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2932: Phil Heath Used Less PEDs Than Everyone Thought ; Here Is the Real Story

Mind Pump: Raw Fitness Truth

Release Date: 08/27/2026

2961: 5 Things Research Gets Wrong About Building Muscle show art 2961: 5 Things Research Gets Wrong About Building Muscle

Mind Pump: Raw Fitness Truth

MAPS Abs and Butt: https://mapsabsandbutt.com Code: LAUNCH for 40% off. Includes Butt Building Diet Guide, Women's Supplement Guide, at-home dumbbell version and a free second program at checkout (Muscle Mommy or Muscle Mommy 15). In this episode the guys break down five common hypertrophy study findings that do not hold up in the real world — why 15-20 sets per body part per week works in 8-12 week studies but burns out real people within months, why light weight and heavy weight producing the same results ignores how fatigue affects the big compound lifts, why training close to failure...

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2960: How Three Personal Trainers Built the Most Downloaded Fitness Podcast in History — The Origin Story show art 2960: How Three Personal Trainers Built the Most Downloaded Fitness Podcast in History — The Origin Story

Mind Pump: Raw Fitness Truth

MAPS Sale:Code: SCARY40 for 40% off everything sitewide for 3 days only. Also: MAPS Abs and Butt at — Code: LAUNCH for 40% off. In this episode the guys sit down and tell the full origin story of how they each got into fitness and the personal training industry. Sal shares starting at 13 with plastic sand-filled dumbbells, spotting his dad benching 300 pounds, getting his first job at 24 Hour Fitness at 18 with zero certification, and selling $6,000 of personal training on his first day without knowing what it cost. Adam shares falling into fitness accidentally, the moment money sold him on...

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2959: The Secrets for Training in a Calorie Deficit (Most People Get This Completely Wrong) show art 2959: The Secrets for Training in a Calorie Deficit (Most People Get This Completely Wrong)

Mind Pump: Raw Fitness Truth

MAPS Abs and Butt: https://mapsabsandbutt.com Code: LAUNCH for 40% off. Includes Butt Building Diet Guide, Women's Supplement Guide, at-home dumbbell version and a free second program at checkout (Muscle Mommy or Muscle Mommy 15). In this episode the guys break down the secrets for training in a calorie deficit — why bodyweight lifts are psychologically and physically the best choice when cutting, what it actually feels like to train depleted and why anticipating it helps you push through, why low reps beat high reps in a deficit because they preserve muscle with far less stress on the body,...

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2958: The Best Cardio for Fat Loss Endurance and Athleticism (They Are All Different) show art 2958: The Best Cardio for Fat Loss Endurance and Athleticism (They Are All Different)

Mind Pump: Raw Fitness Truth

MAPS Abs and Butt: https://mapsabsandbutt.com Code: LAUNCH for 40% off. Includes Butt Building Diet Guide, Women's Supplement Guide, at-home dumbbell version and a free second program at checkout (Muscle Mommy or Muscle Mommy 15).   In this episode the guys break down the best forms of cardio for fat loss, endurance and athleticism. They cover why walking is the best cardio for fat loss, why steady state is best for building endurance, why HIIT develops the kind of explosive stamina that sports actually require, and why playing a sport or just going out and having fun is the most...

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2957: Cardio Rebranded | Why Every New Fitness Trend Is Just the Same Old Cardio show art 2957: Cardio Rebranded | Why Every New Fitness Trend Is Just the Same Old Cardio

Mind Pump: Raw Fitness Truth

MAPS Abs and Butt: Code: LAUNCH for 40% off. Includes Butt Building Diet Guide, Women's Supplement Guide, at-home dumbbell version and a free second program at checkout (Muscle Mommy or Muscle Mommy 15). In this episode the guys break down how cardio keeps getting rebranded with new names and logos while staying the same activity underneath. They cover cozy cardio, Japanese walking, the 666 walk, the 3-2-8 method, the fart walk, retro walking, zone two, rucking, High Rocks, Orange Theory and F45, the hot girl walk and the 8000 steps data — explaining what each one is, who it is actually good...

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2956: Is It Normal to Feel Hungry When Dieting | Why Hunger Is Actually a Good Sign show art 2956: Is It Normal to Feel Hungry When Dieting | Why Hunger Is Actually a Good Sign

Mind Pump: Raw Fitness Truth

MAPS Abs and Butt: https://mapsabsandbutt.com Code: LAUNCH for 40% off. Includes Butt Building Diet Guide, Women's Supplement Guide, at-home dumbbell version and a free second program at checkout (Muscle Mommy or Muscle Mommy 15).   In this episode the guys break down five fat loss diet myths — why feeling hungry during a cut is normal and expected (and why reframing it is the key), why no food actually burns body fat, why a calorie is not just a calorie when it comes to behavior and palatability, why neither carbs nor fat are the enemy, and why treating food as just fuel is a...

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2955: Training Glutes and Abs From Home (No Gym Required) show art 2955: Training Glutes and Abs From Home (No Gym Required)

Mind Pump: Raw Fitness Truth

MAPS Abs & Butt is still 40% off:   If your goal is a stronger, rounder butt and visible abs, this episode gives you the programming logic, the exercise selection, the rep ranges, the rest periods, and the mindset shift you need to actually make it happen.   In this episode: • Rest periods are what make strength training strength training: resting two to four minutes between hard sets trains the energy system tied to muscle growth, while cutting rest short shifts you into aerobic, stamina-based work that does NOT build the butt • A study in the Journal of Applied Physiology...

