Brian Sanders on the "Third Place," Hunting With the Hadza and Why Community Is Part of Health
Brian Sanders, founder of the Sapien Center in Austin, on building community, nose-to-tail traditions, time with the Hadza, and why health isn't just diet.
By The Meat Mafia (Harry Gray and Brett Ender)
We recorded this one in a hurry. Harry and Brian Sanders were about to hit the road together for a hunt, so we sat down for a quick conversation first.
Brian built the Sapien Center in Austin, a third place for people into ancestral health, and he's honest that it hasn't been easy. But he says you don't need a building to start:
"you can do something without having a podcast or a physical space" (~12:00)
Before he had a space, he just organized meetups in other people's spaces. His message: find your passion and be the organizer, because too many people go home alone to their apartments.
His view of health is bigger than food. Talking about long-lived communities, he points to the whole picture: nose-to-tail eating, time outdoors, walking and a real community.
"people will focus fixate on diet and then completely ignore the community aspect" (~27:00)
Then there's the Hadza. Brian describes the men hunting whenever they decide to go, with no schedule, and the tribe eating the whole animal, bone marrow included. He also describes a day in the heat when the group didn't bring nearly enough water.
That's Brian: build community where you are, eat the whole animal and spend more time outside. (Timestamps are approximate.)
Listen to the full episode · Watch on YouTube
TL;DR: Brian Sanders says people treat health in silos: nutrition here, exercise there, community somewhere else. He calls it a web. He built the Sapien Center in Austin as a "third place" and encourages anyone to organize meetups, no podcast required. He also shares what he saw with the Hadza in Tanzania, where hunting and eating the whole animal are part of daily life.
Who is Brian Sanders? The founder of the Sapien Center in Austin, a gathering space for the ancestral health community. He has traveled to learn from traditional peoples, including the Hadza.
Key takeaways
- You don't need a podcast or a building to build community. Start with meetups (~12:00 to ~15:00).
- Health is a web of nutrition, exercise and community (~27:00).
- Long-lived communities often combine nose-to-tail eating, time outdoors and walking (~24:00).
- He cares more about eating whole foods with enough animal nutrition than about the exact plant-to-animal ratio (~25:00).
- With the Hadza, hunting is spontaneous and they eat the whole animal (~43:00, ~52:00).
- Time outside in the sun is a missing piece for many people, he says (~25:00).
The third place
Brian describes the Sapien Center as a gathering place beyond home and work. He's candid that building it has been a financial stretch, and he encourages people to create community in their own towns.
Health as a web
People fixate on diet, he says, and ignore community and movement. You can see results from diet alone, but he thinks it works best when everything comes together.
Lessons from the Hadza
His time with the Hadza showed him nose-to-tail eating and a relaxed approach to hunting. In his view, they eat as much animal food as they can get.
FAQ
Who is Brian Sanders? The founder of the Sapien Center in Austin.
What is a third place? A community space beyond home and work. Brian encourages people to build one where they live (~03:00).
What did he learn from the Hadza? Hunting is spontaneous, and they eat the whole animal (~43:00).
Related on The Meat Mafia
- Courtney Swan on real food
- Charles Mayfield on lard and cast iron
- More on Raw Milk & Ancestral Foods
- Browse all episodes
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Not medical advice. This post summarizes a podcast conversation for education. The views are the guest's own. Talk to a qualified clinician before you change your diet, supplements or any medication.
