Much love!
Mark Bell on The 2AM Podcast has arrived
Elite powerlifter, inventor of the Slingshot, and host of the Power Project podcast. Known for his raw honesty and relentless discipline, Mark has spent decades exploring what it means to build true strength, not just in the gym, but in every corner of life
From setting world records on the platform to building one of the most influential fitness brands in America, Markās story is one of constant evolution
We talk about:
Building discipline
Why simplicity wins in life
Pain, suffering, and consistency
How to navigate nutrition with clarity
The real nuance behind sugar fasting
Watch the video and subscribe!
Heavenly Heat Saunas are the only saunas I trust enough to partner with, and I donāt say that lightly
The co-owner, Kayla Barnes, has followed me for a while, and I coincidentally learned that she owned the company on my search for a good brand
That led me down the Heavenly Heat rabbit hole via Matt Justice and was very pleased with his assessment of their saunas, from head to toe
I had my wife (a PR wizard) send them an email, which is how we got to this point
Theyāre the gold standard in a space thatās full of cheap materials and sloppy engineering. These guys build everything in the United States, use non-toxic wood, zero plywood, zero VOCs, and the cleanest electric heaters in the industry
You can verify the quality through Matt Justice of Certified Saunas on YouTube
No gimmicks. No nnEMF circus. Just reliable, therapeutic heat the way itās supposed to be delivered so that you can heal and improve your metabolic health
Ultra clean build standards
No glues/adhesives for those who are chemically sensitive and need to heal from serious metabolic dysfunction
Ultra-low nnEMF & ELF with grounded faraday shielding via carbon infrared heaters that reduce electric and magnetic exposure for safety
Excellent pre-heat time
Most importantly, one hell of a deep sweat that improves your health across the board (yes, you can buy a sauna that does a crappy job of making you sweat because of the low quality build standard)
Many sauna companies cut corners. Heavenly Heat doesnāt. Thatās why their units cost more, and why they last longer, hit harder, and donāt poison the air while youāre using it
Iāve partnered with them because I have always been interested in the power of sauna use for detox, infrared therapy, and more, but never had the chance to get one myself for consistent use
These are the saunas Iād put my own family in without hesitation. Thatās why Iāve educated my family to have more skin in the game here
Their selection is awesome as well. The ECO infrared can fit into a closet. The 2 person combination switches between infrared and traditional. The 2 person red light therapy infrared gives you more photobiomodulation power. They even have an outdoor option
Black Friday is upon us. Now is your chance to get huge savings, especially with my own discount code thrown into the mix. Even if you decide to get one after Black Friday, my code offers substantial savings
I suggest you take advantage to save anywhere between $800-$1,100 off all models. Itās likely the cheapest price point youāll ever get
Remember, in the sauna space, you truly do get what you pay for. Donāt be that person who makes a rash decision and buys a cheap sauna from Amazon because it has a lower price tag. They are a nightmare to have when things are going wrong
Get one for yourself and family with the link and code below. Ask questions if they arise
Enjoy Heavenly Heat Sauna quality
Use code ZAID for huge savings, in addition to the Black Friday deal
https://www.heavenlyheatsaunas.com/ZAID
This is arguably one of our most important episode for The 2AM Podcast to date
Nothing matters more than the next generation, and midwifery/home birth strikes at the heart of that discussion
My wife and I hired Lisa and Richard Oxenham to be our midwife team. They have helped bring Enzo into the world full of vitality, and I have seen their magic in person
This episode is loaded with wisdom for everyone, regardless of whether youāve already had children or want to have them in the future
I will tell you this from experience. How you show up for your family within the context of birth, prenatal, postpartum, and everything in between is everything
It makes all the difference
Link below šš½
https://youtu.be/i_VK4StxMBw?si=LmWD1DK6Lb6PpzOa
Amber light, fat cells, and nature
Researchers took human fat cells and shined different colors of light on them.. violet, blue, green, yellow, amber (nanometers), and red
Only one wavelength consistently did something dramatic:
Amber light made fat cells break down their stored fat droplets. This wasnāt done by the normal fat burning hormone pathway, but by turning on the cells cleanup and recycling machinery
Autophagy + lysosomes = internal fat digestion. Autophagy being the cellās self-cleaning process, and lysosomes being acidic sacs that digest waste
