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Sitting kills you, saturated fats kill you, disposable chopsticks kills you, sugar kills you... We're so concerned about how to extend the time we have, that we

Sitting kills you, saturated fats kill you, disposable chopsticks kills you, sugar kills you... We're so concerned about how to extend the time we have, that we're neglecting the time we actually do have. Here's me: I haven't eaten vegetables since I was 8 years old. I sit down in front of a computer screen for multiple hours a day. I eat any junk food I want, as long as it tastes good. I drop a ton of water weight before a fight for weighing purposes. I've learned the physically straining technique, Needle through Glass (throwing a sewing needle through a pane of glass), and I do a lot of binge training. Although I'm perfectly healthy right now, is it possible that I'll die when I'm 60? Yeah. But at least I'll have fully enjoyed my life. It beats the hell out of half living for 90 years. Not to mention, it's also possible your life will be cut short by a rampaging bus... and that has nothing to do with preventable measures. My two cents.

travisp 15y ago
I generally find that being healthy in certain ways makes me enjoy the time I have more. Sugar or refined carbohydrates makes me tired and lethargic -- I never knew how much energy I could have until I gave them up. Standing at my Series 7 desk instead of sitting also gives me more energy, keeps me more focused, keeps me in better positions that reduce carpal tunnel, and I think helps me sleep better. I do eat saturated fat, however, but I'm not convinced after reading Taubes's "Good Calories, Bad Calories" that it is unhealthy for me. So, I eat my vegetables sauteed in lard, bacon fat, or duck fat. It tastes great, and I wouldn't want to give them up for a chocolate bar. Nobody should make health a top value above everything else, and I know some do -- health is a means to your life and I would sacrifice some of my health if it meant more enjoyment. But in most cases, I find better health means not just longevity, but enjoying the time I actually do have.
- Shenglong 15y ago
  You do have a valid point - sometimes being healthy is a good thing. I'm not advocating not being healthy. I'm just advocating that perhaps, there needs to be a shift in focus. Subjective, surely!
- CamperBob 15y ago
  Sugar or refined carbohydrates makes me tired and lethargic Well, duh, that's what stimulants are for.
keiferski 15y ago
The flaws in that line of reasoning are A) the notion that eating fatty food and sitting in a chair all day is the peak of "pleasure" or "satisfaction", which in my opinion is a very shallow viewpoint. The accomplishment of running a marathon or achieving a related athletic goal is much more satisfying than cheetos, to me at least. B) the notion that every person's 60-80 years are equal regardless of health choices. Eating healthily and exercising make my life better now in ways that cheetos can't. Even if an unhealthy person and a healthy person both died at 60, the quality of life during those 60 years would no doubt be higher for the latter.
- barrkel 15y ago
  "Cheetos" is not my idea of pleasurable, yet fatty, food. It would rather be fine dining; probably even more fattening, but my life would be rather less without it. I would name two experiences that made my life before the experiences pale in comparison: expertly prepared multi-course meal with matched wines, and motorbike riding. Both statistically shave years off your life, but I would not settle for a life without either.
  - ohyes 15y ago
    You don't have a multi-course meal with matched wines every night. Sometimes (most of the time unless you have a really deep bank account) you just have to feed yourself. When you just have to feed yourself, eat something healthy. Exercise releases all of the good feeling brain chemicals. As A life long computer-nerd/couch potato, I will testify that it is shocking how good it feels to exercise. Eating properly and being in shape does a ton to boost self image. (As i'm sure motor bikes and nice meals do too). Of course, none of pleasurably food, excitement and a healthy lifestyle are mutually exclusive.
    - StavrosK 15y ago
      I will attest to all of that. Exercising feels great, your self-esteem goes through the roof, and, in my case, it just makes moving around (like, actually moving one's body, squatting, bending over, walking, running, etc), much, much easier.
dxbydt 15y ago
" I haven't eaten vegetables since I was 8 years old...I eat any junk food I want" Ok, so most junk food uses some vegetables as a filler. Usually desiccated starch from potatoes & the like. So you are certainly eating vegetables, maybe not raw but cooked. "I sit down in front of a computer screen for multiple hours a day" Don't. The damage from laptop radiation is irreversible, unlike gaining 50 lbs on purpose and then reversing all of it by going on a crash diet like chuck noland.
- jff 15y ago
