Behaviors
3,474protocols, ranked by how often the world’s top health podcasts mention them.
- Never Fail a Lift in Training▶ 1
Avoid failed lifts and failure-based methods because they may reinforce inhibitory pathways, increase recovery cost, shift fibers slower, and degrade technique. Forced reps and drop sets were also discouraged.
- Use Six Sets of Three Instead of Three Sets of Six▶ 1
Builds just as much strength with less fatigue, more practice, and faster recovery.
- Use Kettlebell Pressing to Improve Shoulder Flexion and Thoracic Extension▶ 1
The offset center of gravity helps pull the arm back and improve shoulder and thoracic mobility.
- Use a Wider Squat Stance Progressively for Flexibility▶ 1
If squatting to parallel, progressively increase stance width to develop flexibility, but do not combine a very wide stance with rock-bottom depth because hip architecture is not designed for that.
- Use Wall Squats to Develop Deep Squat Mobility▶ 1
Face a wall with arms out and squat in your normal narrower stance; the wall provides feedback and prevents compensations.
- Do Over 100 Perfect Bodyweight Squats at Least Twice Per Week in Older Age▶ 1
Given as an example of sustainable training in older age.
- Climb Stairs One Floor at a Time With Hallway Walks Between Floors▶ 1
Anti-glycolytic stair protocol: climb one floor, walk the hallway, come back, then go to the next floor; example given was 17 floors a few times per week.
- Train the Midsection With Tension and Attention▶ 1
Core training should emphasize high tension and focused attention rather than endless exercise variety. Learn abdominal tension through exercises like Zercher squats or double kettlebell front squats; contract the pelvic diaphragm, direct attention to different parts of the abdomen, keep reps low such as 5x5, and use intra-abdominal pressure. Once skilled, heavy lifts and power breathing may be enough for abs.
- Use Bodyweight Training Anywhere▶ 1
Bodyweight training is recommended for accessibility, especially when traveling or without gym access. Be patient with bodyweight strength progressions because they are skill-intensive and may take longer to master.
- Use Hissing Abdominal Bracing Drill▶ 1
Take a normal breath into the abdomen, pull up the pelvic floor, put the tongue between the teeth, and hiss in a ratcheting manner while keeping pressure out of the head and neck and directing pressure below the waist.
- Use Kettlebells as an Entry Point Into Strength Training▶ 1
Suggested as the best starting point for new trainees because they teach the body language of strength well. Learn the hip hinge with no weight, then use kettlebell deadlift progressions before progressing to swings.
- Use the Valsalva Maneuver Properly Under Heavy Loads▶ 1
Take the breath low into the abdomen, using the nose or pursed lips rather than a wide-open mouth, pull up from below, and create an exhalation that did not happen while maintaining a neutral spine. For longer efforts, breathe behind the shield. Match the breath with the force in punching, throwing, or lifting; exhalation during punching was said to add power.
- Use Kettlebell Bent Press▶ 1
Recommended for thoracic spine and shoulder mobility.
- Look Straight Ahead as a General Rule During Lifts▶ 1
General recommendation for eye position, though individual exceptions exist. For deadlifts specifically, maintain a neutral neck as a continuation of the body and look at an appropriate spot on the ground.
- Use Blindfolded Lifting for Advanced Practice▶ 1
Advanced lifters can do some sets blindfolded to rely more on kinesthetic sense.
- Use One Program With an Established Track Record▶ 1
Pick one proven, simple program with few moving parts and stick with it for a long time rather than over-customizing or constantly chasing the next program.
- Turn Phone Monochrome▶ 1
Changing the phone display to monochrome can reduce checking behavior and time spent on the phone by making it a less compelling source of reward.
- Awe-Based Meditation▶ 1
Mentioned as another cognitively focused meditation style not tied to external sensory input.
- CrossFit▶ 1
Mentioned favorably as a time-efficient workout style; Platt describes doing workouts in 10 minutes or under that leave him exhausted.
- 100 Jumping Jacks▶ 1
Recommended as a warm-up before cardiovascular or resistance training; Huberman says it likely reduces injury risk, probably by raising core body temperature.
- Warm Up Before Cognitive Work▶ 1
Use a cognitive warm-up period before deep work, analogous to warming up before exercise. Suggested examples include visually narrowing attention with clustered stimuli or a fixation point before starting work.
- Breathing to Reduce Arousal During Decision-Making▶ 1
Use simple breathing strategies in the moment to turn down arousal and improve decision quality by reducing the influence of noise.
- Fresh Air▶ 1
Seek fresh air and avoid bad air; framed as part of health maintenance and infection avoidance. Opening windows was also suggested as a way to bring more outdoor conditions indoors.
- Use Red Light Therapy Carefully▶ 1
If using red light therapy, do not assume more is better; match intensity more closely to sunlight because too much can be detrimental due to a biphasic response.
- Track Outdoor Time▶ 1
For one week, pay attention to how much time you actually spend outside, ideally without sunglasses, to assess whether you're getting enough outdoor light exposure.
- Use a Phone Flashlight Instead of Looking at the Screen at Night▶ 1
If you need to navigate at night, use your phone as a flashlight aimed into the hallway rather than looking at the screen, which is more disruptive to melatonin.
- Flu Shot▶ 1
Recommended especially for people who are immunocompromised, metabolically unhealthy, or exposed to a lot of flu, such as ICU workers. The guest said he personally gets it once each year, not multiple times per season.
- Wear a Surgical Mask During High Flu Exposure▶ 1
When flu incidence is rising or during winter travel and exposure, wear a regular surgical mask in clinics or shared indoor settings to reduce spread from and to others.
- Heat Therapy▶ 1
Use heat exposure such as hot baths, hot showers, or hot fomentations to raise body temperature and potentially stimulate innate immunity and interferon production. For hot fomentations, hot towels were soaked, heated carefully, placed over a protective cloth layer, and kept on until sweating began, for about 20 minutes. Covering the head in the sauna with a towel or wool beanie was suggested to reduce the brain's heat signal and tolerate heat more comfortably.
- Do Not Automatically Suppress Fever▶ 1
Treat fever as potentially beneficial rather than assuming it is part of the problem; fever may support interferon and innate immunity.