Whether your fitness journey has yet to begin or you’re training for your next Ironman, you could probably use some tips. Doesn’t matter if your sport of choice is strength training and bodybuilding, cardio for weight loss, Crossfit and spin classes, or exercise for mental health, you’ll find guidance and advice right in your podcast app.

These are the best fitness podcasts brought to you by athletes, influencers, scientists, and coaches (with some help from expert guests) that will help demystify fitness, nutrition, and wellness trends and fads, identify your goals and achieve them, and help you become the strongest, fittest, sharpest version of yourself. 

If you’ve had your fill of fitness pods, check out the 18 best educational podcasts, and if audio dramas are your thing, don’t miss the best fiction podcasts worth listening to in 2023. And of course, there’s always the 12 best podcasts of 2023...so far.

Ali on the Run

Ali Feller has been blogging about running for a decade, and she’s also the race announcer for New York Road Runners, the TCS New York City Marathon, and Millennium Running. On top of that, she’s a freelance writer and editor covering health, fitness, nutrition, wellness, and more.

On Ali on the Run, she talks to other people with fascinating lives on the run, from American record-holding husbands Shane Quinn and Tony D'Amato; Lindsay Walter, 52-Time Marathoner with Alopecia; Olympic runner and new mom Kate Grace; and The Longest Race author Kara Goucher.

You’ll get everything from specific tips for your next Chicago marathon, insight into what a healthy post-op looks like, and reminders to celebrate the little wins. But Ali dives deep into the why of running—the inspiration to put on your first pair of running shoes, what drives you to the finish line when you don’t think you can, and how getting sweaty impacts your life all around.

There are more than 400 podcast episodes, but she offers a list of the greatest hits, and that’s a wonderful place to start.

Listen: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Other

The Human Upgrade with Dave Asprey

On The Human Upgrade, Dave Asprey (“the father of biohacking” and creator of the Bulletproof Diet) offers actionable health information and perspectives on health and longevity, biohacking, and health optimization. Dave breaks down cutting edge health information, making it easy to digest (no pun intended) for people without backgrounds in science and nutrition. You’ll leave each episode with an immediate takeaway and a new idea for tweaking your health.

Speaking of digestion, Dave covers everything from gut health to skin care, sports psychology, supplements, sex, chronic pain, and more, with scientists, researchers, and leaders in the fitness space. This isn’t the place for hugs and kisses—Dave is direct and delivers facts as he sees them.

Listeners feel grateful for the educational aspect of The Human Upgrade, and appreciate the fact-filled weekly episodes and Dave’s rolodex of knowledgeable guests. One reviewer called Dave “the Elon Musk of biohacking,”which is meant to be a compliment. You might not agree with his outlook on veganism (he’s extremely anti) but he shares the mic with a range of experts and their opinions coalesce to form a full look at fitness—from mind to body, inside and out.

Listen: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Other

The Ready State Podcast

Husband and wife duo Dr. Kelly Starrett and Juliet Starrett founded "The Ready State," a company dedicated to providing resources and education on movement, mobility, and recovery. On their podcast The Ready State, they rely on their expertise and fitness industry background  to share great information and knowledge on various aspects of health and movement, like rugged flexibility, building a resilient mindset, resistance training, walking, hydrating, and more.

Kelly holds a degree in Physical Therapy, which gives him a strong background in physical therapy and sports medicine that informs his approach to mobility and movement. The Starretts are your guides in changing how you think about movement and fitness, and the wisdom they share is interesting, engaging, and often groundbreaking. They have great rapport with their expert guests, like Stefi Cohen, the strongest woman pound for pound in the world, Joe De Sena, the founder of the Spartan brand, and Jill Miller, a fascia expert who has 30 years of corrective movement expertise that forges links between the worlds of yoga, massage, athletics, and pain management.

Dr. Kelly and Juliet inspire their listeners and have a non-condescending tone, never talking down to their audience. The Ready State is a positive place to learn tons about your body and all of its potential.

