Iron Radio-Nutrition Radio Network

Coach Phil Stevens, Dr Mike T Nelson, Dr Lonnie Lowery, Coach Barber
  • 4.7 (10)
  • Nutrition
  • Updated Weekly

A rebooted Iron Radio and archives of Season Two of NutritionRadio.org are here! Stay up on breaking health news, exercise science, food trends, and innovations with professors, coaches, and guest co-hosts. Updated weekly. Legitimate content you trust, from educated, experienced podcasters as passionate as you are.

  1. Jun 8

    Enhanced Games

    Enhanced Games Recap: PEDs, PRs, Recovery, and the $10M Usain Bolt Bounty | Iron Radio In this Iron Radio episode, hosts Coach Phil Stevens, Dr. Mike T. Nelson, and Dr. Lonnie Lowery discuss the recent Enhanced Games, noting that unenhanced top-level competitors often beat enhanced entrants who were frequently retired for 5–14 years and had only about four months of prep, including roughly two months enhanced. They argue the results still showed meaningful effects, with many athletes—especially older ones—beating personal bests, and they highlight weightlifting as the sport with the most dramatic improvements, including an athlete opening 10 kg over his best and narrowly missing a world record at 30 kg over. They critique expectations of instant “Captain America” gains, discuss sport-specific tradeoffs (e.g., muscle mass and drag in swimming), mention strict FDA-approved protocols, heavy commercialization, major investors, prize payouts, Olympic bans, and a new $10M offer for breaking Usain Bolt’s 100m record, with plans toward 2027. 00:00 Show Intro and Hosts 00:46 Concert Banter and Updates 01:41 Enhanced Games Recap 03:29 Why Records Didn't Fall 04:44 Swimming vs Strength Sports 06:25 Strongman Drug Rules 08:12 Money Incentives and Olympics 11:22 Training Timeline and Oversight 12:51 Sponsors and TRT Clinics 17:18 Marketing and Mechanical Doping 20:10 Recovery Not Just Muscle 22:31 Ethics and Pro Sports Testing 24:24 Testing Is a Joke 25:00 Doping Culture by Sport 25:33 Olympics Arms Race 27:04 Genetics Skill and Reality 28:47 Bodybuilding Drug Debate 31:33 Capitalism and Sport Picks 32:32 Tech Suits and Gear Rules 34:17 Results PRs and Future 35:54 Timeframes and Supervision 37:51 Safety Monitoring Ethics 41:12 Wrap Up and Disclaimer Donate to the show via PayPal HERE. You can also join Dr Mike's Insider Newsletter for more info on how to add muscle, improve your performance and body comp - all without destroying your health, go to www.ironradiodrmike.com  Thank you! Phil, Jerrell, Mike T, and Lonnie

    42 min

  2. Jun 2

    Science Roundup: Supplements, Diet-Glasses, HDL

    Iron Radio: Do Supplements Beat Food for Vitamin Status? Wearable Food-Tracking Glasses + HDL, Exercise & Depression On Iron Radio, hosts Dr. Lonnie Lowery, Dr. Mike T. Nelson, and Coach Phil Stevens discuss Nelson’s Flex Diet Certification and how supplementation topics are integrated due to time constraints, plus his creatine research PDF. They review a new NHANES-based paper (Sternberg et al., May 2026) suggesting supplement use explains more variability in vitamin biomarkers (R² ~3–21%) than reported dietary intake (~0.8–8.8%), while noting limitations like recall bias, low explained variance, and imperfect biomarkers. They then examine a 2021 AIM2 wearable device that detects eating episodes and captures food images with ~83% accuracy, debating research benefits versus privacy and data-broker concerns. Finally, they critique a 2026 cross-sectional study linking physical activity, HDL cholesterol, and lower depression odds, arguing the effect is associative and likely non-causal, and expand into broader concerns about interpreting lipids in athletic populations and medical risk models. 00:00 Show Intro and Hosts 01:05 Flex Diet Cert and Supplements 03:23 Brevity in Science Talks 05:34 Talk Tactics and Backup Slides 08:22 Supplements vs Food Biomarkers 14:04 Vitamin D and Biomarker Limits 15:21 Iron Radio Feed Update 16:32 Newsletter and Book Plug 18:21 Wearable Food Tracking Glasses 21:00 Privacy and Data Broker Fears 23:21 VR Ads and Escape 23:53 Food Illusions and Conditioning 24:27 Research Uses vs Privacy 26:20 Testing Dietary Recall Accuracy 27:39 HDL Exercise and Depression Study 30:29 Is HDL Really Causal 33:21 Selling Results in Titles 35:02 HDL Drugs and High HDL Debate 37:08 Statins Risk Models and Exercise 40:15 Athlete Labs and Wrap Up Donate to the show via PayPal HERE. You can also join Dr Mike's Insider Newsletter for more info on how to add muscle, improve your performance and body comp - all without destroying your health, go to www.ironradiodrmike.com  Thank you! Phil, Jerrell, Mike T, and Lonnie

