Mike Capuzzi [00:00:00]:
Hey, today's episode of Unstoppable After 50 is a bit different, and it's different because I am the guest. And I'm the guest because my brand new book, Resilience Rituals, is now available. It's the first book in a brand new book series that I'm publishing. I wrote the first book, Resilience Rituals. There's 2 other books that'll be released this month, and they're all intended to be read by men over 50 who are looking for smart Rituals, and I talk what the difference about rituals are to improve their lives, their health, their wellness, their relationships, their retirement, etc. So these books, while anyone can read and benefit from them—men, women, a 30-year-old, a 90-year-old—I was very intentional about what I did with these books. And it's you know the initial feedback from advanced readers is very, very positive. It's a short book.

Mike Capuzzi [00:00:58]:
As I say, it can be read in an hour, but it can change your life forever. So stay tuned. I've asked my good friend Jim Palmer to do this interview. Stay tuned for what I hope is a very interesting conversation about resilience rituals. This is Unstoppable After 50, the podcast for men who refuse to slow down. Each week I share smart strategies and expert insights to help you stay strong, healthy, and unstoppable in the second half of life. Welcome back to Unstoppable After 50. Well, I have a special episode for you this week.

Mike Capuzzi [00:01:30]:
As a matter of fact, Definitely doing something different because I am this episode's guest, and I've asked my longtime and good friend Jim Palmer to literally come out of retirement, podcast retirement. Uh, you know, he's, he's focused on retirement with his wife and traveling around the country, and I've asked him to come out today to do this interview because Jim was one of the first people I reached out to. when I was talking about writing a brand new book. And that book is Resilience Rituals. It's now live and available on Amazon. And Jim was kind enough to read the book. He was kind enough to give me feedback. And it was only, you know, natural that I would ask him to do this interview.

Mike Capuzzi [00:02:16]:
So, hey, Jim, thank you very much for doing this today.

Jim Palmer [00:02:19]:
Put on a clean shirt, dust off my microphone, which has been dormant for 2 years, you know. Yeah, but happy to do it. And the only thing I can hold up, because you held up— This was the original version with a different subtitle, but then, you know, all the smart marketers got ahold of it and said, no, let's change that. So, but I literally did read the book. It's, it's pretty amazing. And, um, yeah, I'm, I'm happy to do this. I hope I can remember how to be a podcast host here.

Mike Capuzzi [00:02:44]:
Well, I think, listen, uh, when you had your podcast, so a couple quick, just some backstory, 'cause this is gonna be a conversation between 2 friends, right? First of all, I had to again pay dues to you. You were, One of the critical factors to help me get started on my own podcast, Jim, 7 years ago. If you recall—

Jim Palmer [00:03:04]:
Oh, I remember the conversation.

Mike Capuzzi [00:03:06]:
On your boat down in Maryland, you and I had a day of brainstorming together, and you really encouraged me in 2019 to, to do a podcast. And here it is 7 years later. At that time, you were several years into your own podcast. I know it's retired, but it's only retired after over 500 episodes, which is amazing. You're a book author like myself. I think you have 7 or 8 books and then a bunch of ebooks.

Jim Palmer [00:03:32]:
Part of them here.

Mike Capuzzi [00:03:33]:
Yeah. So, I mean, and you're also— I know you're over 50 because I went to your 50th birthday party, um, quite a while ago.

Jim Palmer [00:03:42]:
18 years ago.

Mike Capuzzi [00:03:44]:
Hey, brother, you look awesome though. I say that all the time. I mean, you're— yeah, you're going to be unstoppable after 70 here soon. And, and you look, you look great. And, uh, you know, You and Stephanie, your wife, you guys are, you know, obviously you're doing the RV thing now and traveling around the country, but you're also really, you've got, both of you have really doubled down on health and being unstoppable, right?

Jim Palmer [00:04:08]:
Yeah, and she actually listens to your podcast, honestly, more than I do. But she, there was one, and actually she got one, a book from somebody, Function, I think it was called Function, if I'm not mistaken.

Mike Capuzzi [00:04:20]:
Scott Fulton.

Jim Palmer [00:04:21]:
Yeah, so what you're doing is great. Um, so I want to get started because I'm really excited to talk. I am excited to talk about this. I'm not doing it just because you're a friend. The only other thing I'll correct is we were sitting on our boat and we were talking about podcasts, and you asked me probably for the umpteenth time if I should do one. And I didn't encourage you, I challenged you to step up. But it's been great, and you're serving a really— an important need, which, which I think is pretty cool. Um, so Mike, one of the things I like about this book besides the subject Like a good video, it gets right to the point.

Jim Palmer [00:04:55]:
Like, there's no fluff. Literally, from the first few pages, I'm like, okay, here's Mike's backstory. That's not even in here. You go right into it, which is a tip. One of the things I used to know about podcasting, give people some, some stuff right off the bat and, and they'll stick with you. So, for somebody who hasn't read it yet, obviously it's just launching. If you were to give one reason why any man or, you know, potentially a woman over 50 should read Resilience Rituals, what would that one reason be?

