The Dr. Greg Wells Podcast

The Dr. Greg Wells Podcast

By Dr. Greg WellsScienceMedicineHealth & FitnessEducationSelf-ImprovementLife Sciences
Download on the App Store

The Dr. Greg Wells Podcast episodes

  • #176. Barrie Shepley on Chasing Greatness

    Welcome back!

    This week I’m excited to talk to Barrie Shepley. Barrie was Canada’s National Triathlon Coach in the early 90s and has coached hundreds of people to National Championship titles, Pan American Games medals, World Championship medals, and to the successful completions of Hawaii Ironman and Boston Marathon. Barrie was selected to go to the 2000 Sydney Olympics where Triathlon made its debut as an Olympic Sport and where Canadian Simon Whitfield won a gold medal. Simon has also been on this podcast and you can listen to that interview here!

    There are few people who have contributed to this sport as much as Barrie. In this episode we discuss his new book Chasing Greatness: Stories of Passion and Perseverance in Sport and in Life and what Barrie’s learned from coaching some of the top people in the world as well as people who are just looking to get fitter and healthier in their day to day lives.

    Enjoy the conversation!

    29 min
  • #33 - Change Maker: Dr. John Berardi on Building Health, Habits, and Real Change
    The core problem John is tackling is this: people and professionals are drowning in nutrition noise, all-or-nothing thinking, and “biohack” promises—so they struggle to make consistent progress and to build sustainable careers in health and fitness. His work in this episode is about replacing confusion and perfectionism with limiting-factor thinking, small-wins habits, and clear frameworks that actually produce long-term change for both clients and coaches. 
    In today’s conversation John Berardi explores how real change in health, performance, and career actually happens over years of “always something” rather than bursts of all-or-nothing effort. He walks through his journey from immigrant-kid pressure to “be a doctor,” into graduate research in exercise physiology and nutritional biochemistry, and then on to co-founding Precision Nutrition and coaching hundreds of thousands of clients and professionals. John and Dr. Wells dig into what separates successful athletes and everyday clients, why simple limiting-factor fixes often beat complex named diets, and why game-day nutrition matters far less than what you do for weeks and months beforehand. They finish by unpacking his Change Maker framework for health and fitness professionals—clarifying purpose, building T-shaped skills, and using feedback to craft a meaningful, sustainable career. 
    You will learn why the most successful clients and athletes aren’t the ones who obsess over every gram of food, but the ones who care “just enough” and practice a few simple behaviours consistently over time. You will learn how John uses limiting-factor analysis—finding the one thing (like low iron, magnesium, or B12) that’s holding someone back—instead of dropping people into rigid named diets that create 100 new rules and very little progress. You will learn how Precision Nutrition’s coaching data shows that being roughly 60–70% consistent can deliver excellent health and body-composition outcomes, and why the all-or-nothing mentality is one of the strongest predictors of failure. You will learn how to cut through nutrition noise by “squinting your eyes” and looking for stable patterns—adequate protein, whole foods, energy balance—rather than chasing metabolism-boosting foods, red-wine resveratrol, or the latest biohack. Finally, you’ll learn how John’s Change Maker model helps coaches map purpose, core abilities, and values into a T-shaped skillset and a career blueprint they can actually follow.
    You will discover that sustainable transformation in health and performance doesn’t require perfect adherence; it requires doing something reasonable most of the time and choosing the highest-leverage “big rocks” instead of obsessing over tiny tricks. You will discover how a single well-chosen intervention—identified through careful assessment—can outperform months of complicated diet rules or biohacks that only tint the “lake” of your physiology by 0.0000002%.
    A huge challenge for high performers and coaches alike is feeling stuck between overwhelm (too many rules, tools, and protocols) and guilt (when they inevitably can’t keep up). John’s frameworks give listeners a way to simplify: focus on the few behaviours that matter most, accept “good enough” consistency, and build a career or personal routine that can survive illness, kids, deadlines, and real life—without quitting or starting over every few weeks.
    54 min
  • #175. Dr. Greg Wells on the Magical Learning Podcast: Fun, Play and Happiness

    Welcome back!

