The Comfort Crisis: Embrace Discomfort To Reclaim Your Wild, Happy, Healthy Self
Michael Easter
Discover the evolutionary mind and body benefits of living at the edges of your comfort zone and reconnecting with the wild. 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. more
304 pages, Hardcover
First published Rodale Books
4.32
Rating
16746
Ratings
1471
Reviews
Michael Easter
3 books 316 followers
Michael Easter is the author of The Comfort Crisis, a contributing editor at Men’s Health magazine, columnist for Outside magazine, and professor at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV). His work has appeared in over sixty countries and can also be found in Men’s Journal, New York, Vice, Scientific American, Esquire, and others. He lives in Las Vegas on the edge of the desert with his wife and two dogs.Community reviews
What I got from it: Main idea: 1. We spend a great amount of our modern lives completely comfortable. We live in the most optimal temperatures, we eat whenever we feel slightly hungry, and sit in soft chairs most of the day. We live our lives in a tiny circle of routine, rather than explore the boundaries of our potential. The author supports that a part of depression may be the result of never testing yourself. more
20% in and ugh, this book is pushing me to my edge. Which is an interesting conundrum, because the author isn't really interested in any discomfort that's not Boy Scout adjacent. And I don't mean running or helping with a scout troop, actually being responsible for making sure your kids don't die when they're learning to canoe, camping in 40 degree weather, or hiking fourteeners -- no, only the kid perspective, where you don't understand that your life is actually in danger because your mental walls of the world consist of the backs of the adults protecting you. I was on-board for a Born to Run, Into the Wild, or Into Thin Air, or even The Wild Trees. But right now my suspension of disbelief has been smashed by a series of really avoidable errors that shouldn't have passed fact checking: 1. more
This reads like David Goggins propaganda, or like it was written by someone who'd seriously consider electing Joe Rogan for president. I agree with the basic premise, ie, that we ought to get outside more and push past our overly-cushioned modern, Western lives. Yet, I think Easter takes this too far. I will say that I enjoyed his discussion with the food guy, but that was pretty much the only part I liked. First, a caveat: I read this directly after The Alignment Problem, which is like trying to compare a candle to a floodlight. more
I found this title but initially brushed it off. My profession as a strength and conditioning coach afforded me over four decades of exposure to this disappointing trend. What else can he tell me. Then I read an article by Michael Easter on RUCKING from RUNNERS WORLD. I enjoyed his style of writing and decided to take the plunge with THE COMFORT CRISIS. more
This book is not what I expected it to be, based on the title. It's only tangentially about the benefits of discomfort. It's really about a former alcoholic going on a big hunting trip, with some commentary about how modern life is unhealthy. I'd say a better title would be "Getting back to life in nature. and how modern life is unhealthy". more
The crazy thing is that I actually really like and agree with the main concept of this book. So why am I rating 2 stars. Something that irritates me with these types of journalistic books is that the author spends so much time describing their own journey into the research - which I could NOT care less about and it takes up most of the book content. I couldn’t have been less interested in this guys conversations with random people or arctic adventure (arctic adventure sounds interesting but his wasn’t at all. It was basically him walking around with a bunch of old dudes and occasionally hunting). more
Would give this book 0 stars if I could. Such a colossal waste of time– a wealthy white man struggling with his boredom in a privileged environment so much that he has so pay to have someone guide him in feeling something. Michael uses his generalized personal experience to justify classist and prejudiced tone-deaf rants that are a poor excuse for 'journalism'. Michael– want to feel uncomfortable for once in your life. Go outside wearing a dress or live as a homeless individual for more than 24 hours. more
3 starsI found the concept of this book interesting and I was looking forward to reading it. While I do agree most of us are too comfortable in a lot of ways, I’m not sure the solution to that is to go out in the wilderness. At least that’s not what I’m going to do. And I didn’t really care to hear about all of the author's wilderness stories. I am not a fan of hearing about hunting and so much of this book was hunting stories. more