Mike Capuzzi [00:05:24]:
Well, it's, it's the hope and desire to be— have better health, right? That's, that's ultimately it. And better health is a very wide umbrella because I talk about family stuff, I talk about diet, I talk about— and these are all things that I do personally. So, Jim, I, I believe— and I don't know if I even asked this, I probably did early on to you— one of the ways I like to learn things is by following people who that I admire and that have done what I'm looking to do.

Jim Palmer [00:05:52]:
Mm-hmm.

Mike Capuzzi [00:05:52]:
Right?

Jim Palmer [00:05:53]:
Right.

Mike Capuzzi [00:05:53]:
And I think men, and especially men over 50, and I think that's an underserved group, I think they do well when they see what other men are actually doing. As you well know, I am not selling anything in this book. I don't have supplements, I don't have a coaching program. I am just literally sharing 50 rituals, 50 things that have become part of my fabric, if you will, that have really moved the needle. So what's that one thing? The one thing is, you you have this hope and desire to read the book. And all I'm asking every reader is to find one ritual, not 50, one ritual that you can put to work for you in your own life to help you move that needle. And I think that's the idea. You're right.

Mike Capuzzi [00:06:37]:
I'm famous for writing short books. And I pulled a book off my bookshelf. Here's, Jim, here's a very traditional book for guys. Big, it's thick. I don't know about you, I love reading, but it's still— I'm finding it more and more difficult to finish a book that's this big. Well, Resilience Wishfuls is— it's a little book. It's meant to be read in an hour. And I say, listen, give me an hour and I can change your life.

Mike Capuzzi [00:07:04]:
And I really believe that, Jim.

Jim Palmer [00:07:06]:
And I always thought— you and I talked about— because back in the day we used to go to tons of conferences, seminars, we were in masterminds.

Mike Capuzzi [00:07:13]:
Yeah.

Jim Palmer [00:07:13]:
And of course, the whole books. And I'm always like, as soon as I got 1 or 2 nuggets out of whatever I went to or whatever I read, I moved on. And, you know, Stephanie says I have the patience of a gnat. So, the only book I've read recently was about songwriting. So, I'm kind of doing that right now. But anyway, it really is important. And so, there is a strategy which I commend you on because somebody seeing this will probably read it in an evening. And even though there's 50 rituals, I think they're going to get one.

Jim Palmer [00:07:39]:
So, I think that's pretty cool. You know, I also believe, Mike, that most men over 50 have either— they either have read or already know they should exercise more, eat better, sleep better, take care of themselves. We'll say, as a former entrepreneur— former entrepreneur— and I'm sure with like most professions, C-suite executives, etc., it's not always easy. I used to say sleep a little less if you have to, get up there and build your business, right? Despite the best of intentions, why aren't good intentions enough?

Mike Capuzzi [00:08:11]:
Well, again, and I think you nailed it early on in the first part of the, your, you know, when you're, you know, getting ready to ask the question, which is a short attention span. Guys, if they don't see something happen right away, a lot of guys, I know myself included, if you don't see measurable results quickly, you've checked out, right? Whether it's you're at an event, whether it's a book, whether it's a YouTube video, a movie, whatever. So I think Guys have this short expectation of results. And as you and I both know, that's, especially when it comes to health and wellness, it takes more than that.

Jim Palmer [00:08:49]:
Right.

Mike Capuzzi [00:08:50]:
I think, you know, there's a resetting of this. And I, the first part of the book, I talk about these mindset shifts that I had to go through because I was that person. I still am that person in many ways. And just different ways of thinking about different things relative to my own health and wellness. I think another key thing, Jim, is, and you know this again personally, because you are a cancer survivor, is, you know, sometimes you have that wake-up call, right?

Jim Palmer [00:09:18]:
Mm-hmm.

Mike Capuzzi [00:09:18]:
Sometimes you get that blood work back and there's something there. Sometimes there's a test, whatever it might be. And once that happens, I think one type of man is gonna be like, and that's who I am, right away just say, I'm gonna figure this out, I'm gonna beat this, I'm gonna, you know, I'm gonna do what I have to do. Some other guys probably just sort of ignore it and think, hey, I'm just gonna, you know, it is what it is. So, I really think if you have that key life issue, it can make a big difference and it could be a big motivator.

Jim Palmer [00:09:51]:
Yep. And you and I, you know, we still kind of privately mastermind or shoot ideas around back and forth. And when you told me the title, I'm like, rituals? And I almost said, is that a habit? Like, I honestly didn't necessarily know But, you know, I know now from working with you and kind of reading the book, so a habit is something you do and a ritual is more of who you are. And as soon as you told me that on the phone one day, I got it right.

Mike Capuzzi [00:10:16]:
Yeah.

Jim Palmer [00:10:16]:
Because, you know, we grow up reading these different books about the so many habits or this or that, but a ritual is how you live your life. Now, I've become pretty robotic in what I do in the morning, what I eat. You know, I'm sleeping 7 hours a night, which is a game changer. Who'd have thought, right? But what's— why is the distinction So important between a habit and a ritual.

Mike Capuzzi [00:10:39]:
Yeah. And, and I gotta admit, I mean, listen, you know, I'm a marketing dork. You've known me for over 20 years. So I'm a, I'm a marketing, copywriting, advertising kind of dork. And, you know, I was just recently on another podcast being interviewed for the book, and I, I got a similar question. And Jim, you and I both know, 'cause you are a marketing dork too in many respects. And We know that words matter. So when you're, when you're writing copy headlines, whatever it is, copywriters that get hot, you know, million-dollar copywriters, they get paid because they choose the right words to motivate action, et cetera.