    This week I'm sharing an interview I did on the Magical Learning Podcast, an organization that helps companies and schools learn better. 

    We have a great conversation about health and wellbeing - specifically looking at play, fun, and happiness. 

    If you want to learn more about the Magical Learning Podcast, you can check out their website here.

    Enjoy the episode!

    52 min
  • #32 - Time Under Tension: Dr. Sarah Sarkis on The Psychology of Thriving
    High-achieving people are burning a ton of energy trying to “control” their inner world—suppressing emotions, powering through shame, and chasing quick behavioural fixes—while never really learning how to work with their psyche in a way that leads to sustainable thriving. Sarah is tackling that gap: how to build true emotional flexibility, self-awareness, and self-regulation so you can handle discomfort, perform at a high level, and grow from struggle instead of being ruled by it. 
    In today’s conversation Sarah Sarkis explores what it really means to thrive psychologically, beyond the clichés of “just be positive.” She traces her journey from forensic psychology to performance consulting and explains why she’s “not in the business of happiness, but of self-awareness and change.” She and Dr. Wells unpack emotional “time under tension,” the power of developing an observing ego, the damage of abusive self-talk, and how our thoughts shape neurochemistry and even gene expression over time. They finish by diving into flow states, the struggle–release–flow–recovery cycle, and practical ways to design your day so presence and flow are more likely to show up—at work, in sport, and at home. 
    You will learn why Sarah defines thriving as emotional flexibility rather than constant happiness, and how expanding your capacity to feel all your emotions is the foundation for growth. You will learn how to practice self-observation, create space between stimulus and response, and reframe “control” as self-regulation built through small daily reps of sitting with yourself. You will learn how harsh self-talk and perfectionism are often symptoms of deeper shame injuries, and how compassion and curiosity begin to unwind those patterns. You will learn how thoughts drive neurochemical cascades that influence gene expression, what this means for epigenetics, and how simple practices like scheduled stillness, clear intentions, and working in the “challenge channel” help you access more frequent micro-flow states. 
    You will discover that emotional and psychological growth follow the same rules as physical training: it’s all about time under tension. When you repeatedly practice observing yourself—especially in discomfort—you widen your aperture for feelings, shift from white-knuckle control to genuine self-regulation, and make it far easier to access flow and high performance on demand. 
    Most listeners know what they “should” do—meditate, be present, change habits—but feel stuck, avoidant, or overwhelmed when it comes to actually facing their interior world. Sarah’s framework shows you how to move from behaviour-only hacks to deeper psychological work, so you can stop running from difficult emotions and instead use them as raw material for resilience, performance, and more authentic relationships.
    51 min
  • #174. Dr. Alex Auerbach on Exploring the Athlete Mindset

    Welcome back!

    This week I'm really excited to share a short interview I did with Sports Psychology expert Dr. Alex Auerbach. Alex is the Director of Wellness and Development for the Toronto Raptors, and has worked for 7 years providing clinical care, crisis intervention, and performance consultation for professional, collegiate, and Olympic athletes, as well as coaching staff, medical staff, and sports administration.

    In this amazing conversation, we dig into mental recovery and regeneration, sports psychology, and the athlete’s mind.

    You can learn more about Alex at his website.

    Enjoy!

