Fasting Space

Welcome to fasting space.

Hope you are well today.

If you're here with me, live.

So nice to have you here.

And if you're here on the replay.

Either way,
I hope this is a beautiful space for you

to sink into some really positive health
mindset.

What?

I'll tell you, my belief for

you and I are health is really important.

Your health is really important.

And what I want to help you sink into in
this session is just to realize

that on a little bit deeper level today,

I'm going to be diving in
and reading a passage

from one of my very favorite books,
The Creative Act Today.

And I was reading this last night,
and it was really helping me

to get into this mindset
that health is so important

is the type of thing worth
striving for and working for,

and the type of mindset
that this book can help us to get in

is that sometimes that process

of striving
actually just more like letting go.

It's actually more
just like being in a space and that it's

it doesn't have to be a struggle
the way we think of it.

The first sentence.
Now I'm going to divide this.

You can kind of divide this into two
halves.

And remember, this is Rick Rubin,
a top of music producer.

And he is giving thoughts
to artists and musicians

about how to take their creativity
to the next level.

We are intercepting these messages.

We are transforming them
into our creative purpose,

which is shaping our life
into a health creation that we love.

Rick Rubin
helping us be creative in our own space.

We've got a health situation
that we are trying to work on.

Sometimes I describe this as a puzzle.

We're trying to build out the tools
and experiences and mindset,

help us figure out the puzzle,

navigate the difficulties, overcome
the barriers.

One of the ways that Rick Rubin does

this is by looking to something
greater than ourselves.

People have different ways
of describing that.

He describes it as the universe.

You can describe it however you want.

Listen to his first sentence.

Our work, which we are calling our health,

our work, embodies a higher purpose.

This is where he's taking us
in this session.

This is what is going to elevate,
hopefully our thinking,

the importance of it,
whether we know it or not.

This is what I was suggesting in the title
in my little cover photo.

We can't quite see it sometimes.

Maybe we say we know
our health is important,

but maybe we don't quite
see it on the level that this is saying.

Maybe I just read through this
and then I'll come back

and give you my thoughts
so we can just hear it as a unit.

Think of the first half.

The second half hour work embodies

a higher purpose,
whether we know it or not.

We are a conduit for the universe.

Material is allowed through us.

If we are a clear channel, our intention

reflects the intention of the cosmos.

Most creators think of themselves
as the conductor of an orchestra.

But when we zoom out
our small view of reality,

we see that we function
more as an instrumentalist

in a much larger symphony

that the universe is orchestrating.

We may not have a great understanding
of what this magnum opus is,

because we only see the small part
that we play.

The be attracted

by the scent of the flower lands on one
and then another,

inadvertently enabling reproduction
should the bee go extinct.

Not just flowers,
but birds, small mammals and humans

would likely also cease to exist.

It is fair to assume the bee doesn't know
its role

in this interconnected puzzle, and in

preserving the balance of nature.

The bee is simply being.

Similarly,
the total output of human creativity

in all its kaleidoscopic breath pieces
together, the fabric forming our culture.

The underlying intention of our work

is the aspect of allowing it
to fit neatly into this fabric.

Rarely,
if ever, do we know the grand intention.

Yet if we surrender to the creative
impulse,

our singular piece of this puzzle
takes its proper shape.

Intention is all that there is.

The work is just a reminder.

How does that land for you?

Today I read Rick Rubin.

I read that I personally
I just feel better reading it.

I feel encouraged always
when I read this book, I feel encouraged.

To me, it is such a grounding book.

The words are like.

Refreshing to hear and inspiring

helps us to think
from a different point of view.

And I just love.

I mean, we could probably get

everything in this passage
almost out of just that first sentence.

Our working bodies a higher purpose.

This is what I really want
to bring into our thinking today.

I love the way he pulls out.

You see, he's
kind of pulling out the view.

Zooming out, we can think of the orchestra
and then it's like everything small,

everything about this book trying
to help us think bigger, bigger, bigger.

And he's bringing us out into the stars

and cosmos and I love that.

And I love how he says this,
whether we know it or not.

Sometimes we get stuck in our day to day
routines.

We get stuck
in the way that things have been.

We can get overwhelmed
with our personal circumstances,

and it's like we know things in one level.

But can we open up higher space?

The thing that is an encouragement
to me about it

is that the process of doing that isn't

the type of work
that is overwhelming, right?

It's the type of work that is wellness.

It's the type of work that is like taking
a deep breath and saying no to things.

This is fasting space.

This is what fasting in our physical body
saying no to food for a while,

giving us the mirror
for much broader things in life.

Saying no to all kinds of good things.

Food, a very good thing necessary.

But for a period of time we say no.

And to give my body a break, going

to work on the energy
flowing out of this system for a bit,

and then give us some space
in the fasting space.

Do you find this to be the case?

And this is a space where we can really do

some deep thinking,
where we can take a deeper breath.

I think it's really physically true.

Offload the system a bit.

You take
there's a little more space in there.

Take a deeper breath.

Diaphragms like, oh, we can fully,
fully stretch out and isn't that good?

Do you have that? See,
this is what I naturally do.

I take a big deep breath and then I start.

I can feel it start loosening up.

Oh, I was feeling some tightness
in the shoulders in the back.

Right. You take a deep breath.

All of a sudden it's
bringing openness, deeper levels

into our whole body and being.

Says here, if we're a clear channel,
I think this is what's happening.

If we're really getting our mindset
dialed in, focusing intently, I'm moving

toward health.
That's what this is saying to me.

Our intention
reflects the intention of the cosmos.

