Wild Ideas Worth Living

At Sea Change Preparatory, a school in Del Mar, San Diego that not only educates junior high and high school students in traditional subjects, but also focuses on mindfulness, physical fitness, teamwork, and goal setting, they begin each day on the beach with a ten minute meditation and a mile-long swim in the open ocean before starting classes. What’s even more impressive, these kids are training to swim the English Channel as a team this summer. John Allcock, the co-founder and Director of Mindfulness at Sea Change Preparatory, talks about the impact this kind of education is having on these kids’ lives. John isn’t just an educator though, he’s also a Harvard-educated trial lawyer at one of the top firms in San Diego and the author of Forty Things I Wish I’d Told My Kids, a book about his journey learning mindfulness. Mindfulness has been a hot topic for a while now, but incorporating it into education is still a relatively new idea. John and the folks at Sea Change Prep are making a huge difference in these kids’ lives, so much so that it made me wonder how long it will be until a meditation practice is commonplace in both our kids’ lives and our own lives. 

Last year was a big year for this podcast, and this year we’re boosting our production even more. We’re diving deeper into stories and exploring not just people, but also about topics and ideas that will help you chase down your own wild adventures. From mindfulness to saying yes to fear, hacking your health, and changing how we think about the outdoors, fitness, and technology, we’ve already recorded the first few shows. I think you’re going to love it. This trailer is here to give you a taste of what’s to come. I hope you enjoy it!

Wild Ideas Worth Living Podcast’s Idea: To interview top athletes, health experts, adventurers, and authors about their wild idea and share them with you. We are now two years, 97 episodes, and well over a million listens into this podcast. It’s been a wild ride, to say the least. And an incredible one. Thank you for listening and for your support. It’s been a privilege to interview some of the biggest names in adventure. This year, I’ve enjoyed the theme of exploring how we adventure inside our own heads as much as we adventure outside in the wild.  We’ve talked about how being outside in nature can help us overcome trauma and become healthier, what it’s like seeing the earth from outer space, the changing tides of consumerism, fighting wildfires, gaining financial independence, ultramarathon trail running, becoming sober, facing failure, representation in the outdoors, breaking records, how to surf giant waves, how to face fear, how to build your life resume, and so much more.  In the final episode of 2018, I’m sharing some of the biggest lessons I’ve learned this year from guests and all of you. Some of the best parts of running this podcast are getting messages about how the show has inspired you to go on an adventure or change your own lifestyle. I hope you enjoy these highlights and I hope you enjoy your holiday. We’d love for you to share with us how this show has benefitted you.  Click SUBSCRIBE wherever you are listening to this and reading this. We’re taking a brief break to sharpen the saw and produce an even bigger show next year. We’ll be back mid-January, and are excited to share what we have with you.  Listen to this episode if:  You want to hear a fun recap of some highlights from this year. You love adventuring. You want some inspiration to conquer your goals for next year. You are a Wild Ideas Worth Living listener …or You want to know what the show is about. For full show notes, including guest links and books mentioned during the episode, visit: http://wildideasworthliving.com/97

Jesse’s Wild Idea: To encourage people to achieve massive things in their life and focus on what matters most. Today’s guest eats only fruit until noon. He loves Run-DMC. He wrote the New York Knicks anthem, “Go New York Go,” and he likes to live life out of the box. In his New York Times bestselling book, Living with a Seal, Jesse invited Navy Seal David Goggins to live with him for a month and train him. Years later he wrote Living with Monks, where he lived in a monastery in upstate New York. Both of his books are about learning lessons that others have to teach you, something Jesse is passionate about. Early in his career, Jesse was a rapper and wrote and performed in the NBA’s Emmy Award-winning “I Love This Game” music campaign. Prior to being a best-selling and hilarious author, he co-founded Marquis Jet, the world's largest private jet card company which he and his partner sold to Berkshire Hathaway/NetJets. Jesse then partnered with Zico coconut water, which he and his partner sold to The Coca-Cola Company. He is also a serious adventurer, running ultramarathons and launched an event a few years ago called 29,029 that brings “Everesting” to individuals around the country. Today, he’s the owner of the Atlanta Hawks, husband to Spanx founder Sara Blakely, and a father of four kids. His latest online course, called “Build Your Life Resume,” is all about encouraging you to get out there and build a life full of experiences, creating memories, achieving big goals and doing more. With an infectious energy about him, Jesse has some great insights about how we spend our time, and how we can use this knowledge to live more fully and be more present with those we love. In our conversation, we talk about goal setting, why you have to give in order to get, how to support your partner, why we all need to get real with time, and how to achieve one massive thing every year. Listen to this episode if:  You like living life on your own terms.  You’re want to set and accomplish big goals. You’ve ever thought of writing a book.  You want to experience some amazing things in your life. For full show notes, including guest links and books mentioned during the episode, visit: http://wildideasworthliving.com/96

