Hey guys, Nate here. I'm proud to announce that I'm now the Program Director of Scrawny To Brawny. From now on all of my blogs and articles will be posted on the brand-new Scrawny To Brawny Blog. So if you enjoyed what you read here, please go check it out. (It's awesome, if I say so myself.) I'm keeping the NGE website alive for resource reasons, but will no longer be actively updating it. The best way to get in touch with me is through leaving a comment on the Scrawny To Brawny blog or by posting on the S2B Facebook page. See you guys over at the new blog!
Hero 101: My Top Picks for Books, Tools, and Programs
Heroes are made, not born.
A body you’re proud of, a job you love, enough money and time to do what you want, life-long friends — those things are never handed to you. And even if they were, my guess is you wouldn’t appreciate them. None of us would.
That’s why if you want them, you have to go get them yourself.
My advice: read things that make your head hurt and your heart swell. Take risks. Get the shit kicked out of you and then get back up. Meet people and help them.
Wake up and know you’re alive and that this may really be your last day. Own it.
Some of the things on this page helped me to become my own hero (though I still have a long way to go). Some are things I think can help you on your journey.
Think of this page as a starting point, a way to gain traction. Think of it as a way to get going.
Now, go. Do something awesome. You don’t have forever.
(Note from Nate: There are links to free stuff in here (blog posts, etc.), and links to things that cost money (like the books). I estimate I've spent over $30,000 in my self-education over the years in travel, books, programs, and buying dinner for really smart people. I know people who spend two or three times that for college.
All this to say: a lot of of guys hate the idea that they may have to drop a few bucks and spend a few hours learning stuff. But the guys who are making real moves and taking control of their lives know the difference between expense and investment. Just a thought.)
Required Reading
The Hero Handbook (Free) - 136 pages from yours truly on how to build the life of your dreams.
5- Day Free Hero Course - A one-month workout program, nutrition strategies, and lifestyle hacks packed into five days. Sign up on the right-hand side of the screen.
The Power of Less: The Fine Art of Limiting Yourself to the Essential...in Business and in Life
Letters From a Stoic
The How of Happiness: A New Approach to Getting the Life You Want
Which Blog Posts from Nate Should I Definitely Read?
The Hero Blueprint: 11 Tenets of An Awesomely Rich Life
How to Make the Perfect Cup of Coffee
You Don't Belong Here: Esquire's Chris Jones
How to Get a Private Chef for Cheap
The Fixed vs. Growth Mindset
7 Tips for Perfect Sleep
Do You Have the Life for That?
Wake Up Heroic - The 20-Minute Morning Fix
New Pollution: Why I Hate Air Fresheners and Rubber Ducks
The 5-Minute Monk
Heroes vs. Cowards
How Do I Gain Muscle, Lose Fat, and Build a Badass Body?
Hero Workout
Built For Show
Scrawny to Brawny Program
Lean Eating Program
The 4-Hour Body: An Uncommon Guide to Rapid Fat-Loss, Incredible Sex, and Becoming Superhuman
Show and Go Training by Eric Cressey
The Precision Nutrition System (For everyone)
Experiments with Intermittent Fasting (Not for everyone)
How Do I Become A Good Cook and Eat Well?
Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution Cookbook
How Can I Build My Dream Life?
Hero Handbook
Four Hour Work Week
The Art of Non-Conformity
The Education of Millionaires
ReWork
Earn1k Program
1,000 True Fans (article)
How Can I Make More Money?
I Will Teach You To Be Rich
Total Money Makeover
How Can I Become a Writer?
On Writing Well
The Elements of Style
The Elements of Fucking Style
On Writing by Stephen King
Oh, and read these...
WriteRoom - Distraction-free writing
Practice - I don't have a link for this. That's on you.
How Can I Start a Blog/Website?
Will You Help Me?
What books, tools, or resources have you used and find the most helpful? It can be lifestyle, business, training, nutrition....anything that's helped make you a better person.
Also, I'll be updating this list a few times per year when I read/learn new stuff. Thanks!
Comments for This Entry
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Excellent list(s)!
A book that has helped me immensely is The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. Also, AONC is awesome and cannot wait for Chris' new book next year!
Thanks Nate!
Brad -
Hi Nate,
Great list and book recommendations. Most of them are new to me, so I'll be checking those out.
Some of my favorite book recommendations for my clients are:
80/20 Principle
Power of Now
Your Money or Your Life (highly recommend)
The 4 Agreements
I'm also a huge fan of white boards to keep track of my goals and ideas.
Thank you for your list, I look forward to checking out those books.
Best
Sirena -
The China Study by Dr. T. Collin Campbell, The 80/10/10 Diet by Dr. Douglas Graham, Nutrition and Athletic Performance by Dr. Graham, and Vegan Bodybuliding & Fitness by Robert Cheeke.
ALL terrific reads, and VERY eye-opening! = ) -
You didn't have to share any of this...or spend your time putting together this awesome site . But I am ever so grateful you did! I hope to pay it forward the way you have....Thanks Nate!
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"Play" by Stuart Brown, MD
It is our nature and by extension some argue, our purpose. -
I like this. Just added three or four more books to my amazon list.
I'm big on Stoic stuff. You listed Seneca but I'd add Epictetus and Marcus Aurelius to the list. The Gregory Hays translation of Meditations is probably the way to go, as there are quite a few.
