Best Book I've Read In 2 Years
15 Things I Learned From Reading ‘Comfort Crisis’
A Journey into Self-Development and Wellness
I enjoy reading. I’m not a big TV guy or movie guy. Over the past two years, one book has profoundly shifted my perspectives on self-development, health, and wellness: The Comfort Crisis by Michael Easter.
Mark Melichar, one of my best friends recommended this to me and it was extremely fantastic. This isn’t just another addition to my collection of health and wellness books—it’s a wake-up call about the often-overlooked power of discomfort.
Here’s a summary then I will tell you what I learned:
The guy is an alcoholic and gets sober.
Sits all day at work and is somewhat miserable.
Learned about a MISOGI (Ancient Japanese principle).
Misogi, in modern-day terms, means to go out and do a hard task to mimic challenges that humans use to face all the time.
Tells a beautiful story of a 5-week journey in the arctic hunting Caribou.
Along the journey, he discovers many things about modern life as we know it.
Tells about how humans have evolved.
Shows how the comforts of our modern life have negatively impacted our health and well-being.
Intertwining the story with the research in a beautiful way.
Easter explores how modern convenience limits our growth, reducing both physical and mental resilience. His insights connect deeply with self-development by encouraging a deliberate push against our comfort zones. In a world focused on ease, The Comfort Crisis argues that true wellness often requires stepping outside our comfort zones.
Read the book….it’s great and motivating
Here are the 15 things I learned from the book (Please know, that I only share things I feel will help you get better at life).
A Misogi is something we should all consider doing once a year - We all need a challenge to get ready for and tackle. (p35)
2. Facing Discomfort is good for us
Many people optimize their lives for maximum comfort. Some of that is fine. But in the totality that we are now accustomed to it's not good. We have to do hard things.
3. We MUST keep learning.
4. A wandering mind and being bored is not a bad thing.
5. All Diets Work - but our ability to withstand a little discomfort is whats stopping us from being healthy.
6. We really don’t know how much we are eating.
I know this is true because when I used to do meal plans for people, the first thing I told them to do was to track everything that they ate for 3 days. EVERY. SINGLE. THING. Jill was my example that I always use - I told her to track everything and 3 days later she came back to me and said the thing she realized that she was doing was consuming a ton of calories that she never even thought of:
Finishing off her daughters PB&J
2 bites of her kid's oatmeal in the morning
A bite of her husband's burger
The amount of junk that was in the coffee she was drinking
A handful of M&M’s at her friend's house.
7. Ultra-processed foods are killing our society. We eat them out of….you guessed it, comfort and ease. The number of chemicals in them slowly over time addicts us and keeps us lethargic and SICK. We eat them because they make us feel good for a little bit.
8. Being a healthy weight is the least we can do. You don’t have to compete in the CrossFit games to be healthy. At a minimum - get to a healthy weight. Excess weight puts stress on all parts of our body.
9. Intermittent Fasting and fasting a whole day can be a great thing physically.
10. We do not do enough physically.
11. Rucking is safe and something almost everyone can do. It's good for the mind, body and soul. I have already started implementing it into my exercise routine. Rucking is strength and cardio in one.
12. Being out of shape is the new smoking…. only WORSE
13. Don’t be a flopped fin WHALE…
14. ALL disease, and I mean ALL disease has its root cause from inflammation.
I’ve heard this for years from people in nutrition, fitness, and wellness communities: when something in the body is inflamed, it’s more prone to disease. The problem is the medicine we sometimes take is just a mask to cover up the discomfort the diseases are causing. (Think of Advil, Tylenol, Aleve)
They are all pain relievers, not disease curers.
15. Cold Therapy is not a fad… it has real immense benefits.
Part of the shtick of cold therapy is it’s extremely uncomfortable. Just the act of immersing yourself in cold water is extremely difficult—and that difficulty alone provides significant benefits. Studies shows that exposing our bodies to cold is uncommonly great for our system.
Summary:
Do hard things that take you out of your comfort zone.
Have something physical once a year you worked towards. Train for it.
Eat real food.
Move every single day.
Take up Rucking.
Being a healthy weight trumps a lot of things.
It’s ok to let your mind wander and be bored.
The book's core message is clear: growth is uncomfortable but essential. It underscores the idea that self-development doesn’t happen by avoiding discomfort but by actively seeking it. Embracing challenges fosters a balanced approach to health and wellness, offering benefits that go beyond the physical.
This is a great book overall and totally worth the read. The guy is a good writer and that is a huge part of reading any book!
For anyone interested in personal growth and resilience, this is one of the most impactful health and wellness books I’ve come across, blending practical guidance with powerful stories. If you're looking to enrich your life and push boundaries, The Comfort Crisis might be the perfect next read.