FULL SEND PODCAST Santa Cruz | Ep. 189
Mar 20, 2026
Brendan, founder of Santa Cruz Paleo and a health and supplement entrepreneur, shares practical takes on nutrition, supplementation, sleep, and lifestyle optimization. He covers microplastics and toxin reduction, sunlight and red light strategies, peptides and recovery, sensible supplement picks like vitamin D and magnesium, alcohol harm reduction, and balancing training with outdoor adventures.
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Quit Vaping To Protect Lungs And Avoid Nicotine Addiction
- Avoid vaping and heavy nicotine/Zyn use because you often don't know what you're inhaling and it harms lung performance for sports like jiu-jitsu.
- Brendan and Steve call out the addiction, practical hassles, and social downsides of vaping.
Confine Caffeine To A Morning Window To Protect Sleep
- Limit caffeine to a morning window to avoid disrupting sleep; Brendan uses coffee only between about 10:00–11:30.
- He explains caffeine's 6–8 hour half-life and how late caffeine causes residual wakefulness and poorer sleep quality.
Start With Vitamin D And Magnesium For Foundational Health
- Take vitamin D if you lack sun exposure and supplement magnesium (glycinate) to support sleep and metabolic health.
- Brendan lists vitamin D and magnesium as top basic supplements and prefers getting sun first.