Tools of Titans

by Timothy Ferriss

  My post-workout cold routine is as follows:

  Put ~40 pounds of ice (this will depend on your bathtub size) into a bathtub, and then fill with water. That order avoids splashing and speeds things up. Instacart is helpful for ice delivery, or buy a garage freezer just for bags of ice, which is far easier than fancy ice-making or cooling contraptions.

  15 to 20 minutes later, when the water reaches ~45°F, it is ready for use. I drop a $5 immersion thermometer from Carolina Biological Supply Company in the water for tracking. Coach Sommer (page 9) uses the low 50s°F for his athletes.

  After heat, I enter the ice bath, keeping my hands out of the water. This allows me to stay in for longer, as capillary density is high in the hands. Hands go under for the last 3 to 5 minutes.

  The Magic Diet

  I expected a mutant such as Wim to have dietary tricks. When I asked him about his typical dinners, his answer made me laugh: “I like pasta, and I like a couple of beers, too. Yeah!” How can he function on this food? Genetics might play a role, but he also rarely eats before 6 p.m. and tends to eat one single meal per day. To use the lingo of the cool kids: He has practiced intermittent fasting for decades now.

  Heart-to-Heart Hugs

  When I first trained with Wim in person in Malibu, California, I noticed he hugged differently than most people. He throws his left arm over the person’s shoulder, putting his head to the right of theirs. I asked someone on his team if he was left-handed.

  “No. He just wants to hug heart-to-heart with everyone.”

  I love this, and several friends in this book now do this on special occasions. Just be forewarned: It throws people off, just like offering someone your left hand to shake, so best to explain (just tap your heart and say “heart to heart”). This also helps to avoid headbutts.

  Wim + Dom = Interesting

  During that same training session, I went from my normal 45-second breath hold time to 4 minutes and 45 seconds with no perceptible side effects. Several months later, while in deep ketosis (6+ mmol) after 8 days of fasting, I did the same exercises in a hyperbaric oxygen chamber at 2.4 ATA. The result? I held my breath for a staggering 7 minutes and 30 seconds before stopping in fear of my brain melting. In case you miraculously missed my warning at the beginning of this profile (page 42), read it. If you read it, please reread it. For more on ketosis and fasting, see Dominic D’Agostino on page 21.

  Rick Rubin’s Barrel Sauna

  Here are the specs for Rick Rubin’s (page 502) barrel sauna, which is a slightly smaller version of what Laird Hamilton (page 92) has. There are two long benches along the walls, and it can easily seat 6 to 8 people. It is about 7 feet in diameter and height.

  I have an exact duplicate in my backyard, which I often use 1 to 2 times daily, as it only takes 5 to 15 minutes to warm up. How on earth is it so fast? The heater is 3 to 4 times larger than it should be for the cubic footage. This is done on purpose, but it will freak out suppliers who are hesitant to combine a small sauna with a large heater. Put them together at your own risk!

  The sauna and heater components are typically sold separately. This book will likely give Dundalk, the sauna company I used, the “hug of death”—they’ll be overwhelmed with requests and cease to be a viable option. I’ve provided a few alternatives below. Prices obviously change over time.

  Sauna

  * * *

  Dundalk 7' x 8' Red Cedar Barrel Sauna with Window and Heavy Duty Fold Up Benches and Extra Wood for Heater Guard (Door Hinged on Left)—Cost ~$6,500 (unassembled)

  dundalkleisurecraft.com

  Other suppliers with decent reviews worth considering:

  almostheaven.com

  barrel-sauna.com

  leisureliving.ca

  Heater

  * * *

  Model NC-12 with SC-9 control and 1-phase relay box, plus 2 boxes of rocks (what I have)—Cost ~$2,000

  sauna.com/nordic-sauna-heaters

  leisureliving.ca

  Spirit animal: Bunny

  * * *

  Jason Nemer

  Jason Nemer (IG: @jasonnemer, acroyoga.org) is a cofounder of AcroYoga, which blends the spiritual wisdom of yoga, the loving-kindness of Thai massage, and the dynamic power of acrobatics. Jason was a two-time U.S. Junior National champion in sports acrobatics and represented the U.S. at the World Championships in Beijing in 1991. He performed acrobatics in the opening ceremonies of the 1996 Olympics. AcroYoga now has certified teachers in more than 60 countries and hundreds of thousands of practitioners.

