# Jonathan Scheiman: Microbes of Elite Performance

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/galaxy-balance-7619530/jonathan-scheiman-microbes-of-elite-performance
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/galaxy-balance-7619530/jonathan-scheiman-microbes-of-elite-performance.md
Podcast: [Galaxy Balance](https://stenobird.com/podcast/galaxy-balance-7619530)
Published: 2026-03-23T21:41:23+00:00
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Duration seconds: 3709

## Resource

In this episode of Galaxy Balance, Cory Smith speaks with Dr. Jonathan Scheiman, co-founder and CEO of FitBiomics, about the science of elite performance, microbiome discovery, and the future of metabolic health. Jonathan shares his journey from Division I basketball player to biomedicine PhD and postdoctoral researcher in the Church Lab, where unconventional ideas are encouraged and ambitious biology is the norm His central question was simple but radical: instead of studying disease, what if we studied peak human performance? That question led to a longitudinal study of Boston Marathon runners, where his team collected microbiome samples before and after intense endurance events. The data revealed a striking pattern. One microorganism, Veillonella, spiked in abundance immediately after the marathon Further analysis showed that this microbe uniquely metabolizes lactate and converts it into short-chain fatty acids such as propionate Lactate is often misunderstood as a fatigue molecule. In reality, it is a normal metabolic fuel. When produced in excess during intense exercise, it accumulates in the bloodstream. Scheiman’s work suggests that a portion of circulating lactate is shuttled to the gut, where Veillonella uses it as a carbon source, producing metabolites that may support mitochondrial function, muscle recovery, glucose utilization, and anti-inflammatory pathways The episode explores: • How elite athletes may represent a rare biological phenotype comparable in rarity to centenarians • Why the microbiome can shift rapidly in response to exercise intensity • The challenges of culturing and scaling strict anaerobic microbes for commercialization • The regulatory pathway differences between therapeutic microbiome interventions and consumer health products • How AI a…

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