Strong Habits - The Podcast

Abbie Stasior is a health and life coach from the states, and is currently a nutrition and exercise physiology grad student at the University of Columbia. She runs the coaching company Be About Being Better.

In the podcast I misspoke and said her postgrad was in neuroscience, but that was her undergrad. 

In this episode, we cover how our brains work when it comes to building and breaking habits. Abbie was able to call on evidence to explain our brains, even sharing when the best time of day to train would be in terms of productivity and learning.

Kelly Terranova is the small business owner behind The Bee's Knees Journal. 

Kelly has lots of experience of living through adversity, plus also thriving in adversity. Her mum was diagnosed with the incurable and fatal disease Huntington's Disease–and Kelly also faced 13 years of not knowing whether or not she had inherited the disease (a 50/50 chance), which was luckily negative.

Kelly has found humour and gratitude to be integral tools to thriving over the years and through adversity. In her experience, she has found the deeper the tragedy the darker the humour and the richer the gratitude. All of this experience inspired the creation of The Bee's Knees Journal.

In this episode I spoke with Meghann Koppele about training clients with MS. Megann is a certified Pilates instructor with 20 years’ experience, as well as a certified strength and conditioning specialist with a masters in applied physiology.

Meghan runs a pilates studio in New Jersey working with clients living with a variety of conditions, including severe back pain, sports injuries, MS and pre/postnatal clients. Meghann created a Pilates-based protocol for early-stage MS clients and teaches several courses on Pilates for neurological conditions.

Find Meghan: 

Dr David Robert Grimes is a physicist, cancer researcher, and author. His scientific work includes everything from how tumours use oxygen to why conspiracies tend to fail, with a strong focus on public understanding of science and medicine.

David contributes to the BBC, RTE, The New York Times, The Guardian, The Irish Times, PBS, and other outlets. He received the 2014 Maddox prize, and his first book "The Irrational Ape - why we fall for disinformation, conspiracy theory, and propaganda", is out now from Simon & Schuster UK.

In this episode we cover:

• Common coronavirus myths
• The history of conspiracy theories
• Why it's so easy to fall victim to a conspiracy theory
• The importance of critical thinking and basic science understanding

Answering client questions. 

In this episode I cover:

• Oral health
• Sleep hygiene 
• Dairy vs Plant-proteins bioavailability
• Homemade fast foods
• Naked running

Part 2

In this episode, I speak with Greg Nuckols, who is an exercise science writer, powerlifter and coach. Greg is one of the smartest guys in strength sports and I've been learning from him via Stronger by Science and MASS for years. If you haven't listened to part 1, do that first.

I split the interview into two parts as it was almost two hours long and I thought I'd give you a break. 

In this episode, we discuss the importance of protein timing, protein and carb intake on muscle building and the role of beer in the dawn of civilisation. 

This is a really fun episode, and Greg and I cover a really random range of topics - I'm sure you can see how this ended up being 2 hours long! 

Find Greg:

PART 1

In this episode, I speak with Greg Nuckols, who is an exercise science writer, powerlifter and coach. Greg is one of the smartest guys in strength sports and I've been learning from him via Stronger by Science and MASS for years. He also has held three all-time world records in powerlifting in the 220lb and 242lb classes.

I split the interview into two parts as it was almost two hours long and I thought I'd give you a break. I'll share part two next week. 

In this episode we discuss muscle loss and gains through lockdown, sex differences in training and muscle mass, what that could mean in terms of trans athletes and sport

Find Greg:

In this episode, I answer questions from clients. I cover: hydration and caffeine, building effective habits/routines, dairy and PCOS and exercise snacks

In this episode, I speak with Dr Rachel Evans, a psychologist, hypnotherapist and eating disorder survivor. She uses her experience and academic knowledge to help clients to stop the restrict-binge cycle and feel comfortable in their body.

Dr Evans’ approach focusses on conscious change, subconscious change and how physiology can impact recovery. She shares some tips for people struggling with disordered eating as well as her own personal recovery story.

Happy new year, folks. Welcome to 2021. Are you ready?

I spoke with Alan Flanagan, who is currently pursuing his PhD in nutrition at the University of Surrey, having completed his Masters degree in nutrition science at the same institution.

