It’s the first Friday of the month. Which means it’s time to Burn the Ships.

On the first Friday of every month, we publish a new Burn the Ships workout for Members only.

Members of the Two Percent community do the workout every weekend—a bunch of us satellites, all sweating and improving together as one extensive network.

This month we’re getting our body in order for the New Year.

We’re laying a foundation for stronger and more resilient performance all year by leveraging fundamental human movement patterns that help you become stronger, faster, and tougher.

And it starts with your core, which is the foundation that all of your limbs work from. It’s like your body’s control center.

If your core is weak, you’ll be more at risk of back and lower body injuries, and your performance will suffer. There’s also a strong link between core strength and longevity.

Become a Member of Two Percent to get full details and video of the workout. TWOPCT.com

Join our tribe at TWOPCT.com.

Modern humans have engineered the world for comfort and ease.

Most people rarely step outside of their comfort zones these days—we’re living progressively soft, sterile, temperature-controlled, over-fed, under-challenged, safety-netted lives. And it’s slowly limiting the degree to which we experience our, as the poet Mary Oliver put it, “one wild and precious life.”

But a growing body of evidence shows that people are at their best—physically harder, mentally tougher, and spiritually sounder—after doing hard sh*t. We’re talking about pushing back against our world of ease and comfort and actively seeking occasional hardship.

Michael will unpack the science of why doing hard things is so beneficial. He’ll cover:

* What a month in the Arctic taught him about the value of doing hard things.

* The state of modern comfort and how it presents a conundrum.

* Why you’re wired to do hard things.

Today Michael is speaking with Tamar Haspel one of his favorite, no-BS thinkers about food, nutrition, and health.

Tamar is the author of To Boldly Grow (a hilarious, info-packed book I loved) and a food, nutrition, and health columnist for The Washington Post.

Tamar is also a serial killer of food myths and misconceptions—a sharp thinker who understands the science of what we eat and can put it in context of everyday life.

* Tamar and Michael cover:

* The truth about eggs and why expensive, locally-farmed eggs taste the same as cheap, mass-produced ones.

* Understanding obesity and the food environment

* The realities of being overweight (particularly as a woman)

* Why we know less about nutrition than we think, and how that should guide our food choices. Think: Hedge your bets.

* The truth about organic food—myths about it, it’s costs and benefits.

* Diet soda and whether it’s unhealthy.

* How to navigate the modern food environment.

* Whether exercise is good for weight loss.

* Whether government subsidies around corn and soy led to the rise in obesity.

* Food dyes and the new administration’s push to remove them. Will it matter?

* Is red meat good or bad for you?

* Are plant-based meats a viable alternative to real meat? What are their health effects?

* The benefits of lentils and Tamar’s epic recipe to help you eat more lentils (which, she argues, are a food we should all be eating).

* Ozempic and Tamar’s thoughts on it.

* Tamar’s journey growing her own food, and what she learned from it.

* A few quick words on hunting.

Become a Member at TWOPCT.com

*Member Episode* We're diving into the complicated world of exercise and weight loss. New science suggests exercise doesn't help you lose weight. It turns out that isn't true—so long as you use the right tactics.

You'll learn five new ways to think about exercise and use it to lose fat. These laws can help you make smarter decisions and save you time and effort—all while improving your health.

To listen to the full episode, go to TWOPCT.com and become a Member of 2%.

Michael explores the truth about a controversial new idea in fitness, called the "Constrained Energy Hypothesis." It states that we don't actually burn more calories a day when we exercise. But it has some pushback.

• This episode will help clear some recent confusion over whether exercise helps us burn more calories across a day.
• More research shows that exercise does indeed help you burn more calories, but you won't burn as many as you think.
• And if you want to lose weight through exercise, you'll have to do a lot of it.
• You'll learn just how many calories exercise really burns and how much you'll have to exercise to find an effect.

Thanks for listening. Become a Member at TWOPCT.com.

*Member Episode* Michael covers this month's Burn the Ships workout. We drop a Burn the Ships workout on the first Friday of every month and all do it once a week for the entire month. You'll learn what the workout is and the physical and mental benefits of doing one tough workout a week.

Our workout this month is called "Don't Die." It builds the two skills you need to live and perform well now—and in a s**t-is-hitting-the-fan scenario.

