This week, Kenny sits down with Jake Steinfeld — the man who literally invented the personal training industry.

Jake opens up about losing his home in the LA Palisades fire, why he still trains at 4:15am every single day, turning down Nike before they created "Just Do It," and the anonymous poem that shaped his entire life philosophy from age 14.

From posing with the Village People to doing stunt work as The Incredible Hulk, from Cold Calls in Hollywood to building a fitness empire seen in 90+ countries — this episode is a masterclass in betting on yourself when nobody else will.

In This Episode:

• How Jake created personal training as a profession (there was no blueprint)
• The steroid decision at 19 that changed everything
• Losing his home in the Palisades fire & what he grabbed on the way out
• Why he turned down Nike's offer to buy "Don't Quit"
• GLP-1s, fitness culture, and what the industry gets wrong
• The mindset behind never missing a workout — ever
• Body by Jake Radio & what's coming next

CONNECT:
Follow Jake: @bodybyjake
Follow Kenny: @kennysantucci
Follow Strong New York: @strongnewyork

This episode is sponsored by Celsius, the energy drink that fuels every Strong New York workout. Visit @celsiusofficial on Instagram to see all of their new flavors!

This episode is sponsored by Marek Health. Optimize your hormones, recovery, and performance. by visiting marekhealth.com. Use code KENNY at checkout for  10% Marek Diagnostics, Supplements and the Marek Health Guided Optimization signup.

This week Kenny Santucci sits down with Jake Heyen — the fitness industry analyst and founder of Wellworthy who blew up on Instagram by delivering no-BS, news-style breakdowns of the brands, events, and trends shaping health and fitness culture.

Jake shares the full story: from studying finance and statistics in college, to building a workout subscription platform during COVID, to joining Playbook as Director of Operations — and ultimately growing one of the most trusted voices in the fitness media space.

In this episode, we get into:

• How Jake built his audience from zero with a completely different content style
• Why he almost quit before realizing it was actually working
• The brands he thinks are absolutely crushing it right now 
• His take on the biggest fitness trends: community gyms, HYROX-style events, home health tech, and the rise of strength culture for women
• Why he turned down every podcast — until this one

Whether you're a fitness entrepreneur, creator, or just obsessed with the industry, this episode is packed with real insight from someone who's been behind the curtain.

CONNECT:
Follow Jake: @jakeheyen
Follow Kenny: @kennysantucci
Follow Strong New York: @strongnewyork

This episode is sponsored by Celsius, the energy drink that fuels every Strong New York workout. Visit @celsiusofficial on Instagram to see all of their new flavors!

This episode is sponsored by Marek Health. Optimize your hormones, recovery, and performance. by visiting marekhealth.com. Use code KENNY at checkout for  10% Marek Diagnostics, Supplements and the Marek Health Guided Optimization signup.

On this special bonus episode of the Strong New York Podcast, Kenny sits down with Christian Angermayer, founder of the Enhanced Games — a new global sports competition that recently made its debut in Las Vegas, where elite athletes pushed the limits of human performance and are openly encouraged to use performance-enhancing drugs under medical supervision.

Christian is a billionaire biotech investor and one of the loudest voices advocating for the future of human performance and psychedelic medicine. In this episode, we get into ALL of it:
- How one dinner conversation in 2014 completely changed his life — and may have changed the world — after his first psychedelic experience
- The truth about performance-enhancing drugs, medical supervision, and why athletes deserve the right to compete enhanced
- Why the Enhanced Games is paying athletes MORE than they've ever made — and what that says about the broken Olympic model
- The real science behind peptides, hormone therapy, and what "enhancement" actually means
- The truth about money, purpose, and why the narrative that rich people are evil is destroying society
- The double standard that NOBODY in the media is talking about in the wake of the Enhanced Games

Christian doesn't hold back. This is one of the most thought-provoking conversations we've had on the podcast.

The Rock played this man in a major motion picture — and after watching this episode, you'll understand why.