The big thing there is the difference between passively reading it and thinking that you understand it and actually internalizing the philosophy through practice. -
"Man's Search For Meaning" - Victor Frankel
Intense read. Filled with psychology. Shows even a prisoner in a concentration camp can have a good day. Crazy to think but a must read. -
Thanks for the interesting and thorough list of resources to check out.
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Good stuff Nate! We definitely have to MAKE THINGS HAPPEN in this life. Thanks for inspiring me and showing me that you can live the lifestyle you want no matter what your age. ;)
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Thanks for the book lists!
I really liked the Talent Code by Daniel Coyle, got me thinking what it takes to be really good something. -
Hero Living by Rudy Reyes.
This guy is so inspiring and motivational, a true warrior (both on the battlefield and in life). He is the kind of person you only see in movies. YouTube: Getting to know Rudy Reyes. Everyone will benefit somehow by what this guy has to offer. -
Great recommendations Nate. If I could make a suggestion, it would be anything by Steve Chandler. I really think you'd enjoy his style and insight.
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Nate,
What about Standing on the Shoulders of Giants! That was and is still a great resource. -
Thanks Nate!
For building a strong heroic body I'll add Mark Rippetoe's books Starting Strength: Basic Barbell Training and Practical Programming for Strength Training; and Jim Wendler's 5/3/1 training program.
And on building a dream life, I'll add Dale Carnegie's classic: How to Win Friends & Influence People. -
This is awesome! I'm always looking for good books to read and just by looking at the fist two off the list (Power of Less, Letters from a Stoic) I can tell this list is going to keep me busy for a while. Thanks for the great suggestions!
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INFLUENCERS is a great business book, as well as one called Crucial Conversations.
THE ALCHEMIST is also a great read - many recommend for general interest, motivation, etc (as well as a lot of this authors other books). -
"How To Win Friends & Influence People" - Dale Carnegie
Amazing book -
All great reads. I especially like "7 Habits" and "How to Win Friends." One book I found excellent that was recommended to me by Skip Lacour is "The Celestine Prophecy" by James Redfield. It's a great read on various psychological and spiritual ideas. Even if you aren't a spiritual person, you should find value in this. It's a fictional read in a first-person narrative. It's entertaining and enlightening.
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''Brawn'' by Stuart McRobert.
A book that preached Wendler-style back-to-basics, no-nonsense training and setting realistic expectations about 25 years before anyone knew who Jim Wendler was... -
"The Power of Now" by Ekhart Tolle. A somewhat philosophical/spiritual book on living free of our ego, and not being controlled by our minds (with a small "m"), to achieve greater connectedness with our Minds (with a large "M") within all of us.
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Nate help me on this please: you advocate for taking time to sleep 8 hours a night and give hints and tips at how we can make it as relaxing and beneficial for ourselves as possible. Yet in the description of the four hour body it says that it is possible that 2 hours of sleep can give more energy then 8. Can you shed some light on this please?
Hey David,
Tim's referring to polyphasic sleep. I actually don't have any experience with it, so I'm afraid I don't have an opinion.
I suggest reading that chapter of Tim's book and checking out this page:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polyphasic_sleepNate Green
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Thanks to everyone for sharing! Great stuff here.
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Thanks for the Write Room......it's such a cool tool!
No distraction = no procrastination! -
Hey Nate, thanks for the recommendations. I just finished reading "The Traveler's Gift" by Andy Andrews. Awesome go get em book.
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If you're looking for a program similar to WriteRoom that works on Windows, check out WriteMonkey. It's pretty much exactly the same thing.
And yes, awesome post! -
"Thank you very much for you perfect and useful post .it's really valuable.Fantastic goods from you, man. Ive study your stuff ahead of and youre just as well amazing. I enjoy what
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Born to Run- A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen.
by Christopher McDougall.
Awesome, inspiring, and revolutionary, whether you run or not! :) -
I was very pleased to find this site.I wanted to thank you for this great read!!
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This is the best weblog for anyone who wants to know about this subject. You know a lot its virtually challenging to argue with you . You certainly place a new spin on the topic thats been composed about for many years. Fantastic things, just fantastic!
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Yet in the description of the four hour body it says that it is possible that 2 hours of sleep can give more energy then 8. Can you shed some light on this please?
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This can be done in stages and through many steps.
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You certainly place a new spin on the topic thats been composed about for many years. Fantastic things, just fantastic!
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Awesome list...I've worked my way through most of this list and became inspired to continue down a path of self-education (guided by AONC)...one book that really resonated with me that I haven't seen mentioned is The Power of Full Engagement (Loehr/Schwartz). It discusses their research, with started out with elite athletes and branched into white-collar professionals, and draws a strong parallel between success in the physical dimension of life and success in all other major life dimensions.
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I just like the approach you took with this subject. It isn’t every day that you discover something so concise and enlightening.
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Not only is this a great idea, it is so fun to read the blog to find out about the fun stuff you find!
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Excellent article, it is very usrful. I like it.
COMMENT RULES: Critical posts are fine, but if you're rude I'll delete your stuff. Please do not put your URL in the comment text and please use your personal name or initials and not your business name, as the latter comes off like spam. But most of all, have fun and thanks for adding to the conversation! (Thanks to Tim Ferriss for the inspiration.)
Brad 7:54am Oct 14, 2011