wise athletes podcast

wise athletes podcast
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athletic longevity and peak performance as we age

  1. APR 18

    #180 | The Art of Avoiding Injury | Jeremy Bettle, PhD

    Professional Supplements for Wise Athletes (click to see the huge "always on" discount) Affordable (best pricing by far) Blood Testing at GoodLabs (use code WISE for 20% discount) Jeremy Bettle, PhD Award-winning coach and VITALITY expert UCSB – Director of Sports Performance Brooklyn Nets Basketball – Head of Strength & Conditioning, Director of Nutrition Toronto Maple Leafs Hockey – Director of Sports Science & Performance Anaheim Ducks Hockey – Director of High Performance New York City Football Club – Director of High Performance Vitality Collective – Co-Founder Bettle earned a Ph.D in human performance and a master’s degree in exercise science from Middle Tennessee State University. He also holds earned his bachelor’s degree in sport and exercise science from Leeds Metropolitan University (England). Vitality-Collective.com Discussion Points The Core Injury Framework Injuries happen when the demands of an activity exceed the capacity of the tissue being asked to perform. Demands come in three forms: force (how hard the impact), velocity (how fast the contraction must happen), and direction (planes of movement the tissue hasn't been trained for). Training is the process of systematically raising capacity to match and just slightly exceed demands — not avoiding demands. "The Sport Is Not Enough" Principle Playing your sport builds sport-specific fitness but does not prepare the tissues for the worst-case demands of that sport. The athlete who only cycles or only lifts has gaps in planes of movement that become injury sites the moment life — or a new activity like pickleball — demands something different. Training must prepare the body for more than the sport itself. The Range of Training That Matters Four modalities, all necessary: Strength training — high effort to near-failure, 8–12 reps; equivalent stimulus to heavy singles but dramatically lower injury risk Cardiovascular training — continuous aerobic work High-intensity intervals — critical for performance and longevity Power training / plyometrics — massively underrated, but inherently risky; must be earned through the progression below The Progression — Sequence Matters This cannot be rushed or reordered: Phase 1 — Foundation (weeks 1–8+): Core and hip training first. The core transfers force between upper and lower body — without it, every compound movement is a liability. Start with wall sits, hip work, fundamental movement patterns at 12–15 reps. Phase 2 — Strength: Progress to squat (goblet squat) and hinge patterns. Move from 12–15 reps down to 6–12 reps with heavier absolute load. This is where strength, muscle mass, body composition, and bone density gains accumulate. Phase 3 — Power (only after Phase 2 is established): Power = strength × speed. Sequence within this phase: Slow eccentric loading first (3–4 second descent on squats, pause, fast up) Fall-prevention drills: tip-toe fall-forward-and-catch, snap-downs Vertical jumps in place (no box required for masters athletes) Jump for distance, skater jumps side to side, single-leg jumps Box jump...

    55 min

  2. MAR 1

    #179 | TRT: Less is More | Nayan Patel PharmD

    Professional Supplements for Wise Athletes (click to see the "always on" discount) Nayan Patel, PharmD Doctor of Pharmacy (PharmD) degree from the University of Southern California School of Pharmacy and serves as adjunct faculty there. Hormone health influences everything from energy and sleep to mood, metabolism, and libido—yet mainstream treatments are often driven by generic protocols and limited lab interpretations. Dr. Patel has helped thousands of patients find clarity and results by looking beyond “normal” hormone levels and building therapy around how people actually feel and function. He offers a practical view into what personalized hormone care should look like—and where most systems are getting it wrong. He is globally regarded as an expert on glutathione, a molecule often referred to as the “master antioxidant,” and is recognized for research into its absorbable forms. He has authored a book titled The Glutathione Revolution: Fight Disease, Slow Aging & Increase Energy with the Master Antioxidant. Find Dr Patel here: centraldrugsrx.com and here: aurowellness.com Discussion Points The hard truth is that you cannot inject your way out of a broken lifestyle Sex hormone optimization is a necessary but small piece of the puzzle.   Extra (more than the minimum) TRT is a poor solution to overcome poor lifestyle for stress and diet, and it comes with extra negative side effects.  Find the least effective dose for your physiology; use bio-identical hormones (have to use every 1-3 days) How to “feel” like the young you. The solution pyramid is: Sex hormones— 10% (necessary for older athletes but not sufficient) Thyroid mgmt — 20% (pollution, autoimmune) Diet / insulin - 30% (over eating, visceral fat) Adrenals / Stress mgmt - 40% (lifestyle; sleep) Also have to address oxidative stress issues (glutathione).  Related Episodes & Links: Episode 178 | Athletic Longevity isn't Easy | Brenden Egan PhD Episode 155 | Hormonal Triple Whammy | Kyle Gillett MD Episode 144 | Muscle for Athletic Performance | Mark Tarnopolsky MD PhD Episode 115 | Winning Athletic Longevity | Rick Cohen MD & Daniel Tawfik, Healthspan Episode 102 | Maximizing Performance Health | Jim Lavalle R.Ph. Help the show: 3 ways to support our show:  Leave a review (or share this episode) Check out our Fullscript site to save big on high quality supplements. Thank you! Email us your questions at info@wiseathletes.com....

