The Primal Shift

It's been just over eight weeks since my meniscus surgery, and I wanted to share a transparent update on what's been working, what hasn't, and how my knee is performing now. In this episode, I walk you through the entire healing process: the early tightness and inflammation, what I learned from ignoring recovery during our homestead move, how my MCL tear is progressing, and why rotational stress i...

Most of us don't realize how quickly the urge hits. You sit down at the DMV, nothing is happening yet, and your hand is already halfway to your pocket. Reaching for our phone has become so automatic that we barely notice it, even though it shapes much more of our behavior than we'd like to admit. In this episode, I look at that micro-moment — the half-second between feeling an urge and acting on i...

For years, my blood pressure readings at routine checkups came back higher than I expected, even though I train hard, sleep well, and pay close attention to recovery.  I wasn't hypertensive, but those numbers never matched how I actually felt — and the rushed way they were taken didn't inspire confidence.  After all, when a measurement happens over a sweater, with no rest period, and within second...

We've been using Eight Sleep at the Kummer house for years, and in many ways it's been an incredible tool. The pod keeps the bed at exactly the right temperature through hot Georgia nights; lets us set different temperatures for falling asleep, the first half of the night, the second half, and waking up; and it tracks sleep, HRV, heart rate, respiratory rate, and even snoring. From a comfort and d...

Coffee can be both a tool and a toxin, depending on how it's grown, prepared and used. In this episode, I take a closer look at caffeine and coffee through a practical lens — what science says, what I've experienced, and what really determines whether that morning cup helps or harms you. Caffeine blocks adenosine, which makes you feel less tired and can improve focus and performance. I've noticed...

A few days ago, Kathy asked me to listen to a parenting podcast by Dr. Becky that stopped me in my tracks. In it, the host told a story about planning a movie night as a kid — driving to Blockbuster, hoping the film you wanted wasn't already rented, and learning to deal with the disappointment when it was.  That memory hit hard because it reminded me just how much patience was once built into dail...

When Consumer Reports recently claimed that protein powders contain "high levels of lead," it sparked fear and confusion. In this episode, I break down what's actually going on, including how heavy metals end up in supplements, which types are most affected, and how to protect yourself without overreacting. Plant-based protein powders like rice, pea, soy and hemp often have the highest levels of c...

After nearly a decade of wearing an Apple Watch, I finally ditched it. Not because I stopped caring about health data, but because I realized the device was working against the simplicity and freedom I value.  Plus, no matter how many times I toggled it into airplane mode, the Bluetooth stayed on — meaning constant EMF exposure right over a major artery.  Add to that the Apple Watch's short batter...

Most conversations about the environment fall into polarized camps — either denial or panic. But living responsibly doesn't have to be political or extreme. In this episode, I take a practical look at what stewardship can look like at home, from how we grow food to how we build, heat, and maintain the spaces we live in.  For our family, that means raising chemical-free produce and livestock, manag...

A few weeks ago, I found myself driving home late after a long day of hauling gear to our new property — hungry, tired, and joking with Kathy that if we were a "normal" family, we'd just pull into a McDonald's drive-thru. Of course, we didn't, but that comment stuck with me. Could there be a future where eating at McDonald's wouldn't feel like poisoning your body? It sounds absurd, but after heari...

When most people think about blood pressure, they think about a once-a-year reading at a doctor's office. But one measurement on one day doesn't tell you much about your cardiovascular health. Just like a single fasting glucose number doesn't reveal your metabolic state, a one-off blood pressure check is largely meaningless. Blood pressure fluctuates throughout the day based on stress, sleep, exer...

Most people with gut issues get fed the same script: It's genetic. It's lifelong. The best you can do is try to manage the symptoms.  But in this episode, holistic nutritionist and physician consultant Josh Dech pushes back on that conventional wisdom, arguing that what we typically call "autoimmune" disease is often a sign of the body protecting itself from toxins lodged in tissue – not a genetic...

