EP 136: How Bodybuilding Didn't Just Change His Body, It Saved His Life with Ben Lawson

Ben Lawson was 29, about six months off a bodybuilding show, and roughly as healthy as a person gets. Then he went to the ER because something felt off, and a doctor walked in and told him he had acute myeloid leukemia.

Eight days later, most of what he'd spent twelve years building was gone.

Ben founded Lift & Lead Co, and he's been on this show before. This time he came back with a different business and a much better reason for running it. We got into why he walked away from coaching entirely at the end of 2024, what he did in the year he spent selling real estate, and how he rebuilt the whole thing for the third time.

The line that stuck with me: you're choosing hard either way. The easy setting is also hard, you just haven't felt it yet. Being out of breath at the top of the stairs is hard. Not being able to pick up your kids is hard. Pick which hard you want.

You'll get how he doubled his audience in eight months after seven flat years, the decision-making rule that got him into a gym during chemo, and why he thinks trust with other people starts with keeping the commitments you make to yourself.

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Key topics

• From a basement weight set to coaching for a living — 00:01:20
• Burnout, real estate, and the rebrand to Lift & Lead Co — 00:04:46
• Balancing energy instead of balancing time — 00:10:24
• The leukemia diagnosis at 29 — 00:13:24
• Seven years to 15,000 followers, eight months to double it — 00:23:11
• Choose your hard — 00:30:37
• Why trust has to start with yourself — 00:34:27

Guest bio

Ben Lawson founded Lift & Lead Co, an online coaching business built for dads who want to be in shape without giving up their evenings. He grew up in a town too small to have a gym, started lifting on an old weight set in a basement, spent four years in the military, and launched his first online coaching program while still enlisted. He has competed as an amateur bodybuilder, coached thousands of clients including several who went pro, and was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia at 29 — then competed again within two years. He also leads the fitness pillar of the Abundant Man Project.

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Legal disclaimer

Disclaimer: This podcast is for informational and educational purposes only. It is not legal, financial, tax, or business advice. Hosts and guests share personal experiences and opinions; individual results vary and nothing here is a guarantee of any outcome. Guests' views are their own and do not represent Capitallyst Pro. Consult your own qualified advisors before making business decisions.