Whatever the cosmos means to you,
if it means the actual

cosmos, things
that exist in a tangible, material way,

if it means something spiritual to you,
whatever your tradition is,

I think bringing in those sorts of ideas

totally can be helpful to people.

Is really interesting to me
to think about, because to me,

I start asking big questions
when I read things like this.

My it was my mind. Mind goes,
what is going on here?

You know, why are we here?

You know,
we didn't choose to be here, that we know,

but yet here we are for whatever purpose.

This isn't this,
like the age old question of humankind?

Like what is the meaning of life?

What is the purpose? To me?

I think it's fascinating.

When we start opening up space,
body and mind, we start.

I at least many people start
asking questions like this.

But Rubin saying here that the intention
can start flowing into it.

I just think health is a part of that.

We might not say it's
not the most important thing.

When you answer questions like that,
there may be other things

on the list that come up higher to you,
which is great.

Maybe it does for me to friends
and family,

you know, put at the top of the list.

But health pretty high up.

And I just say health comes above
many other things, like any financial

sort of situation, in any sort of job
or work or anything else.

Health to me comes above that.

Worthy of a great deal of time.

And that's not
how most things in our society are.

Most people, I think.

Do you think it's fair to say trading
health, or at least many times it is.

I would trade my health for money.

That's a that's an equation people will
do, especially when they were younger.

And then as we get older

we start to see, oh,
I don't think that is such a good trade.

And then we start trying to take the money
and give it back to get the health back.

I try to tell people ahead of time,
younger people especially prioritize

your health.

Don't trade it
away, build the practices that foster it.

Don't you wish
you could save some of it up in a bottle?

Isn't that the same youth is wasted
on the young?

We don't appreciate it when you're
when we're younger.

Try to help every young person
to appreciate it

so that it can serve us
for as long as possible.

I was watching a gentleman yesterday,
a sprinter.

He's 60 years old and he's a sprinter,
and he's been sprinting his entire life

and so fascinating.

He just never stopped.

He's like, this is one of the problems.

Every kid sprints around
when they're younger and then people stop

and he's like, you know,
this is his perspective.

He's like, don't stop.

You know, keeps the body younger,
keep these abilities.

I think that's fascinating.

Get them back.

He's like, train yourself back to do it
gently.

Don't hurt yourself, I love that.

Most creators see? That's us.

I love sitting in this space.

You are a creator, right?

You are creating
your experience. You're shaping it.

I like to say we can't change the hand
that we're dealt right?

But it's like we have these cards.

How are we going to play them? See,
that's what we can do.

We can change the game.

I don't know what game we're playing
poker, cosmic poker or whatever,

but we can change how we're
playing the hand that we're dealt.

So I'm not going to be playing in the NBA,
right?

It's not like there's unlimited
possibilities

within the physical existence
that we have.

So we can push this.

But I can be stronger,
I know it, that's what I'm doing.

That's what the summer
challenge was for me and I hit it.

How did you do with it
becoming leaner and stronger?

Beautiful goal.

Most creators think of themselves as the
conductor of the orchestra were in charge.

We're doing things,
but then that's putting us

at the top of this situation
and we're directing our little life.

But then we zoom out.

Do you see the different perspective now?

We see there are such bigger things
going on here,

and we are like an instrument
in this cosmic orchestra.

Now all of a sudden, to me,
that takes so much pressure off,

like we're sitting here in a space,
we say, look,

I've got problems and situations here.

I'm trying to figure all this stuff out.

It was zoom out a little bit.

We're you're an instrument
in a cosmic orchestra, right?

I just love that.

All right.

And but there's no sheet music in this.

Orchestra is, like, right in front of us.

How do you tune into that?

This is the process, right?

Tuning in, saying no to the distractions,

maybe fasting as a part of that
meditation, a part of it, breathing,

breathing in the journal and all these
things are part of it, listening to that.

So we don't have to have all the answers.

Do you believe it?

We don't have to have all the answers,
the universe, whatever that means to you.

According to this does have the answers.

Do you believe that?

You don't have to believe it.

Okay, I believe it, though I do.

I do believe it.

You don't have to believe it.

I was talking to a friend the other day
and they were saying,

you don't have to believe this.

What if you lived your life
as if it were true?

And would that help you to be open
to things that are greater?

We zoom out of our small view of reality.

We function more as an instrument

in the cosmic symphony,
the universe as is orchestrating.

We might not have a great understanding
of what this magnum opus is.

I know I don't.

I wish I did because we only see
the small part we play.

Okay, this is all the first part
that I was seeing with it.

Second part the be attracted

by the sense of the flower
lands on one flower

and then another, inadvertently enabling
reproduction of these flowers.

Right.

They're just lives intrinsically related.

And this is what I feel
about our situation to me.

You know, he's
obviously giving us this analogy,

but we are not as separate
as we think we are.

Both us from one another,

us from the world, our lives

intimately connected in the same way
as the bee in the flower.

Right. But we don't see it.

He's showing.

Bee goes extinct.

Everything probably goes extinct.

Pollination is not happening.

The trees, the fruits, the vegetables
and then everything.

A giant cascade.

It's all connected.

Everything is all connected.

Really? Where? Less like.

Like sometimes we say like, oh,

we are here in this space, right?

It's like humans are separate from it.

So there's like the world
and then us, but like, no.

Right. We are this experience.

Like it's all the same thing.

Every living thing
together is alive on this space

and you start pulling the plug.

This is the thing that really is troubling

to me
the most about our modern moment, right?

That certain pieces of this

intricate web of life are dying.

To me, that is the most concerning thing
that's happening on this planet right now.

For this reason, we don't understand it.

We don't know the effects of it.