  Back Story

  In 2015, I sat next to Jason at a dinner party at a friend’s house in L.A. Somehow, my lower-back pain—which had been plaguing me—came up, and he offered to “fly” me on the spot. Having no idea what that was, I agreed and ended up getting spun around in the air on his feet for about 15 minutes. It was surreal and seemed to defy the laws of physics. Two things worth noting: I weighed ~180 pounds and he weighs ~160 (he’s done the same with someone ~280 and 6'7"), and my back no longer hurt after the upside-down traction.

  In the past, I’d always been repelled by yoga: too much mumbo-jumbo, too little excitement. AcroYoga is a different beast. You’ll endure the occasional Sanskrit, but it’s otherwise like a combination of body-weight strength training, dance (the “base” is the lead, and the “flier” follows), roughhousing (lots of wipeouts), and hip rehab (after ten sessions, my lower body felt 10 years younger).

  It’s also the ultimate movement-based Prozac. In a culture where physical touch is taboo, this allows you to experience sensual but not sexual connection, all while getting incredibly strong and flexible. Last but not least, I laugh at least 50% of the time in all training sessions. It’s a wonderful balance to all the “serious” training that I do. If you’d like to see me both basing and flying, as well as teaching some basic techniques, just search “acroyoga” on youtube.com/timferriss.

  Odds and Ends

  Duck Shit Oolong Tea

  Jason brought this delicious tea for us to drink during recording. It’s sometimes called “duck shit fragrance tea.” Supposedly, long ago in a region in China, the local populace wanted to keep this amazing tea for themselves, so they nicknamed it “duck shit” tea. Smart move. It was played down for centuries, until being rediscovered as very much non–duck shit flavored. Jason gets his from Quantitea (quantitea.com).

  Jason has traveled the world for the last 6 years, never staying in one place more than 3 weeks. He travels with next to no luggage but insists on carrying a ukulele and a donkey’s load worth of tea.

  FeetUp (Shoulder Stand Device) or Substitutes

  The limiting factor for most people learning handstands is the wrists. This weakest link prevents you from getting enough upside-down practice. The FeetUp device addresses this—imagine a small padded toilet seat cushion mounted on a low stool. You stick your head through it, rest your shoulders on the padding, grab the two handles, and kick up into a headstand or handstand, with your shoulders supporting your weight. This allows you to work on alignment, tightness, positional drills (tuck, pike, straddle, etc.) in higher volume. The FeetUp is Jason’s preference, but it’s hard to find in the U.S. (en.feetup.eu). The BodyLift Yoga Headstand and Yogacise Bench are similar, or search for “yoga headstand bench.”

  A Saying from One of Jason’s Mentors, Chinese Master Acrobat Lu Yi

  “Mo’ extension!” (more extension). In a handstand, you should push your shoulders as near (or past) your ears as possible. If you’ve ever done shrugs with dumbbells, imagine doing that with your arms overhead, and avoid arching your back. Also, the first knuckle (fist knuckle) of the index finger is prone to lifting off the ground in handstand practice. Jason calls this “the naughty knuckle.”

  For Instagram inspiration, check out these profiles:

  @theacrobear

  @duo_die_acrobatics

  @acrospherics

&n
bsp; @cheeracro_

  @acropediaorg

  @mike.aidala

  @yogacro

  @lux_seattleacro

  To find AcroYoga classes, teachers, and movements:

  Acropedia.org

  Facebook—Search your city’s name and “acroyoga.” The AcroYoga Berlin page, for example, has 3,650 playmates and training partners ready for you.

  Acromaps.com

  Acropedia.org (techniques)

  ✸ What do you believe that other people think is insane?