This was an interesting take on a subject which is not new - the tendency of Americans to overeat and and under-exercise, and the consequences of those choices. Easter takes the discussion a bit further by using recent scientific research on the beneficial effects of being in nature to suggest that humans need time in nature, if only for twenty minutes a day, and lack of such time has negative physical and mental consequences. I think he is onto something, but I'm naturally disposed to think that. His central thematic device is a description of a 31-day wilderness experience on Alaska's North Slope, and this may be off-putting to many readers, because the purpose of the trip was a caribou hunt. Easter says he is trying to recreate the experience of our hunter-gatherer forebears who regularly went out hunting for big game to bring protein back to the tribe. more
One of my favorite categories of books is “nonfiction that reads like can’t-put-it-down fiction. “ (One example: Born to Run. ) Another category is “so inspiring I immediately changed my own life. ” (See Byron Katie’s Loving What Is. )Michael Easter’s new book The Comfort Crisis is BOTH. more
The best I can say was that some of the information was fine if a bit magazine-lite. But this book was a personal discomfort and endurance challenge (lol) courtesy of the, cue the jingle folks, incessant low-key misogyny. A handful of examples:-The three women experts cited (of ~40+) are “shy”, working in surprisingly “unsexy fields”, or in “pink running shoes”. - Any other woman mentioned is a distant wife holding down the home front or a victim of kidnapping (seriously, his entire history of Iceland said it started from a population of N thousands, whom I guess weren’t women, plus women who were kidnapped). - The book spools out a conceit of fit, hardy, and uncomfortable vs sedentary, soft, and unfit. more
An interesting book, that led to several wonderful discussions with my husband and friends. The idea that we are so programed to seek comfort, and are now so dependent on it that we are afraid of living resonated with us. The idea that pushing ourselves outside the everyday norm sounds practical to appreciate and view things differently. At times it felt a bit didactic though, and repetitive, but basically I really enjoyed this book and the concept of thinking and living outside the same old same old. If you feel you are in a rut, or want to be a bit adventurous, read this book. more
Could not get into this, despite my best efforts. The author’s voice was annoying, and I felt the book lacked the necessary research to make some of these claims (I think the thrust of the thing is correct, and it does generally interest me. ). Not for me. more
I don’t usually read self help books and after this book I may have to start reading more. I really liked this book. It was very informative and really made me think about things, and I thought it was pretty relevant to what’s happening now especially being stuck at home for a year due to the pandemic. What I really loved though was how Michael Easter threw in an adventure story mixed in with all the facts. It was the perfect balance of learning and being entertained at the same time. more
What's the ultimate goal in this life. Is it to transcend the problems of everyday reality and retire in comfort and serenity near the beach. Or is it to test our limits regularly and embrace the discomfort and challenges of being a human being. This is a question many of us take for granted. We all think that retiring rich, fat, and happy should be the ultimate goal, but how many of us would be lonely and bored should we ever reach that plateau. more
I was on board with the concept that we need to experience discomfort or a challenge to grow. However, I’m 20% in and the book so far seems to be a vehicle for the author to humble brag or justify his elk hunting trip in Alaska. Maybe it gets better, but I have too many other books in my queue to find out. . more
Ten stars. Mind blown. I’ll re-read every year. Second best read of 2021. What an incredible journey and I loved how he tied each piece of his experience to some scientific fact or research. more
A really inspiring read--As an antifragile nerd who likes to experiment with various discomforts ranging from fasting and cold showers to rucking and sleep deprivation, I found this book fascinating, to say the least. It's well written and structured, with the author's amazing backcountry trip in Alaska acting as the backbone to string together various facets of discomfort he faces as he hunts ever-elusive caribou, as well as their scientific research. The book made me want to incorporate misogis (though the meaning is a little off, as it just means ritual purification by water & doesn't involve anything difficult to do), feel hunger more often outside of my occasional fasts, go backpacking, and get a hunting license. The last portion felt a little rushed (covering cold exposure, microbiome, Sherpa's high altitude performance, and mysterious Icelandic longevity genes) and—this is very minor but being a Zen practitioner, I couldn't help but notice—he takes several swipes at Zen that show his understandable ignorance (or just simplistic/superficial knowledge) of the practice, but apart from these, I was very happy with the book. In a nutshell:-Do "misogi," or mega-challenges once in a while to push your limits. more
