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Morning, Greg here!

Welcome to Midlife Male, the fastest-growing, #1 newsletter and lifestyle brand for men 40+. In today’s issue we’ve got my Viewpoint, “The Power of Staying Ready”, Jon’s Manologue, “Why is Everything More Annoying?”, our exclusive How I See It with athlete, trainer, and entrepreneur Rashaad Slowley, and, as always, our 6F recs. If a fellow MLM reader shared this with you, subscribe here:

The Power of Staying Ready

By Greg Scheinman

I’ve got a big stretch coming up.

I’m speaking and co-leading a 5-mile ruck at the Eudemonia Summit in Palm Beach. From there, I’m flying to Boulder at the invitation of Bart Foster to join him and 25 others at Business Outside to hike the 20-mile Skyline Traverse. Then it’s off to Atlanta to record content, work out, sauna, and plan my ’26 calendar with someone I can’t name yet, but that I’m beyond excited to be spending time with. 

After that, I’ll fly home for Thanksgiving with my family before heading to Sedona for the XPT Expedition, a 26.2-mile ruck marathon with 30 guys.

When I called my son, Auden, to tell him I’d be heading straight from Palm Beach to Boulder and that we could grab dinner when I arrived, we started talking about my schedule. 

He said, “Dad, aren’t you the guy who always says no to things?”

I laughed because he’s right. I talk a lot about protecting white space. About saying no. About not being overscheduled.

But there are exceptions.

And this is one of those stretches.

Read how I’m handling it and planning it here:

YouTube TV, Chipotle, and the Sense That Everything is More Annoying

By Jon Finkel

Pick your meme: Old man shouting at clouds. Clint Eastwood squinting and saying, “Get off my lawn.” Whatever. It’s easy for men over 40 to get painted as nostalgia addicts; guys who pine for the 80s and 90s constantly muttering stuff like, “everything used to be better.”

I know. I know. Every modern generation says their heyday is the best.

But I am here to tell you that they’re wrong. Ours was the best. And I’m going to prove it, if you’ll allow me a little objectivity as someone fast-approaching his fifth decade. 

You ready? Okay, let’s go. In many measurable, specific ways, as technology has improved and ideas have spread faster than ever before, many “things we do every day” have become more of a hassle, more annoying, and less streamlined, even though tech kinda made us think we’d get the opposite.

Two things: I’m not talking about awesome stuff like medical breakthroughs or energy breakthroughs or capital ‘B’ big-time tech advances. I’m talking specifically about the way the promise of tech was beginning to remove useless friction from our day-to-day lives and how we were almost there - then everything went to shit.

If you’d like me to define what period of time I’m talking about, you can skip over the 70s, 80s and most of the 90s (the pre-everyone online world). 

I’m talking about the early 2000s-ish. Let’s say, generously, 2000 to 2008 or so.

That short, glorious period where it felt like so many irritating little problems and daily inefficiencies in life were finally being solved…

You remember that time, right? We were ALMOST there. The dream of a tech-driven, frictionless day-to-day. Take a quick trip back with me and discover how close we were, and where it all went wrong. You’re going to “feel” this one, and then reply with what I missed, what you agree with or where you think we’re headed:

Rashaad Slowley on the Advantage of Training Seasons, Blending Fashion & Fitness, and Staying Versatile

By Jon Finkel

The Pit Fitness gym in Boca Raton is bad ass. All the equipment you can handle plus a turf field in the middle for sled work, sprints and agility drills. When I walk in, I see my friend Rashaad Slowley warming up, waiting for me. I say ‘friend’ in the modern world of “two dudes who like each other’s posts on Instagram” but haven’t met in person.

And yet, we know each other. We know some of the same people, have been to some of the same events, we both train and actively compete in our given sports and we’re both husbands and dads. 

When you’ve got all that in common, you don’t need much more to hit it off.

I’d been following Slowley from afar after a mutual friend introduced us a while back and it’s been fascinating to see what he’s accomplished. He’s been an athlete and entrepreneur his whole life, first starring as a running back at Southern Connecticut State in college and then training other potential college athletes for the NFL. He played ball overseas before becoming an elite trainer and coach, working with NFL veterans, CEOs, and weekend warriors alike. He’s also got three kids, runs his own business and works as an ambassador for some of the biggest fitness brands out there.

But one of the main reasons I wanted to interview him for Midlife Male is because of how versatile his training is and how he embraces the concepts of seasons. So many of the men we talk to about fitness either focus on their general fitness (maintaining strength and a decent level of cardio as they age) or they’re specialists in an event or certain area (marathons, Iron Mans, bike races, etc…).