  It’s Jason’s follow-up that I love the most, but this gives context:

  “That you can trust people. You can trust a lot of people. You don’t have to live in fear of strangers. Strangers are just people you haven’t flown yet. It seems crazy to me that, in many cultures, we teach our children to fear and not talk to strangers. I’ve been all over the world. My mom was not happy when I was going to go to the Middle East for the first time. I was actually in Boston, about to lead a teacher training, when the Boston Marathon bombing happened. I had 15 students who were on lockdown for 24 hours.

  “I got on the phone to my mom and I said ‘Look, Mom, you think Israel is dangerous. I’m in Boston. You cannot hide from danger.’ But I don’t think that’s a reason to not trust people. I’ve traveled the world in some very sketchy places and I’ve never had anything bad happen to me.

  “I assume the best in people. I assume that I can trust them until they prove me wrong. When you do this practice enough, trusting is like a muscle that you flex. It doesn’t mean that I’m a cowboy with it. I have really good credit assessment.”

  TIM: “Hold on—you said nothing bad has happened to you. How much of that is simply seeing things in the most positive light? Because you had your throwing knives [stolen by customs officers] in Panama. So shit happens, I’m imagining.”

  Jason laughed, was quiet for a second, then answered:

  “One of the things that happened to me that was really amazing—I had all of my objects liberated from me. . . . Basically, I didn’t want to work in restaurants [anymore], and I’m like, ‘I’m a yogi. I’m going to do this. I don’t care how hard it is. I love this.’ Boom. So I was living in my van.

  “My 30th birthday, my friend throws me a party. That night I got a book on Buddhism, a case of coconuts, and I hung out with my friends. The next day, my van’s gone. My home is gone. Everything is gone. So I go crack a coconut and start reading about Buddhism because . . . what the fuck else am I gonna do? And page 4 is talking about homelessness and wandering. I think, ‘That’s what I’m going to do.’ And that started my nomadic traveling. If I had stayed in San Francisco and tried to make it as a yoga teacher, AcroYoga wouldn’t be a worldwide practice.

  “Let go of what’s not working and really assess what is working and ‘what can I be excited about?’ It’s not that bad things don’t happen to me. I don’t label a lot of things good/bad. [Instead, I ask] can I evolve from this? What do I want now? Where is my center now?”

  ✸ Most-gifted or recommended books

  The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran: “I love really condensed, shakti [empowerment]-filled, energy-filled statements—something that you can read in a few minutes or you can read for your whole life.” [TF: This little tome is fewer than 100 pages long. Spend the extra $5 for the version with the author’s illustrations.]

  Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu: Jason travels with this book. “Oftentimes before meditation, I’ll just open it randomly to a page. I read about something and then just have that be what I steep in as I sit.” (See Rick Rubin, page 502, and Joshua Waitzkin, page 577.) When I asked Jason via text which translation he liked, he joked “Tao de Chinga tu madre” (ah, my friends), and then specified: Stephen Mitchell.

  ✸ Jason’s best $100 or less purchase

  Jason loves disc (Frisbee) golf and travels with discs. In particular, Innova’s Roc mid-range disc and his “go-to driver,” the TeeBird. He plays the game, but he also, on rare occasions, lets a disc go:

  “I correct people when they get really serious because there are people who have caddies. For real. Those people think it’s a sport. It’s a pastime, no matter how hard you work at it. It’s a piece of plastic, and you’re throwing it around. . . .

  “But to watch a disc fly for about a minute, it’s magical. . . . In yoga, there’s this philosophy, svaha. I call it ‘Fuck it, let go.’ . . . I like to throw Frisbees off of really high objects. And when I’m in these very ceremonial places like Machu Picchu, it’s like, ‘What am I releasing?’ So it’s an intentional act.”

  ✸ What would you put on a billboard?

  “Play! Play more. I feel like people are so serious, and it doesn’t take much for people to drop back into the wisdom of a childlike playfulness. If I had to prescribe two things to improve health and happiness in the world, it’d be movement and play. Because you can’t really play without moving, so they’re intertwined.