To get full access to the workout, become a Member of 2% at TWOPCT.com.

*Member episode* The topic of caffeine, like all topics in the health world, is rife with all sorts of good and bad information. Today, Michael covers a new, sweeping review that investigated the most common claims around caffeine.

Michael will highlight nine of them that matter most. We'll cover:

• Whether coffee dehydrates you.
• If pregnant women should avoid caffeine.
• If you should wait 90 to 120 minutes to ingest caffeine after waking up to avoid an afternoon crash.
• Whether drinking coffee regularly lessens its effects on fitness performance.
• Whether caffeine burns fat and how much it takes.
• If caffeine can cause depression and anxiety.
• Whether caffeine can kill you.
• If there are people for who caffeine doesn't work (non-responders)
• If caffeine improves fitness, and what dose it takes.

To access the full episode, become a Member of 2% at TWOPCT.com.

Michael dives into the topic of what happens when you drink too much caffeine. We'll talk about:

• What happens when you quit caffeine.
• Why quitting caffeine could lead to weight loss, better sleep, more energy, and less anxiety and stress.
• The amount of caffeine the Mayo Clinic says can lead to problems. 
• How much caffeine the average American takes in and how much caffeine is in common drinks like coffee.
• How to find out if you're overdoing caffeine. 
• The two best methods to detox from caffeine. 

Become a Member at TWOPCT.com 

*Member episode* In today's AMA, Michael explains his complicated and evolving thoughts on ice baths. You'll learn:

• A quick history of cold exposure for improving health, injury, and exercise recovery.
• Why I think ice baths/cold exposure is popular now (hint: it has little to do with health or recovery).
• What the research says about ice baths and exercise.
• What research says about ice baths and fat loss.
• What the research says about ice baths and physical and mental health.
• Why and how I changed my mind about ice baths.
• How I personally use cold exposure.
• Final thoughts on whether ice baths are a temporary trend or permanent fixture of the health world.

For full access to this podcast and to access all the great content on TWOPCT.com, please become a Member. Go to TWOPCT.com.

*Member Episode* Michael explains what he thinks about saunas and heat exposure. 

The research around heat exposure therapy is interesting ...but using a sauna can feel like one more thing on a laundry list of health practices we should all be "doing."

This episode explores how Michael thinks about heat exposure from an evolutionary perspective, his thoughts on saunas, and how he uses heat exposure in his life.

You'll walk away with a practical and powerful perspective on leveraging the power of the heat.

To access the full episode, become a Member of 2% at TWOPCT.com, the internet's best site for practical and powerful health information.

Michael reveals his thoughts on heat therapy—like saunas—after speaking with the world's leading heat-exposure researcher. You'll learn:

• Whether heat exposure therapy is worth it. (Hint: It depends on who you are).
• How heat therapy seems to offer some strong health benefits that mimic (but don't trump) exercise.
• Why heat therapy's impacts on fitness aren't as strong, but may be worthwhile for experimenters and elite athletes.
• How to figure out if heat therapy is worth it for you and the best way to do it.

To read all the graphs and data mentioned in the episode, go to TWOPCT.com.

Become a Member of 2% at TWOPCT.com to get full access to all of our episodes (Monday is always free, but only Members get full access to Wednesday and Friday posts).

*Member Post* This month's episode of The Expedition dives into a handful of important topics for your health, performance, and mindset. 

We're covering:

• A timely documentary I re-watched—I think it’s the best documentary ever made.
• Fascinating numbers on:
• How far Walmart workers walk during a shift.
• The number of steps that protects against the world’s top killer.
• How Gold Medal-winning Olympians balance intense training with relaxed training.
• The power of one additional hour of sleep.
• Data on being vegetarian.
• The dose of creatine per day that increased recovery.
• The three dirtiest supplements and how I think about supplements—a hotly debated topic.
• The benefits of basic foods and problems with “natural” foods.
• A great reading tool.
• A spectacular, long, cutting quote about taxes.
• An important parting question and a prolonged, grievance-laden rant from me related to the question.

To access the full episode, become a Member of 2% at TWOPCT.com. We're the best spot for practical, actionable information that can help you live better right now. 

