Can Lifestyle Changes Prevent Dementia?

Welcome to the positive corner of the internet. Every weekday, we help you make sense of the complex world of wellness by analyzing the headlines, simplifying the latest research, and providing quick tips designed to help you stay healthier in under 5 minutes. If you were forwarded this message, you can get the free daily email here.

Today’s Health Upgrade

Number you won’t forget
Stress-free foods
Turn your goals into reality
Weekly wisdom
Arnold’s weekend advice

Arnold’s Podcast

Want more stories from Arnold? Every day, Arnold’s Pump Club Podcast opens with a story, perspective, and wisdom from Arnold that you won’t find in the newsletter. And, you’ll hear a recap of the day’s items. You can subscribe on Apple, Spotify, Google, or wherever you listen to podcasts.

Health
Number You Won’t Forget: 45 Percent

What if preventing dementia wasn’t just about luck or genetics—but something you could actively influence?

A major review from The Lancet makes a bold claim: Up to 45 percent of dementia cases could be delayed or prevented with simple lifestyle changes.

Scientists outlined modifiable risk factors—decisions and conditions you can take control of (to some extent) to protect your brain. These 12 behaviors include:

Education
High blood pressure
Hearing loss
Smoking
Obesity
Depression
Physical inactivity
Diabetes
Low social contact
Excessive alcohol consumption
Traumatic brain injury
Air pollution

It might surprise you, but midlife hearing loss alone may account for up to 8 percent of dementia cases—more than any other factor studied.

The researchers emphasized that even small improvements in just a few of these areas could dramatically reduce your risk.

If you want to protect your brain, a few simple examples include:

Get moving. Regular physical activity helps reduce inflammation and improves blood flow to the brain.
Watch your blood pressure. Keeping it under control in midlife is especially important.
Test your hearing. Don’t wait—treating hearing loss early matters.
Stay socially engaged. Isolation is one of the fastest ways to accelerate cognitive decline.

Your daily decisions don’t just affect how you look or feel—they shape how you think, remember, and age.

Together With Maui Nui
Stress-Free Protein?

You spend so much time thinking about what to eat—but maybe it’s time to start thinking about how it makes its way to your plate.

Animals harvested under stress produce meat that is tougher, less flavorful, and more likely to spoil.

When animals experience stress just before slaughter, their bodies release a surge of stress hormones—like cortisol and catecholamines (dopamine, norepinephrine, and epinephrine). This triggers rapid glycogen breakdown. Why does that matter?

Glycogen is turned into lactic acid after death, and lactic acid naturally lowers the pH of meat to a safe level around 5.5. But if glycogen is depleted, that doesn’t happen. The pH stays high, which leads to tougher texture, bad flavor, and even faster bacterial growth.

Multiple studies support this chain reaction. A sequencing study found that cortisol activates specific genes that directly degrade quality. Another paper showed that the more the animal struggles or panics, the more meat quality suffers—because stress alters muscle chemistry in real time. And a review on circadian physiology showed that animals harvested at night—when they're calm and naturally less active—experience significantly fewer physiological stress responses, leading to more tender and nutrient-rich meat.

It’s not just about taste—it’s about safety, texture, and nutritional value.

When you remove stress from the equation, you preserve the animal’s natural state: more lactic acid, better pH, improved tenderness, and longer shelf life. And yes, you can taste the difference.

If you care about the quality of your food, look beyond the label and ask: How was this animal treated before it became my meal? Sourcing from ethical, low-stress operations—especially those that use night harvesting—isn’t just a moral decision. It’s a performance one, too.

That’s why Maui Nui takes a different approach. Their wild-harvested venison is sourced exclusively at night, using stress-free methods designed to protect both the animal and the nutrient integrity of the meat. No corralling, no feedlots, no panic—just a quiet, respectful process.

By harvesting ethically and without triggering stress responses, Maui Nui ensures superior taste and tenderness, optimal nutrient retention, and safer, longer-lasting meat

This isn’t just about doing what’s right for the animal. It’s about creating the highest-quality fuel for your performance, recovery, and long-term health.

For a limited time, all Pump Club members get a complimentary Stick Starter Pack (a $79 value) — our favorite high-protein snack — with any purchase over $79.

There’s a reason Maui Nui is considered the healthiest red meat on the planet. Because what your food experiences before it reaches your plate still matters after you eat it. Experience the difference of premium, stress-free protein with Maui Nui.

Mindset
How Turn Your Goals Into A Reality

We all know goals matter. But not all goals are created equal—and if you want to perform better and feel better, how you set your goals might be the real game changer.

Setting specific, measurable goals — called process goals — significantly improves your likelihood of success, and that’s just part of the benefit.

In a meta-analysis, researchers reviewed the different ways people set goals to understand what’s the best way to achieve desired results. Setting outcome goals — where you just focus on what you want to accomplish (I want to lose 10 pounds) had the lowest level of success. Performance goals — emphasizing the different components of the desired outcome (I need to completed 3 workouts per week) — had a moderate level of success.

Participants who used structured goal-setting strategies (think setting habits and routines)—especially those that were specific, challenging, and paired with feedback—saw consistent improvements in physical performance.

But the mental effects might be even more surprising.

Setting specific goals is linked to lower anxiety levels, higher self-confidence, and greater satisfaction with their training process. There’s a reason we ask members to practice this method when they join the Pump Club app: Researchers noted that psychological improvements were strongest when participants had clear short-term targets and received regular updates on their progress. This helped athletes stay motivated, feel in control, and avoid the burnout that can come with vague or unrealistic expectations.

The study also found that goal setting was most effective when participants believed in the goals they were pursuing, which suggests that autonomy and personal relevance play key roles in motivation and follow-through.

Want to make your goals work for you? Be specific. Instead of saying “I want to run faster,” try “I want to cut 30 seconds off my 5K time in 6 weeks.”

Then track your progress and adjust as needed. This simple shift can help you train harder, reduce stress, and feel more fulfilled—whether you're chasing a podium or just trying to improve yourself.

Mindset
Weekly Wisdom

Turn Wisdom Into Action
A new city, a vacation, a break from your routine—these can offer valuable clarity. Sometimes stepping away gives you the perspective to see what really matters. But clarity isn’t the same as change.

When it comes to long-term transformation, changing your surroundings won’t solve what’s happening inside.

The more you avoid what makes you uncomfortable, the more control that discomfort has over you.

Growth comes when you face what’s hard—not when you run from it.

If you’re craving a fresh start, pause and reflect: What am I hoping to leave behind?
And then, get more focused and ask yourself: what pattern or behavior am I hoping to escape?

A temporary reset can be useful, but don’t confuse escape with progress. You don’t need a new city to change your life—you need a new mindset.

Pick one uncomfortable truth, habit, or fear, and then face it directly. The moment you stop running is the moment you start growing.