  Laptop radiation? You mean, "visible light"? Please cite a source.
  - wahnfrieden 15y ago
    He's technically correct. But the amount of radiation is low enough not to care about it.
  - deleted 15y ago
    [deleted]
  - dxbydt 15y ago
    http://www.princeton.edu/~ota/disk1/1989/8905/8905.PDF http://www.princeton.edu/~ota/disk1/1989/8905/8905.PDF paraphrasing - " low frequency magnetic fields can produce changes in biological systems... Current scientific understanding does not yet allow us to interpret the evidence...Even more frustrating, it does not yet allow us to offer advice to avoid potential risks"
    - CamperBob 15y ago
      E = hv. It's not just a good idea, it's the law.
- khafra 15y ago
  CRT screens have been around since 1907, Liquid Crystal Displays have been here since 1964. If there were clearly harmful effects from spending time near them, epidemiologists would've noticed by now.
ignifero 15y ago
Depends on what your definition of "enjoying your life" is. And then certain habits such as binge drinking are largely promoted as enjoyable via peer pressure/peer brainwashing. I mean, we have only so much sensitivity to alcohol, and so many GABA receptors to saturate, it's not like people would want to drink as much if they were on their own. And, in the end, a hedonistically-driven life is only superficially rewarding. It also shows lack of goals, focus, potential for impact.
golgo13 15y ago
I remember hearing a guy say something along the lines of: You do all these things to extend your life, but you're not extending your 20's and 30's. You're extending your 70's and 80's.
- scarmig 15y ago
  Depends on what you mean. A healthy 40 year old has more stamina and well-being than an obese 30 year old. So at least in one way, you actually are extending your 20s, and your 30s, and your 40s, and your...
- cpeterso 15y ago
  Staying healthy is not just about living "just a few more years". It's about quality of life. Being unhealthy at 70 is painful and expensive.
  - atomicdog 15y ago
    Similarly, being unhealthy at 20 is a waste of time. You can eat cheetos at any age.
- corin_ 15y ago
  A similar quote that I prefer is (something like) "stopping smoking doesn't make you live longer, it only feels longer".
quattrofan 15y ago
While I get your logic here, there is a flaw. Your assumption is you'll live a great life enjoying its fruits then die suddenly. However its probably just as likely you could spend those last few years in painful decline, say from a slow spreading cancer. would it have been worth it then?
PonyGumbo 15y ago
Just out of curiosity, how old are you?
- Shenglong 15y ago
  22
JasonMoyMN79 15y ago
You sound pretty dumb.
JasonMoyMN79 15y ago
No offense, but you sound pretty retarded.
dstein 15y ago
What if Ray Kurzweil is right, and by the 2050's transhumanist technologies become sufficient for us to live healthy lives indefinitely? Having the technology to live forever won't help you if you die of a heart attack before it exists.
- Jach 15y ago
  You can use the same reasoning in reverse if you're in your 20s or younger. I don't believe I'll die when I'm only 60 or so, even if I'm super unhealthy, and by then they'll be able to fix all my supposed problems anyway.
- Almaviva 15y ago
  I haven't seen much indication that I should stake my life on fringe AI pioneers estimating accurate timelines.
  - giardini 15y ago
    Not to mention the incredible predictions from medical researchers. Where's the cure for cancer? Where's the cure for diabetes? Heart disease? Hell, they're just now passing around the (new?) concept that a hi-carbo diet is _bad_ for you! Organized medicine still doesn't know it's ass from a hole in the ground. We're all gonna die like everyone else does today: organized medicine isn't going to save us. The only question is, how much of our earned income are we willing to pass to those charlatans before we die. Live forever? Hah! Not with those clowns in charge!
    - adrianN 15y ago
      Cancer treatment has made huge progress in the last decade. The survival rates are way up from what they have been and many types of cancer are basically curable as long as you notice it before it ate through every organ in your body. We haven't "cured cancer", because cancer is not a single disease. It is not even caused by a common set of factors.
    - demallien 15y ago
mburney 15y ago
The fact that you fight competitively means that you're not sedentary for a good portion of your time. Binge training is still training. People who do nothing physically demanding and sit at a desk all day are a lot more at risk. And probably not enjoying a full range of activities either.
- CamperBob 15y ago
  Actually, that's the unsettling thing about the latest studies... people who do physically demanding things apparently don't benefit from them if they spend the rest of their time sitting. And that describe the lifestyle of a lot of exercise-friendly "hackers," your correspondent included.
baddox 15y ago
So, to sum that up: If you live healthy, you die healthy.

