The B.rad Podcast

In this episode, I share key points from a brilliant article by Michael Simmons about compound time. He implores you to think outside the box and look at somewhat contradictory things that super successful people like Oprah and Warren Buffett do that seem counterintuitive to success. Simmons proposes that this “counterintuitive” behavior, like slowing down, working less, taking some chill time, working on prioritizing and to-do lists, is actually extremely beneficial and maybe even the key to their success. Let’s break it down into 6 key tips: Tip #1: Start keeping a journal today. It will change your life. Many studies have shown the many benefits that come with keeping a journal each day, but why not try for a more active form of journaling, by using prompts, instead of just freewriting? Simmons cites Benjamin Franklin who asked himself, “What good shall I do this day?” every morning and ended his evenings by asking himself, “What good have I done today?” as well as Arianna Huffington and Oprah Winfrey, who both start their days by counting their blessings and writing lists in their journals of what they are grateful for. And remember, journaling really isn’t just for gratitude lists - it’s just as good for you when you’re taking notes, writing down observations, sketching - literally whatever it is that helps you make sense of life. Leonardo DaVinci filled tens of thousands of pages with sketches of art, observations and notes, ideas. Albert Einstein filled 80,000 pages, and President John Adams had kept 51 journals by the end of his life. And have you ever noticed that after writing down your thoughts and experiences, you actually feel clearer and more focused? Well, researchers call this “writing to learn” - a process that helps bring order and meaning to our experiences. It’s a great tool for knowledge and discovery because our brain can only really manage three separate complexities at any given moment, so writing things in a journal really helps you see things in your life clearly. I’ve actually kept a workout log since I was a teenager since high school, but it doesn’t really matter which areas of your life you start keeping track of, just that you know that writing them down is an essential tool for noticing patterns and getting more focused in your daily life. Tip #2: Nap’s are where it’s at! They dramatically increase learning, memory, awareness, creativity, and productivity. According to nap researcher Sara Mednick, author of “Take A Nap! Change Your Life,” “With naps of an hour to an hour and a half… you get close to the same benefits in learning consolidation that you would from a full eight hour night’s sleep.” People who study in the morning do 30% better on an evening test (if they have taken an hour-long nap). In fact, taking afternoon naps might optimize evening sleep for those suffering from insomnia! Unconvinced? Well, Albert Einstein, Thomas Edison, Winston Churchill, John F. Kennedy, Leonardo Da Vinci, Margaret Thatcher, and Bill Clinton are all famous nappers. Additionally, studies show that napping doesn’t just boost your productivity, but your creativity as well. After all, Salvador Dali, chess grandmaster Josh Waitzkin, and Edgar Allen Poe were all fond of using naps to induce hypnagogia, a state of awareness existing between sleep and wakefulness that could take them to greater heights in their creativity. Tip #3: Walk every day, even if it’s just for 15 minutes. Most people forget how powerful the simple act of walking is, but trust me, you do not want to let yourself slide with this one! Just 15 minutes of walking does wonders for you, enhancing your brain function, immune function, and fat metabolism. Charles Darwin, Beethoven, Charles Dickens, philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, Gandhi, Steve Jobs, Aristotle, and Winston Churchill were all were notable walkers. Also, we now have scientific data that proves that taking a walk literally does refresh your mind and body, as well as boost your creativity. Plus, it can even extend your lifespan! Check out this one 12-year study focusing adults over the age of 65, who walked for 15 minutes everyday, which reduced their mortality by 22%. Tip #4: Reading is one of the most beneficial activities we can invest in. Winston Churchill is one of many, many notable people who love to read. He spent several hours a day reading about history, philosophy, biographies, and economics. Unsurprisingly, the list of US presidents who were also bookworms is looong: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, JFK, and Theodore Roosevelt of course, who would read one book in a day on a busy day, and two to three when he had enough time during a free evening. Other notable readers? Billionaire entrepreneur Mark Cuban (3+ hours a day), billionaire entrepreneur Arthur Blank (2+ hours a day), billionaire investor David Rubenstein (6 books a week), Disney CEO Bob Iger, who gets up every morning at 4:30 to read, and Oprah Winfrey, who credits reading for much of her success (and was so advanced as a young child because of her literacy level that she skipped two grades in school!). Reading books isn’t just a pleasurable and educational activity, they improve your memory, increase your empathy, and de-stress you too. Bottom line: yes, reading books takes