INTERVIEW | Make Money By Getting Outside: How Nature Supercharges Your Health, Focus, and Performance with Dr. John La Puma
Dr. John La Puma is a board-certified physician, two-time New York Times bestselling author, and pioneer of culinary medicine—a field that integrates food, lifestyle, and environmental health into medical practice. He also runs a regenerative certified organic farm in Santa Barbara that serves as his living laboratory for “nature as medicine,” where he tests how deliberate time outdoors can restore sleep, focus, resilience, and long‑term health. His latest book, Indoor Epidemic, distills insights from more than 2,200 studies to show how spending 93% of our time indoors steals our energy and performance, and how small, intentional doses of nature—the “Outdoor Rx”—can get them back.
On this episode we talk about:
How a 12‑year‑old’s 4 a.m. paper route shaped Dr. La Puma’s work ethic and lifelong love of making money.
Why his curiosity about food, ethics, and lifestyle pulled him from traditional medicine into entrepreneurship and book writing.
How modern indoor living “environmentally hijacks” us through air quality, light, and movement—and why that quietly taxes your cognition and health.
The surprising science behind walking, outdoor movement, and “minimum effective doses” of nature for performance, creativity, and weight loss.
Practical ways founders and professionals can redesign their day—walking meetings, morning light, and distance breaks—to make more money by thinking and performing better.
Top 3 Takeaways
Your environment is either handicapping or amplifying you: sealed, indoor spaces with stale air, dim light, and little movement quietly create a cognitive tax, inflammation, and burnout that no amount of hustle can fix.
Small, specific doses of outdoor light, air, and movement—like a 17‑minute morning walk outside and walking meetings—are free levers that dramatically improve sleep, focus, creativity, and long‑term health.
You can treat nature like a prescription: structure your day with “daylight before screen time,” frequent distance breaks from your devices, and simple outdoor routines that compound into better decisions, productivity, and ultimately income.
Notable Quotes
“Most people aren’t burned out—they’re just indoors too much.”
“You’re leaving gains on the table if you don’t use the natural inputs your brain evolved to expect.”
“Daytime before screen time—getting your light first and then your coffee—might be the most powerful way to improve performance that I know.”
Connect with Dr. John La Puma:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnlapuma
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/johnlapuma/
Other (Book & Free Outdoor Reset): https://IndoorEpidemic.com
- Website: https://www.drjohnlapuma.com/
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