AdapNation: all things Self-Optimisation!

Here's something VERY different!

Listen to this cinematic podcast episode (audio version of this video) where Steve explains his story and the motivation behind everything we do at AdapNation, including the creation of the unique #BeYourBest Self-Optimisation Journey.

As a fan of the AdapNation Podcast, the underlying message here should resonate deeply. We're all on this journey of self-discovery and self-optimisation together!

I (Steve) love exploring these ideas, having incredible guests on the show, and being able to share incredible insights with you all. Most importantly, your responses and support fills me with a sense of purpose and passion that I didn't think I'd feel. Thank you.

Normal service resumes next week. Some awesome guests discussion recorded and ready for your listening pleasure. ☺️

Comment on the AdapNation Show Notes for this episode, share a tagged post on social, and please leave us a review in your Podcast Platform if you like what we're doing.

Episode Show Notes: https://adapnation.io/118-beyourbest-journey-story/

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If you like this and other AdapNation episodes, please don't forget to subscribe to the channel, as well as leaving a 5 star review and letting friends and family know of this Podcast on Social Media.

Negative Funks and Harmful Rumination - I’m not immune to these toxic states and thoughts, even when I know better!

I (Steve) keep my guard low on this show generally, and have no issue exposing my struggles and weaknesses for us all to learn from. But, there’s being open and relaxed, and then there is being truly transparent. Completely letting your guard down, and letting the raw and ugly truth come out.  

In this episode with Bryn Jenkins, this is exactly what I did. It was like therapy - a session on the ‘Dr Jenkins’ couch! 

I wanted to air this chat, because we all want to show the world that we’ve got our shit together. To downplay the negative and ugly aspects of our personality and behaviours. But, here’s the thing - we can’t complete avoid periods of negative mindsets. Not even self-optimising Mr #BeYourBest! 

We can’t always be happy, even though that’s the dream - the societal expectation. Being unhappy is seen as a failure, yet in spite of many low moments, people achieve the most incredible lives. What gives? 

What I think you’ll find interesting in this chat was the on-the-mic realisation that I am likely deficient in some Psychological Nutrients. And that, there is a of Self-Sabotage in all of us.  

I know better - mentally, academically and through personal experience, and yet I allow myself to to brew negativity and harmful non-productive thoughts from time to time. January 2020 tested me, and for no obvious reason... 

Reasons for my negative thought spirals (Full Show Notes) -  https://adapnation.io/117-steve-negative-funks/ 

The #BeYourBest Journey : https://adapnation.io/beyourbest-journey/ (£10 coupon BESTYEAR-2020) 

Referenced in Show:

▪︎ Nir Eyal interview - #109: How to Become Indistractable 

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If you like this and other AdapNation episodes, please don't forget to subscribe to the channel, as well as leaving a 5 star review and letting friends and family know of this Podcast on Social Media.

AdapNation Useful Links:

■ The #BeYourBest Self-Optimisation Journey 

■ Social - Instagram & Facebook & Tons of Free Website Content 

■ #HyperWorkouts - Expertly written Gym Workout Plans, with video guides, print-outs & HeavySet import 

■ AdapNation Butler - An Online Personal Assistant that can inspire easy and tasty Home-cooking 

■ AdapNation Food Diary - 100’s of Tasty Healthy Meal Ideas, that are focussed on helping you thrive 

Keto Muscle Building guru Danny Vega joins us for a part two on Keto, but this time the focus is on maximally building muscle whilst on a ketogenic diet.

Danny first joined us on the show in Episode 108, where we laid down the Keto knowledge, definitions and life benefits from taking a low carb and nose-to-tail approach to nutrition. In this episode, we decided to get really curious and specific as it relates to performance and muscle growth.  

For as long as there have been bodybuilding bros and athletes, there has been a strong emphasis on consuming a lot of carbs to fuel performance and to get bigger and stronger. Therefore, the natural response to a Keto Diet is that it will be suboptimal for athletic and bodybuilding goals. 

Is this a true statement? Are carbs essential to maximise progress? Can you build appreciable muscle on a low carb or Keto diet? What sacrifices are you making in doing so? 

These are important questions, as is the question about how to intelligently introduce carbs into a low carb diet and still maintain ketosis and fat adaptation when you have very specific training goals. And, what performance issues can you expect as you transition into a ketogenic or low carb lifestyle?

Danny helps answer these questions with detail, relatability and non-dogmatically - offering us all some great Keto muscle building intelligence. Some of which will surely surprise many listeners.  

This episode is great for everyone, whether you are in a low carb diet or not, as we cover many physiologic response to our diets and the effects that has on our training and muscle development. 

 Enjoy! 

Check out the Full Show Notes of What’s Discussed -   https://adapnation.io/116-danny-vega-keto-muscle/

The #BeYourBest Journey : https://adapnation.io/beyourbest-journey/ (£10 coupon BESTYEAR-2020) 

Where to find DANNY VEGA and his work:

▪︎ Instagram - @dannyvega.ms, @fatfueledmom & @fatfueledkids 

▪︎ Keto Muscle Intelligence - Keto muscle building nutrition and training program and coaching 

▪︎ Carnivore Keto Cut - Danny’s successful and enjoyable 30 day weight loss cutting program 

▪︎ 5 Mistakes Behind Keto Muscle Building - free downloadable guide 

▪︎ Fat Fueled Family - The Podcast & The Website 

▪︎ Facebook - Danny Vega 

Referenced in Show:

▪︎ Ben Pakulski & joint-venture Muscle Intelligence Keto Plan 

▪︎ Keto Savage - Robert Sikes 

▪︎ Dr Benjamin Bikman - Leading Insulin expert 

▪︎ UCAN Superstarch - A Keto-friendly carb supplement 

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If you like this and other AdapNation episodes, please don't forget to subscribe to the channel, as well as leaving a 5 star review and letting friends and family know of this Podcast on Social Media.