time, but it’s 100% time well spent. Tip #5: Conversation partners lead to surprising breakthroughs. Joshua Shenk makes a strong argument in his book Powers Of Two: Finding the Essence of Innovation in Creative Pairs that the foundation of creativity is social, not individual. Citing academic research on innovation, Shenk focuses on famous creative partners like John Lennon and Paul McCartney, Marie and Pierre Curie, and Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak. Psychologists Daniel Kahneman and Amos Tversky actually began working on their then-new theory of behavioral economics (that won Kahneman the Nobel Prize) during long daily walks they used to take (which surely sparked their creativity and cognitive function), and J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis used to meet at a pub on Monday’s share their work and discuss writing with one another. Check out the book, and think about the people in your life who spark your creativity and really stimulate your mind... Tip #6: Success is a direct result of the number of experiments you perform. Mistakes feel, naturally, super discouraging. No one ever feels good after messing something up. But being discouraged never helps you. Failing is ok. Learn to love failure! Look at Thomas Edison: it took him 50,000 botched experiments until he had success with a model of the alkaline storage cell battery, and then 9,000 tries until he perfected the light bulb. When he died, he had almost 1,100 U.S. patents!  All you need to do is experiment. And then experiment some more. Try. Try again. And again. Einstein utilized thought experiments (for example, he would imagine himself chasing a light beam through space) as a method to help his imagination as he worked on creating scientific theories. And Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “All life is an experiment. The more experiments you make, the better.” We live in a frantic world where most people are hyper-focused on work, work, work. But these “top performers” that Simmons refers to are deliberate in how they spend their time and where they put their focus. A lot of that focus is on compound time: the things that create the most long-term value. Follow their example and invest just one hour out of your day on compound time: read a book, take a walk, sink down into a nap, call a friend and have a fun and interesting conversation...just do something. And don’t even dare to think you’re wasting your time, because that couldn’t be further from the truth! Stepping away from the things that stress you out is a great way you can invest in your future, and it also happens to be how some of the world’s greatest thinkers and leaders spend their time, so try it out - there’s clearly something to it. TIMESTAMPS: Brad talks about the best use of your time in order to enhance productivity. [03:35] Keep a journal. [05:57]  Overtraining can cause digestive system problems. [09:01] Taking a nap will not compromise your evening sleep patterns. [11:46] The big high energy workouts might not be as beneficial as taking a 15-minute walk. [17:01] Reading is one of the most beneficial activities we can invest in [21:02] Put down your phone and try face-to-face conversations with other people to make a solid social connection. [25:41] Keep experimenting. Don’t be afraid of failing. [27:50]Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-get-over-yourself-podcast/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I travel to the beautiful University of Washington campus to speak with recently anointed Professor Tommy Wood. This interview was an urgent priority because Tommy is one of the most sensible and reasonable health experts, and things have been getting confusing recently on many diet and health optimization topics.   For example, Tommy recently appeared in debate format on the Minimalist Podcast with carnivore advocate Dr. Paul Saladino and plant-based advocate Rich Roll. If you are wondering how to make sense of the latest health trends, who’s right and who’s wrong, sit back and listen to Tommy explain things in a reasonable manner, while using in-depth scientific reference to support his perspective.   We cover some big-picture topics including how to reconcile the wonderful benefits of fasting and caloric efficiency versus the benefits of good nutrition and adequate fuel for peak performance and recovery. I reference my great success with Dr. Tommy’s 2017 suggestion to eat more total calories, but then extending my free pass all the way to fatty popcorn boy territory. Tommy presents is number-one bestseller book idea to eat things that “Look Like Food.” We hear about his horrifying ordeal with a snake bite in the Costa Rican jungle and recovery from a massive infection. We’ll talk a bit of testosterone, where mean realize that getting serum T above 500 is great goal, that more is not better, and how you might get confused by high readings for sex hormone-binding globulin if you are low carb and insulin sensitive.   