Listen: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Other

Ben Greenfield Life

Ben Greenfield is a New York Times bestselling author, athlete, speaker, and coach who has made a name in biohacking, and on Ben Greenfield Life (previously Ben Greenfield Fitness), he focuses on optimizing human performance and well-being.

The podcast is a firehose of information, with long interviews that delve deep into topics like spirituality, health, and history. Ben has great chemistry with guests, who come prepared to talk about specific life hacks, like why you should try sleeping on the floor, minimalist exercise plans, the truth about chiropractors, building muscle and testosterone on Keto, and more.

Ben’s smart enough to keep up with his guests, engage with them, and even challenge them in a way that will leave you with tons of takeaways and new perspectives. There’s a religious slant to Ben’s message that might not be for everyone, but he’s a great source of wisdom for all things biohacking, and his listeners appreciate the knowledge and inspiration he shares.

Listen: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Other

Mind Set Win

From Red Bull, Mind Set Win unlocks the mental fitness tactics of elite athletes, sharing the psychological approaches that have made all the difference in their careers. Each episode is a short, 15 minute-or-so bite that includes an intimate interview with an athlete (tennis star Stefanos Tsitsipas, big wave surfer Justine Dupont, Ironman triathlete Lucy Charles-Barclay) and then a distillation of exactly why what these elite athletes do works, and how we can apply those tips to our real lives.

Hosted by Host Cédric Dumont, episodes give actionable tasks you can take home and not only apply to your sport (whatever sport that may be) but also your every day. In these conversations, Cédric proves that incredible physical feats can be achieved by focusing on our mindset.  It’s all about bouncing back from failure, improving focus, compartmentalizing, patience, finding purpose, and more.

If you’re in awe of athletes’ discipline, determination, ambition and don’t think you have what it takes, think again. Mind Set Win will teach you about what you’re capable of doing, and the mind tricks you can play on yourself to get there.

Listen: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Other

Make It Simple

Andrea Allen is a personal trainer, nutrition coach, and owner of DFH training—she knows her fitness stuff. As a mom to four girls under the age of seven, she also knows how lots of workout advice isn’t catered to women or moms. She’s trying to create a space where women and moms (especially busy ones) can get facts, realistic tips, and breakdowns of the health and fitness advice you might hear swirling around, but might not understand.

Make It Simple does just that, and Andrea makes it welcoming and empowering, too. Her approach is holistic—new episodes cover tips for your workout (boosting a slowed metabolism, improving hip and pelvic pain, what to do about soreness, how to bust out of a fitness plateau,) nutrition plan (pre and post workout meals, gut health, calorie cutting,) mind (fearing change, avoiding the comparison trap, managing anxiety) and specific stuff for women and moms (what you don’t know about your menstrual cycle and hormones, preparing for menopause, nutrition for kids, “does your bra fit tighter around your ribs after kids?”) As you can see with that last one, things get specific. But Andrea will have experts on to back up her tips with facts.

Listen: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Other

American Glutton

Actor Ethan Suplee was made famous for his roles in movies and TV series such as "My Name is Earl" and "Remember the Titans," but he’s also the host of a popular health, weight loss, personal growth, and motivation podcast, American Glutton.

The show boasts interviews with guests in a variety of fields, like nutritionists, dietitians, plus-sized models, scientists, athletes, and trainers, as well as extremely honest conversations about the rollercoaster of struggles and wins that anyone on a fitness journey rides. But what makes this show sing is Ethan, who shares openly about his own journey with weight loss and wellness. He’s been fat and fit and fat again, and shares what worked (and what didn’t work) to get him down in size, as well as what led to him to gain it all back again, plus 50 pounds.

American Glutton is relatable for listeners who are on a similar path, and hearing about Ethan’s personal transformation journey from struggling with weight to becoming an advocate for health is inspiring. It’s much easier to take advice from someone who’s been there like Ethan.

Listen: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Other

The Sport Psych Show

On The Sport Psych Show, sport psychologist Dan Abrahams speaks to some of the most influential people in sports performance to help listeners demystify sport psychology for players, coaches and parents. Each episode is a deep dive into the proven philosophies, tools and techniques that get people participating, making real progress, and performing to the best of their abilities.