AdapNation Useful Links:

■ The #BeYourBest Self-Optimisation Journey 

■ Social - Instagram & Facebook & Tons of Free Website Content 

■ #HyperWorkouts - Expertly written Gym Workout Plans, with video guides, print-outs & HeavySet import 

■ AdapNation Butler - An Online Personal Assistant that can inspire easy and tasty Home-cooking 

■ AdapNation Food Diary - 100’s of Tasty Healthy Meal Ideas, that are focussed on helping you thrive 

Mattias Ribbing, aka Grand Master of Memory, walks us through his most powerful techniques and concepts behind developing a strong memory, that in turn optimises learning and super charges our ability to understand. 

Mattias held the Swedish Memory Champion title for three years in a role, and was internationally named the Grandmaster of Memory. Competing in memory sports, he would do things such as quickly memorising 1060 random digits without a mistake! 

Today, however, Mattias is the author of four books and a renowned speaker. His focus is no longer on spectacular feats of memory, but instead helping children and adults massively improve their ability to learn through engineering understanding and remembering through visualisation.

Memory is so much more than an ability to reel off some facts, remember someones name, or recite a phone number. Memory is the cornerstone of human experience, and a stronger memory will enrich your life. From learning new things and developing new ideas to vividly recalling past experiences and designing your best life based on your acquired wisdom.

So, if you wish you could remember more of what you read or listened to - both the main ideas as well as the details, then this episode is a must! If you want to develop your expertise, make maths easier, and generally remember more of your life, then Mattias offers some incredible yet simple insights into how great minds do it.  

Check out the Full Show Notes of What’s Discussed -   https://adapnation.io/115-memory-mattias-ribbing/

The #BeYourBest Journey : https://adapnation.io/beyourbest-journey/ (£10 coupon BESTYEAR-2020) 

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If you like this and other AdapNation episodes, please don't forget to subscribe to the channel, as well as leaving a 5 star review and letting friends and family know of this Podcast on Social Media.

AdapNation Useful Links:

■ The #BeYourBest Self-Optimisation Journey 

■ Social - Instagram & Facebook & Tons of Free Website Content 

■ #HyperWorkouts - Expertly written Gym Workout Plans, with video guides, print-outs & HeavySet import 

■ AdapNation Butler - An Online Personal Assistant that can inspire easy and tasty Home-cooking 

■ AdapNation Food Diary - 100’s of Tasty Healthy Meal Ideas, that are focussed on helping you thrive 

Learn Menno’s definitive guide to weight training programme design in the densely packed episode.

Menno Henselmans is one of the few popular voices in muscle building and fat loss that speaks from a truly evidence-based standpoint, is not dogmatic, and has also walked the walk.

Menno is know for many things, including his support of the sciences, his enviable physique, and world class coaching practice. But the biggies are most probably his positions on Training Volume, Training Frequency and Training Recovery to maximise muscle growth.

So, for that reason, we dedicated this interview to Menno providing us with his definitive position on optimal weight-training programming design for you, me and every other non-competing gym over who wants to look good naked.

We’ll cover Menno’s thoughts on Consistency, Training Volume, Progressive Overload, Rep Ranges, Intensiveness, Training to Failure, Recovery, Frequency, periodisation and a few other things too.

Check out the Full Show Notes of What’s Discussed -  https://adapnation.io/114-menno-henselmans/

The #BeYourBest Self-Optimisation Journey : https://adapnation.io/beyourbest-journey/ (£10 coupon BESTYEAR-2020) 

Where to find Menno Henselmans and his work:

▪︎ Main website - https://mennohenselmans.com

▪︎ Menno’s Free Email Course on Building Muscle and Losing Fat 

▪︎ Instagram - @menno.henselmans

▪︎ Facebook - MennoHenselmans

Third Party References:

▪︎ Christian Thibaudeau - pt1, pt2, pt3 and pt4 

▪︎ Paul Carter

▪︎ Brad Schoenfield

▪︎ Lyle McDonald

▪︎ Alan Aragon

▪︎ Mike Israeltel

▪︎ Eric Helms

▪︎ Layne Norton

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If you like this and other AdapNation episodes, please don't forget to subscribe to the channel, as well as leaving a 5 star review and letting friends and family know of this Podcast on Social Media.

AdapNation Useful Links:

■ The #BeYourBest Self-Optimisation Journey 

■ Social - Instagram & Facebook & Tons of Free Website Content 

■ #HyperWorkouts - Expertly written Gym Workout Plans, with video guides, print-outs & HeavySet import 

■ AdapNation Butler - An Online Personal Assistant that can inspire easy and tasty Home-cooking 

■ AdapNation Food Diary - 100’s of Tasty Healthy Meal Ideas, that are focussed on helping you thrive 

Joe DeFranco joins us for a masterclass on training for Speed and Sports Performance.  

Joe, with 22+ years Sports & Conditioning experience has trained 1000’s of athletes, and contributed to some incredible careers in NFL, Rugby, Figure Skating, Skiing and many more sports. 

Joe’s the go-to S&C trainer in the college football space, and made his name helping these young men excel in the NFL Combine. He’s also a leader online, with his Podcast and popular Instagram feed, as well as his renowned CPPS coaching certification. 