I recently spent a week in Austria, bouncing between my grandparents' farmhouse and the alpine trails I grew up on. And it hit me how stark the contrast is between the foundation they built and the environment kids are growing up in today.  My grandparents are 92 and 93, still living on their own. They had decades of clean food, pure alpine water, long days outside and zero WiFi. And then, over th...

Most people have been told at some point that the way to "detox" is to buy a cleanse, live on juice for a week, or chase down some supplement that promises to pull toxins out of the body. But the reality is very different.  In this episode, I unpack what detoxification really looks like, and explain why your body already comes equipped with everything it needs to keep itself clean — provided you d...

In this episode, I explore whether following an ancestral diet and traditional eating habits is enough to keep us healthy today. While our grandparents thrived on simple meals, the reality of modern food quality, hidden environmental toxins, and processed foods inflammation paint a different picture. I share how chronic stress and health challenges, along with changes like A1 vs A2 milk casein, af...

In this episode, I share a fascinating 1950s endurance experiment with rats that uncovered what researchers called an "anti-fatigue factor" in beef liver. The results highlight why organ meats like liver are nature's ultimate multivitamin and how even small micronutrient deficiencies can wreck ATP energy production, mitochondrial health, and overall performance. I'll walk you through what the stud...

For years I thrived on two large meals a day – a late-morning breakfast after training and an early dinner. And the results spoke for themselves: stable blood sugar, excellent insulin sensitivity, low body fat, and plenty of energy.  But I began noticing a drawback. Those evening meals, heavy in protein and fat, kept my digestive system working for hours after I went to bed, raising my heart rate,...

Snoring isn't normal—it's a warning sign. In this episode, I sit down with Alex Neist, founder of Hostage Tape, to talk about the real dangers of mouth breathing, why quality sleep starts with your nose, and how mouth taping changed his life (and saved his marriage). We cover everything from snoring solutions and sleep apnea natural remedies to the science behind nasal breathing benefits and how t...

Too much estrogen — even the fake kind — is wrecking our health. In this episode, Kathy and I break down the hidden endocrine disruptors lurking in your bathroom: shampoos, lotions, deodorants, candles, and even "natural" products that aren't so natural. We share the exact non-toxic swaps we've made over the years (without breaking the bank), and why some "clean" labels still aren't enough. We als...

In this episode, Kathy and I unpack how we reduced our exposure to environmental toxins—from improving tap water safety and installing water filtration systems, to replacing plastic containers and upgrading to non-toxic cookware. We talk about chlorine exposure in showers and pools, how we built a more toxin-free home, and why choosing organic food and chemical-free living matters more than you th...

When most people think about saving the planet, they picture cutting back on meat and eating more plants. But what if the story we've been told about how plant-based diets equate to sustainability is missing half the truth (and hiding a massive environmental cost)? In this episode of the Primal Shift Podcast, I pull back the curtain on the industrial food system most people never see.  From the 90...

For most of human history, survival depended on eating the foods that gave us the most nutrients with the least effort. That usually meant animals, which are dense in protein, fat, and bioavailable vitamins and minerals. But in recent years, we've been told that plants are the true superfoods.  Raw kale in your smoothie? Spinach salads every day? The darker and leafier, the better, right? Not quit...

It's easy to assume that food affects everyone the same way. But when my wife Kathy and I wore continuous glucose monitors for two weeks, we learned just how different our responses actually are.  For example, a bowl of curry or a few slices of sourdough bread would send her blood sugar soaring while barely impacting mine, and vice versa.  We weren't just tracking data: we were uncovering real-tim...

Biohacking wasn't always about gadgets. It used to be about building a better lifestyle by fixing root causes with movement, light, food and sleep. But somewhere along the way, optimization gave way to outsourcing. Today, it's easy to mistake a tech solution for progress when it's really just a more expensive version of the same mistake: treating symptoms instead of addressing causes. That shift w...

Have you noticed how everyone seems obsessed with sourdough bread lately? Well, my wife and I have been experimenting with sourdough baking for a couple of years now, and in this episode, I'm breaking down the real story behind sourdough. Is it truly healthier, or is that just hype? I'll walk you through why sourdough might digest easier, how it impacts nutrient absorption, and what types of flour...