The Bodybuilding Dietitians

The Bodybuilding Dietitians

Welcome to The Bodybuilding Dietitians Podcast! Join your hosts Jack Radford-Smith, Lauren Stevens, and Damien Cox who are qualified dietitians, exercise scientists, and competitive bodybuilders. Each week we share evidence-based strategies to help you optimise your nutrition, training, performance, and body composition, while giving you a real look into the bodybuilding lifestyle on and off the stage. Expect practical tips on fat loss, muscle building, contest prep, gut health, and longevity, alongside honest discussions about our own journeys and interviews with leading experts in the health and fitness industry. Whether you’re a physique athlete, gym enthusiast, or simply someone wanting to improve your health, fitness, and nutrition knowledge, this podcast will educate, inspire, and guide you toward your goals. Learn more about our coaching and services at https://www.thebodybuildingdietitians.com We hope you enjoy!

  1. Muscle Retention Guide | What Matters Most When You Are in a Deficit

    3d ago

    Muscle Retention Guide | What Matters Most When You Are in a Deficit

    In this episode of The Bodybuilding Dietitians Podcast, we break down how to actually hold onto muscle when you are in a calorie deficit. We cover why perception of muscle loss is often inaccurate and why objective tracking matters before a deficit even begins. From there we get into how starting body fat percentage should influence your rate of loss, the research behind protein targets and why the commonly cited ceiling may undersell what leaner athletes actually need, and how carbohydrate distribution and peri-workout fuelling support training performance and indirectly protect lean mass. We also cover training volume management when recovery capacity is already reduced, and why sleep and stress are genuine muscle retention tools rather than optional considerations. We wrap up as always with what we learned this week. Enjoying the podcast? Make sure to subscribe, share the episode, and leave us a five-star rating or review, it really helps us grow and reach more listeners.   ⸻   Links & Resources Coaching Services – https://www.thebodybuildingdietitians.com/enquirenow  Website – https://www.thebodybuildingdietitians.com/   Instagram The Bodybuilding Dietitians – https://www.instagram.com/thebodybuildingdietitians/?hl=en Team TBD – https://www.instagram.com/_teamtbd_/?hl=en Jack Radford-Smith – https://www.instagram.com/jack.radfordsmith/?hl=en  Damien Cox – https://www.instagram.com/dietitian_damiencox/?hl=en Lauren Stevens – https://www.instagram.com/thephysiquedietitian_/?hl=en   ⸻

    44 min
  2. Why Your Fat Loss and Muscle Gain Has Stalled and What to Actually Fix

    May 24

    Why Your Fat Loss and Muscle Gain Has Stalled and What to Actually Fix

    In this episode of The Bodybuilding Dietitians Podcast, we unpack why putting in effort and following a strategy doesn't always lead to the results you expect. We start by looking at the growing role of AI chatbots in nutrition advice, where they fall short compared to real coaching, and why confident answers aren't always accurate ones. From there, we get into the practical side of fat loss stalls, including the difference between eating well and actually being in a deficit, how weekends can erase a week's worth of progress, and why individual variability means your calorie target might need adjusting regardless of what a calculator says. On the muscle gain side, we cover training execution, the importance of fuelling performance, and why nutrition supports but doesn't drive hypertrophy on its own. We also touch on setting realistic expectations, choosing the right metrics, and knowing which lever to pull when progress stalls. As always, we wrap up with what we learned this week.     ⸻ Links & Resources Coaching Services – https://www.thebodybuildingdietitians.com/enquirenow  Website – https://www.thebodybuildingdietitians.com/   Instagram The Bodybuilding Dietitians – https://www.instagram.com/thebodybuildingdietitians/?hl=en Team TBD – https://www.instagram.com/_teamtbd_/?hl=en Jack Radford-Smith – https://www.instagram.com/jack.radfordsmith/?hl=en  Damien Cox – https://www.instagram.com/dietitian_damiencox/?hl=en Lauren Stevens – https://www.instagram.com/thephysiquedietitian_/?hl=en     ⸻   Enjoying the podcast? Make sure to subscribe, share the episode, and leave us a five-star rating or review, it really helps us grow and reach more listeners.

    34 min
  3. Making Dieting Easier | Fat Loss Tips That Actually Work

    May 17

    Making Dieting Easier | Fat Loss Tips That Actually Work

    In this episode of The Bodybuilding Dietitians Podcast, we share practical strategies that make fat loss more sustainable. We talk through keeping food choices consistent day to day, why that doesn't have to mean boring eating, and how it helps reduce food noise and improve scale accuracy. We cover daily movement as an underrated expenditure lever, how fibre and food volume can shift hunger management, and the difference between true physiological hunger and appetite. We also explore why highly palatable foods and flavour enhancers can sometimes work against you in a deficit, eating window strategies including the risks of extreme backloading, and where time-restricted feeding fits depending on training timing. The episode wraps up, as always, with what we learned this week.   ⸻ Links & Resources Coaching Services – https://www.thebodybuildingdietitians.com/enquirenow  Website – https://www.thebodybuildingdietitians.com/   Instagram The Bodybuilding Dietitians – https://www.instagram.com/thebodybuildingdietitians/?hl=en Team TBD – https://www.instagram.com/_teamtbd_/?hl=en Jack Radford-Smith – https://www.instagram.com/jack.radfordsmith/?hl=en  Damien Cox – https://www.instagram.com/dietitian_damiencox/?hl=en Lauren Stevens – https://www.instagram.com/thephysiquedietitian_/?hl=en   ⸻   Enjoying the podcast? Make sure to subscribe, share the episode, and leave us a five-star rating or review, it really helps us grow and reach more listeners.