We hit the hot topic of the carnivore diet, examining why people are reporting phenomenal results and learning the major insight that “high antioxidant” superstar plant foods like kale and broccoli actually have prooxidant properties that trigger an antioxidant response in the body. Do we need to eat them? Are they potentially bad for us? Tommy leverages his extensive medical training and scientific expertise to answer, “I don’t know.” What’s more important is that we maintain an open mind and not get dissuaded by the flawed logic that is tossed around so frequently in the health space. Few people are able to meld truth and humor (along with a very strong BS meter!) with scientific evidence and research the way Tommy can, so enjoy listening to this extremely informative and fun episode with a true leader in the Ancestral Health movement - you will not forget any of the truth bombs Tommy drops anytime soon!   TIMESTAMPS: Choosing the right workout environment to help you thrive [6:33]. Brad talks about how he gained weight and how he successfully got the extra pounds off [14:40]. Tommy explains why muscle mass is so important for longevity [21:50]. Why you have to get metabolically healthy before you do anything else [25:20]. Tommy tells the story of his recovery after getting bitten by a snake in Costa Rica [34:20]. “Change the things that you know you need to change” [44:10]. How much testosterone do you need at your age? What kind of behavior results from high testosterone levels? [49:00]. Tommy shares his thoughts on the carnivore diet [55:40]. Why people experience short-term success on the vegan diet [1:02:25]. Tommy explains how prooxidants in plant food affect the body [1:11:11]. Tommy describes who should, and who should not, incorporate plant food into their diet, and why [1:17:30].  Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-get-over-yourself-podcast/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The best thing about having a guest like Dr. Cate on the show is that she is not afraid to speak her mind - our conversations are a zero BS zone, where truth is the only priority. In today’s short but sweet blip show, I reflect on the best pieces of advice I’ve gotten through my conversations with this “contrarian by necessity”: the four pillars of health aka the four categories of food you need to include in your diet, how Dr. Cate helped me not only clean up my diet, but optimize it, and the hidden dangers of eating out at restaurants (hint - ask if you can get your food cooked in butter - you won’t regret it!) Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-get-over-yourself-podcast/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

(Breather) I don’t know about you but I can’t make it through the cold winter days without access to either a sauna or a hot tub. Once I get a little chill (usually from doing a workout and then not showering right away), I feel it the entire day. Facing a Lake Tahoe-style winter for the first time, my Almost Heaven Sauna is going to be a lifesaver, social centerpiece, and amazing tool for cardiovascular fitness and health, and disease protection. In this show, I walk you through the many scientifically validated benefits of sauna use, as well as the big picture benefits of achieving warmth any time you want, and experiencing an incredible general relaxation effect and social bonding experience. I describe my personal regimen where I want to get the most bang for my buck as fast as possible. So I crank up the heat on my Almost Heaven Harvia unit through a double cycle and get it up to 210F! By comparison, most health clubs and spas have saunas running at 175F, not wishing to over-stress a random user. As soon as I enter that crazy hot barrell, I immediately commence 40 pushups followed by 40 deep squats. This will prompt profuse sweating only a few minutes after I enter, and then I relax on the bench and enter an incredibly relaxed, trance-like state. I’ll get out after I’ve been sweating profusely for a good 10-15 minutes. This is a sign that the esteemed Heat Shock Proteins have been released to work their magic on my brain, cardiovascular system, and muscular system. The sauna is also your friend when it comes to the risk of cognitive decline and muscle atrophy that comes with aging, because of its detoxification, anti-inflammatory, and anti-aging benefits. They can improve liver function, especially if your liver has been damaged or stressed, and help you sweat out nasty, bio-accumulated toxins, like BPA. BPA is a chemical you can find anywhere, and unfortunately, one that a lot of people don’t even know is in their system. After I did my Nourish Balance Thrive testing, I discovered I had toxic petroleum products, as well as plastic contaminants, in my system. My first move was to sweat it out until I was profusely sweating and then scrub my skin in the shower with a good soap, like Dr. Bronner’s. Moral of the story: be careful about those water bottles you leave in your car! And if you do forget to take some out of your car, use the leftover water to water some plants - but don’t ever drink it! A consistent sauna regimen of 2-3 times a week will lower your heart attack risk by 20%, while going 4 -7 times a week will result in a 48% reduction! Combine that with regular exercise, and your heart disease risk will lower even further, and improve your vascular function. Just as impressively, studies have shown sauna use can greatly improve depression and anxiety levels. Finally, I suggest you try going into the sauna after working out, as it greatly improves your conditioning response. Research, as