*Member Episode* Today we're exploring fascinating and important findings about how sitting impacts health. You'll learn:

• Why inactivity is a source of pain and disease in Western people.
• Why some people are just as inactive as Westerners yet they avoid pain and disease.
• How changing how you rest can improve your health and performance, and also help you avoid pain.
• The origins of the “inactivity mismatch hypothesis” and three effective ways to improve how you rest to boost your health and performance.

To get full access to this episode and the best and most practical information on health, fitness, and living better, become a Member at TWOPCT.com. 

You'll save more time and money than the monthly cost.

It’s the first Friday of the month. This means it’s time for Burn the Ships, Two Percent’s monthly, highly effective workout.

This month, we’re combining some of my favorite exercises into a total-body thresher to end the year on a high, sweaty note.

This workout is particularly great at building fitness you can—um—actually use. It’ll help you move, breathe, look, and live better.

The workout is adaptable no matter your fitness level or schedule. You’ll select the number of rounds of the workout you’d like to do. This way anyone and everyone can burn the ships.

Like last month’s workout, you can do this workout nearly anywhere. It also requires little equipment.

Become a Member of Two Percent to get full details and video of the workout. TWOPCT.com

We tend to think getting lost is a bad thing, but it has legitimate benefits for our mindset, health, and creativity. We're covering:

• Six powerful reasons why getting lost can be so great ...
• ... and three great ways to get lost and reap the benefits.

To learn more and read the referenced material, go to TWOPCT.com.

Want full access to our full archive of 2% material? Become a Member at TWOPCT.com.

*Member Episode* This month's Gear Not Stuff episode features five amazing books and what I’ve learned from them. These books changed my thinking on: 

• Navigating the modern food system and what to eat. 
• Staying healthy in this strange modern world. 
• Expressing myself on the page through writing. 
• Telling a better and more persuasive story and weaving important information into those stories. 
• Living better in a world full of distractions.

Go to TWOPCT.com to listen to the full episode and watch the video breakdown of each book. Your Membership gets you full access to this podcast and its post and video on TWOPCT, the full archive of 2%, and many other perks.

*2% Member Episode* — Today we're covering the impacts of back pain and a new study that found the best way to prevent and relieve back pain. Topics include:

• Wild stats on back pain and why back pain is the most common and debilitating pain. More than 80% of people experience it in their life.
• Why back pain creates downstream effects that can severely impact long-term health and longevity.
• A new study that investigated the most effective types of exercise to treat back pain.
• The three best exercises to bulletproof your back so you can move free now and into old, old age.

To see the relevant graphs and figures for free, go to TWOPCT.com. 

To access the full episode, please go to TWOPCT.com and become a Member. We'll save you more time and money than the nominal monthly cost.

UFC 300 is this weekend. Fighters will lose up to 20 pounds in the five days before weigh-ins. Then they'll gain it all back in the 36 hours before the fight. 

We're covering the science of this extreme weight loss and the four lessons you can take from it. You'll learn:

• What to do when your weight changes day-to-day.
• The truth about low-carb diet results.
• How “calories in, calories out” is true but misses the big picture.
• How to lose weight in a way that makes you look and feel better—for the long haul.

To read the full post or become a Member, go to TWOPCT.com.

Michael reveals this month's Burn the Ships workout, the internet's most fun and effective monthly workout.

You'll learn the science of how often you should do tough workouts, and we'll give the details on this month's workout, called Operation Tiger. It's designed to make you stronger in every way so you can do epic stuff outdoors. It'll help you:

• Climb mountains.
• Hike, run, or ruck stronger down any trail.
• Chase down kids and grandkids.
• Be the Babe Ruth of your rec softball league or the Roger Federer of pickleball.
• Mostly, it’ll help you have more fun and not die in any active endeavor.

To get all the details on the workout and how to do it, go to TWOPCT.com. If you want full access to all the great content on 2% and all our Member podcasts, please become a Member of 2% at TWOPCT.com.

Michael explains an incredibly sensical and effective path to improvement. You'll learn:

• Why traditional goal setting fails anywhere from 80 to 95 percent of the time.
• A radical new way to think of improvement. It's not only easier, it's also more effective (and backed by decades of behavioral psychology).
• Tactics to use the method to improve your nutrition, work productivity, and fitness. 

