Two Percent with Michael Easter

Sam Quinones spent 12 years reporting on America’s drug crisis and how heroin, fentanyl, meth have reshaped the country. In this episode, he unpacks how Mexican cartels replaced poppy fields with chemicals, lowered the price of meth by 90%, and unintentionally created a schizophrenia crisis. Since then, Sam has been on a mission to find the antidote to modern day addiction. And he found it in an unlikely source: the tuba. Yes, the musical instrument. Sam explains why marching band may very well be the best anti-drug program in America and how we can help our children avoid a life of addiction and suffering.
Sam is the author of Dreamland, The Least of Us, and his new book The Perfect Tuba: Forging Fulfillment from the Bass Horn, Band, and Hard Work.
Two Percent is hosted by Michael Easter. Today’s episode was produced by Joey Fischground, Robbie Hiser, Dana Brawer and Julia Nutter. From Kaleidoscope, our executive producers are Mangesh Hattikudur and Kate Osborn and Julia Nutter. From iHeart, our executive producers are Katrina Norvell and Nikki Ettore. Our Head of Video is Maria Paz Mendez Hodes. This episode was edited by Joey Fischground. Our theme music is by the Heater Manager.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Is work supposed to feel this miserable? In this episode, Michael Easter sits down with two people who answer the question from opposite ends of the spectrum: one who found deep fulfillment inside the system, and one who walked away from it entirely.

First, Dr. Mim Ari, an internist and associate professor at the University of Chicago, breaks down what it actually means to be a "deeply fulfilled workist." She explains why we anchor on the negatives, the 10:1 positive ratio that should reframe your day, how AI scribes are quietly changing medicine, and why intrinsic motivation beats external validation every time.

Then, Robin Greenfield, who once aimed to be a millionaire by 30, talks about why he gave it all up. He shares the moment he realized the American Dream was "the world's nightmare," his 100-change checklist for breaking free of consumerism, what it was like to walk NYC in a 135-pound trash suit, and the three months he spent owning literally nothing in Griffith Park.

Michael closes with the very first 2% AMA, including the one phone hack that has saved his work-life balance, the truth about exercise recovery, an update to The Comfort Crisis on autophagy, and the inaugural "Department of Dipshit Questions."

Robin’s 100-step guide to living happier: https://www.robingreenfield.org/100

Two Percent is hosted by Michael Easter. Today’s episode was produced by Joey Fischground, Robbie Hiser, Dana Brawer and Julia Nutter. From Kaleidoscope, our executive producers are Mangesh Hattikudur and Kate Osborn and Julia Nutter. From iHeart, our executive producers are Katrina Norvell and Nikki Ettore. Our Head of Video is Maria Paz Mendez Hodes. Our editor is Will Mayo. Our theme music is by the Heater Manager.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Everyone has a vice. Drinking, smoking, social media, diet soda. And the modern wellness internet will tell you that if you want to live a long, healthy life, you need to cut every single one of them out. But is that actually true?
In this episode of Two Percent, we take a nuanced look at vices and whether some of them might actually enhance your life when you use them the right way. We don't have to live like monks to live a good life.
First up is Dean Stattmann, a GQ reporter who spent three months sober and wrote a now-viral piece titled "Why My 2026 Resolution Is to Start Drinking Again." His Whoop scores got better, but his friendships, his marriage, and his mood got worse. Dean explains what alcohol actually does for human connection, what anthropologists call "costly signaling," and why moderate drinking might not be the villain the internet has made it out to be.
Then Taylor Lorenz, author of Extremely Online and host of the Power User podcast, joins to argue something that sounds heretical in 2026: social media is not addictive. We break down the real science on dopamine (spoiler: it's probably cortisol), the recent California Meta verdict, Section 230, KOSA, looksmaxing, Clavicular's overdose, and what's actually driving the teen mental health conversation.
Finally, Michael opens up about his own personal vice, a five-a-day habit, and explains why the science on aspartame, cancer, and the gut microbiome isn't nearly as scary as the internet would have you believe.
Two Percent is hosted by Michael Easter. Today’s episode was produced by Joey Fischground, Robbie Hiser, Dana Brawer and Julia Nutter. From Kaleidoscope, our executive producers are Mangesh Hattikudur and Kate Osborn and Julia Nutter. From iHeart, our executive producers are Katrina Norvell and Nikki Ettore. Our Head of Video is Maria Paz Mendez Hodes. Our editor is Will Mayo. Our theme music is by the Heater Manager.
Substack Post from Dr. Vinay Prasad: https://www.drvinayprasad.com/p/alcohol-good-or-bad-why-reductionist
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Melissa Urban — founder of Whole 30 and author of The Whole30 (updated 2024) and The Book of Boundaries — sits down with Michael Easter for one of the most honest conversations on this feed yet. Two sober people (Michael 10+ years, Melissa 24+ years) unpack the parallels between drug addiction and food behavior, why the first time Melissa went to rehab didn't stick, and the single question that rewired every habit in her life: "What would a healthy person with healthy habits do?"

They dig into the science of elimination diets, the 17 years of data behind Whole 30, why Melissa publicly reversed her position on seed oils in 2024, how food becomes the fastest socially acceptable distraction from our feelings, and why you can white-knuckle any elimination program and end up exactly where you started. Plus: integrity over followers, mountains as church, and why "does this feel gross?" is the best business rubric Melissa's ever used.
Two Percent is hosted by Michael Easter. Today’s episode was produced by Joey Fischground, Robbie Hiser, Dana Brawer and Julia Nutter. From Kaleidoscope, our executive producers are Mangesh Hattikudur and Kate Osborn and Julia Nutter. From iHeart, our executive producers are Katrina Norvell and Nikki Ettore. Our Head of Video is Maria Paz Mendez Hodes. Our editor is Ryan Mulhern. Our theme music is by the Heater Manager.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The 130th Boston Marathon is this Monday. To mark the occasion, Michael sits down with Brady Holmer — a science writer, runner, and 2:24 Boston finisher — to go deep on what the race actually feels like, why super shoes might be saving you 5-8 minutes, how to fuel a marathon without your gut exploding, and whether anyone can qualify for Boston.
Then Dr. Mike Roussell, a PhD nutritionist from Penn State who works with NBA players and busy execs, breaks down the ultraprocessed food debate that's tearing through the nutrition world. Are ultraprocessed foods actually evil? Or are they sometimes the healthiest option? He walks through a mind-blowing ultraprocessed food study, why fiber is the most underrated nutrient, and a practical framework for using UPF without letting it wreck your diet. Plus his surprisingly nuanced take on GLP-1 drugs.
After that, Michael heads to the Two Percent Kitchen with the most ridiculous endurance recipe you've ever seen.
Two Percent is hosted by Michael Easter. Today’s episode was produced by Joey Fischground, Robbie Hiser, Dana Brawer and Julia Nutter. From Kaleidoscope, our executive producers are Mangesh Hattikudur and Kate Osborn and Julia Nutter. From iHeart, our executive producers are Katrina Norvell and Nikki Ettore. Our Head of Video is Maria Paz Mendez Hodes. Our editor is Ryan Mulhern. Our theme music is by the Heater Manager.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.