The Ben Azadi Show

You're eating clean, exercising, and trying to sleep on time, but that round, hard belly won't budge. In this episode, I share the exact 7-day plan I'd follow if I had one week to start reversing cortisol belly. Almost every step is free, and none of them involve working harder.

You're eating clean. You're working out. You're going to bed on time.

And the belly still won't budge.

Here's something most people don't know: the area around your vital organs has about three times as many cortisol receptors as other parts of your body. So when you're chronically stressed, your body may be far more likely to store fat right there, around your belly.

Alex learned this the hard way. Two weeks off after eye surgery, a little travel, a few extra sweets, and he could literally feel the inflammation in his belly. With his wedding less than 45 days away, he asked me one question: if you only had 7 days, what would you do?

This episode is my answer.

Why does belly fat stick around even when you feel like you're doing everything right?

In this episode, Alex and I break down cortisol belly: what it is, why it's different from the fat you can pinch, and why your body may hold onto visceral fat when it thinks it's under threat. Your body can't tell the difference between a tiger chasing you and stress from your finances, your commute, or a late-night argument. To your body, it's all a threat, and threats tell it to store fat.

So the goal isn't to fight harder. It's to change the signal.

I walk through a simple 7-day plan where you stack one new habit each day, starting with the change I believe has the biggest impact on your deep sleep. We talk about why scrolling first thing in the morning and watching intense shows before bed could be working against you, and the "palate cleanse" trick my wife and I use at night. I also share the four daily habits I'd keep if I had to simplify everything.

Alex gets real about how wedding stress, poor deep sleep, and a few weeks off track showed up in his body. I share what happened to my own stress levels after a few days of eating off-plan in Mexico.

We also get into why more workouts, more restriction, and more fasting can sometimes make things worse, and why getting good at the "get back" matters more than avoiding setbacks.

If you're dealing with stubborn belly fat, high stress, or poor sleep, start here.

Health Disclaimer

This podcast is for educational purposes only and is not medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making changes to your diet, exercise, or health routine.

FOLLOW BEN AZADIInstagram: Ben Azadi (@thebenazadi) • Instagram profileFacebook: Ben Azadi, FDN-PTikTok: Ben Azadi - Metabolic Freedom on TikTokLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/benazadiYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@BenAzadiWebsite: Ben Azadi

📚 GET BEN'S BOOKS:Metabolic Freedom: Metabolic FreedomKeto Flex: Get KetoFlex + Bonuses

What if your weight, hunger, sleep, and belly fat aren't controlled by food alone?

Dr. Eric Berg joins Ben Azadi to reveal how the environment around you can influence your metabolism, insulin, stress, sleep, movement, dopamine, and even your relationship with food. From the cues in your kitchen to the light you see at night, the amount of time you spend sitting, and how often you check your phone, your daily environment may be shaping your health more than you realize.

Dr. Eric Berg joins Ben Azadi to explore a bigger question: What if changing your environment is just as important as changing your diet?

Drawing from his new book Change Your Environments, Dr. Berg explains how modern life can create constant triggers for eating, sedentary behavior, poor sleep, stress, distraction, and isolation. He shares why environmental cues can drive eating even when you're not physically hungry, how repeated insulin spikes can interfere with fat burning, and why morning sunlight and consistent sleep timing can be powerful environmental inputs.

The conversation also explores movement and physical work, the hidden cost of constantly checking your phone, loneliness as a threat signal, chemical exposure, indoor air quality, liver fat, and the nutrients Dr. Berg believes are important to consider. Rather than focusing on one isolated habit, the episode looks at how multiple environmental factors can stack together and influence metabolic health, stress, recovery, and everyday behavior.

Dr. Eric Berg is a chiropractor, health educator, and longtime health content creator with approximately 40 years of experience in practice. He is known for his large health-focused online audience and joins Ben to discuss his new book, Change Your Environments.

In this conversation, Dr. Berg shares his perspective on how food cues, light, sleep, movement, technology, social connection, chemical exposure, and nutrition can influence the environment in which our health decisions take place.

Health Disclaimer

This podcast is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider before making changes to your health, diet, or medication.