Michael learned the method from Dr. Trevor Kashey, the supergenius featured in Michael's book, The Comfort Crisis. 

Dr. Kashey has used the method to help people lose and keep off more than 100 pounds, win olympic gold medals, double the revenue of their businesses, and increase their productive output at work.

Get all the details at TWOPCT.com

Note: Monday podcasts are always fully accessible to all. But you must be a Member of 2% to get full access to Wednesday and Friday podcasts.

Michael explains how he's physically preparing for the GORUCK 50-mile rucking event in Normandy in June. You'll learn:

• Five big-picture training strategies for long rucks.
• How to implement those strategies.
• What a week of my training plan looks like.

You may not be rucking 50 miles, but the information in this podcast can help you ruck any distance better so you can radically improve your fitness. 

Being able to ruck farther also shifts your mindset. Long rucks redefine what you consider "long," expanding your comfort zone in all physical endeavors. 

To read the full post or become a Member of 2%, go to TWOPCT.com. 

Michael talks about a 2-minute workout finisher he did to prepare for an expedition into some of the toughest mountains on earth. He's doing it again to prepare for a mountain run event and an 80k ruck in Normandy.

The drill is brutal if you do it as instructed—but also brutally effective. You'll hate us as you do it but thank us when:

• Your rucking improves.
• Your knee pain goes away.
• You can power up mountains on your hikes and trail runs.
• Your legs and assets look better.
• Etc, etc, etc.

Have fun, don't die. And check out TWOPCT.com for videos of the drill, references, and more.

Michael covers an important new study that shows us three tacts to run farther, faster, with less effort. You'll learn.

• How not to run.
• Findings from a giant study investigating running form and technique.
• Common running advice the study debunked.
• The three tactics the study found work to help you run farther, faster, with less effort.
• Tips and drills to apply those three tactics.

Please go to TWOPCT.com to access the full podcast, video of the exercises, and links to all the posts and studies mentioned.

Note: Monday podcasts are always fully accessible to all. But you must be a Member of 2% to get full access to Wednesday and Friday podcasts. Become a Member at TWOPCT.com. Our promise is to save you more time and money than the monthly fee.

Michael reveals important and surprising findings from the World Happiness Report—one of the world’s most extensive happiness studies—and what you can learn from them. He covers:

• Unexpected and nuanced findings on how being social impacts happiness. (It’s not as simple as “spend more time with others.”)
• How to leverage the once-a-month rule of helping others.
• How you can use screen time to boost happiness.
• How to exit a negative behavior loop fed by seeking happiness.
• Why happiness is a counterproductive goal, and what actually leads to happiness.

To access the full podcast and links to all the pieces and studies mentioned, please go to TWOPCT.com.

Note: Monday podcasts are always fully accessible to all. But you must be a Member of 2% to get full access to Wednesday and Friday podcasts. Become a Member at TWOPCT.com. Our promise is to save you more time and money than the monthly fee.

Michael’s first job was acting as Fitness Editor for Men’s Health magazine.

In that role, he spoke to the world’s top athletes to its greatest health scientists and athletic trainers.

When these experts sent an exercise or workout, Michael had to test it to ensure it would work for Men’s Health readers. He vetted hundreds and hundreds of exercises.

And he’s kept all the best exercises in a file ever since.

Two Percent is running a new monthly series that goes into the file and releases Michael’s favorite exercises of all time.

We’ll feature one exercise that works wonders for anyone who has a body and uses it. That is to say, you.

Michael explains what we can do to help the declining mental health rates, especially among teens. He covers:

• His recent appearance on Fox News to talk about the issue.
• Why teens are more susceptible to issues from smartphones and how adults are at risk of the same problems. 
• Why the issue isn't as simple as "use your phone less." This one hits adults hard.
• What we can do at a governmental and institutional level to solve the smartphone conundrum.
• What parents who have kids and teens should consider doing to set their kids up for success.

To access the full podcast and links to all the pieces and studies mentioned, please go to TWOPCT.com and become a Member. 

Michael gives a last call to join the 2% Screen Time Challenge and then reveals his 12 favorite smartphone apps. These applications cover a wide range—from fitness and nutrition to mindfulness and music and much more. They'll improve your ideas, nutrition, productivity, fitness, mindset, and many other important facets of your life. Get 'em. Improve. Have fun, don't die.

