Congrats on making it to the end of the 2026 CrossFit Quarterfinals, presented by Velites!

Stay tuned for an update on the CrossFit Podcast over the coming weeks.

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Jocelyn Rylee is leading the charge to bring nutrition back to the center of the CrossFit conversation. A longtime affiliate owner and Seminar Staff trainer, Jocelyn blends science, education, and deep experience in her approach to food and fitness.In this episode, Denise and Jocelyn dig into the foundations of health, the evolution of nutrition in the CrossFit world, and the difference between eating for performance and eating for longevity. You’ll walk away rethinking your plate and your pantry.

Topics Included

• Why nutrition is foundational to the CrossFit methodology.
• The Zone diet and the early culture of CrossFit nutrition.
• The difference between performance eating and long-term health.
• Why we need to cook again — and how it made us human.
• Practical, simple, and realistic steps to address nutrition.

Congrats on making it to the end of the 2026 CrossFit Open, presented by Air National Guard!

Stay tuned for an update on the CrossFit Podcast over the coming weeks. Until then, enjoy this episode with of our community favorites, Nick Wells and Gino Aviles.

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Redemption Road CrossFit started inside Colorado’s prison system, where a small group of men turned CrossFit workouts into the first affiliate behind bars. Today, it’s a nonprofit changing prison culture through mentorship, accountability, and community — cutting recidivism to just 1.6% compared to the national average of 80%.

This week, we welcome Redemption Road CrossFit’s founder Nick Wells and founding member Gino Aviles to the show. Nick and Gino share their journey, from addiction and life sentences to freedom, sobriety, and leadership, and show how CrossFit’s methodology can transform not just fitness, but lives.

Topics Covered

• Personal journeys from addiction, incarceration, and transformation
• The origins of CrossFit in Colorado prisons
• Building Redemption Road: the first affiliate inside a correctional facility
• Overcoming stigma, violence, and systemic barriers through community fitness
• Partnerships with CrossFit HQ and the broader community
• Redemption Road’s measurable impact on recidivism and prison culture

Resources Mentioned

• Redemption Road CrossFit – RF2.org
• CrossFit Journal coverage of Redemption Road: Community Behind Bars and CrossFit in Prison
• Morning Chalk Up articles on Redemption Road: Nick Wells and Mat Fraser
• Books used in coach candidate curriculum: Overcoming Gravity,” “Becoming a Supple Leopard, “100 Days of Technique

From now until the end of the 2026 CrossFit Open, presented by Air National Guard, we’re resharing the episodes you all loved the most. Catch a most-played episode every two weeks, right here in your podcast feed.

Good luck in the Open, and we’ll see you on the leaderboard.

Dr. Rhonda Patrick is a leading researcher in nutrition, aging, and metabolic health. She’s known for translating complex science into practical tools for longevity and performance. Now, after a year of doing CrossFit, she has new insights to share. In this episode, Rhonda joins Denise to break down the cellular mechanisms behind high-intensity exercise, why lactate is more than a waste product, and how CrossFit helps train your brain, not just your body.

They cover topics like VO2 max, mitochondrial repair, post-meal inflammation, aging muscles, and the science behind “exercise snacks.” Rhonda also shares her personal transformation from intimidated beginner to committed athlete and why she believes CrossFit may be one of the most powerful tools for lifelong health.

Topics Included

• Why Rhonda started CrossFit — and how her perspective shifted after a year of training
• What lactate actually is and why it’s a powerful signal for brain and muscle health
• How high-intensity exercise triggers mitochondrial repair and neurogenesis
• The relationship between sedentary behavior, inflammation, and cancer risk
• The research behind exercise “snacks” and how to use them throughout your day
• The benefits of CrossFit for aging adults, and Rhonda’s vision for senior fitness

Resources Mentioned

• Dr. Patrick’s website and podcast “Found My Fitness”
  • Dr. Martin Gibala podcast episode
• Rhonda at the CrossFit for Health Summit

From now until the end of the 2026 CrossFit Open, presented by Air National Guard, we’re resharing the episodes you all loved the most. Catch a most-played episode every two weeks, right here in your podcast feed.

Good luck in the Open, and we’ll see you on the leaderboard. Sign up at games.crossfit.com.

Dr. Stacy Sims is an exercise physiologist, nutrition scientist, TEDx speaker, and the bestselling author behind the viral phrase “Women are not small men.” In this episode, she joins Denise Thomas to unpack what we really need to know about women’s physiology — and how most training and nutrition advice completely ignores it.

They get into the menstrual cycle, perimenopause, postmenopause, and how to train through it all. Stacy explains why women lose power during certain phases, how training affects the brain, and what female athletes should do differently when it comes to strength, conditioning, recovery, and stress. They also break down cold plunges, sauna use, and why CrossFit coaches and gym owners have an opportunity to lead the way in changing the narrative.