Eric’s Wild Idea: To create a program that helps people optimize performance and alleviate pain.  As an athlete and human, it’s important to be able to move to the best of your ability. Injuries and pain that have kept me from running, surfing, or other adventuring have always been challenging.  Today’s guest, Dr. Eric Goodman, has been recommended to me by many guests of this show. As the founder of the movement-based Foundation Training program, Dr. Goodman has helped thousands of athletes and every-day people alleviate pain and increase performance. Some of the people he’s worked with include athletes like surfers Lakey Peterson and Brad Gerlach, the late climber Dean Potter, as well as actors Rob Lowe, Chris Hemsworth, Jeff Bridges, and Matthew McConaughey. Both my partner Johnny and I have been using Foundation Training for the last six months to help us alleviate a nagging back injury and IT band pain, and both of us have experienced positive results.  I wanted to have Dr. Goodman on the show because he has a great story. His wild idea to become a health practitioner and create a program to help people move and feel better is something I think a lot of people can relate to.  A former water polo player, Dr. Goodman developed back pain that doctors told him he would need surgery to fix while he was in chiropractic school. Instead of going under the knife, he developed a series of exercises that helped him heal and became the origins of Foundation Training. Early in his career, he was also hired to train the U.S. Olympic Men’s Water Polo team, and used his methods to help them the year they took the silver medal. Today, Dr. Goodman has published two books, and there are Foundation Training trainers in over thirty countries around the world.  Since many of you are getting ready to make New Year’s Resolutions, I wanted to get Dr. Goodman’s  advice on how to avoid injuries and train the right amount. We also dive into why healing emotional pain is as important as healing physical pain, how he got the wild idea to create a new movement practice, and what other methods he uses and thinks you might want to check out.  Listen to this episode if:  You struggle with injuries or chronic pain. You want to strengthen your body. You are interested in helping others heal. You are curious about movement-based training programs. For full show notes, including guest links and books mentioned during the episode, visit: http://wildideasworthliving.com/95

Elizabeth’s Wild Idea: To write about people who adventure for a larger purpose. There are some writers whose words resonate so well and whose descriptions are so deep, their words hit you to the core and transport you into their world.  Today’s guest, Elizabeth Weil, has evoked that feeling for me time and again through her work. The award-winning writer often covers the kind of people I love - those who live outside the normal boundaries of society, and pursue their own wild ideas and make them a reality. She has written about everyone from snowboarder Shaun White and skier Mikaela Shiffrin to swimmer Diana Nyad, Senator Kristen Gillibrand and a man named Doba who kayaked across the Atlantic in his seventies. In addition to writing articles for The New York Times Magazine, Outside Magazine, Wired, and more, she has also written a book about her own marriage, and she recently penned the New York Times bestselling book, The Girl Who Smiles Beads. In addition to being a writer, she’s also a mom and a wife. She’s married to one of my other favorite writers (who happens to cover surfing and rock-climbing), Daniel Duane. In our conversation, Liz and I talk about a few of the subjects she’s covered including Doba, and some other adventurers who have done wild feats without the desire for any recognition. We also talk about why she is attracted to stories about people who live wildly, why they do it, what she has learned from them, and her advice for anyone who wants to make a living as a writer. Listen to this episode if:  You want to be a writer.  You love reading amazing stories. You like stories of adventurers who do wild things just for themselves. You are looking to improve your relationship. You need help balancing your personal and professional life. For full show notes, including guest links and books mentioned during the episode, visit: http://wildideasworthliving.com/94

Samin’s Wild Idea: To share the power of food with the world and inspire everyone to get in the kitchen and cook with confidence using salt, fat, acid and heat.   If you have been anywhere on the internet lately, you’ve probably seen something about Netflix’s new series, Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat. The show follows today’s guest, Samin Nosrat, around the world as she teaches the importance of cooking with each of these four elements. On the show, she travels from Italy to Japan to Mexico and back to Berkeley, California working with internationally known foodies to discover how things like miso, soy sauce, corn tortillas and parmesan cheese are made. The whole series is beautifully documented, and she makes cooking and eating accessible and fun for everyone.   Samin’s cookbook of the same name came out just a year ago, and it quickly became a New York Times bestseller and won a James Beard Award (which is like an Oscar of the food world). She has been cooking since 2000, when she started working in the kitchen at the world-renowned Chez Panisse in Berkeley, California and has been called the next Julia Child by NPR’s All Things Considered.   I actually know Samin from high school where we were on the same cross-country running team. I remember her being very nurturing, making cookies to share and always bringing people together. As the daughter of immigrant parents, food has always been an important part of her life and identity. She didn’t always feel like she fit in, which taught her some important life lessons about failure and self-acceptance. It was a joy to talk to her about her success and her journey. We get into her upbringing, her mother’s cooking and the impact our cross-country coach had on her life. She also talks about how author Michael Pollan became her mentor and the work that went into creating her Netflix series. Plus Samin shares a few tips on how to make your Thanksgiving or holiday meal the best one yet. Listen to this one through to the end.   Listen to this episode if:  You love to cook or want to learn how.  You love to eat and are passionate about food. You are an immigrant or come from an immigrant family. You need some inspiration to be persistent and go after your goals. You want to hear from one joyful storyteller. For full show notes, including guest links and books mentioned during the episode, visit: http://wildideasworthliving.com/93

