How many pushups can you do on a single breath?

My guest today, Scott Carney, best-selling author of the newly released book What Doesn't Kill Us could only do 20 pushups before his training with Wim "The Iceman" Hof.

During this time, Scott learned to control his body temperature and seek out the knowledge that was key to unlocking his body's hidden potential.

Since then, Scott has trained with elite athletes, competed in the world's most notorious cold-weather obstacle course race, and summited Gilman's Point on Mount Kilimanjaro... in nothing but a pair of shorts.  

In today's episode I talk with Scott as he shares how freezing water, extreme altitude, and environmental conditioning can renew our lost evolutionary strength.

In today's episode you'll learn: 

• How Scott lost seven pounds in seven days,
• The quickest and safest way to build what Scott calls "The Wedge",
• Scott's personal 15-minute breathing routine, and...
• Much, much more.

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Episode Breakdown

• How to correctly pronounce Wim :)
• Scott’s previous history as an investigative journalist
• How people can lose touch with reality in pursuit of spiritual goals
• Westerner’s lure to perform miracles and how they’re ingrained in our childhoods
• Scott’s concerns about Wim’s initial claims of superhuman performance
• Scott’s first thoughts and experience of Wim after being commissioned by Playboy Magazine
• The simple, almost immediate trick to stop yourself from shivering
• How Scott lost seven pounds in seven days
• Scott shares a few of Wim’s larger-than-life claims
• Why Scott believes Wim’s method has positive effects on autoimmune disease
• The brief story of Hans Spaans and the Wim Hof Method
• Scott describes how homeostasis has negatively impacted us as a species
• Evolutionary Mismatch Disease
• How fire may have shaped human physiology
• How Scott outsources his natural pathfinding ability
• How Tinder is possibly destroying our ability to create deep bonds and long-term relationships
• How Lt. James Cook and his Polynesian navigator—Tupaia—mapped the Pacific seas near New Zealand and Australia
• Di lep and wave-piloting
• How humans have been using the cold to develop environmental robustness
• Scott shares an old quote from the Journal of American Medical Association in 1914
• Scott explains the purpose of brown adipose tissue (or BAT) and why it’s important
• Scott’s first experience with Laird Hamilton and XPT (or Extreme Pool Training)
• The November Project
• Scott explains the evolutionary purpose of vasoconstriction
• Archimedes Banya
• What Scott calls "The Wedge"
• Why Scott says you shouldn't use Wim's breathing techniques in water
• Scott shares his 15-minute breathing routine
• Why it’s easier to pass out with full lungs
• Scott’s experience running the most notorious cold-weather obstacle course race in the world
• Success at Gilman’s Point
• Rapid-fire listener questions

I am super excited, guys!

Today's episode is going to be really informative -- I hope you have pen and paper ready.

It is with none other than Stolan, the God of Plants, Arthur Haines himself.

It's really exciting because Arthur shares something that's really close to him and something he's really passionate about doing right now...

Which is essentially buying more land and creating a rewilding haven or rewilding community he calls the Human Rewilding Project.

He goes into the 12 Guiding Principles of the Human Rewilding Project later in this episode.

That's number seven, which is building community, on a list of 10 rewilding fundamentals he and I talk about.

On top of that, in today's episode you'll learn: 

• Strategies that help you learn your natural ecology,
• How to build musculature and skeletal strength suited for our natural landscape,
• How to treat altered states of reality with respect, and...
• Much, much more.

Subscribe on

 iTunes | Stitcher Radio | Google Play | SoundCloud

Episode Breakdown

• Introduction
• Arthur shares his personal definition of rewilding and his two caveats with defining it
• Arthur breaks down the stigma of the word "wild"
• Why nature immersion is so important to the human organism
• How to find people to help you relearn your natural ecology
• The traits and features of domesticated people
• What is biologically appropriate food?
• What are disinfection byproducts and what do they do to the human animal
• How to get closer to wild food and wild water
• How to strengthen your body using the natural elements
• How Arthur experiences spirituality
• Arthur defines the contrasting differences between a wild community and a modern society
• Arthur defines the 12 Guiding Principles of the Human Rewilding Project
• How the Allegory of the Cave pertains to where we're currently at with rewilding

Why forage when you can hop in your petroleum-fueled vehicle and hit the closest Whole Foods?

