The Urban Monk podcast with Dr. Pedram Shojai

It's always an amazing privilege to get wisdom from one spiritual master, but it's a gift to be in the presence of two masters. Douglas Abrams was able to spend some time with both His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Archbishop Desmond Tutu. The Dalai Lama and Desmond Tutu to begin with rarely spend time with each other in person as being world leaders it's difficult to just hang out. So when it was planned to spend extended time together, Douglas Abrams was there to capture the moments while writing a book with both of them. The book is "The Book of Joy" and Abrams discusses how both men simply exude joy and spread it to those around them.

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Direct download: UrbanMonk060DouglasAbrams.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 2:00am MDT

Millions of us suffer from some form of an autoimmune condition whether we know it or not. An autoimmune condition can cause weight issues, brain and mood problems, and fatigue. The big issue is that it can take years for symptoms to clearly point back towards an autoimmune condition. Dr. Tom O'Bryan is a leading researcher who has spent years studying the effects of autoimmunity. Is it possible to reverse these conditions? What is the autoimmune system and is it possible to control? How do we know if we have an autoimmune issue?

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Direct download: UrbanMonk059TomOBryan.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:37am MDT

It is human to care. Well, it's a good human that cares. But sometimes we may be helping out and worrying about other things and people so much that it's detrimental to our own health. How can we, without turning into a monster, stop giving a fuck? Mark Manson joins Pedram on today's program to discuss how to bring focus back to yourself without being a selfish monster.

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Direct download: UrbanMonk058MarkManson.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:32am MDT

For some people at the beginning of their weight loss journey, it can be trouble just figuring out where to even start. Do we have to hop right into the gym? Do we immediately overhaul our diet? Do we do both? Is there more to it? Jennifer Cohen would just have you start! She's a lifestyle and fitness spokesperson and consultant for a variety of brands from Muscle Milk to KIND Bars to Weight Watchers. Having spoken about fitness on programs such as The Doctors, Dr. Oz, and even NBC's Today Show, what are the common trip-ups she sees as people take the first steps towards becoming healthier?

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Direct download: UrbanMonk057JenniferCohen.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 3:30pm MDT

For a while ADHD seemed nearly like a national epidemic. Many children were being diagnosed with ADHD and were being prescribed treatments for it. More than 1 in 7 US children are diagnosed with ADHD, but many experts are disputing that number. Many experts believe that millions of children are being misdiagnosed and are currently on medications that they should not be taking. Today's guest, Alan Schwarz, has studied the effects of ADHD culture. What does it mean for the medical industry to be diagnosing ADHD so often in children? What role do big pharmaceutical companies play in the pressure to diagnose ADHD? What are the appropriate ways to address this crisis?

Direct download: UrbanMonk056AlanSchwarz.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:13am MDT

A lot of different exercise and nutrition programs get summed down into simple sayings. "No pain no gain" and "What doesn't kill you makes you stronger" are often thrown around, but what's the truth behind those? Pedram Shojai welcomes Ari Whitten to The Urban Monk to talk about the exact science behind weight loss. What is happening in the body on a cellular level that tells it to keep fat or to lose it? How does this differ between people and how do we know what works best for us without having to try everything? And when it comes to "no pain no gain," are we really supposed to be in pain to get gains?

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Direct download: UrbanMonk055AriWhitten1.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 2:00am MDT

We live in a fast society. There's fast food, fast internet, even instant streaming of TV. Health fixes we expect to be fast as well. But sometimes the best solution isn't the fastest. In fact, quick-fix solutions might exacerbate certain health imbalances. Today's guest, Dr. Michael Finkelstein advises a slow medicine approach – identifying root causes of our symptoms and then creating a step-by-step, long-term response. Is a slow medicine approach always appropriate? In what ways does this benefit? If a fix takes so long, how are we sure that it's even working?

Direct download: UrbanMonk054MichaelFinkelstein.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 5:17pm MDT

Sometimes a family member or close friend might drop a bombshell on us that leaves us speechless. Sometimes it's great yet unexpected move like hearing a friend is moving across the country for a job. It might be something awful like hearing a relative has cancer. Melissa Moore received news that very few of us are likely to ever hear. As a teenager, she learned that her father was a serial killer. He was in fact the nationally known serial killer, the Happy Face Killer. How does anyone possibly even react to that sort of news? Melissa was stigmatized for years after the conviction of her father. Did she have any clue? How did other people react to her? How does someone's life fall apart after this sort of news? And more importantly how was Melissa able to pull herself back together?

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Direct download: UrbanMonk053MelissaMoore.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:36pm MDT

A lot of life seems to be about trying to be in the right place at the right time. Is there any evidence to that? Today's guest, Dr. Michael Breus, would argue "Yes!" And he comes with a lot of studies to back it up. In his new book, "The Power of When," he explores how timing is everything. The catch? The timing varies from person to person. Does this mean we have to uproot everything we do and spend a lot of time just to figure out how to time things? Dr. Breus simplifies the process so that grasping the "Power of When" isn't about a massive change, but making a simple shift that can have big effects. He talks about different chronotypes. What are chronotypes and how do you know which one you are? What differentiates one chronotype from another? How possible is it to maximize productivity by looking at your own chronotype?

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Direct download: UrbanMonk052MichaelBreus.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 2:00am MDT

Sometimes the biggest obstacle in the way of achieving goals we set for ourselves is, well, ourselves. How can we get out of our own way? Today Pedram welcomes back to the program Dr. Carl Totton who was Pedram's kung fu master. Carl is not only a professor of psychology but also a kung fu grandmaster. How can we maximize our energy into usable energy to help us achieve our goals no matter how big or small? How do we know if we're the ones responsible for falling short of our goals? How can we recognize that and make adjustments so that we can live our lives the way we want to?

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Direct download: UrbanMonk051CarlTotton.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:48am MDT

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