The Excellence Cartel

Episode 58: Let's talk about stress Today we sat down with coach Tim English (@everycaloriecounts) to discuss all things stress related and the considerations we make as coaches to manage stress in our clientele. Stress is cumulative and can be thought of a big bucket that sits atop your head, collecting drops of all the things that can go wrong in life. Whether stress is acute or chronic, the buc...

Episode 57: State of Grace There is an elusive intersection of your identity, self-worth, and perception of the world which determines your position in life. This is your state of grace, where knowing for a moment that you are enough, and all is well. Today we were joined by Howard Falco, self-empowerment coach and author of I Am to discuss the search for oneself through the constant reconciliatio...

Episode 56: Turning Pro with Steven Pressfield Today we were joined by the author of The War of Art, and The Legend of Bagger Vance, Steven Pressfield, to talk about his book Turning Pro. Many of us spend the majority of our lives as amateurs, floating in the current, letting life take us directionless into the depths of distraction and addiction. Our addictions aren't always drugs, but complacenc...

Episode 55: Another Day, Another Open Q&A Today we took a break from our guests and took a few questions from our audience relating to coaching and troubleshooting client cases. Topics included: where to start when looking into gut dysbiosis and how birth control affects lab work. If you have any further questions about these topics feel free to send us a DM! 🏆 THE EXCELLENCE CARTEL 🏆 Follow...

Episode 54: All About Estrogen with Joe Jeffery Today we invited our brother from across the pond, Sir Joe Jeffery to the Cartel of Excellence to discuss all things having to do with Estrogen! Or, "eestrogen"... All jokes aside, this episode was filled with science and education as Joe talks about what estrogen is, how it works, and the applications and need of the hormone for both the male and fe...

Episode 53: Adrenals & Thyroid with Sam Miller Today we were joined by Sam Miller, online coach, mentor, educator, and the founder of Sam Miller Science, to discuss adrenals and the thyroid. The adrenal and thyroid glands are two of our bodies' most important regulatory systems, controlling things like digestion, stress response, sleep, and hormone production. Far too often people think of the...

Episode 52: Today we were joined by the coach, the mad scientist, and the bodybuilder known as Phil Viz, head coach and owner of Team Vizual FX. Phil is widely known and well respected in the upper circles of the bodybuilding world and today we invited him on to discuss the use of insulin across a variety of considerations for physique enhancement. Insulin is often misunderstood, feared, and misus...

Episode 51: Oxalates with Sally Norton Today we sat down with Sally Norton, vitality coach, speaker, health consultant and expert on oxalates - calcium binding substances which occur in foods like dark green vegetables and potatoes. High oxalate intake has been linked to an increased risk of kidney stones and other health problems. In this episode Sally takes us through how and why oxalates can le...

Episode 50: Metabolic Adaptation with Brandon DaCruz Today we sat down with coach Brandon DaCruz and talked about all things related to the dreaded grim reaper of progress: metabolic adaptation! Brandon walks us through what metabolic adaptation is, how it happens, and how it has been marketed as a problem within the fitness industry and what solutions coaches can take to fix and redirect. 🏆 THE...

Episode 49: IFBB Pro Cade Zook Have you ever wondered what it takes to be an IFBB pro bodybuilder? If so, this is an episode you don't want to miss. Today we sat down with Cade Zook, who turned pro last year at North Americans and asked him point blank about his personal bodybuilding journey. Cade lays it all out in this raw, tell-all interview about his bodybuilding career so far and talks about...

Episode 48: Nootropics & Physique Enhancement with Coach Jevin Krier Today we invited one of the industry's up and coming and brightest minds, Jevin Krier onto the show to talk about nootropics - a group of drugs, supplements, and substances which may have cognitive enhancing effects. We all know where the mind leads the body follows and nootropics have been gaining more traction and attention...

Episode 47: Going Keto with John Gorman Coach John Gorman takes over the Excellence Cartel today and leads our discussion on the benefits and drawbacks of a ketogenic diet as it applies to the general population and competitors. Keto is often seen as a last ditch effort to get lean when all else has failed, but we encourage you all to rethink of keto as a tool to be applied temporarily when the si...