Well...

1. Because you're smart. And...

2. Because you know better.

You may also know that by incorporating wild foods into your everyday diet that you not only help optimize your health but increase longevity.

Not only are they more nutritious, they're also free and often right in our backyards.

Today's guest will share some of his knowledge about wild foods, the dangers of glyphosate, and the type of work he wants to see with today's online ReWilding community.

Along with those fun facts, you'll also learn: 

• Why wild foods are the cornerstone of any neo-ancestral lifeway,
• How to correctly process acorns and why that's important,
• Why women are better "nutrient transformers" than men, and...
• Much, much more.

Episode Breakdown

• The injury that led to Ben's discovery of natural health
• Raw milk, herbs, and the Maine Primitive Skills School
• Ben examines why food is such an important aspect of the hunter-gatherer lifestyle
• Ben shares some of his favorite wild foods
• How wild foods protect themselves from contaminants
• Ben weighs in on the low-carb high-fat diet debate
• Ben breaks down how plants defend themselves
• Ben explains how to process acorns
• How to incorporate acorns into your diet
• What Ben believes is the key to human health
• Ben talks about what wild foods might have been without industry
• Why wild food is always better
• Ben shares a few of his favorite food stuffs he likes to buy at the store
• Ben and I explain why you may want to spend more money on sardines
• Why muscles, oysters, and clams are still wild foods even when farm-raised
• Land-based wild green foods vs. wild seafood
• Ben's personal strategy for curbing food cravings with sea vegetables
• The micronutrient that mitigates the side effects of methylmercury
• Ben examines the omega-3 to omega-6 ratio of wild foods to domesticated foods
• Why women are better "nutrient transformers" than men
• Why Ben says he's not a big "almond guy"
• Why Ben has been researching Round-Up and the effects of glyphosate
• Ben goes over the importance of glycine
• Ben's strategies for avoiding and/or buffering the effects of glyphosate exposure
• Ben makes a distinction between processed foods, commercial foods, and industrial foods
• Ben talks about the hamster wheel of modern life
• How Ben would like to see the Rewild Yourself Facebook group grow
• The type of people Ben sees joining the Facebook group and why he believes they join

What do you need to know to beyond being fit and athletic?

This is the question Frank Forencich pondered while spending time with the Hadza and !Kung bushmen in Africa.

Frank's experiences would later lead him to discover the "Long Body" approach to human health, and the consequences of modern culture's mismatch from Natural Law.

In today's episode, you'll learn:

• What led Frank to study indigenous people in Africa,
• The specific continuities that keep the human body alive,
• How to navigate the mismatch of modern culture, and...
• Much, much more.

Episode Breakdown

• Frank's childhood struggle with sub-optimal health
• How regular exercise dramatically changed Frank's life in high school
• How Frank's studies at Stanford led him to question the history of his body
• Frank's observations about the Hadza and !Kung bushmen of Africa
• Frank's intimate, picturesque hunting experience
• "Habitat literacy"
• Bio-regionalism, Elizabeth Marshall Thomas, and poison arrowheads
• Tribal eldership, generational continuity, and oral tradition
• "Short Body Blues"
• Frank describes the specific continuities that keep the human body alive
• Origin of the Long Body perspective
• Frank's advice for building continuity between the short body and habitat
• Seattle trailheads and the language Frank suggests you use while outdoors
• "Rich communication"
• Frank talks about going vertical on an old-new classic by C.G. Jung
• Affluence of class and opportunity
• Why Frank views most of today's food as "space food"
• Why Frank thinks exercise science is boring
• "Neuro-Optimism"
• Why Frank values growing older and what that means to him
• Frank's advice on ways to navigate the mismatch of modern culture
• What is a "Progress Trap?"
• If Frank were to give one piece of advice, he would say to [???]
• The Long Body training program

This is a very special episode.

Not only is this the very first episode of Ancestral Health Radio with our very first guest...

Today's fireside chat is with Rewild Portland's very own Peter Michael Bauer. 

