Please enjoy a great conversation and in-person show here in the Sacramento studios of the B.rad/Primal Endurance podcast with my good friend and sprinting mentor Cynthia Monteleone, coming to you all the way from the beautiful Big Island of Hawaii.

We had a long, wide-ranging discussion on health, fitness, peak performance, and longevity—especially in Cynthia’s area of expertise, acting as a truth seeker and naysayer in the health and fitness scene. She isn’t afraid to speak straight, challenge prevailing opinions, and back it up with deep research and her experience working with elite athletes. We talk about the popular idea that preserving muscle mass is the key to longevity, why that insight is incomplete, and why muscle power, explosiveness, and strength are the real drivers of healthy aging. Cynthia also explains why jogging can actually make you slower and age faster—while walking does not—and why tired training backfires, along with the idea that recovery is just as much about the brain as it is about the muscles.

As a Team USA world-champion sprinter and coach to Olympic and world-champion Masters-level athletes, Cynthia shares her thoughts on sprinting as an anti-aging strategy, creatine and why it’s not for everyone, diet—including dairy—and we even have some fun breaking down Dr. Rhonda Patrick’s viral green smoothie and the potential downside of consuming large amounts of plant toxins. She also talks about how she trains everyday people the same way she trains elite athletes, and why we should all think of ourselves that way. Cynthia has been a huge source of inspiration and reason for me over the years, and I really appreciate her willingness to think deeply, challenge trends, and always speak honestly about what actually works.

A Team USA world-champion sprinter, Cynthia Monteleone is a highly trained metabolic health analytics practitioner who coaches numerous Olympic athletes and world-champion Masters-level athletes. She goes deep into the nuances of what delivers peak performance and helps people overcome health challenges to reach personal goals, especially weight loss and excelling in athletic goals. You can follow her at @FastOVER40 on Instagram and learn more at mamstrong808.com. Cynthia also has a healthy, natural skincare line: Earthen Hawaii.

TIMESTAMPS:

We talk about the difference between just holding on to muscle mass and maintaining muscle power. [02:24]

After being a college athlete, Cynthia married and had children. When her 11-year-old showed interest, she went back to the track. [06:52]

There are many people who aren't reaching their genetic potential. [13:04]

Walking versus jogging: when you are jogging you are preserving slow twitch muscle fibers. [19:43]

The power matters more than the muscle size. [26:18]

When you do slow eccentrics (lowering the weight during the bicep curl), you are recruiting more muscle fibers. [29:48]

Unless you are doing the Olympic Lifts in perfect form, the injury risks outweigh the benefits. [34:11]

If you're an advanced sprinter, and you're training by doing hills and doing sled pushes, it's important at some point closer to your season to follow that resistance with flat work that's fast. [36:59]

People often overdo jogging. It can be detrimental to your health. [40:03]

It's good to do a dynamic cool-down. Little drills, like instead of jogging, you duck walks or toe walks. All manner of static stretching is ill-advised. [42:02]

It takes years for medical textbooks and journals to be updated to current findings. [46:12]

Cynthia is a metabolic practitioner. She works with elite athletes as certified strength coach, encouraging diet and supplements. [50:58]

What is wrong with the basic dietary notions we've been taught to believe are healthy? [53:02]

Earthen Hawaii produces healthful skincare products rather than chemically laden things. [53:41]

When working with a client's diet what Cynthia does is specifically pinpoint to that individual what they need most of and what is holding them back? [57:48]

She teaches her clients to eat for neurotransmitters. [01:02:33]

What about fasting? A workout of an hour gives a similar autophagy effect to fasting for 48 hours. [01:09:12]

AI and algorithms are causing a problem with misinformation. Be careful. [01:17:20]

The best athletes are always open to hearing all the information they can use for their competitive lifestyle. [01:21:35]

Every supplement is not right for everyone. [01:25:06]

What other foods and what other dietary patterns come up that you would suggest some experimentation and some trial and error if I'm trying to optimize my diet all the way? [01:28:22]

There's a huge disparity in the quality and purity of whey protein. [01:32:21]

Venison is highly nutritious. [ 01:35:11]

Limiting grains is the key. [01:38:26]

The type of exercise we do affects what kind of gut bacteria we produce. [01:40:05]

Sugar can affect the hormones. [01:44:56]

What is the difference between muscles and brain recovery? [01:55:39]

LINKS:

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