The Best Health-Related Podcasts

Perhaps I’m a bit obsessive regarding health, but that’s what happens when you find your true passion in life - you spend almost every second of your spare time trying to learn more about that subject. No matter your passion, there are countless on-line resources for you to indulge your thirst for knowledge on that topic. If you’re like me, however, the quest for knowledge extends well beyond the reach of your computer. So, in an effort to continually make progress on your passion during those times when you’re not on-line, you download podcasts for learning while driving, flying, mowing the grass, taking a walk, working out, etc. In the last few years, since I’ve spent virtually 100% of my spare time listening to health-related podcasts, I thought I’d share my observations and recommendations with you. First, my observations…

Righters, Likers, So-ers, You-Knowers

After having listened to perhaps a few thousand hours of podcasts (literally), I’ve noticed some trends on the way people communicate verbally. Most of the podcasts I listen to consist of a host having a conversation with a guest who is an expert on a particular topic. I’d estimate that about 60% of those guests (if not the host) habitually use a particular word or phrase (I call them “comfort” words) during conversation, and they may not even know it. I’ve also noticed that those comfort words are usually typical of specific demographics related to either occupation or geography. The most common comfort words and my highly unscientific hypotheses on their related demographics are broken down as follows:

• “Right?” - Righters habitually end their sentences with the question, “Right?” I’ve noticed that Righters are usually in the self-help industry as transformational coaches and/or motivational speakers. The definitive example would be Tony Robbins, who I respect and admire immensely. Almost every other sentence of his ends with “Right?” And, 100% of the time, the answer to that question is “Yes.” While I believe that Tony does this intentionally to promote psychological positivity, I would bet that most Righters are not aware of their proclivity.

• “Like” - The Liker designation is almost certainly related to geography and, for the most part, age, though there are certainly exceptions to both. Likers can throw “Like” into any sentence at any time, and do so profusely. The most notable examples being almost any conversation amongst teenage females from California (ref: Valley Girl, by Frank Zappa). While my reference here is quite dated and targeted at teenage females, Likers are still thriving across all ages and sexes, alive and well in the podcast world. The one commonality I’ve noticed is that Likers, by and large, are associated in some way with the West Coast. Dave Asprey, host of Bulletproof Executive Radio (totally, like, my very favorite podcast) is the quintessential Liker.

• “So…” - My podcast queue is rife with expert guests sporting high-end academic credentials. These guests typically have at least one communicative thing in common: When asked a question, inevitably their answer begins with “So…” My theory is that they’re used to teaching students, and therefore must utilize the word quite frequently in logical arguments, e.g., “This leads to that, so this is associated with that for these reasons…” Ergo, such a verbal habit would very easily be transposed into a typical conversation with these So-ers. For examples, simply listen to any podcast that has a guest with a career in academia.

• “You-Know” - Wow. While it’s actually two words, I’ve hyphenated them due to their indelible connection and consider them one word for the purpose of this blog. The use of this comfort word is incredibly ubiquitous across the entire spectrum of English-speaking podcast guests, though I first noticed it in interviews with athletes. However, You-Knowers don’t seem to have any particular common thread, so it’s difficult for me to generate a hypothesis. The only thing I can say is that it seems to be a comfort word for when the speaker wants to pause and collect his/her thoughts for the upcoming sentence. Your theories would be appreciated…

I don’t think you went to this blog to read my ramblings and thoughts on the verbal proclivities of podcast guests, but for those of you who did, I give you thanks for bearing with me. It’s one of those things that has been on my mind for a couple of years now, and I just had to get it down in writing so that it wouldn’t occupy any more of my neurons.

Now, for those of you in search of the best health-related podcasts, here’s my review, in order of my own personal preference:

1. Bulletproof Executive Radio - Dave Asprey is, simply put, THE cutting edge of science and technology with respect to health. An author, obsessive biohacker, and highly-skilled interviewer, this podcast is entertaining and chock full of the latest scientific findings on how to improve your health, both mentally, physically, and spiritually. Focused specifically on optimizing human performance - which should be everyone’s priority, in my opinion - I cannot recommend this podcast highly enough.

2. The Primal Blueprint Podcast - Mark Sisson, creator of Mark’s Daily Apple and author of numerous best-selling books, is at the forefront of ancestral health. With the sole purpose of improving the health and lives of as many people as possible, his prolific podcasts can range from 8-minute spoken blogs on Primal living, to hour-long interviews with other health experts. The only reason that I did not rank this podcast as #1 is because I’m already a Certified Primal Health Coach, I read his blogs regularly, and therefore know a lot of the information provided in the podcasts. If you’re new to the ancestral health movement, or even a seasoned Primal veteran like myself, this podcast is a must.

3. Revolution Health Radio - Chris Kresser is an author and functional medicine practitioner in the Bay Area of California who is an admitted research junkie. He is always one of the first to review and critique the latest studies on health, objectively looking for and highlighting any apparent faults or flaws. With his expert summations, he deftly provides the bottom-line information to those of us without the time, experience, or credentials to review them ourselves. Be warned, however, he can dig deep into the science, so unless you are prepared to listen with 100% focus, you may miss the essential details.

4. Primal Diet - Modern Health - Author of The Diet for Human Beings, Beverly Meyer is quite possibly the very first person to recommend an ancestral approach to modern health. She has been involved with naturopathic nutrition and medicine since the ‘70s, so her experience dwarfs most others’ in this arena. Her podcast provides excellent, valuable information on natural remedies in a very down-to-earth fashion that feels like you’re just having a conversation with her in your own room. She only publishes podcasts every week or two, but hers is quite possibly the one that I look forward to the most.

5. The Paleo Solution Podcast - Hats off to Robb Wolf, author of The Paleo Solution, who continues to blaze a trail for the ancestral health movement. One of the foremost guru’s of the Paleo Diet, my wife and I both owe him our lives. Robb is a very personable and self-deprecating, entertaining interviewer who has on his show many experts and friends in the ancestral health field, plus many others in the physical fitness profession. The only reason that this podcast does not rank higher on my list is because about a third to half of his podcasts are specifically geared towards very in-depth workout and movement techniques. Since I’m currently more interested in the dietary aspects of ancestral health and the general aspects of essential movements, I’m not as attentive to such details. However, if fitness techniques are part of your obsession, this podcast is definitely for you.

6. The Fat Burning Man - Abel James, author of The Wild Diet, is another of my very favorite podcast personalities. A very genuine family man, his own personal stories of regaining health are quite compelling. His guests are typically experts in diet and wellness, running the gamut of dietary/wellness theories, some of which actually conflict with his own Wild Diet and lifestyle. However, he does not use his podcast as a debate forum, rather, he lets his guests pontificate on their own theories, and discusses those theories with them, giving his audience an opportunity to evaluate the merits of the guest’s message objectively.

And there you have it. I hope you glean some useful information from this post to help you decide which of these podcasts suit your needs. I would definitely love to read your thoughts and suggestions on the podcasts listed above and, like, any others that I may not have mentioned. Incidentally, I have listened to many other podcasts, but chose only to list my very favorites that I currently subscribe to. So, after all, like, ya-know there’s only so much time in a day, right?

Bret McClellan

Certified Primal Health Coach #239

McClellan Natural Health, Wellness & Nutrition

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