Just like
we don't know the effects of our actions.

We can't see it
just like the bee can't see the flower.

This is what I'm saying
about the title of this session.

Our health is really important.

What is going on here?

We can't see it, but health of ourselves.

I really think this.

It matters so much because our lives are
not separate from what is happening here.

This is what this is saying to me.

We are a part of this
and not just a part of it.

We are it.

This is the experience of life and.

We can't quite see it.

But if we're going to try to navigate it
in the best way,

and we try to remove every distraction
to find the keys to the lock

that is unlocking better
health is what we're trying to do.

And if we say that as a struggle, then
I say this is a struggle session, okay?

But it's I'm trying to make it
the most relaxed and thoughtful

struggle session anybody ever had.

We're going to struggle toward it
by taking a deep breath.

Maybe grab a coffee or tea,
think some inspiring thoughts,

say we have tools in our toolkit,
and we are going to try to use them

to unlock better health in the best

way that we can,
because I think it matters.

And this is what I want to say.

See, I hear what you're saying, doctor Z.

Like I personally,
sometimes I get overwhelmed by it.

Sometimes I say, oh my gosh, species going
extinct and environmental catastrophe

happening and nobody,
it's like a runaway train is happening.

And who can even stop it?

Okay,
I can get lost in thoughts like that.

Very negative.

Okay.

It's like we try to live our life
in a way.

It's like leave
as little impact as possible.

This is one of the reasons
why I love fasting

too, is like it's
like for a period of time at least,

I'm existing in this space
without consuming anything.

I'm trying to leave a small footprint.

Okay, but I think the real mindset
that this is giving us

is how do we take every concern
that we have about everything

that is going on in this modern moment

and realize that because we are this place
and we are not separate from it,

and our life is intrinsically connected
to everything that is happening here,

by taking all these thoughts,
bringing them inward,

and taking care of ourselves
on a profoundly deep level, a level

that is so far beyond the way that people
typically think of it

radically loving and caring for ourselves,

making a sacrifice deeply

and powerfully to say this is going
to become extremely important.

I am willing to work very hard for it

because it means so much to me.

Take every amount of love and compassion
that we have for everything.

Everyone bring it here
first here to fill up

this tank in a powerful way
so that it can overflow outward.

And that's the kind of intensity
that I say we should bring to it.

I love the way he ends this section.

It's fair to assume
assume that B doesn't know its role

in the interconnected puzzle
and preserving of the balance of nature.

B doesn't know B is just being.

Don't you love that sentence?

B as being okay if a b is can be being?

We are a human being.

Okay?

Can we use the word play?

Can our human being?

Can we be in such a powerful way?

When I realize, okay,
if we can see it, that the single B,

which means we might whack
with a flyswatter if we just don't like it

one day, actually is holding together
all life on this planet, right?

How much more are we doing it, right?

We are holding it together

and taking it apart.

Wow. But we say, let's not do it

and let's let's take that realization,
the awareness.

Like, isn't
this what we need on our planet right now?

Don't we need like 100 orders of magnitude
more awareness of what is happening?

And isn't the part of that?

When we say that can get overwhelming, you
say, I can't control what is happening.

And geopolitics and economic systems
and all these things, what are the things

we can actually control?

Not very much, right?

Not very much.

We can. It's hard enough
to even control ourselves.

Like we just got to be able
to control ourselves.

Right?

And so isn't that why
it is enough to to see?

But isn't that like,
everything actually, like

if we control ourself is connected.

This is our ability to influence.

We're like one cell out of the body,
right?

Every cell in the body
is so important. Right.

But one of them there's trillions.

You say, well what does the cell matter.

You can pluck one out
and it doesn't matter.

It's like, okay.

But like it does, you know,
and this is how we are.

And sometimes that can

be a discouraging thought like, oh,
what does any of this matter?

But I want it to be
the very most encouraging thing

because it takes the pressure off.

And then you also realize
that it's an incredible opportunity.

What a gift.

We are here even when we can't see it.

And we have our part to play.

Like, you know,

how many things are in instruments,
are in a giant philharmonic orchestra.

You know, this has got to be like 100.

And, you know,
between all the band in the strings.

Okay.

And if you took one out,
the concert would go on.

Right.
But everything also has its part to play.

And everybody coming together
make this beautiful music.

This is what is happening.

I think in this life we are
we're having some kind of experience

in our part to play
what is it and what is the music.

And when we listen,
the few things that we can do right.

One of the things we can do
is take care of this human body

to the best ability that we can.

And then the other big notes
that I'm hearing coming in

is just because that's an act of love
and kindness to ourselves.

We show that to the body first.

We show it to our mind.

We show it to our spirit, right?

Whatever that is.

You know,
the core of our being, the essence.

Right? And that same mindset.

Isn't that a practice?

If we're really caring for ourselves

as as deeply and passionately
as we possibly can?

Isn't that the type of mindset

that can help us treat other people
the way that we should, you know,

and like,
isn't that the thing that has to happen

from everybody
somehow, everybody have to be doing this.

If things are going to change
in the broader human experience

and the experience of life
and this place, it starts here, right?

It starts in ourselves.

This is this is Gandhi, right?

You have to be the change
you want to see, right?

And has to start in here.

And I think health is a manifestation
of that health

to me, much bigger than just, you know,
what is a blood pressure?

What is a number on a scale?

Health to me is like total

flourishing across
all domains of our life.

And health.

We define
we don't have to let someone else

or some society, some specific cultural
moment tell us what health is.

We can define it how we want
and move toward it,

because we are the creator
of the health experience for ourselves,

within the realm of the hand
that we are dealt.