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Metabolic Freedom: ⁠⁠⁠Metabolic Freedom⁠⁠⁠

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FOLLOW DR. ERIC BERG

Website: Dr. Berg Dr. Berg – Keto, Fasting & Natural Health EducationAbout Dr. Berg: Who Is Dr. Berg? Health Educator & AuthorInstagram: Dr. Eric Berg DC (@drericberg) YouTube: Dr. Eric Berg DC

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Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠Ben Azadi (@thebenazadi) • Instagram profile⁠⁠⁠

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Your blood sugar can look perfectly normal for up to 14 years while insulin resistance quietly builds underneath.

Dave Asprey and I get into why most doctors never test for it, why the restaurant "tallow fries" you ordered may not be what you think, and what happened to my cholesterol, gut bacteria, and inflammation markers after 90 straight days of carnivore.

93% of Americans are metabolically unhealthy. In 2018, that number was 88%. It's getting worse, not better.

And most people won't find out until years after the damage starts, because the test that could catch it early usually isn't ordered.

There's no medication for high insulin, so why check?

In this conversation, Dave Asprey and I go after the things that keep people stuck as sugar burners: high insulin, seed oils hiding in "healthy" menu items, oxalates in so-called superfoods, and the idea that your metabolism slows down just because you got older.

Spoiler: a 6,800-person study says otherwise.

What if your labs look fine and you're still years into a metabolic problem?

In this episode, I sit down with biohacker Dave Asprey to talk about why so many people are stuck burning sugar, and what it takes to get your metabolic flexibility back.

We start with insulin, the marker most doctors skip, and why a fasting insulin over 6 may be a warning sign even when your glucose and A1C look normal.

Dave and I also break down why high insulin, not salt, may be what's pushing your blood pressure up.

From there, we get into seed oils and why "high smoke point" doesn't mean what most people think. A study on cooking oils found that the oils with the highest smoke points produced the most harmful polar compounds, while one oil most people are told not to cook with produced the least.

Dave and I don't fully agree on this one, and that's part of the fun.

I also share the results of my 90-day carnivore experiment, including full blood work, stool tests, and a review from a heart surgeon.

My total cholesterol went from 300 to 450. What the rest of my markers showed may surprise you. Dave shares his own carnivore experiment, which went very differently, and we talk about where the upper limit should be.

Plus: how Dave gave himself gout in three days, why almond flour gave me recurring styes, the right way to think about gut diversity, and why your metabolism isn't fast or slow, it's efficient or inefficient.

If you care about insulin resistance, seed oils, keto, carnivore, fasting, gut health, or longevity, this one's for you.

About Dave Asprey

Dave Asprey is a biohacker, entrepreneur, and host of The Human Upgrade podcast.

He founded Bulletproof and wrote The Bulletproof Diet, one of the first major books to bring intermittent fasting and keto to a mainstream audience. He's also the author of Heavily Meditated and the founder of Danger Coffee, and he's involved with Upgrade Labs.

After losing 50 pounds in three months on keto, Dave spent the next decade experimenting to lose the last 50. That journey shaped his data-driven approach to metabolic flexibility, longevity, and biohacking.

Health Disclaimer

This podcast is for educational purposes only and is not medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making changes to your diet, exercise, supplements, or health routine.

FOLLOW DAVE ASPREY

Website: Dave Asprey | Official Website

About Dave Asprey: Biohacking, Longevity & Human Performance

Instagram: Dave Asprey (@dave.asprey)

YouTube: Dave Asprey

FOLLOW BEN AZADIInstagram: Ben Azadi (@thebenazadi) • Instagram profileFacebook: Ben Azadi, FDN-PTikTok: Ben Azadi - Metabolic Freedom on TikTokLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/benazadiYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@BenAzadiWebsite: Ben Azadi

📚 GET BEN'S BOOKS:Metabolic Freedom: Metabolic FreedomKeto Flex: Get KetoFlex + Bonuses

What if the goal of keto isn't to stay in ketosis forever, but to become flexible enough to move in and out of it?

What if your metabolism isn't simply “fast” or “slow,” but adaptable or inflexible?

Dylan Gemelli joins Ben Azadi to challenge the idea that metabolic health requires following one rigid diet forever.

They break down ketosis, fasting, protein, meal timing, sleep, and the “kitchen closed” rule, while explaining why becoming metabolically flexible may matter more than staying in ketosis year-round.

Keto doesn't have to be an all-or-nothing lifestyle.

