Health Oddity Podcast

We are joined by 3 x Worlds Strongest Disabled Man, British Army Veteran, Wheelchair Rugby player & unique style icon Mac McLaren! Mac talks about his life, his life altering injury, his competitive sporting achievements & customised designs for prosthetic legs! Mac has competed all round the world & now sets his sights on Wheelchair Rugby (or Murderball as it affectionately referred to) prepare y...

Peter & James discuss the concept of 'The Centenarian Decathlon' as written about by Dr Peter Attia in his phenomenal book 'Outlive'. It's a list of 10 things people could look to build (or more likely maintain) in their marginal decades, namely 70s, 80s, 90s & potentially beyond. This list should be individualised to account for circumstances, specific lifestyle demands & areas of interest. These...

We are joined by Ellie Crawley; Founder of Feel Fit shop & studio in Bristol, Feel Fit sustainable activewear clothing brand & Feel You retreats. Ellie is an online lifestyle & prep coach & an in-person trainer & leader of the Feel Fit community & wellness movement. We find out about Ellie's career path, her business success, her philosophy around everything she does within the Feel Fit brand & we...

We are joined all the way from Vermillion, Ohio USA by Mark Valenti; former pro heavy events athlete, Strongfirst Certified Elite Instructor, owner of 'Blind Dog Strong' gym, reader of books & swinger of Kettlebells! We discuss competing for 18 years in Highland Games, learning directly from Louie Simmons at Westside Barbell, transitioning to Strongman, becoming Strongfirst Elite & lifting the Hus...

We are joined by Pav Johal for an important episode. Pav is a British Asian female who is setting an example through her own athletic endeavours & through coaching other women in what is a massively underrepresented demographic with the fitness & strength world. Pav talks candidly about her own childhood in sport & training & her strong academic background. How culturally she doesn't see many 'lik...

We are joined for the 3rd time by the energetic & entertaining Fabio Zonin live from Italy! Fabio has been lifting for 40 years & in this fascinating conversation we take a deep dive into programming for strength, the relationship between patience & strength & how to adjust your expectations & goals around strength as you age. Strength is undoubtedly an attitude & we discuss the correct attitude r...

We are back with our first show of 2024 & we are joined by the incredible Alison Young. Alison is an I.T professional by day & a Powerlifter by night (& at weekends). She also has more recently taken on HYROX as well as WINNING the last TSC 'Tactical Strength Challenge'. Alison is also an SFG2 Kettlebell Instructor AND an 'Iron Maiden'! We discuss the importance of competition, programming, prepar...

We are joined for a very special Boxing Day episode with Mark Tonner - Injured Military Veteran, one armed Strongman & fitness professional. We discuss Mark's life, his sporting & military career, his life altering injury in Afghanistan, how he struggled to come to terms with his life afterwards & how his life & training look now. We also discuss the incredible 24hr Deadlift Challenge that Mark wi...

In this Christmas episode Peter & James reflect back on recent guests, progress made throughout the year in training & plans for the festive season. We talk about our direction & focus for 2024 & some upcoming guests we are looking forward to talking to. Both hosts also come dressed ready for the occasion with Peter squeezing into a rather fetching festive jumper!

In this fascinating joint episode featuring former guests Dan John & Tim Anderson we discuss the seamless synergy between Easy Strength & Original Strength & the original meeting of these two great minds & concepts. How general work capacity should be developed & then applied to specific tasks or sports RATHER than using sport to develop work capacity & how to pass the RKC without touching a kettl...

We are rejoined (for the 3rd time) by Chris Branch, who, on this visit, joins us for a more celebratory & uplifting conversation. In October 2023 Chris set off on an epic 100 mile foot race which was to be completed on a single 400m running track (over 400 laps!) In this fascinating discussion Chris explains the physical, mental & emotional challenges he had to overcome to complete the race & take...

We are joined all the way from South Africa by Master SFG Instructor, Original Beast Tamer, father of 4 & Rugby nut Shaun Cairns. This is a broad & wide reaching conversation which covers sport & athletic training, a well rounded family life, training people into their 60s & 70s & the importance of always striving for 'something' with your training.  In his 50s Shaun still has some goals he's work...

