Fitness Confidential With Vinnie Tortorich

Episode 2671: Vinnie Tortorich and Chris Shaffer discuss the need to put up and show up for your goals and see them through to success, and more. https://vinnietortorich.com/2025/07/put-up-and-show-up-episode-2671 PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS YOU CAN WATCH ALL THE PODCAST EPISODES ON YOUTUBE -  Put Up and Show Up Vinnie shares his near-drink experience with a Pina Colada. (2:00) They discuss beverages and a plan to visit Barbados. Vinnie plans to age backwards (in a way). (17:00) Elaine LaLanne is still active in her 90s, and Vinnie plans to do the same. He wants to try rollerblading again! When Vinnie decides to try something, he goes all in. Commit, put up, and show up. He shares a story about a Porsche and building his kayak. The example is a message that can be applied to losing weight: decide what you want and commit to the steps! Decision fatigue can be real, and finding your “why,” or motivation, is helpful. (37:50) Going back to bad eating habits is like going back to a bad, toxic

Episode 2670 - Vinnie Tortorich and Anna Vocino discuss exploring fermented foods while Anna entices us with a delicious cooking demo! https://vinnietortorich.com/2025/07/exploring-fermented-foods-episode-2670 PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS YOU CAN WATCH ALL THE PODCAST EPISODES ON YOUTUBE - Exploring Fermented Foods Anna is cooking, so it's encouraged that you watch on YouTube if you're able—but not while driving! (2:00) She is making meatballs along with some spaghetti squash and “balsamic pearls.” Vinnie just got his Eat Happy Kitchen Cheese Crisps! (5:00) Vinnie has been exploring fermented foods, particularly kefir and kombucha. (14:30) Anna explains what she knows about sugar, fermenting, and how a good winemaker ferments wine. (24:00) “My Mother Jayne” is a documentary about Jane Mansfield. (29:30) Mickey Haritgay (Jayne’s husband) was a friend of Vinnie; he was also a big influence on Vinnie and his healthy lifestyle. More News If you are interested in the NSNG® VIP group, register here

Episode 2669 - BEST OF: Vinnie Tortorich welcomes Dr. Mary Newport back to the show, and they discuss brain health and coconut oil, ketones, and her upcoming book. https://vinnietortorich.com/2025/07/brain-health-coconut-oil-dr-mary-newport-episode-2669 PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS YOU CAN WATCH ALL THE PODCAST EPISODES ON YOUTUBE -  BRAIN HEALTH AND COCONUT OIL Vinnie welcomes Dr. Mary Newport back to the show, and they start the show by discussing Mary's husband's early-onset dementia. (1:20) At age 56, her husband was experiencing a rapid decline in brain health. After some challenges, he became eligible for a clinical trial for Alzheimer's treatment. (9:00) She had heard about the benefits of ketones and coconut oil and started experimenting. (12:15) It's amazing the improvements they saw in a short amount of time! Vinnie mentions his battle with leukemia and how staying in ketosis has kept him in remission. (16:40) Mary mentions that people with epilepsy who have been on a ketogenic diet will

Episode 2668: Vinnie Tortorich and Chris Shaffer discuss the MIND diet and how healthy fats for a healthy mind happen with the right whole foods, and more. https://vinnietortorich.com/2025/07/healthy-fats-for-a-healthy-mind-episode-2668 PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS YOU CAN WATCH ALL THE PODCAST EPISODES ON YOUTUBE -  Healthy Fats for A Healthy Mind The MIND Diet (2:30) The Mediterranean Intervention Neurodegeneration Diet, intended to slow cognitive decline. They discuss the suggested protocol, which still includes grains and almost no red meat, only fatty fish and chicken. It recommends avoiding saturated fat. The protocol is erratic and contradicts itself. (8:30) Epidemiological studies are not always accurate. Dr. Mary Newport has been on the show and specifically studies cognitive decline. (16:00) Studies demonstrate that saturated fats from coconut oil (MCT oil) and a ketogenic diet can slow cognitive decline and even reduce symptoms. (17:00) Here are links to some of Dr. Mary Newport's books:

