Scott Carney has spent much of his career debunking health and spiritual gurus, and writing about them for national publications and books. When he set out to do the same thing with Wim Hof, something different happened. He ended up spending a lot of time with Wim and using his methods. Scott wrote a best-seller about it called What Doesn’t Kill Us that explores the science behind it and also explains how environmental conditioning can help us renew our lost evolutionary strength.

Over the last few decades, Wim Hof has broken dozens of records and achieved some wild feats. Many of his records were attempts to show the world that healing and high performance can be achieved if we go back to nature, and we have healing powers within ourselves. Wim has worked with researchers all over the globe to back up his theories with the goal to reach more people and help them heal. Today there are several studies showing how the Wim Hof Method works.

Editor's note: This episode contains references to sexual violence and may not be suitable for all audiences.

After being raped her second night of her freshman year in college, Aspen Matis grew depressed and was shocked at how her school didn’t believe or protect her. She knew that getting into the wilderness could bring her a sense of peace and healing. Instead of returning to school, she dropped out and embarked on a 2,000-mile journey to walk the PCT from Mexico to Canada.

Beth Rodden is a well known climber who has won competitions and climbed some of the most challenging routes in the world, including many first ascents like her free climb of the Meltdown in Yosemite, where she showed that women can climb as well as men. In 2000 Beth and three climbing partners were captured by a militant group in while on a climbing trip Kyrgyzstan. After is days in captivity, they escaped. Between that and her divorce shortly after, Beth has had to rethink her perfectionist ideals.

Michael Finkel is the author of the New York Times bestseller, The Stranger in the Woods: The Extraordinary Story of the Last True Hermit, which chronicles a highly intelligent man that lived alone in the woods of Maine for 27 years without lighting a single fire, or talking to a single soul. An outdoors lover himself, who splits time between Montana and Southern France, Michael has a penchant for stories about those who live on the edges of society, and people who live with less.

Rebecca Rusch has been called a modern day wonder woman and the queen of pain for her ability to not only withstand harsh conditions in endurance racing, but for her well-versed career. This year, Rebecca is about to celebrate her 50th birthday, and she’s had some time to reflect back on her life and her philosophy about how to pave your own path in life and how to make it in a career without a clear road map.

Cheryl Strayed is the author of #1 New York Times bestselling memoir Wild about her trek along the Pacific Crest Trail. The book was adapted into an Oscar-nominated movie starring Reese Witherspoon and Laura Dern. In addition to writing Wild, Cheryl also wrote the New York Times bestsellers Tiny Beautiful Things and Brave Enough, as well as her first novel, Torch. She is the co-host of Dear Sugar, an advice column turned WBUR podcast, and a true force of nature.

After battling drug addiction, Catra Corbett hit her bottom, finding herself in jail. Soon after she got sober, Catra discovered her love of fitness. She also started running, and running more. To date, Catra, aka “the Dirt Diva” has run over 260 marathons, over 137 100-mile runs, and set numerous records including becoming the first to run the 424-mile round trip of the John Muir trail in just over 12 days.

Karen Ramos and Adriana Garcia are two young women who started movements to encourage diversity and representation in the outdoor industry. Karen founded Get Out, Stay Out, an organization that connects indigenous-migrant children with the outdoors. Adriana is the co-founder LatinX Hikers, a platform to showcase people from diverse backgrounds participating in outdoor activities.

Mark McInnis, is an accomplished photographer who works with a lot of my favorite brands and publications. A lot of his work takes place along the Pacific Northwest, and he loves shooting pictures of freezing cold climates, empty waves and stunning landscapes. Mark has a great personality and a positive outlook on life as well as great advice for those starting out. He shares how he’s made a living as a photographer, and how you can get started today.