well as personal experience,  has shown me that post-workout sauna sessions can significantly alleviate the muscle soreness one usually experiences the following day. I’m also a fan of taking a warm/regular temperature shower after my sauna session, as this allows your body to naturally cool down afterward. Check out Almost Heaven, or start small, trying the sauna out at your local health club, and let me know how your experience goes with this therapeutic practice! TIMESTAMPS: Regular sauna therapy has many benefits, especially keeping your body warm. [03:48] What are some of the other health and disease protection benefits of sauna? [07:47] Sweat contains nasty toxins that should be sweated out! [11:16] Heated plastic, like water bottles in the car, can be harmful. [13:32] Regular use reduces overall oxidative stress and inflammation. [16:43] It also has some good effects on depression, anxiety, and other mental conditions. [19:45] If you are tight and inflamed from a workout, the sauna increases the blood flow. [22:55] Before you do sauna regularly, be sure to have medical clearance. [23:26] Contrast Therapy is switching back and forth between hot and cold therapies. [25:16]Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-get-over-yourself-podcast/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dr. Cate Shanahan, author of Deep Nutrition and Food Rules, pulls no punches when discussing how our conventional view of screening and treating cancer could be ill-advised. Unsurprisingly, the “conventional” ways of viewing many things in our world do not hold up anymore - and this, of course, includes the food system, the hospital system, and most importantly, how we perceive health-care and the concept of sickness in this country. Could it be that we have actually gotten some crucial things wrong when it comes to how we view the screening and treatment process for cancer? If anyone would know, it’s Dr. Cate, as she has always been ahead of the game. Early on in her career, she had an epiphany that would change the course of her life: “My goal of making people healthy was not in alignment with the hospital’s goal, which was taking money out of sick people.” We once lived in a world where patients spent 90% of their doctor’s appointment simply talking to their doctor, but now, 90% of your appointment time is spent doing expensive tests! Still, Dr. Cate admits that when she first began her journey as a doctor, she naively believed that there had to be one hospital out there with a different way of doing things. Unfortunately, as we all know now, that’s just not the case. Thankfully, we have radical thinkers and pioneers in the medical field like Dr. Cate, who dedicate their lives to truly helping people heal. Referencing the work of Dr. Thomas Seyfried, Dr. Cate explains that cancer is actually a metabolic disease, rather than a genetic disease. This implies that instead of aggressive chemo and radiation treatment to attack cancer at the genetic level, dietary modification could be the most effective strategy. This aligns with the Warburg Effect principle, which suggests cancer cells feed preferentially on glucose, at a rate greater than regular cells. The idea is that starving cancer cells of glucose with fasting and ketogenic eating patterns makes it possible to shrink tumors and heal. To put it simply, metabolic diseases are most effectively treated through metabolic treatments. While it might be unsettling to rethink the template strategy of cancer fighting, Dr. Cate's commentary can help you reflect further about how your thoughts, beliefs, and food choices affect your overall health. Unfortunately, there are so many things that most people do in daily life, from certain lifestyle habits to not being aware that their salad dressing contains vegetable oil, that actually promotes cancer. There are so many hidden dangers lurking in this world, but luckily, Dr. Cate knows exactly what you need to do to protect yourself from them, so enjoy this discussion with one of the great leaders of the ancestral health movement, and be sure to read Deep Nutrition to learn the hows and whys about choosing the most nutritious foods that your genes expect for optimum health. TIMESTAMPS: How hospitals extract money from people [5:30]. It used to be that 90% of your appointment time was spent talking to your doctor, nowadays, 90% of your time is spent getting tests done [11:10]. The myth that catching cancer early on is better is not always true [16:45]. Metabolic problems need to be solved by metabolic treatments [21:40]. Why Dr. Cate feels like she is “cancer-proof” [28:30]. Familial and genetic diseases have a degree of penetrance, which is your chance of developing the disease [34:00]. The four foods that will give you everything you need [43:00]. 30-40% of the average person’s daily calories come from “non-food” sources, like vegetable oils, which actively promote cancer [47:25].Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-get-over-yourself-podcast/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Did you know we humans have an upper limit on the amount of energy we can burn each day? Not only that, but we will engage in assorted mechanisms to stay under this limit when we try to bust out more calorie burning with ambitious workouts (in pursuit of fat reduction, for example). An amazing recent study of the primitive living Hadza in Tanzania has cast more light on this subject. Our primitive counterparts who walk many miles and engage in many hours of physical labor each day burn around the same amount of calories (by sex and bodyweight) as a typical lazy modern human!  