Discover the evolutionary mind and body benefits of living at the edges of your comfort zone and reconnecting with the wild-from the New York Times bestselling author of Scarcity Brain.

If you ve been looking for something different to level up your health, fitness, and personal growth, this is it. -Melissa Urban, Whole30 CEO and author of The Book of Boundaries

Michael Easter s genius is that he puts data around the edges of what we intuitively believe. His work has inspired many to change their lives for the better. -Dr. Peter Attia, author of Outlive

In many ways, we re more comfortable than ever before. But could our sheltered, temperature-controlled, overfed, underchallenged lives actually be the leading cause of many our most urgent physical and mental health issues? In this gripping investigation, award-winning journalist Michael Easter seeks out off-the-grid visionaries, disruptive genius researchers, and mind-body conditioning trailblazers who are unlocking the life-enhancing secrets of a counterintuitive solution: discomfort.

Easter s journey to understand our evolutionary need to be challenged takes him to meet the NBA s top exercise scientist, who uses an ancient Japanese practice to build championship athletes; to the mystical country of Bhutan, where an Oxford economist and Buddhist leader are showing the world what death can teach us about happiness; to the outdoor lab of a young neuroscientist who s found that nature tests our physical and mental endurance in ways that expand creativity while taming burnout and anxiety; to the remote Alaskan backcountry on a demanding thirty-three-day hunting expedition to experience the rewilding secrets of one of the last rugged places on Earth; and more.

Along the way, Easter uncovers a blueprint for leveraging the power of discomfort that will dramatically improve our health and happiness, and perhaps even help us understand what it means to be human.