Topics Included

• Biological differences in training, recovery, and metabolism
• Power, hormone shifts, and the menstrual cycle
• When and how to modify workouts
• Why fasting and cold plunges don’t affect men and women the same way
• How to feel and perform your best during perimenopause and postmenopause
• Raising the next generation of girls to understand their physiology for performance

Resources Mentioned

• Dr. Stacy Sims’ TEDx Talk: Women Are Not Small Men
• Book: “Roar” by Stacy Sims
• Book: “Next Level” by Stacy Sims
• DrStacySims.com
• Proov or Oova (hormone-tracking tools)
• OsteoGains app

From now until the end of the 2026 CrossFit Open, presented by Air National Guard, we’re resharing the episodes you all loved the most. Catch a most-played episode every two weeks, right here in your podcast feed.

Good luck in the Open, and we’ll see you on the leaderboard. Sign up at games.crossfit.com.

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Dr. Fatty Acid, the viral creator behind @When_Nerds_Teach, joins Denise Thomas for a refreshingly honest conversation about finding CrossFit, battling fatty liver disease, navigating Wegovy, and rediscovering strength. A lifelong teacher, she talks about humor, vulnerability, and learning to love movement for what it gives, not how it looks.

Check out the latest content with Dr. Fatty Acid here.

We’re all in on prep for the 2026 CrossFit Open, presented by Air National Guard.

In the meantime, enjoy some of our favorite episodes, dropped in this feed every two weeks. We’ll be back after the Open concludes with fresh content that explores the latest research on a variety of topics in health and fitness with subject matter experts.

Don’t forget to register: games.crossfit.com and we’ll see you on the leaderboard!

Dr. Kelly Starrett joins the CrossFit Podcast to look back on the early days of CrossFit and ahead to what the next 20 years can become. From finding CrossFit through a grainy GIF in the early 2000s to opening one of the first affiliates in the world, Starrett reflects on the ideas that shaped the methodology and the lessons learned through decades of coaching athletes, Olympians, and everyday people.

This conversation explores durability over time, why pain is not a failure but a request for change, and how movement quality, range of motion, and basic strength set the foundation for performance at every age.

Starrett and host Jocelyn Rylee dig into the future of CrossFit, from longevity and conditioning to the irreplaceable value of affiliates as places built around coaching and community. This episode is an honest look at what CrossFit has always been about and what it can become if we apply what we have learned.

Topics Covered

• The early days of CrossFit and the original affiliate culture
• Mobility, durability, and reframing pain in training
• Why youth athletes need movement literacy before specialization
• Training for sport versus training only for fitness
• The future of CrossFit and longevity-focused strength and conditioning

Resources Mentioned

• The Ready State
• Becoming a Supple Leopard by Kelly Starrett
• Built to Move by Kelly Starrett and Juliet Starrett
• 800-Gram Challenge
• Power Monkey Fitness
• The Anxious Generation
• Kelly on Social
  • Instagram
  • Facebook
  • Tiktok
  • X
  • YouTube

Community Highlight

Kristin Savage grew up around autoimmune disease. By age 5, she was dealing with joint inflammation, and years later, she was formally diagnosed with lupus.

She found CrossFit in 2012 and later trained and coached at CrossFit Gambit, where she was mentored by Kelly Jackson. Kristin earned her Level 1 and Level 2 Trainer credentials and now has aspirations to pursue her Level 4.

After a severe flare-up forced her to reassess how she trained, Kristin shifted her focus to nutrition, recovery, and scaled training — learning to work in rhythm with her body instead of against it. Within a year, she qualified for Desert City.

Today, Kristin coaches CrossFit in Las Vegas and spends much of her energy helping others navigate training and chronic illness — sharing what she’s learned through experience.

Know someone you think deserves to be highlighted? Nominate them here.

CrossFit was born from curiosity, trial and error, and the willingness to test ideas in real time. In this conversation, host Jocelyn Rylee and senior content writer Stephane Rochet revisit the roots of that culture and explore why self-experimentation remains one of the most powerful tools for improving performance, health, and well-being.

They reflect on the early days of nutrition inside CrossFit, the experiments that shaped their own training, and why results-driven thinking cuts through dogma. From zone ratios to carb backloading, fasting, fruit fasts, and the realities of changing needs across life stages, this episode highlights how paying attention, tracking outcomes, and staying open-minded can reshape your relationship with food and training.

Topics Covered

• The origins of self experimentation within CrossFit culture
• How to define “what’s working” in training and nutrition
• Lessons learned from decades of nutrition experiments
• Adjusting habits across changing life stages
• Building life skills around food, tracking, and personal agency

Resources Mentioned

• Barry Sears and the Zone
• Mark Bell
• Mike Burgener
• Jocko Willink

Community Highlight
Amy and Jim Gay have been part of CrossFit Adaptation for over a decade. Last year, they became the gym’s new owners and quickly faced a challenge.

Located just outside D.C., many members were hit hard by recent federal job cuts. One by one, people were getting laid off and preparing to cancel their memberships.

Amy and Jim didn’t flinch. They told them, “Just keep coming in.”Then a coach had an idea: start a sponsorship program.

Now, members with the means can chip in — either once or monthly — to cover membership costs for others going through tough times. The response has been huge. When things got hard, the community didn’t shrink. It stepped up.

Amy and Jim’s advice to other affiliate owners? Don’t treat your gym like a normal business. The real magic is in the details — staying close, listening, and showing up.

Know someone you think deserves to be highlighted? Nominate them here.