Mike Capuzzi [00:11:16]:
So words matter. And the words that we tell ourselves matter. You may not think of it, and most guys probably don't, like, whatever, habit, ritual, routine, workout. What's the difference? Well, it matters, right?

Jim Palmer [00:11:27]:
Mm-hmm.

Mike Capuzzi [00:11:27]:
Workout, routine, habit, the kind of language we typically use, it just sort of, it doesn't really do, it's there, it doesn't really motivate me. Ritual, the word itself is not often used. It's not often used in this context. And, you know, honestly, I was on my own podcast interviewing a gentleman and he used the word. I heard it a couple years ago and I was like, just like you, I instantly got it.

Jim Palmer [00:11:52]:
Oh, did you?

Mike Capuzzi [00:11:52]:
That's it, right? Because a ritual is something you want to do, right? Christmas morning, Thanksgiving dinner, date nights with your wife, right? These are rituals and we do them because we want to do them. And when we want to do them, they eventually become part of who we are. We don't think about it.

Jim Palmer [00:12:10]:
Right.

Mike Capuzzi [00:12:10]:
And that is the mindset shift I am trying to get men to think about, not only in my book, Jim, but as you well know, there's other ritual books coming out this month. And it's just about thinking about things differently and trying to adopt this belief that I can do this. I can do it on a regular basis. Because not all rituals are daily. Some are daily. Some are on a regular basis. But more importantly, Jim, they just become part of who you are. So for example, I know you have a hiking, walking ritual that you now do.

Mike Capuzzi [00:12:44]:
You've moved to an area where you can kind of hike in the wilds, if you will. And you feel weird, I'm sure, if you miss that for whatever reason.

Jim Palmer [00:12:54]:
Bad weather. If it's raining. Not that I couldn't hike in the rain, but I'm like, damn it, I can't go out today, you know?

Mike Capuzzi [00:12:59]:
Right. And, and, and it's part of who you are now.

Jim Palmer [00:13:03]:
Yeah. You know, so I've known— we've known each other for 20 years, and, um, I've always thought of you as a very disciplined person. But if I was to think about it even just a little bit, we've probably seen each other go up an inch or two in the waistline of our jeans and back down again. Was there something— because you're over 50 now— but was Is there something— when did you realize, I guess is my question, that you need to change how you approached your health? Because I, I think in the last, you know, 5 years or so since we kind of moved back to this area and got off the boat, I've known you, you were religious about walking every day with your wife. Yeah. I mean, when did— what was that shift and how did that sort of take place?

Mike Capuzzi [00:13:41]:
Yeah, well, first of all, I gotta give you a correction now. I'm over 60, brother. Oh my God. Okay. But 50 was that breakpoint that I wanted to serve with the, these books and this, you know, my own podcast. As you mentioned, I mean, I've all— I've always had an interest. I've played sports in high school, and ever since then I've always worked out. I've tried lifting, you know, I've always done some level of weightlifting, some level of cardio, you know.

Mike Capuzzi [00:14:07]:
And there it's ebbed and flowed over the years. And it's amazing, Jim, I, uh, I look back at photos, like, you know, even during the time that you've known me over the last 20 years, and there were several— well, Most of the time I looked really puffy.

Jim Palmer [00:14:20]:
Right.

Mike Capuzzi [00:14:20]:
I looked, I looked like a typical, you know, at the time, whether it was late 30s, 40s, I just looked, I didn't, it wasn't like I didn't look healthy, but I didn't look as lean and as healthy as I wanted. So it's funny, 'cause I look back now and I see that. Personally, it was, I guess it was right, it was probably during COVID is the time, I think it was 2020. And I had not been to my general doctor or physician in a while. in a couple years. And my general physician, who I had gone to since I was a teenager, retired.

Jim Palmer [00:14:51]:
Mm-hmm.

Mike Capuzzi [00:14:52]:
And I— he was a great guy, old-school physician, and spent time with you, et cetera, et cetera. So when he retired, I just like, ugh, where am I gonna go? Well, fast forward to 2020, I reached out to a mutual friend of ours, Charlie, who is a health and wellness guy. And Charlie recommended a local physician, and I Scheduled an appointment, got the blood work done, and I hadn't been in a physical in, you know, several years. And within 5 minutes of that visit, Jim, and, you know, him reviewing the blood work, he's like, oh, you need to be on a statin, you need to be on blood pressure medicine.

Jim Palmer [00:15:26]:
I'm like, what?

Mike Capuzzi [00:15:27]:
I mean, literally 5 minutes of meeting this guy, he was, you know, prescribing pills to me. That was my why. That created my why for doing everything I'm doing now. That was it.

Jim Palmer [00:15:40]:
Right.

Mike Capuzzi [00:15:40]:
Because as you and I both know, and you know me, I, I do not take medicines. I, I try, you know, and I'm not saying guys shouldn't do that. So don't, don't say that. Don't think that's what I'm saying here. For me, this is my personal belief and my personal sort of operating procedure. So I didn't, you know, I just did not go in and go get it. I did get the prescriptions filled. I probably took one or two and I'm like, what? Then I started research phase.

