In this episode of Bulletproof Radio, Dave welcomes Scott Carney, an award-winning investigative journalist and anthropologist whose reporting has taken him to some of the most dangerous and unlikely corners of the world.
He’s also a New York Times bestselling author “What Doesn’t Kill Us: How Freezing Water, Extreme Altitude, and Environmental Conditioning Will Renew Our Lost Evolutionary Strength.” This book traces our evolutionary journey back to a time when survival depended on how well we adapted to the environment around us.
Scott has spent time with some of the most extreme people on Earth who do the most extreme things, such as the controller of the cold, Wim Hof; legendary big-wave surfer Laird Hamilton, and HIIT creator Brian Mackenzie.
“As a journalist, you have a couple of options for how you cover someone,” Scott says. “You can go in there and sit back and say, “Okay, I will watch you from a distance. I will watch you breathing or whatever, and I will write an article about that,” or you can jump in and give it an experience.”
That pique’s Dave interest more than a little, as he notes Scott’s curiosity and “willingness to go to the ends of the earth to figure out cool stuff.” Scott’s curiosity gets a boost from learning “neural grammar,” which allows better control of the parasympathetic nervous system. Because our system craves homeostasis, he says, it’s going to find it naturally because of the environmental stimulus to which you’re being exposed.
Listen in on this conversation about human endurance, why effortless comfort is hindering our health and how “the wedge” can flip your neurological script.
Enjoy the show!
Follow Along with the Transcript
Stop Fighting Your Environment & Hack Your Homeostasis – Scott Carney
Links/Resources
Website: scottcarney.com
Facebook: facebook.com/scottcarneyauthor
Twitter: @sgcarney
Instagram: @sgcarney
YouTube: TEDxCU: Cold Comfort and How the Environment Shapes Human Biology
Bulletproof Radio: Climb Everest In a T-shirt & Shorts. Survive Submersion In Freezing Water For Hours. Wim Hof Tells You How He Did It! – #403
Key Notes
- Meeting Wim Hoff for the first time 00:10:45
- How the Wim method sucks 00:15:10
- Using the natural world is awesome and free 00:25:55
- Anyone’s journey with personal health is not about someone else 00:36:00
- Bigger Ideas:
- How Scott decided to take down the cold exposure fad 00:07:45
- Dave’s story about mountaineering 00:17:00
- The process of evolution 00:19:20
- Evidence that we need fluctuations 00:21:20
- In the movie of my life 00:25:30
- How do you be a biohacker and rustic at the same time? 00:31:20
- How Scott did the coldest obstacle course race in England 00:37:30
- What is “the wedge?” 00:41:00
- Our system craves homeostasis and will find it naturally 00:45:40
Go check out “Game Changers“, “Headstrong” and “The Bulletproof Diet” on Amazon and consider leaving a review!
If you like today’s episode, check us out on Apple Podcasts at Bulletproof.com/iTunes and leave us a 5-star rating and a creative review.