The cell essentially ate its own fat droplets from the inside out as a result of amber light exposure
This pathway is not the classic adrenaline to HSL to fat breakdown route
The researchers even blocked the usual lipase pathways, and the amber light effect still happened
So, the study tells us that amber light activates the cellās recycling machinery that destroys fat droplets
Itās not a stretch at all to suggest that light wavelengths can influence adipocyte (fat cell) behavior in a measurable way
ā¢ā¢ā¢
Every wavelength does something different in the body because different molecules and tissues absorb different photons
Blue light is highly stimulating and alerting. Red and infrared boosts mitochondrial ATP. UV-A and UV-B offer distinct benefits
Amber sits in an interesting middle zone because it penetrates deeper than blue, carries more energy than red, and interacts with metabolic tissue like fat
Amber is also heavily involved in:
ā¢ cerebellar development
ā¢ circadian signaling
ā¢ mitochondrial dynamics
ā¢ melanin intermediates
ā¢ POMC related pathways
Fat cells responding to amber light fits the pattern of amber being a metabolic wavelength
Amber exists in the natural world for your benefit. Itās most abundant during sunrise and sunset due to Rayleigh Scattering, where you have a high concentration of red/infrared/oranges/yellow/ambers
Golden hour is an amber rich experience
You literally bathe in amber light just by stepping outside during sunrise and sunset
Firelight offers a lot of amber along with many of the same wavelengths that sunrise and sunset provide
Full spectrum sunlight during the day offers amber as well, but at less concentration since itās mixed with the rest of the spectrum
Incandescents are a man-made lighting source that is rich in amber light
By maintaining circadian alignment, you bring amber back into your life during both the day (sunrise, sunbathing, sunset, incandescents) and night (firelight & low lux incandescents)
GM
Daylight savings time is ass on every level. Nature doesnāt observe it. The sun still rises and sets on its own schedule. Weāre the only species arrogant enough to think we can āsaveā daylight by lying to our circadian clocks. We need permanent standard time because it aligns our social clock with the solar clock
Always been a huge fan of Viktorās work. Vortexed, mineralized spring water for the win
GM
GM watch sunrise
If UV was inherently carcinogenic, our species wouldnāt exist. Full stop
https://blossom.primal.net/29b010ca779ca461cca6a6a13469ef5dafcaec6b3da8754ba55077d9637b3ae7.mov
Different spectrums of light from the sun offers unique benefits due to circadian timing
https://blossom.primal.net/6d512577b29f2b49d6272f968da412c47361206c1e4483830f66212890ebb463.mov
When someone claims that a tan is a sign of skin or DNA damage, remind them that this entire narrative has its roots in eugenics and scientific racism, not objective circadian biology
The early dermatology and photobiology frameworks that demonized tanning were developed during an era when darker skin tones were pathologized, not understood
āSun damageā became a term that conveniently upheld the pseudoscientific belief that pale skin was biologically superior, a view promoted by eugenicists who associated light skin with purity and intelligence
So, when they parrot the idea that melanin production equals damage, ask them why theyāre defending a framework built on racist pseudoscience rather than updated circadian photobiology
Melanin is NOT a damage response
Itās an adaptive and photoprotective system that presents the following benefits:
1. Powerful antioxidant that neutralizes free radicals and maintains redox balance
2. Natural anti-venom that binds and neutralizes toxic compounds, including heavy metals
3. Anti-tumor agent that suppresses abnormal cell proliferation through redox and immune modulation
4. Biological nnEMF shield that dissipates excess electromagnetic stress at the cellular level
5. Detoxifying polymer that chelates and eliminates environmental toxins and heavy metals
6. Photoprotective barrier which is natureās built-in sunscreen that adapts to UV exposure from full spectrum sunlight
7. Lipid peroxidation defender that prevents oxidative damage to cellular membranes and fats
8. Broad spectrum anti-viral that inhibits viral replication via photochemical and immune pathways
9. Anti-microbial shield that resists bacterial and fungal invasion through oxidative control
10. Neuroprotective agent that safeguards neurons from oxidative and excitotoxic stress
And so much more
God and nature infused those benefits into melanin by design. A tan is your body training under full spectrum sunlight
Itās an adaptation. Thatās why itās found throughout the entire natural world, especially in human beings, through three forms (neuromelanin, eumelanin, pheomelanin)
Iāll tie your mainstream dermatologist into a Gordian knot by forcing the question they wonāt want to answer
Whose interests does this ādamageā narrative actually serve?