Episode 46: The Nutrition Coaching Institute Today we sat down with Jason Phillips, owner of Nutrition Coaching Institute, a world renowned coaching certification system. Jason speaks about his experience as an entrepreneur and coach and how he built, scaled, and marketed NCI into a multi-million dollar organization which has helped thousands of coaches serve thousands of clients world wide. Jason...

Episode 45: Testosterone & Other Drugs This is an episode for the boys, so let your balls drop and let's get rolling! Today we are joined by Scott McNally and Skip Hill, two of the most knowledgeable and real "old school" bodybuilding coaches to talk about testosterone, its applications, and other drugs involved in the wacky sport we call bodybuilding. We keep it raw, real, and funny. So if yo...

Episode 44: Fertility with Erin Crawford Today we are joined by Erin Crawford, who specializes in holistic coaching for women with fertility issues. Erin's own journey into the world of fertility management started with being diagnosed with cervical cancer four times which left her infertile. Erin explains how helpful genetic testing is in terms of assessing viability, and the role gut health play...

Episode 43: Coaching Spotlight: Meredith Paci Today we invited ScoobyPrep coach Meredith Paci onto the show to take us through how she became a health coach and how and why she decided to link up with Jason and ScoobyPrep. Meredith shares her own journey and how personal growth motivated her to get into the business of helping others. This episode will be the first of many where we will showcase t...

Episode 42: Life After Macros with Laurin Conlin IFBB Bikini Pro and Coach Laurin Conlin joins us today for an in-depth discussion on the psychology and physiology behind "feeding up" and fixing our clients' relationship with food. Tracking macros has become a mainstay approach in the fitness world and beyond, but what happens when you don't have macros or can't track what's on the plate in front...

Episode 41: Open Q&A with Jamie Pinder Today we invited the one and only Jamie Pinder back on our show to answer your questions! We go around the table and discuss mistakes women make with training as it relates to hormones, coming off of birth control, the importance of rest days, keeping a period during contest prep, and much more. If you have a question for us, send a DM to The Excellence C...

Episode 40: Adrenal Health with Austin Stout Today we invited Austin Stout, coach and owner of Integrated Muscle & Health onto the show to share his story and personal struggle with adrenal fatigue. Austin describes what it felt like to have flatlined levels of cortisol and discusses the various components of bloodwork which helped him troubleshoot and fix. Adrenal fatigue is the outcome of ig...

Episode 39: Social Media Growth with Chris Casey Today we sat down with Chris Casey, social media branding and marketing expert and consultant to discuss how coaches should approach content creation and organic growth on platforms like Facebook and Instagram. Chris discusses how to use stories and the highlights function on Instagram and what to do to "prime the algorithm" on both platforms. Jeffr...

Episode 38: Our Mentors Today we sat down and opened up about our mentors; those who offered their own time and story to help each of us write our own. We talk about our childhood influencers, those who led us in bodybuilding, and the successful individuals who guided us through business and industry. Finding the right mentor is priceless, and we would all agree that having help is why we're all h...

Episode 37: Another Day, Another Q&A Today we went round table style with more great questions from our listeners: how to train and eat post show? What's our most challenging demographic to coach? How to tell if your drugs are real? We also reflect on our biggest business failures and chat a little about the current economic and political situation that is covid-19.

Episode 36: Sleep, Stress, & Cortisol Cortisol is your body's hormonal response to physiological and psychological stress. It often gets a bad rep, but cortisol has its benefits too, namely to control systemic inflammation. In this episode we dive into the connection between cortisol and sleep and discuss the importance of a good night's sleep in relation to your health and physique goals. We...

Episode 35: 10 Questions & 10 Answers This was a fun episode! Today we sat down to answer 10 questions we received from our listeners and went round table style to deliver answers from our unique personal perspectives. How to extend longevity in bodybuilding? Offseason versus pre-contest drugs? What are the best health supplements you should take? What to get checked out when getting blood wor...

Episode 34: Beating Covid-19 as a Business Owner The service industry has been hit the hardest by the coronavirus epidemic and included are gyms and gym owners. Jeff Black, owner of Iron House Gym in Nashville, TN sat down with sales guru Nick Ross and Allison Reynolds, CPA to field scenarios and strategize approaches to surviving and thriving during this time as a gym owner or health coach. 🏆 TH...