When you’re listening to Michael Mosley, it doesn’t take long to understand why he’s one of the world’s most prominent doctors. He’s risen to fame as a BBC broadcaster, documentary maker and inventor of the 5:2 diet, and he has an incredible knack for communicating health research and knowledge in a simple, usable way.

This episode takes a look at some really key elements of health: breathing, sleep, diet and exercise. Michael gives his most effective breathing technique to transform your life and help with sleep, talks about the three most important types of exercise (including the one you’re probably not doing but definitely should be), and discusses what an ideal day looks like from a health perspective. 

Along with tackling these big topics, Michael drops little gold nuggets along the way. Like the Japanese community that’s living longer because they essentially fasted in post-war years, how to figure out if you’re getting the sleep your body needs, and how long you should wait between waking up and your morning coffee. There’s so much in here you can use.

*************

RESOURCES:

Michael’s coming to Auckland for his highly acclaimed speaking event, A Life Changing Experience, on March 15. For info and tickets, go to https://www.facebook.com/events/auckland-civic-theatre/dr-michael-mosley-a-life-changing-experience-live-on-stage-auckland/1794434764251286/ 

Michael mentioned the video of when he infected himself with tapeworms. Check it out here (we promise it’s not as gross as it sounds): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JeDD0HdecGk 

For everything you need to know about Michaekl’s 5:2 diet, including to find out if it’s suitable for you, head to www.thefast800.com 

*************

Episode Sponsor - LMNT (Element)Link to pickup your free gift with purchase:
DrinkLMNT.com/wellandgood

If you’re an aspiring (or even current) endurance athlete, this is for you. Dr Dan Plews is a much-loved coach to some of the world’s fittest athletes, from Olympians and world champions to the likes of Emirates Team New Zealand. 

Dan has been a leader in the research and understanding of heart rate variability and discovering its significance in not only training, but overall wellness. He’s also a competitive ironman athlete (with the silverware to show for it), business owner and absolute devotee to fitness and health.

In this episode of Well & Good, Dan and Art talk… 

• Eating raw liver, and why he did an animal-based diet for eight weeks
• Why small stressors on the body are great, but having too many can cause problems…and how this flows through to how many vegetables you should eat
• Different types of organ meats, including the one that tastes “like piss”
• His personal athletic history, including doing triathlon since he was 9 and competing for Great Britain
• Working with the likes of Team New Zealand, New Zealand Rowing and Canoe Racing New Zealand
• Coaching Chelsea Sodaro through pregnancy to win the Kona Ironman 18 months after giving birth
• Why wearable devices are the biggest difference in training and sport performance in the last 30 years
• How he monitors training data, and the different key indicators in different sports
• Heart rate variability - what it is, why it’s become so popular, what you need to know about it and how you can track it
• How outside influences and life stress impacts training
• How things like alcohol, sauna, ice baths and sugar impact HRV
• What his ideal training day would look like
• The sweet spot for an effective sauna - how long and how hot it should be, and how it drastically reduces your risk of cardiovascular disease
• How he uses ice baths, and the benefits
• What supplements he takes (hint: quite a few)

*****

Please support this podcast by checking out our episode sponsors: 

-Blis Probiotics: https://blis.co.nz/

They kindly provided a discount code to our listeners - ‘WELLANDGOOD10’ for 10% off all products (excludes ElitePRO).

-Mitchells Nutrition: https://www.mitchellsnutrition.com/

They kindly provided a discount code to our listeners - ‘WELLANDGOOD15’ for 15% off all products.

*****

RESOURCES:

There’s a lot to take in from this one right? 

Dan’s website is a great place to start - his newsletter helps you to get world-leading training tips direct to your inbox. Check it out at https://www.endureiq.com/ 

Or get a bit of a look under the hood of Endure HQ on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/EndureIQ/ 

There’s also loads of good stuff on his insta @theplews 

There’s so much that goes into gut health, and this episode goes into all the important aspects that you need to know. Dr Mary Pardee is a naturopathic doctor and founder of modrn, which focuses primarily on gut health, and incorporates a range of treatments and techniques tailored to specific individuals.