    42 min

  3. May 26

    Your Next Meet

    When Should You Compete Again? Timing Meets, Momentum, and Realistic Goals in Strength & Physique Sports In this Iron Radio episode, hosts Coach Phil Stevens, Dr. Mike T. Nelson, and Dr. Lonnie Lowery discuss how athletes decide what to do next after a meet or show and when to compete again. Phil explains how competition frequency often shifts from many meets per year early on to fewer events as lifters get stronger, older, and need more time to recover and make meaningful progress, sometimes using smaller meets as non-max “training day” run-throughs for clients. Mike describes prioritizing goals to avoid competitions that distract from main objectives, and notes the added challenges in physique sports where frequent shows can create a stressful 6–12 week “gray area” and lead to issues like water retention and inflammation, especially for natural athletes. They emphasize realistic expectations, honest coaching, and the value of outside perspective for planning and psychology. 00:00 Welcome and Hosts 01:18 When to Compete Again 02:07 Phil on Meet Frequency 03:51 Clients and Progress Planning 06:13 Warmup Meets Strategy 07:49 Powerlifting vs Physique Peaks 08:50 Mike on Priorities and Goals 10:51 Physique Sports Gray Zone 16:40 Iron Radio Feed Update 17:52 Mike Nelson Newsletter 18:30 New Supplement Book 19:39 Levrone Transformation Talk 20:16 Setting Realistic PR Goals 21:26 Getting Athletes To Eat 24:03 Dreams Versus Reality 24:33 Choosing Your Strengths 27:50 Managing Warrior Mode 30:41 Why Coaches Matter 32:35 Wrap Up And Disclaimer Donate to the show via PayPal HERE. You can also join Dr Mike's Insider Newsletter for more info on how to add muscle, improve your performance and body comp - all without destroying your health, go to www.ironradiodrmike.com  Thank you! Phil, Jerrell, Mike T, and Lonnie

    33 min

  4. May 20

    Fun Outside the Gym

    Iron Radio: Why Lifters Need Variety, Play, and “Accidental Exercise” (for Longevity & Brain Health) In this Iron Radio episode, Coach Phil Stevens, Dr. Mike T. Nelson and Dr. Lonnie Lowery discuss why strength athletes should include variety and recreational movement beyond specialized lifting, especially with aging. Phil cites evidence that most pro athletes were multi-sport as kids and argues that changing activities and training emphases can reduce injury, burnout, and loss of explosiveness. Mike explains the neurological benefits of movement in different planes and chaotic environments (eyes, vestibular system, proprioception), shares the GOAT drill as a warm-up, and suggests options like skateboarding, surfing, tennis, pickleball, juggling, and kettlebell juggling. The hosts emphasize “play,” hiking on real trails, and keeping at least minimal aerobic work so the gap between doing nothing and something doesn’t widen, while also cautioning older trainees to restart old skills at low intensity to protect tissues. 00:00 Welcome and Hosts 01:11 Why Variety Matters 03:56 Purposeful Play Training 05:44 Neuro Coordination Drills 09:31 Show Updates and Feeds 10:42 Newsletter and Book Plug 12:29 Aging Injury Proofing 17:09 Learning New Skills 19:35 Start Slow Stay Safe 21:09 Sprinting Risks and Tissue 23:28 Rebuilding Skills Slowly 24:10 Hiking for Real Movement 25:34 Ground Work and Aging 27:07 Sports as Cardio 28:09 Accidental Exercise Mindset 29:38 Playful Training Tools 31:15 Avoiding Specialization Traps 32:17 Offseason and Aerobic Base 34:06 Minimum Effective Conditioning 37:13 Juggling Desk Breaks 38:22 Flow Trainers and Hacky Sack 39:44 Wrap Up and Disclaimers Donate to the show via PayPal HERE. You can also join Dr Mike's Insider Newsletter for more info on how to add muscle, improve your performance and body comp - all without destroying your health, go to www.ironradiodrmike.com  Thank you! Phil, Jerrell, Mike T, and Lonnie