The total output of human creativity
in all its kaleidoscopic breath,

like these are huge sentences right?

To me, this is inspiring.

If we are stuck in a small space is like
we're we're in a groove,

we're in a routine.

It's like, how do we break out of it?

We're like, I have been stuck on a weight
loss plateau.

You know, for example, it's like,

this has been going on
for a lot longer than I want and why?

And we're struggling with it,
whatever it is. Okay.

Whatever our challenge is,
what barriers do you face?

Feel free to share them.

And we dive in as deep as we can

and unraveling them.

You think of the scale of it.

How many billions of 8.5
billion people on this planet right now?

And I think all of them that have come
and everyone that is coming,

the total output of human creativity
in all of its breadth.

Like it's pretty radical, you know,
and it's like if we're

stuck in a small space, like,
do you think is there a solution

to our current problem?

Whatever our barrier is like,
is there a solution?

Do you think that the sum total of human
creativity could help us to get out of it?

I think that it could.

And when we see that that sum
total of human creativity

is flowing out
this broader flow of the universe.

Do you see that there are things
that are even so much grander than that?

There is energy and power and creativity,
knowledge thought available to us.

This is why
I think if we're stuck in a space,

I think the answer is usually stop.

You know, just stop.

We can get into a space
where just hammer force,

force, force
like what's coming to me right now.

The universe is flow.

Like I think the flow, energy, light,
everything

that is happening in this existence,
things are flowing.

Nature is a cycle. Things in nature flow.

Nature is not hammering
and forcing things.

Nature is just happening.

And see in this sort of mindset,
oh, we are nature.

We are part of this cycle.

We should be part of natural
cycles and flow.

And if we're experiencing something stuck,
how do we pull up the anchor a bit?

Listen.

Maybe we're needing to flow
in a little different direction, right?

Doesn't mean that it is easy.

I'm never I'm like I say,
never try to sugarcoat anything.

I'm not saying that life is easy,
but there are

there are spaces of flow
that can be difficult to.

Isn't that the case where it's
like the ideal scenario flow state?

It's like time is happening,
but we're hardly aware of it.

Things just happening.

And, and and then we say something like
that is relatively easy, right?

Is it fair to say,
oh, we're not struggling, we're flowing.

I think there's also a space
where it's like struggle is happening.

But also flow where we know it.

Right?

We know that we're on the path
and we're doing the work.

This is where this ends.

We're doing the work.

It's not easy, but we know
and we can feel that we are on the path.

This is this subtle balance
that we are having

between struggle and flow, doing work
that is difficult.

Human being, obviously the type of thing
that can do something difficult.

Sometimes we have to use our intention
and our willpower

to take the difficult step.

I want to inspire everybody to do that,
but then it takes discernment

because we can't force ourselves
through a wall, right?

You don't want to just be hammering
your head into a wall,

hoping that someday the atoms
align, right?

Theoretically,
they say, oh, every trillion years, like

everything could line up
and you'll phase shift.

You could pass right through a wall.

Not very likely.

So the discernment isn't that
the critical piece to know the difference?

Where is the space to push through,
and where is the space

to step back to find the other path?

If there's a space to find something
like that, it's within a deal like this

to stop,
hold back, breathe open space, say no

and listen for something

greater than ourselves.

Because maybe we've come
to the end of our space.

I've done what I can hear.

My limited human capacity.
And we don't know, right?

Sometimes
we're going to have to try some things.

One of the things to try to see
if you can tune

in a little cosmic message directing
this orchestra that we're a part of.

What is the part to play?

The underlying intention of our work
is the aspect

allowing it to fit neatly into the fabric.

Rarely,
if ever, do we know the grand intention.

Yet if we surrender
to the creative impulse.

This is what I'm suggesting we do right
at that most difficult struggling point.

Fork in the road. Which way do we go?

Struggle versus flow in which is happening
where?

And it's not clear.

Listen to.

The creative impulse.

Whether you believe that something
from the universe, or whether you believe

that's just your own thinking,
does it really matter?

I don't know,

but if we lean on the other side of it
for a little bit and we say, oh,

this is just a mental construct that I'm
using to help me in a difficult space.

That's fine.

Mental constructs. Very helpful.

I'm gonna just imagine myself
connecting to the broader universe.

I'm getting out of my own mind.

Our singular piece of the puzzle
can take its proper shape.

I really liked that line.

Just because I think of, like,
getting in the shape, right?

We're trying to get in a better shape.

We're trying to get in the shape,
we're trying to get healthier.

And how does our piece of the puzzle
take shape?

What is the shape?

What does that mean to you?

I think that's the question.

What does it mean?

He answers, intention is all there is.

What it means is what your intention is.

Where is your heart at?

What are you striving for?

The work is just a reminder. All right.

So to me this is such a fascinating thing
to think about.

Reminder okay, we've got work, right.

We want to move toward health.

There's things we have to do.

We have an intention.

Intention paired with work.

This is what he shows here.

I think that's true.

But then he says,
look, intention is all there is.

The work is a reminder.

Been off the wagon for a bit,
have a doctor's appointment coming up.

Caught myself trying to figure out
how to manipulate the A1 see number.

To me this is speaking to
that intention is all there is.

Just think of the intention within that.

There's a beautiful intention
in it, right?

Striving after health.

We want numbers to be better
one way or the other.

Okay. The work is the reminder.

Maybe the work is not flowing out
right in the perfect, you know, way in it.

Okay,
but intention is all there is, right?

Isn't your heart in a good place?

You know, that's what is the

intention is present and then the work.

Right. The work is
what we're adding to it, right?

The work can be modified.

The work
we can see we have trial and error.

