• 29 minutes 56 seconds
    How To Run (Even When It's Painful)
    Sophie Power once breastfed her newborn during an ultramarathon, but an upcoming 268-mile race across a remote stretch of Great Britain is freaking her out. We turn to Wim Hof, aka "The Iceman," for advice. Because when you are worried about pain, you should definitely consult a Dutch extreme athlete who sits in freezing water for fun. (Really!) This is a great episode for anyone who is scared up taking up a running habit, or any other exercise (or who just loves hearing about how to withstand pain). Enjoy! Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
    8 September 2026, 6:00 am
  • 29 minutes 12 seconds
    How To Stop Worrying So Much
    Matt has anxiety attacks. Every day. When he gets too many texts, when he starts worrying about his family, when the unexpected occurs—that’s when the sweat starts and his mind begins racing. He’s a strong guy—he was a cop—but he thinks today’s problem is connected to a tragic event in the past, and he doesn’t know what to do. We introduce him to Ben Michaelis, a clinical psychologist and habit expert, to help Matt figure out what’s triggering his anxiety attacks and how he can get back control over his head—and his life. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
    1 September 2026, 6:00 am
  • 24 minutes 10 seconds
    How To Sleep Better
    Ben, also know as "Sleepless in San Francisco" hasn't been able to get a good night's rest for over a decade. He's tried noise machines, medication, vodka, even eating cheese -- but nothing has worked. In this episode of How To!, we bring in Andy Puddicombe, a former Buddhist monk and co-founder of the meditation app Headspace, to help Ben hit the hay. Plus, some new information from the frontiers of sleep from your host, Charles Duhigg! Learn more about Sleep at Charles Duhigg's newsletter, The Science of Better! You can find it here: https://charlesduhigg.substack.com/p/the-science-of-sleep-how-to-slay Do you have a burning question or a problem that needs solving? Send us a note at [email protected]. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
    25 August 2026, 12:00 am
  • 36 minutes 46 seconds
    How to Bounce Back From Injury

    Jami's dealt with chronic knee instability and dislocations since childhood, two major surgeries, years of tedious rehab. Now she wants to actually trust her body again before starting a family, not just tolerate it. She talks to Tom Morrison, a mobility coach who thinks most people rehab wrong: too much isolating single muscles in a gym, not enough moving joints through their full range the way real life demands. His fix is almost annoyingly simple, five minutes a day, household stairs, some deliberate fidgeting, nothing that looks like a workout. He also digs into why recovering athletes sabotage themselves without realizing it, pushing hard in the gym while skipping the boring daily movement that's actually doing the real work.

    Click Here to learn more about Tom Morrison

    Executive Producer Corey Wara

    Edited by Geoff Craig

    Booking by Ben Astaire


    Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    18 August 2026, 5:05 pm
  • 42 minutes 41 seconds
    How to Improve Cyclists' Safety from Dangerous Non-Cyclists' Behavior

    Amateur cyclist and university associate professor Wendy loves riding her bike with her young son and local road group, but aggressive drivers, close calls, and a deep-seated hostility toward cyclists leave her fearing for their safety on the road. Enter Meredith Glaser, CEO of the Urban Cycling Institute and professor of cycling at Ghent University, who advocates for shifting away from defensive cycling culture and toward treating bikes as everyday appliances rather than radical political statements. She introduces Wendy to the power of temporary "street experiments" and community-led initiatives like the "bicibus" or "kidical mass," advising her to leverage grassroots momentum, youth health messaging, and local allies (including cycling police officers) to reclaim public streets, foster safer road habits, and normalize bike transit without getting bogged down in municipal bureaucracy.

    Meredith Glaser is the CEO of the Urban Cycling Institute and a leading expert on human-scale mobility. Head over to urbancyclinginstitute.org to learn more. They also have a substack - Urban Cycling Institute | Substack

    Executive Producer Corey Wara

    Edited by Geoff Craig

    Booking by Ben Astaire

    Do you have a burning question or a problem you need help with? Email us at [email protected] and we will consider your topic for the show.