Mark Kerr is a Division I National Champion, 2x ADCC Champion, and 2x UFC Heavyweight Champion who helped define what it meant to be a professional mixed martial artist before anyone even knew what that looked like. But behind the accolades was a story most people never saw coming.

In this raw and unforgettable episode, Mark sits down with us to talk about:

• What it felt like when Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson was cast to play him
• How he helped create the standard for what a professional MMA fighter looks and acts like
• The training methods he pioneered 25 years ago — heart rate-based conditioning, functional training — that the sport has only recently caught up to
• The injuries, pain management, and how it all spiraled into addiction
• The night the cameras went down, and he was found unresponsive — lips blue, barely breathing — and brought back with Narcan
• Why vulnerability is the most alpha thing a man can do
• His mission to prepare and mentor the next generation

This one hits different. Whether you're a fight fan, someone in recovery, or just somebody who needs to hear that one thing doesn't define you — this episode is for you.

This episode is sponsored by Celsius.  Visit @celsiusofficial on Instagram to see all of their new flavors!
This episode is sponsored by Marek Health.  Visit marekhealth.com and use code KENNY at checkout for  10% Marek Diagnostics, Supplements and the Marek Health Guided Optimization signup.

What does it actually take to build a consumer brand from scratch — bootstrapped, broke, and selling something nobody wanted to talk about?

On this week's episode, Sam Nebel, Co-Founder of Goodwipes, sits down with Kenny to share the unfiltered 13-year journey of turning a Ziploc bag full of wipes at Florida State tailgates into the fastest-growing flushable wipe brand in the country, now on shelves at Walmart, Target, and Kroger.

In this episode:

• Why Sam turned down a $1M acquisition offer (when they were already doing $1M+ in sales)
• The credit card hacks, merchant cash advances, and "sharky" financing tricks that kept them alive early on
• How a rebrand done entirely in-house launched them into retail dominance
• The Olipop collab, Wet January campaign, and why going all-in on partnerships actually works
• What 13 years of an "accordion body" and entrepreneurial grind taught Sam about mental health and staying in the game

If you think overnight success is real, this episode will change your mind.

Follow Goodwipes: @goodwipes on all platforms | Available at Walmart, Target, Amazon & Kroger

This episode is sponsored by Celsius.  Visit @celsiusofficial on Instagram to see all of their new flavors!
This episode is sponsored by Marek Health.  Visit marekhealth.com and use code KENNY at checkout for  10% Marek Diagnostics, Supplements and the Marek Health Guided Optimization signup.

00:00 Podcast Welcome Sponsors

00:29 Goodwipes Intro Bathroom Talk

01:57 Origin Story Frat House

02:41 Long Road to Growth

04:50 Rebrand Packaging Strategy

06:59 Manufacturing Testing Basics

10:04 Bootstrapping Rough Years

12:01 Funding Retail Scale Up

16:58 Field Marketing DNA

19:14 Taboo to Mainstream IBS

21:03 Collabs Ollipop Influencers

24:26 Making Partnerships Work

25:13 Breakthrough Moments

26:15 Retail Wins Momentum

27:21 Lowest Point Fundraising

29:13 High School Dreams

31:30 Health Wellness Journey

33:18 Humor Brand Voice

35:06 Design Creative Control

36:44 Defining Success Goals

38:40 Flushability Eco Testing

41:14 Celebrity Fans Samples

42:21 Walmart Exclusives Bentonville

43:40 AI Tools Not Replacements

46:59 Next Year Plans Events

47:48 Festival Dream Wrap Up

48:46 Where To Find Good Wipes

49:16 Final Thanks Outro

To Watch The Show: https://www.youtube.com/@strongnewyork
To Connect with Kenny Santucci: https://www.instagram.com/kennysantucci/
To Connect with Strong New York: https://www.instagram.com/strongnewyork/

What do you do when MrBeast hands you a $5,000,000 check?