Mike Capuzzi [00:16:06]:
Then I started reading. Then I started really— Right. Saying you know what? It started with walking, and it just it sort of snowballed, and it snowballed in the right direction. So that was yeah five years ago. And Jim, things that I would never thought I could do back then, like walking ten thousand plus steps every day, literally every day for five years, and only missing a few days in between, being consistent with strength training and cardio. They're just again they're rituals now. They're part of who I am, and it's just made a tremendous difference. And listen, I still have.

Mike Capuzzi [00:16:39]:
room for improvement. I just got my big twice-a-year blood work done, so just a few weeks ago, and there's still— I still have to, you know, I have, you know, heart disease in my family. I am very aware of that. So there's still things I need to be doing and getting better at.

Jim Palmer [00:16:56]:
Yeah, and I, I want to thank you because, uh, you know, Stephanie and I are down that path. I had, I had 2 clients early on that were functional medicine, which is you find the root cause instead of just throwing a pill at it. But doing— I don't want to go too far afield real quick, but doing the blood work and finding out what's going on, that's what it's at. But it's not, it's not cheap to do that, right? And but Stephanie and I, the way we look at it is the money we're investing now in our health is going to save us a fortune because hopefully we can stay in this home until we finally move, hopefully north. But you know what I'm saying? Instead of a big expensive, you know, a care facility. So anyway, that's, that's what we're doing. I think you're talking about, you know, the resilience rituals, our habits, and so you age well. And that's what we mean.

Jim Palmer [00:17:42]:
It's not just so you look good in the mirror, it's so that you really keep your body finely tuned.

Mike Capuzzi [00:17:47]:
I chose the word resilience very intentionally because who doesn't want to be resilient, right? We— just like you said, you have grandkids now. You are, you know, out working on your RV, traveling around the country. You want to be able to get up on that RV, under that RV. You don't want to be Sore or allow your body, unless I know what the reality is. Yes, we all ache and we have our days, but you want to be able to do what you want to do. You want to be able to get down on the floor with your grandkids. You want to be able to, you know, whatever, throw the ball, not hurt. So resilience was a word I chose very intentionally.

Mike Capuzzi [00:18:19]:
It's, it's just about being able to do what you want to do, whatever that means to you.

Jim Palmer [00:18:25]:
Right. It's funny because I share this with you, but getting under my RV for 2 days in a row to repair a hot water heater, first of all, I cut the heck out of my— But I, you know, when you slide out and then go to stand up at 68, I can still do it, but it hurts. Not— I don't even say it hurts. It doesn't feel like when I was 45, but I can still do it. And that's the point. I, I age gracefully. Anyway, I don't want to get too far afield of that, but, you know, so this has 50 rituals, which I really like. 50, right? And I think you said you cut it down to 50, but just talk about a few of them.

Jim Palmer [00:18:58]:
Like anything else, I think there's a recipe for what works, you know, in my— so I do videos, podcasting, authoring, speaking, my own. There's a recipe for what works in business, and I'm sure there's a recipe for what works, but we can't talk about all 50 today. Give maybe 1 or 2 rituals that are important to you.

Mike Capuzzi [00:19:14]:
Well, and I want to make sure everyone knows these rituals. It's 1 ritual a page, and this is a small book to begin with. So you can read literally a ritual in a minute. In 1 minute, you can read one of my rituals and say, hey, is this for me? I put a little place in the book where you can check off, and so you can kind of come back to it and know that that's one you want to implement. So, you know, I just want to get that across. So I broke my book down into daily rituals, and then other ones I call smart rituals. And smart rituals are ones that I practice on a regular basis. So let me, if I could, I'll share a couple daily rituals that have really made—

Jim Palmer [00:19:49]:
Yeah.

Mike Capuzzi [00:19:50]:
Moved the needle for me. And again, these are all things that I do, Jim, They may or may not be right for you, but when there's 50 of them, I'm thinking most guys are going to be able to find a few.

Jim Palmer [00:20:01]:
Right.

Mike Capuzzi [00:20:02]:
So one of the rituals that I would never have thought about years ago was— I call it, I measure what matters. And that is a kind of encompassing ritual, and I break it down into a couple other ones where I am now wearing wearables. I am now— I now use a smart scale. And as a former engineer and very analytical, I need to see data. I need to see numbers. And those numbers don't scare me. They hold me accountable. I'm not afraid to weigh myself every day.

Mike Capuzzi [00:20:32]:
I'm not afraid to do a body fat pinch test, whatever. I may not like the number all the time, but I'm not afraid to do it because I'm using it as a way to stay focused and stay within the rails, if you will. So one of my rituals You know, at the high level is measuring what matters. Other daily rituals: I use a smart scale. I get up every morning, use the bathroom, get naked, get on a scale, and I I do that daily, and I track it, and I just kind of want to see where that those numbers are going. A smart scale measures more than just your weight, so I'm just watching a couple different things. There's one in there, Jim. I don't remember if you recall it.

Mike Capuzzi [00:21:12]:
I just did it this morning. I eat pudding for breakfast.

