Could be physical, mental, philosophical, religious etc
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Walking. Long daily walks.
It changed (& helped save) my life.
Edit (to give some context):
When I started to walk, I was barely able to walk at all. Like, really, a few steps to get to the mailbox would kill me and have me lay on bed for hours. I was in a really bad, bad shape (in the head too). Nowadays, I will walk 8-10km every single day and, added to that, I will go everywhere walking if at all possible. I’m still not an athlete but at the least my body is not a dead weight anymore (I feel better in the head too). And it all changed the day I decided I would simply walk a little more. A few steps at first, and then more, and then more. I was impressed by the huge impact of a seemingly little change. I celebrated each ‘win’ (the first time I walked the block, the first kilometer, and so on) and I never blamed myself for the (many) fails. Instead, I tried to analyze the reasons why I failed so I could do better next time.This is solid advice and a well-written post. Thank you!
Thank you :)
Agreed so much. There is a good mental component to walking outside. It helps me de-compress the day. I also make a point to walk 6/7 days even if it’s raining or cold or just miserable outside.
It doesn’t need to be much, a 20 minute walk each day is way better than none at all.
It doesn’t need to be much, a 20 minute walk each day is way better than none at all.
Exactly, I could see the effect on me (body and mind…soul?) very quickly, and back then I walked not much at all :)
Sorry this is unedited because I’m on a train, winding its way through Fukushima at the moment.
Let’s go the Moc masterlist:
- Drinking coffee black. Used to think that I wouldn’t like coffee without milk and coffee. Turns out I love it, just needed a few weeks to wean myself off sugar and milk and learn to enjoy it. Lost heaps of weight by doing this.
- Weightlifting three times a week. Gaining muscle mass helped me look and feel good in my 20s and now 30s. I was never a good looking teen, but now in my 30s I get compliments from people pretty frequently.
- Losing weight. I have sleep apnea. Losing weight is the single most effective treatment for it.
- Getting jaw surgery. I have TMD, and this constricts my breathing at night. As part of my orthodontic treatment, I opted to get my jaw extended by 7mm. This was very expensive, but I’m in a high paying profession and I’m good at saving. Between this and losing weight, I sleep much better and don’t snore at night. I never used to feel like I ever got any rest.
Getting my ADHD treated
Getting medicated. I have ADHD. If you’re clever enough, you can brute force your way through the entire education system; school, undergrad, and postgrad without realising you have ADHD. It’s only after a couple of years in a demanding profession (SWE in my case) that I realised I needed help. I was prescribed Ritalin (methylphenidate hydrochloride) and the difference is night and day.
Because I don’t have to wrangle my brain into submission the entire day, I’m no longer completely mentally exhausted after 4 hours of work. I can focus for long hours now and feel pretty normal at the end of the day.
Dealing with high cholesterol Listening to scientists instead of keto idiots. I went to my GP for the third year in a row for my physical and got told I have the highest cholesterol of anyone in their 30s he had ever seen (I was 31).
He wanted to immediately put me on statins, because he had never seen someone with my level of cholesterol who didn’t have familial hypercholesteroloeamia. I asked him if he could give me six months to try and fix it through diet.
I had been following fitness influencers, and had lost 10kg cutting calories and eating heaps of beef, butter, and eggs. I cut that out, and upped my plant protein, lean poultry, and fish protein instead. I feel and look heaps better, and am still gaining muscle at about the same rate I was before. I just try and eat heaps of fibre (veggies) and aim for about 100g of protein a day.
I went for my most recent physical and have the cholesterol of a normal person now. Doctor isn’t trying to put me on statins anymore. I couldn’t believe it.
Deciding to be an optimist
I, like my late father, was a pessimist. My whole extended family is and was locked in generational poverty. I took advantage of my intelligence and work ethic and got into university, but my pessimistic attitude towards life persisted. And it seriously limited me.
I had to actually decide to be optimistic, and believe in myself before things got better. I won’t go into too much detail on this, but my outlook is that;
Pessimists are more mentally prepared for hardship, but optimists and more emotionally prepared for hardship. Maybe, It’s better to weigh the risks, and still take risks than forever be risk-averse.
Years of pessimism grinding my spirit into a pulp has beaten this into me. It’s only by adopting an optimistic outlook, working hard, and taking risks that I managed to finally achieve a better life.
What I’m working on
At the moment I’m trying to get into the habit of journaling, and quit coffee (drinking green tea instead).
I need to do better with mental habits such as journalling, not browsing Reddit and YouTube, and doing hobbies such as writing and reading instead of playing video games.
That is far more thought than I put into this comment.
Ah just an ADHD hyperfixation/rabbithole mate 🙃
Congrats! Sounds like the world is your oyster my man
Thanks my dude! I’m still working on stuff— but I think we all are 😊
I deamericanized my social media on the wake of the Trump electoral win. Desubbed from US Youtube channels, blocked magazines here that mostly deal with US politics while keeping world politics, unfollowed Masto and Bluesky accounts using similar rules.
I thought it may be an empty gesture, but… no, no it wasn’t. My social media is healthier, I’m more keyed in to domestic news. Apparently somebody shot an American CEO and I’m not sure when it happened or what’s up with that because all my feeds are about France and South Korea, which are objectively way more important.
If you’re not American, consider it. Walk away from the cultural imperialism. It’ll only become a better choice over time now.
I’d even say to consider it if you are American. There is so much great stuff out there that you only find outside the bubble.
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Thanks for this, I might have to try it this new year. I’m not conservative, so the coming Trump administration will emotionally affect me.
Using a calendar religiously.
I have ADHD, and relying on calendar and reminders applications have been the single biggest improvement for me other than medication.
To remind you when it’s Sunday?
