The 4 Warning Signs of Colorectal Cancer (That Show Up 2 Years Before Diagnosis)

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Today’s Health Upgrade

• 4 warning signs that could save your life

• A surprising reason you might struggle with hydration

• Weekly wisdom: resting and resetting

• Stop fighting your bad habits (try this instead)

Health
Number You Won’t Forget: 91%

The 4 Warning Signs That Could Save Your Life

This week, James Van Der Beek passed away at 48. The father of six spent his final months doing something that mattered more than any role he ever played: urging people to pay attention to their bodies and get screened for colorectal cancer.

By most measures, he was healthy and fit. And he had stage 3 cancer with no idea. The only clue? A subtle change in his bowel habits, which he blamed on coffee.

His story isn't rare. The research tells us exactly what to look for so you can protect your body and catch any threat as early as possible.

A study of more than 5,000 people diagnosed with colorectal cancer before age 50 identified four warning signs that appeared up to two years before diagnosis, and nearly 20% of patients had at least one.

Researchers analyzed insurance claims data of people diagnosed with early-onset colorectal cancer. They found four red-flag symptoms that showed up significantly more in those who went on to be diagnosed: abdominal pain, rectal bleeding, diarrhea, and iron deficiency anemia. The more warning signs someone had, the higher the likelihood of diagnosis.

Here's what makes this actionable rather than scary: colorectal cancer develops slowly from precancerous polyps over 10 to 15 years. 

When caught early, the five-year survival rate exceeds 91%. Colonoscopy screening reduces both incidence and mortality by roughly 68%. It doesn't just detect cancer; it prevents it by removing polyps before they turn dangerous.

And screening is only half the equation. Research estimates that 45% to 70% of colorectal cancers are preventable through lifestyle factors you're probably already working on. 

Getting 150 minutes of moderate exercise per week reduces your risk by about 20%. Eating 30 grams of high-quality fiber daily is consistently protective in research. Good whole food sources of fiber include whole grains, fruits and vegetables, oats, and legumes. Keeping processed meat intake low (think bacon, deli meats, hot dogs) matters too, as some research suggests just 50 grams per day increases risk by 18%. You don't need a perfect diet. You need a better pattern, most of the time.

The screening age is now 45 (many people still think it's 50). If you have a family history or polyps, talk to your doctor about starting at 40. And if you notice any persistent change in your bowel habits, rectal bleeding, unexplained fatigue, or abdominal pain lasting more than two weeks, don't wait. Don't rationalize it. Just go.

Van Der Beek said it best in his final TODAY interview: "Get tested. Talk to your doctor." Honor that.

Together With LMNT
Why Drinking More Water Might Not Actually Hydrate You

You drink plenty of water. You might even track it. But what if a good chunk of what you're drinking passes right through you?

Adding electrolytes to your water can help your body retain significantly more fluid and improve energy, performance, and cognition.

Researchers gave participants one liter of 13 different beverages — from water to milk to sports drinks to an oral rehydration solution — and measured urine output over four hours. The common thread: beverages with more electrolytes kept more fluid in the body than water. A follow-up study including men and women found that electrolytes (specifically sodium) were the single biggest driver of fluid retention, more than carbs or protein.

When you gulp plain water, your blood becomes diluted. Your kidneys detect the shift and flush excess. Sodium slows that process. It helps your intestines absorb water into the bloodstream and signals your kidneys to hold onto it instead of sending it straight to your bladder.

Not sure if this applies to you? Check your urine color mid-morning. Pale yellow, like lemonade — you're doing fine. If it's consistently dark yellow despite drinking plenty of water, your body may not be retaining fluid well, and a pinch of salt or an electrolyte mix could help. (B-vitamins and first-morning urine can throw off the color, so mid-morning is your best read.)

A quarter teaspoon of table salt in 16-20 ounces of water gives you a meaningful dose. Try it first thing in the morning or a couple of hours before training. For sessions under an hour in normal temperatures, regular water and a balanced diet cover you fine.

Sometimes better hydration isn't about drinking more. It's about keeping what you already drink.

If you can’t stomach the taste of salt water, that’s why we use LMNT. It delivers a clinically meaningful dose of electrolytes — sodium, plus potassium and magnesium — without sugar, fillers, or artificial junk. It’s designed for people who train hard, sweat, travel, or simply want to avoid the “drink more, pee more” cycle.

We’ve tested it. Many of you use it daily. And, if nothing else, our readers say that they now drink more water because of it. Readers have told us that being better hydrated has led to steadier energy, fewer headaches, and better training sessions.

If your urine is consistently dark by mid-morning, if you sweat heavily, or if you’re training fasted or low-carb, this is one of the simplest upgrades you can make.

You can try LMNT and get a free sample pack (8 packets) with all flavors when you make any purchase. And if it’s not for you, they’ll refund you. No questions asked.

Mindset 
Weekly Wisdom 

Read the quote again and notice what happens. You probably smiled a little. Maybe exhaled. And then immediately thought, “Yeah, but I can't really do that right now.”

That reaction is the whole problem.

You know rest matters. You recommend it to other people. You've told a friend to "take a break" while running on four hours of sleep yourself. The issue was never information. The issue is that somewhere along the way, you started believing that exhaustion is proof you care, and that sitting still without a reason is something you need to justify.

