This conversation is with Jonathan Scheiman, the co-founder and CEO of FitBiomics, a biotechnology startup that is sequencing the microbiome of elite athletes to identify and develop next generation probiotics that can optimize the health of everyone. Jonathan played Division 1 college basketball at St. John’s University and then received his PhD in Biomedicine from NYU. He completed his postdoctoral fellowship at the Wyss Institute at Harvard, where he started a research initiative leading to ground breaking discoveries that focused around one question: How can decoding the microbiome of the fittest people in the world benefit the health and wellness of everyone?  We cover: Commonalities between high achievement in sport and academics FitBiomics - decoding the microbiome of the world’s fittest people Performance factors influenced by the microbiome How our gut bacteria create metabolites that directly influence our health The symbiotic relationship between humans and microbes A bacteria in marathon runners that metabolizes lactate Probiotics to enhance human health and performance The gut-brain axis and athletic performance How leaky gut influences inflammation and recovery Bringing the lactate eating Veillonella probiotic to market Shop Nella, The Performance Probiotic: Use code CASS10 at checkout.   Articles: Nature. 2022: Microbiome dependent gut-brain pathway regulates motivation for exercise J Int Soc Sports Nutr. 2020: The athletic gut microbiota J Int Soc Sports Nutr. 2019: ISSN Position Stand: Probiotics Nat Med. 2019: Meta-omics analysis of elite athletes identifies a performance enhancing microbe that functions via lactate metabolism Connect: FitBiomics.com Instagram: @fitbiomics Twitter: @FitBiomics  Connect with me on Instagram: @casswarbeck Theme music by Tyler Gaudon and a special thank you to Wyatt Pavlik for the audio editing and processing! Finally, please subscribe, share it with your friends and family, and leave me a review if you are enjoying the show!  *Please appreciate that this information is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, always seek the opinion of a physician or qualified healthcare provider!*