Libsyn Directory

#400 The Strength Athlete's B-Plan: How to Pivot | Anthony Diehl & Aaron Chappel

Release Date: 03/10/2026

#412 How Westside Training Saved Me From 4 Years of Cancer | Kalil Sherrod

Dave Tate's Table Talk

One heavy squat at 400 pounds was all Kalil Sherrod needed to know the poison hadn’t won. Seven weeks before this recording, Kalil walked into elitefts HQ to hit his first major milestone since a brutal cancer diagnosis. That moment bridged the gap between his life as an elite performance coach and his reality as a survivor. Through two stem cell transplants and multiple rounds of high-intensity chemotherapy, he developed a conjugate-based survival blueprint—one that reinforces a hard truth: muscle mass is one of the most powerful insurance policies for the human body. Inside the Episode:...

#411 How to Get Every Type of Jacked (Even With Zero Genetics) | Drew Donaldson

Dave Tate's Table Talk

You are likely sacrificing long-term health for short-term gains because you’re following a "get bigger" blueprint designed for a body you don’t actually want. After 21 years in the trenches—from wrestling on the WWE developmental circuit to coaching at the legendary MI40 gym—Drew Donaldson realized that the massive, 275lb version of himself was a high-performance engine running on the wrong fuel. He rebuilt his entire philosophy around the GMT Framework, proving that elite recovery and gut health are the only way to stay undeniable without burning out. INSIDE THE EPISODE: The WWE...

#410 The Comical Truth About "Accidental" Muscle Growth | Pat Davidson

Dave Tate's Table Talk

Wealth and muscle follow the same law: if you're terrified of the extreme, you’ll never master the baseline. From hauling fish on Cape Cod to earning a PhD while competing as a world-class strongman, Dr. Pat Davidson has spent a lifetime proving that obsession is the only path to clarity. He didn’t just study exercise science—he weaponized it to survive a trajectory of self-destruction and transform into one of the most polarizing and brilliant minds in human performance. Inside the Episode: The Ground Spectrum: Why powerlifters and skateboarders live on opposite ends of physics ...

#409 How to Accurately Hit 100% of Your Maxes | Dr. Dwayne Jackson

Dave Tate's Table Talk

Stop looking for the magic pill and start fixing the foundation that’s actually killing your progress. Yale-trained neurovascular physiologist Dr. Dwayne Jackson returns to expose why your high-tech peptide stack and “science-based” training mean nothing if you haven’t mastered the internal metrics of auto-regulation. From surviving stage four kidney failure to walking away from the Ivy League “iron curtain,” Jackson breaks down what it actually takes to perform at an elite level—without destroying your health in the process. INSIDE THE EPISODE: The Auto-Regulation Blueprint...

#408 "You Can't Out-Lift Being An A**hole." | Bob Merkh

Dave Tate's Table Talk

The strongest man in the classroom returns to the table. Bob Merkh is back to discuss one of the most unique careers in strength history—highlighted by a sanctioned 1,100 lb squat and 1,100 lb bench press. From the high-stakes platforms of the WPO to a 7th-grade social studies classroom, Merkh has evolved from a “weaponized” athlete into a mentor who understands that true strength is knowing when to walk away. This episode explores the “Sword and the Ball” philosophy—the tension between chasing elite performance and embracing the grounded responsibilities of being a father,...

#407 The #1 Reason Your Off-Season Is Failing | Tim Walsh

Dave Tate's Table Talk

Alcohol is a biological detergent that systematically strips away the healthy gut microbiota required for elite performance and recovery. Tim Walsh, famously known as "The Vanilla Gorilla," transitioned from a 338-pound teenager to a national-level bodybuilder before becoming the secret weapon for Canada’s strongest powerlifters. He revolutionized his coaching career by proving that mastering internal health is the only way to break through a genetic plateau. INSIDE THE EPISODE: The Alcohol Trap: Why off-season drinking is a "cheat code" for systemic inflammation and stalled progress The...

#406 Any Idiot Can Make You Tired (The Professionalism Crisis) | Jack Lovett

Dave Tate's Table Talk

The industry says you need more certifications, but the truth is you just need to be undeniable. Jack Lovett walked away from a stable government career and flew to New Jersey with no winter coat and an empty bank account because he knew that "good enough" coaching was a death sentence for a dream. From training Tier 1 special forces to building the UK’s premier warehouse gym, his journey is a masterclass in why high standards and results-based strength are the only true currencies in a saturated market. Inside the Episode: The Spartan Credo: Why "with it or on it" is the operating...

#405 The 50% Testosterone Drop: The Hidden Cost of "The Grind." | Allan Bacon

Dave Tate's Table Talk

Most people believe that mastering your physique requires a radical sacrifice of your professional sanity, but the reality is that the most elite transformations happen through calculated precision rather than brute force. Dr. Allan Bacon spent a decade operating as a dental surgeon before walking away from the clinic to prove that the same clinical rigor used in surgery could be applied to human metabolism and performance. After watching his father battle cancer, he realized that fitness isn't just about vanity—it’s about building a physiological fortress that can weather any storm life...

#404 Stop Drinking Water: Why Every Elite Athlete is Doing Hydration Wrong | Nathan Payton

Dave Tate's Table Talk

Your nutrition protocol is failing not because of your effort, but because you are ignoring the biological godfather that dictates every gram of muscle gained and every ounce of fat burned. Before Nathan Payton was the architect behind eight World’s Strongest Man titles, he was a Duke-trained specialist navigating the clinical reality of integrative medicine to bridge the gap between science and the most extreme physical demands on the planet. By mastering the delicate art of insulin modulation, he transformed a career of observation into a proprietary methodology that has kept his athletes...

#403 The Peptide Gray Area: Crossing the Line in 2026 | Anthony Castore

Dave Tate's Table Talk

EPISODE DESCRIPTION The industry lied to you: performance isn’t built on a squat rack—it’s engineered at the cellular level. Most coaches are guessing with your biology, while Anthony Castore has spent thirty years proving them wrong. Before becoming the bridge between elite medicine and the weight room, Castore was a student of the “Old Guard,” forged in the high-stakes environments of Westside Barbell and mentored by legends like John Meadows and Charles Poliquin. He didn’t just learn strength—he witnessed the systemic breakdown of high performers following conventional...

More Episodes

In this episode, Anthony Diehl and Aaron Chappel from MODUS pull back the curtain on the "Longevity Arc" of elite strength. From World’s Strongest Man stages to the life-changing reality of metabolic health, we break down why the "Meathead Identity" is dead and how to build a B-Plan that actually saves lives.

We discuss the transition from "Big and Fat" powerlifting to a "Metabolism-First" approach, proving that muscle is more than just for show—it is your primary defense against chronic disease.

MEET THE GUESTS

Anthony Diehl (Founder, MODUS): A pro-level strongman and coach who transformed from an overweight teenager into a high-level strength athlete. Anthony’s trajectory was profoundly shaped by his son’s autism diagnosis, leading him down a "rabbit hole" to become an expert in gut health, cellular inflammation, and metabolic optimization. While his pro strongman days are behind him, he continues to push limits through bodybuilding, Jiu-Jitsu, and ultra-endurance challenges.

Aaron Chappel (Masters World Record Holder): A top all-time powerlifter across multiple weight classes and a veteran health educator with over 15 years of experience. Aaron blends technical precision with the heart of a mentor, specializing in movement quality and individualized programming. Outside the gym, he is a dedicated father, church leader, high school swim coach, and an NCAA water polo official.