If talent is evenly distributed but opportunity isn’t, who actually gets recruited? I sit down with our friend Francis Gonzaga to unpack how youth sports tilted toward pay-to-play—and how Level Play Foundation is working to bend it back toward merit, academics, and real exposure. From cross-country showcases during COVID to the quiet costs stacked on families today, Francis shares the hard math behind recruiting and the practical steps that give overlooked student athletes a legitimate chance.

I talk candidly about the numbers—millions of varsity athletes, but a small fraction moving on to college—and why finances slice those odds even thinner. Francis lays out Level Play’s focus on strong students with coachable habits who may not be blue-chip prospects but can thrive with the right plan. That plan starts with honest player assessment, not hype: identifying realistic fit, prioritizing the right camps, connecting with vetted coaches and strength programs, and shoring up academics with targeted tutoring. When an athlete keeps their grades up and brings real work ethic, access becomes the difference-maker.

What makes this conversation different is the emphasis on community over transactions. Level Play invites nominations from trainers, teachers, and coaches who see promise up close. It welcomes volunteers who can donate time or offer reduced rates. And it’s building a network that helps families navigate a noisy system with clarity and integrity. If you care about fairness in youth sports—or know a student athlete who deserves a wider spotlight—this story will give you hope and a roadmap.

Follow Level Play Foundation on Instagram (@levelplayfoundation), on X (Level Play FDN), and visit levelplayfoundation.org to learn more, nominate an athlete, or get involved. If this mission resonates, share the episode, leave a review, and subscribe so more families find the help they need.

What if the moment you feared most became the fuel for everything you’d become? Destiny’s story starts with instability—homelessness with her mom, hunger that never quit, and an early slide into alcohol and pills. It runs headlong through five DUIs, a felony sentence, and the brutal reality of women’s prison. And then something simple but seismic happens: she starts running laps, reading anatomy and business books, and building a daily plan that reconnects her with discipline, faith, and a future.

We talk about the small, unglamorous choices that actually change a life. How to use movement to stabilize mood. How to replace shame with service. How to show up without a smartphone to be fully present for your kid, and why biking 35 miles in the rain to keep your promise can reset identity faster than any pep talk. She shares practical tools for sobriety in social settings, the danger of today’s fentanyl-tainted pills, and how a gratitude list can shut down a craving in seconds. You’ll hear why perspective is your passport or your prison, and how switching “I wish” to “when I do” can turn opportunity into action.

The story crescendos with purpose. Asked to help a failing “fat camp,” she rewrote the playbook: real nutrition, individualized plans, dignity first. Parents noticed, schools called, and Camp Shape was born—a residential program teaching teens discipline, social-emotional skills, healthy eating, and entrepreneurship. Her for-profit, Shape Your Destiny, now delivers the same curriculum across Southern California schools, especially for kids who need structure and belief the most. It’s prevention at its best: give young people the tools she needed at eleven, before crisis hits.

If you’ve ever wondered how to rebuild after rock bottom—or how to help someone you love—this conversation is a field guide. Listen, share with a friend who needs hope, and if it resonates, subscribe and leave a review so more people can find stories that move them forward.

What does it take to turn years of pain into a platform for power? We sit with nutritionist, trainer, and competitive bodybuilder Maria Beretta to unpack a journey that starts with teenage loss and spirals into chronic symptoms before snapping into clarity: if the system won’t solve it, she will. Maria breaks down the real face of PCOS—cystic ovaries, acne, mood swings, insulin resistance—and the often-missed reality of hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, where fragile connective tissue makes every step and lift a risk. Instead of accepting a handful of prescriptions, she chose a different map: keto to stabilize PCOS, a hard stop on dairy to cut inflammation, and targeted peptide therapy (BPC-157 and TB-500) to protect her training and speed recovery.

The turning point isn’t just biochemical. It’s mindset. Maria explains how visualization, faith, and ruthless specificity shaped her prep for NPC figure—meal planning without drama, cardio without shortcuts, and posing that balances muscle with grace. She’s candid about the sport’s truths: the expense, the prevalence of PEDs at elite levels, and the monotony few see behind a 20-second stage moment. Then comes the plot twist: a New Year’s Day car crash, a 40% T12 compression fracture, eight disc herniations, and traumatic scoliosis. With imaging to guide her and peptides to support healing, she made a careful, documented return to training and kept the pro card goal in sight.

If you’re navigating PCOS management, EDS training modifications, anti-inflammatory nutrition, or peptide therapy for injury recovery, this conversation delivers practical detail and lived results. Maria’s approach—test, adjust, measure—turns “motivation” into method. We also get real about the mental side: how to set goals that grip you, rehearse the win, and keep going when doctors or doubt say stop. Tap play for a blueprint you can use, whether you’re chasing a pro stage, a pain-free day, or your next personal best.

If this episode moved you, follow the show, share it with a friend who needs it, and leave a review to help more listeners find conversations like this.