    1h 8m
  3. #178 | Athletic Longevity isn't Easy | Brendan Egan, PhD

    FEB 15

    #178 | Athletic Longevity isn't Easy | Brendan Egan, PhD

    Professional Supplements for Wise Athletes (click to see the "always on" discount) Brendan Egan, PhD Associate Professor of Sport & Exercise Physiology at Dublin City University Associate Dean for Research (Faculty of Science & Health) Current research investigates skeletal muscle function and adaptation across the life course, with special interest in the synergy between nutrition and exercise interventions ranging from athletes to older adults. Nutrients investigated include caffeine, creatine, omega-3 fatty acids, resveratrol, leucine, protein hydrolysates, beetroot juice, and exogenous ketones. Outside of academia, through his sporting career as an Gaelic footballer, Brendan has had a lifelong association with sport, training and performance at all levels of competition from grassroots to elite level, and also practices in the field as a performance nutritionist with emphasis on intermittent field-based team sports, and endurance athletes, most recently with the Dublin Hurlers and the Irish Paratriathlon team. Find Brendan's work here: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Brendan-Egan and contact info here: https://www.dcu.ie/researchsupport/research-profile?person_id=35443 https://sigmanutrition.com/episode591/ Discussion Points Personal Peak & Glide Path— peak as high and as late as possible, then hang on baby. “Use it or lose it”. It’s an old thing but now we lose faster and it’s harder to get back. Consistency is the name of the game now. Spikes in training load and intensity lead to injury which leads to inconsistent training. DO NOT GET INJURED! “I’m not what I was” — so true. I can't train like I used to because I can’t recover as quickly. (And don’t have as much time?)... and my body doesn’t respond to stimulus as well as it used to either...ergo, I'm not what I was. What to consider for improved recovery? Sleep, adequate protein, adequate carbohydrate fueling, hot/cold exposure, hydration, hypoxia exposure. Dr Egan likes a hot bath (me too). Testosterone falling? What else isn’t what it was? How important to get back to more youthful function of the body? Balancing calories surplus against calorie deficit. Keep fat and protein steady; ramp carbs to match activity (“fuel for the work required") Protein load: active older athletes probably don’t have anabolic resistance. May not need extra protein for age but probably do need extra for extra exercise. (1.5-1.6g/kg per day). It’s not a silver bullet of course. Collagen for tendons? It can t hurt. Get collagen into bloodstream right before (30 min?) workouts. Wallsits might help. Periodization of training. (3-5 weeks cycles). Keep it fun. Cover your bases. Build in time for recovery day to day as well as deep recovery every few weeks. Minimum effective dose?  What is the least attention I can put into an area of fitness to keep it alive.  Is there Inverted U shaped curve for fitness. More is better but too much is possible. Is that true? Too little time in other key elements of fitness? Performance vs. health and athletic longevity:  with time and recovery constraints, older athletes in particular have serious limitations.  If you put too much into one area of athleticism, you necessarily have to neglect others. ...

    1h 9m

  4. FEB 3

    #177 | Bodycomp FMD | Renee Fitton MS RD

    Professional Supplements for Wise Athletes (click to see the "always on" discount) Renee Fitton MS RD Renee is a Longevity Dietitian (she holds a masters degree in longevity nutrition earned with Dr Longo at UCLA) and she is the Director of Education at L-Nutra, the ProLon FMD company Using Fasting-Mimicking Diet (FMD) to manage body comp I’m not alone in my struggle to build muscle while reducing body fat. I recently completed an 18 month effort to do just that starting and ending with a Dexa scan to avoid any self deception. The results were not bad (16 —> 15% body) but I did not achieve my goal (I had essentially zero muscle growth and lost no visceral fat). I have always struggled with balancing calorie surplus (for recovery and adaption to exercise), with calorie deficit for body composition and achieving my goal of zero visceral fat.   I guess I need more help, eh?  In my talk with Renee we explore the topic of finding the minimum calorie and protein consumption (over time; not everyday) needed for the life I, you, anyone may want,  And the use of cycles of growth (calorie surplus, high protein, hard exercise overload) and then rejuvenation (calorie deficit, low protein, fat loss, autophagy, mitophagy) to find the path that preserves vitality and health and builds a platform for a good life.  The devil is in the details but in my mind the key is avoiding becoming addicted to the parts that makes us feel good about ourselves: the group we belong to, the way we look, the feeling of accomplishing something important. Such addiction leads to short term misallocation of invested time which leads to long term straying from the selected path. This is my own battle. Episode Resources fittennutrition.com Related episodes & links: Episode 142 | Balance Muscle & Longevity w/FMD | Joseph Antoun MD PhD Episode 137 | #1 Secret to Healthy Fat Loss | Vyvyane Loh MD Episode 135 | What's Your Healthy Fat%? | Vyvyane Loh MD Episode 144 | Muscle for Athletic Performance | Mark Tarnopolsky MD PhD Help the show: 3 ways to support our show:  Leave a review (or share this episode) Check out our Fullscript site to save big on high quality supplements. Thank you! Email us your questions at info@wiseathletes.com.