Read more at TWOPCT.com

Note: Monday podcasts are always fully accessible to all. But you must be a Member of 2% to get full access to Wednesday and Friday podcasts. Become a Member at TWOPCT.com. Our promise is to save you more time and money than the monthly fee.

Today's episode will help you get your time and attention back. We're introducing the 2% Screen Time Challenge in partnership with Clearspace. Sign up for the challenge at TWOPCT.com. You'll learn:

• Why we're doing the 2% Screen Time Challenge and how it works. (Bonus: The challenge winner gets a GORUCK ruck and 2% dad hat).
• Why Michael hasn't found a better method to reduce screen time than the Clearspace app.
• How Clearspace "works" by breaking The Scarcity Loop, which is the most powerful behavior loop. Michael wrote about The Scarcity Loop in his NYT Bestseller Scarcity Brain (it's the ultimate addictive habit loop).
• How to think about your own time and attention to have a more meaningful life.
• Why high tech problems like screen time need high tech solutions (not methods like "hide your phone," or "get a dumb phone.")
• Why Clearspace is an ideal solution—Rather than banning apps altogether, Clearspace helps users get the upsides of apps and none of their downsides.
• And more.

Enjoy. Read more at TWOPCT.com.

Note: Monday podcasts are always fully accessible to all. But you must be a Member of 2% to get full access to Wednesday and Friday podcasts. Become a Member at TWOPCT.com. Our promise is to save you more time and money than the monthly fee.

Friday was the biggest Black Friday of all time, and Americans bought more stuff than ever. We spend $1.2 trillion each year on stuff we don’t need.

When we own too much, we’re often guided into “minimalism.” But minimalism comes with its own set of problems.

We’re dropping some unreleased material from my book Scarcity Brain that explains:

* The three types of buyers (which are you?).

* Why people really buy in excess.

* Why minimalism can be an opposite expression of the same problem as buying way too much.

* The underlying reason people hoard or minimize.

* A 4-question purchasing framework that will help you buy items you actually need—items that improve your life—and forgo those you don’t need.

Asking these deeper questions about why we buy or get rid of things leads to the best outcomes. It leads to larger shifts in our happiness and finances, and allow us to accomplish much more with our resources, time, and this ride we call life.

The holidays are the make-or-break season for long-term health.

The average person gains 1 to 5 pounds between Thanksgiving and New Year’s—but they typically don’t lose it.

Research shows that this holiday weight accumulates year over year and accounts for why people tend to gain weight as they age.

Hence, avoiding holiday weight gain is critical for staying healthy over your lifespan.

Michael will cover seven research and practice-backed strategies to do just that.

They’ll help you avoid holiday weight gain, leverage it for better fitness, develop healthy habits that last all year, and more.

The humble potato is the original superfood.

Eat potatoes on Thanksgiving and many more days after and you’ll be healthier.

Michael will explain why potatoes:

* Are shockingly healthy.

* Helped build civilizations.

* Are one of the best weight control foods.

* Are one of the most cost-effective health foods.

* Can fuel your workouts and build your fitness.

Become a Member to get full access to all three weekly Two Percent podcasts and posts. TWOPCT.com.

A Misogi is an epic challenge with a 50/50 shot at failure. We do it each year to explore and expand our edges.

I wrote about the concept of Misogi in The Comfort Crisis, and a Two Percent reader recently had a useful question about Misogi. Their question:

* What’s a beginner Misogi?

It’s a great question because Misogi is a practice everyone and anyone can and should do.

In the video above, I answer the question and explain why Misogi is such an important practice to expand human potential, the historical precedence for Misogi, and more.

Today Michael is covering the power of rucking meetings.

Taking meetings while walking with a weighted pack is one of the best ways to sneak in activity and improve your health, fitness, and mindset.

\Walking and rucking meetings can decrease your risk of all-cause mortality by 40 percent and increase your work productivity by 8 to 60 percent.

You’ll get powerful zone 1 and 2 exercise when you otherwise would have been sitting—and walking meetings don’t require you to take time out of your busy schedule for a traditional workout.

But doing them right requires the right strategies and tactics.

Michael will explain the six key strategies you must know to make rucking and walking meetings successful.

