Uploaded June 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
When CrossFit started, we didn’t need science to know it worked. We saw it in affiliates every day. People moved better, got stronger, and aged better. Now, the research is catching up. In this episode, physician, CrossFit Level 3 trainer, and researcher Jose Ostaiza explains how CrossFit changes the body at the molecular level through epigenetics, the science of how lifestyle influences gene expression.
Ostaiza breaks down how high-intensity training rebuilds telomeres, supports mitochondrial health, reduces inflammation, and slows biological aging. By combining strength, cardio, and high-intensity work, CrossFit produces deeper and broader adaptations than single-mode fitness. This conversation offers a look inside the black box and explains why CrossFit is not just effective, but uniquely powerful for long-term health and longevity.
Topics Covered
Epigenetics and how lifestyle controls gene expression
Why high-intensity training drives change at the DNA level
Biological age versus chronological age
Exercise, nutrition, stress, sleep, and social connection as longevity tools
Bridging medicine, research, and the CrossFit affiliate
Community Highlight
Tony Espejo spent 21 years as a police officer in Omaha, Nebraska, after serving in the Marine Corps. When he came home, the neighborhood where he grew up was changing fast. Gang violence was taking over streets that once felt safe.
Tony did not walk away. He remembered what kept him grounded as a kid. Sports. Accessible, affordable, and rooted in community. In 2004, he started a free soccer league for kids from rival neighborhoods. Six teams grew into more than a hundred. Over time, violence in South Omaha dropped.
At the center of everything Tony built was CrossFit. It became the foundation for developing stronger, faster, more confident kids. Those who trained consistently stood taller — on the field and in life.
In 2016, he opened Kinship CrossFit to give kids who did not connect with traditional sports, and their parents, a place to train together. Today, Tony is rebuilding his affiliate from the ground up.
If you are a nonprofit affiliate working with kids, reach out. Tony would love to connect.
Know someone you think deserves to be highlighted? Nominate them here → crossfit.surveysparrow.com/s/CrossFit-Community-Stories/tt-PrkSJ
Share Your Thoughts:
Email us [podcasts@crossfit.com].
—
CrossFit is the world’s leading platform for improving health and performance. In the 20 years since its founding, CrossFit has grown from a garage gym in Santa Cruz, California, into the world’s most effective program for improving health and performance through nutrition and exercise. CrossFit is the world’s leading provider of accredited performance-based training courses and certifications and has more than 125,000 credentialed coaches across the world. The program can be modified to welcome people of all ages and abilities and millions of people have already experienced CrossFit’s transformational benefits in more than 13,000 affiliated gyms across 158 countries. CrossFit also directs the CrossFit Games season, beginning with the annual CrossFit Open, through which athletes at every level compete worldwide, and culminating in the CrossFit Games, where top athletes compete for the title of Fittest on Earth®.
Learn more about CrossFit → crossfit.com/what-is-crossfit/?utm_source=social&utm_medium=youtube&utm_campaign=crossfit
Find a CrossFit gym near you → crossfit.com/map?utm_source=social&utm_medium=youtube&utm_campaign=crossfit
Find CrossFit Courses near you → crossfit.com/courses-near-you?utm_source=social&utm_medium=youtube&utm_campaign=crossfit
View CrossFit workouts → crossfit.com/workout?utm_source=social&utm_medium=youtube&utm_campaign=crossfit
Subscribe to CrossFit email newsletters → crossfit.com/newsletters/?utm_source=social&utm_medium=youtube&utm_campaign=crossfit
Learn more about the CrossFit Games → https://cf.games/games-learn-more
When CrossFit started, we didn’t need science to know it worked. We saw it in affiliates every day. People moved better, got stronger, and aged better. Now, the research is catching up. In this episode, physician, CrossFit Level 3 trainer, and researcher Jose Ostaiza explains how CrossFit changes the body at the molecular level through epigenetics, the science of how lifestyle influences gene expression.
Ostaiza breaks down how high-intensity training rebuilds telomeres, supports mitochondrial health, reduces inflammation, and slows biological aging. By combining strength, cardio, and high-intensity work, CrossFit produces deeper and broader adaptations than single-mode fitness. This conversation offers a look inside the black box and explains why CrossFit is not just effective, but uniquely powerful for long-term health and longevity.
Topics Covered
Epigenetics and how lifestyle controls gene expression
Why high-intensity training drives change at the DNA level
Biological age versus chronological age
Exercise, nutrition, stress, sleep, and social connection as longevity tools
Bridging medicine, research, and the CrossFit affiliate
Community Highlight
Tony Espejo spent 21 years as a police officer in Omaha, Nebraska, after serving in the Marine Corps. When he came home, the neighborhood where he grew up was changing fast. Gang violence was taking over streets that once felt safe.
Tony did not walk away. He remembered what kept him grounded as a kid. Sports. Accessible, affordable, and rooted in community. In 2004, he started a free soccer league for kids from rival neighborhoods. Six teams grew into more than a hundred. Over time, violence in South Omaha dropped.
At the center of everything Tony built was CrossFit. It became the foundation for developing stronger, faster, more confident kids. Those who trained consistently stood taller — on the field and in life.
In 2016, he opened Kinship CrossFit to give kids who did not connect with traditional sports, and their parents, a place to train together. Today, Tony is rebuilding his affiliate from the ground up.
If you are a nonprofit affiliate working with kids, reach out. Tony would love to connect.
Know someone you think deserves to be highlighted? Nominate them here → crossfit.surveysparrow.com/s/CrossFit-Community-Stories/tt-PrkSJ
Share Your Thoughts:
Email us [podcasts@crossfit.com].
—
CrossFit is the world’s leading platform for improving health and performance. In the 20 years since its founding, CrossFit has grown from a garage gym in Santa Cruz, California, into the world’s most effective program for improving health and performance through nutrition and exercise. CrossFit is the world’s leading provider of accredited performance-based training courses and certifications and has more than 125,000 credentialed coaches across the world. The program can be modified to welcome people of all ages and abilities and millions of people have already experienced CrossFit’s transformational benefits in more than 13,000 affiliated gyms across 158 countries. CrossFit also directs the CrossFit Games season, beginning with the annual CrossFit Open, through which athletes at every level compete worldwide, and culminating in the CrossFit Games, where top athletes compete for the title of Fittest on Earth®.
Learn more about CrossFit → crossfit.com/what-is-crossfit/?utm_source=social&utm_medium=youtube&utm_campaign=crossfit
Find a CrossFit gym near you → crossfit.com/map?utm_source=social&utm_medium=youtube&utm_campaign=crossfit
Find CrossFit Courses near you → crossfit.com/courses-near-you?utm_source=social&utm_medium=youtube&utm_campaign=crossfit
View CrossFit workouts → crossfit.com/workout?utm_source=social&utm_medium=youtube&utm_campaign=crossfit
Subscribe to CrossFit email newsletters → crossfit.com/newsletters/?utm_source=social&utm_medium=youtube&utm_campaign=crossfit
Learn more about the CrossFit Games → https://cf.games/games-learn-more