    51 min

  5. JAN 17

    #176 | Truth in Cycling | Jim Martin PhD

    Professional Supplements for Wise Athletes (click to see the "always on" discount) Jim Martin – The Cycling Scientist Dr. Jim Martin is a life-long competitive cyclist and well-known professor and researcher in exercise science whose work has had a strong impact on understanding cycling biomechanics and pedaling mechanics. He’s especially recognized for applying scientific methods to questions that many cyclists and coaches debate — like crank length, cadence, pedal stroke, and how muscles produce power on a bike. Topics Discussed? Crank length (mechanical advantage?  Same crank length on all bikes for neuromuscular optimization? Cadence (higher cadence allows faster response to attacks vs. standing up to accelerate which reduces muscular endurance).  Faster cadence reduces variation in power generated during pedal stroke which preserves muscle endurance Quad vs. glute power dominance / pedaling technique:  unweight hands. Pedaling technique: perfect circles like a mountain bike rider, mashing (like when standing up), pulling up to “unweight” the pedal coming up, and “scraping mud off shoe” (LeMond) Any training recommendations?  Single leg training?  Why?  How?  Eccentric or muscle lengthening training?  How to train it? Papers Reprint Determinants of Metabolic Cost JAP Reprint Determinants of Maximal Cycling Power Crank Length and Submaximal Biomechanics Related episodes & links: Episode 106 | Pain Free Cycling | Kevin Schmidt PT MSPT-CMP Episode 98 | Myvelofit Professional-Quality Bike Fit from Home | Jesse Jarjour Episode 87 | The Bike: Fun & Fitness Part 2 | Hunter Allen Episode 86 | The Bike: Fun & Fitness Part 1 | Hunter Allen Episode 9 | How to Pedal | Glen Winkel PhD, Masters World Champion Help the show: 3 ways to support our show:  Leave a review (or share this episode) Check out our Fullscript site to save big on high quality supplements. Thank you! Email us your questions at info@wiseathletes.com.

    1h 6m

  6. 11/30/2025 ·  BONUS

    Clip of Misfiring Mitochondria (shortened version)

    Professional Supplements for Wise Athletes (click to see the "always on" discount) Hemal H. Patel, PhD Professor & Vice-Chair for Development and Advancement Director, UCSD Cardiac/Neuro Protection Laboratories  VA Research Career Scientist, VA San Diego Healthcare Systemss Chief Scientific Advisor for Versea Discovery MeScreen -- Why Measure Mitochondria? Mitochondria live inside your cells and regulate energy, metabolism, and cellular signaling to drive your body’s physiology, endurance, and resilience. The function, dynamics, and efficiency of mitochondria correlate with either health and well-being or poor health and sickness. Normal aging, diet, exercise, exposure to stressors, and other variables have been proven to impact mitochondrial function (energetics) and dynamics (shape and size).¹⁻³ The maintenance of mitochondrial function and dynamics are essential to health.⁴ Individuals who have a disease, are sick, or are in poor health will have poorly functioning mitochondria and compromised dynamics. Individuals who eat properly, have good sleep hygiene, train, or exercise demonstrate improved mitochondrial function and dynamics. The mescreen™ is a mitochondrial efficiency screen that provides an energetic profile of your cells and ultimately of you. Establishing a baseline mescreen™ score and tracking it over time provides you with a tool to assess your mitochondrial function. mescreen™ is also part of an ongoing research project that will allow you to compare your mescreen™ score in the future against other populations that are sick, healthy, elite performance, and other to gauge where your cellular health and mitochondrial function are at. Episode Resources MeScreen.com (use "WiseAthletes" for a $100 discount on a mescreen test) @hemalpatelphd Related episodes & links: Episode 175 | Misfiring Mitochondria | Hemal Patel PhD Episode 168 | Mito Boosters | Healthspan Episode 161 | Omega 3 | Bill Harris PhD Episode 154 | Adaptive Range Expansion for Peak Performance | Mike T Nelson PhD Episode 144 | Muscle for Athletic Performance | Mark Tarnopolsky MD PhD Help the show: 3 ways to support our show:  Leave a review (or share this episode) Check out our Fullscript site to save big on high quality supplements. Thank you! Email us your questions at info@wiseathletes.com.

