What if declining vision, eye strain, headaches, brain fog, and difficulty focusing weren't simply things you had to accept as you get older?

In this episode of Healthy AF, Zane Griggs sits down with neuro-optometrist Dr. Bryce Appelbaum to explore the connection between your eyes and your brain—and why he believes vision should be trained just like the rest of your body.

Dr. Appelbaum explains the important difference between eyesight and vision, how hours of daily screen time can place the visual system under stress, and why functional vision problems can sometimes produce symptoms that overlap with problems involving attention, reading, and learning.

They also dive into vision after 40, reading glasses, screen-related eye strain, concussion recovery, and how Dr. Appelbaum works with professional and Olympic-level athletes to improve visual processing, peripheral awareness, reaction time, depth perception, and performance.

Plus, Dr. Appelbaum walks Zane through a simple "eye push-up" exercise designed to train the focusing system and shares the 20-20-20 rule you can start using during screen-heavy days.

In this episode:

• Eyesight vs. vision: why they're not the same thing

• How screen time affects the eye-brain connection

• Vision, attention, reading, and focus

• Why your distance vision may change with heavy near work

• The 20-20-20 rule for screen breaks

• Vision training for professional athletes

• Vision changes after concussion and head injuries

• Why vision matters for balance and fall prevention as we age

• What happens to near vision after 40

• How to perform Dr. Appelbaum's eye push-ups

• Reading glasses and the focusing system

• Digital performance lenses and screen stress

• How to start training your vision

• 🧠 Free Plan: free40plan.com

• 📲 Instagram: @zanegriggsfitness

• 🌐 Website: zanegriggs.com

Guest Links:

ScreenFit: ScreenFit.com — use code ZANE for $200 off / 40% off

My Vision First: MyVisionFirst.com

Digital Performance Lenses: use code ZANE for 10% off

https://myvisionfirst.com

0:00 Meet Dr. Bryce Appelbaum

1:42 Vision Problems, ADHD & Dyslexia Symptoms

2:33 Eyesight vs. Vision: What's the Difference?

3:45 Why Your Eyesight May Change With Screen Time

5:48 Can You Actually Exercise Your Vision?

6:41 What Screens Are Doing to Your Visual System

8:39 The Problem With 7+ Hours of Screen Time

10:55 How Vision Can Affect Your Stress Response

12:29 Adding "Vision Snacks" to Your Day

13:43 The 20-20-20 Rule

16:19 ScreenFit & Vision Performance Training

17:34 How Elite Athletes Train Their Vision

20:34 Concussions, Head Injuries & Vision

23:47 How Vision Training Changed an MLB Player's Performance

25:09 Does Vision Have to Decline With Age?

43:58 Why Reading Gets Harder After 40

45:53 How to Do Eye Push-Ups

50:02 The Problem With Monovision

52:26 Vision Training for Longevity

53:21 ScreenFit + Special Offer

55:02 Digital Performance Lenses

58:44 Where to Find Dr. Bryce Appelbaum

What actually happens to seed oils once they enter your body?

In this first episode of a new Healthy AF series, Zane Griggs breaks down the metabolic chain reaction he argues can begin when dietary polyunsaturated fats become incorporated into the membranes of your mitochondria.

Your mitochondria produce the ATP that powers your cells—but the fats you eat can become part of the physical structure of the mitochondrial membrane. Zane explores research around membrane composition, polyunsaturated fats, oxidative vulnerability, proton leak, mitochondrial uncoupling, and cardiolipin.

You'll learn why Zane believes the conversation around seed oils needs to go much deeper than calories or inflammation—and why mitochondrial health may be an important piece of understanding metabolic health, energy production, and longevity.

Zane also discusses research suggesting mitochondrial membrane composition can change in response to dietary fat composition, meaning what your mitochondria are built from isn't necessarily fixed.

This is Part 1 of Zane's deep dive into seed oils, mitochondria, and metabolic health. In the next episode, he'll explore how this chain of events may connect to hunger and why you can feel hungry even when you're consuming plenty of food.

