Mindfulness and Health Optimization

New Insights from Sam Harris, Dr. Peter Attia, Ramit Sethi, and Elizabeth Gilbert | Brought to you by Athletic Greens all-in-one nutritional supplement, Helix Sleep premium mattresses, and Allform premium, modular furniture. More on all three below.

Welcome to another episode of The Tim Ferriss Show, where it is usually my job to deconstruct world-class performers to tease out the routines, habits, et cetera that you can apply to your own life. 

This episode is something different. It’s an experimental format that I’m super excited about.

This is an episode that scratches an itch I’ve had for years. I am not always able to listen to every great podcast episode out there, even when they are by some of my closest friends. The answer to my predicament was to ask them to send me a top segment from their podcast that I could listen to and—more importantly—also share with you, my dear listeners. 

My team edited them together, and here we are! This episode is a compilation of 15-to-30-minute clips from some the best podcasters in the world and certainly some of my favorites.

At the beginning of each clip you will hear an intro from the host and where to find their work and podcast. At the end, I’ll also share one of my favorite clips from an episode of The Tim Ferriss Show.

You can view this episode as a buffet, and I strongly suggest that you check out the shows included. If you like my podcast, you will very likely enjoy the featured shows in this episode.

And before you go: Do you like this format? If so, please let me know on Twitter at @tferriss and also mention @TeamTimFerriss. Whether we continue this series or not depends on you.

Please enjoy!

[07:40] Sam Harris segment

[42:47] Peter Attia segment

[1:15:32] Ramit Sethi segment

[1:46:35] Elizabeth Gilbert segment

This episode is brought to you by Helix Sleep! Helix was selected as the #1 overall mattress of 2020 by GQ magazine, Wired, Apartment Therapy, and many others. With Helix, there’s a specific mattress to meet each and every body’s unique comfort needs. Just take their quiz—only two minutes to complete—that matches your body type and sleep preferences to the perfect mattress for you. They have a 10-year warranty, and you get to try it out for a hundred nights, risk-free. They’ll even pick it up from you if you don’t love it. And now, Helix is offering up to 200 dollars off all mattress orders plus two free pillows at HelixSleep.com/Tim.

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This episode is also brought to you by Allform! If you’ve been listening to the podcast for a while, you’ve probably heard me talk about Helix Sleep mattresses, which I’ve been using since 2017. They also launched a company called Allform that makes premium, customizable sofas and chairs shipped right to your door—at a fraction of the cost of traditional stores. You can pick your fabric (and they’re all spill, stain, and scratch resistant), the sofa color, the color of the legs, and the sofa size and shape to make sure it’s perfect for you and your home.

Allform arrives in just 3–7 days, and you can assemble it yourself in a few minutes—no tools needed. To find your perfect sofa and receive 20% off all orders, check out Allform.com/Tim.

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This episode is also brought to you by Athletic Greens. I get asked all the time, “If you could use only one supplement, what would it be?” My answer is usually AG1 by Athletic Greens, my all-in-one nutritional insurance. I recommended it in The 4-Hour Body in 2010 and did not get paid to do so. I do my best with nutrient-dense meals, of course, but AG further covers my bases with vitamins, minerals, and whole-food-sourced micronutrients that support gut health and the immune system. 

Right now, Athletic Greens is offering you their Vitamin D Liquid Formula free with your first subscription purchase—a vital nutrient for a strong immune system and strong bones. Visit AthleticGreens.com/Tim to claim this special offer today and receive the free Vitamin D Liquid Formula (and five free travel packs) with your first subscription purchase! That’s up to a one-year supply of Vitamin D as added value when you try their delicious and comprehensive all-in-one daily greens product.

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[07:40] Who is Sam Harris?

[10:10] The last time

[14:58] Mindfulness changes the brain

[21:53] When intrusive thoughts disrupt meditation

[24:03] The perils of taking the search for self too literally

[33:18] Can you point to your consciousness?

[35:26] Begin again

[39:10] A recap and where to find more from Sam

[42:47] Who is Peter Attia?

[44:17] The challenges of cancer screening

[46:14] Nobody should ever die from colon cancer

[49:39] When should you have your first colonoscopy?

[51:18] Early and aggressive lowering of apoB could change course of ASCVD (atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease)

[59:36] New thoughts on nutrition and TRF (time-restricted feeding)

[1:03:57] DEXA scanning for determining muscle mass

[1:06:46] The perils of underdoing protein

[1:08:36] Updated thoughts on exercise

[1:12:58] How Peter trains for grip strength

[1:14:00] Exercise: the good news and bad news

[1:15:32] Who is Ramit Sethi?

[1:16:59] Frugal vs. cheap

[1:23:37] Focusing on what can go right vs. what can go wrong

[1:27:13] The qualities that make us successful can wind up costing us everything

[1:31:18] Questions for galvanizing change from cheap to frugal

[1:41:46] The worry-free number

[1:47:12] Why is New York Times bestselling author Elizabeth Gilbert a fan of Meditations by Marcus Aurelius?

[1:53:35] Lessons from Martha Beck

[2:03:04] Staying true to one’s inner compass and saying “No” without remorse

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For show notes and past guests on The Tim Ferriss Show, please visit tim.blog/podcast.

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Past guests on The Tim Ferriss Show include Jerry Seinfeld, Hugh Jackman, Dr. Jane Goodall, LeBron James, Kevin Hart, Doris Kearns Goodwin, Jamie Foxx, Matthew McConaughey, Esther Perel, Elizabeth Gilbert, Terry Crews, Sia, Yuval Noah Harari, Malcolm Gladwell, Madeleine Albright, Cheryl Strayed, Jim Collins, Mary Karr, Maria Popova, Sam Harris, Michael Phelps, Bob Iger, Edward Norton, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Neil Strauss, Ken Burns, Maria Sharapova, Marc Andreessen, Neil Gaiman, Neil de Grasse Tyson, Jocko Willink, Daniel Ek, Kelly Slater, Dr. Peter Attia, Seth Godin, Howard Marks, Dr. Brené Brown, Eric Schmidt, Michael Lewis, Joe Gebbia, Michael Pollan, Dr. Jordan Peterson, Vince Vaughn, Brian Koppelman, Ramit Sethi, Dax Shepard, Tony Robbins, Jim Dethmer, Dan Harris, Ray Dalio, Naval Ravikant, Vitalik Buterin, Elizabeth Lesser, Amanda Palmer, Katie Haun, Sir Richard Branson, Chuck Palahniuk, Arianna Huffington, Reid Hoffman, Bill Burr, Whitney Cummings, Rick Rubin, Dr. Vivek Murthy, Darren Aronofsky, and many more.

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