Iāll tell you this
It doesnāt fucking serve the people
The Squatty Potty will change your life
Vitamin D3 isnāt the only hormone with dozens of metabolites, endogenous melatonin also has more than a dozen identified metabolites
Counting both enzymatic and non-enzymatic pathways, researchers have cataloged at least 10-15 distinct melatonin metabolites, and the list keeps growing as metabolomics improves
Just like Vitamin D, weāre talking about a complex network with storage forms, active forms, and downstream derivatives that have a powerful impact on systemic health, especially mitochondrial function and immunity
Melatonin metabolism operates on two parallel levels:
1. Sub-cellular/local form (inside mitochondria, cells, and tissues)
2. Systemic/circulatory (pineal secretion into the bloodstream, measurable in urine or plasma)
The first is made by NIR light outside during the day, while the second is made from nighttime darkness
Melatonin is a master circadian hormone that is married to the light and dark cycle, meaning circadian alignment fosters both forms while circadian disruption destroys them
More than ever, you need to abide by bright days under full spectrum sunlight and dark nights with very minimal circadian lighting
After all, donāt you want to take advantage of endogenous melatoninās benefits
Weāre talking about anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory, anti-aging, anti-viral, anti-neurodegenerative, anti-metabolic dysfunction, anti-oxidant, and more
Melatonin is one of the most potent and versatile antioxidants in the human body, far stronger and more strategic than most dietary antioxidants like vitamin C or E
Itās in a league of its own
It neutralizes multiple types of reactive species (ROS, RNS, RCS), not just one or two like many antioxidants. It can directly quench hydroxyl radicals, peroxynitrite, singlet oxygen, nitric oxide, and more.. with no pro-oxidant rebound
Unlike vitamin C, which can flip into a pro-oxidant under certain conditions, melatonin never does
Melatonin is both water (hydrophilic) and fat (lipophilic) soluble. This grants it access to move freely through cell membranes, blood, cytosol, and mitochondria. Most antioxidants are stuck in one compartment, melatonin patrols them all
Itās one of the few antioxidants that can get into mitochondria, where most free radicals are generated. It stabilizes the inner membrane, supports electron transport, and prevents oxidative chain reactions at their source
I think the most shocking fact about it is that over 95% of your melatonin is made inside your mitochondria, not in your pineal gland, and itās produced during the day, not just at night
Mainstream medicine still hasnāt caught up to that truth
Put some respect on endogenous melatonin
Calling sunscreen anti aging is a joke
Youāre blocking the very UV and infrared light your skin uses to build collagen, make Vitamin D3, generate nitric oxide, and stimulate melanin based photo-protection
All sunscreens (both chemical and mineral based) disable natural photoadaptation and mitochondrial signaling, processes that actually preserve skin structure and youth
āWhen itās black, it donāt crackā is a cultural truth pointing in the direction of eumelanin, but also melanin at large
Nature already equipped melanin rich skin with a full spectrum sunscreen and anti aging mechanism
And guess what
All skin types have melanin, you just have to maximize its longevity and function through a circadian aligned lifestyle and sunbathing framework
Enzo loves his hooga book red light
Circadian eyesight regeneration isnāt some fringe idea, it was the norm for our ancestors
Long before screens, sunglasses, and artificial light, human vision was constantly bathed in the sunās full spectrum from sunrise to sunset
The daily dance between light during the day and darkness at night trained, nourished, and regenerated the visual system
Our eyes evolved in lockstep with the sun, not under fluorescents or LEDs
Mitochondria are circadian controlled organelles. Opsins are circadian controlled light sensing proteins. Melanin is a circadian and electromagnetic biological polymer
