The Five Pillars for Improving Male Fertility with Josh Paigen

This conversation is with men’s fertility expert Josh Paigen — whose path took him from a childhood fascination with the natural world to helping men and couples prepare for healthy conception. We explore the alarming global decline in sperm count, why preconception health is about far more than simply being able to conceive, and Josh’s five pillars of male fertility: sustenance, purity, exercise, rest, and mindset.

Along the way, we dive into the roles of nutrition, environmental toxins, circadian rhythms, and even inherited trauma in shaping reproductive health — and how small, intentional lifestyle shifts can have a profound impact on future generations.

You can expect to learn

• Why sperm count is plummeting (and why this matters) • Five pillars of male fertility you can start today • How diet, toxins, and lifestyle shape reproductive health • Sleep, stress, and mindsets’ hidden role in fertility • Epigenetics: how trauma and health choices get passed on • Simple changes that can boost fertility and overall vitality

[Timestamps]

05:43 Understanding Preconception Health 11:54 Sperm as a Biomarker for Health 17:27 Nutrition and Sperm Health 23:50 Understanding Everyday Toxins 29:22 Minimizing EMF Exposure 38:19 Circadian Rhythms and Hormonal Balance 47:56 Mindset and Holistic Health 55:35 The Interconnection of Health and Fertility 01:00:58 Understanding Epigenetics and Trauma 01:08:36 Challenging Myths in Fertility

Connect with Josh

🌱 If you'd like to work with Josh and improve your fertility head over to Mandrake.health

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🫁 Episode Sponsor — Nervous System Mastery

This is my flagship 5-week bootcamp designed to equip you with evidence-backed protocols to cultivate calm and emotional regulation. Our 8th cohort will run in Fall 2025 ~ and applications are currently open. My sense is that if this conversation resonates with you, then you'd likely be a great fit for our upcoming cohort. This curriculum represents my attempt to distill everything I've learned in recent years about creating the conditions for our nervous system's flourishing. It's run in an intensive cohort-based way since this is, in my experience, the most efficient way to embody and practice the protocols.

Previous students have shared how partaking improved their sleep and quality of relationships and tapped into deeper states of joy, clarity, and confidence in their lives. We've had over 1000 students have completed this training, and many have said that it has been the most impactful thing they've ever done for their personal growth — so if you're intrigued at all, you can find more details and apply to join this year's cohort over at nsmastery.com

Further Ways to Support the Podcast:

🎙️ I use Riverside to record all of my podcast conversations (it's so much better than zoom for podcasting!) 🎧 I also use Transistor to host this podcast, it's fricking awesome, and I would highly recommend. 😎 RaOptics make the world's best Blue Blockers – I wear these anytime I'm out of the house after dark, and it makes a huge difference! 🤖 I use AI wizardry from Castmagic to help with each episode's show-notes + timestamps 📝 Test out my favourite journaling app using journal prompts that have made a huge impact in my life.