travisp 15y ago

I generally find that being healthy in certain ways makes me enjoy the time I have more. Sugar or refined carbohydrates makes me tired and lethargic -- I never knew how much energy I could have until I gave them up. Standing at my Series 7 desk instead of sitting also gives me more energy, keeps me more focused, keeps me in better positions that reduce carpal tunnel, and I think helps me sleep better. I do eat saturated fat, however, but I'm not convinced after reading Taubes's "Good Calories, Bad Calories" that it is unhealthy for me. So, I eat my vegetables sauteed in lard, bacon fat, or duck fat. It tastes great, and I wouldn't want to give them up for a chocolate bar. Nobody should make health a top value above everything else, and I know some do -- health is a means to your life and I would sacrifice some of my health if it meant more enjoyment. But in most cases, I find better health means not just longevity, but enjoying the time I actually do have.

Shenglong 15y ago
You do have a valid point - sometimes being healthy is a good thing. I'm not advocating not being healthy. I'm just advocating that perhaps, there needs to be a shift in focus. Subjective, surely!
CamperBob 15y ago
Sugar or refined carbohydrates makes me tired and lethargic Well, duh, that's what stimulants are for.

keiferski 15y ago

The flaws in that line of reasoning are A) the notion that eating fatty food and sitting in a chair all day is the peak of "pleasure" or "satisfaction", which in my opinion is a very shallow viewpoint. The accomplishment of running a marathon or achieving a related athletic goal is much more satisfying than cheetos, to me at least. B) the notion that every person's 60-80 years are equal regardless of health choices. Eating healthily and exercising make my life better now in ways that cheetos can't. Even if an unhealthy person and a healthy person both died at 60, the quality of life during those 60 years would no doubt be higher for the latter.

barrkel 15y ago
"Cheetos" is not my idea of pleasurable, yet fatty, food. It would rather be fine dining; probably even more fattening, but my life would be rather less without it. I would name two experiences that made my life before the experiences pale in comparison: expertly prepared multi-course meal with matched wines, and motorbike riding. Both statistically shave years off your life, but I would not settle for a life without either.
- ohyes 15y ago
  You don't have a multi-course meal with matched wines every night. Sometimes (most of the time unless you have a really deep bank account) you just have to feed yourself. When you just have to feed yourself, eat something healthy. Exercise releases all of the good feeling brain chemicals. As A life long computer-nerd/couch potato, I will testify that it is shocking how good it feels to exercise. Eating properly and being in shape does a ton to boost self image. (As i'm sure motor bikes and nice meals do too). Of course, none of pleasurably food, excitement and a healthy lifestyle are mutually exclusive.
  - StavrosK 15y ago
    I will attest to all of that. Exercising feels great, your self-esteem goes through the roof, and, in my case, it just makes moving around (like, actually moving one's body, squatting, bending over, walking, running, etc), much, much easier.

dxbydt 15y ago

" I haven't eaten vegetables since I was 8 years old...I eat any junk food I want" Ok, so most junk food uses some vegetables as a filler. Usually desiccated starch from potatoes & the like. So you are certainly eating vegetables, maybe not raw but cooked. "I sit down in front of a computer screen for multiple hours a day" Don't. The damage from laptop radiation is irreversible, unlike gaining 50 lbs on purpose and then reversing all of it by going on a crash diet like chuck noland.