I spoke with Becca Knapp, a PT based in Hackney. Becca has been working as a PT in London for 7 years: Fundamental to their ethos is that training should be inclusive. They help people move better and feel better irrespective of age, gender or identity.

This is an excellent chat about the gender binary, patriarchy, strength training, inclusivity and finding what you love. 

We share our experiences of living in society as queer people, of that feeling of being new in a gym and what people can do to make it a nicer environment for everyone. 

I speak to Dr Hana Kahleova, director of clinical research for the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine. She has conducted several clinical trials, using a plant-based diet in the treatment of obesity, diabetes, and metabolic disease. Her research showed that a plant-based diet leads to a greater weight loss and improvement in metabolism, and addresses multiple mechanisms behind diabetes.

This is a really interesting episode discussing the benefits of plant-based diets and time-restricted feeding windows on metabolic health and arthritis. There were some real good nuggets in here that'll make you go "ooh". 

Please rate and review the podcast on Apple Podcasts!

This is such an informative episode with flexibility researcher Dan Van Zandt. He busts some flexibility myths and goes into detail on what flexibility is, why it matters and how to improve it. We also discuss the impact of mindfulness practice on flexibility and how anti-anxiety exercises can sometimes make more difference to flexibility than short bursts of static stretches. 

Answering client questions this week:

- Healthy vegetarian breakfast ideas

- What are glucose disposal agents and do they work?

- How to hit 10,000 steps working from home

- Foods that boost metabolism

- Foods that impact brain health and concentration

- Are Miley Cyrus and I compatible

Don't forget to rate and review if you're listening on Apple.

In this episode I speak with Ben Patrick, world renown knee specialist working with athletes across the board to fix knee pain, run faster, jump higher and hurt less. I've been excited about this episode for MONTHS. 

Ben is a new dad, and he was multitasking recording this interview, with his tiny human in the backseat of his car. 

We spoke about Ben's journey from knee surgery to knees of steel, his system for rebuilding damaged knees, training older populations, training kids and what you can you do right now to start building stronger knees from day 1.

I spoke with the incredible Kelechi Okafor about being present in your training can teach you to be present in your life; about mum shame and the systems that create it; and about breaking free of the stories the world tells you about yourself.

This episode was really fun and I'm so pleased I got to sit down with Kelechi and have this chat. 

I speak with Real MVMT coach Lucas Aaron on all things flexibility. He answers the questions: what is it, where do you get it, and do you need it. 

I speak with Afolabi Akinola, co-owner of black-owned gym Elite Evolution in Hackney, about creating a community, helping black fitness professionals in the industry and taking care of your mental health.

In this episode I answer client questions, covering training through winter; why we eat more this time of year; intermittent fasting and PCOS; and sugar cravings.

Plus a very cool fun fact at the end about a new invention doing good things for the environment.

In this short episode I discuss strategies for managing PCOS and some cool research into gut health

This is such a brilliant episode. I spoke with Richie Kirwan, a Nutritionist and PhD researcher at Liverpool John Moores University. He has an undergrad degree in biological sciences from University College Cork and a masters degree in nutrition and metabolism from the University of Barcelona. His research focuses on the effect of muscle and body fat on heart disease and how we can use high protein Mediterranean diets and Resistance Exercise to improve body composition and health. 

In this episode we speak about what happens when we stop moving as much, how quickly muscle can be lost, and how fast exercise can impact insulin resistance.

We also discuss some simple, actionable advice on what you can do to protect yourself and your loved ones from excessive muscle loss. 

One of my fave episodes to-date.

In this episode I speak with Lift The Bar Head Coach and Owner of Lift The Bar Training, Gregg Slater, about the importance of training in terms of health and longevity. We speak about training more efficiently as you get older, so you don't have to train for as long. About what happens to our bones and muscles as we get older, and how lifting weights and generally doing exercise can slow this down. Losing our ability to live unassisted isn't a given part of ageing; but we treat is as such. But what if you could cultivate a life where your 80 year old self was able to still go for a walk, take the stairs, carry the shopping, play with the grandkids? Heck, what if you could still go on adventures? 

We have spent so much time and effort increasing the lifespan of humans, with little consideration for the healthspan. This is a really interesting chat on what we can do to change that and to give ourselves the best chance of getting the most out of our lives.

Can you believe there have been 50 episodes already! Thanks so much to all my listeners and subscribers. I appreciate you. 