    13 min
  • #31 - Beyond Training: Ben Greenfield on Training, Creativity & Longevity
    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.
    47 min
  • #30 - Why Process Beats Outcome with Olympic Medalist Kylie Masse
    Today we will learn how to sustain world-class performance under rising expectations—by shifting from outcome obsession to process focus, protecting joy in training, and learning to turn the mind down when it matters most.
    In today’s conversation Kylie Masse explores her path from late-developing age-grouper to world record holder and Olympic medalist. She and Dr. Wells unpack why fun and a supportive training group kept her going when results lagged, how “process over outcome” became a competitive superpower, and what a full race day really looks like. Kylie shares practical tactics for managing pressure—balancing school and sport, using music to set state, and recovering like a pro—while aiming at Worlds and the Olympics.
    You will learn how elite swimmers structure heavy training loads (8–9 pool sessions/week) alongside school and life; how to recover between heats and finals (warm-down, food, rest, state reset); why focusing on process beats fixating on places and times; how Kylie uses sleep, physio, massage, and compression as a reliable recovery system.
    You will discover that thinking less can help you perform more: when the preparation is done, quiet the analysis and let the body execute.
    High performers often carry self-imposed pressure that sabotages execution. Kylie’s approach—focus on one thing, one session, one race—gives a repeatable way to reset after bad practices and compete freely on big stages.
    28 min
  • #29 - Accept Reality, Reject Limits: Mark Black on Resilience After Transplant
    Most people let other people’s limits (doctors, bosses, even loving parents) become their limits — especially after illness, disruption, or big life changes. Mark’s experience and body of work is about showing that you can accept reality without accepting restriction — you can tell the truth about your circumstances and still choose growth.
    In today’s conversation Mark Black explores how being born with a severe heart defect, surviving two open-heart surgeries as a baby, and then receiving a heart-and-double-lung transplant at 23 taught him the mechanics of real resilience. He tells you what it’s like to be told, “maybe you’ll work part time someday,” and then decide to run four marathons with someone else’s organs. He and Dr. Wells break down the mindset shift from “why me?” to “what now?”, and how his parents’ decision not to bubble-wrap him became the foundation for his speaking and coaching today. The episode lands on a practical, five-step resilience process that anyone can run when life goes sideways.
    You will learn the difference between denial and healthy acceptance — how to tell the truth about what happened without getting stuck there; why having a picture of a better future (run a 5K → 10K → half → marathon) pulls you through rehab; how to reassess identity when sport, work, or health gets taken away; how to reassign meaning to hard events so they serve you instead of shrink you; and how Mark’s five-step loop — accept → aim → adapt → act → assess — can be used in health recovery, career change, or leadership.
    You will discover that resilience isn’t a personality trait — it’s a repeatable choice: tell the truth about today, then pick the next hard, possible thing. That choice is available every single day, even after a transplant.
    When circumstances blow up your old identity (athlete, healthy person, unstoppable leader), people often stay in grief or “it’s not fair” for years. Mark gives a way to honour the loss and move — small goals, stacked wins, new meaning — so life after crisis is bigger than life before.
    40 min
  • #172. Dr. Bill Howatt on No Regrets

    Welcome back!

    This week I’m excited to share my conversation with Dr. Bill Howatt on Sharpen Your Edge Live.

    Bill is an internationally recognized expert in mental health. He's spent over 25 years helping employees, patients, and leaders achieve their potential.

    Bill has a PhD in Organizational Psychology, did post-doctoral training at UCLA, has developed programs with organizations like the Conference Board of Canada and the University of New Brunswick, and is author of numerous books and articles, including regular contributions to The Globe and Mail.

    During this conversation, Bill discusses the transformational nature of regret and the tools we can use to move forward from it.

    If you want to learn more about Bill and his new book, “No Regrets: How to Live Today for Tomorrow’s Emotional Well-Being”, check out his website at billhowatt.com.

    Enjoy!

    17 min

About The Dr. Greg Wells Podcast

From the publisher's feed

Healthy High Performance for a Limitless Life

More shows like The Dr. Greg Wells Podcast

This American Life by This American Life

This American Life

90,991 Listeners

Pivot by New York Magazine

Pivot

9,620 Listeners

The Rich Roll Podcast by Rich Roll

The Rich Roll Podcast

11,782 Listeners

48 Hours by 48 Hours

48 Hours

10,714 Listeners

10% Happier with Dan Harris by 10% Happier

10% Happier with Dan Harris

12,708 Listeners

Money For Couples with Ramit Sethi by Ramit Sethi

Money For Couples with Ramit Sethi

3,457 Listeners

The Mel Robbins Podcast by Mel Robbins

The Mel Robbins Podcast

19,271 Listeners