Jim Palmer [00:21:14]:
Yes.

Mike Capuzzi [00:21:15]:
So what does that mean, right? Well, it's chia seed pudding. Become part of me. I've done it for years. It's one of these things where I, I make it ahead of time. I make it with homemade yogurt, which I make now. That's another ritual. Homemade almond milk, which is yet another ritual I share. But then I combine all that and do this chia seed pudding with wild blueberries typically, and I look forward to it.

Mike Capuzzi [00:21:38]:
It's crazy. I just, I enjoy it. It makes Just like you said, you know, you eat the same thing every day. It just makes the morning easier. And I do that after fasting for about 16 hours. So one of my other rituals is time-restricted eating. I don't, you know, I don't eat until 10 o'clock in the morning. I walk every day, you know, and most of the times it's with my wife.

Mike Capuzzi [00:21:58]:
Uh, and that has had a tremendous positive effect on my marriage. And I talk about that. One thing, and I'm not sure if you and I've ever discussed this, but this is, this is one of my newer rituals, Jim. And this is daily, is it's very easy to get focused on the wrong things. And I mentioned that in the book, and it's again happened to me. So worrying about getting 10,000 steps, I mean, that's a great ritual, it's a great goal, but then sometimes it becomes an obsession. Sometimes the number becomes the thing you focus on and not why you're doing it. So it's very, you know, it's easy to get 10,000 steps if you focus on that, right? The question is, are those steps doing anything for you? So one of my more recent rituals is really focusing on exercise intensity, intensity minutes, and making sure my heart rate is getting up into certain heart rate zones throughout the week.

Mike Capuzzi [00:22:49]:
I measure that with a heart strap, you know, a monitor. That's made a huge difference, Jim, in my cardiovascular health. So, you know, those are some of the, you know, daily rituals. I'll pause there for a moment, and then I'll share a couple of my SMART rituals.

Jim Palmer [00:23:05]:
You know, it's interesting about the steps because you always hear 10,000 steps. So, I think somebody just made that number up, honestly.

Mike Capuzzi [00:23:11]:
It was a Japanese manufacturer back in the '60s who were— they manufactured a pedometer and it was a marketing campaign.

Jim Palmer [00:23:19]:
Oh, interesting.

Mike Capuzzi [00:23:19]:
Yep.

Jim Palmer [00:23:20]:
Because, you know, I kind of— that's kind of where I shoot for. But, you know, a few months ago, I did something stupid, hashtag men, on myself now, and my lower back hurt. And I could walk, not hike like I like to do, but I could walk on a flat trail 5 to 7 5,000 steps and I'd be okay. But if I went over 7,000, I was starting to really stress out my lower back. And so, I looked it up, ChatGPT and other things. It says that the amount of difference you get after 7,000 is very minimal.

Mike Capuzzi [00:23:47]:
Yeah.

Jim Palmer [00:23:48]:
So, I got comfortable with 5,000 to 7,000, which again, it's educating yourself. So, just being mindful of the clock. So, you said daily rituals, but there's also— you wrote about smart rituals. It's like, What's a smart ritual compared— I mean, daily is pretty obvious. So what's a smart ritual?

Mike Capuzzi [00:24:05]:
Well, smart rituals are things that I kind of, you know, do on a regular basis. It's not every day. So for one of the examples I share, and I love this one, and other people that have read it have, you know, commented on it, is my wife and I are now— Becky and I, as you well know, we're empty nesters now. So our daughters have moved out. My younger daughter literally just got married. She's still on her honeymoon as we record this. So We host what we call Sunday supper. So I grew up in an Italian family.

Mike Capuzzi [00:24:31]:
Breaking bread around the table was always important to me, having a good home-cooked meal. So one of my smart rituals is bringing the family together whenever we can. Not everyone can show up all the time. My mom, Becky's parents, my dad lives in Florida, so that's a little bit of a challenge. But we have this ritual of getting together as a family, right? So I share that in the book. Another ritual is, that's a smart ritual, as I already mentioned, is I'm very proactive with blood work. So I get extensive blood work done twice a year. Twice a year, and I recommend all guys— yes, it's not cheap, but it's a lot cheaper than the alternative.

Mike Capuzzi [00:25:05]:
It's not that expensive, and it's a lot easier than you realize. There's now, there's now ways you can actually do it in your own house.

Jim Palmer [00:25:11]:
It tells you detail. Yeah, without a doubt. Throughout. That's the key to knowing what's going on.

Mike Capuzzi [00:25:16]:
And, and that's, you know, knowledge matters, right? You want to— yeah, it's— again, you may not like what you see, but that needs to be the impetus for, you know, forward progress. But, um, you know, another one I love, you know, I, I share some different exercise equipment that I've really adopted. And, um, incline treadmill workouts, uh, air bike, which are these, you know, like the old Schwinn AirDyne.

Jim Palmer [00:25:40]:
Yeah.

Mike Capuzzi [00:25:41]:
That is a torture device that I love using now. So there's just things that, again, I share. And I share it very— I share these things very intentionally. I share The actual products I use, I'm currently using at this point in my life. Not— there's no affiliate codes or none of that stuff. I've had a couple people comment like, why are you— it sounds like you're, you know, marketing these products. No, I'm just telling you what works for me. It may work for you.

