#858: The Random Show, Couch Edition! — Supplements, Hummingbirds, Cock Rings, Optimizing Mitochondria, Breathing and Balance Training, Cool Grip Strength Tools, and More

Couch Audition Edition, friends—bowls ringing, Zen corner humming, Southern California sunshine outside, and we’re off.

We just got back from a small Zen retreat with Henry Shukman at Mountain Cloud—short sits, walking practice, space for questions, and none of the monastic misery.

Meditation is a big tent; labeling helps until it doesn’t, and the simple cue just be still cut through my OCD planning loops and settled everything nicely.

The payoff often lands after you leave, like with breathwork or psychedelics; concentration practices can usher in altered states, then quietly reorganize the next week of your life.

On ketones: I took a Delta G ester but I treat 1,3‑butanediol like moonshine—use sparingly, since animal data flags liver concerns and big spikes can jack anxiety.

Side quest: I nearly bailed thanks to my eggplant allergy, EpiPen in pocket, but rallied.

A working theory on why meditation helps: rhythmic breathing nudges the vagus nerve and calms inflammation; implants do this clinically, but box breathing twice a day is the approachable version.

If the word meditation turns you off, try breathing with biofeedback; HeartMath lifts HRV on command, and Oak has dead‑simple 4‑7‑8 and box tracks—10 to 20 minutes morning and night might even touch chronic pain.

Aging goal: do not fall. Balance boards and slacklines train your nervous system fast; keep sessions short, practice daily, and let sleep bake in the gains.

Back update after six rough years: imaging suggests Bertolotti’s syndrome; a targeted nerve block erased my hot‑spot pain and matched the scan perfectly, so I’m exploring radiofrequency ablation to retrain the pain loop.

Climbing is back on the menu after fixing old tennis elbow; I’m using Emil Abrahamsson’s hang protocol—10 seconds on, 50 off, ten rounds, twice a day—for big strength without big joint stress.

Travel grip trick: the Nug fits in a pocket, clips to cables or plates, and lets me load fingers safely; respect the tendons and live to climb tomorrow.

Japan detour: square‑bristle toothbrushes and a vintage indigo fireman’s jacket; Blue Heritage Japan on Etsy is a dangerous rabbit hole of affordable, authentic finds.

Podcast picks: 99 Percent Invisible’s Power Broker series turns Caro’s epic into a guided tour, and STEM‑Talk with Dr. Francisco Gonzalez‑Lima digs into low‑dose methylene blue plus light to juice mitochondria and glucose metabolism.

Caution flag: methylene blue has a narrow lane—dose it wrong and you can backfire—and lasers near eyes demand respect; the lure is short forehead sessions that may help cognition.

Anecdote that shaped my lens: ketones briefly restored fluid speech in a relative, which keeps me focused on vascular and mitochondrial levers over plaque‑first thinking.

Bredesen’s multi‑factor play—light ketosis, hard exercise, toxin cleanup, vascular health—tracks with what I see; the bear is compliance, not theory.

Mito lever I’m testing: urolithin A; food conversion varies wildly, so I’m trialing a clean supplement even though Mitopure‑based options are pricey.

Long‑term staples that stayed: vitamin D, omega‑3s mostly from fish, cocoa flavanols for vessels, a B‑complex, and creatine; avoid gut‑wrecking combos and you’re fine.

For brain longevity, Norwegian four‑by‑four hits lactate and VO2; when hotel bikes are knee‑killers, very high‑rep lifts can chase the same burn, and the gains might linger for years.

Travel hack I love: blood‑flow‑restriction cuffs with bands—ridiculous pump with toy weights, humbling pushups on a stair rail, and real stimulus without joint tax.

Common sense PSA: not every body part is a good candidate for BFR; choose wisely and keep the ego out of it.

Joy break at home: the Bird Buddy hummingbird feeder spots and records visitors automatically; the seed feeder became squirrel TV, so go watch Mark Rober’s squirrel‑maze masterpiece and embrace the chaos.

From Zen bowls to hummingbirds, balance, mitochondria, and smarter training, it’s all simple levers you’ll actually use; be a little kinder than necessary, and we’ll see you next time.