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
Eugene "Rod" Roddenberry: Star Trek, Martial Arts & Finding Your Own Path | Ep 32
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In this episode, I sit down with Eugene "Rod" Roddenberry, son of Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry and CEO of Roddenberry Entertainment. Rod is an executive producer on many current Star Trek iterations and founder of the Roddenberry Foundation, which supports causes advancing humanity.
We discuss Rod's formative years training Jiujitsu under my good friend Sensei Steve Copping in Los Angeles during the 1980s, earning his black belt as a teenager. Rod shares how the dojo became a second family where respect, vulnerability, and strength coexisted—lessons that shaped his approach to leadership and life. We explore the philosophy of IDIC (Infinite Diversity in Infinite Combinations), a core Star Trek principle about appreciating different perspectives, and how it mirrors the martial arts values of learning from everyone regardless of rank.
We dive into Rod's journey stepping out of his father's shadow to forge his own identity while honoring Gene's vision, the responsibility of being guardian to a cultural phenomenon that's more than entertainment, and why Star Trek's optimistic future—where humanity has solved scarcity and values ideas over possessions—remains relevant today. Rod reflects on the challenges of maintaining that hopeful vision across ten different Star Trek shows, why we need inspirational storytelling now more than ever, and how shows like The Orville and Ted Lasso carry forward that same spirit of humanity at its best.
Whether you're a Star Trek fan interested in its philosophical foundations, a martial artist exploring how training shapes character beyond the mat, or someone seeking perspective on leadership, ethics, and building a better future in tumultuous times, this conversation delivers wisdom on finding your own path while honoring what came before.
Roddenberry Entertainment
https://www.roddenberry.com/
Rod Instagram: @eugeneroddenberry http://www.instagram.com/eugeneroddenberry
Roddenberry Entertainment Instagram @roddenberryofficial https://www.instagram.com/roddenberryofficial
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/roddenberry/
Roddenberry Foundation
https://roddenberryfoundation.org/
Roddenberry Foundation’s IG @theroddenberryfoundation http://www.instagram.com/theroddenberryfoundation
Trek Nation documentary
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1529666/
Steve Copping
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gbq6Wpb1DVk
George Kirby
https://budoshin.com/about-bjj/budoshin-lineage/george-kirby/
Gene Roddenberry
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gene_Roddenberry
Star Trek
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Trek
Gracie Jiu Jitsu
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brazilian_jiu-jitsu
Paul O'Connor
https://www.paulryanoconnor.com/about
Air Protein
The Orville
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5691552/
Ted Lasso
https://tv.apple.com/us/show/ted-lasso/umc.cmc.vtoh0mn0xn7t3c643xqonfzy
Jeremy Corbell
https://www.weaponizedpodcast.com/
Rigan
This episode was directed and presented by Dave Meyer, editor & coproducer by Ryan Turner, producer & marketing Robbie Lockie, music kindly provided by Robel Borja.