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2954: How to Lose Fat Without Losing Muscle (The Exact Strategy) show art 2954: How to Lose Fat Without Losing Muscle (The Exact Strategy)

Mind Pump: Raw Fitness Truth

MAPS Abs and Butt: https://mapsabsandbutt.com Code: LAUNCH for 40% off. Includes Butt Building Diet Guide, Women's Supplement Guide, at-home dumbbell version and a free second program at checkout (Muscle Mommy or Muscle Mommy 15).   In this episode the guys break down how to cut fat and keep muscle — covering why you need to be in a good metabolic position before you start cutting, why letting food create the deficit beats trying to burn calories through exercise, why cutting volume during a cut is counterintuitive but essential, and why increasing low-stress activity like walking is...

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2953: 7 Easy Food Swaps That Lower Your Calories Without Changing How Much You Eat show art 2953: 7 Easy Food Swaps That Lower Your Calories Without Changing How Much You Eat

Mind Pump: Raw Fitness Truth

MAPS Abs and Butt: https://mapsabsandbutt.com Code: LAUNCH for 40% off. Includes Butt Building Diet Guide, Women's Supplement Guide, at-home dumbbell version and a free second program at checkout (Muscle Mommy or Muscle Mommy 15). In this episode the guys break down seven easy food swaps that lower calories, bump protein and still taste great — protein snacks over carb snacks (Crisp Power honey mustard), high-protein Greek yogurt desserts with cocoa whip and berries, shelled nuts instead of pre-shelled roasted ones, grass-fed beef over grain-fed (200-calorie difference in a 12oz ribeye), two...

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2952: Dr. Cabral Reveals the 7 Blood Markers That Predict Heart Disease Better Than Cholesterol show art 2952: Dr. Cabral Reveals the 7 Blood Markers That Predict Heart Disease Better Than Cholesterol

Mind Pump: Raw Fitness Truth

MAPS Abs and Butt: https://mapsabsandbutt.com Code: LAUNCH for 40% off. Includes Butt Building Diet Guide, Women's Supplement Guide, at-home dumbbell version and a free second program at checkout (Muscle Mommy or Muscle Mommy 15). Dr. Stephen Cabral returns to break down the seven blood markers that predict heart disease better than cholesterol. He explains what each one means, what optimal ranges look like versus what standard lab ranges say, and how to improve each one through diet, exercise and targeted supplementation. He then reveals the guys' individual omega-6 to omega-3 inflammation...

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In this episode the guys sit down with seven-time Mr. Olympia Phil Heath for a wide-ranging conversation covering the military, faith, bodybuilding and business. Phil shares stories from years of USO tours — including a trip to Guantanamo Bay with the Most Interesting Man in the World, drinking the ceremonial grog three times at a Medal of Honor ceremony, and training with Marines on base. He breaks down how being a hyper responder shaped his approach to PEDs (less is more), the problem with influencers recommending a gram of testosterone or 400-500mg of Trenbolone to beginners, why he believes GLP-1s are essentially cheating in competition prep, why he thinks no one in the open division is bringing diet face anymore, how barbell rows and training back twice a week transformed his physique, the mental shift from training angry to training joyful after his faith walk, his four and a half years of depression post-retirement, how he turned down Hollywood roles he felt were degrading, and his anticipation of becoming a father for the first time at 46. The guys also get into bodybuilding prize money history — from $100K and a Hummer in the early Arnold years to Arnold and the Olympia now bidding against each other toward $750K and beyond.

 

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GUEST LINKS

 

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LINKS

 

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Instagram: @mindpumpmedia

 

0:00 - Intro

1:59 - Phil's USO tours — Guantanamo Bay, Medal of Honor ceremonies and training with Marines

9:32 - How Phil is training now — 3-4 days a week, eating twice a day and prepping to have a kid

17:23 - Being a hyper responder — why Phil used less than most people think

23:05 - PED influencers recommending crazy doses to beginners — why Phil is frustrated

29:54 - The biggest training mistakes Phil sees today — speed, ego and no mind-muscle connection

40:27 - How barbell rows and training back twice a week transformed Phil's physique

42:34 - Why Phil cut arm training to every other week — and why it worked

51:44 - GLP-1s in professional bodybuilding — why Phil thinks over 90% are using them and why it's a problem

55:25 - Why no one has diet face anymore — inflammation, compounds and shortcuts showing up on stage

1:02:46 - Food poisoning at the 2009 Olympia — EMTs in his room until 6am the night before the show

1:13:02 - Phil's four and a half years of depression after retiring from bodybuilding

1:20:48 - Hollywood offers, "bucks breaking" and why Phil turned them down

1:24:26 - Transition from training angry to training joyful — the faith shift that changed everything

1:30:40 - Phil's path to fatherhood at 46 — what he's thinking and what he wants for his kid

1:47:22 - Bodybuilding prize money history — from $100K and a Hummer to Arnold vs. Olympia at $750K