These insights have tremendous application to how you balance assorted forms of stress in your life. If you are trying to drop excess body fat, you best turn your attention to hormone optimization by lowering insulin production in your diet and kick starting the burning of stored body fat. The truth is, before you even think about how you’re going to go about losing weight, you’ve got to change your diet first. Then you can focus on calorie burning patterns, and start to simply MOVE. The more you move in everyday life, the better your body is at burning fat.  Not only that, but cognitive function improves when you move, so giving yourself regular breaks from work to just get up, take a walk outside, do some calisthenics, whatever it is that breaks up periods of stillness, is essential and incredibly helpful for refreshing your mind. We all know what it’s like when you’re in the zone, and you can’t stop working on whatever it is that you’re doing, and before you know it, it’s been over an hour, and you’ve barely moved! There’s nothing wrong with going with the flow when you get a good idea, but also remember this scary statistic: Just twenty minutes of sitting is known to increase insulin resistance and glucose sensitivity. Yes, sitting for long periods of time literally makes your body crave carbs and stop burning fat! So, try to find a good balance between accomplishing your tasks and avoiding prolonged periods of stillness. Just move when you can, wherever you can! To summarize:    1) Cut nasty processed carbs out of your diet    2) Move more throughout everyday life   3) Incorporate fitness into your life: comfortably paced cardio exercises and briefly paced, explosive workout efforts are best, but the most important thing is just to MOVE. Always remember to be mindful of overdoing it. Focus on a strategic blend of comfortably paced cardio, brief, explosive strength training sessions, and occasional all-out sprints, and you’ll be pleasantly surprised at how quickly the fat starts to melt off!  TIMESTAMPS: What happens when we go out there and expend a lot of physical energy is our body finds ways to compensate when we're at rest. [04:00] When we burn a bunch of calories at strenuous exercise, is that the best way to reduce excess fat? [06:04] The true path to fat reduction is through hormone optimization, primarily lowering insulin production. [09:56] Move more every day. [12:00] As you plunge into chronic patterns, when you overdo it, over exercise, your body finds assorted ways to slow down, eat more food, burn fewer calories. [14:13]Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-get-over-yourself-podcast/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I welcome my old friend, and longtime audio mentor Brock Armstrong, host of the Get Fit Guy podcast and co-creator of an innovative weight loss coaching course at weighless.life. Brock, the pride of Vancouver, B.C., Canada, has had a wild ride through life as a former professional ballet dancer turned heavy smoking band roadie, turned extreme endurance athlete, and recently has modified his approach to fitness to emphasize general fitness, functionality, and longevity. Brock is an enlightened dude who reports walking over to the gym for a planned session of heavy lifting, and then following an urge to bail on the gym and instead taking a 7-kilometer walk. Ever do anything similar? Why or why not? This podcast will get you pondering the deeper questions of life, health, fitness, and getting over yourself en route to ambitious peak performance goals. Ah, the beauty of podcasts where you get real insights and authentic conversation that extend far off the pages of a book or a magazine article. We attempt to steer the discussion to the interests of endurance athletes at times, for the show was syndicated for the Primal Blueprint endurance podcast. But hang on for a wild ride, because we take you where health and fitness podcasts have never gone before with no punches pulled. We ask you to ponder the elephant in the room question: Should you keep pursuing your competitive athletic goals? What about your career? Do you have an exit strategy? Are your identity and self-esteem intertwined with what you do? We get super deep talking about thoughts and energy fields influencing cellular function, how an intuitive approach to training trumps biohacking and biotechnology (or at least enhances the effectiveness of tech tracking), how fat loss is best achieved through mindset instead of calorie burning and calorie counting, and how to make recovery the central element of your fitness pursuits, and how an energizing morning routine (check on my morning routine video on YouTube and you can also see my step-by-step breakdown of cold therapy here) will help you build focus and discipline in all areas of life, and much more. Enjoy listening to wild times with my man Brock! TIMESTAMPS: Brock discusses his professional ballet career and why ballet can be considered an endurance sport [7:45]. The importance of having an exit strategy for anything in life [15:00]. Brad shares a story about the origins of the ancient Olympics [20:50]. Athletes are finding that sleep is almost half of their training [25:55]. The knowledge you gain through tracking biometrics is beneficial and empowering [28:30]. Sometimes (healthy) vanity can be a good measurement of fitness [41:00]. The importance of getting over yourself and going with the flow (whether you’re an athlete or not) [45:00]. The purpose of Brock’s Weighless program being a 1 year-long commitment [52:00]. Why Brad started fasting in the mornings again [55:45]. “Active couch potato syndrome” and what the endurance community needs to watch out for [1:01:30]. Should you really load up on calories post-workout? [1:10:45].Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-get-over-yourself-podcast/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

(Breather) This breather show is all about examining work ethic and work-play balance through the lens of legendary golfer, Tiger Woods. An athlete since he was a very young child (check out his first TV appearance in 1978!) Tiger loves to train every day for golf, to compete, and is on a constant quest to get better. A far cry from the golfer of the past who played hard, got rich, and got soft. And sure, we see still see him fist pumping and his unmistakable competitive intensity, but behind the wizard’s curtain, Tiger is viewing his competitive endeavors from a more complex perspective. Yes, the object of the game is to win, but the value and the meaning is found in the process, not in the mere holding of the trophy. Thinking about the trophy during the journey is a lethal distraction – as many of Tiger’s less-evolved opponents have discovered painfully. Extending your focus outward – worrying about opponents or what the world thinks of you – is also a distraction. Tiger steps on plenty of throats, but it’s inadvertently while trying to get a good stance to hit his shots. His enlightened competitive fire focuses on the process of peak performance, and it is directed entirely inward. In contrast, the prevailing psycho-emotional disposition of the modern competitor that we have been socialized to adopt in pursuit of success is to obsess on external variables and determine our self-worth according to results. He also showed this by being the tour’s greatest ‘grinder,’ still trying hard even when way back. Furyk said, “Most guys in that position aren’t still trying to win the tournament, but Tiger was still thinking he had a chance. He believes he can win even when he’s 10 down. He never makes a frustrated, hasty play. He always plays the correct shot. He never says, ‘Shit, I’m two back!’ and pulls the driver and hits it anywhere. He plays the course the way it should be played.” When I talk about work-play ethic, what I mean is that this really is a game to him; he’s playing Monopoly in real life with vicious competitive intensity, instead of fear of losing his buildings or being conservating with his 9 shot lead. His father Earl once gave him a very valuable piece of advice: “You know what? Just go to sleep. You know it’s going to be the most important round of your life, but you can handle it. Just go out there and do what you do. Just get in your own little world and go out there and thrash ‘em.” Note the contrast between another popular coping mechanism used by athletes facing pressure, the old, “Just pretend it’s an ordinary competition!” admonition. This probably messes up the subconscious more than anything! But then what does he do after? He retools his swing, and while studying videos, realizes he relied on timing more than optimal swing mechanics. This is a guy who says he’s obsessed with winning, but unlike many of his competitors, he’s answering to a higher calling REPRESENTED by winning - get the difference? At a press conference two days before the 2007 Masters (where he was runner-up to Zach Johnson) Tiger – holding trophies from the previous two major championships (’06 British Open and PGA) - was asked if he was thinking about another Tiger Slam (holding all four major titles at once, but not in the same calendar year ala the so-called Grand Slam). He replied: “No. I’m thinking about trying to place my golf ball around this course, that’s about it. My whole preparation is getting the ball in play and putting the ball on the correct parts of the green and getting the speed of these things…and that’s it.” Tiger gives the gift of this perspective to all of us, over and over, and we, with the help of the superficial media, keep ignoring it in favor of pressing the issue of our results-obsessed mentality. No wonder Tiger has little patience for the media! Here are some tips on how to cultivate a strong work/play ethic:   Make Work Fun: It’s not enough anymore to put your head down, work hard and produce results. Reject the “just make it through the day” mentality rooted in narrow values like puritanical social climbing. The most powerful competitive stance is to get the biggest rush from the battle itself. By releasing your attachment to the outcome, you can experience the pure joy of competition and push your limits without distraction in pursuit of peak performance. Cultivate a pure motivation that extends beyond winning and losing, as Tiger demonstrated when he overhauled his swing despite competitive success. Pursue endeavors that you love and represent the highest expression of your talents. Have fun at all costs, understanding that this is the true secret of champions.   