Gabby’s Wild Idea: To continuously learn new ways to optimize health and fitness while helping others be their best selves. Gabby Reece is a woman of many talents. She is a health and fitness expert, a former professional volleyball player, a best-selling author, a model, a TV host, wife to big wave surfer Laird Hamilton, and a mom. She is also the co-founder of XPT (extreme performance training) and founder of HighX Training. I have looked up to Gabby since I was young, and have even written a few stories about her throughout my career. It was pretty exciting to interview her at her house in Malibu (they have a slackline over their pool), and this conversation is different than many that you usually hear on this show. Instead of asking Gabby about her one wild idea, I ask her for advice on health, nutrition, training, how to have a great relationship, being a female athlete, being a mom, and so much more. She has a huge passion for what she does and an incredibly intuitive sense about her. It makes her an awesome coach and a great person to ask for advice. Enjoy the show! Listen to this episode if: You want to train smarter. You want to get motivated. You are trying to eat healthier. You have ever felt insecure. You are trying to raise strong, confident kids. You are looking for a healthy and balanced relationship.  For full show notes, including guest links and books mentioned during the episode, visit: http://wildideasworthliving.com/92

Shannon’s Wild Idea: To work for NASA and spend months aboard the international space station. Shannon Walker first dreamed of becoming an astronaut in the 1960s. After getting her undergraduate degree in physics and her Masters of Science and Doctorate of Philosophy in Space Physics, she got her start with the Rockwell Space Operations Company at the Johnson Space Center in 1987 as a robotics flight controller for the space shuttle program. In 2004, she was selected to be a part of NASA, and six years later she served as a flight engineer for a long-duration mission aboard the International Space Station. Not only did Shannon need to know how to work a spacecraft, but she had to know how to do it in Russian. In addition to spending time far above the earth, she has also spent time below sea level as an aquanaut on the NEEMO, an underwater space station. She also loves the outdoors and has seen earth from a rare perspective so I was excited to get her thoughts on how the planet and the environment are changing.  Shannon and I discussed how she became an astronaut (which I think most people dream about as kids) and she shared her advice for anyone who wants to work at NASA or who wants to go to outer space. We also talked about overcoming rejection, the excitement that comes from actually learning about science, and how there is so much to explore here on earth. Listen to this episode if:  You have ever wanted to go to space. You’re interested in getting a new perspective on our planet. You are focused on achieving a huge, long-term goal and need some inspiration. For full show notes, including guest links and books mentioned during the episode, visit: http://wildideasworthliving.com/91

Tate’s Wild Idea: To climb over 13,000 feet up Grand Teton in Wyoming after seeing an image of the mountain in the hallway where he received cancer treatments. To not let his diagnosis affect his sense of humor and positive attitude.  Today’s guest is a skier, filmmaker, and all around awesome guy who I’ve known for a few years. Tate MacDowell got his start as a filmmaker making ski movies for companies like Teton Gravity Research and Brain Farm. His current company, Death Cookie Entertainment, specializes in editorial action sports films. He’s very present in the outdoor and action sports industry, and I have loved watching his movies. I started following his story more closely the last few years after he shared some vulnerable posts. In 2008, Tate and his wife moved from Jackson Hole, Wyoming to Cardiff, California and a few years later had a son, Wilson. Just two years ago, Tate was diagnosed with cancer, which has now advanced as he is going through stage IV metastatic rectal cancer. While undergoing treatments, he got the wild idea to climb Grand Teton after seeing a picture of the mountain in the hallway where he was getting cancer treatments. His journey to the top has been an emotional ride, and one that he shares in detail in our conversation. We talk openly about his journey with cancer, being a dad and husband, his new hobby painting with watercolors, and why we shouldn’t waste any time in going after our dreams. His honesty in this challenging time is astounding, and I love his message and his story. Listen to this episode if:  You or someone you know has had cancer. You’ve ever dreamed of going to the Grand Tetons. You aren’t one to let some obstacles stop you from achieving your goals.  You are in need of some inspiration to go out and make your dreams reality. For full show notes, including guest links and books mentioned during the episode, visit: http://wildideasworthliving.com/90