    20 min

  7. 11/30/2025

    #175 | Misfiring Mitochondria | Hemal Patel PhD

    Professional Supplements for Wise Athletes (click to see the "always on" discount) Hemal H. Patel, PhD Professor & Vice-Chair for Development and Advancement Director, UCSD Cardiac/Neuro Protection Laboratories  VA Research Career Scientist, VA San Diego Healthcare Systemss Chief Scientific Advisor for Versea Discovery MeScreen -- Why Measure Mitochondria? Mitochondria live inside your cells and regulate energy, metabolism, and cellular signaling to drive your body’s physiology, endurance, and resilience. The function, dynamics, and efficiency of mitochondria correlate with either health and well-being or poor health and sickness. Normal aging, diet, exercise, exposure to stressors, and other variables have been proven to impact mitochondrial function (energetics) and dynamics (shape and size).¹⁻³ The maintenance of mitochondrial function and dynamics are essential to health.⁴ Individuals who have a disease, are sick, or are in poor health will have poorly functioning mitochondria and compromised dynamics. Individuals who eat properly, have good sleep hygiene, train, or exercise demonstrate improved mitochondrial function and dynamics. The mescreen™ is a mitochondrial efficiency screen that provides an energetic profile of your cells and ultimately of you. Establishing a baseline mescreen™ score and tracking it over time provides you with a tool to assess your mitochondrial function. mescreen™ is also part of an ongoing research project that will allow you to compare your mescreen™ score in the future against other populations that are sick, healthy, elite performance, and other to gauge where your cellular health and mitochondrial function are at. Episode Resources MeScreen.com (use "WiseAthletes" for a $100 discount on a mescreen test) @hemalpatelphd Related episodes & links: Episode 168 | Mito Boosters | Healthspan Episode 161 | Omega 3 | Bill Harris PhD Episode 154 | Adaptive Range Expansion for Peak Performance | Mike T Nelson PhD Episode 144 | Muscle for Athletic Performance | Mark Tarnopolsky MD PhD Help the show: 3 ways to support our show:  Leave a review (or share this episode) Check out our Fullscript site to save big on high quality supplements. Thank you! Email us your questions at info@wiseathletes.com.

    58 min

  8. 11/01/2025

    #174 | Dodging Dementia in the Older Athlete | Amanda Wiggins, PhD

    Professional Supplements for Wise Athletes (click to see the always discount) Amanda Wiggins, PhD Amanda Wiggins completed a BSc(Hons) in Neuroscience at University of Otago in New Zealand. University of Otago She then earned a PhD in neuroscience at the University of Melbourne in Australia. University of Otago Her interest lies in turning neuroscience/brain research into useful products — especially given the rising prevalence of neurological conditions as populations age. In our conversation..... What “brain-fitness” means in the context of an athlete who’s been training for years and now faces the extra variable of aging and brain-health risk. How to measure risk. The research-based links between physical activity, vascular health, cognitive resilience, and how athletes might benefit—or in some cases put themselves at risk—if they don’t pay attention. Practical, actionable habits and interventions that older athletes can adopt today to sharpen their mind, and guard against memory loss, dementia or cognitive decline. And lastly: how to take all this science and apply it to training, recovery, lifestyle and mindset in a way that feels meaningful, sustainable and empowering. cGP Supplement -- Why take it? (from cGP Health website) From around the age of 50, IGF-1 activity naturally begins to decline, and this process can be accelerated by stress, poor lifestyle choices, or specific genetic conditions. When IGF-1 levels or function are reduced, the body’s demand for cGP increases, yet it becomes harder to produce enough. Without adequate cGP, IGF-1 cannot work effectively, which may affect brain health, cardiovascular wellbeing, and energy levels. Episode Resources Foodforthebrain.org www.cgp-health.com How to Order cGP: https://cgpmax.com/ https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(24)01296-0/abstract Related episodes & links: Episode 161 | Omega 3 Science vs Hype | Bill Harris PhD Episode 154 | Adaptive Range Expansion for Peak Performance | Mike T Nelson PhD Episode 147 | Solving Inflammaging | Dwayne Jackson PhD Episode 135 | What's Your Healthy Fat %? | Vyvyane Loh MD Help the show: 3 ways to support our show:  Leave a review (or share this episode) Check out our Fullscript site to save big on high quality supplements. Thank you! Email us your questions at info@wiseathletes.com. *Thi...

    1 hr
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athletic longevity and peak performance as we age

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  • Creator
    wise athletes podcast
  • Years Active
    2020 - 2026
  • Episodes
    190
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    © 2020-2025 wise athlete podcast
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