We can try in some stuff out.

We say
we tried something out in retrospect,

say we didn't like it so much,
don't have to make that choice again.

Every day we have a new opportunity
to create something different,

to create a different type of experience,
to try something new.

Dao the intention into a beautiful place.

Tuning that intention
in to such a thoughtful idea

that our health is something that matters
so much more than we think.

And if by doing the work,
bringing the work, the creativity

to our intention, that this is actually
making notes in the broader

symphony of whatever this experience is,
so be encouraged with it.

The intention of moving toward health.

Beautiful. Lean into it.

Lean into the space, and be encouraged

that we don't always know
why things are the way they are.

Why are things happening? Even?

Why have we made the decisions
that we've made in the past?

Hey, it's all okay.

We're learning
from all of these experiences together

and we're stepping forward in health
every day.

We have an opportunity here.

Take the step that we can take today.

Yesterday's steps are taken,
their experiences and stepping stones

that we can use as a resource

to step up to the next level.

You say, man, I've done that so many times
though, every day

I was like,
we're stacking up a lot of days.

Still not exactly in the place
that we want to be.

This is life. This is the journey, okay?

Every day, an opportunity
to renew ourself space like this.

Hopefully an opportunity to do it.

Take a deep breath,
set the intention again and do our best.

Take the pressure off.

Okay, no pressure in this space.

I'm just sitting here taking a minute,
just listening

to this beautiful little ambient tone
that I have in the background.

It's subtle. Right? Very subtle.

Maybe when I'm talking, maybe it's
the type of thing it disappears, right?

It's very hard to tune into it
if I'm talking all the time.

And then,
but then a stop talking and it's like, oh,

I hear it now again.

What a metaphor
for what we just been talking about.

So busy in our lives, so

focused on our little orchestra,
right, that we're conducting.

We don't hear.

Subtle.

Information coming in, but stop.

Take a breath, even hold the breath,

maybe breathe in and hold.

What a good thing to do.

Stretch out that diaphragm.

Have you experienced that?

Ever stuck in a place?

Stop. Just stop.

Give it some space as a new insight.

Come.

I wish you could summon it.

I want one right now.

I want a new insight right now.

I want I want to stop right now
and have one come.

It's like, usually doesn't work like that.

Usually when you're trying to, like, force
a message in

usually doesn't work as my experience.

Like it's like when you least expect it
all of a sudden.

I know I've had at times where I've been,
you know, in a real difficult season.

I'll carve an hour out of space.
I've gone.

I've gone to like, a park,
you know, I've sat out in a space.

I've just tried to get into a meditation
space and like.

And then it kind of happens, like
sometimes that's a beautiful experience.

Sometimes it's like,
I just kind of boring.

I just kind of sat there.

It's like,

kind of disappointing because I was like,
I was hoping for some big reveal.

Nothing happened.

All right.

But then the next day,
I was just sitting there.

I drifted off into thought,
and then all something came like, oh,

there's a lot that can be happening
under a surface of a situation to that

we don't always see,
like the writing was saying,

we're not always aware of the things
that are happening, like the analogy

we gave the other day
plateau phase in a weight loss space.

Okay, I really like to invert that
say number on the scale

we say is like we want it to keep going
down, right?

But we invert that.
We say we're climbing a mountain.

We got up to base camp sometimes.

That's the way to think of it.

Preparing for the next leg of our ascent.

Much better mindset.

But then in that space you say,
but that space could be have gone on

for quite a while.

Say, man,
it's like a whole year has gone by.

Isn't that enough?

We don't know
exactly what is happening here, but

we're working a process
and this is like the beautiful butterfly.

In the cocoon.

Transformation is happening.

Can't see it though.

Right in the moment.

Transformation happening,
but we can't see it.

There is an encouraging thought to think

if you are feeling stuck in a space.

Sink into that. Sink into the body.

Think about the thinking
we are doing today of taking every care

and concern we have for everything,
bringing it inside, channeling it in,

making sure that we are bringing powerful

mindset
and intention to our very problems.

You can't solve every problem
in the world.

Very hard to solve
even a single problem for ourself.

Bringing the power and the intensity
and the intention in

to solving this issue for ourselves.

Whatever we're struggling
with bringing every ounce of human

intention, every ounce of everything
that we can bring to it.

Centering it in that space,
and recognizing things are happening.

We can't even see it.
We're sinking into the body.

We're trying to take that whole process,
realizing our connection to all things.

We are solving problems
by solving problems.

And just feel it.

This is why I think fasting is very,
very profound space.

Just in a moment.

The problem is solved in this moment.

Nothing else to be done.

Like in a in a weight loss space.

To me, a fasting space.

We think for a moment, just like a bubble.

Okay, let's just forget about everything
else.

We're forgetting about the past
and we're forgetting about the future.

We're forgetting about goals
and everything.

Just in this moment right here.

What is exhausting is like
the body is existing

and there is no consuming happening,
right?

So we're not eating anything.

Fasting space, just the body is here.

And look at it. It's alive.

The engine is running
for this brief moment that we are here.

The energy is here.

The resources are here.

Everything is happening.

Nothing has to be added to it.

The body knows what to do.

The body knows where the energy is.

It's not a mystery.

To the body is a mystery to us.

Weight loss is a mystery, right?

So many times it can feel that way.

What is the solution?

This is the thing.

Complex problem, simple solution.

Let's just start here.

It's like strip everything away.

It's a very difficult situation.

Very hard I would say, to lose weight
in the modern world,

very few people do it
sustainably in the long term.

Reality. Okay.

Where do we start?

Where do we start looking?

Start here.