This interview extends the conversation of #107: How to Improve Sport Performance and Body Mechanics, where Joe’s top coaching principles were shared by Bryn Jenkins. If you are keen to understand how to improve your sport specific speed and sprinting, this latest episode is is absolute gold! 

There are gems for Coaches and Trainees alike - helping us all understand what a great coach is, and how a solid coach-trainee relationship can have an enormous impact. 

Check out the Full Show Notes of What’s Discussed -  https://adapnation.io/113-joe-defranco-speed/

The #BeYourBest Journey : https://adapnation.io/beyourbest-journey/ (£10 coupon BESTYEAR-2020) 

Where to find Joe DeFranco and his work:

▪︎ Instagram - @defrancosgym 

▪︎ CPPS Certification Website - https://cppscoaches.com 

▪︎ CPPS Online Certification - https://cppsacademy.com 

Third Party References:

▪︎ Christian Thibaudeau - pt1, pt2, pt3 and pt4 

▪︎ James Smith (Joes biz partner) - @smittydiesel  

▪︎ Prof. Peter O’Sullivan on Back Pain 

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If you like this and other AdapNation episodes, please don't forget to subscribe to the channel, as well as leaving a 5 star review and letting friends and family know of this Podcast on Social Media.

AdapNation Useful Links:

■ The #BeYourBest Self-Optimisation Journey 

■ Social - Instagram & Facebook & Tons of Free Website Content 

■ #HyperWorkouts - Expertly written Gym Workout Plans, with video guides, print-outs & HeavySet import 

■ AdapNation Butler - An Online Personal Assistant that can inspire easy and tasty Home-cooking 

■ AdapNation Food Diary - 100’s of Tasty Healthy Meal Ideas, that are focussed on helping you thrive 

AdapNation is all about removing roadblocks and enabling you to #BeYourBest. And when it comes to roadblocks… Back Pain is the leading cause of disability globally!

But… have we placed far too much emphasis on ageing, degeneration, injury, surgery and opioid medications where it comes to the discussion and treatment of back issues?

Be prepared to hear a different story. We’ve got on the refreshing and ground breaking Professor Peter O'Sullivan on the show to give us a crash course on the reality of our backs, back pain management, and how to have a healthy back into your old age.  

Peter is a Professor of Musculoskeletal Physiotherapy at Curtin University, Perth, is one of the most influential and innovative names in this specialty - with half his time spent on clinical research into Pain and pain disorders, and the other hand of his time treating 1000’s people with pain issues. 

As always, this is an insightful and hugely practical interview, with big ideas, mind-blowing concepts, and has the potential to make a big difference to so many peoples lives.

Full Show Notes of what we discussed -  https://adapnation.io/112-back-pain-peter-osullivan/

#BeYourBest Journey : https://adapnation.io/beyourbest-journey/ (£10 coupon BESTYEAR-2020) 

Get Your Free #BeYourBest Scorecard - https://adapnation.io/beyourbest-journey/scorecard/ 

Where to find Prof Peter O'Sullivan and his work online:

▪︎ Twitter - @PeteOSullivanPT 

▪︎ Pain Health - https://painhealth.csse.uwa.edu.au 

▪︎ Pain-Ed - http://www.pain-ed.com 

Third Party References:

▪︎ John E Sarno - The Mind/Body Prescription & Healing Back Pain 

▪︎ Michael Ray - Chiropractor, pain specialist and part of Barbell Medicine 

▪︎ Mark Rippetoe 

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If you like this and other AdapNation episodes, please don't forget to subscribe to the channel, as well as leaving a 5 star review and letting friends and family know of this Podcast on Social Media.

AdapNation Useful Links:

■ The #BeYourBest Self-Optimisation Journey 

■ Social - Instagram & Facebook 

■ #HyperWorkouts - Expertly written Gym Workout Plans, with video guides, print-outs & HeavySet import 

■ AdapNation Butler - An Online Personal Assistant that can inspire easy and tasty Home-cooking 

■ AdapNation Food Diary - 100’s of Tasty Healthy Meal Ideas, that are focussed on helping you thrive 

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!! The time to be merry, connect with family, eat well… and reflect on how we showed up through the course of the year. 

Sticking to the AdapNation ritual, Bryn and Steve get together with hot drink in hand just before Christmas, to look back at the year just been and honestly self-reflect on our performance and satisfaction. Oh, and a biiiiiig announcement…. 

Did we do what we said we would? Have we lived up to our values and expectations? Did we miss the target on any of our 2019 declared themes? Were there any pleasant surprise victories along the way? 

It’s such a cathartic and and inspiring process. Hopefully our honesty, reflection and questions spark a similar process for you and those close to you. 

Here’s the format of our reflection & planning - https://adapnation.io/111-2019-reflections-and-big-announcement

HUGE Announcement!

Perfectly timed and relevant to this 2020 goal setting process, we’ve just launched the #BeYourBest Self-Optimisation Journey! A unique and life-transforming 100 day offering that is set to counteract the modern-day challenges we face, and give you the edge to #BeYourBest across your mindset, nutrition, exercise, replenishment, physique… and life holistically! 

Steve passionately shares this news (1:06:40), including the problem we are attempting to address, the 2020 challenges ahead, the need for better solutions, what the #BeYourBest Journey is, and how it works. This truly has been a labour of love over two years! 

