The Best Health and Fitness Podcasts to Listen to Right Now

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If you started a new workout routine or made healthy eating goals for the New Year, the motivation you had on January 1 might be starting to wane. Having someone to help guide you through the process would be ideal, but chances are you don't have the cash flow for a personal trainer, nutritionist, and life coach. (Psst: Don't forget that you do have Jen Widerstrom, honorary Shape Squad member and designer of the 40-day challenge to meet any health goal.)

One easy solution for when you need some professional advice but don't have a celeb trainer on speed-dial: podcasts. They are the voice pushing you through a tough workout, giving nutrition advice as you head out to happy hour after work, and revving up your commitment when it takes a dip. Don't just take their word for it, take ours. We rounded up the best health, fitness, and wellness podcasts to deliver just what you need to continue pushing toward your goals in 2018 and beyond. (Need real-time support? Join our private Facebook group with Widerstrom at shape.com/bestgroup.)

Podcasts for Nutrition Tips

Food Psych
Food Psych is hosted by registered dietitian Christy Harrison, and each week she brings on guests to discuss intuitive eating, body image, and diet culture. Challenge the old-school restrictive dieting behaviors and learn some useful body-confidence strategies along the way.

Balanced Bites
If you're looking for information on the paleo diet or whole-food eating, then tune into the Balanced Bites podcast. Each week there's a new episode from Diane, a certified nutrition consultant, and Liz, a nutritional therapy practitioner, plus their expert guests. While their podcasts are focused on paleo recipes and tips, they also offer insight into trendy food topics and answer readers' nutrition questions. (P.S. Have you tried the upcycled food trend that's rooted in trash?)

Nutrition Diva
Let's be honest: Healthy eating (and determining what that even is) can be hard. Sort through some of the myths with Monica Reinagel's podcast, The Nutrition Diva's Quick and Dirty Tips for Eating Well and Feeling Fabulous. Her episodes are short, lasting around 10 minutes, perfect for listening while eating breakfast or packing your lunch. You'll love her podcast if you don't subscribe to any specific eating plan and just want real advice about nutrition and how it affects your overall health and wellness.

Podcasts for When You Need a Pep Talk

Hurdle
A brand-new podcast to add to your queue this year is Hurdle, a podcast by writer and trainer Emily Abbate. In the first episode, Abbate details her own #HurdleMoment (a time when wellness has gotten you through a tough time), and each week she interviews someone new about the impact fitness has had on their life. These stories will inspire and motivate you to continue building on your goals and pushing the envelope of success.

Motivated
Weight loss is consistently one of the most popular New Year's resolutions, but knowing where to start is half the battle (and part of why you might fall off the wagon before even getting started). Mara Schiavocampo, an ABC News correspondent, gets that—she lost 90 pounds and wrote a bestselling book about it called Thinspired: How I Lost 90 Pounds—My Plan for Lasting Weight Loss and Self-Acceptance. The book eventually became Motivated, a podcast that features health and fitness experts who cover topics such as easy meal prep, body acceptance, and more.

Soul On Fire
Tune into the popular lifestyle blogger from The Balanced Blonde who streams a podcast called Soul On Fire that's all about discussing what makes you passionate about something. With candid guest interviews, the episodes cover unique wellness topics such as Reiki, crystals, and holistic nutrition with big players in the fitness industry such as activewear designer Lorna Jane and the founders of Sakara Life, a clean-eating meal delivery service.

Podcasts for Training Advice

The Gym Wits
The first thing that will stand out about The Gym Wits is their intro song—it will get stuck in your head (especially when you listen to three episodes in a row like I did!). The podcast is a weekly discussion between a fitness expert, a fitness enthusiast, and a registered dietitian. A few of the most recent topics covered were intermittent fasting, building muscle while losing fat, and choosing the best group fitness classes. Collectively, the hosts have a plethora of fitness knowledge and discuss recent studies to back up their advice. This is a great choice if you want to learn more about the human body, improve your training plan, and get nutrition tips that will further your fitness goals.

The Rambling Runner
If you're an avid runner, it's likely you follow some amateur running accounts on Instagram. Get a closer peek at other runners' training plans as well as hear interviews with elites and subelites on The Rambling Runner podcast, hosted by Matt Chittim. A few guests highlights are Jen Rhines, a 3X Olympian, and Amanda Cruise, who, in just eight years, has become an Olympic trials qualifier in the marathon. You're going to want to subscribe to this podcast for tips while training for a half marathon or another distance race.