#31 - Beyond Training: Ben Greenfield on Training, Creativity & Longevity
Today’s guest is Ben Greenfield
Ben is tackling the problem of ambitious people training, working, and “biohacking” hard—but still feeling exhausted, inflamed, confused by conflicting advice, and unsure how to perform at a high level without wrecking their long-term health. His core aim is to show how to design training, daily routines, and nutrition so you can achieve remarkable performance while protecting your brain, hormones, and longevity.
In today’s conversation Ben Greenfield explores how to train, work, and live “beyond training” by aligning your physiology with your goals. He walks through his hot–cold morning ritual, deep-work habits, and the science behind doing easy movement early in the day and intense workouts later when the body is primed to perform. He then maps out a “perfect week” of exercise that builds mitochondria, VO₂max, lactic-acid tolerance, strength, and stamina without tipping into overtraining. Finally, Ben and Dr. Wells dive into nutrition, genetics, blood sugar control, and the importance of cultivating creativity and meaning—not just muscles—for a truly boundless life.
You will learn how Ben structures his mornings with heat, cold, light exposure, breathwork, and gratitude to boost mood, metabolism, and resilience for the rest of the day. You will learn why saving high-intensity training for the afternoon or early evening can improve performance, hormones, and sleep, and how to build a weekly program that targets mitochondria, VO₂max, lactic-acid tolerance, strength, and endurance. You will learn how Ben thinks about genetic individuality—why your training and diet may need to differ from your neighbour’s—and how simple tools like blood testing and glucose monitoring can personalise your plan. You will learn guiding nutrition rules that cut through diet dogma: prioritising nutrient density, digestibility, and low glycemic variability so you can fuel performance without chronic inflammation.
You will discover that elite performance is less about doing more and more intense work, and more about timing stressors—exercise, heat, cold, and carbohydrates—so they amplify, rather than erode, your recovery, hormones, and brain function. You will discover how a few precise levers (training structure, carb timing, and blood-sugar control) can transform the same amount of effort into dramatically better health and output.
Most high achievers struggle to reconcile their drive to push hard with the quiet signs of overload: poor sleep, brain fog, injuries, gut issues, and flat motivation. Ben’s framework gives listeners a way to redesign their day and their training so they can keep chasing big goals while protecting their long-term health and avoiding the classic “fit on the outside, falling apart on the inside” trap.
Key take aways:
Start the day with gentle movement, light, and hot–cold exposure.
Save intense workouts for afternoon or early evening for better gains.
Build weekly training around mitochondria, VO₂max, lactic acid, and stamina.
Choose foods that are nutrient-dense, digestible, and blood-sugar friendly.
Personalise training and nutrition using genetics and basic blood tests.
“Writing is a muscle, and I’ve been training it since I was six years old.”
Today’s Expert Guest - Ben Greenfield
Ben Greenfield is a health consultant, speaker, and New York Times bestselling author of books including Boundless, Boundless Parenting, Beyond Training, Fit Soul, and others. A former collegiate tennis, water polo, and volleyball player, bodybuilder, 13-time Ironman triathlete and professional obstacle-course racer, he was voted America’s top personal trainer by the National Strength and Conditioning Association and named one of the 100 most influential people in health and fitness. He holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in sports science and exercise physiology from the University of Idaho and multiple certifications in strength and conditioning and sports nutrition.
Ben’s work stands out because he operates at the intersection of extreme performance and long-term health. Through BenGreenfieldLife.com, his podcasts, coaching, and speaking, he blends exercise physiology, nutrition science, lab testing, and biohacking with a strong emphasis on spiritual growth, family, and purpose. Rather than promoting quick fixes or single “magic” protocols, he offers integrated systems—covering training, sleep, gut health, hormones, cognition, and productivity—that help high performers push their limits while remaining deeply aligned with their values and longevity.
Design your day so that low-intensity movement, sunlight, breathwork, and hot–cold exposure anchor your morning; then schedule your hardest training in the late afternoon or early evening, pairing that session with the bulk of your daily carbohydrates at dinner to enhance recovery, sleep quality, and next-day performance.
Follow Ben Greenfield on Instagram & Linked In.
Check out his website.
Beyond Training:
Mastering Endurance, Health & Life
America's top personal trainer, holistic nutritionist and health expert Ben Greenfield shows you how to overcome common health-related training issues while optimizing your workouts so you can look, feel, and perform like a champion.
This podcast contains advice and information relating to health and wellness. It should be used to supplement rather than replace the advice of your doctor or another trained health professional. If you know or suspect that you have a health problem, seek your physician’s advice before embarking on any medical program or treatment. All efforts have been made to assure the accuracy of the information contained in this podcast / interview / article as of the date of publication. The author and publisher disclaim liability for any medical or other outcomes that may occur as a result of applying the methods suggested in this material.
