The Against the Herd Podcast is where high performers challenge the status quo, reclaim their health, and eliminate pain at the root.
Hosted by Armando Cruz, a performance physical therapist, best-selling author, and legacy coach with 20+ years of experience helping entrepreneurs, athletes, and high performers heal what mainstream medicine overlooks.
Each episode features raw conversations, solo deep dives, and interviews with non-conformist leaders who’ve defied setbacks, rejected cookie-cutter fixes, and created their own blueprint for lasting health, energy, and success.
If you're done settling for average, welcome to the resistance.
Topics we explore: Chronic pain relief & root-cause healing | Mental & emotional resilience | High-performance health strategies | Movement, breath, mindset & recovery | Bio-individual habits that actually work | Legacy, adventure, and purpose-driven living
Full Circle: Lessons Pain and the Power of Going Against the Herd
Host Armando Cruz shares powerful lessons on pain, purpose, and resilience from Season One, offering insights into overcoming challenges.
17 Jul 2025
Rewriting the Pain Playbook: The Hidden System Behind Resilience and Results
Host Alex Hutchinson interviews legendary high school running coach Doug Soles about the hidden systems behind resilience and results in elite athletics.
17 Jul 2025
Inside the Mind of a Dynasty Builder: Doug Soles on Grit, Systems, and SUCCESS
Host [Host Name] interviews dynasty-building coach Doug Soles about his proven strategies for cultivating grit, systems, and success in high school cross-country.
17 Jul 2025
No More Hacks: The Proven Playbook for Lasting Pain Relief & Sustainable Health
Performance coach and best-selling author Armando Cruz reveals his proven playbook for achieving lasting pain relief and sustainable health, sharing what truly works without gimmicks.
17 Jul 2025
Achilles Rupture: Alex Gonzalez on Mindset, Injury, & High Performance
Host [Host Name] interviews Alex Gonzalez, a high-level real estate consultant, about mindset, injury recovery, and achieving high performance.
17 Jul 2025
Reclaim Your Identity After Setbacks: How to Rebuild When Everything Breaks
Performance coach and bestselling author Armando Cruz shares actionable strategies for rebuilding identity after significant setbacks, offering a roadmap to recovery and renewed purpose.
17 Jul 2025
The Power of Environment: How Kirsten Healed When Medicine Failed
Visual storyteller and entrepreneur Kirsten Rincon shares her journey of healing chronic pain when medicine failed, offering insights into the power of environment.
17 Jul 2025
Your Environment Is Either Healing You or Hurting You (Here's How To Fix It)
Performance specialist Armando Cruz explains how to design your environment for mental, emotional, and physical healing.
17 Jul 2025
Shot in the Chest, Broken Bones, Still Unbreakable (Valeria Rodriguez’s Comeback Story)
Host Alex Rodriguez interviews Valeria Rodriguez, who shares her inspiring comeback story after surviving a gunshot to the chest and multiple traumatic accidents.
17 Jul 2025
Why You’re Still Stuck In Pain: The 7D Health Framework That Works
Performance coach and pain expert Armando Cruz shares his 7-Dimensional Health Framework to help listeners eliminate pain and reclaim energy in this interview.
17 Jul 2025
James Drake’s Radical Path to Resilient Health & Pain Elimination
What do the U.S. Army, the Miami Marlins, and Netflix’s Ultimate Beastmaster have in common?
One man: James Drake, chaplain, pastor, HYROX competitor, triathlete, and spiritual powerhouse.
In this electrifying episode of Against the Herd, James shares how he integrates faith, physicality, and focus to build resilient health from the inside out.
He opens up about what traditional medicine and fitness often miss, how music shifts your biology, and why addressing pain beyond the body is key to true transformation.
Whether you’re an athlete, entrepreneur, or spiritual seeker, this episode will expand your definition of what “health” really means.
💥 What you’ll learn:
* How to build unshakable health through faith, movement, and mindset
* Why emotional and spiritual pain often show up physically
* How music and rhythm can regulate your nervous system
* What it’s like to compete on Beastmaster & American Ninja Warrior
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🌟CONNECT WITH JAMES DRAKE🌟
Instagram: @JamesBryanDrake
Youtube: @JamesBryanDrake
X: @JamesBryanDrake
Tik Toc: @JamesBryanDrake
https://christchurchmiami.org/
https://6essentialsforyourbody.com/
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🎙 Hosted by performance coach & non-conformist health expert Armando Cruz
🔗 Learn more at https://www.CruzCountry.com
📩 Subscribe for more high-performance stories that challenge the status quo
17 Jul 2025
The 3F Formula That Creates Unbreakable Health
In this solo episode of Against the Herd, performance expert and faith-driven health coach Armando Cruz breaks down the Faith, Focus, Fuel Framework, a method he’s used with high performers to create health that lasts far beyond willpower and supplements.
17 Jul 2025
From Burnout to Breakthrough: A Pain Transformation
We sit down with entrepreneur and real estate coach Alex Pardo to unpack the unconventional moves that transformed his life from chronic burnout and misaligned hustle to optimized health, purpose-driven business, and radical family connection.
17 Jul 2025
Pain Isn’t the Problem: Here’s What It’s Really Telling You
In this solo episode of Against the Herd, performance expert and pain specialist Armando Cruz reveals why most people (and most doctors) are chasing the wrong target and why pain relief doesn’t always mean healing.
17 Jul 2025
Welcome To The Resistance: Inside Against the Herd
In this launch episode, host Armando Cruz shares the mission behind The Resistance. It's a call to those who’ve been dismissed, misdiagnosed, or told to “just live with it.”
Who has been a guest on Against the Herd
Names identified in recent episode analyses. Showing up to five guests.
Doug Soles
Armando Cruz
Alex Gonzalez
Kirsten Rincon
Valeria Rodriguez
Reach and audience
Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.
Apple Podcasts (US)
5.0 / 5
8 ratings
Podcast Authority Score: 50 / 100
A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.
Quality
87
Social presence
0
YouTube
0
Engagement
32
Contact Against the Herd
Guest appearances
Books guests
Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.
Questions about Against the Herd
Who hosts Against the Herd?
[Host Name] host the show. Published by Armando Cruz.
How often do new episodes come out?
The show publishes daily, based on its RSS feed.
Does Against the Herd take guests?
Yes. Guests have been identified in episode analyses.
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