Barbell Shrugged

Ajit Nawalkha came from humble beginnings. Born to a middle-income family in Jaipur, Ajit grew up in an extended family of 23 other people under one roof. Space and money were scarce, and so as a little boy he dreamt of abundance.   Ajit made a decision to plant himself where he could grow. From starting as a trainee in a non-profit, Ajit has since held various roles including CEO of Mindvalley, C...

Ryan Fischer's (@ryanfisch) entire life has always been about fitness. At the age of 12 he was a world ranked BMX racer. In high-school he ran track at just about every distance, played lacrosse, and football at the varsity level since his freshman year. As Ryan grew up he got into skeleton and boblsed and qualified for the US Olympic Team Trials for both sports. Ryan has finished top 5 in the Cro...

Sakura Kokumai  is training to become a karate World Champion and to represent USA in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.   Sakura started karate in Honolulu, Hawaii when she was 8 years old. She started competing internationally at 14, and represented the Jr. USA Karate Team for four years, winning the Jr. Pan American Championships 4 years in a row.   Sakura is currently ranked number 5 in the world! Most...

Mike Boyle is one of the foremost experts in the fields of Strength and Conditioning, Functional Training and general fitness. He currently spends his time lecturing, teaching, training and writing. In 1996 Mikel co founded Mike Boyle Strength and Conditioning, one of the first for-profit strength and conditioning companies in the world. Mike Boyle Strength and Conditioning exists for one reason:...

Wade and Matt started their company after enzymes radically changed their lives. They knew the knowledge they were paying $1500 a month to obtain was too great to keep to themselves, so they found a way to spread it to the masses. The result is BiOptimizers: scientifically-backed enzyme supplements that flip the conventional understanding of "health" upside down.   We sit down to talk about our ea...

Julien Pineau  is a Humanist & Movement Specialist and founder of StrongFit  . Sports have been a part of Julien's life since he was young and he's been a state and national champion in a number of sports including soccer, swimming, and wrestling. As an adult, he really found something he liked with MMA and Jiu-Jitsu and spent time traveling the world to learn from the best in the industry.   The...

Jen Widerstrom (@jenwiderstrom) is a personal trainer and fitness model. She is well known for her role of a trainer in the NBC's long-running and hit series The Biggest Loser, replacing Jillian Michaels where she worked as a body coach and guided the participants through a well-planned exercise regime and also provided the required emotional support to them during their journey to a fitter body....

Ashley Bledsoe is not only Mike's wife, she's a relationships coach, who guides couples to create a powerful partnership.   Ashley also has a master's degree in Sports and Recreation Management, and has been supporting, coaching and facilitating groups in the fitness industry for the past 10 years. However, over the past three years, she's been delving into deeper healing work. She's passionate ab...

This is a special episode, where Doug Larson (@douglaselarson) and Anders Varner (@andersvarner) talk about the best books on business, why communication is a skill you should constantly be developing, how mindset training is a skill that plays into all of life's skills, why learning meditation will make you better at everything, and much more.   Enjoy! - Doug and Anders --------------------------...

It's hard to remember a time before Instagram, but Dennis (@denheen) and Kelsey (@thedailykelsey) built their online training business the old-fashioned way (through Facebook and email). They took a chance, came up with a catchy name, HIIT Burn (@hiitburn), and the rest is laid out in detail for you in this episode. In their case, big risks and some smart marketing led to big rewards—it's a classi...

The Strong Coach: "Guiding Coaches to Their Greatness" Season 2 Epilogue The Strong Coach Season 2 kicks off with an epilogue with head Coach Danny Rios, a recent Strong Coach Graduate April Flaten, and the co-host Doug Larson. April is one of the very first clients to graduate the program and has created a position in the fitness industry that fits her lifestyle and business goals. The core princ...

Matt Gallant is the CEO of BiOptimzers and has a bachelor's degree in Kinesiology. He's been a strength and conditioning coach for multiple pro-athletes, a self-defense instructor, and has over 10 years experience formulating supplements. Fun fact: Matt's been playing guitar and keyboards for over 19 years… and recorded a hard rock CD when he was young and angry.   Wade Lightheart is the president...

Dr. Gabrielle Lyon is a functional medicine physician specializing in Muscle-Centric Medicine . She leverages evidence-based medicine with emerging cutting-edge science to restore metabolism, balance hormones and optimize body composition.   Dr. Lyon attended the Arizona College of Osteopathic Medicine and is board-certified in Family Practice. She also completed her research fellowship in Nutriti...

