Mar 21, 2020
The author of the New York Times bestselling
Genius Foods: Become Smarter, Happier, and More Productive While
Protecting Your Brain for Life, previous podcast guest on the
episodes: The Surprising Facts
About What Bread Does To Your Brain (And What You Can Do About
It) and also Why A High-Fat, Ketogenic
Diet Chock Full Of Saturated Fat, Coconut Oil & Butter Could Be
Destroying Your Brain (& What To Do About It) is back!
His name is Max Lugavere and his new book The Genius Life: Heal Your Mind,
Strengthen Your Body, and Become Extraordinary features
a lifestyle program for resetting your brain and body to its
“factory settings,” to help fight fatigue, anxiety, and depression
and to optimize cognitive health for a longer and healthier
life.
In The Genius Life, Max
expands the Genius Foods plan,
which focused on nutrition and how it affects brain health, and
expands it to encompass a full lifestyle protocol. We know now that
the health of our brains—including our cognitive function and
emotional wellness—depend on the health of our gut, endocrine,
cardiac and nervous systems as there is a constant feedback loop
between all systems.
Drawing on globe-spanning research into circadian biology,
psychology, dementia prevention, cognitive optimization, and
exercise physiology, The Genius Life shows how to integrate healthy
choices in all aspects of our daily routines: eating, exercising,
sleeping, detoxing, and more to create a healthy foundation for
optimal cognitive health and performance. Among Max’s
groundbreaking findings, you will discover:
· A trick that gives you the equivalent of a “marathon”
workout, in 10 minutes
· How to get the benefits of an extra 1-2 servings of
veggies daily without eating them
· The hidden chemicals in your home that could be making you
fat and sick
· How to boost melatonin levels by up to 58% for deeper
sleep without supplements
Max is a filmmaker, health and science journalist and author. He
is also the host of the #1 iTunes health podcast The Genius Life.
Lugavere appears regularly on the Dr. Oz Show, the Rachael Ray
Show, and The Doctors. He has contributed to Medscape, Vice, Fast
Company, CNN, and the Daily Beast, has been featured on NBC Nightly
News, The Today Show, and in The New York Times and People
Magazine.
He is an internationally sought-after speaker and has given
talks at South by Southwest, TEDx, the New York Academy of
Sciences, the Biohacker Summit in Stockholm, Sweden, and many
others...
During our discussion, you'll discover:
-Just how bad is bread?...8:08
- It's one of humanity's oldest and most revered processed
foods
- Max's views have softened slightly over the years
- Grains can serve a functional purpose
- Glycogen storage
- Help to power through resistance training
- Not as toxic as made out to be, but not the most ideal option
available
- Changed views on brown rice
- Preparation methods are important
- Avoid GMO forms of GMO foods
- No such thing as a one size fits all diet, nor an exercise
regimen
- Increased carbs in the diet may lead to increased strength
(performance enhancing tool)
-How Max's views on MDMA have evolved over the
years...19:45
- Being used to treat PTSD; given "breakthrough drug" status by
the FDA
- Being used to treat alcoholism, autism
- Chronically dangerous to the brain; imbalance in
neurotransmitters
- Serotonin is modulated w/ MDMA
- Acute doses are limited in potential harm; benefits outweigh
the risks
- Psilocybin can reduce activity in default mode network in the
brain
- Can damage mitochondria when consumed in large amounts
- Dr. John Lieurance's glutathione/antioxidant suppositories (code:
BEN)
-Max's overall goal in writing The Genius Life...29:00
- The goal was to help people identify diseases such as dementia
or cancer years or decades before they manifest physically
- Genius Foods was to identify
which foods affect the brain
- We're essentially in "The Hunger Games" books
- Sedentary, addicted to devices, rampant stress, circadian
rhythms are out of sync
- The default state of any organism is health; our society is
anything but healthy
- Max's mom developed dementia at a young age; was eventually
diagnosed w/ pancreatic cancer
- Conditions don't develop overnight
- Prevention is not discussed by and large in mainstream
medicine
- Cachexia: extreme muscle wasting
- Certain cancers are hormonally related
- Book: Eat To Beat Disease
by William Li
-Fish consumption and optimizing brain health...46:00
- Fear of consuming mercury w/ fish is overblown; the benefits
outweigh the risks
- Selenium: mercury ratio in fish is key
- People who eat more fish have better health; protection against
Alzheimers
- Women who eat more fish have smarter kids
- Oily fish (wild salmon, mackerel, sardines) are preferable
- Lifestyle considerations:
-Healthy detoxification...51:26
-Why Max advocates increasing protein intake...55:45
- Confusing mechanism w/ outcomes
- The benefits outweigh the risks
- Calorie restriction is
how to enhance longevity
- Reasons to increase protein:
- In old age, double the allowance helps maintain muscle
mass
- Inverse relationship between increased protein and amyloid
plaque
- More protein = less carbs and fat
- Protein leverage hypothesis: hunger mechanisms are leveraged by
need for essential amino acids
- Protein is the most satiating of the macronutrients; metabolic
advantage
- Very nutrient-dense foods
- Having more muscle mass
is crucial for longevity
- Ensure protein you consume is buffered w/ collagen or the amino
acids contained therein
- Book: The
Switch by James Clement
- BGF podcast w/ Wild
Health MD
- Supplement w/ magnesium
-Max's big wins regarding biohacking, food prep,
etc...1:05:08
- Drink clean water
- Time spent in nature
- 30 minutes of sunlight in the morning
- Suprachiasmatic nucleus controls circadian rhythms
- 20 minutes in nature can reduce cortisol levels
- Staying active
- 2 minutes of activity for every 30 minutes sedentary can reset
the blood flow to the brain
- Fascia is a piezoelectric tissue
- Foam roller, deep
tissue work can be mildly addicting
-Max's favorite workout regimens...1:13:45
- Resistance and strength training
- Cut back on carbs, lost efficacy in strength training
- Not a fan of steady-state cardio; lots of NEAT throughout the day
- Staying active boosts lymph fluids
- Keep protein intake up: 1.6 g/kg of lean mass
- High intensity repeat training
- Joe Rogan podcast w/ Pavel
Tsatsouline
- You can have a great body w/out obsessing over fitness
- Be more present with your food; distractions while eating can
increase calorie consumption
-And much more!
Resources from this episode:
- BGF podcasts w/ Max Lugavere:
- The Genius Life: Heal
Your Mind, Strengthen Your Body, and Become Extraordinary
-
Genius Foods: Become Smarter, Happier, and More Productive While
Protecting Your Brain for Life
- Gluten intolerance and
glyphosate link
- Dr. John Lieurance's glutathione/antioxidant suppositories (use code BEN
at checkout for a 5% discount)
- Role of the Microbiome as
the First Metal Detoxification Mechanism
- Book: Eat To Beat Disease
by William Li
- BGF podcast w/ Dr.
William Li
- BGF podcast w/ Wild
Health MD
- Book: The
Switch by James Clement
- Total Dissolved Solids
meter
- Quinton hypertonic minerals
(use code GREENFIELD10)
Episode sponsors:
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Do you have questions, thoughts or feedback for Max or
me? Leave your comments below and one of us will
reply!