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A fractured rib crushed any hope Alex Gregory had for earning gold at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Several World Championships later, he would have his moment, in his home country at 2012 in London where he brought home gold...then another gold in 2016 at Rio. We debate whether people are born with grind or mental toughness, or whether it is an attribute that can be trained. Alex also gives me a few Olympic level training tips for the rowing machine in the gym, where it is highly probable I will not succeed.

Paul de Gelder was an Australian Royal Navy Clearance Diver participating in a counter terrorism exercise in Sydney Harbor when he was attacked by a 12 foot Bull Shark. The attack ultimately took Paul's right hand and right leg... and some time figuring out life. He did not want fear from that experience to determine his path, so he immediately put himself back in the ocean. Today Paul works as a co-host on Discovery Channel's Shark Week, frequently swimming with sharks if not feeding them by hand.

Just finishing his junior year of high school, Bradley Betts looked to have a promising future playing baseball. While at a cookout with friends, a storm uprooted a tree that struck him in the back severing his spinal cord and leaving him paralyzed. Spening several years healing physically, mentally and emotionally, he eventually found the sport of bodybuilding. Now an IFBB Professional Bodybuilder, he once again looks to have a promising career as an athlete. Today, Brad shares his struggles and triumphs and how we are all left with no excuses.

MMA legend, actor, entrepreneur and dare I say dancer after his appearance on Dancing With The Stars, Randy Couture seems to have lived 9 lives like a cat. Always entertaining with his stories, Randy shares the wisdom learned from those lives. After suffering a heart attack in 2019 during training, tune in to hear how he walked himself to the hospital ER.

Fox News Analyst and Seal Team 6 member, Rob O'Neill has led or taken part in over 400 combat missions. Amongst those missions were the rescue of Lone Survivor Marcus Luttrell, saving Captain Richard Phillips from Somali pirates, and has been famously labeled as the man who shot and killed Osama Bin Laden during Operation Neptune's Spear.

After an attempted late term saline abortion failed, Gianna Jessen was born alive two and a half months early. Weighing just over 2 pounds, the attending nurse had her transported to the hospital and placed in an incubator. Due to Cerebral Palsy she developed, doctors thought she would never be able to even lift her head, let alone walk. Gianna defied odds, not only learning to walk on several occasions as a result of several complicated back surgeries, but completed 2 full marathons and maintains a rigorous training schedule.

Our food choices should come from the four food groups, no wait, the food guide pyramid, or is it the plate now? Dr. Shawn Baker, author of The Carnivore Diet eliminated all the confusion for himself and his clients, and feeds from an almost all meat-based diet. Contrary to every nutritional principle I learned growing up and practiced my entire life, The Carnivore Diet left me to wonder about fiber, vitamins and minerals, fuel for athletic performance, health and longevity. Dr. Baker explains how meat provides everything the human body needs to thrive.

Most of us have to hit rock bottom before we look to make major change in our life. International speaker, Matt Maddix, was at the height of his success when he realized he needed to reprioritize. Losing his home and the repossession of the car in which he was living was part of the process Matt discusses. He talks about the decisions he made and habits he created to redefine success that led him to running a successful publishing company with his son Caleb, as well as The Jesus Mission...a mission on the street weekly dedicated to feeding and clothing the homeless.

Midway through Texas, Cody O'Connor continues his walk from NY to LA raising money to help families affected by cancer. In episode 16, Cody told his story of battling Ewing's sarcoma cancer, losing his right fibula and how he was told he would never walk normally again. Cancer not only took his fibula, but bankrupted his family and contributed to the divorce of his parents. Driven by the passion to help families grappling this disease, Cody talks about life on the road: sleeping in the car at times, breakfast at the gas station or his trunk kitchen, all while juggling media, socials and hospital visits to children just beginning their battle.

Growing up in a disfunctional home led Mike Pisciotta to a life of drinking, drugs and gang violence with no future in sight...until he woke up in prison serving a 10 year sentence for crimes he couldn't remember committing. Determined to about-face while serving his sentence, Mike ensured every moment in prison was not wasted. Learning four languages and engrossing himself in business courses, he was not about to allow biography to predict destiny. Mike explains how he finally took ownership for his choices leading him on his path of prosperity.

With a background in mathematics, analyzing the data of my training was key to my athletic performance. When I began training in Seattle, Joel Jamieson introduced heart rate variability into my strength and conditioning. At the time HRV was rarely known and barely used. Today however, nearly every smart phone is equipped with HRV apps connected to devices like Apple watches or Fitbits. Joel and I talk about recovery from training and how technology can improve your recovery, which is the management of stress on the body. We also dive deeper into HRV's benefits to improve stress management of life impacting health and longevity.

When a previous guest made the connection between the health of the gut-brain and mental health, it motivated me to do more research into the topic. After picking up "The Better Brain," I reached out to the author, clinical psychologist Dr. Julia Rucklidge. She is the Director of the Mental Health and Nutrition Research Group at the University of Canterbury in New Zealand. She shares the benefits nutrition has on mental conditions such as depression and anxiety. We also take a step further and discuss how it applies to athletic performance and aging with issues such as cognitive function or dementia.