Mike Capuzzi [00:26:08]:
You may want to do research on the products I'm using. You may not. But at least you know what Mike Capuzzi's doing and using.

Jim Palmer [00:26:14]:
You know, so I'm going to share some behind the scenes here. When Mike and I were talking, months ago as we're, as we're talking, talking about the podcast Unstoppable After 50 and other things. And I said, just remember, serve your audience. Just give them all the information and serve them, and you're going to build a following and your listenership, whatever that means. You can do what you want with it later, but not everything's about an affiliate link or some course or some— just serve your audience. And I said, clearly You are so driven by that personally, and I think that comes across. But anyway, you know, I've written a few books myself, and as a student of marketing, you mentioned this earlier, when you're writing or doing videos, podcasts, you want to know who your audience is. So, Mike, when you were writing Resilience Rituals, who were you thinking about?

Mike Capuzzi [00:27:06]:
Well, Jim Palmer.

Jim Palmer [00:27:07]:
Okay.

Mike Capuzzi [00:27:08]:
Yeah, seriously. I mean, myself. I mean, you know, our— the guys that you and I have hung out with over the years. And again, very intentional about this. As a matter of fact, Jim, you'll appreciate this. So I, um, had a guest on my podcast recently and she has a huge YouTube following. And that episode in my world is now a viral episode, right? She has hundreds of thousands of views on her YouTube videos. This one at the last count was like 16,000 views, which for my little channel is pretty good because I don't typically— you know, doing these podcasts, like, you don't typically get that kind of viewership unless you're a Joe Rogan or a Mel Robbins or something.

Mike Capuzzi [00:27:49]:
What comes with that are the comments from people. Like, I'll be getting comments on my Amazon review page eventually. Why'd you just— this is, this is good for women. I'm amazed how many people, women, comment like, why are you just focusing on on guys. You know, this is applicable for women. Absolutely. Resilience Rituals is very appropriate for women. It's not who I wrote it for.

Jim Palmer [00:28:12]:
Right.

Mike Capuzzi [00:28:13]:
I was intentional. I wanted to write the book that I wanted to read, you know, a few years ago. By all means, I think read it, but just know these are the things that I think guys need to hear. And I, I don't shy away from that. I double down. I actually replied to the comment, which I don't know You know, most people probably tell you not to do that. I'm like, hey, thank you. But yeah, I was very intentional here because I want to help guys.

Mike Capuzzi [00:28:39]:
So, you know, it was just, it was just really focusing. And I thought 50 was a good breakpoint. I think 50 is sort of that number where all of a sudden you start seeing some, you know, bigger changes in your life. And I mean, listen, can you be 35 and get benefits from it? Absolutely. Can you be a woman?

Jim Palmer [00:28:55]:
Yeah.

Mike Capuzzi [00:28:55]:
Absolutely. Can you be 90? Absolutely. So, but I wrote it for guys like you and me.

Jim Palmer [00:29:01]:
And there's a, there's a lesson there. You know, it's funny, the comments when Steph and I were doing our YouTube video when we were on the boat. There was one time I told you this, we were off the coast of New Jersey in the ocean. We got like an 8-foot seas unpredicted. And the way I know they're 8-foot, they were breaking over the bow and coming up to where I was driving the boat. And Steph's like, that's it, we're done, we're done, we're selling the boat, right? It was scary. And then we get— then we posted the video. There's no way those are 8-foot seas.

Jim Palmer [00:29:27]:
Those are 2-foot waves at best. Okay, thanks. You know, anyway, so Mike, before I ask my last question, I did want to ask you about, um, daily rituals. And I agree just about everything in this book, but near the end of the book— not but, I shouldn't have said but— but near the end of the book, you share something that honestly made me chuckle. And, um, I'm not gonna lie, but You talked about daily baths and I had to chuckle. Now, in full disclosure, my wife Stephanie, my son Stephen, who's a landscaper, swear by Epsom salt baths. So, it's not like you're that unique. But, to a caveman like me, why are Epsom salt baths so important?

Mike Capuzzi [00:30:08]:
Well, they're not daily, Jim, but trust me on that. I don't take them daily. In the winter, typically more because I like the heat. therapy. And I remember talking after you read the book, and the first thing you said to me was, what's up with the baths, Mike? Like, come on, man. And if you recall what my response was, because I, I even changed it in the book, I was like, I was a little— that was one of those rituals I wasn't sure I wanted to really share.

Jim Palmer [00:30:34]:
Yeah.

Mike Capuzzi [00:30:35]:
You know, a 60-year-old guy taking baths. However, there is real benefit from heat therapy. There is real benefit from uh, hot, hot baths. There is real benefit from using Epsom salt, which is magnesium. It's not salt, it's magnesium. And we all know that, you know, magnesium is a good mineral that we should be not only taking inside us but having on our skin and being absorbed. So, you know, I've recently gotten an infrared sauna because, you know, I like, you know, again, heat therapy so much. So maybe the infrared sauna is going to maybe, you know, decrease my number of baths, but I just find it Very relaxing.