  “Treadmills kill your spirit. There are reasons and times to do treadmills, but if that is your only way of moving your body, you’re selling yourself short. There are much cooler ways to move your body, way more fun things, and I just happened to have the good fortune to learn a lot of these really cool things. So play.”

  Parting Thoughts: Don’t Overcompartmentalize

  On theoretical yoga versus applied yoga: “I also feel that there’s a ceiling on yoga, and the ceiling is: You have all this amazing knowledge and all this amazing practice, but how are you bringing that into the world? What happens when you’re in traffic? How are you with your mom? Do you talk to your mom? Do you tell her the truth?”

  AcroYoga—Thai and Fly

  AcroYoga is a blend of three complementary disciplines: yoga, acrobatics, and therapeutics.

  The therapeutics were brought into the fold by Jenny Sauer-Klein, the other cofounder of AcroYoga (along with Jason Nemer, page 46), and resemble suspended Thai massage. So much so that it’s often referred to as “Thai and fly.”

  I’ve seen Jason blow high-level acrobats’ minds (even those from Cirque du Soleil) with Folded Leaf (page 55), perhaps the easiest of all AcroYoga therapeutic poses. Be forewarned that it’s sometimes jokingly referred to as “Leaf Blower,” as it puts face close to groin. If your partner’s not ready to be inches from your crotch, Hippie Twist (page 54) is a Disney-friendly alternative.

  To intro you to the “Acro” world, I’ll share a few of my favorite moves from therapeutic flying. They are much safer than acrobatics, which require a teacher and spotters.

  In 5 minutes or so, I’ve used the following to fix lower-back pain in at least six of the people featured in this book. “I haven’t felt this type of release and relaxation in years . . . or ever” is a common response. Take it SLOW and enjoy! If it’s uncomfortable, you’re not doing it right. Do this on a mat or grass, and I suggest practicing the moves in the order listed.

  Anything in quotation marks is what I’d say as a base (the person on their back) teaching a first-time flyer (the person getting inverted). Good rule for Acro and for life: Tell people what you want, not what you don’t want, and keep it simple. In other words, say “Stronger elbows” and not “Don’t bend your arms.” Say “Softer feet” and not “Stop poking my abs with your toes.”

  There are a million ways to teach Acro basics well, of course. The following is my personal preference.

  Before Inverting Anyone

  * * *

  FLYER: Practice on the ground what you’ll be doing in the air.

  Sit on the ground, legs straight and spread (90 degrees is fine), back as straight as possible. This is a “pike straddle” position. The angle between your torso and thighs should be 90 degrees. This bend at the hips is super critical, as it provides a “shelf” foothold for the base’s feet. Put your hands on top of your hip crease, including the first 1 to 2 inches below. I’ll say: “That is where my feet are going to be.”

  Now, bring your f
eet in, soles together, into “butterfly” stretch position. The space in between your legs should look something like a diamond. For you yoga people who love Sanskrit, it’s baddha-konasana. The asana suffix just means “pose.” This all meant nothing to me when I first started learning, so I called it “butter-kanasa” for months.

  Keeping that butterfly position, now reach behind your back and grab your elbows. If you can’t do that, grab your forearms.

  BASE: Load test your legs.

  Get on your back and put your legs straight up in the air. This is an “L-base” position.

  Have your flyer cross their arms so that their forearms are on their chest. Have them place their forearms across both of your feet and lean onto you, putting weight on your legs. How does it feel?

  Don’t let your toes drift toward your face, which will make things strenuous. Keep the hip angle at 90 degrees, if possible.

  If your hamstrings are very tight, you can fold a yoga mat or towel and put it under your lower back. The elevation will help.

  Hippie Twist

  * * *

  BASE: Lie down. FLYER: Stand right by the base’s hips, feet twice shoulder width apart.

  BASE: Put your slightly turned-out feet on flyer’s hip creases.

  BASE: Tell flyer, “Put your hands on my knees.” (fig. A)

  “Look in my eyes, take a deep breath. As you exhale, bend forward and I’ll catch your shoulders. Keep your hands on my knees but let your arms bend.” And, if needed, “Aim to put the top of your head on my stomach.”