    For full Pesca content and updates, check out our website at https://www.mikepesca.com/⁠ To receive ad-free content, become a Pesca Plus subscriber at ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://subscribe.mikepesca.com/ For Mike's daily takes on Substack, subscribe to The Gist List https://mikepesca.substack.com/

    Follow us on Social Media:⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/pescagist/ X https://x.com/pescami YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@pescagist⁠⁠⁠⁠ TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@pescagist

    To advertise on the show, contact ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠ or visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://advertising.libsyn.com/howto


    Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    11 August 2026, 7:03 pm
  • 26 minutes 33 seconds
    How To Stop Being an Emotional ATM

    Last week, our expert Arthur Brooks gave us some surefire advice for resetting the parent-child relationship so your kids don't treat you like an emotional ATM. On this episode of How To!, he's going to teach our listener, Karen, how to balance the books, so to speak, by taking some withdrawals of her own. He has some surprising tips for how to restrain yourself from swooping in to save the day when it would be better to let them figure it out. Starting with a hilarious story of the time Arthur's adult son called him—pantsless—from Las Vegas. If you liked this episode, check out part one: "How To Parent Less." Do you have a problem that needs solving? Send us a note at [email protected] or leave us a voicemail at 646-495-4001 and we might have you on the show.

    Executive Producer Corey Wara

    Edited by Geoff Craig

    Booking by Ben Astaire

    Do you have a burning question or a problem you need help with? Email us at [email protected] and we will consider your topic for the show.

    For full Pesca content and updates, check out our website at https://www.mikepesca.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ To receive ad-free content, become a Pesca Plus subscriber at ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://subscribe.mikepesca.com/ For Mike's daily takes on Substack, subscribe to The Gist List https://mikepesca.substack.com/

    Follow us on Social Media:⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/pescagist/ X https://x.com/pescami YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@pescagist⁠⁠⁠⁠ TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@pescagist

    To advertise on the show, contact ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠ or visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://advertising.libsyn.com/howto


    Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    4 August 2026, 1:00 pm
  • 33 minutes 47 seconds
    How to Get Your Kids to Take Good Risks

    Today on How To!, Freddy, a physician, scientist, and father, struggles with how to mentor his 12-year-old daughter, who prefers her safe comfort zone and strongly resists new experiences, travel, or unfamiliar foods. Host Mike Pesca brings on stand-up comedian and Parenting is a Joke podcast host Ophira Eisenberg to discuss strategies for nudging risk-averse kids to embrace uncertainty without overwhelming them. They explore why today's deluge of technology and abundance creates unique parenting hurdles, how to gamify trying new things, and the shift away from gentle parenting toward tougher love approaches like "FAFO." Plus, is pushing kids outside their comfort zone the key to preparing them for an unpredictable future, or should parents learn to accept their child's natural boundaries?

    Executive Producer Corey Wara

    Edited by Geoff Craig

    Booking by Ben Astaire

    Do you have a burning question or a problem you need help with? Email us at [email protected] and we will consider your topic for the show.

    For full Pesca content and updates, check out our website at https://www.mikepesca.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ To receive ad-free content, become a Pesca Plus subscriber at ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://subscribe.mikepesca.com/ For Mike's daily takes on Substack, subscribe to The Gist List https://mikepesca.substack.com/

    Follow us on Social Media:⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/pescagist/ X https://x.com/pescami YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@pescagist⁠⁠⁠⁠ TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@pescagist

    To advertise on the show, contact ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠ or visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://advertising.libsyn.com/howto


    Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    28 July 2026, 6:09 pm
  • 34 minutes 8 seconds
    How to Feel Good in Your Clothes

    Today on How To!, Michael, a retired FDNY captain who used to rely on a uniform every day, finds himself staring blankly into his closet and canceling dates because he does not know how to dress. Host Mike Pesca brings on Tavia Sharp, an executive image and personal brand strategist and founder of Styled Sharp, to help Michael navigate post-retirement style, move past 1990s baggy clothing trends, and overcome the challenge of finding proper-fitting clothes as a shorter guy. They discuss the concept of building a practical "capsule wardrobe," why you shouldn't blindly trust store clerks who call themselves stylists, and how to shop for your specific body type. Plus, is adopting a color palette and finding your "season" actually helpful advice, or just unnecessary over-complication?

    Executive Producer Corey Wara

    Edited by Geoff Craig

    Booking by Ben Astaire

    Do you have a burning question or a problem you need help with? Email us at [email protected] and we will consider your topic for the show.

