Show Notes

The Illusion of Choice, w/ Gerard Friedman, MS, ATC

This week I meet with Gerard Friedman, a long time athletic trainer and Board Certified Health Coach. Gerard spent well over a decade working with high school athletes before moving to a primary focus of adults and adult heath. Gerard’s experience made for the perfect conversation surrounding the merger between youth and adults into total healthy households. We talk about family nutrition, decision making, the creation of choices (Illusion of choice, one of my new favorite terms). We also talk about visualization, and the application and benefits for both adults and athletes. This episode is perfect for parents, but all adults would find benefit.

You can find Gerard at:

His instagram

His website

Please check out Gerard, his content, and the amazing experiences he offers!

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Avoid Starting in a Deficit: Managing what you can control, w/ Superbowl Winner David Edwards

This week you will hear from David Edwards, who currently plays for the Buffalo Bills of the NFL. David is won a Super Bowl with the LA Rams, and played for the University of Wisconsin. But before all of that, David was a youth athlete who thoroughly enjoyed playing sports with his friends. David and I talk about todays youth athletes, the demands that have evolved, and what it is like to be a parent of young athletes. We talk about the difference between encouragement and creating opportunity for our kids, vs. pressuring and creating negative experience with sports and movement. David also talks about his experience going through the football levels, what he has done well, and the things he wish he knew earlier. There are so many good lessons for parents, current athletes, or any adult who is trying to make the best of their dreams and opportunities. The main message: most of us are starting in a deficit by not controlling the lifestyle habits that are at our finger tips. Listen in, rate and review, and please share with any family and friends you think might enjoy this.

You can find David at:

His Instagram

Do you have a fitness, health, or lifestyle question/topic you’d like to hear discussed on this podcast? Please send your questions to [email protected].

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“Good” and “Bad” Foods: The debate and the real focus: w/ your host, Mike Ricchio.

This is a debate that has gone on for quite some time now. Are there good and bad foods? Is it acceptable to label any food as one or the other? Or, my bigger question, does it matter? In this solo episode (no guest, just me) I will discuss how I label foods, and how we can define and qualify our nutritional choices, including how I talk about foods with my kids. Listen in to this short episode, that can easily be finished on a short walk or car ride.

Do you have other other questions you’d like to have answered? Please email them to [email protected].

If you aren’t already, please follow me at:

My instagram

My brick and mortar gym

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Physical Literacy: Lifelong Confidence and Health, w/ Justin Loudon

This week you will hear from Justin Loudon, the 2024 NSCA National Strength Coach of the Year. Justin and I connected last year at a national conference, where he was leading a meeting for the National High School Strength Coach committee. After listening in, it was clear he was someone I wanted this audience to learn from. The topic we landed on is the important one of ‘physical literacy’, specifically in youth and high school sports, and how they relate to adulthood. The research is clear, those who are active earlier in life have a better chance of being mentally and physically healthy adults. But why? This is what Justin and I will dive deep into. This is a great episode for both adults and athletes, but with takeaways for adults without kids as well, as physical literacy is not limited to our youth. If you like this episode, please share it and review!

Where you can find Justin:

Instagram

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“Normal is a Setting on a Washing Machine”: Nutrition Challenges w/ Gina Graham

We are back! And relaunching with a highly requested topic. This week you will learn Gina Graham, a Licensed Clinical Social Worker who has specialized in eating disorders, body image, depression, anxiety, and women’s issues for 20 years, with a private practice located in the western suburbs of Chicago. Gina is also an Author of “Body Beautiful” (link below), and an impressively talented photographer. The episode kicks off discussing eating disorders specifically, but merges into the more typical, every day issues most of us deal with. I am blessed to work with Gina every week, and we have had so many amazing conversations, so it was a no-brainer to bring such an important one to the podcast. There is something for everyone in this episode, and I know you will learn as much as I did. Listen, Rate, and Enjoy!