#BeYourBest Journey : https://adapnation.io/beyourbest-journey/ 

Get Your Free #BeYourBest Scorecard - https://adapnation.io/beyourbest-journey/scorecard/ 

£10 OFF COUPON: HPY-XMAS19-10 (expires in Jan 2020)

Dr. Bill Schindler, the hands-on anthropologist and archeologist, and overall student of prehistoric and indigenous cultures and tooling, joins us today for what is a truly fascinating and thought provoking discussion on our evolution as a species.

Bill’s on a mission to take the archaeological record and get the truth out there to the masses. He believes is we can all better understand our evolutionary past, and what critical nutritional and tooling decisions were made along the way to result in the most capable species on the planet, then we will know how to thrive as individuals today.

It’s astounding just how much we know about our early cultures, practices, diets, food processing, tooling and how we acquired our food.

Furthermore, the strong linkage we have established between an increase in nutrient density in our diets and the explosion in body size, brain volume, intelligence, social skills and proliferation is a compelling call to better respect the power of nutrition.

In this episode, Bill helps us understand the connection between the technology we developed, and our very existence! That without the food acquiring and processing tools we developed and harnessed, we simply would not be. This is powerful stuff!

This episode strongly makes the case to return to an ancestral-influenced diet, with evidence and logic that is hard to refute.

Check out the show notes for a full run down of what we cover. Enjoy! This will absolutely help you #BeYourBest.

Full Show Notes of what we discussed -  https://adapnation.io/110-bill-schindler-evolution/

Where to find BILL SCHINDLER and his work online :

▪︎ The Dr Bill Schindler website

▪︎ Themodernstoneagefamily.com & themodernstoneagediet.com

▪︎ Social - Twitter (@DrBillSchindler),, Instagram (@DrBillSchindler), Facebook (drbillschindler)

▪︎ Bill Schindler, starring in National Geographic's The Great Human Race

▪︎ Discovery Channel Naked and Afraid TV Show 

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If you like this and other AdapNation episodes, please don't forget to subscribe to the channel, as well as leaving a 5 star review and letting friends and family know of this Podcast on Social Media.

AdapNation Useful Links:

■ Social - Instagram & Facebook

■ AdapNation Butler - An Online Personal Assistant that can inspire easy and tasty Home-cooking

■ AdapNation Food Diary - 100’s of Tasty Healthy Meal Ideas, that are focussed on helping you thrive

■ #HyperWorkouts - Expertly written Gym Workout Plans, with video guides, print-outs & HeavySet import

Nir Eyal, a foremost leader in understanding behaviour design, habit formation, and developing compelling technology, joins us today for a truly fascinating and highly relatable discussion on the modern plague - DISTRACTION.

Full Show Notes of what we discussed - https://adapnation.io/109-indistractable-nir-eyal/

Nir has been advising companies for years on how to design tech that gets us hooked. Who better to seek counsel from than an industry insider when it comes to hacking back and reclaiming our focus?! Nir wrote the book (literally) on how to get people hooked on tech, as well as how to become indistractable.

If you want to live the most fulfilled life and achieve what you really want, in line with your values, then you must develop a framework and mindset that limits the distraction and noise, and allows you more traction in the things that really matter. Distraction pulls us away from action, and often break our own rules and values. So why do we allow it to happen… all the time?!

That’s exactly what we’re going to cover in this episode. The what, why and how of distraction, at the scientific and deeply psychological level. You’ll better understand your behaviours - which are natural human behaviours, as well as understanding how you can claim back control.

We also spend a lot of time discussing the elephant in the room. Whether we should be blaming the big tech giants for causing deep distraction and the growing mental health crisis. Are they really the issue? Are we doomed to fall under their spell and get less and less important stuff done? 

Are our kids destined for a terrible future due to social media in their lives? Are they powerless to the ever strengthening algorithms?

This and so much more. You’ll love this one, I’m sure! You may even relate to Steve’s issues with distraction and pain avoidance... 

Where to find NIR EYAL and his work online :

▪︎ Nir’s website, info on being Indistractable, and where to claim the bonus materials - NirAndFar.com/Indistractable

▪︎ The Book - Indistractable: How to Control You Attention And Choose Your Life

▪︎ Nir’s Schedule Maker Tool

▪︎ Nir’s Distraction Guide & Habits vs Routines articles

▪︎ Social - Instagram (@neyal99) and Twitter (@nireyal)

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If you like this and other AdapNation episodes, please don't forget to subscribe to the channel, as well as leaving a 5 star review and letting friends and family know of this Podcast on Social Media.

AdapNation Useful Links:

■ Steve’s Morning Ritual to manage distraction and be productive 

■ Steve’s template for a Perfect Day and Perfect Week 

■ The Power of Mindfulness, and how this simple habit can help you focus on what matters most 

■ Social - Instagram & Facebook 

■ #HyperWorkouts - Expertly written Gym Workout Plans, with video guides, print-outs & HeavySet import 

■ AdapNation Butler - An Online Personal Assistant that can inspire easy and tasty Home-cooking 

■ AdapNation Food Diary - 100’s of Tasty Healthy Meal Ideas, that are focussed on helping you thrive 

Keto and Animal-Based advocate, Muscle Building Expert, and doting dad Danny Vega joins us on this episode for an incredible discussion around Keto, Kids Health, Traditional Nutrition and addressing the Health Issues of our modern processed and plant-heavy western diets. 

Danny Vega is most well known for his enthusiasm for the ketogenic diet and how he has successfully integrated this nutritional lifestyle within his loving family and in the gym. He runs a successful blog and podcast called Fat Fuelled family with his with Maura, and their kids even have a instagram page showcasing their nutrient-dense low carb diet! 