Mike Capuzzi [00:31:10]:
I mean, it's just, I mean, shoot, Jim, I've been taking hot baths since I was a kid. I mean, just, I just, I don't know. It's just something. It's just like, I love to read and I typically read. And, um, yeah, it's one of those things I was a little concerned, but maybe it gives guys reading it like, oh, okay. If Mike says it's okay, it's okay.

Jim Palmer [00:31:30]:
Like Steph, she's always called, well, I don't know if she calls me caveman, but she goes, okay, shower man, someday you'll figure it out. Right now, it's very beneficial when you're sore or just anyway.

Mike Capuzzi [00:31:41]:
Yeah, for sure.

Jim Palmer [00:31:42]:
I had to bust on you. So as someone who's clearly over 50 and retired now by 18 years, over 50, Stephanie and I are both solidly focused on our health. We call it our new full-time job. And that's what we do from the food we eat. No processed food, greens, fresh this, fresh that. I never eat past 6:30. I never drink past 6:30. I gave up drinking 2 years ago.

Jim Palmer [00:32:05]:
So many things we've done to be very diligent about our health because we wanna be active and enjoy life well into whatever God blesses us within in terms of years. For a man listening right now who wants to become stronger, healthier, maybe he's, maybe like me, he's 50 years old and he is plugging away. I'm up at 3:30 in the morning, I'm writing copy, I'm building my businesses and all that. But also is aware the second half of his life is probably not gonna be as good as it could be unless I fix these few things. What do you want him to get out of this book, Mike?

Mike Capuzzi [00:32:40]:
I want him to get and realize, Jim, that change and improvement is definitely possible and that none of us are too far gone. I mean, if you're watching or listening to this podcast and maybe things aren't as good as they should be, there is definite opportunity to get healthier. And get fitter, whatever, whatever it is that you're looking to do, have better relationships, etc. So I, I just, I really want to convey by sharing my personal operating system, help men believe they can do it. So the guys that maybe have that bigger jump to make, to believe in themselves, you know, I'm, I'm very transparent in the book and say, hey, if Mike can do this, why don't I try this? Why don't I try walking more with my significant other, whatever it might be, and believe that? For the guy that's fitter and healthier and already doing a lot of the things that I'm probably sharing in the book, there's probably one or two that he's not and that if he added it to his repertoire, his ritual repertoire, that it can move the needle in some positive way. So, I think it serves all men. Very well, those guys that need the bigger jump, those guys that are already doing things. And by the way, Jim, as I mentioned, there are a series of books coming out this month.

Mike Capuzzi [00:34:08]:
I mean, I don't have them all right now, but here's the proof copy of book number 2, Built by Rituals. Built by Rituals is by a gentleman you and I both know. You've known Bill Parlamon for as long as I have, which is, you know, almost 20 years. Bill is a C-suite executive, 55 years old, As you— do you remember what he used to look like back in 2006, 2007, right? He was—

Jim Palmer [00:34:28]:
Yes.

Mike Capuzzi [00:34:29]:
He was big. He was way overweight. Bill is now doing a bodybuilding contest, Jim, next month. His first bodybuild. He's completely, completely transformed his life and his health. And he's done it— he's called— he calls it Built by Rituals. In his book, he lists 50 Daily Rituals. And there, you know, I've read it several times, and, um, it's, uh, it's— again, I've gotten ideas from his book.

Mike Capuzzi [00:35:00]:
And then I'll quickly share, because it, again, it was your— you were the impetus, even though I knew him. Your former client, Dr. David Phelps. Yep. He was on your— you were on his podcast. I think you mentioned me. He invited me. Dave and I reconnected after about 10 years.

Mike Capuzzi [00:35:16]:
Well, David's ritual book is coming out this month. It's called Freedom Rituals.

Jim Palmer [00:35:21]:
Awesome.

Mike Capuzzi [00:35:22]:
And David focuses, as you know, he focuses in helping men and women kind of figure out that second part of life, especially beyond retirement, you know, selling a business, whatever that looks like. And he calls it freedom. He's got this whole brand, Freedom Founders, and he shares rituals about how to prepare for that part of life, retirement, legacy, purpose, all that. So again, you haven't seen that book yet, Jim, but it's a really powerful book. And I'm looking, you know, I've challenged you. I think Jim Palmer has a rituals book in him, but I'm looking to publish a whole series of these. Think Chicken Soup for the Soul. Yeah.

Mike Capuzzi [00:35:58]:
And I'm also talking to a woman I respect about maybe doing the female version of this. It won't be Unstoppable After 50, it'd be something different. But it'll be very similar. That way, the women that are commenting on my YouTube and my book, and I can point them to that.

Jim Palmer [00:36:14]:
That's interesting. David, when he interviewed me for his Freedom Founders Group, he wanted to know about— because a lot of— well, first of all, David's my age also, and people who follow him are coming up and there. So, he wanted to know my thoughts on retirement, planning for it. What's it like when you're suddenly not on social media? You're suddenly not on calls with clients. So, I don't know, but that's, that's tap number 2, as they say about that. I don't know if that'll happen or not. I really like being retired, but I also, um, I like serving, right? I like serving with the information that you have because we can all benefit. The one thing I do want to say to people, and I said it earlier, when I used to go to a conference, seminars, read a book, I'm looking for 1 or 2 things, maybe 3 things that will move the needle in my business or my life.