Peter has been a huge inspiration on my own path toward rewilding, as I'm sure he will be to you.

I hope to have Peter on future episodes of Ancestral Health Radio to discuss more of the topics you'll hear in today's show.

In today's episode, you'll learn...

• Why Peter re-released his old-new book Rewild or Die,
• The barriers that keep many of us from taking our rewilding practice to the next level,
• What "rewilding havens" are, and...
• Much, much more.

Episode Breakdown

• James's personal thoughts on Urban Scout's re-release of Rewild or Die
• Peter explains the origins of his online alias Urban Scout
• The moment that led Peter to put Urban Scout away for good
• Peter offers a great online resource for all-things rewilding
• Peter shares his struggle with finding a tribe and the birth of Rewild Portland
• Peter tells us how "all roads lead to rewilding"
• Peter defines the word rewilding and its myriad of implications
• Peter examines the differences between anarchy and anarcho-primitivism
• Peter talks about his theme for the 2017 Rewilding Conference ("Restoration to what...?")
• The problem with talking about the linear progression of our species
• We discuss different avenues that lead to rewilding (paleo, anarchism, etc.)
• Peter breaks down the word civilization and what that means to him
• "Cultural blinders"
• Peter describes how civilization is similar to a forest fire
• "Rewilding havens", "hoop culture", and how they work together
• Peter speaks about social justice and the barriers that prevent many people from taking their rewilding practice to the next level
• Peter talks about how to bring rewilding to a macro/mirco level
• Peter's personal thoughts on the paleo community
• What Peter wants you to glean from Urban Scout's re-release of Rewild or Die
• What Peter wants to see in the rewilding community's future
• The differences between Peter now and Urban Scout then

I can’t believe it…

This is it.

The podcast is finally here.

Let me begin by acknowledging the first three guests you’ll hear after this episode: episodes 1, 2, and 3 with Peter, Frank, and Ben.

The three of them have been beyond patient with me as I struggle to navigate the technology and sheer amount of knowledge it takes to put something like this into motion.

To say it’s been overwhelming is an understatement.

So guys… Thank you.

Now to begin SEASON 1 of Ancestral Health Radio with a bang… I’ve begun by telling my origin story.

It’s a doozy, so don’t say I didn’t warn you.

I go deep and let you hear a side to me that not many people get to listen to outside of my close circle of friends.

• What life events led to my discovery of ancestral health,
• Why mental health is such a priority to my well-being,
• What a typical day of eating looks like, and...
• Much, much more.

Episode Breakdown

• Introduction
• Why it's sometimes hard to connect with other rewilders
• The moment that radically altered James's life forever
• Why James feels the need to live to a certain entrepreneurial standard
• Why James felt out of place in school
• How James became a young vigilante
• What James's childhood looked like growing up in the '90's
• How Ms. Pearl and James became best of friends
• James shares what his first job was in high school
• Why James struggles with impostor syndrome
• James's former obsession with designer jeans
• James's first experience with the prescription drug OxyContin
• Enter: The deep, dark hole
• What James thought would eventually happen if he continued to use
• The multiple situations that ultimately caused James to hit rock bottom
• James's shares how many of his aunts and uncles have died from health and drug related illness
• James tells a story of Thanksgiving
• James explains how trauma can catalyze you to action
• James shares the consequences of his sentence
• The book that led James down the path of self-development
• What James wanted to do after being released from jail
• Enter: Mother's Market & Kitchen
• James shares his experience with natural supplements
• What James learned from the art of pick-up during his time at Mother's
• The first time James heard "The Caveman Diet"
• James's failed attempts at small-scale entrepreneurial ventures
• Why James felt the need to get strong and eat Paleo
• The afterparty James went to in the Gaslamp Quarter of San Diego
• Insights from the YEP business plan competition
• How James was introduced to online business and marketing
• The people James credits for inspiring him to begin a business online
• James's introspective thoughts on why he has so much self-doubt
• Why James and his girlfriend moved to San Jose
• Why you can't talk about ancestral health linearly
• The Rewilding practices James intends to spend a bulk of his time on in 2017
• James talks about the significance of taking care of his mental health
• James discusses his personal Rewilding strategies regarding diet