The Better Basics Podcast

Hot Topic: Do Rob Schneider feature films cause oil spills? Worth It? Greens Powders We're a month into 2025, and there are lots to us that have weight loss goals. Maybe you've tried before with some success but ultimately put the weight back on. Maybe you've been trying but not seeing the results you want. At the end of the day, weight loss (and more importantly fat loss) is confusing...

Hot Topic: New study shows that high protein diets improve healthy aging Worth It? Lacrosse Ball Everyone in the health and wellness space has a STRONG opinion on seed oils, typically falling on the GOOD side or BAD side. It gets confusing knowing where the truth lies, and it's easy to side with the person you like and trust. As is the case with most things in health, it's an incredibly nuanced to...

Hot Topic: Is healthy obesity a misnomer? Worth It? Taco Bell Chicken Nuggets The physical health implications of body weight can be confusing. What the heck is BMI? What does it tells us about body fat? What should I actually be paying attention to? And why does my weight impact my physical health? Matt and Dylan answer these questions and dive into a nuanced discussion around weight and health....

Hot Topic: Here’s why not having time to exercise is demonstrably irrational  Worth It? Alpha Brain (Nootropics) Writing a workout program is a science and an art. What goes into designing an effective strength training program and how can you leverage these principles to put one together yourself? Matt and Dylan discuss and provide a roadmap for you to build your own strength training program spe...

Hot Topic: New Year's resolutions. Why do we give up on them so quickly? Worth It? Atomic Habits by James Clear 9/10 New Year's resolutions fail within the first two weeks. The average health and fitness related resolution lasts 19 days on average. These things just don't work. So, how can we harness the motivation that comes with the turn of the new year to ensure that our goals and habits are in...

It's been a wild year! 48 straight weeks of episodes. We're having a ton of fun and are grateful for all of the support. Matt and Dylan discuss their reflections on 2024, the state of the health and fitness industry, and expectations for 2025.

Hot Topic: Eli Lilly's GLP-1 "Zepbound" as a Treatment for Addiction? Worth It? Magic Spoon Cereal Main Course: It's incredibly important that we leverage our diet to get the important vitamins and minerals that we need to live a healthy life. Supplements are fine in some contexts, but food is where it's at. It's cheaper, tastier, and your body uses it better. Matt and Dylan cover many of the esse...

Hot Topic: Experts say ‘clean’ eating has a dirty little secret Worth It? Happy Lamps What Say You About [Edition Four]: The fourth episode of the series! Matt and Dylan have a fun discussion off the cuff on a variety of health and fitness topics, including: the 30-30-3 diet, sauna after exercise, 5x5 training, RFK Jr and MAHA, the death of the UHC CEO, low-fat dairy, and BCAAs. Q&A: Free weig...

Hot Topic: What you should know about the potato diet Worth It?: At-Home Pull Up Bar Whether you’re a seasoned strength training veteran or relatively new to fitness, the risk of injury is there for all of us. Not only in the gym, but also when we bend down to garden, pick up a heavy bag of groceries, or join the 4th of July kickball game. And when you do get hurt, it’s not fun at all. The physica...

Hot Topic: The Endless Bowl of Soup Study Worth It? Adjustable Dumbbells (Nuobell & Powerblock) The holiday season can feel daunting to those of us trying to improve our health and fitness. We're faced with lots of temptations that feel like they're going to get us off track. It's important not to let our health ambitions get in the way of the most important parts of this time of year: family,...

Hot Topic: Get Off the Couch: Another Study Shows Sitting’s Health Dangers Worth It: SodaStream Our Worst Health & Fitness Mistakes and Lessons Learned It’s really easy to buy in to the millions of suggestions being promoted by health and fitness “experts” and influencers. It’s impossible not to see it and it’s easy to be convinced. It’s led to Matt and Dylan making MANY mistakes. They share w...

Hot Topic: The Age of (Mis)Information Worth It? Ninja Creami The macro trends tell us that kids are in crisis. They are more depressed and overweight than ever before. And one of the key contributing factors, is that they're not moving nearly enough. 80% of kids aren't meeting the U.S. recommendation for daily movement. Matt and Dylan discuss why being a model for activity is critical and how to...

Hot Topic: Is sparkling water as hydrating as still water? Worth It? Angles90 Grips It's election night in America! In the spirit of this night, Matt and Dylan debate some hot topics in health and fitness and come to some conclusions on where the voters stand on each issue. They discuss topics from strength training vs cardio to calorie counting vs intuitive eating.