This is a special episode answering some client questions and speaking with some special guests. 

I speak with weightlifting coach Michaela Breeze about all things weightlifting, from her 20+ year career, training, technique and accessory work. Michaela also spills the tea on the red tape stopping the UK's weightlifting body from moving with the times, as well as some insight into what it was like to be the only girl with the team for so long.

Find Michaela:

In this episode I'm answering a client question. I discuss how work/life stress can lead to you over reaching / over training and what you can do about it. Making training progress is all about managing stress. Are you doing these things?

In this episode I speak with Lee Chambers, Environmental Psychologist, Wellbeing Consultant and Founder of Essentialise Workplace Wellbeing. 

Lee discusses how he overcame numerous life struggles to be the man he is today, including when an autoimmune disorder took away the use of his legs. He talks about what it was like as a young black man navigating his mental health and what it meant to be a man, in an environment where people didn't really understand what mental health even was. And he shares some helpful advice on what people suffering with chronic illnesses and pain can do to take care of themselves and keep moving forwards. 

In this week's episode I answer client questions. I discuss the biggest lesson I wish I knew when I first started training, how long it takes to rebuild strength and muscle mass after a break, how often you need to train legs to run faster and what kit is worth getting if you're not planning on going back to the gym any time soon. I also take a look at getting enough iodine on a vegan diet. 

In this episode, I offer some practical advice for managing emotional eating and share some of my own journey through the process. We all know what food we're supposed to eat to be more healthy, and yet. The reason we can know what we are supposed to do and not do it, is because often the eating has nothing to do with the food itself. It's the other stuff. It's the stuff we've been ignoring. 

This was such a wonderful episode. I spoke with my wonderful friend Zorica Bowie about all things Taekwon Do.

Zed is a co-founder for Girls Who Kick, an organisation bringing all the girls and women of ITF Taekwon Do together. She has been a Taekwon-Do student of Master Nick Symonds since 1997, black belt since 2002, 5th Dan since 2018. She's also European Silver medallist (2005), a full time English teacher, a qualified car mechanic and is completing a research PhD this year. 

This might be my favourite episode to date, and I actually laughed out loud listening back to it during the editing process, so I really hope you enjoy it too.

In this episode I discuss tips for managing fatigue and the ways in which exercise can affect mental illness.

Sign ups are now open for the September intake of Strong Habits. Get in touch if you'd like to join the team.

Stop relying on motivation to get you started. Sometimes you just need to start by yourself. In this episode I share a number of techniques I use to build self-discipline, something more important that motivation.

In this episode I discuss the pros and cons of barefoot training and how it could affect your lifts and runs

In this episode I speak with trans activist, model and personal trainer Cairo on his journey to fitness. He gives an honest account of his struggles, his incredible community and his positive outlook on life. Cairo was such a joy to speak with. I hope you enjoy this episode. 

This episode was scheduled in honour of Pride Month, a month-long celebration of LGBT+ life, culture and progress. 

It feels especially important in light of JKR's transphobic essay this week. I want all my trans listeners to know that they are valid and they are seen and nobody has the right to tell you you aren't real or just a phase.

I remember people telling me being gay was just a phase 12-13 years ago. And while I think gay rights have moved forwards slightly over the last decade, our trans friends have not been awarded as much acceptance or respect and it's outrageous. Not that there isn't still a long way to go for the gays too, but we are not under quite as constant an attack from such public figures. It breaks my heart that people like JKR are using their platform to spread such viterol.

Anyway, this episode isn't about that. This episode showcases a wonderful activist. Cairo and I discuss how helpful fitness can be for your mental health, and why fitness is for everyone - something you know I love to talk about.

Happy Pride Month, folks. 

This episode is late this week as I was taking the time to process what's going on in the world right now. It feels like a really pivotal point in history.

This is a really short episode with a quick comment on doing the work, followed by a quick discussion on training order when it comes to cardio and strength training. 

I have two really exciting episodes lined up for Pride month, so keep your eyes peeled for those.

In this episode bio-archeologist Stacy Hackner discusses the pitfalls of the paleo diet in terms of truth and accuracy. She takes us through what life and food was actually like during the paleolithic era and we also discuss the health lessons learnt the Blue Zone. 

This is a fun, sideways episode, looking at a popular modern diet that makes no sense.