jff 15y ago
Laptop radiation? You mean, "visible light"? Please cite a source.
- wahnfrieden 15y ago
  He's technically correct. But the amount of radiation is low enough not to care about it.
- deleted 15y ago
  [deleted]
- dxbydt 15y ago
  http://www.princeton.edu/~ota/disk1/1989/8905/8905.PDF http://www.princeton.edu/~ota/disk1/1989/8905/8905.PDF paraphrasing - " low frequency magnetic fields can produce changes in biological systems... Current scientific understanding does not yet allow us to interpret the evidence...Even more frustrating, it does not yet allow us to offer advice to avoid potential risks"
  - CamperBob 15y ago
    E = hv. It's not just a good idea, it's the law.
khafra 15y ago
CRT screens have been around since 1907, Liquid Crystal Displays have been here since 1964. If there were clearly harmful effects from spending time near them, epidemiologists would've noticed by now.

ignifero 15y ago

Depends on what your definition of "enjoying your life" is. And then certain habits such as binge drinking are largely promoted as enjoyable via peer pressure/peer brainwashing. I mean, we have only so much sensitivity to alcohol, and so many GABA receptors to saturate, it's not like people would want to drink as much if they were on their own. And, in the end, a hedonistically-driven life is only superficially rewarding. It also shows lack of goals, focus, potential for impact.

golgo13 15y ago

I remember hearing a guy say something along the lines of: You do all these things to extend your life, but you're not extending your 20's and 30's. You're extending your 70's and 80's.

scarmig 15y ago
Depends on what you mean. A healthy 40 year old has more stamina and well-being than an obese 30 year old. So at least in one way, you actually are extending your 20s, and your 30s, and your 40s, and your...
cpeterso 15y ago
Staying healthy is not just about living "just a few more years". It's about quality of life. Being unhealthy at 70 is painful and expensive.
- atomicdog 15y ago
  Similarly, being unhealthy at 20 is a waste of time. You can eat cheetos at any age.
corin_ 15y ago
A similar quote that I prefer is (something like) "stopping smoking doesn't make you live longer, it only feels longer".

quattrofan 15y ago

While I get your logic here, there is a flaw. Your assumption is you'll live a great life enjoying its fruits then die suddenly. However its probably just as likely you could spend those last few years in painful decline, say from a slow spreading cancer. would it have been worth it then?

PonyGumbo 15y ago

Just out of curiosity, how old are you?

Shenglong 15y ago
22

JasonMoyMN79 15y ago

You sound pretty dumb.

JasonMoyMN79 15y ago

No offense, but you sound pretty retarded.

dstein 15y ago

What if Ray Kurzweil is right, and by the 2050's transhumanist technologies become sufficient for us to live healthy lives indefinitely? Having the technology to live forever won't help you if you die of a heart attack before it exists.

Jach 15y ago
You can use the same reasoning in reverse if you're in your 20s or younger. I don't believe I'll die when I'm only 60 or so, even if I'm super unhealthy, and by then they'll be able to fix all my supposed problems anyway.
Almaviva 15y ago
I haven't seen much indication that I should stake my life on fringe AI pioneers estimating accurate timelines.
- giardini 15y ago
  Not to mention the incredible predictions from medical researchers. Where's the cure for cancer? Where's the cure for diabetes? Heart disease? Hell, they're just now passing around the (new?) concept that a hi-carbo diet is _bad_ for you! Organized medicine still doesn't know it's ass from a hole in the ground. We're all gonna die like everyone else does today: organized medicine isn't going to save us. The only question is, how much of our earned income are we willing to pass to those charlatans before we die. Live forever? Hah! Not with those clowns in charge!
  - adrianN 15y ago
    Cancer treatment has made huge progress in the last decade. The survival rates are way up from what they have been and many types of cancer are basically curable as long as you notice it before it ate through every organ in your body. We haven't "cured cancer", because cancer is not a single disease. It is not even caused by a common set of factors.
  - demallien 15y ago

mburney 15y ago

The fact that you fight competitively means that you're not sedentary for a good portion of your time. Binge training is still training. People who do nothing physically demanding and sit at a desk all day are a lot more at risk. And probably not enjoying a full range of activities either.

CamperBob 15y ago
Actually, that's the unsettling thing about the latest studies... people who do physically demanding things apparently don't benefit from them if they spend the rest of their time sitting. And that describe the lifestyle of a lot of exercise-friendly "hackers," your correspondent included.

baddox 15y ago

So, to sum that up: If you live healthy, you die healthy.