Hot Topic: Fit students have 3x higher odds of good grades Worth It? Creatine Gummies Most training programs are heavy on the bilateral movements. The traditional barbell back squats, bench press, etc. get all the attention. And with good reason. But unilateral exercises deserve equal attention. Matt and Dylan dive into unilateral training, the benefits, their favorite exercises, and how to incorp...

Hot Topic: Weekend Warrior Workouts: Here’s Why It’s Still a Win Worth It? Factor Meals Training and exercise is vitally important to us throughout our lives. From crawling around and playing to lifting weights to walking and getting our heart rate up, different periods of our lives offer different opportunities for growth. Matt and Dylan explore fitness through the ages and discuss the optimal wa...

Hot Topic: Golden lettuce and GMO health foods In Episode 33, we discussed the BIG rocks. The 5 things you must be doing consistently before you spend a penny on health and fitness. If you haven't listened to that, go back and start there! In this episode, we build on the list by introducing the medium-large rocks. The next 5 things you should consider adding to your routine to improve it further....

Hot Topic: Most people worldwide are deficient in micronutrients What Say You About? [Edition Three]: The third episode of the series! Matt and Dylan question each other and have a fun discussion off the cuff on a variety of health and fitness topics, including: The Smith Machine, Lifting to Failure, Calorie/Macro Trackers, Slowing Tempo to Increase Intensity, Plant-Based Milk, Coffee Enemas, and...

Hot Topic: Fasting isn't magic for autophagy Enough of the Diet rollercoasters! How do we ensure that we actually stick to healthy eating? We stay away from "Diets" and we follow some simple principles for a good "diet". Matt and Dylan discuss and share the template for consistently sticking to healthy eating patterns to achieve health and fitness goals. Q&A: What are your health and fitness b...

Hot Topic: Amazon’s Return To Office, Beer, & Loneliness How do we ensure that our workouts are effective each time we show up at the gym and throughout our fitness journey? There are a few key pillars that we must get right to keep progressing. Matt and Dylan discuss and share the template for consistently effective workouts and progress. Q&A: Is butter good or bad and should I be adding...

Hot Topic: Ketogenic diet may reduce friendly gut bacteria and raise cholesterol levels It’s football season, baby! In the spirit of one of our favorite times of year, we’re doing a fantasy draft of our favorite exercises. We discuss the best (in our opinion) exercises for unilateral lower body, bilateral lower body, push, pull, delts, biceps, triceps, and core. Get out a pad of paper, write these...

Hot Topic: It’s time for parents to learn manners around phone use People LOVE to spend money on health and fitness. It’s so easy to believe that “THIS” is going to be the thing to help me lose weight, build muscle, or live longer. We’re guilty of it, and I’m sure you have been at some point too. But, every penny spent is a penny wasted unless you have the big rocks in place first. These five thin...

Hot Topic: Star sweat: Can astrology help you get the body you were born for? The world has become so binary. This OR That. Everyone has camp and hill to die on. But, what if we dropped the "or" for an "and", and started to accept that multiple things can be true at the same time? We think the world would be a better place. AND, that your health and fitness would improve becaus...

Hot Topic: Gaining is hard, maintaining is easy When it comes to the pursuit of anything new or challenging, there are always fears that can get in the way. This is especially true in health and fitness. Matt and Dylan explore their top 10 fears that prevent people from starting, restarting, or continuing their health and fitness journeys. Fear of failure, judgment, change, high costs, and much mo...

Hot Topic: The Poor Man’s Ozempic The TOP rule you should follow in health and fitness is the 80/20 rule. Do your best to make the best decision 80% of the time. Matt and Dylan discuss how to apply this rule to diet, fitness, and mindset - to provide actionable ways to make “being healthy” a whole lot easier. They also discuss the Pareto Principle, a second 80/20 rule, that’s all about finding and...

Hot Topic: Matt's Mobile Phone Dilemma What Say You About? [Edition Two]: The second episode of the series! Matt and Dylan question each other and have a fun discussion off the cuff on a variety of health and fitness topics, including: Burpees, Push/Pull/Legs Splits, Protein Bars, Coffee as a Preworkout, 30-30-30 Diet Method, Farmer's Carries, Peloton Bikes, and Home Workouts. Q&A: How...