Expand Your Horizons: Discard society’s harmful programming that values shortcuts, decadence, and conformity. Forget moderation in this context - take risks and push limits to realize true peak performance Transcend the energy struggle to beat opponents and the repetition of control dramas that you developed as coping mechanisms throughout your life. Realize that pursuing something bigger than your selfish needs will lead to performance breakthroughs thanks to the “love is power” concept. A selfless, evolved approach will create a collective escalation of passion among those around you and provide a more powerful, pure and long-lasting source of motivation than focusing narrowly on personal gain.   Be Comfortable With Competition. The negative emotional baggage connected with results-oriented competitiveness has led many to loathe putting it all on the line due to fear of failure. Winners contribute to the peak performance and personal growth of all competitors, so don’t be afraid to enjoy victory and the yachts and mansions that you might accumulate as a consequence; “you don’t have to apologize for anything.” Become comfortable “going for the throat in competition, then sportsmanship after.” If you’re seven shots back with seven holes to play, don’t give up; relish the opportunity to chase. If you are ahead or running neck and neck with a competitor, savor the opportunity to push each other to greater heights.   Work Smart – Having fun and working hard will not lead to success unless your work is focused, guided by expert coaching and directly applicable to your peak performance goals. Be brutally honest with yourself and make a clear decision to align your behavior with your stated goal of peak performance. Understand that this entails sacrificing things that bring you and your ego a certain measure of satisfaction, but will lead to more fulfillment, productivity and less stress. Pay particular attention to the importance of focusing on one endeavor at a time and achieving a smooth transition to the next. Seek out coaches, experts and friends who will tell it like it is. Do the same when you look into the mirror and then take specific and decisive action to address your weaknesses. Witness the example of scrawny Tiger and Annika venturing into the weight room and emerging with another distinct advantage over their rivals. TIMESTAMPS: Tiger Woods has just won his 82nd tournament on the PGA tour. It’s quite a record! [3:30] After so many setbacks and injuries, Tiger is undisputedly the greatest comeback athlete. [05:19] Tiger has set an example as a competitor. [08:00] The value and the meaning is found in the process, not in the mere holding of the trophy. [11:34] Focus on the process, not the result. [13:33] You play each shot independent on whatever happened before. [16:59] Tiger looked at the competition at the Masters as the most important thing in his life, rather than heeding some coaching advice that would say, “Just pretend it is an ordinary day.” [19:26] Four tips to cultivate your own strong work/play ethic are: make work fun, expand your horizons, be comfortable with competition, and work smart. [23:50]Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-get-over-yourself-podcast/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Get ready for a very unusual podcast with my old friend and former professional triathlon circuit cohort Rip Esselstyn. After our swim, bike, and run journeys ended in the 1990s, Rip and I both continued the world of diet, health, and peak performance, and have been working hard to help people get healthy and fit for decades since. Here’s where the story gets interesting: Rip has gone on to become a bestselling author and advocate...for the plant-based lifestyle! This honors the legacy of his father, mother, and sister, who are all involved in the movement and do cookbooks and retreats together. Rip’s father is Dr. Caldwell Esselstyn of the Cleveland Clinic Wellness Institute, and is famed for reversing heart disease with dietary intervention of the low fat, plant-based nature. If you come from the ancestral health camp, this show is going to be an exercise in challenging your beliefs, being open-minded, and thinking critically. This could be a growth experience, even if you object strongly to a Rip’s passionate advocacy for radically different dietary strategy than the ancestral low-carb approach. Tune in as Rip and I bounce back and forth from exploring common ground (e.g., ditch processed food like nasty vegetable oils, avoid overconsuming protein and overstimulating growth factors, watch out for allergenic dairy products and excess calories from oils and juicing, get your butt moving more in daily life, pursuing athletic peak performance goals throughout life) and into the hot button, controversial items where ancestral health and plant-based are in direct conflict. I strive to be open minded and receptive to feedback in all areas of life, and it was interesting to reflect upon how Rip and his movement have delivered great results, a passionate following, and honor the compelling goal of being good stewards to the planet. When you hear the infectious enthusiasm in Rip’s voice, you will realize that he is getting people to wake up and take charge of their health and fitness. That said, it’s often a difficult exercise to have your own belief foundation rocked, and this will happen when Rip launches into his plant strong boilerplate that all meat is bad, eggs are no bueno, saturated fat intake is a heart disease risk factor, sugar is a scapegoat instead of public enemy number one, and so forth. Wild times! I always enjoy engaging with Ripper and absorbing his positive energy.  