SS 180 – Get Som Sleep w/ John Shegerian
Episode 180 Show Notes
Trouble sleeping? Then this episode is a must-listen! Grant and Heavey are joined by John Shegerian of Som Sleep, a sleep supplement that’s like no other in the market today. Nope, it’s not magic, but science – and natural at best. It’s vegan, non GMO, drug-free, gluten-free, non addictive, and NSF certified.
As what has been repeatedly discussed on the show, sleep constitutes one of the four pillars of health. It’s something non-negotiable. Otherwise it disrupts your energy throughout the day and your health over time. You’ve got to do what it takes to get the amount you need. Get Som Sleep! (Stay until the end to learn about some great stuff John is giving away.)
[01:35] Vitamin B Against Air Pollution
Grant mentions a recent study showing that Vitamin B can actually counteract the negative effects of air pollution. They took a look at toxic air containing particulates under 2.5 microns, which can work their way into our lungs. These particulates create a lot of stress and inflammation because of their minute size.
They studied a control group, monitoring these particulate mattes alongside different stressors in the body. They were given a placebo for a week followed by Vitamin B for a week. Vitamin B given consisted of B6, B12, and Folic Acid. They found up to 75% reduction from taking Vitamin B!
[03:00] Getting Religious with Taking Supplements
Grant admits being awful at taking supplements. Maybe following what John does can help him out. John packs his supplements a month in advance. He packs them in Ziploc bags and marks them according to morning and evening. He takes them whenever he travels or even in the house. He actually has 30 of the small Ziploc bags placed in a bigger bag. When he hits the road, he grabs as many as he needs.
Going back to the article, according to the World Health Organization, 92% of all of the world’s population live in places where the 2.5-micron particulate level exceeds the recommended threshold. They found that breathing these micro-toxins can really affect your gene expression.
[05:45] How Som Sleep Came to Be
John recalls his wife coming down with MS (Multiple Sclerosis) which started affecting her sleep. So, John created a little sleep stack for her as recommended from the best neurologists and doctors.
At the same time, John was traveling a lot and experienced microsleep events due to time changes in his travels, not to mention all the stress and anxiety that come along with that.
He remembers being exhausted, getting coconut water, and then what he thought he heard was a dripping faucet in his kitchen. He was actually face down in the kitchen, all bloody from blacking out. That was the moment he knew he had to change his life and really focus on sleep. He had to go through massive reconstructive surgery.
John then brought all these issues to his friend, Abdul Khan, who was also having trouble sleeping along with his wife. They started socializing the concept with friends and relatives. They found everyone they knew had a sleep issue.
The reason why 18-85 year olds were suffering from this sleep deprivation was they had two huge trends that converged. One was the energy trend (Red Bull, coffee, etc.) converging with the technological revolution (gadgets, Blu Rays, etc) In fact, the Blu-rays literally mess with the body’s pineal gland, responsible for melatonin production.
According to John, this sleep epidemic is only starting to get any social discussion and we’re only at the tip of the iceberg in terms of the massive consciousness with regards to sleep.
[09:50] The Sleep Solution in an 8-Ounce Can
Heavey reveals a major reason they invited John on the show today was because this is a common issue among many people, Grant included. Grant drinks a ton of coffee throughout the day and he’s in bed when he stops looking at his phone at the end of the day.
As a result, John wanted to have this one-stop shop. He has been a vegetarian since 17 years old and vegan in the last 12 years of his life, so he wanted to create something he could be really proud of. His partners Abdul and Rob are food and beverage science partners. They came together as they wanted to put out something they can be proud of – vegan, non GMO, drug-free, gluten-free, non addictive, and NSF certified.
They also wanted to put it in an eight-ounce can because a lot of sleep-related or insomnia-related disorders are tied to another big deficiency problem which is dehydration. It’s got the size of a Red Bull can with enough liquid that doesn’t affect your bathroom breaks. But at the same time, it can help you get hydrated and help you sleep better.
[13:00] It Works! (But How Does it Work?)
Grant’s experience with the Som drink was that it was so much easier for him to fall asleep as well as his fiancee. Heavey had the same experience. He only got to read a book for 5 minutes before he was knocked out.
The drink contains specific nutrients like Melatonin, Magnesium, Vitamin B6, etc. John explains that when you talk to real healthcare practitioners, most will say that because most of us now work indoors have become deficient in Vitamin D.
When John’s wife was initially diagnosed with MS, her reading was a 17, which is way, way low. They had to get that up and now she’s much better. Magnesium also helps get your natural sleep cycle going and the same thing with B6.
Som also contains L-Theanine and GABA, which promotes relaxation in a nice, healthy way.
Melatonin is also found in the product and they do this at the right level. Science says you can both overdo and underdo melatonin. But they’re doing it at just the right amount, giving you that knock out punch.
John stresses that it’s the simplicity they created in an 8-ounce can. There is both a sugar-free version with 10 calories and a regular version with 40 calories. John adds their ultimate mission is to democratize sleep. They wanted something for everyone so we made sure that we have a sugar-free and a regular for everybody.
[17:10] Why Have Sugar In It?
Grant initially wondered why put sugar in something when you’re about to sleep when it give you an opposite effect. But John explains that you have to go to where people are. A huge amount of population in America that loves regular soda and a large population also love sugar-free. So you want to give them what they want and not exclude anyone. You want to be inclusive.
Another ingredient, L-Theanine, is derived from a green tea component promotes relaxation and is good for the brain. The product also uses the Magnesium citrate form which is the very bioavailable form of it.