Alternative titles: "How To Teach About Hedonistic Adaptation While Being Clueless About Said Adaptation" or "Common Sense About Human Comforts & Health That Nobody Needs To Explain"This book is masquerading as something smart and incisive but if the reader is bold enough to turn on their brain while reading, they will find that everything either boils down to common sense that even children already intuitively know or conclusions where the author is way out over his skis on based on pulling correlated data points together and asserting there is causation. Some examples of "duh" comments that are presented as groundbreaking discoveries:-The brain dramatically relaxes and refreshes after 2+ days of rest. The brain waves actually look different on day 2 because the first day off it is still operating as if it is working. Huh, sort of like how we all feel refreshed after a weekend. You don't say-Sherpas cardiovascular systems are strengthened in a particular way which allows them to exercise much better at lower altitudes. more
Starts to sag a bit at the end, but overall, one of the most profoundly exciting and believable books about health and well-being that I've read in years. more
"Most people today rarely step outside their comfort zones. We are living progressively sheltered, sterile, temperature-controlled, overfed, underchallenged, safety-netted lives. And it’s limiting the degree to which we experience our “one wild and precious life. ”The Comfort Crisis was an excellent book. I am generally a fan of books about the fields of high performance, excellency, and mindset- so I put the book on my list as soon as I came across it. more
Maybe 3. 5 stars. The author is a good writer and I liked how he wove his rigorous hunting journey into the Arctic with interesting facts; a lot of which I already knew because this is a topic I've been reading abt for awhile. But still interesting. Random thoughts:I'm not going on a rigorous Arctic journey but I like the concept of pushing ourselves. more
Fascinating stuff here. Set amid the backdrop of a life-changing, month-long excursion to the total wilderness of Alaska, this book dives into why making our lives purposely LESS comfortable sometimes can actually make us happier, healthier human beings. Loved all the research sections. Some of the actual Alaska storyline bits felt slow. Definitely wish there would have been less profanity (the f-bomb was dropped frequently). more
Brilliant read. Thoroughly covers longevity, happiness, nature, hunting, health, and evolution. Embracing boredom: we hate boredom but this has serious consequences for our creativity and awareness. So I’m never using my phone as a crutch when waiting or shitting or anything. 3 days in nature has healing effects that last long after you return. more
This is not a knock against this well-written book since many people may not know this stuff but it contains the same advice to not eat so much, gets lots of exercise, don't look at your phone too much, and expose yourself to cold that you also hear in every other longevity and health related book. Although I enjoyed the writing and anecdotes I can't say I learned a single new thing. more
Let it be known I had to back myself off of a reactive 5 for this personal endurance journal/healthy living/psychology/anthropology assortment, but I am too familiar with the power of confirmation bias to not realize that rating would be more reflective of the personal views and practices affirmed within the pages than particularly stellar or amazing writing. I will not hold back on encouraging family members who find my ideas and behavior sometimes quirky to read and discover for themselves the benefits of not eating breakfast, being a committed tea drinker, keeping cold household temperatures in the winter, limiting screen time, pursuing outdoor challenges, and/or being a serious rucker (no more scoffing at the computer backpack used to haul the jolly-green 17 inch screen. ). Affirmation aside, I do recognize that perhaps Michael didn't need to share quite so much between the front and back cover, and that some readers might prefer just the misogi tale, hunter narrative, Eastern wisdom quips, or health and food studies, but not all them together which, instead of an interesting book, may read more like a loosely connected collection of blogs. . more