Who knows, maybe some of your own beliefs will be reaffirmed, and maybe you’ll come away with a renewed appreciation for being open-minded and seeing all sides of the coin. Backing up a few steps, it’s easy to conclude that any step away from the Standard American Diet, where an estimated 71% of calories come from highly processed edible food-like substances, you are going to be a big winner. Enough about diet, hang in there until the end when Rip talks about “The Feel,” a magical and metaphysical concept he exposed me to when we were athletes, that can be relevant in all areas of life. Sometimes when you try too hard, things get more difficult. And sometimes when you relax, go with the flow, you can get into the flow-like state that Rip calls “The Feel,” you access a higher peak performance state. Get ready for the one and only Rip Esselstyn and check out his Plant Strong podcast and website some time. PS – a short while after recording this show, Rip broke the world record in the men’s 55-59 swimming 200-meter backstroke with a time of 2:21! TIMESTAMPS:  We all agree that the first step is to get rid of all the shit in your diet. [04:49] Rip describes a study where patients with bad heart disease were using a plant-based diet to lower cholesterol. [14:25] When he was an athlete at UT between 1982 and 1986, the athlete’s dining hall was an “abomination!” [20:03] The packaged foods we buy are loaded with sugar, salt and fat repeatedly layered on each other that get us addicted. [21:51] Can different approaches work? [28:21] The danger is excessive protein which can overstimulate the growth factors. [39:06] We’ve been misled about milk. Olives have more nutrients that milk! [44:30] Can you consume carbohydrates without jacking up your blood sugar? [48:18] According to the American Heart Association, you should get around 10 percent of calories from fat which is lower that the Keto people. [58:10] What does it truly mean to eat healthy? [0:00:11] Does Rip, while espousing the plant-based diet, allow for any animal products? [01:02:15] Rip’s wife has made an amazing success story in the Texas school system. [01:10:24] Rip talks about “the feel”. [01:12:48]Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-get-over-yourself-podcast/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

(Breather) As promised on the Get Over Yourself podcast, we go where no modern media has gone before. After wrapping up a great interview about the carnivore diet, I decided to record William Shewfelt talking about his strategies for focus, discipline, and productivity in daily life. It starts with an “anchor’—in William’s case it’s waking up at 4:30am and getting to the gym for a nice workout before the crowds arrive and the day gets too busy. In this show, I wanted to get into the necessary balance between prioritizing sleep, being disciplined to get up and kick ass during the day, and also being gentle and nurturing to yourself and not pushing things too hard. In my case, I’m wondering if I’m harboring latent rigid programming from my days as a professional triathlete, whereby I am a little wimpy on the sleep thing instead of getting up and getting shit done like a real man? I was literally asleep for half of my 9-year career on the pro triathlon circuit: 10 hours every night and a two-hour nap every afternoon. I believed the more I slept the better I performed, and didn’t have real-life pressures to compromise my luxurious sleep practices. William says getting into the habit of getting up and moving gives him more energy for the day, not less. This Breather show will get you thinking about the relative merits of all your habits, the importance of engaging in mindful behaviors rather than let goals and focus drift (especially in today’s hyperconnected, overstimulated society), and also about the incredible wisdom of bodybuilders. Don’t laugh, the bros pumping iron have repeatedly been decades ahead of health and fitness trends. Arnold Schwarzenegger and his brethren in the golden age of bodybuilding in the 1970s and 1980s were eating keto/carnivore style diets, balancing stress and rest much more effectively than modern day endurance and CrossFit freaks, and had better physiques than today’s bodybuilders who are swole up on excessive doping regimens. Enjoy this lively and inspiring unplugged show with William Shewfelt! TIMESTAMPS: William Shewfelt has a routine that is a combination of regimen vs. nurturing yourself. [04:13] William talks about how the bodybuilders in the old days manage their carnivore diets. [09:40]Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-get-over-yourself-podcast/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.