    41 min

  5. May 11

    Lifter Maladies

    Caffeine vs Paraxanthine, Sleep Quality, and Common Lifter Maladies (Injuries, Blood Work, Apnea, Aging) On Iron Radio, hosts Coach Phil Stevens and Dr. Lonnie Lowery (with Dr. Mike Nelson traveling) discuss a 2026 JISSN study on caffeine and its main metabolite paraxanthine in 14 male university rowers, finding the caffeine+paraxanthine combo improved 2,000m rowing performance versus placebo while caffeine-containing conditions worsened subjective sleep; they note key limitations including small sample size, subjective sleep measures, and unequal dosing (200 mg caffeine + 200 mg paraxanthine vs 200 mg of either alone). They then shift to “lifter maladies,” focusing on orthopedic issues (Phil’s MCL tear and training through injury), blood work and cholesterol swings, and the role of athlete compliance and monitoring versus gen pop. They also cover sleep apnea prevalence in large lifters, mental standards and training psychology, aging-related risks (ASCVD, prostate enlargement), and compensatory benefits like higher bone density and pain tolerance. 00:00 Show Intro and Hosts 00:59 Paraxanthine vs Caffeine Study 03:18 Study Results and Dose Debate 07:05 Training Timing and Stimulants 07:56 Network Updates and Where to Listen 09:07 Mike Nelson Newsletter Plug 09:45 Lonnie Lowery Book Announcement 10:54 Lifters Maladies Kickoff 11:11 Injuries and Orthopedic Wear 15:16 Aging Athletes and Family Limits 16:43 Blood Work and Health Monitoring 21:15 Mindset and Body Image Standards 23:17 Low Frequency Training 24:42 Sleep Apnea In Lifters 29:02 Exercise Risk Offsets 32:58 Food Health Tradeoffs 35:36 Pain Tolerance Legacy 38:28 Age Chronic Conditions 40:37 Mental Grit Closing 41:42 Sign Off Disclaimer Donate to the show via PayPal HERE. You can also join Dr Mike's Insider Newsletter for more info on how to add muscle, improve your performance and body comp - all without destroying your health, go to www.ironradiodrmike.com  Thank you! Phil, Jerrell, Mike T, and Lonnie

    42 min

  6. May 11

    Managing Discipline

    Iron Radio: When More Training Isn’t Better—Recovery, Identity, and Avoiding Burnout Hosts Coach Phil Stevens, Dr. Mike T. Nelson, and Dr. Lonnie Lowery discuss athletes who struggle to take breaks, emphasizing that high-level performers typically have a “release valve” and can relax outside their sport. They explain how training needs change from novice to advanced stages as heavier loads create greater recovery demands, making “less is more,” and note that aging and life stress can further reduce recovery capacity. The conversation covers signs of under-recovery (stale performance, persistently high RPE, reduced motivation, and appetite changes), the risks of overtraining, and strategies like reducing training frequency, coaching instead of doing more, adding hobbies and mindful recreation, proactive recovery practices, and using wearable data cautiously. They also highlight identity issues tied to the gym and the value of a third-party coach for perspective and accountability. 00:00 Welcome to Iron Radio 01:09 Why Athletes Need Breaks 03:05 When More Stops Working 05:10 Tracking Then Letting Go 06:18 Life Stress and Recovery 08:06 Recovery Tools and Hobbies 11:17 Identity Beyond the Gym 13:50 Mindful Play and Metrics 16:01 Show Updates and Links 19:32 Motivation as a Warning Sign 23:27 Discipline Versus Burnout 30:25 Capacity Building Long Term 32:47 Different Types of Recovery 33:40 Wrap Up and Disclaimer Donate to the show via PayPal HERE. You can also join Dr Mike's Insider Newsletter for more info on how to add muscle, improve your performance and body comp - all without destroying your health, go to www.ironradiodrmike.com  Thank you! Phil, Jerrell, Mike T, and Lonnie