I'm feeling everything stripped away.

Just this space body is running.

Like if we start here, we can see this is
a pretty incredible place to start.

Here's our little bubble.

It's running. Okay.

You see, human being in this scenario,
fasting is happening.

Body is here.

We're not intervening in any way.

Nothing else is happening, right?

Think how many things we add to this.

Our stress is added to it.

Okay, but we've see
when we've forgotten all everything else

and just the body is here running.

We can see, okay,
this is a pure sort of state.

This is the ground
level of human physiology.

Before anything else is done to it,
we're going to strip some complexity

out of a situation like you can't
can't do much more than this.

Heart is beating, right.

This would be a meditation
like a deep body meditation,

a fasting meditation
just to see the processes.

Maybe you close your eyes.

I'm going to do it right now
and just see the body working.

The heart is beating,
the blood is flowing,

the breath is moving through the body.

All of these things happening.

So that the oxygen rich blood
can feed this machine,

sitting at the top,
doing whatever it does.

The whole point of it all, it's
consciousness is here.

Brain is incredibly efficient
for what it does,

but it is incredibly energy hungry.

It is brain.

Here's
my my rough remembering of the data.

It's like 5% of the weight of the body,
but it uses like 20 to 25% of the energy.

On always, always running,
even when we're dreaming.

Right? It's running these systems.

And so everything is designed to support

this and move it around
so that it can think in different places.

You know, what an incredible system.

And so sit here in this space
and just see it.

And we flowing
like we've stripped everything away.

And what is happening.

Energy is flowing throughout this entire
system, coming from within ourselves

in the fasting space is just incredible
when we start to see it.

What a miracle.

What a miracle, and what a gift
that we can sit here in this space,

that we can exist, that we can be.

Oh my gosh.

That the body has tools and resources
to allow that to happen.

taking some time
at the end of this session, or at least

where we are at now as we've been flowing
through this thought from Rick Rubin.

Coming to a space trying to get down
to first principles, root levels.

We're envisioning the fasting space
as getting to the root

level of the metabolism.

We're imagining everything else
dissolved and disappeared.

The past in the future regrets
that we have anxiety about things

in the future, that we may face
all the stress that we bring to it.

And just going through this space
of picturing the body running

all of the processes, the blood flowing,

the digestion happening to provide
nutrients and oxygen and resources

so that we can think and experience
this consciousness,

that we have this gift
and opportunity to be here and.

Doesn't the trouble start
when we move beyond that?

It's like,
this is when we see in this scenario

fasting space, meditation space,
everything else gone

for just a moment
that this is like a pure state.

You know,
this is like a pure state of being.

Many people experience this in meditation.

Is this part of the goal
finding the essence

and the pure state of being like
that exists apart from the stress

and all the responsibilities,
the problems, right.

Like all the things, mental space of peace

and contentment,
how do we find something like that?

Meditation is space to do that,
not that it makes everything disappear,

but that we can navigate
through the difficulty in a.

More positive, gentle, thoughtful way.

That's it.

And that's the mental side of it.

That's meditation space
flowing through the mind.

And fasting is the parallel in the body.

How do we navigate this

challenging food experience that we have?

Hey, thank you for sharing this.
Just jumping in.

Hit the replay.

Yeah.

The replay
I think you'll really like leave a comment

and let me know what you think
of some of this thinking from Rick Rubin.

I believe

fasting is the answer to absolute health,
not just physical, but mental health.

Hey, thank you for sharing that.

I love that thought.

I absolutely do love the thought.

And I would say that I do believe that.

And it's probably I love that you said it
because I try not to hype anything.

And I feel like if I were to just come out
and say it, then you say,

doctor Z, you're
just being a little hyping on the channel.

And I always try to be, you know,
kind of reserved and, you know, fasting.

I describe as like a tool in the toolkit.

You know, I want people to see
there's like lots of.

Lots of tools, lots of practices.

I'm trying to use fasting

as the base and then,
you know, add in the other things to it.

But I would say I do I do really agree.

You know, I think there's a
there's a space in between.

I don't know if in between is right, but
like it's good to be excited about things

and I am excited about fasting.

I think that's fair to say.

I want to communicate excitement
and encouragement without hyping anything.

But I think this is a true statement.

I feel that it's true for me. And.

And this is I think because I do believe
that is why I was encouraged,

you know, start the channel, just do talks
like make it leave the university.

Like if I never would

have left the university
if I didn't have some big reason to do it.

You know, a lot of good things
happening there, good people.

I was like, I need a space to really lean

deeply into this fasting
because I feel that this is true.

I feel like we're missing it in society,
and I think the space is so profound,

you know, and when I
when I look at what we are struggling with

collectively, I know from my own struggle,
you know, I've talked about it,

I've gained weight in different season
and I struggled to get it back.

And when I found fasting, I'm like,
are you are you kidding?

It helped, you know, not that it was easy.

I mean, I worked at it for,
you know, before I really came to like,

bring things back in the balance.

I mean, it took a year still,
you know, and

but is real,
you know, and I, you know, I'm in an

I feel personally I'm in an interesting
vantage point as a physician

having the incredible opportunity
to interact with thousands of people.

And, you know, I start to realize, like,
everybody was wanting the same thing

here, people coming to me,
the saying, we're doing a physical,

we're doing the check in, we're checking
blood sugar, cholesterol.

It's like pretty much everybody
needing the same thing.

And all of a sudden, like, it came to me.

That's
why I described fasting as like a gift.

I was like, like,
this really helped me like it did.

And it wasn't easy.

And I was intimidated by it.

But like, it's also real and it worked.

And it's something that the longer time
has gone on, I've stuck with it.