This week on Strong New York Podcast, Kenny Santucci sits down with Tyler Lucas, the winner of Beast Games Season 2, an active-duty Air Force pilot, former Penn State football player, and Titan Games finalist. Tyler shares the unfiltered story behind one of the largest cash prizes in entertainment history, what MrBeast is actually like behind the cameras, and the surprisingly disciplined first move he made the moment he got the money.

We get into:

• What it's really like competing on Beast Games (and how the money gets paid)
• Why he says MrBeast is the real deal — even when the internet says otherwise
• The Titan Games "production fail" that cost him a win
• Growing up overseas in a military family and playing QB at Penn State during the scandal era
• The misconceptions civilians have about the military
• Why he's giving back to veterans with his winnings
• Raising kids who won't grow up entitled — even with millions in the bank

Whether you're chasing a dream, climbing out of adversity, or just love a great story about a regular guy who hit the lottery the hard way, this one's for you. Crack open a Celsius and lift it up.

Chapters:
0:00 Welcome and Guest Intro

00:48 Beast Games and TV Mishaps

02:26 Landing Titan Games

05:22 Penn State Athlete Path

06:30 Choosing Penn State

08:08 Penn State Scandal Fallout

10:58 Parenting and Safety Fears

12:48 Why Air Force

13:37 Military Misconceptions

17:15 Drone Pilot Career

19:12 Discipline and Service Values

21:31 Gen Z Fame and Work Ethic

25:33 Titan Games Money and Cast

26:28 Athletes And Winners

26:55 Rock Versus MrBeast

27:55 Social Strategy To Win

28:44 Why Beast Prizes Huge

31:20 Getting Paid On Show

31:45 MrBeast Character And Hate

34:11 Handling Online Criticism

35:18 First Moves With Money

37:01 Purpose And Paying Forward

41:55 Adversity And Parenting

44:28 Work Ethic Creates Value

46:53 Whats Next And Follow Up

51:49 Final Thanks And Where To Find

To connect with Tyler Lucas: https://www.instagram.com/twlucas13/

This episode is sponsored by Celsius
Visit https://www.instagram.com/celsiusofficial/ to see all the new flavors!

This episode is sponsored by Marek Health
Visit https://marekhealth.sjv.io/QY6j03 or use code KENNY at https://marekhealth.com/home for $299 off an initial assessment or 10% off your blood panels

On this episode of the Strong New York Podcast, host Kenny Santucci sits down with Steve White—founder of Brae 100, HomeTeams, and The Pacific Clinic—to share a story of resilience that redefines what recovery can look like.

After years of football-related head trauma, Steve faced severe neurological decline, including seizures, cognitive loss, lupus, and APS. Told his condition would only worsen, everything changed when a mentor challenged him to “fight”—sparking a shift from passive treatment to radical personal responsibility.

At 64, Steve began training for extreme physical goals while rebuilding his brain and body through unconventional methods: cold-water exposure, high-intensity exercise paired with cognitive “brain hits,” grounding, disciplined sleep, nutrition, and daily gratitude.

In this conversation, he breaks down the mindset that fueled his recovery—belief, finishing what you start, and showing up for others—and how those principles connect directly to healing and neuroplasticity.

Steve also shares how he rebuilt his life and mission, acquiring and expanding a major health facility and launching HomeTeams, an app designed to simplify caregiving—organizing support networks, reducing costs, tracking appointments, and delivering personalized care at home.

This episode is a powerful reminder that limits aren’t always what they seem—and that transformation is possible at any stage of life.

