Ben Coomber Radio

Long ago carbs were bad in the world of nutrition, but many are still wary of them. Today we dive deep into carbs and salt and their use in fuelling exercise. We look at the recent sports nutrition data and how you can use this knowledge to enhance your training performance from your carb intake, and where your salt intake should be at.

This week we look specifically at beta alanine and creatine after its popularity and spotlight off the back of the Joe Rogan Matt Fraser interview. We delve into their science, application, and who should use them, and why. So if you hit the gym, or play sport, this show is for you to understand whether they are supplements you would take or not.

Anxiety is at an all time high, and advice you often hear when you are feeling anxious about the situation is "think about the positives", rather than the negatives. But we think this is bad advice. We also think anxiety is phase 1 of what we are experiencing, fear is phase 2 - its a specific version of what we are feeling about the future. This then feeds into how we deal with situations and ultimately move more positively forward. Tom and I riff on the mics and hope to give you clarity on how you can effectively work through your anxieties and fears, and lead to more positive outcomes in your life.

Friend of the show Brian Keane (online coach & best selling author) re-joins us on the podcast to open a discussion on the 7 types of laziness. This was a post of his that went viral and caught my attention, it was a great breakdown of how we position problems as something simple, but they are not and then limit our ability to get past the problem. We've all said to ourselves "I'm lazy" with something in our lives, but there is a reason, and in this show we break down the 7 types with Brians expert insight. Follow Brian at @Brian_Keane_Fitness and grab "The Keane Edge" his new book online NOW

We all wear shoes, a lot, but how well is this allowing our feet to move, and how does this affect our knees, hips and back? I've been a fan of barefoot shoes for 15 years, and this show is dedicated to my love of barefoot movement which I've not given enough attention over the years, and how the shoes we wear aren't conductive to a natural way of movement. I discuss this with Ben Le Vesconte from Vivobarefoot, a company I'm a big fan of. Might be time to ditch those Nikes...

Gut health is a popular area of study, and research links it to nearly every area of health, but how has the research evolved from the 90s, into the turn of the century, to now? I get Alex Manos back onto the show to talk all things bacteria, probiotics, testing, supplements vs food, how stress affects our gut, and more. Warning, its a super geeky show. Check out Alex testing company www.healthpath.com which I HIGHLY recommend, it's what I have been using to successfully sort my gut out post Long Covid.

How good is the quality of British food? It often gets a bad rap in some circles, but I feel this is unfounded, as it seems we have very high quality welfare standards. To debate this I talk to an Agronomist, Conor Campbell, who works with farmers to advise on their land, yield, which pesticides and fertilisers to use, and has a unique insight into our food standards compared to other countries. Want more info on UK food and farming? Search for 'The NFU' who have many fact sheets on UK farming practices.

Why are so many of us all or nothing people, we either do something to the extreme, or not at all? Problem is, science doesn't support this approach, and employing flexible restraint is a key determinant of long term success, with anything. Issue is, this all comes down to 'executive function', but what's the answer, what mental shifts do we need to make? Learn the 4 disruptors with Michelle Segar, who I welcome back to the show to discuss this, and her new book The JOY Choice. Take her quiz at: https://michellesegar.com

To some the title of this podcast will feel like a controversial statement, after all exercise makes us feel good and is even prescribed now to people with depression. But have a listen.... there is important context around this statement. If you've had a listen, feel free to share your thoughts with me on social media. I'm always all ears....

There is much we do on auto-pilot, and if we don't choose to become aware of these responses and change them, we'll continue to get the same outcomes. Bob Doyle joins me to discuss how the law of attraction started his journey into personal development (he was in 'The Secret' the film - but now feels its BS), how success hinges on our behaviours, how this ultimately comes down to the Q "Who do you want to be", as well as a few personal anecdotes to help give context to this important message. Have a go of Bob's Quiz at: https://boundlesslivingchallenge.com/tptquiz

I've talked about having Long Covid on and off in parts on our long shows with Tom, but never in a succinct way. I've just written a full length comprehensive blog on my website bencoomber.com about my Long Covid journey and recovery, but wanted to add context to my journey, and list the top 13 things that I feel helped my on my journey to recovery, things I would do straight away if I thought I had Long Covid. Please share this with anyone you know that has Long Covid.