These are all light sensing mechanisms central to eye function and longevity
What we call ādeclineā today was once prevented naturally, and often reversed, through nothing more than consistent circadian alignment
Your ancestors didnāt need eye exercises or blue light blocking lenses to preserve their vision, their entire lifestyle was an ocular regeneration protocol because nature built it in as a feature
Every phase of daytime light carries specific frequencies that tunes and maintains the melanin, photoreceptors, retinal pigment epithelium, mitochondria, and even ocular blood flow
Contrast that with today
People spend 90%+ of their time indoors on average, staring at backlit screens under static artificial light
The retina is starved of the spectral diversity and rhythms it evolved to depend on
Itās no surprise that myopia, dry eye, and degenerative eye diseases are skyrocketing
The problem isnāt genetic, itās epigenetic based on chronic circadian disruption because the environment has changed drastically
This isnāt pseudoscience, your own beloved mainstream research confirms the power of light for vision
Longer wavelengths like red improve color contrast vision with a single three minute exposure, with it lasting for up to one week
Violet light stops myopia through the activation of the EGR1 gene in human beings
Red and infrared regenerates opsins, while retinal dopamine made by bright light from the sun improves photoadaptation
Blue light activates melanopsin within intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells, creating systemic circadian alignment
Green light for the improvement of headaches/migraines as shown through the work of Dr. Tom Seager, with that light into the eyes peripherally being a key component of the process
UV-A stimulates the release of nitric oxide and activates the pituitary-retinal axis, affecting dopamine and other neurotransmitters crucial for eye growth and focus regulation
UV-B influences ocular immune regulation and indirectly supports tear film and corneal health through systemic pathways
This is some of the most well grounded science available to human beings, but your optometrist and ophthalmologist donāt know that
There are many Vitamin D metabolites that differ in water solubility, how long they last, and their ability to be reactivated in tissues when needed
This means your body can store Vitamin D in different forms, keep it circulating longer, and reactivate it on demand, hence Vitamin D status isnāt just about new production, but also how well your system manages and taps into these reserves
Because of this, someone with strong metabolic and circadian rhythms can stay Vitamin D sufficient longer, even with little sun, by cycling and reusing stored forms efficiently
On the flip side, if those pathways are disrupted, your body will likely struggle to access or convert those stored metabolites, leading to deficiency even if you technically have plenty in the bank
Skin type absolutely matters, but mainly upstream, at the level of how much Vitamin D you can make and store in the first place, not so much in the downstream recycling
Darker skin makes Vitamin D more slowly because higher eumelanin blocks UV-B more effectively, but once D3 is produced and metabolized, the sulfation, storage, and recycling pathways work similarly
Lighter skin can build up stores faster with less UV-B exposure, but if circadian rhythms or metabolic health are poor, they can burn through or fail to mobilize those stores just as easily
This is such a game changing and refreshing narrative involving Vitamin D3 acquisition and storage
For many, this is true
Maybe your Vitamin D3 levels arenāt meant to stay sky high all year
Maybe, just maybe, life is built on seasonal duality, not perpetual summer
Even at the equator, thereās no such thing as true perpetual summer, itās just a different kind of rhythm. The sun might rise and set at nearly the same time year-round, but rainfall patterns, food availability, humidity, and cloud cover create their own seasonal cues that living systems have adapted to