Episode 2667 - Vinnie Tortorich and Anna Vocino are clearing up fitness confusion and sharing a list of handy items from kitchen gadgets to pens. https://vinnietortorich.com/2025/07/clearing-up-fitness-confusion-episode-2667 PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS YOU CAN WATCH ALL THE PODCAST EPISODES ON YOUTUBE - Clearing Up Fitness Confusion Anna’s Cheese bites are now out! Head over to Eat Happy Kitchen and order yours! (3:00) Answering questions from X to clear up fitness confusion: Where does the 220 come from in the heart rate equation of “220 minus your age”? (9:00) Vinnie explains the origin of the “220”. (11:00) It’s an average heart rate, and the Zones are a breakdown from there. Zone 2 is 180- your age. He also explains why there may be some variations. Zone 2 is the most important because it allows you to be the most aerobically fit. (18:30) HIIT training is important, too, but after weeks of training in Zone 2. You have to build a base. Vinnie suggests HIIT once a week. VO2 Max is the volum

Episode 2666 - In this BEST OF show from January 2014, Anna and Vinnie chat with fan Andrew Weaver, and then discuss Fruitarian claims with Michael Arnstein. https://vinnietortorich.com/best-of-fruitarian-claims-with-michael-arnstein-episode-2666 PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS ANDREW WEAVER & PODCASTS Vinnie and Anna start the show with Andrew Weaver and some comedy fun about Twitter accounts. (1:15) Andrew also talks about how his podcast came about and that he is a fanboy of Vinnie's. Vinnie mentions Michael Arnstein and what he plans to ask him. (11:00) They also chat about other well-known podcast personalities. FRUITARIAN CLAIMS Vinnie and Anna welcome fruitarian Michael Arnstein to the conversation and ask him questions about his lifestyle. (29:00) His claims about his daily fruit intake have Anna and Vinnie asking plenty of questions. (32:15) They also chat about how he got into Ultra running and why he became a fruitarian. (46:25) Michael challenges Vinnie to a competition. (52:00) A

Episode 2665: Vinnie Tortorich and Chris Shaffer discuss an intro to Vitamins 101, and the what and whys of taking supplements. https://vinnietortorich.com/2025/07/vitamins-101-episode-2665 PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS YOU CAN WATCH ALL THE PODCAST EPISODES ON YOUTUBE -  All the Feels Humans have an emotional recall with music and food. (2:00) An example is pumpkin spice around Thanksgiving. It can work in reverse, too: people can have an aversion to junk food after being NSNG® for a while. They discuss other methods that are used to enable or modify behavior, from marketing tactics to “people movers” in Vegas. Chris doesn’t miss air conditioning since he’s been living out of the country. (12:00) They switch to discussing the importance of getting a proper vitamin intake. Vitamins 101 Why electrolytes? Almost everyone is at some level of hydration. (16:00) But there is such a thing as over-hydration, which can cause hyponatremia, or low sodium levels in the blood. (18:00) So many people are afra

Episode 2664 - Vinnie Tortorich and Anna Vocino discuss dining while on vacation, avoiding a slippery slope, and running with weighted vests. https://vinnietortorich.com/2025/06/avoiding-a-slippery-slope-episode-2664 PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS YOU CAN WATCH ALL THE PODCAST EPISODES ON YOUTUBE - Avoiding A Slippery Slope After a lesson in poetry and haiku, the topic of Summer vacation begins. (2:00) People want to indulge on their summer vacations, mostly at theme parks and on cruise ships. Vinnie had a lavish experience on a cruise once, but there was barely a gym! (11:00) He made do with what he had to work with. He also gets seriously seasick. The only thing to do on the cruise was gamble or overeat, neither of which he was interested in. Lately, many of Vinnie’s consults have been centered around what a person, or family, eats on a cruise or at theme parks. (17:00) Make up your mind before you leave on how you are going to handle the event. (18:30) It’s the key to avoiding a slippery slope!

