Age Less / Live More

I had a rough year in 2006. It was the year I opened my first yoga studio. I should have been on cloud nine, but I wasn’t ready for all that responsibility and all that stress. I had a staff of 12, hundreds of students, courses, a restaurant, and very little support. Mostly, I was alone. An old friend sent me some audio meditation tracks he’d be using that had a technology called binaural beats. I’d never heard of it, but I gave it a try. Right away, I felt something. Technology and I have a complex relationship, but when it makes life easier, I’m a fan. Meditation is really hard, and anyone who tells you differently is actually just walking their dog (and calling it meditation). The real practices require deep work, and it’s very hard to do all alone at home, even with books and apps. This is why I love yoga breathing, and it’s also why frequency-following music can be very helpful, particularly when you’re just getting started or in a mental and emotional jam. My guest on this week’s show is an audio engineer who makes meditation music, and he’ll share how this simple technology can potentially help you find more balance.  Links & Resources Cory’s Site Try some binaural beats on Spotify About Our Guest Cory Allen is an author, podcast host, meditation teacher, and audio engineer from Austin, TX. His first book, Now Is the Way, was just released. Cory has studied and produced music for over 15 years. He has released over a dozen albums.  Got Questions? Send me a voicemail here: Ask Lucas a Question Or write to us: podcast@yogabody.com  Like the Show? Leave us a Review on iTunes

I wanted to run a marathon this year. The truth is, I hardly ever run, but like any good mid-life crisis man, I wanted to tackle that goal to prove to myself I still could do hard things. Sounds great, right? Fun and challenging? Here’s the problem—I didn’t do it. I don’t even think I wanted to do it. If I had been smarter, I would have set a tiny goal, like running 5 km per week for a year for example. Then I could “win” the goal, and if the marathon happened, it’d be gravy. Instead, here I am approaching the end of the year. I’ve actually logged at least 10 km/week all year long, but I don’t feel like it matters. But it does matter. My goal was just poorly crafted.  In this “dream big” and “hustle hard” era, it can be difficult to dial it back and make tiny goals and tiny habits, but I’m convinced it’s where most of the change is actually possible. On this week’s show, Dr. BJ Fogg shares his behavior change research from his upcoming book.  Listen & Learn:  How you need an epiphany, an environment change, or a collection of tiny habits to make lasting change Why stacking small successes is often much wiser than chasing huge moonshots Why feeling good is the best way to change How things that make you feel guilt and shame are unlikely to motivate you long-term  Links & Resources: Tiny Habits Site BehaviorModel.org Nutritional Tip: Food Allergies About Our Guest Dr. BJ Fogg founded the Behavior Design Lab at Stanford University, where he directs research and innovation. He teaches industry innovators how to use his models in Behavior Design. The purpose of his research and teaching is to help people improve their lives. BJ is the author of Persuasive Technology, and Tiny Habits: The Small Changes That Change Everything is coming out in a couple months. Got Questions? Send me a voicemail here: Ask Lucas a Question Or write to us: podcast@yogabody.com  Like the Show? Leave us a Review on iTunes

You close your blackout curtains, flip your phone to airplane mode, and crawl into bed with all the best intentions to get 7.5 hours of sleep—and then your monkey mind starts peeling bananas. Work deadlines stream through your mind, the next episode of your current favorite series beckons, and for no good reason, you’re dying to see what your friends are posting on Instagram. Thirty minutes pass, and more of the same. You’re now worried you’ll have raccoon eyes at the office meeting in the morning, but that thought just makes things worse. You finally fall asleep at 2:00 am and manage just four hours of sleep. Sound familiar? Many people overcome this by drinking half a bottle of red wine, puffing on a CBD vape pen, or popping an Ambien—but these are all Band-Aids. The underlying problem has not been solved. You’ve got a sleep problem, and it needs to be fixed.   Sleep expert Dr. Guy Leschziner dedicates his work to the diagnosis and treatment of sleep disorders, and he’s my guest on this week’s show.  Listen & Learn:  Why 50% of your sleep tendencies are likely inherited  How to intelligently use sleep apps and other consumer tracking devices  Why REM sleep is not fully understood and can even be problematic  How sleep problems and mental health are very much a chicken and egg problem How to know when to get professional medical help  Links & Resources Guy’s site Guys’ Book on Amazon  About Our GuestGuy is the clinical lead for the Sleep Disorders Centre at Guy's Hospital, which is one of Europe's largest sleep units. He is also Reader in Neurology at the Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience at King's College London. His new book The Nocturnal Brain: Nightmares, Neuroscience and the Secret World of Sleep is available now. Nutritional Tip of the Week: Apples vs Oranges Got Questions? Send me a voicemail here: Ask Lucas a Question Or write to us: podcast@yogabody.com  Like the Show? Leave us a Review on iTunes