It's been like a partner
in health and times when I've, you know,

gone off the wagon of I've put on weight
even as a recently again, I was like,

oh no, this is the way for me at least.

I was like, I dialed back in
and here I give myself a summer weight

loss challenge.

I like smash it back
in, I'm back on track, man.

Oh, man. And.

And so that's what gave me the confidence,
I'll tell you

just to do it, because I was like, it's
so good.

Like it's just so good and it's real,
you know?

It's just a real thing and it's free.

This is the thing.

It philosophically,
you know, fits very much in

with every other paradigm that I have
that I want people strong and independent

and not dependent on other people
and things and corporations and things.

And the idea that
that this is strong enough

to get the results
that people want, it is.

And like I said, not instantly,

not a magic wand, not on command,
not necessarily all by itself,

but like here in this idea that we were
having, we can imagine it all by itself.

Just for a moment.

Okay,
everybody got to eat this channel. Simple.

Fasting is not about extended fasting.

It's not about going weeks without food.

And just in these epic
things is like Moses up on the mountain

or something, you know, is like,
that's there's

a place for that for certain people
at certain times.

I have done an extended fast
exactly twice in my life,

and it was an epic human experience.

Okay? Nobody ever has to do it.

Incredibly intense experience
for me to personally go through this

like something I'm very grateful
to have done, something I'm sure I will do

at some point in the future,
but not planning on doing it now.

Okay. Very intense.

And you know, sometimes I, you know,
people come through on the channel,

you know, it's like and people leave
comments, questions, extended fasting,

you know, and and a lot of times
I think I really want to connect

with somebody in these scenarios
because like, I like somebody

very interested, committed to big fasting.

It's like,
I would love to connect with this person,

but usually they balance because I'm like,
that's not really my thing.

You know?

It's like most of the time
and especially like

just out on the internet, you know,
like an extended fast brings in risk.

I am an incredibly risk at first.

I try to be person
and I say, let's stay on the shallow

end of the pool,
try to get as much benefit as possible

from little bits of this process,
bringing it into our life.

How we keep things safer, safe.

Okay.

Think of my study yesterday

that I described was right
everything about safety.

Safety.

People need serious oversight.

Right? Is like thoughtful monitoring.

If you're going to head into some extended
fasting thing,

you see what if you do feel called to it?

Just get a physical, get your labs check,
make sure your kidneys are okay, monitor

these things like keep an eye on it
to make sure that everything is okay.

Now the chance something bad happens,
you say is like is low in general.

I mean, human body is incredible.

It can do an extended fasting.

But look at the moment that we are
in, we have incredible tools and resources

to like, look inside of the body and see
what are the sodium and potassium levels

and how is the liver doing.
And we can have all this knowledge.

Why not avail yourself of it?

Why not smart, I say.

I post-menopausal
and have had mental health struggles.

I am so grateful to be able to fast.

I just know what a help it has been to me.

I thank you for sharing that. Absolutely.

What a blessing.

Honestly, I'm
so glad that you've had that experience.

I have met over the years

a lot of people who have had situations
like you've described.

Somewhere in my future, I want to do
a whole series on fasting for women.

Okay, I really do.

I've I've written on it
and I have many, many thoughts on it.

And of course, menopause

is a huge part of that
and cycles of all kinds of part of this.

And I've got books I've, I've bought the,
you know, the big books

Mindy pals and,
you know, all the people and you know.

I think
one of the reasons that I haven't done it

exactly is that there's just human
beings is one way to look at it.

And human beings practice fasting.

Human beings made to fast and different
people struggle at different times

for different reasons.

And of course, hormonal cycles
and the lack of them are a part of it.

But the way we approach

all of these things
is, is usually the same.

No matter what the issue is.

We have to bring grace and compassion
and patience to it,

and we have the same tools to deal
with every sort of situation.

So it's like really fasting is for people

and fasting can bring benefit to people

and in all walks and seasons of life

if they are struggling
with different metabolic things.

And so we can tailor
that to specific things

as say, you know, in my weight management
practice

post, menopause is like overrepresented
on the population level

because this is a very common time
to struggle with weight and mental health.

It is.

And to be able
to bring fasting into that space,

many people find it balancing across

many, many different levels.

So I'm just very glad
you have had that experience.

Yeah, I appreciate this thought.

People think I'm crazy
when I talk about it.

I feel bad for people who don't believe it
and won't give it a chance.

Yeah. Fasting. Not for everyone.

I'm an always make
that clear is not for everybody, but.

But I would say my feeling
is that it's for a lot of people,

it's for a lot more people
than we're really realized.

And one of the big ideas
that I have in the big picture,

and what I'm trying to do
with these sessions, like in on a big time

frame, is change the approach
or the way that people think

about fasting, fasting on YouTube culture,
you know, historically

and fasting in society,
you know, it is an intense process.

And I see that's very good

because you need something intense
in order to do something difficult.

Like you say, like

turn around a trajectory of weight
gain and regain optimal metabolic health.

Like you better have something strong
and intense to do that.

I mean, that is a big ask, right?

But fasting is up up to that.

It's it's a big and deep practice.

Even the shallow end of the pool
that I'm kind of swimming in, right,

to say there's power there.

But I think because of that power, people
hit it very hard.

And what I want to change is say,
look what we're doing here.

We got some some chill music.

We're taking some space,
we're taking some breaths.

We're easing into things.

This can be a practice
that is very gentle also.

And fasting as gentle,
powerful yet gentle.

That's why I love the analogy of a river
that has carved through the canyon.

It's like the water's gentle,
the water is flowing, but it carves

through stone.