Episode 2663: Vinnie Tortorich speaks to Mike Feldstein of Jaspr air scrubbers about health, how much air quality matters, and what you can do about it. https://vinnietortorich.com/2025/06/air-quality-matters-mike-feldstein-episode-2663 PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS YOU CAN WATCH ALL THE PODCAST EPISODES ON YOUTUBE -  Air Quality Matters  Mike is the founder of Jaspr, which makes air scrubbers. (3:00) He has been in the remediation business for over ten years, including fire and mold. Vinnie has a question regarding radon gas: Is it a real thing? (6:00) Radon gas is the number one cause of lung cancer in non-smokers. (9:00) Vinnie asked about outdoor air quality and fire remediation issues. (12:30) The recent fires in Southern California, in Altadena and Pacific Palisades, are challenging. The amount of toxins in the air and soil is dangerous and may not be fully removed, at least not easily. The fight with insurance companies to get proper remediation and rebuilding is a long, frustrating proc

Episode 2662: Vinnie Tortorich and Chris Shaffer discuss how you are being lied to about the Sugar Diet, the need for fat and protein, and more. https://vinnietortorich.com/2025/06/being-lied-to-and-the-sugar-diet-episode-2662 PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS YOU CAN WATCH ALL THE PODCAST EPISODES ON YOUTUBE -  Being Lied To and The Sugar Diet After a bit of discussion about cartoon musicians and bubblegum pop, they switch to being lied to. (8:45) It’s been around before, but in a different form: The Sugar Diet. It’s similar to an All-rice diet or a Fruitarian diet. Vinnie reviews his interview with Michael Arnstein. (10:30) They talk about Cole Robinson and the “Snake Diet.” (22:00) He should be ignored simply for the fact that he fat-shames. He has recommended OMAD, high fat before, but seems to have added “sugar fasting.” Chris gives the details of “sugar fasting.” (24:00) You are being lied to: there is no nutritional value to sugar, and it causes damage to how your body functions. (26:00)

Episode 2661 - Vinnie Tortorich and Anna Vocino discuss cheese bites, go through a list of popular marketing snow jobs, and more. https://vinnietortorich.com/2025/06/marketing-snow-jobs-episode-2661 PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS YOU CAN WATCH ALL THE PODCAST EPISODES ON YOUTUBE - Marketing Snow Jobs But first, and very much not a "snow job": Eat Happy Kitchen has cheese bites coming out! (6:00) Vinnie wants to enjoy them as part of his Mt. Whitney hike this summer. The cheese bites are low carb, clean (no junk ingredients), crispy, and filled with flavor. Heart-healthy grains are a lie. (15:00) Grains can create inflammation, including in your blood vessels and heart. Grains are not “heart-healthy.” (16:30 Breakfast is not necessarily the most important meal of the day. (23:00) If you eat breakfast, have a couple of eggs instead. If you have tried a smaller eating window during the day, but your weight loss has slowed down, try eating a couple of eggs in the morning. All the meals you eat are impo

Episode 2660: Vinnie Tortorich and Chris Shaffer talk to callers about how consistency makes a difference even when life gets overwhelming, and more. https://vinnietortorich.com/2025/06/consistency-makes-a-difference-episode-2660 PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS YOU CAN WATCH ALL THE PODCAST EPISODES ON YOUTUBE -  Consistency Makes a Difference  No one wakes up wanting to be fat. Fat-shaming is not acceptable; however, there are indicators in society that demonstrate the health of the country is declining. (5:00) Obesity is less about genetics than we tend to think. Even the Pixar movie WALL-E sends a nod to this trend. The Callers  Dave has a question about rowing on the Concept 2; he gives a bit of backstory on how he discovered Vinnie and Anna Vocino. (17:45) He had weight loss with NSNG, but life happened over the years, and he fell into bad habits. (22:00) He was then diagnosed with cancer and dialed back into NSNG®. He’s trying to dial in his Concept 2 routine. There is no such thing as p