We talk about…

• An overview of the gut anatomy and the GI tract
• How significant the gi microbiome is for the entire microbiome
• Helminthic therapy (i.e. worms) for IBS or crohn’s disease
• Signs of good/bad gut health
• What a good bowel movement should look like
• The role of fibre as the main fuel source for your gut microbiome, Mary’s simple tip for getting more fibre in your diet, and why it’s a double-edged sword when it comes to bloating
• Bloating - what causes it and common ways to treat it, including things you can do at home
• Why you should wait four hours between meals
• Herbal teas that help with different types of gut issues
• Fermented food - why diversity is important
• A guide to farting - what’s normal and what’s healthy
• How fasting impacts your gut health - when fasting is a good idea, and when it isn’t
• Why meditation is one of the things she recommends to her patients the most
• How to know if it’s time to do something about your gut health 
• Her guide to testing the impact of different foods on your health - how to take them out, how long for, and how to add them back in.
• The connection between gut health and skin health - things like eczema and dermatitis
• Prebiotics and probiotics - the difference and the uses for each
• Why you should chew your smoothies
• How antibiotics impact gut health, and the issues to avoid when taking them

If that seems like a lot, it is! But it’s digestible (pun intended) and usable, and all really interesting. 

*****

Please support this podcast by checking out our episode sponsors: 

-Blis Probiotics: https://blis.co.nz/

They kindly provided a discount code to our listeners - ‘WELLANDGOOD10’ for 10% off all products (excludes ElitePRO).

-Mitchells Nutrition: https://www.mitchellsnutrition.com/

They kindly provided a discount code to our listeners - ‘WELLANDGOOD15’ for 15% off all products.

*****

RESOURCES:

See more of Mary on her insta @dr.marypardee, or follow modern @modrnmed 

Mary also mentioned her food strategy guide for skin issues, which you can check out here: https://modrnmed.ac-page.com/food-strategy-guide

This episode is a bit of a beast, but it’s an absolute goldmine for anyone interested in strength training, building muscle or bodybuilding. Eric Helms is an absolute guru, as you’d expect from a bodybuilding coach, athlete, educator, author, and someone with two masters degrees and a PhD in strength and conditioning. 

His resume is unparalleled, and his knowledge is next level. This is probably best suited for someone towards the elite level of training, as opposed to beginners, but there’s so much to digest in this ep. 

We talk…

• Why it takes six months to condition for bodybuilding competitions
• The origins of bodybuilding and powerlifting, including with steroids and doping
• Why you generally can’t tell if a bodybuilder is on steroids or not
• How anabolic steroids actually work to grow muscle
• Testosterone and how it impacts muscle growth
• Why training programmes have to be individualised for elite athletes - and how he does around three times as much upper body work as he does legs
• Training to failure
• Why you feel sore after some exercises and not others
• A guide to eccentric and concentric training, and pausing during reps
• Supersetting: how to complement different types of exercises - and how not to
• Variable resistance and band training
• What to think about when you’re trying to build muscle, in terms of diet, protein and amino acids
• Why creatine is still the king of supplements, and the benefit of training when you’re caffeinated
• How to optimise recovery, including ways to speed it up, and how to know when you’ve recovered 

Eric is a great communicator, and he’s constantly dropping little gems all the way through this one. 

*****

Please support this podcast by checking out our episode sponsors: 

-Blis Probiotics: https://blis.co.nz/

They kindly provided a discount code to our listeners - ‘WELLANDGOOD10’ for 10% off all products (excludes ElitePRO).

-Mitchells Nutrition: https://www.mitchellsnutrition.com/

They kindly provided a discount code to our listeners - ‘WELLANDGOOD15’ for 15% off all products.

*****

RESOURCES:

We spoke about the documentary Icarus, which you can check out with a Netflix login here: https://www.netflix.com/nz/title/80168079  

Check out Eric’s podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@IronCulturePodcast 

Or follow him on insta: https://www.instagram.com/helms3dmj/ 

Dan Ebbett has come a long way since the days of wearing snowboarding goggles to the movies. As the founder of BlockBlueLight glasses, he’s a pioneer into the effects of devices, technology and light on sleep and health.