Danny is the real-deal. Honest, caring, and genuinely motivated to help people understand the practicality of thriving on a very counter-culture way of eating. He also defies the narrative that you cannot build muscle on a Keto / low carb diet… he’s jacked! 

Danny has teamed up with prior AdapNation guest Ben Pakulski to design and successfully implement a nutritional and training regime for people wanting to maximise muscle growth whilst on a ketogenic diet. We agreed to do a part two soon on exactly that. It’s a hotly requested topic, and Danny has the answers to building muscle on a low card diet! 

This is an amazing conversation, as I knew it would be. We cover a ton, and Danny calls out the great insights from 17 leaders in nutrition and fitness space, all of which are linked in the Show Notes below. 

Full Show Notes of what we discussed - https://adapnation.io/108-danny-vega-keto/

Where to find DANNY VEGA online :

▪︎ Instagram - @dannyvega.ms, @fatfueledmom & @fatfueledkids 

▪︎ Fat Fueled Family - The Podcast & The Website 

▪︎ Facebook - Danny Vega

Referenced in Show:

▪︎ Ben Pakulski & joint-venture Muscle Intelligence Keto Plan 

▪︎ Michaela Peterson

▪︎ Dom D'Agostino

▪︎ Elliot Overton - AdapNation Oxalate Episode 

▪︎ #Carnivore75hard by @NutritionwithJudy 

▪︎ Keto Savage - Robert Sikes 

▪︎ Luis V from Keto Gains

▪︎ Cian Foley - Don’t eat for winter 

▪︎ Mark Bell

▪︎ Dr Gabor Mate

▪︎ Dr Cate Shanahan - Deep Nutrition 

▪︎ Sally Fallon Morell

▪︎ Weston A Price foundation

▪︎ Dr. Bill Schindler

▪︎ Charlene & Joe Anderson 

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If you like this and other AdapNation episodes, please don't forget to subscribe to the channel, as well as leaving a 5 star review and letting friends and family know of this Podcast on Social Media.

AdapNation Useful Links:

■ #HyperWorkouts - Expertly written Gym Workout Plans, with video guides, print-outs & HeavySet import 

■ Steve’s Body & Mind Progress Journals - Follow Steve’s real-world progress, following all the principles within the Podcasts 

■ Social - Instagram & Facebook 

■ AdapNation Butler - An Online Personal Assistant that can inspire easy and tasty Home-cooking 

■ AdapNation Food Diary - 100’s of Tasty Healthy Meal Ideas, that are focussed on helping you thrive 

Today, we have Bryn Jenkins back on the mics, after his visit to to the Mind Pump Studio in California and getting educated but the pro-sports strength and conditioning Joe DeFranco. 

This episode is all about how to improve your sport performance and body mechanics, as well as your quality of life by doing the right things in the gym. 

Bryn shares with us the essence and key principles of what he picked up by Joe DeFranco and his world-class team of S&C coaches. This is a rare insight into what is most important for athletes to perform at their best, by pairing they sports practice with deliberate work in the gym. 

For me (Steve), very much a non-athlete, there was so much for me to consider and use in my own endeavours of being strong, muscular, functional and healthy. I’m sure you’ll get a ton of value too.

Full Show Notes of what we discussed -  https://adapnation.io/107-improve-sports-performance/

Where to find BRYN JENKINS online :

▪︎ Instagram - @bryn_jenkins

▪︎ His Gym - Intent 2 Improve (Buckingham) - https://intent2improve.com

Referenced in Show:

▪︎ Joe DeFranco and his YouTube Channel

▪︎ James Smith Coach

▪︎ CPPS Coach Certification

▪︎ Mind Pump Podcast & Instagram

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If you like this and other AdapNation episodes, please don't forget to subscribe to the channel, as well as leaving a 5 star review and letting friends and family know of this Podcast on Social Media.

AdapNation Useful Links:

■ #HyperWorkouts - Expertly written Gym Workout Plans, with video guides, print-outs & HeavySet import 

■ Steve’s Body & Mind Progress Journals - Follow Steve’s real-world progress, following all the principles within the Podcasts 

■ Social - Instagram & Facebook 

■ AdapNation Butler - An Online Personal Assistant that can inspire easy and tasty Home-cooking 

■ AdapNation Food Diary - 100’s of Tasty Healthy Meal Ideas, that are focussed on helping you thrive 

This is AdapNation’s first solo Podcast, almost 2 years in! I (Steve) will be sharing all the details and current personal experiences with my last and final dieting phase, as my ambitious two year body transformation comes to an end.

In Jan 2018, I publicly declared my body goal, and have been hard at work for the last two years working towards this aspirational physique. The journey ends with a photoshoot on 11th December 2019 at the AdapNation Gym. So, I’d better trim off the excess fat!

In this shorter episode, I share with you how I am going about losing 13lbs in 5 weeks, whilst retaining my muscle mass and getting photoshoot ready. 

As always, it’s a transparent and honest insight into my experiences, and not just some theory on how to lose weight. I give you the full scoop, so you can go about doing something similar if you fancy it.