He developed them over the last five years of regularly taking meetings while walking with weight.

For full access to the episode, become a Member of Two Percent at TWOPCT.com.

New companies allow us to go around doctors and get blood work that checks for 100+ biomarkers or a full-body MRI to scan for cancer when we don’t have symptoms.

The idea of taking your health into your own hands and preventing disease with a direct-to-consumer test sounds perfect in theory.

But there are some downsides to consider if you test yourself, and knowing those downsides can help you get better health outcomes from the test.

To learn more, Michael chatted with Dr. Bobby Dubois—an M.D., researcher, and Ph.D. in health policy—about how we should think about direct-to-consumer blood tests and disease screenings.

They cover:

* Preventative tests that are currently available to consumers, from blood tests that check 100+ markers to full-body MRIs and blood screenings that detect cancer.

* The upsides of these tests.

* The differences between preventative, direct-to-consumer medical tests and doctor-ordered medical tests.

* Why the results of medical tests and scans aren’t perfect, and how those imperfections can lead to unnecessary stress, costs, procedures, and your ability to get life insurance.

* Understanding the math behind preventative blood testing—why you’re likely to have at least one blood marker out of range and why that can be misleading.

* What to do if you get a direct-to-consumer test and it comes back with abnormalities.

* How abnormalities in your results are like the credit card fraud alerts you get from your bank.

* What the data says about routine screenings compared to preventative full-body MRIs and direct-to-consumer blood tests.

* The three categories of cancer and how full-body MRIs are helpful for only one of them.

* The counterintuitive downsides of catching a certain category of cancer with a full body MRI.

* Questions to ask your doctor if they’d like you to get a medical test like a CAT scan, MRI, or special type of blood work.

* Bobby’s final thoughts on direct-to-consumer preventative medical tests.

Become a Member of Two Percent at TWOPCT.com.

The Expedition covers the most worthwhile and impactful ideas Michael discovered in the last month.

This month, we’re covering:

* Numbers on:

* How much caffeine disturbs your sleep (this surprised me!)

* A 16-year-old girl who is as strong as an ox.

* Rising rates of pre-diabetes among kids.

* How exercise impacts the brain for weeks.

* Dipshit fitness influencers.

* Environmental pollution changes.

* Willie Nelson albums.

* How muscle and power change after age 40.

* Mike Tyson fighting Jake Paul.

* GLP-1s and addiction

* The four qualities of resilience (build ‘em and benefit).

* A 30-second fitness longevity challenge.

* The optimal dose and timing of melatonin to sleep better.

* A 29-minute, 33-second podcast encapsulating my health ideas.

* How AI will transform scientific discovery and innovation.

* A good parting quote.

Go to TWOPCT.com to get full access to this episode.

To send out 2024, Michael is highlighting the 11 bests stories he published on Two Percent (TWOPCT.com).

These stories made us think differently, gave us actionable information, and improved our lives.

He also has a quick thanks for listeners and explains the mission and values of Two Percent. Join our community and discover our tense of living. TWOPCT.com.

Also, don’t go comfortably into 2025: check out our Two Percent New Year Challenge starting January 1st.

Last episode, Michael explored circadian rhythms and how they influence health. That episode was based on a conversation with Lynne Peeples, author of The Inner Clock.

Today Michael is following up on some important topics we didn’t get to in that episode.

You’ll learn:

* Michael’s perfect day and how he’s used and diverged from the advice of circadian science. This has lessons for self-reliance.

* How to use circadian science for better fitness. For example, to run a faster marathon.

* How to use circadian science to improve your performance at work.

* How to use circadian science to get a better outcome if you had a medical procedure or treatment, or had to take a medication.

Circadian rhythms—the 24-hour cycles humans evolved to live and function under—are a hot topic in health and wellness right now.

But the field of circadian science also contains a lot of junk science and advice.

Michael spoke with Lynne Peeples, author of the new book The Inner Clock, to get the most helpful, high-impact information around circadian rhythms.

You’ll learn:

* Why modern life works against our natural circadian rhythms.

* The link between circadian rhythms and disease, depression, and decreased athletic performance.

* Low-effort, high-impact ways to improve your circadian biology. This advice can help you lose weight, sleep and perform better, and more.