Get Zane's FREE Fit Over 40 Plan:
Free40Plan.com

Want to dig into the research behind this episode? Here are some of the studies and reviews referenced in Zane's deep dive into dietary fats, mitochondrial membranes, oxidation, and longevity:

• Life and Death: Metabolic Rate, Membrane Composition, and Life Span of Animals — Hulbert et al. (2007)
  https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17928583/
• Role of Cardiolipin Peroxidation and Ca²⁺ in Mitochondrial Dysfunction and Disease — Paradies et al. (2009)
  https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19368971/
• Role of Cardiolipin Alterations in Mitochondrial Dysfunction and Disease — Chicco & Sparagna (2007)
  https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16899548/
• Improved Mitochondrial Function with Diet-Induced Increase in DHA or Arachidonic Acid in Membrane Phospholipids — Khairallah et al. (2012)
  https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3316678/
• Effects of Fatty Acids on Mitochondria: Implications for Cell Death — Penzo et al. (2002)
  https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12206909/
• Extended Longevity of Wild-Derived Mice Is Associated with Peroxidation-Resistant Membranes — Hulbert et al. (2006)
  https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16620917/
• Modification of Fatty Acid Unsaturation, Oxidative Damage & Longevity — Pamplona et al. (2004)
  https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15130667/
• Allometry of Mitochondrial Proton Leak: Membrane Surface Area & Fatty Acid Composition — Porter, Hulbert & Brand (1996)
  https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8997352/

0:00 What Happens to Seed Oils After You Eat Them?
2:15 How Your Mitochondria Produce Energy
3:25 The Fats You Eat Become Part of Your Mitochondria
4:20 Why Polyunsaturated Fats Are More Vulnerable to Oxidation
6:40 Mitochondrial Membranes and the "Pacemaker of Aging"
8:00 How Seed Oils May Contribute to Proton Leak
10:40 Cardiolipin and the Mitochondrial Damage Cycle
14:00 What Long-Lived Species Can Teach Us About Membrane Fat
15:20 How This May Connect to Metabolic Disease
16:05 Can You Rebuild Your Mitochondrial Membranes?
17:00 What's Coming Next + Free Fit Over 40 Plan

Can you be Healthy AF if you still drink alcohol?

In this episode of Healthy AF (Healthy After 50), I sit down with functional diagnostic nutritionist, peptide educator, and My Peptide University faculty member Sam Lander for one of the most honest conversations we've had on the podcast.

Sam opens up about her incredible journey—from addiction, prison, and rebuilding her life—to becoming one of the most respected educators in functional medicine and peptide therapy.

We dive into why so many people are doing everything "right" but still don't feel well, how functional lab testing uncovers hidden problems, and why alcohol may be the single biggest obstacle standing between you and optimal health.

If you're focused on building muscle after 40, increasing energy, improving your gut, optimizing hormones, or extending your healthspan, this is an episode you don't want to miss.

• Sam's journey from addiction and prison to functional medicine
• Why functional lab testing changes everything
• The hidden connection between gut health and chronic symptoms
• Why peptides require individualized protocols
• The truth about "mommy wine culture"
• How alcohol affects metabolism, inflammation and longevity
• Why quitting alcohol is the biggest health hack most people ignore
• Building resilience physically and mentally
• Creating lasting health after 40

Connect with Sam Lander

https://seefitliving.com

https://www.instagram.com/seefitliving

• 0:00 Introduction: Meet functional diagnostic nutritionist Sam Lander
• 1:25 What functional diagnostic nutrition really is
• 2:05 Sam's childhood health struggles
• 3:20 Addiction begins at a young age
• 6:10 Prison, rock bottom, and rebuilding her life
• 10:45 Becoming a personal trainer after prison
• 15:30 Why doing "everything right" still wasn't enough
• 16:40 Discovering functional medicine through gut health
• 18:00 Why alcohol is the biggest health hack people ignore
• 22:30 The truth about mommy wine culture
• 27:40 How alcohol affects hormones, weight loss, and longevity
• 33:15 Peptides: why certification and protocols matter
• 38:20 Creating personalized health strategies instead of one-size-fits-all advice
• 43:10 Recovery, resilience, and building a healthier future
• 48:10 Final thoughts and where to connect with Sam