Will Polston is a best selling author, entrepreneur, award-winning business strategist & performance coach. In 2023 Will's first book was released 'North Star Thinking: Master Your Mindset and Live a Life You Love' and became a #1 Amazon best seller. We discuss many aspects of personal development with Will in a very different episode where he shares his own story, his experiences & perspectives &...

We are rejoined by former Royal Marine Commando & Welshman living in California Phil McDougall. We last met Phil way back in Episode 25 where we heard all about his life story & career development. In this episode we take a deep dive into corporate wellness programmes; the good, the bad & the ugly as well as desk bound posture & the concept of targeted 'movement snacks'. This is a 'must listen/wat...

We are joined this week by Anthony Flores: Father, Husband, Athlete, Winners Mindset Expert & self proclaimed 'Cancer Champion'! Anthony's life story (so far) is nothing short of incredible. From morbidly obese teenager to National level endurance athlete to Hyrox Champion & life changing coach. You will be intrigued, saddened & ultimately inspired by his journey & having been given a second chanc...

We are joined by a truly remarkable young lady for this episode & we have a conversation that helps to reframe what we believe is possible & the power to adapt & overcome. Louise talks to us about her life & her sporting endeavours that include horse riding, kayaking, Strongwoman & mountaineering. She is also a Personal Trainer & currently studying for her Masters Degree in Strength & Conditioning...

We are joined by Oli Mell from Wolfpack Fitness in Cheshire & take a deep dive into the world of Kettlebell sport & training for the pinnacle of strength endurance competition. Oli is a former Royal Marine Commando, England Kettlebell Sport team member, multiple World Champion & multiple world record holder including the 2 hour - 'Super Marathon' long cycle with a 24kg bell (yes, you read that cor...

We meet Mat from Evolve Fitness & Performance for what is a compelling & important conversation. Mat talks candidly about suffering from near fatal anorexia as a teenager & young adult & the work he now does with patients referred to him with eating disorders & addictions. This is the first time on the podcast that we have discussed these issues at length & Mat will certainly be returning to talk...

In this 'world first' special double episode we bring together two of the great coaching minds of the last 40 years; Dan John (for his record breaking 7th visit with us) & Phil Maffetone (for his 3rd visit with us). Both world renowned & highly respected coaches, authors, athletes & academics who from the outside operate on different ends of the spectrum - strength & endurance. We discuss training...

In this 'world first' special double episode we bring together two of the great coaching minds of the last 40 years; Dan John (for his record breaking 7th visit with us) & Phil Maffetone (for his 3rd visit with us). Both world renowned & highly respected coaches, authors, athletes & academics who from the outside operate on different ends of the spectrum - strength & endurance. We discuss training...

The 3 hosts discuss some topics raised in Episode 160 with Matt Shore. How important are aesthetics (what we look like) & is that a sustainable & motivating long term goal?  How does the Amazing 12 transformation programme work & is that an 'aesthetics programme' OR a strength programme that results in improved aesthetics? How training for different goals shifts our mindset & the importance of fin...

We are joined by returning guest Matt Shore (last seen on Episode 65) we discuss his upcoming November 'Fluid Strength' workshop at Unique Results in Chelmsford, Essex & his plans for the future including his new 'Peak Experience UK' brand. We also talk at length about his training philosophy & mixed modality programming as well as when he tackled a purely aesthetic training goal & we unpack his l...

We discuss some key takeaways from recent guests & check in with Pete's 6 million step challenge & his plans to spread organised group-walks across the UK. James discusses reorganising his group strength programme on the back of reading The Easystrength Omnibook & interviewing Magnus last week & we muse with Paul about how to help our clients regain focus following breaks & for the final 1/3 of 20...

We are honoured to be joined by the man who dominated the world of strength for much of the 1990s & who is still hugely influential & heavily involved in strength sports worldwide to this day. Magnus won the Worlds Strongest Man in 1991, 94, 95 & 96 (as well as coming second in 92 & 93) previously he was a Powerlifting Champion & was born & bred in Iceland. Magnus discusses his Icelandic origins,...

We kick off our 4th year of podcasting with special guest Pat Flynn - Husband, Father, Content Creator, Writer, Musician, Minimalist, Generalist, Podcaster, Coach & all round fascinating guy. Pat's been on our 'guest wish list' for a long time & his visit with us doesn't disappoint. We discuss training, personal productivity, physical & mental compartmentalisation & the interplay between efficienc...