Episode 2659: Vinnie Tortorich and Chris Shaffer discuss three different topics that are all promoting mixed messages about health, and more. https://vinnietortorich.com/2025/06/promoting-mixed-messages-episode-2659 PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS YOU CAN WATCH ALL THE PODCAST EPISODES ON YOUTUBE -  Promoting Mixed Messages Chris discovered an article in VegNews: a vegan Italian cookbook. (5:00) They divert to a bit of Italian-American history, which has had its challenges. (6:00) Back to the VegNews article: They ponder how an Italian meal can be vegan. (12:15) Vinnie’s family grew veggies, but all the Italian meals centered around meat. There was a keto trial—a small trial—but testing high cholesterol. (22:00) They discuss how many studies have been misrepresented by not including countries whose cultural diets contain a lot of meat. Blue Zones has been misrepresented as well. The diets vary, and the level of meat is far more than what tends to be represented. The one thing all the Blue Zone cul

Episode 2658 - Vinnie Tortorich and Anna Vocino discuss news from Eat Happy Kitchen, another attempt at fake fat foolishness, and more. https://vinnietortorich.com/2025/06/fake-fat-foolishness-episode-2658 PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS YOU CAN WATCH ALL THE PODCAST EPISODES ON YOUTUBE - Fake Fat Foolishness Different social platforms have different levels of engagement for both Vinnie and Anna. (3:00) Vinnie experimented on X regarding the naming of a post. Changing the words in the post name altered the level of engagement, even though nothing else in the post had been changed. (10:00) They chat about personalities in the health space. (13:00) Several have presented information that was taken directly from Nina Teicholz without giving credit to Nina. (15:00) The ketogenic diet has been around for over 100 years. (18:00) There is still plenty of disbelief that fat is healthy. (20:00) They discuss menopausal changes and how they affect a woman’s belly. Serena saw changes after changing her ex

Episode 2657: Vinnie Tortorich talks with Vince Sanders about being the king of pain by harnessing CBD into various forms for pain relief, and more. https://vinnietortorich.com/2025/06/the-king-of-pain-with-vince-sanders-episode-2657 PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS YOU CAN WATCH ALL THE PODCAST EPISODES ON YOUTUBE -  The King of Pain Vince Sanders is representing the company, CBD American Shaman. Vinnie shares his history as an athlete over the decades. (2:00) Vince talks about the bioavailability and absorption of oils and tinctures. They take cannabis oil and blend it with other oils. (15:00) His formulation and processing break down the oil into small particles that can dissolve in water. (18:00) CBD can have great benefits, but it can be cost-prohibitive. (19:00) They discuss Vince’s regimen; it not only helps with pain issues but also brings a level of calm throughout his day. (21:00) CBD doesn’t appear to affect the liver like ibuprofen does. (23:00) However, if you take a drug that is affecte

Episode 2656: Vinnie Tortorich and Chris Shaffer discuss claims made by charlatans and influencers, analyzing claims against real evidence, and more. https://vinnietortorich.com/2025/06/charlatans-and-influencers-episode-2656 PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS YOU CAN WATCH ALL THE PODCAST EPISODES ON YOUTUBE -  Charlatans and Influencers Things haven’t changed much (in society). (2:00) They chat about the controversy between Zola Budd and Mary Decker during the 1984 Olympics. (3:00) Vinnie’s memory for trivia, movie careers, and Jaws. (9:00) Back to health and fitness. (14:00) Vinnie shares some claims by a prominent influencer. The influencer has a product that sounds like nonsense to Vinnie; they give a breakdown. There are claims made about this product that do not make sense. They discuss other water-based products that were trending over the years. (29:00) Many claims are based on extremely small test groups for short periods. (34:00) Creatine is one of the most tested supplements. Be sure to get o