Dan developed his range of light-blocking glasses after struggling with chronic insomnia, eye strain and migraines. He changed the game by discovering the widespread impact blue light was having for people, and developing glasses that were focused on effectiveness rather than appearance.

This is one of those under-appreciated health areas that a surprisingly large number of people struggle with.

Dan and Art talk through:

• Dan’s personal journey with discovering blue light glasses, and how quickly they worked for him
• What blue light is and how it affects people
• The impact of device settings and “dark mode” - whether they actually do anything
• The physiological impacts of taking in blue light at night, and how it prevents sleep by impacting hormones
• How the sun gives off different light frequencies, and how the brain interprets them to know what time of day it is
• How to wear blue light blocking glasses, and why you shouldn't wear them all the time
• How the skin has its own circadian rhythm, and what that means for controlling lights inside at night
• Why good blue blocking glasses shouldn’t have clear lenses
• Light control apps
• The effect of windows and clouds on light absorption 
• Take home tips for controlling the effect of light in your everyday life
• Indicators you’re struggling with the effects of blue light, including stress and anxiety
• Red light therapy - what it is, what the benefits are (including red light saunas)

(Disclaimer about the sound - sorry about the weird background noises in this one, turns out that  a leaf blower waits for no one!)

***************

Please support this podcast by checking out our episode sponsors: 

-Blis Probiotics: https://blis.co.nz/

They kindly provided a discount code to our listeners - ‘WELLANDGOOD10’ for 10% off all products (excludes ElitePRO).

-Mitchells Nutrition: https://www.mitchellsnutrition.com/

They kindly provided a discount code to our listeners - ‘WELLANDGOOD15’ for 15% off all products.

***************

RESOURCES:

Because he’s a legend, Dan’s offered a 15% discount code for Well & Good listeners for any product on the BlockBlueLight website. Just enter the code WELLANDGOOD and it’s yours.

Check out www.blockbluelight.co.nz for more info

They’re on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/BlockBlueLightOfficial 

You can also contact them with questions/inquiries: https://www.blockbluelight.co.nz/pages/contact-us 

This conversation about genetics will change the way you view your personal health and wellness journey. 

Dr Libby Lindsay is an author, speaker and health entrepreneur whose personal health background led her to discover the significance of genetics on so many wellness techniques. She is the founder of Ingeneous, a DNA wellness portal that’s focused on genetics, and has helped more than 4,000 clients in the last 10 years.

In short, genetics impact just about everything. But you CAN alter your genetics and you CAN overcome genetic predispositions. In this episode of Well & Good, Art and Libby touch on:

• How Libby got so desperate to overcome her migraines, she went to a Fijian medicine man who chewed up a concoction in his mouth and spat it into her nose
• Her years of health issues and how it led her to genetic testing and ways to change the way they work
• The three changes that completely rewrote her health story in three weeks, including going from being lactose intolerant to drinking milk
• A basic level break down into what genes actually are - what they do, how they impact health and how 99.9% of everyone’s DNA is the same
• What nutrigenomics is and why you should know about it
• How to make permanent changes to your genetics, and how the critical thing is the timing of what you’re doing
• How your genetics impact the type of foods or diets you’re best suited to, or even the flavours you do and don’t like
• The most common genetic issues people have - how most people are suffering from the same types of things
• Why only 5-10% of people CAN’T address their health issues by focusing on their genes
• How your genetics impact your body type, muscle gain and fat loss

********

Please support this podcast by checking out our episode sponsors: 

-Blis Probiotics: https://blis.co.nz/

They kindly provided a discount code to our listeners - ‘WELLANDGOOD10’ for 10% off all products (excludes ElitePRO).

-Mitchells Nutrition: https://www.mitchellsnutrition.com/

They kindly provided a discount code to our listeners - ‘WELLANDGOOD15’ for 15% off all products.

*******

RESOURCES:

To find out more, check out Libby on Instagram @myingeneous

To see more about her work with Ingeneous, head to https://myingeneous.com/ 

Art got up at 3am to record this pod with world-renowned wellness guru Robb Wolf, and we reckon it was well worth it! Robb’s a former biochemist, best selling author, film producer, and a health speaker for the likes of NASA, the US Marine Corps and the Naval Special Warfare.

