420 - Braving Polar Bears, Facing Off Against the Columbian Military, and Team Dynamics with Frank Wolf
The Strenuous Life Podcast with Stephan Kesting
Release Date: 03/20/2025
426 - What Needs to Change to Do Jiu-Jitsu after Age 35
The Strenuous Life Podcast with Stephan Kesting
Today I'm joined by wrestler, jiu-jitsuka, and author Chris Jessulat ( to discuss the best practices for staying relevant on the mats as you enter your fourth decade and beyond... 00:00 Training as an Older Grappler 02:48 The Transition from Competitive to Recreational Training 05:46 Physical Changes and Changing to a Mobility Focus 08:34 Quantifying Progress in Jiu-Jitsu 11:47 Breaking Through Training Plateaus 14:23 Comfort in Unfamiliar Positions 17:11 Training Strategies for Older Grapplers 29:35 Creating Positive Training Environments 31:12 The Impact of Focussing on Recovery and...
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425 - Optimal BJJ Competition Mindset, with Rob Biernacki
The Strenuous Life Podcast with Stephan Kesting
Rob Biernacki has some very impressive competition victories, including black belt masters gold at both No Gi Worlds and ADCC. In this podcast episode he reveals... Why people sometimes just don't perform up to their potential and how to fix it, How to reframe tournament nerves, The optimal state of arousal for competition, Building and executing on gameplans, Why some people just shouldn't compete, His best advice for first-time competitors And more. If you compete (or are thinking about competing), then this is a must listen! Resources referred to in this video include: Gripfighting and...
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424 - Writing the Ultimate BJJ Book, with Meerkatsu and Graham Barlow
The Strenuous Life Podcast with Stephan Kesting
It started as an April Fool's joke and then morphed into a BEAST of a book complete with 967 illustrations called "Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, the Ultimate Illustrated Guidebook". In episode 424 I chat with renowned BJJ black belt, illustrator and designer Seymour Yang (better known as Meerkatsu) and his partner in crime Graham Barlow (the creator of the Tai Chi Notebook) about the core techniques of BJJ, modern vs traditional jiu-jitsu, and the process of bringing a new book into the world. Check out the book here: Cheers, Stephan P.S. And while we're on the topic of books check out...
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423 - BJJ, Science, and D&D with Bryan Rumble
The Strenuous Life Podcast with Stephan Kesting
Bryan Rumble is a 2nd degree belt and a working scientist. In this episode we start out by talking about BJJ traditions, the depth of the art, and how the scientific method might be applied in jiu-jitsu. Then, at about the 23 minute mark, Bryan and I nerd out SUPER hard on Dungeons and Dragons and how it relates to martial arts training. You've been warned! Check out Bryan's school in Brantford, Ontario at the links below And check out the memoir of my toughest solo trip ever, a 42 day solo expedition into the remote Canadian North where I dodged forest fires, stared down...
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422 - How to Condition Yourself to Deal with Adrenaline in Stressful Situations
The Strenuous Life Podcast with Stephan Kesting
The fight-or-flight reflex is always lurking just below the surface. When things get sufficiently stressful, our hormonal system dumps enormous amounts of adrenaline into our bloodstream, and—BOOM—suddenly we’re ready for action. That adrenaline serves a purpose: it elevates your heart rate, makes you much stronger, more pain tolerant, and able to ignore injury. If you ever have to lift a car off a child, you don’t want to be calm. Instead, you want to be mad, scared, enraged—whatever it takes to get into that adrenaline-soaked state of high arousal to lift the damn car with your...
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421 - BJJ Training and Conditioning Myths, with James Deirmendjian from Fit Fight Training
The Strenuous Life Podcast with Stephan Kesting
Three time IBJJ World medallist James Deirmendjian joins me to discuss optimal training methodologies and the science behind strength and conditioning for sport. We cover hacks to improve recovery, debunk common myths in the Jiu-Jitsu community, and go deep into the need for a more scientific approach to training and nutrition. Follow and get in touch with James via https://www.instagram.com/fight_fit_training/ on Instagram. And check out my best-selling book, Perseverance, Life and Death in the Subarctic at...
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420 - Braving Polar Bears, Facing Off Against the Columbian Military, and Team Dynamics with Frank Wolf
The Strenuous Life Podcast with Stephan Kesting
Frank Wolf is an explorer, a writer, and one hell of an adventurer. In this episode we cover what he learned about endurance and survival during his travels in the Arctic, Central America, and Antarctica. Check out his fantastic book Two Springs, One Summer anywhere you get books in including Indigo and Amazon. Please feel free to share this episode with that one crazy outdoor enthusiast in your life because that's how the show grows! Cheers, Stephan Kesting P.S. Also check out my own book Perseverance, Life and Death in the Subarctic - links available at
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419 - Perseverance, Life and Death in the Subarctic (Audiobook Format)
The Strenuous Life Podcast with Stephan Kesting
I've got something special for you today: a true adventure story set in the Far North featuring that I underwent a few years ago after a kidney transplant. I ended up learning a LOT about mental toughness, resilience, and strategies for making progress when I was absolutely at the end of my rope, lessons that I think are universally applicable. The book out today in hardcover, Kindle, and Audible audiobook formats. Since this is a podcast, I thought I'd give you the first three chapters in audio form, including an incident so embarrassing that I almost didn't include it in the book at...
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418 - Spartans, Samurai and Ninja with BJJ Black Belt Jeff Nelson
The Strenuous Life Podcast with Stephan Kesting
I was thrilled to have Jeff Nelson on the show to talk about Spartans, Samurai, Ninja, developing confidence through jiu-jitsu, fight scenes in movies that drive us crazy, and pro-training at some of the best BJJ schools in the world. Follow Jeff on Instagram () and check out his book ! Also check out my new book, on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Indigo, or your favorite local bookstore!
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417 - Can You Get Your BJJ Black Belt Without Affiliating with a Specific School?
The Strenuous Life Podcast with Stephan Kesting
Paul Kindzia describes himself as a "homeschooled, non-denominational, it takes a village black belt" and had a very unique route to getting his BJJ black belt. He was a ronin, training at different schools and did a lot of his training in his home dojo. This paid off because he was a top IBJJF Masters competitor at blue, purple, and brown belt, before being awarded his black belt by a coalition of other black belts (myself included) in October of 2024. In this episode we talk about so many things, including - How to get really good if you don't train at a top-tier school - Key aspects...
info_outlineFrank Wolf is an explorer, a writer, and one hell of an adventurer. In this episode we cover what he learned about endurance and survival during his travels in the Arctic, Central America, and Antarctica.
Check out his fantastic book Two Springs, One Summer anywhere you get books in including Indigo and Amazon.
https://www.amazon.com/Two-Springs-One-Summer-Adventurer/dp/1771606843
Please feel free to share this episode with that one crazy outdoor enthusiast in your life because that's how the show grows!
Cheers,
Stephan Kesting
P.S. Also check out my own book Perseverance, Life and Death in the Subarctic - links available at https://www.stephankesting.com/perseverance-book