219 | Diet and Exercise with Gabriel Villarreal

Gabriel Villarreal comes back on the podcast this week.  Gabriel is a resident in counseling and soon to be a licensed practicing counselor.  He owns a part-time practice in ADHD counseling in Roanoke Valley, where he helps children and adults manager and master their ADHD superpowers.  Additionally, he owns Lost Boys Strength and Conditioning and is the host of Informed Consent, a weekly podcast supporting incoming clinicians in the mental health field.   On this episode, you will hear Gabriel, and I discuss diet and exercise.  While we like to stay rooted in science on this podcast, the science in these areas is emerging.  However, Gabriel shares information on where science is taking us on these topics, and he shares the knowledge he has gained from his experience.    Connect with Gabriel Villarreal:  Websites -     Email -   You’ll Learn:  [09:25] - Gabriel shares where he currently is in his practice.   [11:46] - Gabriel discusses his educational background, specifically in the area of exercise and diet.   [14:17] - These are areas where there isn’t a lot of hard data.  This means the conventional wisdom is always changing.  Gabriel explains why this is the case.  [18:36] - Gabriel defines BDNF.   [20:05] - Gabriel shares the max heart rates for boys and girls.  [21:22] - Gabriel talks about weightlifting.   [23:35] - I describe my exercise routine, and Gabriel says there is no right or wrong routine.   [31:33] - Gabriel talks about the app , and encourages people to listen to music or audiobooks when they exercise.   [35:45] - Gabriel says that the most significant thing parents reported to him, is that children go to bed better on days they work out.   [36:31] - I share that I suffer from seasonal affective disorder.  Gabriel shares some thoughts on going through these regular events.  [43:57] - Gabriel shares that he transitioned to the bulletproof diet a number of months ago.  He describes this diet and lifestyle change.   [46:30] - I share the difference between focus and hyperfocus.   [51:20] - We talk about the negative aspects of sugar.  [55:59] - Gabriel explains why people with ADHD can struggle with diet and exercise.  [59:56] - Gabriel says there are tremendous benefits to having a coach.  [1:00:43] - Gabriel shares some current diet fads and describes them.  [1:05:08] - Gabriel encourages you to read Mark Sisson’s books if you want to be healthy and you don’t want to look into the science.  [1:05:37] - We talk about the importance of drinking water.  Your Resources:    Use my Audible.com affiliate link for your favorite titles:    ADHD reWired Coaching and Accountability Group  We are doing two sessions of our coaching and accountability group this summer.  These groups will fill up quickly.  Registration is half over.  Registration interviews are on Tuesdays and Thursdays, now through the end of May. For more information, go to .  Support the podcast on Patreon  Patreon allows listeners like you to support content creators like me.  With a monthly contribution, you can get access to different levels of perks.  One perk example is our Patreon-only Adult Study Hall.  Learn more at    ADHD reWired Facebook Group:  If you would like to join the ADHD reWired secret Facebook group, go to  and fill out an application.  Productivity Q&A  Get your ADHD questions answered live!  These Q&A sessions take place on the 2nd Tuesday of every month at 12:30pm.  Go to.  Want to be a guest?  Hey! What about you?  Do you have a story?  Are you a Coach?  Are you an ADHD Clinician?  If you answered yes to any of these questions and you’d like to be a guest, schedule a pre-interview call .