Morning, Greg here!
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In Today's Issue of Midlife Male:
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Mike Scarola’s 15 Quotes on Finding Joy, Active Living and Investing in Experiences
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We Called It: Andropause is the #1 Word You Need to Know in 2025
Let’s get to it!
Mike Scarola’s 15 Quotes on Finding Joy, Active Living and Investing in Experiences
About 25 years ago, before Kate and I were even married, I was working for a company based in Miami Beach. I was young, ambitious, and had it all planned out. The goal was to ride the wave of this company going public. I had stock. I had options. I had confidence. We were planning to get married, start a life together, and everything was looking up.
Then, one day, I got the call.
The company was going under. I was told I could take 10 cents on the dollar for my contract, the stock was worthless, they were closing the doors—and if I could sell anything left in the office, I could keep what I made.
The end result? About 25 grand.
So what do two young, not-yet-married, wine-drinking dreamers with no jobs, no kids, and no clue what comes next do?
We spent it all.
On a Butterfield & Robinson biking trip through Burgundy and Bordeaux.
We figured if we were going to hit reset, we might as well do it riding through vineyards, drinking wine, eating cheese, and figuring it out together.
And I’ll tell you this: It was one of the best decisions we’ve ever made.
We were the youngest people on that trip by at least 20 years. But we were treated like royalty. Butterfield & Robinson took care of everything. The food, the routes, the bikes, the support, the culture, the service—it was the first time I truly understood what luxury meant. Not in a flashy way, but in a thoughtful, curated, soul-replenishing kind of way. That experience stuck with us.
Now, 25 years later, we’re coming up on our 25th wedding anniversary.
And as I started thinking about how to honor that, how to reflect back and also look forward, I kept coming back to that trip. To Butterfield & Robinson. To that feeling of connection, adventure, and presence. This time, the trip might look a little different—maybe just the two of us again. Maybe a couples’ trip where other midlife men do something special for their wives and join us. Maybe a family trip—we’ve got boys now, 18 and 22.
I even want to host an all-guys Midlife Male trip where we get back on the bike, out into the world, and experience something epic together.
So I reached out to Butterfield & Robinson to share that story and to talk about collaborating. To let them know how much that one trip meant—and how much the idea of that trip still resonates today. Fortunately, they were kind enough to connect me with their CEO, Mike Scarola.
And that brings us here.
Mike’s background is extraordinary. He competed in the 2004 Summer Games in Athens as a sprint canoeist for Canada. He’s traveled the world as an elite athlete, and now leads the world’s premier active luxury travel company. Today, he’s logging 3,000 kilometers a year on his bike and over 120,000 kilometers in the air. He’s gone from Olympic athlete to investment banker to CEO—and he’s still chasing excellence, just in a different arena.
In our conversation, Mike shares the discipline of elite sport, how travel can change your life, and how Butterfield & Robinson continues to redefine what active, luxury travel means—especially for men like us in midlife, who are looking to move, connect, and live fully.
Let’s get into it.
— Greg
Real Texts at 4AM: Burnout, Bullsh*t & Being Better
Some of the most honest, important conversations aren’t happening on stages or podcasts. They’re happening in text threads—late at night, between friends, when no one’s performing and there’s nothing to sell.
This is one of those. A real back-and-forth with a good friend of mine that touches everything we’re actually wrestling with as men in midlife—identity, purpose, comparison, longevity, and what it means to live a life that’s not just longer, but better.
I’m sharing it here almost exactly as it happened. Because sometimes, the truest thing you can do is just let the conversation speak for itself.
Me: Check out this reel…
Friend: Wow. Good for him?
Me: Should I be offended? 😂
Friend: My take is… everyone just needs to calm down and mind to themselves. No right way to do this thing.
Me: Exactly.
Friend: Did you watch the Liver King doc on Netflix?
Me: No… not sure I’m interested in giving him that much of my time.
Friend: I was watching it (could only last like 25 minutes). My wife walked in and was like WTF is the matter with you? I promptly turned it off. Lol. The Brett Favre doc—it’s fascinating. He does NOT come out looking good.
Me: I don’t think either of ’em are good guys…
Friend: It seemed that way.
Me: I’m kinda over following most fitness guys. Especially the extreme ones who, like you said, need to take it down a notch… It’s like, “C’mon guys, there’s nothing that special about your way of lifting weights.”
Friend: My take (as a total novice and non-expert): There’s like a crest or apex of all this where everyone’s basically competing to say a variation of the same damn thing. The trick is to figure out how to say the opposite of what all these guys are pushing: “No days off,” “progressive overload,” hustle, grind…
Me: The thing I’m most interested in,
MLM Cover Guy Jonathan Goodman Catches Home Run Ball
We had bestselling author of The Obvious Choice Jonathan Goodman on our cover of Midlife Male back in Issue #25 (which you can read here).
Today, we’re giving a quick MLM tip of our cap to Goodman, who caught a home run ball from the Phillies while watching his hometown Toronto Blue Jays. Then, he did the only respectable thing you can do when snagging a ball from the opposing team. He tossed it back and turned it into a cool moment with his son. Legendary move:
Here’s a fun story.
Caught a Trea Turner home run yesterday. Quickly switched it with a bullpen ball my kid got earlier in the game. Threw the bullpen ball back on the field. (Got tossed out of the game for throwing the ball on the field.) 😂
Turns out it was Turner’s 600th
— Jonathan Goodman 🇨🇦 (@itscoachgoodman)
11:41 PM • Jun 4, 2025
We Called It: How We Beat the Mayo Clinic to the Importance of Andropause
In early January MLM Founder Greg Scheinman began hearing the word ‘andropause’ pop up again and again when it came to conversations about men over 40. This week, no less a resource than the Mayo Clinic published a piece called, "Male Menopause: Is Andropause a Myth or Reality”. You can read their article, then check out Greg’s deep dive here: https://midlifemale.com/andropause-the-1-word-midlife-men-need-to-know-in-2025/
We Completely Agree with Brad Stulberg’s Take Here
If you aren’t a sports fan or you missed this topic going viral, Boston Red Sox Manager Alex Cora missed a game to attend his daughter’s high school graduation. Of course, we 100% agree with Cora’s decision. Family comes first, that’s why it’s the first ‘F’ of our six Fs. And we applaud Brad Stulberg here for using his huge following to show support for Cora.
Instagram post by @bradstulberg
DON’T FORGET: DID YOU TAKE THE MLM SURVEY?
We included an important survey in this Wednesday’s ‘Middle’ email about an exciting new project we’re working on. If you missed it, you can read the full newsletter here. The survey is only 6 questions and takes 60 seconds. You can take it right now.
Thank you:
Read Our MOST POPULAR Cover Stories:
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MLM Founder: Greg Scheinman / Follow Greg on Instagram & LinkedIn
“You either define midlife, or it’ll define you.” – Greg
MLM Editor-in-Chief: Jon Finkel / Follow Jon on Twitter/X and Instagram
“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming.” – Teddy Roosevelt
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