    34 min

  7. Apr 28

    Evaluating Health Claims

    Iron Radio: Evaluating Online Health Claims, Peer Review, and “Healthy” Protein Debates Iron Radio hosts Coach Phil Stevens, Dr. Lonnie Lowery, and Dr. Mike T. Nelson discuss a Nature-referenced April 2026 report claiming over two thirds of people across 16 countries believe at least one false or unproven health claim, while noting the survey itself was not peer reviewed and criticizing vague terms like “unproven” and “healthy.” They highlight charged examples such as raw milk and the claim that animal protein is healthier than plant protein, arguing endpoints and context (for whom, compared to what) matter and that meta-analyses depend on study quality. The hosts describe how they assess evidence online, emphasizing skepticism of social media, seeking primary research, and questioning authority without politicizing science, while warning about AI repeating secondary claims. They also share Iron Radio feed updates and mention Nelson’s newsletter and Lowery’s supplements book. 00:00 Show intro and hosts 01:07 Lonnie background and topic setup 02:19 Nature survey on health myths 05:00 Raw milk and loaded language 05:58 Animal vs plant protein debate 08:31 Questioning science and meta-analyses 11:23 Phil on vetting online claims 13:39 Network updates and promos 16:37 Mike on evidence and AI pitfalls 20:16 Controls and compared-to-what 21:10 Finding Topics and Studies 22:29 Test It Yourself First 23:30 Questioning TRT and Root Causes 24:07 Lifestyle Before Prescriptions 26:48 It Depends and Study Methods 27:22 Raw Milk Risk and Sourcing 30:30 Keep Politics Out of Science 33:04 Science Skepticism and Gurus 35:25 AI Literature Reviews and Slop 37:30 Wrap Up and Disclaimer Donate to the show via PayPal HERE. You can also join Dr Mike's Insider Newsletter for more info on how to add muscle, improve your performance and body comp - all without destroying your health, go to www.ironradiodrmike.com  Thank you! Phil, Jerrell, Mike T, and Lonnie

    39 min

  8. Apr 20

    Phil's Family Meet 2026

    Iron Radio: Phil’s Powerlifting Meet Recap—Junior Records, State Records, and Lessons Learned On Iron Radio, hosts Coach Phil Stevens, Dr. Mike T. Nelson, and Dr. Lonnie Lowery recap Phil’s recent powerlifting meet involving his family and athletes. Phil describes weigh-ins, weight cuts, and meet outcomes for his group. His 10-year-old son Odin set new national records but had attempts overturned for small rule violations. His daughter Olivia, coming off wrestling with little meet-specific training, hit all lifts and set a state deadlift record at 365 and then 375 on a fourth record attempt. Lifter Cooper set a state squat record but bombed on bench due to command/technique issues. 15-year-old Max set a state bench record and posted strong squat and deadlift numbers.  Phil’s stepson Nick totaled 1600 with big PRs, training partner Austin went 9-for-9 and set state records, and Phil competed despite knee pain from a tendon issue/Baker’s cyst, managing a 600 squat and a 600 deadlift after a disputed call, while noting bench limitations from triceps/elbow lockout issues. The episode also covers judging strictness for records vs kids, minimal youth gear rules, upcoming meets (July Midwest Junior Championship leading toward higher-level events), and Phil’s plan to shift toward Highland Games while rehabbing and potentially returning to another meet later. 00:00 Show Intro and Hosts 01:32 Meet Day Setup and Weigh Ins 03:32 Odin Sets Records 06:12 Olivia Surprise PRs 08:29 Cooper Bomb Out Lessons 09:36 Max State Record Bench 10:25 Iron Radio Feed Updates 11:36 Newsletter and Book Plug 13:23 Nick Army to Powerlifting 16:10 Phil Knee Injury and Squat Attempts 21:00 Beltless Deadlift Choice 22:05 Red Light Controversy 22:37 Angry Pull at 600 23:33 Meet Vibes and Big Guys 24:46 Knee Update After Meet 25:38 Kids Gear Basics 27:43 Judging Kids and Records 32:11 Next Steps and Highland Games 34:10 Beltless Seven Hundred Plan 38:51 Closing and Disclaimer Donate to the show via PayPal HERE. You can also join Dr Mike's Insider Newsletter for more info on how to add muscle, improve your performance and body comp - all without destroying your health, go to www.ironradiodrmike.com  Thank you! Phil, Jerrell, Mike T, and Lonnie

    40 min
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About

A rebooted Iron Radio and archives of Season Two of NutritionRadio.org are here! Stay up on breaking health news, exercise science, food trends, and innovations with professors, coaches, and guest co-hosts. Updated weekly. Legitimate content you trust, from educated, experienced podcasters as passionate as you are.

Information

  • Creator
    Coach Phil Stevens, Dr Mike T Nelson, Dr Lonnie Lowery, Coach Barber
  • Years Active
    2023 - 2026
  • Episodes
    271
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2023-2024
  • Show Website
    Iron Radio-Nutrition Radio Network

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