Slowley, on the other hand, embraces the idea of training for a bunch of things throughout the year to keep things fresh and to keep your body adapting. Part of the year he trains almost exclusively for golf. Part of the year he runs distance and track work and competes in half-marathons. Part of the year spends in the ring, boxing. It’s a concept I want to explore deeper.

Of course, we aren’t the kinds of dudes to decide to grab coffee and talk about our goals. Not my style. Not his style. Instead, I met him at Pit Fitness for a workout/conversation.

We went through a full-body circuit: sled pushes, med ball throws, ski-erg sets, heavy carries, pull-ups, and mobility drills. Between rounds and heavy breathing and sweating, we got to talking about training, balance, motivation, and what fulfillment looks like as a man on the cusp of midlife. You’re going to enjoy this one:

Being the Role Models Our Sons Deserve

“We need to get more emotionally involved in a young man’s life.” 

Scott Galloway said that, and as a father of two young men, ages 19 and 22, it hits home. He went on to say the single point of failure for a young man happens when he loses a male role model. Men my age have to step up. If we want better men, we have to be better men. I don’t co-sign everything Galloway puts out there, he can be a lightning rod, but on this we are locked in. His new book, Notes on Being a Man, is worth your time. Pick up a copy.

The Chair That Resets Your System

Downregulation, upregulation, nervous system control, stress reduction, meditation and mental reset. Whatever you need, whenever you need it, the Shiftwave chair gets you there. 

Lay back, plug in, headphones on, mask down and you’re transported to exactly where your mind and body need to go. It is the real deal and now it is even better. Shiftwave Pro is being used by performance programs, recovery clinics and pro athletes, but also by regular middle aged guys like us. It is built for real life. Reliable, measurable and easy to use. The new enhancements include AI powered protocol recommendations based on your goals and your history, plus Mini Lab Insights that track HRV, heart rate and SpO2 so you can see the changes. Check it out.

Do You Know Your F.I.R.E. Number?

What is your FIRE number? You do have one, right? If not, it is time. FIRE stands for Financial Independence, Retire Early, and it matters because life is for living. The earlier you hit your number, the sooner you open up more possibilities in midlife. The trick is you do not wait to hit your number to start living. You start now and work toward it, and when you hit it, you pour gasoline on the FIRE. There is no single rule for calculating your number. Lean FIRE, fat FIRE, and everything in between. A simple way to get there is multiplying your annual expenses by 25. That number is based on the 4 percent rule. It gives you a target. Hit it and your runway opens up.

NOTE: Apparently, our sharp Editor-in-Chief always thought FIRE stood for: “F*ck It,  Retire Early”, which works too haha.

The Beef Stick That Saves Travel Days

New Primal Classic Beef Sticks are my go to on the road. I have a nine day stretch coming up with planes, hikes and hotel rooms, so healthy snacks are non negotiable. These are 100 percent beef. Not gas station sticks. Eight grams of protein, no sugar added and only ninety calories. Simple ingredients and plenty of flavors. Throw a few in your bag and you are set.

Mastering the HiLow Look

Some guys just get style right. High end pieces mixed with lower cost classics. That is HiLow Style and it works. The idea is to blur the line between formal and casual, expensive and affordable, and land in that sharp casual zone that fits almost any situation. Think vintage Levis and Converse with a Rolex. Theory pants with a Uniqlo tee. A beat up pair of Red Wings paired with a sharp suit. Daniel Craig, David Beckham and Justin Theroux are great examples of how to do this in midlife. Watch, learn and apply.

One Gold & Two Silvers at the International Swimming Hall of Fame Meet

It may not be everyone’s idea of fun to spend two days on the hot deck of a 50-meter pool in a pair of jammers competing against the fastest Masters swimmers on the East Coast, but for Jon, it’s a little slice of heaven. This past weekend he competed in three events in the 45+ age group: the 50 Fly, 50 Free & 100 Fly. He got one gold and two silvers and even better, he spent the whole day with his daughter, who put together this cool highlight reel of the competition. Watch it here.

Read Our MOST POPULAR Cover Stories:

Troy Aikman on Reinvention, Wrestling Demons and What Success Looks Like

Laird Hamilton’s Blueprint for Ageless Living and Unstoppable Energy

15 Pieces of Wisdom from Chef Robert Irvine

MLM Founder: Greg Scheinman / Follow Greg on Instagram & LinkedIn

Love Greg’s Viewpoint column? Visit the full Viewpoint Vault HERE where he shares his personal insights, experiences and perspectives on everything affecting midlife.

MLM Editor-in-Chief: Jon Finkel / Follow Jon on Twitter/X and Instagram

Love Jon’s Manologue column? Check out the full Manologue Archive HERE where he writes about pop culture, parenthood, sports, nostalgia & everything in between.

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