I’m going to answer your question with what I’ve done for the last 30 years. Carry no debt. I do occasionally carry some debt in the interest of satisfying the credit algorithms but otherwise I have no interest in playing the interest game.
Do you count a mortgage as carrying debt? Seems pretty unavoidable to me.
Actually I do not. That’s an investment.
Makes sense to me
Bidet hits all of those things
Embrace stoicism.
You adopted stoicism? I’m neather pleased not displeased by this.
Your opinion is not mine to change, so it would be useless to try. I’ll let it pass through me and when it has passed only I remain.
Listening to audiobooks to fall asleep. I’ve had insomnia forever and it helps better than anything else I’ve tried.
Gaining just a little bit of control over my thoughts about myself
Without hesitation it’s making my bed in the morning. This video inspired me to this https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=zSg5yT0dJWk
I wish I could remember what my motivation for it was but it was certainly the most beneficial thing I’d ever done, until I found out about “un-making” your bed. If you’re not changing your sheets every day, and let’s be real no ones got time for that, it is more beneficial to pull your sheets off and let them air out for the day.
But goddamn that video might make me want to change my mind again.
Eating oranges
Stopped drinking alcohol.
Started walking more and taking the stairs instead of elevators whenever possible.
Stop complaining and start focussing on solutions instead of problems.
That’s what the CEO killer thought too!
Following a weightlifting program has improved my life immensely. 2 years later my back pain is essentially a thing of the past, I look and feel better than my non active peers, my cholesterol and a1c levels are perfect , and I look like a brick shithouse
Anybody that wants to get started but doesn’t know how feel free to drop me a line
As someone who never expected to become a gym rat I second this.
I started lifting as a purely whimsical decision with a mate and some dumbbells in his backyard.
I’ve now been a powerlifter for 6 years (minus a year due to work related injury) and it’s truly my happy place, am I sad? (Stronger) Am I angry? (Stronger) Am I happy? (You guessed it, stronger).
Not only does lifting grow your body, but also your mind. I may have permanent function loss, but I work around it, and I’m building back (slowly) and stronger than before.
Hardest part is getting started, followed by keeping with it.
My DMs are also open to those who are unsure where/how to start.
I do. Struggling with lower back pain right now…
It’s just brutal… everybody says it but it’s really true, a strong core (abs, lower back, ass + upper legs) makes your back so much sturdier and resistant to “going out”
If you want to go full on strength training, you could consider barbell training with a periodized program (531, tactical barbell, etc). You would essentially have to learn three or four simple lifts and then have at er. This is the route I went, would highly recommend it for anyone. These programs don’t ask you to use strength that you don’t already have, and the movements are very straightforward with lots of tutorials available on YouTube. It’s all sub maximal training and slowly builds over time. Fitness influencers are always trying to baffle everyone with bullshit but the core recipe for getting strong is so extremely simple. Compound lifts, eat, sleep (And some token cardio)
If you just want the strong core and back, you could do hanging leg raises or an ab wheel and some romanian deadlifts with a kettlebell every other day or so.
Thanks. Will look into those. I did some strength training back in the day - and enjoyed it a lot - but that was not focused on the back/core.
That’s great, they say it comes back quickly if you have trained in the past. And as I understand it, the compound lifts themselves also build the core to some extent just from all the bracing you’ll be doing.
What do you recommend?
If you want to know how it all works check out the fitness wiki (optional) otherwise: Buy a power rack, barbell and plates (optional), or you can go to a gym instead. Download the boostcamp app and onboard yourself on the 5/3/1 for Beginners program. The app illustrates how each lift is done, and you can watch youtube for tutorials, they are pretty easy to learn. Lift Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Walk or easy jog for 30-60 mins Tuesday and Thursday. Eat a bit more than usual, a slight surplus like 200 cals, make sure you get a bit of extra protein. Sleep more and better if possible, if your schedule is fixed try to improve your sleep hygiene. Be relentless about making this all a habit, it represents about 1 hour of your day each weekday, but will pay dividends. Stick with that same program for 3 or 6 months. You’ll be practicing the same lifts over and over, practicing your strength. Your technique will improve, you will get shockingly stronger. I’m happy to answer any and all questions for Lemmy folk interested in this.
Do you still run 531 for beginners? I’ve been on BBB for 4 months and finally broke through a plateau. Was doing more hypertrophy and calisthenics before that.
The workload for BBB has gotten so high for me that I do my main lifts and 1-3 accessories on lower days and 2-4 in upper and I’m cooked. Can’t manage to follow wendlers scheme of shitload of reps any more
I bounced around from BBB to a few different templates and then I switched to tactical barbell operator which I run now. The 10 reps of BBB are rough. Did you look at boring but strong? It’s 10 sets of 5 reps at the same %, so same volume in the end but I found it less brutal.
Just a plug for tactical barbell operator, It’s three days a week of lifting and 2 to 3 days a week of either HIT or LSS depending on the conditioning template you incorporate. The conditioning stuff is baked in and it feels much more like a complete plan compared to 531. Really digging it
I’ll check it out. I feel like I’m still making strength gains w BBB, gonna ride it out another 4-8 months. I’ll check out tactical barbell operator, thanks for the suggestion
Do you know if any active fitness communities on Lemmy? I briefly looked around but didn’t see any that seemed active
I think what you’re doing now is really close to “Less Boring But Big” which is 3 sets of 10 for the supplementary lifts instead of 5
There’s not really a lifting group here yet… It would be really cool to have something like weightroom but I’m not sure I’d have what it takes to start up a community. There are definitely folks who lifting and are interested in lifting, just no critical mass yet…
Makes sense, I’m in the same boat I don’t have time or energy to start one but I’d join.
For getting started w tactical barbell, do you recommend books etc? Like 531 it seems like there’s a lot to it, any good resources?
Taking walks