Here’s what I cover:

🔸Update and Stats on My Current Cut

🔸How I specifically designed this last dieting phase

🔸The Fasting Blitz Cut - a full run down of schedule, calories and reasoning

🔸My Food Choices and Supplements during this cut

🔸My approach to Training and Exercise

🔸How I feel mentally, emotionally and physically on this aggressive diet

🔸The Pros and Cons of this approach to my goals and life in general

🔸What will happen after this diet

I referenced a few things in this Podcast:

▪︎ My Jan 2018 Body Journal declaring my 2 year goal

▪︎ 2019 W45 Body Journal explaining the Fasting Blitz Cut

▪︎ #HyperWorkouts - Weight Training Programs I am following (DEC-19 releasing shortly)

▪︎ Episode #103 with Paul Carter and #105 with Christian Thibaudeau

▪︎ What Supplements I take and why article

▪︎ The #BeYourBest Self-Optimisation Journey - click NOTIFY to get informed once released

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If you like this and other AdapNation episodes, please don't forget to subscribe to the channel, as well as leaving a 5 star review and letting friends and family know of this Podcast on Social Media.

AdapNation Useful Links:

■ #HyperWorkouts - Expertly written Gym Workout Plans, with video guides, print-outs & HeavySet import

■ Steve’s Body & Mind Progress Journals - Follow Steve’s real-world progress, following all the principles within the Podcasts

■ Social - Instagram & Facebook

■ AdapNation Butler - An Online Personal Assistant that can inspire easy and tasty Home-cooking

■ AdapNation Food Diary - 100’s of Tasty Healthy Meal Ideas, that are focussed on helping you thrive

Regular legend-of-a-guest joins us again! This Podcast with Christian Thibaudeau is another paradigm-shattering discussion - this time about Optimal Training Modalities, Training To Failure, Overtraining and Maximum Natty Muscle Building Potential.

Christian Thibaudeau, with 25+ years lifting and coaching experience, has written the book on weight lifting for athletic performance and bodybuilding gains. With 535 articles on T-Nation alone, combined with extensive courses on his website Thibarmy.com as well as his muscle training camps, Christian is a leading authority in this space. It would benefit you to cling on to his every word!

In episode #103: How To Maximise ‘Natty’ Muscle Growth ~Paul Carter, Paul dropped some foundational tenets of muscle growth that was hard to swallow. It butted heads with many opposing views of muscle development, but it sounded both plausible, logical and backed up be many successful physiques. Christian and Paul are close friends and respected peers, as regular contributors to T-Nation. It turns out that they share may of the same principles of muscle growth, with subtle takes on a few sub topics. Ultimately, they converge on what they have seen to work for them and countless 1,000’s of other lifters. 

Well, think of this interview with Christian Thibaudeau as a part two to #103. We double click into some of the same topics, offering alternative perspectives with similar conclusions. It also extends the discussion on the detrimental effect of overtraining and how to know if you are overtrained.

We spend a lot of time unpacking the volume and training to failure debates, which is fascinating. We also cover Christian’s current training, his biggest training mistakes, and the most supported view on how much muscle you can add on to an untrained natural lifter’s body.

As always, this discussion with Christian is jam packed with science, logic and experience. It has the opportunity to fundamentally shift your approach to the gym and building muscle! It has for me… again!

So much so, that Steve has personally adopted Paul and Christian’s principles and is really enjoying their approach. We'll be sharing our Christian/Paul inspired Workout Plan in the upcoming DEC-19 #HyperWorkouts Workout Plan. Subscribe to the AdapNation Newsletter to get informed when this drops (early December 2019).

Enjoy your Training Mentality Upgrade in this episode!!!! #BeYourBest

Full Show Notes of what we discussed -  https://adapnation.io/105-christian-thibaudeau-training-guidance

Where to find CHRISTIAN THIBAUDEAU online:

▪︎ Social for latest Insights/Info - Instagram (@thibarmy), Facebook (Christian Thibaudeau), Instagram (@Coach_CThib)

▪︎ YouTube - Thibarmy

▪︎ Website for Articles, Course, Tests, Guides and Training Camps and Online Coaching - thibarmy.com

Referenced in Show:

▪︎ Christian New and Existing Training Programs - https://thibarmy.com/training-program/

▪︎ Hypertrophy Course and Strength & Performance Courses - links available soon (Nov ’19 and Dec ’20)

▪︎ Game Changers Documentary Review - link available soon (Nov ’19)

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If you like this and other AdapNation episodes, please don't forget to subscribe to the channel, as well as leaving a 5 star review and letting friends and family know of this Podcast on Social Media.

AdapNation Useful Links:

■ #HyperWorkouts - Expertly written Gym Workout Plans, with video guides, print-outs & HeavySet import

■ Gym Lingo 101- Your guide to the most commonly used gym terms

■ Steve’s Body & Mind Progress Journals - Follow Steve’s real-world progress, following all the principles within the Podcasts

■ Social - Instagram & Facebook

■ AdapNation Butler - An Online Personal Assistant that can inspire easy and tasty Home-cooking

■ AdapNation Food Diary - 100’s of Tasty Healthy Meal Ideas, that are focussed on helping you thrive

This episode is a wonderful and impactful interview with professional explorer James Ketchell, where he shares his experiences, lessons and key life advice he’s accumulated through his travels.

James Ketchell is the only man on the planet to have completed the ultimate global triathlon - rowing the Atlantic solo, climbing Everest and cycling around the world! Oh, as well as solo flying around the world in a tiny open top gyrocopter! 

What an amazing story of following your passion, having unquestionable belief, and finding your true happiness. James has the unique perspective of starting with nothing, being a depressed child, being told he cannot walk again after a devastating accident… followed by conquering the world several times over.

Stuff that dreams are made of. What is more powerful and and accomplished than successfully exploring the world that we live on, being on the top of it, and the amazing stories of survival and grit to journey to the unknown… time and again.