* How Lynne would design an ideal day around circadian rhythms.

* What to do if you ever work late nights (which can be hell for your circadian biology).

* Myths about circadian rhythms (this one was fun).

* Lynne’s insane personal experiment around circadian rhythms.

* The impact of daylight savings time and why we should kill it.

Go to TWOPCT.com to become a Member and get full access to all of our posts and podcasts.

People tend to be less active in winter because of cold temperatures—and that hurts our fitness and metabolic and mental health.

But the problem isn’t the cold. The problem is gear. We often don’t know the right outdoor exercise apparel and how to layer it as a system to stay warm and dry.

This episode covers seven rules of exercising outdoors this winter and teaches you how to build the perfect system to stay warm.

Michael also reveals his seven favorite pieces of cold-weather exercise gear.

The result: You’ll exercise outside more this winter, which will help you stay healthy and fit, avoid winter blues and weight gain, and even sleep better.

Two Percent recently held the Don’t Die event in the desert outside of Las Vegas.

We covered all sorts skills that are critical for survival in hostile situations at home and abroad. Everything from escaping handcuffs, hotel security, Don’t Die fitness, getting information from others, driving techniques, and staying fit, healthy, and sane in the trenches of daily life.

The course included lessons about mindset. That’s because your mindset determines how you express critical skills, live well, and survive. This could include surviving a natural disaster, a dangerous situation during travel, or even a scary health diagnosis.

Today, Michael is covering three mindset lessons from that event.

They’ll help you stay safe, reach goals, and live longer and better.

Most people will tune into U.S. election coverage this week—often compulsively and to the detriment of their time and sanity.

Election coverage has become just like a slot machine. It can pull us into The Scarcity Loop, the most powerful habit loop for sucking us into behaviors we repeat over and over and later regret.

Michael will explain the architecture of The Scarcity Loop and how it affects our time and attention this U.S. election week.

The result: You’ll learn what you can do to avoid the election Scarcity Loop and stay sane this week.

Or, at least, do something more productive than obsessively monitoring an outcome you can’t change once you’ve voted.

It’s the first Friday of the month. This means it’s time for Burn the Ships, Two Percent’s monthly, highly effective workout.

Over the next couple of months, the holidays may throw your routine off the rails with extended time traveling, entertaining, and prepping for the holidays.

So this month’s Burn the Ships workout is an antidote to that.

* You don’t need gear. All it takes is your body weight.

* You can do it anywhere. Anywhere at all.

* A bedroom, a garage, a driveway, a backyard, a living room, a hotel room, a hotel gym, a jail cell … you get the point.

* You don’t need much time—it takes just 35 minutes.

In short: It recognizes that the holidays are busy and meets us where we’re at. But it still allows us to stay in killer shape and fight back against the shortage of movement and excess of food the holidays often bring.

To Burn the Ships with us, become a Member of Two Percent.

Last week, Michael covered why more strength isn’t always better and why you should aim to be “strong enough.”

We featured an exercise that tells you when your lower body is strong enough.

You asked for similar “strong enough” exercises for your upper body.

That’s what this episode covers—we’re featuring two upper body exercises that tell you when you’re strong enough in two key movements.

To access the full episode and video of the exercises at Two Percent, become a Member at TWOPCT.com.

Michael needs your help, questions, and ideas for a big new project on rucking/walking with weight.

He wants to to hear:

* Questions you have about rucking/walking with weight.

* Tips that have helped you do it better.

* Any other thoughts/anecdotes you’d like to share.

* Fill out this quick, three-question form if you’re up for helping.

This episode of Two Percent would be truly parasitic if it were just Michael asking you for a favor.

So as a thanks for filling out the form, we’ll also cover five high-impact tips around walking with weight that have helped many people get started and do it better.

Enjoy.

Today Michael is answering the following questions from Two Percent readers:

* What’s your opinion on the health effects of drinking, and if I’m drinking too much, how do I stop?

* How can I get really fit in one year?

Here’s why these questions matter.

The alcohol question:

* The debate over the health effects of alcohol is hotter than ever.

* Many health influencers now say you should have a zero-tolerance policy with alcohol, meaning any amount of alcohol is bad and not good for your health.

* I disagree.