In this episode, Dylan Gemelli joins Ben Azadi to explore metabolic flexibility and why the ability to switch between different fuel sources may be more important than constantly chasing ketosis.

Dylan shares how his approach to keto, fasting, protein, and metabolic health has evolved over the years, including why he no longer believes everyone should remain in ketosis continuously.

The conversation dives into the role of insulin, fasting, protein intake, carbohydrates, meal timing, and sleep, including Dylan's “kitchen closed” rule: finishing food at least three hours before bed.

Ben and Dylan also discuss why late-night eating may affect metabolic health differently than eating earlier in the day, why protein can influence hunger and nighttime cravings, and how better sleep can support the body's ability to recover and regulate appetite.

The bigger message is simple: instead of becoming attached to one protocol, learn how to make your metabolism more adaptable.

Health Disclaimer

This podcast is for educational purposes only and is not medical advice. Consult a qualified healthcare professional before making changes to your diet, fasting, exercise, or health routine.

🎧 Listen or watch the full episode:

Metabolic Flexibility: How To Burn Fat, Improve Energy, And Break Free From Metabolic Dysfunction | The Ben Azadi Show #1383

Dylan Gemelli is a health and fitness educator focused on metabolic health, nutrition, ketosis, fasting, and lifestyle strategies. His approach has evolved beyond rigid keto protocols toward a more flexible model that emphasizes metabolic adaptability and individualized nutrition.

To learn more about Dylan Gemelli and his work:

Website: ⁠www.dylangemelli.com⁠

Podcast: ⁠The Dylan Gemelli Podcast⁠

FOLLOW BEN AZADI

Website: ⁠www.BenAzadi.com⁠

Instagram: ⁠@TheBenAzadi⁠

Facebook: ⁠@TheBenAzadi⁠

TikTok: ⁠@TheBenAzadi⁠

LinkedIn: ⁠@BenAzadi⁠

YouTube: ⁠Ben Azadi⁠

BEN AZADI'S BOOKS

Keto Flex: ⁠Get Keto Flex + Bonuses⁠

Metabolic Freedom: ⁠Get Metabolic Freedom

What if the next step in your health journey isn't another complicated protocol, but understanding how your body responds to light, energy, and the right environment?

Red light therapy and pulsed electromagnetic field therapy (PEMF) have become increasingly popular in conversations around longevity and regenerative health. But how do these technologies actually work, and what should you look for when evaluating them?

In this episode, Ben Azadi sits down with filmmaker and researcher Jonathan Otto to explore the ideas and research surrounding red light, PEMF, mitochondria, ATP, inflammation, cellular signaling, and the body's regenerative processes.

Jonathan shares how he evaluates different devices, including the measurements and testing methods he uses to better understand what a device is actually producing.

The conversation also explores different wavelengths and frequencies, how these technologies may be combined, and why foundational health habits still matter alongside emerging technologies.

Ben and Jonathan also discuss the potential applications of red light and PEMF in areas such as eyesight, mitochondrial function, circulation, and recovery, while exploring a broader question: how much regenerative potential does the human body already have?

This podcast is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider before making changes to your health, diet, or medication.

🎧 Listen or watch the full episode:Jumper Cables for Your Mitochondria: How PEMF & Red Light Tackle Inflammation, Hashimoto's, Poor Sleep & Stubborn Belly Fat | Jonathan Otto #1382

📚 GET BEN'S BOOKS:

Metabolic Freedom: ⁠⁠Metabolic Freedom⁠⁠

Keto Flex: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Get KetoFlex + Bonuses

FOLLOW JONATHAN OTTO

Website: Jonathan Otto | Official Website

About Jonathan Otto: Filmmaker, Journalist & Humanitarian

Instagram: Jonathan Otto (@jonno.otto)

Linktree: Jonathan Otto | Official Links

FOLLOW BEN AZADI

Instagram: ⁠⁠Ben Azadi (@thebenazadi) • Instagram profile⁠⁠

Facebook: ⁠⁠Ben Azadi, FDN-P⁠⁠

TikTok: ⁠⁠Ben Azadi - Metabolic Freedom on TikTok⁠⁠

LinkedIn: ⁠⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/benazadi⁠⁠

YouTube: ⁠⁠https://www.youtube.com/@BenAzadi⁠⁠

Website: ⁠⁠Ben Azadi⁠⁠