This is not just a story of one mans brilliance. Far from it. This episode is mostly about the powerful life lessons that James has learnt along the way, which are 100% applicable to everyone who listens.

LOVED THIS INTERVIEW. I hope you do too. #BeYourBest

Full Show Notes of what we discussed -  https://adapnation.io/104-explorer-james-ketchell

Where to find JAMES KETCHELL online :

▪︎ His Website - http://jamesketchell.net

▪︎ His 2019 UK Speaking Tour - see the latest Nov dates

▪︎ James Ketchell YouTube Channel

▪︎ Social - Instagram (@ketchelljames) & Twitter (@Captainketch)

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If you like this and other AdapNation episodes, please don't forget to subscribe to the channel, as well as leaving a 5 star review and letting friends and family know of this Podcast on Social Media.

AdapNation Useful Links:

■ #HyperWorkouts - Expertly written Gym Workout Plans, with video guides, print-outs & HeavySet import

■ Steve’s Body & Mind Progress Journals - Follow Steve’s real-world progress, following all the principles within the Podcasts

■ Social - Instagram & Facebook

■ AdapNation Butler - An Online Personal Assistant that can inspire easy and tasty Home-cooking

Interview with Paul Carter- the straight talking, seriously knowledgable and impactful leader in the online bodybuilding community.

An awesome conversation for the normal guy or gal to naturally maximise their muscle building results in the gym. A MUST LISTEN episode. Be prepared to be challenged...

Paul is a resident writer for T-Nation, with 5+ years of world class writing under his belt, including several books and pieces for M&F and Flex. Paul has been training with intent for 30+ years, has powerlifted for a decade, and has developed both an enviable bodybuilding knowledge-base and physique.

What Paul Carter doesn’t know about the gym and developing your physique… isn’t worth knowing. Most interestingly, he’s committed to a life of Wellness AND developing Size for the last four years, and describes this change as a massive paradigm shift for himself.

This is a great episode, as Steve gets SCHOOLED… several times throughout the chat. You need these conversations. To test you understanding of the world, and a willingness to change your view or beliefs if someone gives you great reasons to. That’s what Paul did today,

I (Steve) am incredibly grateful for Paul’s care to call BS on some ideas I’ve been exploring, as well as some of my recent decisions. Muscle building is very nuanced and individual, but some things are too compelling to not pay closer attention to.

This is a cracker! Enjoy… and #BeYourBest

Full Show Notes of what we discussed - https://adapnation.io/103-paul-carter-natty-gains

Multi world-record holder Mike McCastle joins us for a truly inspirational conversation about testing the limits of human potential through his story of the 12 Labours Project. 

Mike spent 11 years in the US Navy after 9/11 inspired him to serve. However, his identify was destroyed when injury and surgery took his physicality from him. From this dark place, he found the purpose and fortitude to test the limits of his soul over the last half decade, through awe inspiring feats of human physical performance.

Mike McCastle has completed 58-4 pull ups in 24 hours, flipped a 250lbs tyre for 13 mils straight, climbed a rope for the height of Mount Everest, and pulled a 2 ton truck through Death Valley for 22 miles! All with charity and inspiring greatness in mind. We get into some of these insane feats on the show.

However, this podcast is more about YOU, than it is Mike. We dig into and attempt to decode his infinitely stoic mindset and capacity for pain and suffering, in order to pull the relatable and accessible ideas out for you to think about and implement… in your own way.

Really, this conversation is about committing to a life of greatness, embracing suffering and struggle, how personal belief, purpose and commitment are critical to a life well-lived, and how to control you tyrant too a chimp brain that always want to quit and take the easy path. Fascinating stuff!

Enjoy. And… #BeYourBest!

Full Show Notes of what we discussed - https://adapnation.io/102-mike-mccastle

Where to find MIKE McCASTLE and his work:

▪︎ His Feats & Website - http://www.twelvelaborsproject.com

▪︎ Social - @MikeMcCastle

▪︎ YouTube - ExcerYourDemon

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If you like this and other AdapNation episodes, please don't forget to subscribe to the channel, as well as leaving a 5 star review and letting friends and family know of this Podcast on Social Media.

AdapNation Useful Links:

■ #HyperWorkouts - Expertly written Weight Training blocks, with video guides, print-outs & HeavySet import

■ Steve’s Body & Mind Progress Journals - Follow Steve’s real-world progress, following all the principles within the Podcasts

■ AdapNation Instagram - To see what’s going on in our world across business, training and family

■ AdapNation Website - Where you will find articles, videos and journals on all things wellness, training and mindset

■ AdapNation Butler - An Online Personal Assistant that can inspire easy and tasty Home-cooking

■ AdapNation Food Diary - 100’s of Tasty Healthy Meal Ideas, that are focussed on helping you thrive

■ Facebook Community - To get into conversation with like-minded folk wanting to be their best

PART 2. The BIG question. 

How do we as a species struggle so deeply with managing a healthy and athletic weight? We seem to be the only ‘animal’ that has undesirable and uncontrollable weight gain - spreading like a virus across modern societies. What gives?

We cover this, and much much more in this info packed two parter. Our best attempt in providing you the keys to a great body AND great health… for the rest of your life. 

It’s time to revisit FAT LOSS on the podcast. It’s a common thread in our discussions of course, but our last comprehensive 101 on how to lose and keep fat off was in Ep13-15!

Our knowledge and experience has developed. There is nuance in our recommendations, and a couple new effective ideas have been embraced with great effect in the last 15 months. 