This is all about different types of training and health techniques and it goes into LOADS of different areas. There are takeaways here for anyone, from elite tips to basic techniques for beginners. 

We talk about…

• Losing 10kgs filming a survival TV show, including eating mice and killing an elk
• Longevity - why healthspan is something to focus on
• Why health journeys start with learning to sleep well, and how focusing on sleeping better can guide training and good behaviour
• How different foods impact people differently, and ways to see what’s best for you
• Zone two cardio training for endurance - what it is, and how often you should be doing it
• How to use Morpheus to guide the intensity of your exercise
• One approach to training with a great return on investment 
• Dietary techniques that worsen health outcomes
• The best mix of full body training with mobility, and how to combine them each week
• How 10 days of bed rest deconditions the body the equivalent of 30 years of ageing - the implications for safe, injury-free training
• The importance of physically challenging your body beyond just gardening or yoga
• The benefits of sprinting, especially in short, 5 metre bursts
• Fringe activities like hot/cold therapy, sun exposure, sauna
• A crash course in ziva meditation, and why he’d choose it over strength training (sometimes) 
• His electrolyte company LMNT, which is one of the fastest growing health and wellness brands in the world

*****

Please support this podcast by checking out our episode sponsors: 

-Blis Probiotics: https://blis.co.nz/

They kindly provided a discount code to our listeners - ‘WELLANDGOOD10’ for 10% off all products (excludes ElitePRO).

-Mitchells Nutrition: https://www.mitchellsnutrition.com/

They kindly provided a discount code to our listeners - ‘WELLANDGOOD15’ for 15% off all products.

*****

RESOURCES:

Find Robb on insta @dasrobbwolf

See the full range of his expertise at https://robbwolf.com/ 

Robb’s also given us a promo code to redeem for a gift with any purchase from his electrolyte business LMNT. Head to DrinkLMNT.com/wellandgood for more!

This episode is about one of the most significant aspects of health and wellness that’s often overlooked. Immunity. 

Dr Anna Brooks is a top immunologist and researcher, and she takes us on a deep dive into myths, truths, theories and the latest understanding when it comes to viruses, immunity, Covid and resilience. This includes:

-How her Keto diet helps her allergies

-Honing in on “trigger” foods to find out what makes you react, and how it’s not just about avoiding them

-What’s a virus, how it makes us sick, and how cells in the body respond to it

-Why some people catch a virus and others don’t - including why kids are often more resilient

-How viruses you catch as a kid can stay latent in your system forever, and how that can impact you later on

-What natural immunity is, and how vaccinations play into it

-How you can build your immunity (spoiler: diet is key)

-The role of the microbiome, and what we know about making it stronger

-Antibiotics - when you should and shouldn’t use them (including Anna’s recommendation for the best lozenges)

-How fasting impacts immunity

-Anna’s experience taking probiotics and the impact on her microbiome

-Supplements - when to take them for the biggest impact

-Hot and cold therapy

-Why this year’s flu season was so bad, and why next year might be another rough one

-Sleep and immunity

-Covid - how it’s different to the flu, and the surprising time it takes for our body to recover fully

-Why fitness doesn’t necessarily translate to immunity

-Long Covid - why people are getting it

-The importance of looking after yourself when you’re sick

****

RESOURCES: 

See more from Anna on Twitter: https://twitter.com/drannanz?lang=en 

Contribute to Anna’s Long Covid crowdfunding campaign: https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/giving/donate/a-z-list-of-funds/long-covid-research-project.html 

Meditation and yoga are super popular all over the world but how exactly do they benefit us? What happens when we do them that creates the impact it does? This is a great in-depth look into the cognitive benefits of mindfulness that really shows how powerful it can be. 

Dr Sara Lazar is an associate researcher in the Psychiatry Department at Massachusetts General Hospital and an assistant professor in psychology at Harvard Medical School. Her TED Talk, How Meditation Can Reshape Our Brains, has been viewed more than 1.6 million times.

Sara has spent years studying the neuroscience behind yoga and meditation to understand what it does to the brain, and how it impacts things like mood, love, memory and more. 