Episode 2655 - Vinnie Tortorich and Anna Vocino discuss fitness, staying in Zone 2 during training, some interesting news from Eat Happy Kitchen, and more. https://vinnietortorich.com/2025/06/staying-in-the-zone-episode-2655 PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS YOU CAN WATCH ALL THE PODCAST EPISODES ON YOUTUBE - Staying In The Zone Vinnie shares a story about getting some differences in strength and fitness in different activities. (5:00) He shares how even very fit people can struggle in activities they don’t do often. There is a way to strengthen your cardio and boost mitochondria to increase endurance. (15:00) Zone 2 training can make a big difference. Zone 1 is up to 69% of your aerobic capacity. An example would be a light walk or gardening. Zone 2 is 70-79% of aerobic capacity. Zone 3 is 80-89% of aerobic capacity. Zone 4 is 90-100% aerobic capacity. Zone 2 is a favorite because it’s the range at which your body is still burning fat. HIIT training typically relies on sugar-burning. Calculate your Zone

Episode 2654: Vinnie Tortorich talks with Hilda Labrada Gore about ancestral traditions around the world, wise traditions in health, and more. https://vinnietortorich.com/2025/06/ancestral-traditions-with-hilda-labrada-gore-episode-2654 PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS YOU CAN WATCH ALL THE PODCAST EPISODES ON YOUTUBE -  Ancestral Traditions Hilda considers herself an “experiential anthropologist” because she travels and observes cultures across the world to study diets. (2:00) Her interest in health started very you as she had a congenital heart condition. We have outsourced our health in a variety of ways. We have learn to listen to our bodies. (7:00) There are indigenous cultures that became unhealthy after colonization. (10:30) She shares what she has learned while traveling to Australia, Peru, and other places. (15:30) Vinnie mentions Lhakpa Sherpa, who is the only woman to summit Mt. Everest 10 times. (16:00) There’s a movie about her called “Mountain Queen.” You can witness a certain disconnect

Episode 2653: Vinnie Tortorich and Chris Shaffer discuss choosing a different way to be by living a strong and healthy life, gut health, and more.. https://vinnietortorich.com/2025/06/a-different-way-to-be-episode-2653 PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS YOU CAN WATCH ALL THE PODCAST EPISODES ON YOUTUBE -  A Different Way to Be It’s important to keep inflammation as low as possible. (8:00) Vinnie is focusing on gut health and wonders if the raw milk kefir he’s incorporated into his diet helps; he isfeeling better. There is a point at which hyper-focusing on health and longevity detracts from the quality of life, not necessarily enhancing it. (11:30) They discuss several public figures who lived a robust, long life. (13:00) Many people resign to getting older, but others keep going strong for as long as possible. Those examples are people who are choosing a different way to be. Store-bought kombuchas are flavored and have more sugar. (18:00) Vinnie makes his own at home. It's stronger flavored and way

Episode 2652 - Vinnie Tortorich and Anna Vocino discuss cooking, candy, and coffee talk, while Anna cooks a lovely scallop dinner, and much more. https://vinnietortorich.com/2025/06/cooking-candy-coffee-talk-episode-2652 PLEASE SUPPORT OUR SPONSORS YOU CAN WATCH ALL THE PODCAST EPISODES ON YOUTUBE - Cooking, Candy, and Coffee Talk Karen Carpenter was a talented musician who died young due to anorexia. (2:30) This episode is taking place in Anna’s kitchen, so tune in on YouTube to watch. Anna is cooking up a meal and is including fava beans and scallops. (3:30) Fava beans can be tricky to work with, but they are so good. Don’t be afraid to experiment in the kitchen. (10:30) What is Vinnie’s stance on candy? (13:00) Candy doesn’t pretend to be healthy, and if you eat it, you know you’re making a choice. That’s why LIL (Life Into Living) is meant as an infrequent treat. Some people are addicted to sugar, however, so they need to adjust their intake accordingly. He shares a story about going home