormones, and metabolic health• How protein supports detoxification, gut repair, and immune function• The difference between intermittent fasting and extended fasting• Who should avoid fasting altogether• When fasting may actually make sense Your health is a skill you can build. Start with the free resources at podtodd.com or explore team-based health optimization at stark.health

    30 min

  6. FEB 19

    Why High Performers Burn Out — and How to Evolve Without Losing Your Edge with Lane Kennedy

    High performers don’t think they have a stress problem. They think they have a performance problem. In this episode, Todd Van De Hei sits down with mindfulness teacher and genetic stress specialist Lane Kennedy to unpack why stress silently compounds in leaders, CEOs, and Type A achievers — and why success itself often becomes the trap.This conversation explores the hidden cost of hyper-vigilance, chronic sleep deprivation, and identity-level attachment to productivity. Lane shares how genetics, sleep windows, mindfulness, and practices like yoga nidra can help high performers evolve into their next chapter — without sacrificing ambition, clarity, or drive.This isn’t about slowing down.It’s about becoming sustainable.In This Episode, You’ll Learn:• Why stress often goes unnoticed in high performers until it shows up as exhaustion, irritability, or poor sleep• How success creates a powerful feedback loop that eventually turns against your health• What a “sleep window” is — and why missing it sabotages recovery• How chronic sleep debt impacts leadership, mood, and decision-making• Why high performers resist stress management — and what finally breaks that resistance• How genetics influence burnout, cognitive load, and long-term performance• Why mindfulness doesn’t need to look like meditation — and how to build a practice that actually worksKey TakeawayYou don’t lose your edge by evolving — you lose it by refusing to.About:Lane KennedyMindfulness teacher, genetic stress specialist, and leadership guideWebsite: laneKennedy.com Your health is a skill you can build. Start with the free resources at podtodd.com or explore team-based health optimization at stark.health

    42 min

  7. FEB 12

    Peptides Without the Hype: Signals, Safety & the Future of Longevity with Regan Archibald

    Peptides are everywhere right now—marketed as fat-loss shortcuts, anti-aging hacks, and miracle compounds. But what are they actually doing inside the body?In this episode, Todd Vande Hei sits down with Regan Archibald, founder of Ageless Future and host of the Unreasonable Health podcast, to strip away the hype and talk honestly about peptides: how they work, when they help, and where people get into trouble.This is a grounded, responsible conversation about peptides as biological signals—not lifestyle replacements—and how they fit into the future of longevity medicine.In This Episode, We Cover:• What peptides really are (and what they are not)• Why peptides work best as signals, not shortcuts• GLP-1s, metabolic health, and why misuse causes problems• The risks of “research-use-only” peptides• Why labs are non-negotiable before using peptides• Cycling vs. long-term peptide use• Peptides, brain health, recovery, and longevity• Where peptides, stem cells, and gene signaling are heading nextKey TakeawayPeptides don’t replace discipline or lifestyle—but when used responsibly, they can reveal what your body is capable of and help you build momentum toward long-term health.Learn MoreRegan Archibald: agelessfuture.comStark: https://stark.healthIf you enjoyed this episode, please like, subscribe, and share it with someone who’s curious about peptides—but wants the truth, not the hype. Your health is a skill you can build. Start with the free resources at podtodd.com or explore team-based health optimization at stark.health

    33 min

  8. JAN 29

    From Burned Out to Built Different — Matt Cook’s Stark Transformation

    What happens when someone stops guessing about their health and fully commits to a system?In this episode, Todd Vande Hei sits down with Stark student Matt Cook, host of The Pull Hook podcast, to unpack a seven-month transformation that reshaped Matt’s body, energy, sleep, digestion, athletic performance, and even fertility. What started as fatigue, weight gain, gut issues, and poor sleep turned into strength, clarity, resilience, and a completely different relationship with food and health.This is a real-world case study in what happens when coachability meets data-driven health optimization — and why most people don’t realize how unhealthy they are until they feel truly well.In This Episode• How Matt lost 30+ pounds and reversed years of fatigue in months• Why “eating healthy” isn’t the same as being healthy• The role of gut health in energy, immunity, and hormone balance• How sleep apnea resolved without a CPAP• Why strength, mobility, and cardiovascular health unlocked athletic performance• The connection between optimal health and fertility• What “coachability” really means in a health journey• Why health optimization becomes easier — not harder — over timeKey TakeawayYou don’t realize how much you’ve been surviving until your body finally starts working the way it was designed to.To learn more about Stark and health optimization, visit stark.health. Your health is a skill you can build. Start with the free resources at podtodd.com or explore team-based health optimization at stark.health

    1h 6m
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5
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65 Ratings

About

Welcome to the Health is a Skill podcast with host Todd Vande Hei! Todd is the CEO of Stark, which exists to change the future of health and fitness in the communities they serve. For the last 15 years, Todd has been on a journey to discover what it means to be in a state of peak health. After suffering from a series of seizures and being diagnosed with high blood pressure and atrial fibrillation in his early 30’s, Todd decided it was time to make a change. Those changes fell into one of four categories: lifestyle, exercise, nutrition, and stress management. But the biggest thing Todd learned through it all? Health is a skill. You’re not born with it, like some would like you to believe, and it isn’t acquired by simply buying another product or starting that new diet. Health is something you can create for yourself, and over time it is possible to attain peak health.

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