I said goodbye to my grandfather when I was 8 years old. He had his first heart attack, and my mom was convinced he didn’t have long to live. Turns out he had many, many years ahead of him. Unfortunately, he was riddled with recurring heart problems, Parkinson’s, and a whole host of medical challenges. He lived a long life, but not a healthy one. His rapid decline shook my family, turned my mother into a health fanatic, and she passed the bug onto me.  I wish I could say that pleasure and dreams of excellence motivate me, but it’s pain and fear that drive most of the big moves in my life. “I don’t want to end up in a rocking chair watching Wheel of Fortune,” gets me to my yoga mat much more often than “I want to glow with radiant energy.” I wish I chased carrots, but mostly, I run from the stick. What about you? My guest on this week’s show is a medical doctor who has dedicated most of his work to trying to unravel the complex challenge that is the #1 killer in the world: heart disease.  Listen & Learn:  How medical advances treating heart disease are largely responsible for extended life expectancy  Why Lipitor is one of the most prescribed drugs in the world How your choices and health goals might shift if you planned to live past 100 in a healthy state Healthspan vs. lifespan: What matters most?  What the “heart-healthy” 1980s got right and what we got wrong Links & Resources:  Book on Amazon ABOUT OUR GUEST  Physician, writer, and clinical researcher Haider Warraich is the author of the new book, State of the Heart - Exploring the History, Science and Future of Cardiac Disease that we’ll be talking about today. He writes for the New York Times but also contributes to the Guardian, the Atlantic, the LA Times and the Boston Globe. He completed internal medicine and cardiology training at Harvard Medical School and Duke University. Haider has appeared on CNN, Fox, CBS, PBS, and shows like Fresh Air, The Diane Rehm Show, The World, Marketplace and the BBC World Service. Nutritional Tip of the Week: Garlic and feeling bad Got Questions? Send me a voicemail here: Ask Lucas a Question Or write to us: podcast@yogabody.com  Like the Show? Leave us a Review on iTunes

Would you survive if you had to grow or forage your own food for an entire year? Would you eat roadkill, wild yam, coconuts, and acorn grubs? Rob Greenfield is finishing up 365 days straight growing and gathering (from the ‘wild’) as his own food. Rob is an adventurer, environmental activist, humanitarian, and a guy on a mission to create a more sustainable and just world.Listen & Learn:  Why our current food systems are broken How extremes can plant seeds for moderate ideas that make more sense Why mono-crops and siloed thinking have a lot in common  How our planet will look and feel with 9 billion people on it  Links & Resources:  Rob’s TEDx Talk  Rob’s Website  ABOUT OUR GUEST Rob Greenfield is an adventurer, environmental activist, humanitarian, and a guy on a mission to create a sustainable and just world. He dumper-dived into more than two thousand dumpsters across the United States, cycled across the USA three times, wore all his own garbage as clothing for 30 days, and spent the past year growing and foraging his own food. Rob walks his talk. Nutritional Tip of the Week: Hydration Got Questions? Send me a voicemail here: Ask Lucas a Question Or write to us: podcast@yogabody.com  Like the Show? Leave us a Review on iTunes  

Dr. Artour Rahkimov, a seasoned expert in breath retraining, challenges common misconceptions about carbon dioxide. He explains how CO2 is essential for oxygen absorption and highlights the dangers of over-breathing. The discussion reveals that many people breathe excessively, which paradoxically reduces oxygen levels. Dr. Rahkimov emphasizes the benefits of slow breathing techniques for health and well-being. He shares insights into how proper breath management can transform health and enhance sleep quality. Prepare to rethink your breathing!

Deb Dana, an expert in Polyvagal Theory, discusses the importance of the vagus nerve for stress modulation and understanding the body's nervous system responses. She explains the polyvagal theory, including the ventral vagal complex for connection and the dorsal vagal complex for collapse. Deb emphasizes triggers, glimmers, and moving into states of protection and connection.