Jim Palmer [00:37:02]:
And, when I saw 50 rituals, first of all, I literally read this in about an hour. And, it only took me an hour because I would pause and go, interesting. Oh, I didn't know you make your own almond milk, and stuff like that. And, Mike, I promise you, I'm at least 30 of these already in my own life, which is kind of cool. But, the other ones, I won't necessarily say hot daily baths, but maybe I'll get there someday. Seriously, there are so many things. And the cool thing is, in my opinion, they're easy to do. They're easy little—

Mike Capuzzi [00:37:35]:
Yeah.

Jim Palmer [00:37:36]:
Some of them are a little harder, you know, knock off the sweets at 10 o'clock. You know, some of them are difficult. And I'm not saying that's in there, but there are some things that you can do. But, uh, brother, I'm really impressed with the book. I applaud your commitment with your podcast. Running a podcast is no easy feat. Oh, you just got a microphone and talk. Yeah, well, you can do that.

Jim Palmer [00:37:58]:
But it's a lot of work. And for so many people, there's almost never a payback, right? Unless you build an audience and a following, decide what to do. But my advice to Mike, and in full disclosure, just serve your audience. Yeah. Because you, you are so committed personally to the Unstoppable After 50 healthy lifestyle. This country needs more Mike Capuzzis. When we travel around the country, we're like, I've met people who are like, Stefan, I was like, wow, he must be 80. He's like 5 years younger than me and he's hunched over and shuffles.

Jim Palmer [00:38:34]:
I'm like, and I— we need, we need more people talking like you're doing. So anyway, thank you. The book is live now, even as we record this, right? It's live on Amazon.

Mike Capuzzi [00:38:44]:
Yeah. The quick and easy link, Jim, is 50rituals.com. 50rituals.com. It's available worldwide. Um, that is Amazon. It'll eventually be in other booksellers, but we focus on Amazon first. And, uh, yeah, it's called The Unstoppable After 50 Book Series. And you'll see David Phelps' book, you'll see Bill Parlamon's, and hopefully some other books here in the future.

Mike Capuzzi [00:39:08]:
But, uh, I appreciate it, Jim. Again, it wasn't a real hard decision to ask you to do this big favor and kind of have you come out and, and dust off the microphone and, uh, and listen, And as I've shared with you, I mean, I get it. You know, you're, you're, you're in a phase of life that you want to be in. But my only challenge back to you would be, yes, it's work. You still have a lot to offer a lot of people. And maybe if the focus, you know, because when you're focused on profit, which we both were because we're building it, right? You know, we were building businesses. Neither of us are necessarily in that phase now, or, you know, that's not our primary focus.

Jim Palmer [00:39:44]:
Right.

Mike Capuzzi [00:39:44]:
I think it might lighten up some of the stress and you're literally just doing it for the fun of it. And as you said, serving others. So thank you for doing this.

Jim Palmer [00:39:53]:
And, uh, you know, I know, I feel like as the host I should sign off, but I'm going to assign those duties back to you to close your Unstoppable After 50 podcast.

Mike Capuzzi [00:40:03]:
Yeah. Listen, I want to again, thank you, Jim. And yeah, check out 50rituals.com. And more importantly, after you read the book, and I'm talking to my audience now, I put my email right in there. Just email me. I'd love to hear. I got an email already from another advanced reader and I wasn't expecting it and how it, you know, it just, he's already implemented things just like you said, Jim. So I, that's, that is my payback right now.

Mike Capuzzi [00:40:27]:
That's how I want, I want to just know it's, it's doing what I intended and positive comments on Amazon that seriously that people also say like with YouTube channels.

Jim Palmer [00:40:37]:
How can I help? Do you need my— I don't need money. Just subscribe and leave a comment.

Mike Capuzzi [00:40:42]:
That really helps.

Jim Palmer [00:40:43]:
So if you buy the book on Amazon, which you should, leave a positive comment. You know what? Just, just do that. Mention how much you appreciate the tip on baths and, and just move on with your life.

Mike Capuzzi [00:40:54]:
You know what I'm going to give you for Christmas this, this coming Christmas?

Jim Palmer [00:40:57]:
Yeah, big box of Epsom salts.

Mike Capuzzi [00:40:59]:
Yep, yep, yep, yep. Expect it. Well, Jim, thank you very much.

Jim Palmer [00:41:02]:
And then All right, Mike. My pleasure, pal.

Mike Capuzzi [00:41:04]:
Hey, I want to again thank my friend Jim for doing today's interview. And, uh, by all means, check out Resilience Rituals. Check out the other ritual books that are forthcoming. You go to 50rituals.com for my book. You'll see a link there for the book series, and you can check out the other books. If you're a guy over 50, please share it with your other friends, men over 50. You know, it's a great gift. If you're a woman that happens to be listening to this, you know, grab a copy for your significant other, sons, father, husband, whatever it might be, and just help, you know, spread the word.

Mike Capuzzi [00:41:41]:
As I mentioned, I'm not doing this for any sort of profit mode. There's really not much money to be made in selling books on Amazon, and right now that's about the only profit there is. But the true profit is, for me at this point, is helping guys hopefully get healthier, better wellness, and just a better life after 50.