Prior to trying this, Heavey took a very popular product that is exclusively magnesium citrate which he uses to help him with his sleep. Heavey commends the product for having high quality versions of them.
[19:30] The Geniuses Behind the Product
Thanks to the genius of his founding partners, Christine Khan, Abdul Khan, and Rob Bent. Rob is a food and beverage scientist. They knew that if they were going to do this, they were going to do it right.
[20:21] Choosing to Be Healthy
On average, John now gets an average of 6.25-6.5 hours of sleep. He literally drinks Som every night and makes it part of his routine. Before the accident, he only got to have 3.5-4 hours of sleep.
John thought he was initially doing everything right. He was vegetarian since 17 and vegan in the last 12 years. Then he’d go to the gym 3-4 times a week and do at least 45 minutes of cardio and do soul cycle five days a week and HIIT. He realized those were much more negotiable and sleep was the non-negotiable part.
The sleep part was when I was cheating and only cheating myself because it’s the glue to the other two legs. You can take a day off or two or have a cheat day in your diet. You can miss a couple days of training and let your body recover and be absolutely fine and healthy. You start missing a day or two of sleep, there’s no way the following day that you’re going to be your best in terms of brain power and performance.
[22:55] The Four Pillars of Health
Heavey adds that just missing a day of sleep, people will show signs of impaired glucose response. Sleep makes up one of the four pillars of sleep alongside Nutrition, Exercise, and Stress Management.
Sleep has always been Heavey’s number one. He will let any of them go. If he gets super busy with work or anything else, his nutrition might not be as dialed in or he may not exercise for a couple of weeks because of a crazy schedule, but sleep is something he always prioritizes.
[24:45] The Impact of Sleep on Certain Health Conditions
John says that because he’s had better sleep, he has become a better thinker and less emotional, especially as an entrepreneur. He stresses the importance of leading by example. People see him living better and prioritizing sleep and his wife getting better. They actually keep on receiving massive emails from people afflicted with different conditions (lupus, Parkinson’s disease, rheumatoid arthritis, etc.) that have seen improved results from getting better sleep.
John further explains that all autoimmune diseases like dementia, Alzheimer’s, etc. all can be related to inflammation levels of the body. If you start missing sleep, you’re kicking up your inflammation levels which will only exacerbate whatever condition you may have.
[26:50] The Homeboy Model
When the riots happened in LA at that time, he was managing the Grand Central Market. After the riots, no one wanted to come to downtown LA. and the Grand Central Market was closed. Days after the riots, he was left with tortilla equipment given by its owner who decided to leave the place. He then brought this to Father Greg Boyle so they can put young people, particularly former gang members to work. They renamed the business The Homeboy Tortillas. They branded it with T-shirts and hats. They worked with people from the community and invited the local newsperson, Sylvia, to come and do a story about them to give them some visibility.
So many people came to support that this prompted other donations for business in graffiti removal, bakery, and tattoo removal. Father Greg came back from his mission and he took it back over. He has done a brilliant job in the last 25 years. Homeboy Industries was created soon after.
This changed his life. He agrees with Father’s conviction that people shouldn’t be without jobs. There were also other social bottom lines where he created FinancialAid.com and democratize a lending business with his partners. They also created ERI which his wife runs now as a CEO. It has now become the largest Electronic Waste Recycling company.
It’s a narrative of “do well and do good at the same time.” There was no such thing as a social entrepreneur back in 1993. But now, it’s now a hip thing to be a social entrepreneur. John only considers it a lifestyle of how you see voids in the marketplace and how you want to attack them.
They saw the void in how massive the sleep problem has become, not just in the United States, but in the world. So, they thought this was worth going after.
[31:40] A Happy Accident with a Massive Social Impact
John considers the tortillas and Homeboy Industries as just a happy accident of Father Greg and him coming together. They were selling tortillas at the Grand Central Market and everything grew from there. The kids were so thankful for the opportunity. It’s a story that continues to give back. In terms of his life, it taught him a lesson that we can all go create another widget that doesn’t have any purpose in making money. There’s no shame in that.
His goal and his wife’s way of living is that everything they do also has a social bottom line, which is to do good for the communities that they’re in. It takes a lot of people to change the world. Just one good idea is not what it’s all about. But people working together and getting on board.
[35:40] Examples of Famous Sleep Evangelizers: Brady, James, & Bezos
Tom Brady credited sleep as being the glue as to why he’s able to play football into his 40s. Lebron James also credits sleep and even admits to sometimes sleeping 12 hours to keep him at the highest performance level. Jeff Bezos, Amazon creator, credits getting 8 solid hours of sleep every night. It’s not just science but also great leaders coming out and saying and evangelizing the importance of great sleep. John suspects this is going to be a massive trend in the years to come.
[37:20] An Overwhelming Positive Response
During their pre-launch and post-launch, they found that people are all genetically different. People have different experiences but overall feedback has been very positive.
There is a lot of science showing that as we get older over 50, you get less deep sleep than when we were 20. The Som drink was created for people 18-85 because different people of all age levels have different needs.
More and more teams are ordering the product for their players. Since the product is NSF certified, it means no athlete can drink and ever test for positive.
John is giving 15% discount to the first 100 listeners that order Som on their website and use the promo code SCOTCH. Finally, if you’ve already tried Som and have a good story to share, shoot him an email at [email protected]. The one with the best story will get a month’s supply of Som.
Links:
Check out the gear page for everything Strength & Scotch! You’ll find a listing of all the supplements and other programs we’ve discussed on the show as well as our killer t-shirts!