00:00 Bootstraps And Hope

01:06 Podcast Intro Steve White

01:50 First Knockout At 17

03:08 Basketball To Football Pivot

05:00 UNLV And Playing Both

05:55 Symptoms And Decline

07:23 Sprinkler Head Concussion

08:55 Emotional Fallout And Lupus

10:43 Belief Over Magic Pills

14:20 Misogi And Four Rules

17:10 Finish What You Start

21:29 Caring And Neuroplasticity

23:51 Cynicism Blocks Change

25:43 All In At 212

26:06 Wim Hof And Manifestation

27:21 Cold Water Reset

29:15 Brain Hits Training

31:44 No Passive Fixes

33:02 Grounding Gratitude Basics

36:13 Movement Sleep Rhythm

37:55 Clinic Mission Access

39:34 Building Pacific Campus

43:26 Health Is Team Sport

47:00 Home Teams Platform

50:13 AI Companion Care

52:19 Where To Find Steve

This week, Kenny Santucci sits down with NYC based strength and conditioning coach, Dr. Pat Davidson for a candid conversation about his transformation from a “soft 235” to bodybuilding shape through renewed training, nutrition, and eventually PED use. They break down performance-enhancing drugs, SARMs, bloodwork, testosterone, and the importance of coaching—while also addressing the real health risks tied to lifestyle, cardiovascular health, and misuse.

The episode also covers supplements that actually matter, genetics, training fundamentals, fasting, mental health, and Dr. Pat’s pursuit of his bodybuilding pro card. A raw, honest discussion on fitness, performance, and longevity.

00:00 Welcome and Intro

00:38 Pat’s Fitness Journey

03:04 COVID Cut and Bodybuilding

04:42 Arnold Expo Reality Check

05:44 First Cycle Basics

09:18 SARMs Explained Simply

11:20 Finding Real Guidance

13:31 Health Risks Beyond Gear

19:42 Longevity and Purpose

26:48 Muscle Building Fundamentals

36:03 Genetics of Aesthetics

38:49 Appreciation vs Attraction

40:49 Gay Spectrum Debate

41:40 Bumstead Movement Shift

43:37 Hair Loss Steroids Link

44:47 Supplements That Matter

46:49 Nicotine Appetite Control

47:42 GLP Drugs Hunger Genetics

50:11 Coaches Worth Following

51:56 Fitness Culture Boom

54:32 Trust Built In Training

57:11 Training Through Dark Times

01:01:08 Mood Cycles And Expectations

01:02:58 Fasting Myths And Tools

01:04:31 Steroid Stack Breakdown

01:07:49 Drugs Shape Culture

01:09:33 Wrap Up And Where To Find

01:10:49 Upcoming Shows And Goals

01:11:37 Favorite Gyms Road Trip

01:15:26 Final Thanks And Sign Off

This week, Kenny Santui sits down with former MLB pitcher Noah Syndergaard—better known as “Thor”—for a candid conversation on the Strong New York podcast. From his early days as a quiet kid in Texas to becoming a breakout star with the New York Mets, Syndergaard reflects on his journey through the majors, including being drafted by the Blue Jays in 2010, his pivotal trade in the R.A. Dickey deal, and his highly anticipated rookie debut in 2015.

He opens up about life in New York City, the mindset behind maintaining peak physical performance, and what it really takes to throw 98 mph at the highest level. The conversation also dives into the realities of media scrutiny, the pressure athletes face in the public eye, and the physical and mental toll of his 2020 Tommy John surgery—followed by a grueling rehab during the COVID era.

Syndergaard shares insight into his return to the mound with the Angels in 2022, the challenges of regaining elite velocity, and how his approach to health has evolved through clean eating, biohacking, and even stem cell treatments.

This week on the Strong New York Podcast, Kenny sits down with Ashley Madsen, a double board-certified clinician and expert in functional medicine, longevity, and performance optimization. Trained at Stanford, the Institute for Functional Medicine, and the American Board of Anti-Aging Medicine, Ashley specializes in helping people extend their healthspan through personalized, science-backed care.

They unpack peptides and GLP-1s—what works, what’s risky, and why personalization and proper sourcing matter—along with the importance of addressing foundational health first. The conversation also explores obesity, long-term GLP-1 use, and the balance between lifespan and healthspan.

Ashley also shares her integrative approach to sexual wellness, breaking down libido, hormones, and cardiovascular health as key drivers of overall vitality.