    For full Pesca content and updates, check out our website at https://www.mikepesca.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ To receive ad-free content, become a Pesca Plus subscriber at ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://subscribe.mikepesca.com/ For Mike's daily takes on Substack, subscribe to The Gist List https://mikepesca.substack.com/

    Follow us on Social Media:⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/pescagist/ X https://x.com/pescami YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@pescagist⁠⁠⁠⁠ TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@pescagist

    To advertise on the show, contact ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠ or visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://advertising.libsyn.com/howto


    Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    21 July 2026, 12:00 pm
  • 36 minutes 9 seconds
    How to Hire Someone and Be a Good Boss

    Comedian and Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! panelist Paula Poundstone splits her time among a grueling tour schedule and a chaotic home life, but she wants to find the focus necessary to manage her household staff and stop letting her deep aversion to conflict ruin her business. Enter Nedra Glover Tawwab, relationship expert and author of Set Boundaries, Find Peace, who advocates for establishing extreme clarity and asserting direct workplace rules rather than falling into the trap of passive-aggressive avoidance. She introduces Paula to an evaluation rubric for vetting potential employees, advising her to utilize trial workdays and custom hiring assessmentsShe exposes the traps of management neglect that trick empathetic bosses into prioritizing an applicant's personal hardships over their actual ability to complete high-stakes tasks.

    Executive Producer Corey Wara

    Edited by Geoff Craig

    Booking by Ben Astaire

    Do you have a burning question or a problem you need help with? Email us at [email protected] and we will consider your topic for the show.

    For full Pesca content and updates, check out our website at https://www.mikepesca.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ To receive ad-free content, become a Pesca Plus subscriber at ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://subscribe.mikepesca.com/ For Mike's daily takes on Substack, subscribe to The Gist List https://mikepesca.substack.com/

    Follow us on Social Media:⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/pescagist/ X https://x.com/pescami YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@pescagist⁠⁠⁠⁠ TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@pescagist

    To advertise on the show, contact ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠ or visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://advertising.libsyn.com/howto


    Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    14 July 2026, 10:00 am
  • 30 minutes 9 seconds
    How To Keep Cool in a Crisis

    Originally Aired on Oct 12, 2021 On this episode of How To!, the second in a two part-series, Dan Christensen, a bus driver in Portland, Oregon, and Matt Smith, a crisis intervention trainer and the co-founder of Aegis Training Solutions, are back to teach you what to do when a fight is already underway. Dan talks about his experience with the 2017 Portland train attack that left two people dead. How do you stay safe? What is your responsibility to those around you? In short, how can you be a better bystander?

    If you liked this episode, check out: "How To Have a Fight That Actually Helps Your Relationship."

    Do you have a question with no easy answers? Send us a note at [email protected] or leave us a voicemail at 646-495-4001 and we might have you on the show. Subscribe for free on Apple, Spotify or wherever you listen.

    Podcast production by Derek John and Rosemary Belson.


    Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    7 July 2026, 7:48 pm
  • 33 minutes 47 seconds
    How Constraints Make Us More Creative

    Ofra splits her time among a number of hobbies in her retirement, but she wants to stop feeling rudderless and find the focus necessary to write a book of observational humor based on her twenty-year career as a psychotherapist. Enter David Epstein, workplace researcher and author of Inside the Box, who advocates for creating artificial structure and imposing concrete deadlines rather than falling into the trap of endless optionality. He introduces Ofra to an evaluation rubric for vetting creative output, advising her to write a mock press release before starting her project to define her audience and clarify the exact parenting misconceptions she wants to target. He exposes the traps of subtraction neglect that trick retirees into adding too many low-stakes activities to their daily routines.

    Executive Producer Corey Wara

    Edited by Geoff Craig

    Booking by Ben Astaire

    Do you have a burning question or a problem you need help with? Email us at [email protected] and we will consider your topic for the show.

    For full Pesca content and updates, check out our website at https://www.mikepesca.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ To receive ad-free content, become a Pesca Plus subscriber at ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://subscribe.mikepesca.com/ For Mike's daily takes on Substack, subscribe to The Gist List https://mikepesca.substack.com/

    Follow us on Social Media:⁠⁠⁠⁠ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/pescagist/ X https://x.com/pescami YouTube https://www.youtube.com/@pescagist⁠⁠⁠⁠ TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@pescagist

    To advertise on the show, contact ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠ or visit ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://advertising.libsyn.com/howto


    Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

    30 June 2026, 10:00 am
  • More Episodes? Get the App