As a podcast host, Dan is curious, and asks guests for specific tips and tactics needed for fast and effective progress, from how stressors influence sport performers’ health, well-being, and performance, to managing mind chatter and the impact of language and terminology on athlete development. He also listens to his fans about their own experiences with the tricks they’re learning on the show. Geir Jordet’s episode about the psychology behind visual perception and performing under pressure is a must-listen.

Listen: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Other

The Dumbbells

The Dumbbells is the place you go when you want a little laughter with your burpees. Comedians and co-hosts Erin McGown and Ryan Stanger get real about “training dirty, eating clean, and living in-between” in a down–to-earth way.

While opening up about their own fitness journeys, they share tips on training with a TRX, focusing on your core, postpartum bodies, mastering acrobatics in your own backyard, the best snack bars, and even specific fitness equipment like The Bean Supreme. They sprinkle in fun stuff like fitness movie reviews and interviews with other comedians, who definitely aren’t fitness experts.

But the podcast hosts are real people like you and me, who are trying to stay fit without going to extremes. Conversations with them are easy to understand and their tips are totally doable. Erin and Ryan’s chemistry and jokes make The Dumbbells a fun listen, even if you aren’t trying to lose weight or bulk up. I’m not saying you will get a six-pack from laughing, but I’m not saying you won’t.

Listen: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Other

Food, We Need to Talk

Juna Gjata and Dr. Eddie Phillips have joined forces for Food, We Need to Talk, a health and fitness podcast with a sharp focus on science, but only in the most approachable way.

They grill top researchers from the health and wellness fields about the science behind good nutrition, exercise, stress, and sleep, and their straightforward conversations make health and fitness topics that at one time seemed murky and confusing very easy to understand. Specific episodes cover combining fitness with your social life, how exercise helps depression, the impacts of Ozempic, the health effects of being called “fat,” and even the magic of NOT exercising.

The two bring totally different things to the table—Juna is a young woman with plenty of weightlifting experience, and Dr. Eddie is a physician from Harvard who specializes in physical medicine and rehabilitation and lifestyle medicine. Conversations are casual, positive, and curious—the two are always eager to learn from one another about their experiences with the science-backed stuff we’re learning. Food, We Need to Talk is friendly and Juna and Dr. Eddie promote kindness—not just to other people, but to yourself, too. Fad diets and unrealistic health goals be damned.

Listen: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Other

Hurdle

Hurdle is a podcast that primarily focuses on wellness and fitness, with a strong emphasis on running. It features interviews with a diverse range of guests, including athletes, entrepreneurs, and experts in various fields.

Host and wellness influencer Emily Abbate engages her guests in candid and insightful conversations about their experiences, challenges, and achievements. Through her authentic and relatable storytelling, Emily offers tips and inspiration for beginners, competitive runners, and everyone between. On Fridays, you’ll find a segment called "5-Minute Fridays," where Emily offers insights and reflections on different wellness topics, covering physical, mental, and emotional wellbeing.

Emily has a background in journalism, with bylines in publications like Self, GQ, Runner's World, and Shape, so she knows what she’s talking about. And her delivery will make her feel like a trusted source, friend, and cheerleader.

Listen: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Other

The Stronger by Science Podcast

Stronger By Science is your home for articles and free resources about new scientific research relating to fitness and the place to learn about different kinds of deadlifts, how stretching helps in hypertrophy and strength, tips for squatting and benching, how to avoid fitness plateaus, and so much more.

Through deep dives, banter, and anecdotes Greg and Lyndsey interpret and apply the latest science in a simple way and touch on social topics like how to explain fitness trends to your friends and what actually matters when it comes to living a strong, healthy life.

This show is for the people dedicated to making fitness a huge part of their lives and hungry for a rigorous, evidence-based approach to lifting and exercise.

Listen: Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Other

So which podcast is the best fitness podcast? Try Ben Greenfield Life or The Ready State. If you’re looking for a show to work out to, we recommend American Glutton for its addictive motivation and inspiration. Emily Abbate’s Hurdle is a great show that tackles not only your physical wellness, but your mental health, too.