Equatorial populations still experience cycles, theyāre just less about temperature and more about rain, light diffusion, and ecological shifts. The body still syncs to these environmental rhythms
So the idea of keeping D3 status or any biological marker ālocked inā year-round is ahistorical and biologically tone deaf
Even natureās most stable environments pulse
Modern thinking treats health like a thermostat. Pick an āoptimalā number and lock it in
What they fail to understand is that biology is rhythmic. Vitamin D3 levels naturally rise with abundant UV-B in summer and decline through winter, mirroring changes in light, temperature, food availability, and circadian gene expression, so forth
Forcing levels to remain elevated year-round through supplements or artificial UV ignores this deeper rhythm and turns you into a neurotic pain in the ass
Winter is a different operating mode
Just like trees shed their leaves, your physiology shifts gears.. altering hormone cascades, immune tone, and metabolic priorities. Flattening these seasonal waves may feel optimized on paper, but it often clashes with how humans actually evolved to function
The point? Health isnāt about constant abundance, itās about respecting the ebb and flow
GM
Love me a sunset
Carrying your phone directly against your body (especially next to sensitive tissues like breasts, ovaries, or testes) means youāre placing the source of non-native electromagnetic emissions millimeters away from cells, not meters
Total abuse of the inverse square law
Electromagnetic fields obey the inverse square law: Doubling the distance drops the intensity by a factor of four. Keeping the phone on your body = maximum exposure
For most of human history, the body experienced only natural (native) electromagnetic fields from the Earthās Schumann resonances, cosmic background radiation, and sunlightās broad spectrum
Suddenly, weāre placing high frequency, pulsed nnEMFs directly on reproductive glands, mammary tissue, and major nerves for hours a day, often overnight
These tissues are highly vascularized (absorbing more energy), hormone sensitive (breast, testes, ovaries), and Undergo constant cellular turnover, making them more vulnerable to chronic stressors
Even if we set aside debates about long term carcinogenicity, constantly bombarding sensitive tissue with an artificial signal source is reckless
Airplane mode is common sense
Turning your phone off or switching to airplane mode when itās on your body:
1. Eliminates active signal emissions
2. Costs you nothing (you can still use offline apps, camera, notes, etc)
3. Restores a basic buffer between your body and nnEMFs
You wouldnāt sleep with your head next to a running microwave or keep a heat lamp pressed against your skin all day
So why carry a mini transmitter in your bra or pocket for hours on end?
This isnāt fear mongering, itās the intersection of physics and biology, otherwise known as biophysics
Your body is an electromagnetic system. Your phone is a transmitter. Distance matters. Sensitive tissues matter. And airplane mode is the simplest, lowest cost way to reduce unnecessary chronic exposure
Stop carrying your phone in your bra or pocket. Put that shit on airplane mode or turn it off unless you want to dramatically increase your risk of infertility or breast cancer
The undeniable evidence that your mitochondria are light-sensing organelles which use the sunās full spectrum for energy production
Hereās what will put those who speak ill of the sun to shame
Letās start with the basics
Your body evolved to be under the sunās full light spectrum, which is why every aspect of it is designed to sense and use light
How can I prove this?
Because we have chromophores all over the exterior and interior of our bodies
Chromophores are molecules or parts of molecules responsible for the color of compounds
They are typically the parts of a molecule that absorb visible light or ultraviolet light, leading to electronic transitions
When a chromophore absorbs light, it moves to an excited state, and the energy associated with this transition often falls within the visible spectrum, which is why we perceive color
So, how does this tie into the mitochondria?