Okay, it's like a million jackhammers
coming through it over time.

And I think when we have a culture,
when we have a space,

a community of people
walking in that direction

and people can see it,
then that's the answer to a lot of people.

A lot of people won't give it a chance
because they think that it is like

punishing the body.

We have language and culture

that fasting is starvation,
like there's so much negative connotation.

Food space in general,
you know, is a total mess, you know,

and we have people who are struggling
with all types of different scenarios.

And of course, the most difficult
scenario, something like anorexia,

some sort of eating disorder
or fasting, absolutely.

Contraindicated is like the worst thing.

You know, sometimes I say someone
with anorexia, you know, figured out

long ago fasting, a powerful process
to help you lose weight.

Right.

But then it was abused.

It was used in appropriately.

And so coming out of any sort
of eating disordered space,

like that whole mindset I think has gotten
pushed in to the rest of culture

and it's overtaken,
you know, a lot of the medical opinion

on fasting space
that because fasting space is detrimental

for certain people in certain situations,
it's taken away the ability

to clearly see how helpful it can be
to people in other situations.

And really, that's why I say it's a tool
and it needs to be used appropriately.

And. Hopefully this sort of space
is the thing that can create it.

And hopefully in the future, as as

the benefits of it
are more broadly studied.

You know, I love the study we did.

If you didn't see my session yesterday
on our clinical study

when I was at the university,
go check that out.

Let me know what you think.

Incredible study.

I'm going to do a follow up talk,
hopefully soon on another study

that was done in Europe
with a similar protocol.

It's like we need a lot of study,
a lot of attention,

a lot of thoughtfulness
to really delineate

how can we take this ancient,
incredible, powerful practice?

It is just giving space to allow the pure,
open physiology of the body to run.

And how can we bring that
into our society, our culture?

How can we create something new?

This is like bringing it
into our thinking from this book today.

Creating.

Something in the future that is much
better than what we've been experiencing.

Like we have an opportunity to do it,
I think fast and can be a part of it.

I think I would envision in the future
a health system that has been transformed

with this sort of thinking
that is a much more minimalist system,

that is much more proactive,
that is helping people

to avoid illness instead of treating it
once it's developed.

They were so far out of the curve on that,

like with an intervention that is free,

that people can practice over
a lifetime is like,

so we don't need to use
so many MRI scanners

and CT scanners
and expensive pharmaceutical substances.

And just that, the cost of this,
both for medicine and then all of society

just going down and people
experiencing flourishing on a level

that is so much bigger, so would be
the things that I hope can happen that

when people encounter thinking like that,
that they don't say, oh, that's crazy.

Pretty sane and rational thinking,
I think.

Pretty scene and rational thing to do.

Sink into the body, sink into a space

deep ancient practice,
pure physiology of the body.

See it running like from that space.

Okay, we kind of go in and out of it.

But to complete the thought,
like we see the body running in the space

and we realize, like,
the body understands this.

This is a space that you can trust. Okay.

Very hard to trust things,
you know, these days.

Think of just a single egg.

Guess what I'm thinking about?

We flash back into 1980
and was that around?

We had incredible edible egg,
you know, and then.

And then we went through time.

Eggs going to kill you. Right.

And the cholesterol and and then we had
to strip eggs out of society.

And we had egg beaters like it.

We took egg
and turned it into a processed food

in a carton
where we split it apart and thing.

And then so we go through this cycle
and it's like something

as simple as a single egg
as like, can you, can you trust it?

Can you trust the idea that culture

and scientific
people have about it for a while?

It's going to kill you, then it's great
again, then it's going to kill you again.

And this is just showing.

Like you can see why people so confused.

It's like and within one human lifetime
we've gone through this cycle

like four times.

So in a nutrient space, in a weight

loss space, billions of dollars,
trying to sell everybody

a hundred different things,
everybody saying, this is the thing.

Some of the things maybe are.

But hard to know.

And it's like, look, this space
I really like

because we're stripping everything away
and we're getting back to something

that is true, which is that
we stop eating for a little bit.

Does the body stop running? No.

Does the body know
where all the energy is?

Yes, it does. And you can trust it.

You can trust it.

And that is the sort of space
that can be a foundation.

I say is when we add to it,
that's where the trouble starts,

and that's where the discernment
and the thoughtfulness comes.

Let's rebuild from that ground
level and say, okay,

if we know we can trust this, here's
something where we can build

on, like,
what do the next levels really look like?

We've got a peer fasting space
and the body is running.

But we realize, okay,

we do need nutrition,
we need nutrients and minerals, vitamins.

We need some macros coming in here.

We need protein to replace proteins
that are damaged and end up lost. And.

We need fiber.

We can see okay fiber helping this system.

We need energy, right.

We can see
okay dual fuel system fats carbs okay.

You see this body can use all of this.

All these things are good right?

How do we bring only good and the best
things into the body in the system.

And doesn't this put you in a mindset?

Extremely thoughtful.

How do you be extremely thoughtful?

If we found something good and pure
and trustworthy, it's like and we see,

okay, we got problems in our life
somewhere between here and there.

The problem is happening, right?

You see, if we're stripping things
back down to this place, hopefully

we're passing
where the problem is getting back

to something grounded,
like rebuild in a different way.

Start the start from the foundation
and rebuild

to something very strong,
very strong diet.

Right?

Only the most natural, pure,
healthy things.

Every synthetic,
artificial, processed thing

gon build the foundation.

Very strong.

Really appreciate
sharing this space with you.

Thank you for the comments and thoughts.

I hope you have a beautiful day

and I will look forward
to connecting with you again soon.

Be well everybody!