In this episode, we talk about:

• The difference in benefit between yoga and meditation
• The impact on the brain, including how the brain grows and changes through mindfulness
• How the brain remembers things, including things you didn’t try to remember
• The impact of meditation on ageing
• The permanence of the effects of meditation 
• The ideal amount of meditation and best times of day to do it - why 4am is ideal
• How to use mindfulness techniques in anything you do during the day
• Why it doesn’t matter how meditate or how good you think it is - the intention is what counts
• Does meditation ACTUALLY make you happier?
• Meditation for anxiety/depression/kindness/joy/love…how it all works
• Meditating in groups - how many people find it better

This is a great episode for anyone who meditates or does yoga and wants to understand how it has the effect it does. Or, if you want to maximise the benefit of what you’re going, this has some great tips and tricks.

**********************

Check out more from Sara at https://scholar.harvard.edu/sara_lazar/home 

Her TED Talk is here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m8rRzTtP7Tc 

The Twitter account she mentions is also here: https://twitter.com/lablazar?lang=en  

This is the all-around nutrition podcast we’ve been dying to bring to you. It’s packed with SUPER handy nutrition advice, as Mikki Williden gives her incredible, wide-ranging perspective on so many aspects of eating.

If you’ve ever wondered about your diet, or wanted to eat better but didn’t know where to start, there’s something here for you. 

In particular, we take a really good look at protein to bust a few myths and give good, practical advice on how to get the protein you need. 

Talking points include:

• Mikki’s experience doing the carnivore diet - why she only lasted two days
• Why organ meat is perhaps the world’s best super food
• Losing weight and adopting eating habits that stay with you for life
• Foods that trigger inflammation
• Why whole foods should be your guiding light
• The difference between net carbs and total carbs - and which one you should be looking at
• Protein:
  • Misinformation
  • The politics of meat
  • Why protein is essential for living healthier for longer
  • Hacks to get more protein into your diet
  • The best sources of protein 
  • Why animal protein is better than plant protein for protein intake
  • The best plant based proteins

• All the benefits of muscle mass as you age, including how it helps women going through menopause 
• Fasting - why it doesn’t work for everyone, and how to know if it’s not working for you
• Supplements best suited to people in NZ
• Why magnesium is something everyone should be having, and which types are best
• Mythbusting creatine: the research that shows it IS a good supplement. Why, and how to use it

********

RESOURCES:

The sardines Art spoke about being into is Diplomats brisling sardines in olive oil.

Find Mikki on instagram @mikkiwilliden

Check out her podcast, Mikkipedia

Get more from her at mikkiwilliden.com 

Weekly email

Meal plan subscription service 

Sign up to her Mondays matter programme to transform eating behaviour and how you feel about yourself 

------------------

WIN WIN WIN WIN

For your chance to win a Found Space Sauna, enter here:

https://info.foundspace.co.nz/win 

Dr. Cliff Harvey is back on the pod, this time going deep into strength training. As a weightlifting world record holder and consultant to the likes of Team New Zealand and Joseph Parker, Cliff’s one of NZ’s leading resistance training experts.

In his words, strength training has the biggest bang for buck in terms of long term health outcomes. We strip it right back to understand how it works, and address the biggest issues people have when they’re trying to get stronger. 

That includes:

• The most important principles in resistance training (progressive overload etc.)
• How to use strength training for weight loss 
• The ideal number of sets, reps and frequency for better results
• Why you shouldn’t lift until you can’t lift anymore, and what a better option is
• A 101 in hypertrophy (putting on muscle)
• Under-eating - how it’s a much bigger issue than people realise and how he saw its impact on people with IBS
• Why the recommended daily protein intake is way less than it should be
• The importance of residual movement outside the gym

The great thing about Cliff’s take on all this is he has the scientific knowledge to explain it, but it’s also understandable and usable for everyday people. He knows the studies and he’s seen the results of so many different things - now it’s accessible! 

For more info from Cliff, including his own podcast, coaching and books, check out cliffharvey.com 

------------------

WIN WIN WIN WIN

For your chance to win a Found Space Sauna, enter here:

https://info.foundspace.co.nz/win