* I think some amount of alcohol can actually be health-promoting—but the amount of alcohol we drink and context we drink it in is what determines whether it’s health or not.

* We’ll also explain how to think about not drinking if you think you drink too much.

* The current medical literature describes substance abuse as a “brain disease.” But I think that’s wrong. Rather, I think it’s a signal that needs to be unpacked.

The getting fit in a year question.

* I’m going to do you one better: I’ll explain how to get fit in six month.

* This matters because, if you’re currently sedentary, getting fit is one of the best things you can do for health and longevity.

* But people new to fitness often go about it wrong.

* I’ll explain a six month action plan that’ll get you fit. Really fit. I’ve seen it work on many people.

* Below you also find a short template for how to approach this.

To get access to the full episode, become a Member at TWOPCT.com

We often think it’s best to be as strong as possible.

But chasing strength for the sake of it can backfire.

It’s likely better for your time and long-term health and performance to be “strong enough.”

Michael will explain what “strong enough” is and how to reach it safer and in a way that translates to better performance and health.

He’ll also highlight a great leg exercise that gets you “strong enough.” See a video of the exercise at TWOPCT.com.

Want to actually make some big improvements in your health, fitness, nutrition, and mindset this year? Of course you do.

We’re launching the Two Percent New Year Challenge on January 1st.

It’s a sustainable, science-backed path to help you build health, fitness, nutrition, and mindset habits that will improve your entire year.

In today’s episode, Michael will explain the science, philosophy, and details of The Challenge.

The Challenge will run from January 1st to 31st and is exclusively for Members of Two Percent. Become a Member at TWOPCT.com.

Don’t go comfortably into 2025—join The Challenge. Sign up at TWOPCT.com

The places where people gather and connect are changing—and that’s impacting our health and society.

There’s a good case for going down to the bar, or church, or volunteer club, or (insert any place where you gather with others).

Today on Two Percent, we’re speaking with Gwendolyn (Wendy) Bounds, author of the Not Too Late Substack and a book called Little Chapel on the River that dives deeply into this topics. Wendy and Michael covered:

* What Wendy learned about community, connection, and resilience while working at in a hole-in-the-wall pub in Garrison, New York.

* How local gathering spaces have changed over the last 40 years and how that impacts resilience and health.

* The importance of “third places” outside of home and work.

* How technology has altered human interactions and why finding a positive online community is so important.

* How political conversations have shifted over the last 20 years.

* The differences in the resilience that came after 9/11 versus after the COVID-19 pandemic.

* How Wendy found community in the world of obstacle course racing.

* If you’d rather watch this episode in video form, go to TWOPCT.com.

The Expedition covers the most worthwhile and impactful ideas Michael discovered in the last month.

This month, we’re covering:

* Numbers on:

* How many minutes of TikTok gets kids hooked.

* A new marathon world record.

* The amount of money pharma companies paid to influence studies.

* Your odds of dying if you regularly ride a motorcycle

* How mental health issues impact longevity.

* How much your genes influence your body fat.

* An explosion in farming yields.

* The percentage of people who reveal their true political opinions.

* How ice baths impact muscle repair.

* Miles a lost cat trekked to get back home.

* Fact check: Did America really start losing weight?

* Las Vegas blowing s**t up in fabulous Las Vegas fashion.

* A fascinating take on the real reason fit people criticize those who lose weight using Ozempic.

* My thoughts on Ozempic and other GLP1s.

* The research on how many people are toxic online.

* A killer core exercise (I love this one)

* A parting quote.

* A critical parting question.

To read the full post and find links, watch videos, and more, go to TWOPCT.com.

Become a Member of Two Percent at TWOPTC.com.

Steps are critical for your health—step more, die later.

But until now, some popular activity tracking companies like WHOOP have resisted steps and proudly proclaimed they don’t count steps.

Yet WHOOP recently caved and started counting steps.

Today Michael will cover why steps are uniquely valuable and different from exercise, and why knowing your step counts can be like gasoline for:

* Overall health, wellness, metabolic health, and calorie burn.

* Avoiding weight loss plateaus.

* Building killer endurance and avoiding a strange and troubling problem that is uniquely American.

He’ll also cover early data WHOOP’s step count accuracy, and the step accuracy of six other tracking brands.