Health Coach for Former Athletes & Executives | Metabolic Health & Longevity | Founder @ Core Elements Wellness: Where Health Becomes Automatic.
In 2013, Zack Rosanova’s world was defined by the four lines of a basketball court. As a collegiate-level recruit, his identity was inseparable from his athleticism. Then, in a single moment, a severe nerve injury in his left arm ended his career. He wasn’t just losing a sport; he was losing his sense of self. Within a year, the athlete who had once been defined by peak physical capability had gained 30 pounds, struggling with a body that no longer felt like his own. For years, Rosanova followed the traditional path of the “burned-out athlete”: extreme restriction, grueling cardio, and the exhausting pursuit of a ghost—the version of himself that existed before the injury. It wasn’t until he hit a wall of total burnout that he realized he had been trying to white-knuckle his way to health through sheer discipline while his environment was actively working against him.
Today, as the founder of Core Elements Wellness, Rosanova has turned that painful transition into a blueprint for others. He doesn’t just coach fitness; he designs lives. By shifting the focus from fleeting willpower to sustainable environment design, he helps high-performing executives and former athletes reclaim their metabolic health and, more importantly, their identity.
Building with Bare Hands
Rosanova’s approach to leadership and coaching was forged long before he entered a gym. Growing up in Austin, Texas, he attended the Austin Waldorf School, an institution centered on hands-on, experiential learning. Unlike traditional systems that prioritize rote memorization, Waldorf taught Rosanova that true understanding comes from the act of creation. He often reflects that people don’t change by simply being handed information; they change by building things with their own hands and experiencing the results.
This “builder’s mindset” was reinforced by his first job at a longboard manufacturing factory. Earning a modest wage, Rosanova spent his days transforming raw pieces of plywood into finished products through shaping, staining, and designing. It was a masterclass in the fundamentals: if the raw materials are right, the finished product takes care of itself. This philosophy remains the bedrock of Core Elements Wellness. Whether he is analyzing a client’s bloodwork or restructuring their kitchen layout, Rosanova is always looking at the raw materials of a human life—sleep, light, movement, and nutrition—to ensure the life sustaining them can support the weight of a high-pressure career.
Beyond the Athletic Ghost
The loss of his basketball career was a decade-long lesson in resilience. For years, Rosanova believed he needed to return to the training volume of a 22-year-old to feel like an “athlete” again. It was a cycle of “all-or-nothing” thinking that many high-performers face: they either train like they are at their peak or they do nothing at all. His breakthrough came when he stopped trying so hard and started paying attention to what actually moved the needle. He noticed that when he protected his sleep, his hunger stabilized. When he redesigned his kitchen to make healthy choices the default, his diet improved without effort.
As Rosanova describes this shift, “It wasn’t discipline I’d been missing. It was environment. I’d been swimming upstream every single day because nothing around me supported the outcomes I wanted. Once I saw that, I couldn’t unsee it.” This realization propelled him into a career as a Health + Performance Consultant, eventually spending nearly five years at Equinox before launching his own firm. He recognized a massive gap in the market: men in their 30s, 40s, and 50s who were leading teams and running businesses but had lost their athletic identity somewhere between the boardroom and the calendar. He transitioned from being a trainer who sells sweat to a consultant who sells autonomy.
Designing for Autonomy
Rosanova’s impact is measured not just in pounds lost, but in “health autonomy.” He works primarily with executives who are navigating metabolic dysfunction, creeping visceral fat, and the slow decline that accompanies years of high-stress neglect. His methodology is clinical and data-driven, yet deeply human. His clients, such as Tech Executive and Board Member Assaf Tarnopolsky, credit Rosanova with providing a system that transcends the gym. Tarnopolsky noted that “Coach Zack helped me implement a system that has fine-tuned my approach to eating, sleeping, and working out… If I’m not feeling good about my body and health, how will I be the best husband, father or professional?”
Similarly, Healthcare Technology Sales Executive James Dunn highlights Rosanova’s ability to cater to the “on the go” lifestyle of a busy professional. Dunn shares that “Zack’s deep knowledge of exercise physiology combined with a thorough science-based approach to nutrition has really helped me understand what works best for my specific goals.” For Rosanova, the goal is always graduation. He doesn’t want clients to be dependent on him; he wants them to reach a state where health is automatic. By focusing on metabolic health and fat loss through environment design rather than restriction, he has helped hundreds of men lose 15–50 pounds, improve their bloodwork markers, and—most importantly—reclaim their confidence.
Ownership as the Ultimate Skill
Rosanova’s leadership philosophy is distilled into a single, powerful mantra: “Maybe it’s not your fault. But it’s absolutely your responsibility.” He challenges the modern trend of outsourcing thinking to influencers and algorithms. To the next generation of leaders, his advice is clear: build your own judgment through trial and error. Stop looking for the “one thing” and start looking at the system you live in.
Looking forward, Rosanova is focused on expanding the reach of Core Elements Wellness, continuing to bridge the gap between clinical metabolic health and practical, daily living. He believes that a man’s athletic identity isn’t measured in his one-rep max, but in the energy he has to be present for his family after a 10-hour day and the mental clarity he brings to high-stakes decisions. Zack Rosanova is no longer the basketball player he was at 18, and he doesn’t want to be. He has built something stronger: a life where health is the foundation for everything else, and a system that empowers others to do the same.
Editorial Note: A Call to Action
Zack Rosanova’s journey reminds us that leadership begins with the self. True high performance is not found in the “white-knuckle” pursuit of an impossible ideal, but in the intentional design of our daily environments. Whether you are a former athlete looking to reclaim your edge or an executive seeking the energy to lead effectively, Rosanova’s story is a call to take full ownership of the “raw materials” of your life.
