From 250 Pounds to Optimized: The Fat Daddy Workout That Works

Before the sun came up, everything looked impossible. Payroll was due. The state wanted sixty thousand dollars he didn't have. The business felt like it was dying. So he got into the ice bath. Twenty seconds later, he thought: maybe there's three things I haven't tried yet. When he got out, he couldn't wait to try them. Dr. Thomas Seager is a tenured engineering professor at Arizona State University who built the Morozko ice bath—a machine that manufactures its own ice rather than relying on cold water alone. His accidental discovery: ice baths before exercise dramatically elevate testosterone in men through a measurable biological shift in the blood. His research has reached mainstream attention and opened a clinical door to understanding how cold thermogenesis rebuilds mitochondria—the cellular engines where aging accelerates or decelerates. On Health Is a Skill, you'll learn the protocol, the science behind hormonal optimization through cold exposure, and how thermal medicine reshapes recovery and nervous system resilience. Todd Vande Hei built Stark Health as a facility where leaders come to recalibrate their nervous systems and reclaim their bodies as operating systems. For him, the ice bath is a leadership tool—a three-minute lever that shifts his emotional state for five hours, making him present with his team and his family. This conversation bridges the engineering precision of cold exposure with the real stakes of building a business, leading people, and understanding what your body is actually capable of. About the Guest: Dr. Thomas Seager is an engineering professor at Arizona State University and founder of Morozko Forge, where he applies rigorous science to thermal medicine and human performance. Learn more at morozkoforge.com. Your health is a skill you can build. Start with the free resources at podtodd.com or explore team-based health optimization at stark.health