When it comes to our mental health, how many of our problems can be caused by us overthinking something? It's easy to get stuck in our thoughts, the world of personal development teaches to learn, to reflect, to journal, to meditate etc etc, but when does that become of detriment? When is enough, enough? In this podcast I try to unpick how I've been feeling mentally recently, why I feel its happened, how I'm aiming to solve it, and how you can learn from my experience getting stuck mentally. Our mental health is key, it controls our enjoyment of life, and life is for ENJOYING.

The UK Government and NHS have a guide for nutrition, its called the EatWell Guide. It often gets a lot of criticism in the world of health and fitness, but is this criticism well placed, surely its an evidence based approach to nutrition? We explore the guide, the protein recommendations, why there fat comments seem odd - but somehow relevant, where the guide lacks context around sugar, and where, if followed, it could actually solve a lot of health problems. If you're interested in nutrition, this shows for you.

What does mental wealth mean? We hear mental health a lot, but it's a broad term. It's like money, we don't want to just earn it, we want to be wealthy over time. I chat to Adnan Ebrahim, a mental health advocate and owner of MindLabs, a new mental health app. We explore mental wealth, where neuroplasticity starts and stops, what non-invasive daily practices can look like, what a flexible approach to wellness looks like, his journey with his mental health, and more. Enjoy. Check out Mind Labs on iOS and on Social Media.

Is success as simple as personal choice? How powerful is environment? When is showing ourselves empathy appropriate, and when is it appropriate to call ourselves out on our own BS? This show is full of big questions. But we're hoping it could help you, the listener, shift your perspective and break through...

Want an insight into the diet and training of a Le Mans 24 race car winner? Well you're in for a treat as Phil Hanson from United Autosports who is the youngest driver to win the World Championship and to win the European Le Mans Series & 24 Hours of Le Mans race joins me to talk shop. We discuss his journey into the sport, his approach and mindset, his simple approach to nutrition, what data he values to fine tune his body, and how and when he trains. A fascinating conversation with an elite racing car driver. Check him our on IG @philhansonracing

If David can do it, surely we can all rewrite our story, however pre-determined it feels? Coming from a family of poverty, with a PTSD suffering father, to a parent dying young, to growing up in an environment where staying in poverty and never breaking out feels inevitable, to becoming Scotland’s 1st apprentice management consultant, best young consultant in the country to apprentice of the year 2020, to founding chairing 2 social networks for Social Mobility, to meeting the queen, and to partnering with Marcus Rashford at work, this is the story of David McIntosh.At just 23 I was in awe of his wisdom and ideas, it was a pleasure to interview David. We discussed how we as humans can choose to feel empowered and have agency in a digital age, how the internet when used correctly can bring people out of poverty, how radical courage at key sliding door moments can change your life, how having tunnel vision on ONE goal could bring you out of your bad situation, and how embracing your weirdness could set you apart

Organic food is assumed to be better, but is it? What if we eat organic food and make it part of a Mediterranean approach to nutrition, is that better again? This is what recent research looked to uncover and the role of pesticides on our food. Thing is, to really get under the skin of any research we need to look at study design, bias, how that fits into the broader research, and the context we are reading it in. So we take a deep dive into the study, how to contextualise research for personal use, and try to fly the flag that 2022 needs to be the year of the expert, because they are just that, EXPERTS.

Fatigue is complex, and there is many levels to it. You've got the initial state of being tired and worn out, then you have overwhelm and burnout, and then you have an illness state of fatigue like CFS/ME, and what many people are now seeing with Long Covid. Alex Howard suffered with CFS for many years and has now made it his life long mission to help others with fatigue, largely in a clinical setting. In this show we explore the intersection of body : mind : spirit and how it all plays a role in fatigue. Recovery is long, slow, and multi-faceted, and it was an honour for me to interview Alex on this wildly complex topic. Whatever state of tired or fatigued you are in, this show will help you see the body in new way. Check out Alex at: https://www.alexhoward.com I recommend his book 'Decode Your Fatigue' which I've personally read cover to cover.

Part 1 went deep, let's recap on some key things and then get practical. In part 2 we discuss where to start when you don't know where to start, the importance of environmental and personal boundaries, the crux we all have with time allocation, habits that do and don't work and why, how we chalk up our behaviour and simply optimise it - never fight it, and you creating a plan of action for YOUR best year ever. If you enjoy the show, please share :)