Links:

Auther/book: Amazon

Website

Social Media: IG

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Peptides, Hormones, and A Tiered Approach to Health: w/ Dr. Jason Pencek

This week we are talking with Dr. Jason Pencek. Dr. Pencek is a chiropractor and nurse practitioner. He started working in medicine as a registered nurse in 2010. He quickly realized that traditional Western medicine has failed many people. He went back to school in 2012 to study for his chiropractic doctorate. He attended National University of Health Sciences. While in school, he started training for IV therapies. The scope of practice of chiropractic medicine was too limited. He began his nurse practitioner degree at Olivet Nazarene while still attending National University of Health Sciences. He has been trained in dozens of therapies such as IV nutrients, IV chelation, platelet rich fibrin joint injections, bio-identical hormone replacement therapy, peptide therapies, neural therapy, ozone therapy, peri-neural therapy, stem cell therapies, and exosome therapies. He has made it his goal to improve longevity and health span in all of his patients. Today we discuss how he accomplishes this task through not only IV therapies, but through a complete health approach.

You can find Dr. Pencek at:

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The Mental and Physical Connection, w/ Dr. Matthew Tolstoy

In my 60th episode I have a great conversation with Dr. Matthew Tolstoy. What background doesn’t Dr. Tolstoy have? Matt is a licensed acupuncturist and Somatic Experiencing Practitioner (SEP), completing the three year training program in trauma therapy developed by Peter Levine. He is certified by the International Association of Counselors and Therapists as well as by the National Academy of Sports Medicine. In addition to his private practice, Matt has been on staff at New York City Ballet and an educator for Equinox Health Clubs. What Matt will tell you is that it is his experience as a personal trainer that led him to his current work, helping people using a multidirectional approach that includes physical and psychological modalities. In this convo we discuss those modalities and connections. This was a really fun convo and one with many takeaways. You can learn more about Dr. Tolstoy and his work at:

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Behind The Camera: w/ NBC’s Cortney Hall and Matthew Rodrigues.

This week the hosts of NBC’s Chicago Today Show join me to discuss the lifestyles that support their careers. I wanted to dive into the stress and pressure that come with life on camera, and what tactics each of them use to diffuse that stress. I ask Cortney and Matt about that press, their morning routines, strategies to de-stress, and how they turn it “on” when they may not be feeling at their best. As you will hear, both have their own strategies that work for them. My favorite part of the episode is the honesty we get from both of them, proving we are have all human and each have our own struggles with nutrition, exercise, work, and life in general.

You can find Cortney, Matthew, and the show at the following:

NBC Chicago Today show website

NBC Chicago Today Show IG

Cortney’s IG page

Matthew’s IG page

Check out the show Monday through Thursday at 11:45am and Fridays at 11:30am. Enjoy the episode and please rate and review!

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Mind and Body: The Collective Efforts of Positive Change, w/ Jason Komosa

This week we speak to Certified Mental Coach, Jason Komosa. Years after studying Psychology + Marketing while helping a small beverage company (Vitamin Water) grow into a Goliath purchased by Coca-Cola, and forgoing a Doctoral Program in Psychology at the University of Chicago to instead help launch an internet company (Groupon), Jason found himself confused, and unfulfilled. His career success grew at an exponential rate, as he was able to rapidly complete the ‘Path-To-Happiness’ checklist he superficially created as a teenager, albeit before the age of 30. He still found myself eagerly seeking more out of life. Now, Jason is using his education and experience to help others gain the habits and perspective they need to lead the life they were meant to.

You can find Jason at:

His website

His LinkedIn 

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Cold Exposure, Ice Baths, and Human Potential, w/ Joshua Church.

Joshua Church, the Co-Founder of Edge Theory Labs, joins us to discuss the popular topic of cold exposure and cold plunges. Edge Theory Labs developed a revolutionary option for cold plunges at home, as well as a mobile option, neither needing repeated trips to the store for bags of ice. In this episode Joshua discusses why he got into this field, his passion for helping people reach their potential, and how cold exposure can be a powerful tool in your journey. You will also learn about:

  • The mental and physical affects associated with cold exposure.
  • How cold exposure can bulletproof you to the negative affects of stress.
  • The unknown benefits you will learn along the way.

You can find Joshua and Edge at the following:

Edge Theory website

Edge Theory social media page

Interested in owning your own Edge Theory Labs Cold plunge? Click this link and use the promo code “Ricchio” for $150 off the purchase price.

Purchase an Edge Theory Labs Tub here

Enjoy the episode and don’t forget to rate and review!

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