Super fun interview with Brittany Witt, who recently made the transition from being a 49 to a 55. My apologies for the delay in getting this out, as it was done well in advance of the Arnold.

Soon to be Dr. Shannon McAmis joins me this week to discuss her fascinating trek through her academic pursuit of a doctorate in Plant Medicine. Shannon also lifts at a very high level, having won University Nationals in 2020.

Welcome to Season 3 of the Women in Weightlifting Podcast. This season is dedicated to the national athletes with advanced degrees. Our first guest in Laura Caggiano, Ph.D. She has a doctorate in Bio Medical Engineering. We talk about both her academic path and current research projects as well as her goals in weightlifting.

Jess and I are joined in this episode by Dr. Jeff Durmer. Jeff is the sleep doctor for USAW and is one of the top sleep researchers in the world -- not to mention just a fascinating person. We talk about the effect of lack of sleep, how to improve sleep, and even why drinking to help sleep is a bad idea.

In our last episode before the NAO Finals, we talk to 59-kilo lifter Alexa Colwell, who competes internationally for Lebanon. Lex and Jess talk nutrition in this episode. There is a brief update on the IWF.

Jess and I got to talk to Junior National Champion Leila Cook right before the Pan Am Junior Championships. The former short-track speed skater has been rising quickly through the junior ranks in USAW. Also, we discuss a challenge to a gentleman who thinks women don't train hard enough to get strong (still debating whether I want to even validate his comment with a challenge).

We return back to the 59's to talk to Emily Sallome as she prepares for the North American Open Finals in Denver.

In our first episode after the NAO2 in Albuquerque, we are joined by Nikki Houghton for a great discussion about body image in weightlifting and her transition from a 64 to a 55.