Dr. Arthur Brooks: I have very strong, science-based protocols dedicated to lowering negative affect and increasing productivity and creativity.

Dr. Rhonda Patrick: So tell me.

Dr. Arthur Brooks: Yeah, for sure. It is all designed to do so: what I ingest, when I ingest it, and what I actually do.

I get up very early. There is a lot of research on how the brain works. There is an ancient Vedic literature on something called the Brahma Muhurta. I spend a lot of time in India. I go to India every year, and I study with both scientists and spiritual teachers. I am a Catholic, but I do that anyway because it is really good stuff.

They have always talked about the Brahma Muhurta, which in Sanskrit means “the creator’s time.” It is an hour and 36 minutes before dawn. A muhurta is 48 minutes long in ancient Vedic physics. That is arbitrary from a scientific point of view, but there is research suggesting that being awake before dawn while the sun is rising has neurochemical and immune effects. I have seen literature suggesting that you are more productive, effective, creative, focused, and happy. Andrew Huberman talks about sunrise a lot too.

That is what I practice. I get up at 4:30. I usually work out from 4:45 to 5:45 every morning. I am a seven-day-a-week guy, which means I have to be careful not to damage my joints. I want to be working out when I am in my 80s, a couple of decades from now, so I have to structure it well. A lot of it is zone 2 cardio and sometimes zone 3 or high-intensity interval training, but I also do a lot of resistance training. I am able to stay healthy without using hormones, which is a nice side effect. That manages my negative affect from the first moment.

The second thing I do is metaphysical fitness. That is my second technique for managing negative affect, but it is also personally important to me. I go to Mass every day because I am a Catholic. It is the most important thing in my life. I have also studied Vipassana meditation and Stoic philosophy. Everybody has to find their thing—something they practice that is a form of transcendence, to focus on things greater than themselves every day.

I go to Mass from 6:30 to 7:00 every day. When I am at home, I go with my wife. When I am traveling, I go by myself. The great thing about the Catholic Church is that it is like Starbucks: it is a high-quality, uniform product and is easy to find. For me, that works.

At this point, I have not ingested anything except electrolytes with 10 grams of creatine monohydrate. I want that second 5 grams because it may be good for the brain. I have heard you talk about the research, and it is great.

I am not ingesting anything else until I get back. Then I self-administer a psychostimulant: caffeine. I like caffeine. I grew up in Seattle and drink a lot of dark-roast coffee. The more they burn it, the better I like it. I drink 350 milligrams of caffeine as a bolus after I get back and before I eat anything. At that point, it has been two and a half hours since I got up. The idea about waiting for adenosine to clear is contested, but it works for me. I do not get an afternoon crash.

Only then do I eat. I get about 60 grams of protein in my first meal of the day. Greek yogurt has a lot of tryptophan, and that will hold you. When I get to work, I can do three and a half hours of concentrated creative work. I cannot write for three and a half hours unless I set up my day in a particular way. I am also not unbearable to live with because I have managed my negative affect. That is my five-part protocol.