The Ageless Warrior Lab
Dave Meyer | Host, Ageless Warrior Lab podcast | President & Co-founder of Food System Innovations and Humane American Animal Foundation
Join BJJ coral belt, Gang of Eight and Dirty Dozen member Dave Meyer as we draw wisdom from Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and the martial arts and explore how it applies to your life, success in business, and your long-term health.
Dave Meyer is a pioneering American Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ) practitioner, and accomplished non-profit founder and Philanthropist. He is an eleven-time world champion in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and is the current world champion in his age/weight division in the no-gi format.
Dave co-founded and served as CEO of Adopt-a-Pet.com for two decades, turning it into the world's largest nonprofit homeless pet adoption website and helping save millions of animals, before its acquisition by Mars Inc.
Today, Dave leads Humane America Animal Foundation and Food System Innovations, working on farm animal welfare and a healthy and sustainable food system. He frequently advises U.S. lawmakers on these issues, and has raised and deployed over $160 million in philanthropic capital as part of his work in the nonprofit space.
In his athletic career, Dave has risen to the highest ranks of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. He earned his black belt from Rigan Machado in 1996 and ranked among the first Americans ("the Dirty Dozen") to do so. He was the first American to medal at the black belt level at the BJJ World Championships in Brazil in 1998. Dave is one of just several Americans to achieve the rank of coral belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, a group now referred to as the “Gang of Eight”. He continues to compete at the world championship level, winning world championship titles in his age division.
As a martial artist and instructor, he taught at UCLA, Steven Seagal's Tenshin Dojo, and developed a globally used grappling curriculum with John Will, including customized material for Chuck Norris's UFAF association. He has written several books on Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, including "Training for Competition: Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and Submission Grappling".
Meyer also played a critical role in post-Katrina animal rescue, co-authored books pet care, and co-founded a Haiti orphanage for children with HIV, exemplifying a lifetime of impactful leadership in both martial arts and philanthropy.
Dave resides in the San Francisco Bay Area, and continues to coach BJJ athletes and compete at the world championship level. He is the President & Co-Founder of Humane America Animal Foundation and Food System Innovations, of which the Ageless Warrior Lab is a project.
The Ageless Warrior Lab
Adapt and Prevail: The #1 Skill That Can Help You Win When There's No Win in Sight. | Ep. 22
Use Left/Right to seek, Home/End to jump to start or end. Hold shift to jump forward or backward.
Many people don't fail because they're mentally weak, they fail because they're mentally rigid.
In this episode, I explore one of the most powerful skills I've learned from decades of martial arts training: the power of adapting. Whether you're in a BJJ match, running a business, or facing life's unexpected challenges, your ability to adapt determines your success.
Key insights covered:
• Why rigidity defines your boundaries, but adaptability is boundless
• The difference between discipline and stubbornness
• How to know when to stay the course vs. when to pivot
• Viktor Frankl's philosophy on adapting your attitude when you can't change circumstances
• Practical examples of adaptation from BJJ, music, and disaster response
As Bruce Lee wrote: "Absorb what is useful, discard what's not, and add what's uniquely your own."
Links for Show notes:
Tom Skeeter, Sound City
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sound_City_Studios
Carlos Gracie
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carlos_Gracie
Helio Gracie
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H%C3%A9lio_Gracie
Mitsuyo Maeda
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mitsuyo_Maeda
UFC
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ultimate_Fighting_Championship
https://www.ufc.com/
Mapquest
https://www.mapquest.com/
Hurricane Katrina
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurricane_Katrina
Viktor Frankl
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Viktor_Frankl
Auschwitz Concentration Camp
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auschwitz_concentration_camp
Eric Ries, The Lean Startup
https://theleanstartup.com/
Bruce Lee
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bruce_Lee
Dan Inosanto
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dan_Inosanto
https://inosanto.com/
James DeMile
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_DeMile
Professor Wally Jay
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wally_Jay
Small Circle Jujitsu
https://smallcirclejujitsu.com/
Winston Churchill
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winston_Churchill
Professor David Mitchell
https://www.instagram.com/dmitch442/?hl=en
Professor John Will
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Will_(fighter)
https://www.redcatacademy.com.au/
Music “Disambiguation” by Robel Borja https://open.spotify.com/artist/7j0DUZ79z4edeLkU2H1UoJ?si=eISl0YfaQ-yLThljs48j5A
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This episode was directed and presented by Dave Meyer, editor & coproducer by Ryan Turner, producer & marketing Robbie Lockie, music kindly provided by Robel Borja.