    34 min
  4. The Most Common Nutrient Deficiencies and How to Actually Fix Them

    May 10

    The Most Common Nutrient Deficiencies and How to Actually Fix Them

    In this episode of The Bodybuilding Dietitians Podcast, we cover the four nutrient deficiencies we see most commonly across our clients and in clinical practice. We discuss vitamin D, iron, magnesium, and omega-3, including how prevalent they are, why they matter specifically for active individuals, how to test for them properly, and what adequate intake actually looks like beyond standard reference ranges. We also cover how to address each through food first and where supplementation makes sense, including which forms and doses are worth using. As always, we wrap up with what we learned this week.   Whether you are a physique athlete, a recreational lifter, or someone looking to optimise their health and performance through nutrition, this episode is for you.   ⸻   Links & Resources Coaching Services – https://www.thebodybuildingdietitians.com/enquirenow  Website – https://www.thebodybuildingdietitians.com/   Instagram The Bodybuilding Dietitians – https://www.instagram.com/thebodybuildingdietitians/?hl=en Team TBD – https://www.instagram.com/_teamtbd_/?hl=en Jack Radford-Smith – https://www.instagram.com/jack.radfordsmith/?hl=en  Damien Cox – https://www.instagram.com/dietitian_damiencox/?hl=en Lauren Stevens – https://www.instagram.com/thephysiquedietitian_/?hl=en   ⸻   Enjoying the podcast? Make sure to subscribe, share the episode, and leave us a five-star rating or review, it really helps us grow and reach more listeners.

    32 min
  5. Fat Loss Guide | Rate of Loss, Macros & Metabolic Adaptation

    Apr 26

    Fat Loss Guide | Rate of Loss, Macros & Metabolic Adaptation

    In this episode of The Bodybuilding Dietitians podcast, we do a full breakdown on fat loss, covering everything from whether you are actually ready to diet through to what to do when progress stalls. We talk through dieting readiness, rate of loss, how aggressive you can afford to be depending on body composition and experience, and why protein targets in a deficit likely need to sit higher than what gets thrown around on social media. The conversation also covers cardio and NEAT as expenditure tools, why daily movement often drops more than people realise during a diet, and what metabolic adaptation actually looks like in practice versus the narrative that gets built online. We also discuss training in a deficit, performance red flags to watch for, and why progress photos, gym performance, and measurements deserve attention alongside the scale.   ⸻ Links & Resources Coaching Services – https://www.thebodybuildingdietitians.com/enquirenow  Website – https://www.thebodybuildingdietitians.com/   Instagram The Bodybuilding Dietitians – https://www.instagram.com/thebodybuildingdietitians/?hl=en Team TBD – https://www.instagram.com/_teamtbd_/?hl=en Jack Radford-Smith – https://www.instagram.com/jack.radfordsmith/?hl=en  Damien Cox – https://www.instagram.com/dietitian_damiencox/?hl=en Lauren Stevens – https://www.instagram.com/thephysiquedietitian_/?hl=en   Refalo et al. paper: https://journals.lww.com/nsca-scj/fulltext/9900/effect_of_dietary_protein_on_fat_free_mass_in.179.aspx  ⸻   Enjoying the podcast? Make sure to subscribe, share the episode, and leave us a five-star rating or review, it really helps us grow and reach more listeners.

    44 min
  6. How to Reduce Visceral Fat and Pre-Workout Ingredients Worth Taking

    Apr 12

    How to Reduce Visceral Fat and Pre-Workout Ingredients Worth Taking

    In this episode of The Bodybuilding Dietitians Podcast, we answer three listener questions, starting with how to reduce visceral fat more effectively, including realistic rates of loss, why visceral fat is more metabolically active than subcutaneous fat, and levers beyond a calorie deficit such as aerobic fitness, anti-inflammatory nutrition, sleep, stress, and alcohol. We then break down pre-workout supplements that actually have research support, including clinical dosing, timing, and why most off-the-shelf pre-workouts are generally underdosed. Finally, we discuss post-prep recovery priorities, the order in which the body restores function after a competition diet, realistic rate of gain in the first four to eight weeks, restoring energy availability, and specific considerations for female athletes around menstrual cycle recovery. The episode wraps up as always with what we learned this week!   ⸻ Links & Resources Coaching Services – https://www.thebodybuildingdietitians.com/enquirenow  Website – https://www.thebodybuildingdietitians.com/   Instagram The Bodybuilding Dietitians – https://www.instagram.com/thebodybuildingdietitians/?hl=en Team TBD – https://www.instagram.com/_teamtbd_/?hl=en Jack Radford-Smith – https://www.instagram.com/jack.radfordsmith/?hl=en  Damien Cox – https://www.instagram.com/dietitian_damiencox/?hl=en Lauren Stevens – https://www.instagram.com/thephysiquedietitian_/?hl=en     ⸻   Enjoying the podcast? Make sure to subscribe, share the episode, and leave us a five-star rating or review, it really helps us grow and reach more listeners.

    35 min
4.5
out of 5
77 Ratings

About

Welcome to The Bodybuilding Dietitians Podcast! Join your hosts Jack Radford-Smith, Lauren Stevens, and Damien Cox who are qualified dietitians, exercise scientists, and competitive bodybuilders. Each week we share evidence-based strategies to help you optimise your nutrition, training, performance, and body composition, while giving you a real look into the bodybuilding lifestyle on and off the stage. Expect practical tips on fat loss, muscle building, contest prep, gut health, and longevity, alongside honest discussions about our own journeys and interviews with leading experts in the health and fitness industry. Whether you’re a physique athlete, gym enthusiast, or simply someone wanting to improve your health, fitness, and nutrition knowledge, this podcast will educate, inspire, and guide you toward your goals. Learn more about our coaching and services at https://www.thebodybuildingdietitians.com We hope you enjoy!

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