My second child has black circles under his eyes in all his photos from birth to age four. He slept as little as possible and willed himself through most days with all the angst and irritability of any insomniac. At age four, he finally started sleeping and quickly became a new person. He learned more, laughed more, talked (a lot) and was a joy to be around. Was it just the sleep? No, but it made a huge difference. No more nervous anxiety in the mornings, no more dark circles, and finally, he seemed to find real moments of peace.  When kids sleep poorly, parents sleep poorly, and the entire health and happiness of the household are affected. When you sleep badly, you’re obviously tired and grumpy, but there are much more worrying long-term effects that can include malformed jaws (in children), weight gain, mood disorders, and cognitive impairment. But what can you do?  Listen & Learn:   How poor sleep decreases leptin (satiety hormone) and increases ghrelin (hunger hormone)  How bad sleep is correlated with hedonistic eating (think Netflix+ Haagen-Dazs binges) How attachment parenting may not be the best approach for you Why “cry it out” techniques are not for everyone and not for every stage of development How to discern what you can and should control and what you should simply let go of   Links & Resources:  Dr. Canapari’s Book Craig’s Website  ABOUT OUR GUEST Craig is a pediatrician at Yale-New Haven Children’s Hospital in New Haven, CT, specializing in the care of children with breathing and sleep problems. He is boarded in Pediatrics, Pediatric Pulmonology, and Sleep Medicine. His book, It’s Never Too Late to Sleep Train, is available on Amazon or on his website.   Nutritional Tip of the Week: Eat seaweed Got Questions? Send me a voicemail here: Ask Lucas a Question Or write to us: podcast@yogabody.com  Like the Show? Leave us a Review on iTunes

The American life expectancy is currently 79, which sounds great until you realize that is the 26th in line worldwide. Despite being one of the most developed and wealthy nations in the world, the US system is not only ridiculously overpriced (at least 2x), it’s also ineffective. It’s a double fail with upstream and downstream effects that are impossible to even begin to quantify. This wonky system was built post World War II with financial incentives going to everyone except the average citizen, and while no one has a clear cut solution, everyone agrees that things must change.  My guest on the show is a medical doctor and industry insider-turned-whistle blower, and his insights provide an optimistic 10+ year outlook for change.  Listen & Learn:   How the medical industry has 4x the number of lobbyists than the military  Why the US medical system is about 2x overpriced  How Germany, Canada, and the Scandanavian countries all seem to do it better  How spending on medical care is on track to reach 20% of GDP by 2026 ABOUT OUR GUEST Mike Magee is on faculty at Presidents College at the University of Hartford. He has worked as a doctor, a university medical school administrator, a hospital executive, and head of global medical affairs for Pfizer. He’s the author of the book Code Blue: Inside America’s Medical-Industrial Complex available on Amazon. Links & Resources: About the book Mike’s site  Buy the book on Amazon Nutritional Tip of the Week: Choose Seafood Got Questions? Send me a voicemail here: Ask Lucas a Question Or write to us: podcast@yogabody.com  Like the Show? Leave us a Review on iTunes

I live in Spain where the average life expectancy just hit 83 years—number three in the world, less than one percentage of a point behind Switzerland and Japan. Foreigners often hypothesize that the reason is due to the diet, the long walks, or red wine that keep people alive until such an old age, but after I’ve lived here for 10 years, I must disagree.As I look out of my office window right now, the corner cafe is filled with office workers on a morning break drinking coffee, smoking cigarettes, and eating croissants. In the evening, that same crew will return for beer and wine, deep-fried tapas, and another round of cigarettes. This is the norm. So why then do they live so long? My theory is that people are less stressed, on average, all the time. Plus, the family unit and social ties are extremely strong. Grown adults will share a sitdown meal with their parents weekly (or more). Friendships are cherished and developed, the average workday is long and leisurely, and life is slower and less intense. Research clearly shows that great relationships and reduced stress are predictive of health worldwide, and yet most of us obsess much more about the perfect meal or the perfect workout (at least I do). Chronic stress is a silent killer that affects your mood, your waistlines, your hormones, and mental health. The goal is not to live a stress-free life, that’s impossible; instead, our aim should be to reduce the stressors we can and manage the rest effectively through diet, exercise, nutrition, breathing, and positive mental models. Our guest on this week's podcast teaches a “stress less” holistic approach to wellness. Listen & Learn:  Why 90% of periodontal disease has no pain and how a lack of pain in life is not a signal of no problems How thoughts are things, literally, they are neurotransmitters made of proteins The PERMA model (positive, engaged, relationships, meaning, accomplishment)   Links & Resources: Book on Amazon Dr Ron’s Site  ABOUT OUR GUEST B.D.S (Syd Uni) FACNEM (Dent) Dr. Ron Ehrlich is a holistic health advocate, educator, and holistic dentist. Dr. Ron has developed his health model of how stress affects our health; breaking stress down to emotional, environmental, nutritional, structural and dental stressors. He’s the author of the book A Life Less Stressed available on Amazon or his website.  Nutritional Tip of the Week:  Garlic Onion Got Questions? Send me a voicemail here: Ask Lucas a Question Or write to us: podcast@yogabody.com  Like the Show? Leave us a Review on iTunes