Hope you enjoy it! #BeYourBest

Full Show Notes of what we discussed - https://adapnation.io/100-losingfat-revisited/

References made within the show:

▪︎ The Weight Loss Guide (3 parter)

▪︎ Online TDEE Calculator

▪︎ IIFYM+ Thrive Eating Approach

▪︎ Happy Scale- weight trending app

▪︎ Guide to Eating Out Whilst Dieting

▪︎ The Importance of Sleep

▪︎ Calorie Planner Tool

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

If you like this and other AdapNation episodes, please don't forget to subscribe to the channel, as well as leaving a 5 star review and letting friends and family know of this Podcast on Social Media.

AdapNation Useful Links:

■ AdapNation Butler - An Online Personal Assistant that can inspire easy and tasty Home-cooking

■ AdapNation Food Diary - 100’s of Tasty Healthy Meal Ideas, that are focussed on helping you thrive

■ AdapNation Website - Where you will find articles, videos and journals on all things wellness, training and mindset

■ Facebook Community - To get into conversation with like-minded folk wanting to be their best

■ AdapNation Instagram - To see what’s going on in our world across business, training and family

■ #HyperWorkouts - Expertly written Weight Training blocks, with video guides, print-outs & HeavySet import

■ Steve’s Body & Mind Progress Journals - Follow Steve’s real-world progress, following all the principles within the Podcasts

The BIG question. 

How do we as a species struggle so deeply with managing a healthy and athletic weight? We seem to be the only ‘animal’ that has undesirable and uncontrollable weight gain - spreading like a virus across modern societies. What gives?

We cover this, and much much more in this info packed two parter. Our best attempt in providing you the keys to a great body AND great health… for the rest of your life. 

It’s time to revisit FAT LOSS on the podcast. It’s a common thread in our discussions of course, but our last comprehensive 101 on how to lose and keep fat off was in Ep13-15!

Our knowledge and experience has developed. There is nuance in our recommendations, and a couple new effective ideas have been embraced with great effect in the last 15 months. 

Hope you enjoy it! #BeYourBest

Full Show Notes of what we discussed - https://adapnation.io/100-losingfat-revisited/

References made within the show:

▪︎ The Weight Loss Guide (3 parter)

▪︎ Online TDEE Calculator

▪︎ IIFYM+ Thrive Eating Approach

▪︎ Happy Scale- weight trending app

▪︎ Guide to Eating Out Whilst Dieting

▪︎ The Importance of Sleep

▪︎ Calorie Planner Tool

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

If you like this and other AdapNation episodes, please don't forget to subscribe to the channel, as well as leaving a 5 star review and letting friends and family know of this Podcast on Social Media.

AdapNation Useful Links:

■ AdapNation Butler - An Online Personal Assistant that can inspire easy and tasty Home-cooking

■ AdapNation Food Diary - 100’s of Tasty Healthy Meal Ideas, that are focussed on helping you thrive

■ AdapNation Website - Where you will find articles, videos and journals on all things wellness, training and mindset

■ Facebook Community - To get into conversation with like-minded folk wanting to be their best

■ AdapNation Instagram - To see what’s going on in our world across business, training and family

■ #HyperWorkouts - Expertly written Weight Training blocks, with video guides, print-outs & HeavySet import

■ Steve’s Body & Mind Progress Journals - Follow Steve’s real-world progress, following all the principles within the Podcasts

Danny Penman is considered one of the best meditation and mindfulness teachers globally, with 1.5 million+ copies sold of his best selling book Mindfulness: A Practical Guide to Finding Peace in a Frantic World, and his materials used to teach schools, universities and hospitals around the world.

As an award winning journalist, meditation teacher and best selling author, Danny has a unique perspective on the value and impact of meditation. Moreover, his personal discovery of the power of mindfulness is both shocking and inspiring.

And let’s face it, the global mental health issues are escalating, due to the mounting stress-induing triggers in our lifestyles, and the lack of sufficient prioritisation for breathing, calmness and mindfulness.

Mindfulness is clinically proven to be one of the most effective treatments for anxiety, stress and depression. It is also widely accepted that Meditation and time away from rumination frees our mind to think of new solutions, be more compassionate and have deeper levels of gratitude.

For these reasons, and the fact that I (Steve) am on my own early journey of discovering a better life through meditation and mindfulness, I thought it would be an amazing opportunity to get some direct coaching from THE meditation guy.

Full Show Notes of what we discussed - https://adapnation.io/99-meditation-penman/

AdapNation Article on Mindfulness: https://adapnation.io/the-art-of-mindfulness/

Where to find DANNY PENMAN and his work:

▪︎ His Books - Mindfulness: A Practical Guide to Finding Peace in a Frantic World, The Art Of Breathing and more!

▪︎ Free Getting Started Meditation - http://franticworld.com/aob/

▪︎ The Website - http://franticworld.com

▪︎ Social - Twitter (@drdannypenman), Instagram (@drdannypenman) and LinkedIn (Dr Danny Penman)

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If you like this and other AdapNation episodes, please don't forget to subscribe to the channel, as well as leaving a 5 star review and letting friends and family know of this Podcast on Social Media.

AdapNation Useful Links:

■ The Art of Mindfulness - a great article on the AdapNation website

■ AdapNation Website - Where you will find articles, videos and journals on all things wellness, training and mindset

■ Facebook Community - To get into conversation with like-minded folk wanting to be their best

■ AdapNation Instagram - To see what’s going on in our world across business, training and family

■ Steve’s Body & Mind Progress Journals - Follow Steve’s real-world progress, following all the principles within the Podcasts