Thriving Minds with Alberto Zandi

This week Alberto sat down with Dr Rachel Gow, leading nutritional neuroscientist, researcher, author, and founder of Nutritious Minds Trust.Dr Rachel explains why we have been taught to think about food only in terms of weight, calories, or appearance, while completely ignoring its impact on the brain, mood, focus, and emotional regulation.Drawing from decades of clinical research and personal experience as a mother, she reveals how what we eat directly shapes neurotransmitters, brain structure, inflammation, and long term mental health.They explore how ultra processed foods, sugar, alcohol, and nutrient deficiencies quietly impair attention, motivation, emotional stability, and resilience, and why many mental health conversations ignore the biological foundations of the brain.This conversation bridges neuroscience, nutrition, psychology, and real life application, offering simple but powerful ways to support brain health at any stage of life.You will learnHow food directly affects dopamine, serotonin, and emotional regulationWhy omega three fats are essential for memory, focus, and moodHow sugar and alcohol hijack the brain’s reward systemThe connection between gut health and mental healthSimple nutrition principles that support long term brain resilienceThis episode is a practical guide to understanding your brain, feeding it properly, and protecting it for life.Follow Dr. Gow:https://www.instagram.com/nutritious_mindshttps://www.linkedin.com/in/rachel-v-gow-phd-09b68514https://www.facebook.com/DrRachelVGowGet Dr. Gow book, Smart Foods for ADHD and Brain Health: How Nutrition Influences Cognitive Function, Behaviour and Mood:https://amzn.eu/d/41QW2GG Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week Alberto sat down with Vinny Raval, one of the UKs leading speech coaches whose work blends acting, speech and language therapy, and over fifteen years in the field with deep experience coaching CEOs, founders, actors, politicians, and senior executives.Vinny transforms the way people communicate by teaching them what to say, how to say it, and how to say it with confidence, clarity, and impact.In this conversation Vinny breaks down the real reasons so many people struggle to express themselves at home and at work, why we speak too fast, why we do not finish sentences, why we listen to respond instead of listening to understand, and why our tone and body language matter more than the actual words we use.We explore the science behind intonation, pace, pauses, and clarity, how to use storytelling and vocal range to influence others, how to manage nerves before speaking, how to improve your voice at any age, and how small daily exercises can radically transform the way you are perceived.For the first time Vinny also shares the emotional story of his childhood, his complicated relationship with his father, how he used pain and adversity to become the leading coach he is today, and why communication cannot be mastered unless you understand the emotions driving your voice.You will learn:• How to slow down, speak clearly, and hold attention• How to use intonation to influence emotion and meaning• How to control nerves and fear when speaking• How to practise speech daily in less than three minutes• How to build confidence in any room, with any audienceThis episode will change the way you communicate and the way others listen.Follow Vinny:https://www.linkedin.com/company/thespeechcoachhttps://www.thespeech.coachhttps://www.youtube.com/@UCPS8i-9VIziaK7p6Q54qQmQ https://www.instagram.com/thespeech.coach Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, Alberto sat down with Caroline Dubois, world champion boxer, the younger sister of heavyweight world champion Daniel Dubois, and one of the most extraordinary young athletes of her generation. This is the story of a GOAT in the making.Caroline’s story is unlike anything you have heard before. She started boxing at nine years old in a gym that did not allow girls, so she entered under a fake name, pretending to be a boy, driven by a desire to be seen by her father and to claim her place in a male dominated sport.On top of that, she grew up carrying the weight of the Dubois name. Instead of letting the expectations and comparisons break her, she learned to turn them into fuel. In this conversation, she opens up about how she navigated the pressure of being Daniel’s sister, how she refused to live in his shadow, and how she converted that pressure into motivation, focus, and an even higher standard for herself.Since those early days she has become a world champion, and carried the weight of expectation in a discipline where a single punch can change your life or end a career. Caroline shares what she had to sacrifice, how she rebuilt herself after painful losses, and why she is willing to push her mind and body to the edge in pursuit of greatness.We explore her relationship with fear, her complicated relationship with her father, what it means to train for ten weeks knowing you could lose everything in ten minutes, what it takes for women to rise in a sport where the financial and cultural barriers remain enormous, and how she uses pain and pressure as fuel rather than an anchor.You will learn• How to develop unshakeable tunnel vision• How to recover from devastating failure• How to stay disciplined when your goals feel out of reach• How to build confidence when nobody believes in you or you are living in someone else’s shadow• How elite fighters manage fear, intensity, and pressureThis is the real story of what it takes to chase a dream when the world tells you it is impossible.#ThrivingMinds #CarolineDubois #Boxing #WomensBoxing #WorldChampion #Olympics #Mindset #Discipline #Resilience #AthleteLife Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, Alberto sat down with Victor Lugger, the entrepreneur behind two of Europe’s fastest growing companies, Big Mama and Sunday. He built a hospitality group now valued at over $310M, and then launched a FinTech company processing billions a year, all while raising a family and staying sane through the pressure.In this conversation, Victor opens up about the truth behind building a company from zero, why success is never linear, how ambition develops over time, and how much of entrepreneurship comes down to resilience, timing, and who you choose to build with.He shares the emotional and psychological journey behind scaling restaurants across countries, raising twenty five million in the US, navigating co founder relationships, and learning to balance family life with two high pressure roles.You will learn• How to build a company when you have no industry experience• How ambition grows with results and why early wins matter• How to choose a co-founder and build a team that scales with you• How to survive uncertainty, pressure, and mental fatigue as a leader• How to spot the idea that changes everything and when to double downFollow Victor:https://uk.linkedin.com/in/victorluggerFollow Sunday App:https://www.instagram.com/sundayapp_https://www.linkedin.com/company/sundaytechhttps://twitter.com/sundayapp_https://www.facebook.com/sundayappUS#ThrivingMinds #VictorLugger #BigMamma #SundayApp #Entrepreneurship #Hospitality #Startups #Neurodiversity #Leadership #WorkLifeBalance Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week, Alberto sits with TJ Power, a world leading neuroscientist, best selling author, and the creator of the DOSE framework. His work investigates how dopamine, oxytocin, serotonin, and endorphins influence mental and physical health, particularly in the context of our digitally driven lifestyles.TJ’s framework is designed to unlock your best life, to live with purpose, intention, focus, and a positive mindset.This episode also unpacks why phones, alcohol, porn, and sugar, severely erode attention, mood, and drive, and how to reset your baseline with simple habits you can start today.You will learn:• How dopamine actually works• Why chasing dopamine peaks lowers motivation • How to run a 7 day reset • How things like sleep, morning light, protein, movement, nature, and real connections support healthy brain chemistryThis conversation is a clear path back to focus, energy, and calm.You can purchase TJ’s book, The DOSE Effect, here: https://geni.us/doseeffectFollow TJ Power:https://www.instagram.com/tjpowerhttps://uk.linkedin.com/in/tjpowerneuroscience#ThrivingMinds #TJPower #Neuroscience #MentalHealth #DigitalBalance #Dopamine #Attention #Wellbeing #Mindset #StressManagement Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.