Well, each mitochondrion in your body contains a series of complexes which are designed to transfer electrons through redox reactions to produce energy (ATP)
This chain of complexes is what we call the electron transport chain, and itās found within the inner mitochondrial membrane
Mitochondria are the lifeblood of each cell, hence they make all the difference between health and disease, life and death
It ties in perfectly because of this fact:
The entire electron transport chain is LOADED with chromophores which are critical to the function of these complexes
Now hereās where it gets fun
I told you that your mitochondria are light-sensing organelles
Now hereās why
ā”ļø Complex I (NADH:Ubiquinone Oxidoreductase)
ā¢ Flavin Mononucleotide (FMN): Absorbs light at around 370 nm (UV) and 450 nm (blue light)
ā¢ Iron-Sulfur Clusters: These clusters have broad absorption, typically in the 400-600 nm range, but they donāt have distinct peaks like other chromophores
ā”ļø Complex II (Succinate:Ubiquinone Oxidoreductase)
ā¢ Flavin Adenine Dinucleotide (FAD): Absorbs at around 370 nm (UV) and 450 nm (blue light)
ā¢ Iron-Sulfur Clusters: Similar to Complex I, absorption is broad and typically in the 400-600 nm range
ā”ļø Complex III (Cytochrome bc1 Complex)
ā¢ Cytochrome b:
- bL (low potential form): Absorbs at around 563 nm (yellow-green)
- bH (high potential form): Absorbs at around 566 nm (yellow-green)
ā¢ Cytochrome c1: Absorbs at around 552 nm
ā¢ Rieske Iron-Sulfur Protein (2Fe-2S cluster): Absorption is broad, typically between 400-500 nm
ā”ļø Complex IV (Cytochrome c Oxidase)
ā¢ Cytochrome a: Absorbs at ~ 605 nm
ā¢ Cytochrome a3: Absorbs at ~ 655 nm
Both orange and red light absorbed here
ā¢ Copper Centers (CuA and CuB): These centers absorb broadly in the visible region, but their exact absorption properties are less defined than the heme chromophores
ā”ļø Additional Chromophores in the ETC
Ubiquinone (Coenzyme Q): Ubiquinone itself is not strongly absorbing in the visible spectrum but does have weak absorption peaks in the UV range, around 275-290 nm
Biophoton emission right there
ā”ļø Cytochrome c (Mobile Carrier)
Cytochrome c has an absorption wavelength of ~ 550 nm (in reduced form)
Now hereās the million dollar question
Why does the entire electron transport chain sense various wavelengths of light from the sun at extreme precision?
I want to see the look on every physician, dermatologist, and ophthalmologistās face when theyāre shown this information
The overall absorption range of the chromophores within the electron transport chain is between ~ 200 nm to ~ 900 nm
From extremely low-frequency UV light (biophotons) to NIR light
Any argument against sunlight exposure or the use of sunglasses, sunscreen, sun-avoidance is hereby deemed as retarded knowing this information
This is especially the case because mitochondria control the health of every cell and are found everywhere in the body
I rest my case
Mitochondria gives cells a tan
You read that correctly
Letās put this reductionist notion that mitochondria are simply the powerhouse of the cell to rest
They surpass that simplistic label, as they play a far more complex role, including a significant influence on skin pigmentation and melanin development
ā¢ā¢ā¢
Mitochondria are involved in various cellular processes that affect skin pigmentation:
They are the energy supply for melanin production through their ability to provide ATP, essential for the biosynthesis of melanin
Mitochondria produce reactive oxygen species (ROS), which can influence melanin production. An increase in ROS can stimulate melanogenesis, leading to darker pigmentation
They control apoptosis (programmed cell death), affecting the turnover of melanocytes, which are the cells that make melanin (PMID: 19659442)
Mitochondria regulate calcium within the cell. Proper calcium uptake by mitochondria is essential for melanin production in melanosomes (PMID: 39527653)
Mitochondria sit at the heart of redox balance. They regulate the redox environment, which in turn influences the stability of tyrosinase, a key enzyme in melanin synthesis, and affects melanosomes
ā¢ā¢ā¢
What more proof do you need that melanin production is a cornerstone of human health?
Stop listening to centralized dermatologists who view biology and skin through a reductionist lens
Itās time to cultivate your tan through wise full spectrum sun exposure, aligned with a circadian appropriate framework
Here we go
The latest episode featuring the most based physician, Dr. Abud Bakri.
Our best one with him yet
We discuss:
ā¢ How to thrive in your 30s
ā¢ NAD and mitochondrial function
ā¢ Somatopause & andropause
ā¢ Solar metabolic strength
And so much more
Sit back, grab a cup of coffee or some nicotine (or both), and press play with the full video below
BMW had 'orange only' display in their cars for decades. (This knowledge has been lost on newer generation of car engineers ).
I hope you guys are prepared for my GM every sunrise š