So you don't stop. 

I catch myself doing this constantly. Sitting on the couch but mentally rewriting tomorrow's schedule. "Relaxing" with a show while answering emails on my phone. 

Your body is still, but your brain never got the memo. That's not rest. That's performance art.

Here's what Lamott is actually saying beneath the humor: you are not a machine, but you're breaking down like one. And the fix is the same. Not more effort. A hard restart.

Think about what you do when your laptop freezes. You don't click harder. You don't open more tabs. You close it, wait, and let it reset. You already trust this process, but you won't apply it to yourself.

And the cost of refusing is real. Pushed past fatigue, your decisions get worse. Your patience shrinks. The things you're grinding to protect — your relationships, your work, your health — become the first casualties of a mind that never powers down. You're not falling behind by resting. You're falling behind because you won't.

Turn Wisdom Into Action

Tonight, not this weekend and not after the project wraps, try this:

Set a hard "unplug" window of 20 minutes before bed. Phone in another room. No screens. No planning. You can sit, stretch, read something on paper, or just be bored. Boredom is fine. Boredom is actually the point.

And yes, we know you all have different burdens, stressors, responsibilities, and time is tight. But the ask is doable.

If 20 minutes feels impossible, notice that. That resistance isn't proof that you're too busy. It's proof you need this more than you think.

Do it for three nights this week. Not perfectly. Just three times where you give your brain the same courtesy you'd give a frozen laptop.

This isn’t about dialing back intensity or avoiding effort. You need to embrace some discomfort and believe you can do more.

This is about realizing that some downtime can go a long way. And realizing you need rest so you can accomplish everything else.

Connection 
Pump Club Live

It might surprise you to hear us say that the best thing about the Pump Club app isn’t the app, it’s the real-life connections.

In a world of apps that are driven and led by machines, we love meeting members every week in our coaching Zoom calls, the Q&As, and the community conversations, but there’s something we love even more: our live meetups.

We’ve done them around the country and around the world, and meeting members in real life and seeing their faces on calls is part of the magic. It’s why our live events are included with membership at no extra charge.

In 2026, we’re committed to doing events in different cities every month all over the world (including already-scheduled events in the UK and Austria). Most events (but not all) are purposely capped to keep them small, intimate, and more engaged. 

Last month, we rucked, deadlifted, fueled up, and answered questions. Arnold even dropped by to pump up people before they hit deadlifts. 

Here’s a recap of the event. We hope to see you at the next one!

Better Questions, Better Solutions 
It’s Time To Interview Your Habits

You've tried to quit the habit before. Maybe you white-knuckled it for a week. Maybe you told yourself this time would be different. And then, at a certain point of the day, you find yourself in a familiar position doing something you desperately don’t want to do. 

Maybe it’s being on the same couch reaching for the same snack. Or maybe it’s back in bed, doomscrolling without a way to break the pattern. 

The old question: "How do I stop doing this?"

The better question: "What is this habit giving me that I still need?"

That shift isn't wordplay. It's the difference between fighting yourself and understanding yourself.

Decades of habit research — including a comprehensive review in the Annual Review of Psychology — point to the same conclusion: you cannot simply delete a habit. You have to replace it.

Every habit runs on a loop: a cue triggers a behavior, and the behavior delivers a reward. When you try to eliminate the behavior through willpower alone, the cue doesn't disappear. The craving doesn't disappear. You're just sitting in the discomfort of an itch you refuse to scratch, and eventually, you scratch it.

The people who actually change? They don't fight the loop. They redirect it.

Late-night snacking isn't really about hunger. It might be about boredom, stress relief, or the need for a mental break after a long day. Once you know which reward you're chasing, you can find a different behavior that delivers something close enough without the part you're trying to change.

Perhaps the replacement is a ten-minute walk. Maybe it's tea and a podcast. Maybe it's texting a friend. The specific swap matters less than whether it scratches the same itch.

Next time a habit you want to change kicks in, don't resist it. Instead, interview it. 

Ask: What just happened right before this? And what am I getting out of it? 

Write down the cue and the reward. That's your blueprint. Now identify one substitute behavior that delivers the same reward, run it for a few days, see how it goes, and then adjust. You might be surprised by how that different approach can lead to small changes that replace your old habits. 

And that’s it for this week. Thank you for being part of the positive corner of the internet. Remember, you have endless opportunities to get better every day. Don’t overthink, do something, and repeat. Have a fantastic weekend!

-Arnold, Adam, and Daniel  

The Positive Corner of The Internet
About Arnold’s Pump Club

We do things a bit differently here, starting with transparency.

1. The Content: All APC emails are researched, written, and fact-checked by the APC editors (see bottom of the email), with written contributions from Arnold (noted with “Arnold’s Corner”). Links take you to original studies (not second-hand sources).

2. Does AI play a role? Yes, in two places. Everything above is original content written by the APC team. The summaries below are AI-generated based on the human-written content above. We also use an AI tool to review our interpretations of the research and ensure scientific accuracy. We don’t assume AI is right, but we use technology to hold ourselves accountable.

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Publisher: Arnold Schwarzenegger​

Editors-in-chief: Adam Bornstein and Daniel Ketchell