You might know a thing or two about CBD, but I guarantee you are not on the level with Mike Banhagel, the founder of Seven Points CBD. This guy can define words most people can't pronounce, and he explains CBD from plant to product in a way that's fun and accessible. He answers all the hot-topic questions (drug tests? CBD for law enforcement? FDA regulation? Vaping) and tells consumers what questi...

Jess Magic is a heARTist, a soul-stirring songstress, and a muse for today's generation of change-makers. More than a singer, Jess is a musical story-teller who creates compelling opportunities for people to interact with life from an open heart.   In a world where so many are longing for deeper levels of connection, authentic expression and intimacy, Jess weaves a "spell" of love with each song a...

Closing out 2018 on the highest of highs! Jeff (@iamjeffthornton) and Derz (@coachderz) are moving full steam ahead with Feed Me Fuel Me TV. Our time with the Shrugged Collective (@shruggedcollective) has come to an end. We've learned a ton of lessons and have created a space that is open for collaboration in the future. Don't be surprised if you catch us making cameos on the Collective in the fut...

Emmie Satrazemis is a board-certified sports nutritionist, registered dietitian, and Nutrition Director at Trifecta. Emmie is a veggie fanatic who loves to have fun while spreading the good word of nutrition.   A self-described "always hungry" fitness junkie, Emmie loves to build strength and push her body hard, which comes in handy when working with professional, Olympic, and collegiate athletes...

Andrea Ager is passion personified. She attacks everything she does with her whole heart, whether it's running track, competing in CrossFit, coaching her AgerBomb seminars, or sharing her faith. As a high-level athlete and an instructor, she knows it's crucial to never stop learning about training and nutrition for herself so that she can better serve her clients. Andrea's drive to never stop impr...

Tero Isokauppila (@iamtero) is a a Finnish nomad turned into a fungi lovin' foodpreneur. He is the president and founder of Four Sigmatic (@foursigmatic) — A mushroom and superfoods company that creates products to help you live a better and healthier life. Tero's dream is to bring back the ancient mushroom wisdom to modern lifestyle.   In his native Finland, Tero grew up on his family's centuries...

This week Jeff and Derz sit down with the founder of Athlete's Brand (@athletesbrand), Kyle Mauch (@kylemauch) and discuss what is truly possible! One of the most common questions we are asked as a result of our discussions is how you go about discovering your purpose. When you ask Kyle, he'll tell you that you're asking the wrong question. To know your purpose is to know WHY you were put on this...

Jen Esquer, DPT, PT, has been on a ruthless ongoing journey to learn about the body and movement since she was a child. She was a professional gymnast until age 16, studied yoga and pilates, studied physiotherapy, and is continuously exploring and learning more . is creator of and The Optimal Body Preventing Pain & Injury Optimizing Lives.   Dr. Jen is also the creator of The Mobility Method , whi...

From Wall Street cold calling to owning a successful gym in NYC with a detour into the nightclub scene along the way, Vincent Miceli's career trajectory is all over the map and he has got some stories. I caught up with him at Solace to compare notes on gyms as businesses, how to create great programming, and what we would do differently if we could start all over.   Vincent talks about his own wei...

Ryan Niddel is a motivator and host of 15 Minutes to Freedom podcast, an unfiltered daily dive into the life lessons and mistakes he made. Using his life experiences as an unfiltered guide, Ryan puts his experiences in perspective to help you expand your own life.   Topics on his podcast range from the importance of owning your truth, tapping into your own spirituality, and much more. The sole pur...

Jason Rule is owner of Driven Nutrition, an affiliate exclusive line of sports nutrition and dietary supplements. Featuring Charlotte's Web CBD, Driven Whey, BCAA's, OmegaDrive, Pre-Wod and Post-Wod.   In this episode, we talk about how hemp oil and CBD oil are different, what happens in the supplement market to make bad supplements, wow to increase sales at your gym through retail, why Charlotte'...

According to our guest this week, leadership coach and mentor, Ken Kilday, the failure of leadership presently lies in the fact that people in influential positions know the words to say, yet aren't capable of putting action behind those words. There tend to be two kinds of leaders that seek Ken's counsel: those that are proactive, seeking to bring their blindspots and shortcomings to the forefron...