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I recently realized that my life is bounded by my ability to regulate: 1. no drugs or alcohol 2. no sugar/carbs/processed food 3. good sleep 4. no porn Whe
by ldjkfkdsjnv 5y ago
I recently realized that my life is bounded by my ability to regulate:
1. no drugs or alcohol
2. no sugar/carbs/processed food
3. good sleep
4. no porn
When I do all of those things, suddenly it is easier to focus at work, i have more energy, am more out and about, more social, wake up with creative enlightened thought, am more human.
And so all of the motivational material, ideas about stoking passion in craft, therapy, theories about how to succeed, etc feel like a facade. And it feels like the real truth in life is radical health practices. And by radical I mean actually not radical at all, just avoiding the traps of society.
- etothepii 5y agoHave you removed these individually to see which actually make a difference? I suspect any improvement in well-being is down to the "good sleep".
- xupybd 5y agoI can agree that all 4 have significant impact on well-being in my life.
- ldjkfkdsjnv 5y agoIts ranked in the order of effect. No carbs/sugar and instead eating only veggies and grass fed beef/fish is very noticeable to me. I am absolutely my better self when I am on a keto diet.
- tomrod 5y agoOh my friend, I've found defining good pre- and post-sleep behaviors is crucial.
- openknot 5y agoIt's possible that #3, good sleep, is the most important element, and adopting the remaining behaviors largely work because they improve sleep quality. Drugs or alcohol can reduce sleep quality (e.g. cannabis reduces REM sleep, alcohol can cause you to wake up too early); a diet high in simple sugars can negatively affect sleep quality [0]; and porn at night can mean looking at a screen with blue light, which can cause you to fall asleep later [1]. [0] https://www.sleep.org/sleep-questions/sugar-impacts-sleep/ https://www.sleep.org/sleep-questions/sugar-impacts-sleep/ [1] https://www.sleepfoundation.org/bedroom-environment/blue-light https://www.sleepfoundation.org/bedroom-environment/blue-lig...
- melenaboija 5y agoYes, and to me good sleep is highly correlated to physical and mental health and all what is mentioned affects one or both of them. Is not a matter of just to wanting to have good sleep but try to solve other problems such as food, alcohol, cigarettes, drugs, lack of sport, caffeine, …
- deleted 5y ago[deleted]
- skavi 5y agoEach of those rules requires self discipline to enforce. Have you considered that you are more sociable, productive, and creative at times you are able to maintain good self discipline? I suppose making a habit of disciplined behavior could foster such behavior in the future as well. Really, it could probably go both ways in my view, though I suppose from a practical standpoint, whether cause and effect are swapped doesn’t matter.
- ldjkfkdsjnv 5y agoI really think its 1,2 -> better brain functioning -> better discipline -> allows me to acheive 3,4. This is something I have experimented off an on for the last year, I am certain of the cause and effect.
- arvinsim 5y agoIt's only radical because society is structured in a way that these are hard to do 1. Even if you don't drink, you need to give in sometimes for the sake of socialization 2. All cheap foods are full of sugar/carbs. If you want to eat healthy food, you either need to have access to farm or pay more. 3. Hustle culture promotes pushing yourself to the limit, sacrificing free time and sleep. 4. Technology(like dating apps) was supposed to make us more connected. But it seems that it instead did the opposite. There is much more lonely people in the world. Some of them can only turn to porn to satisfy their primal urges.
- vorpalhex 5y agoI recently quit alcohol for a few months to support someone else doing the same. I don't find I ever have to "give in". I do sometimes bring canned tea with me if I am going to a friends party. Rice, local vegetables, eggs and basic cuts of meat are all real cheap. I quit working around 5pm most days (save meetings that get scheduled late, I tend to skip those randomly). I spend my free time working on fun hobbies or reading, a bit of netflix. Porn is not de facto evil. It is a supernormal stimulus - it will drown out your sex live because porn literally pushes your biological buttons better. If you can moderate it, then great. If it's an issue, cut it out. Avoid dating apps. Spend your time doing interesting things with interesting people instead.
- xupybd 5y agoI would argue that a supernormal stimulus should be avoided at all costs. It messes with your reward system too much. Get your endorphins from healthy and productive activities and your life improve immensely. Video games are another for me. They give a huge sense of achievement that real world tasks struggle to complete with.
- arepublicadoceu 5y ago> I would argue that a supernormal stimulus should be avoided at all costs. I don’t like these kinds of blanket statements I had friends that played WoW and were able to have a perfectly functioning life. They got great grades and had somewhat healthy social life. Unfortunately I’m not in this camp, if I play online games it will consume my life as nothing else. A better statement is: know yourself. If you have an addictive personality, stay away from supernormal stimulus. Now, If you’re blessed with genes that can regulate yourself, by all means, go ahead, play games and do whatever you like, you won the life lottery anyway.
- 2OEH8eoCRo0 5y agoI'm pretty much the same except I'll eat fruit and whole grains. A bowl of steel cut oats in the morning is like cheat codes for me at least.
- ldjkfkdsjnv 5y agoYeah I would not be surprised, one of my favorite meals is smoked salmon and blueberries. The less I eat carbs though, the more I am grossed out by them. Like if I have rice or a piece of bread now, it tastes like sugar, and I can feel it go into my body.
- hammock 5y ago>one of my favorite meals is smoked salmon and blueberries Are you a bear?
- colechristensen 5y agoIs this real or a bit of an eating disorder? There's something to be careful of when you're trying to be healthy is if your ideas of what's "healthy" don't start being a psychological problem. >The less I eat carbs though, the more I am grossed out by them. Like if I have rice or a piece of bread now, it tastes like sugar, and I can feel it go into my body. Having been around people with eating disorders, this is exactly the kind of thing that they say when they're having problems. I'm not diagnosing you or trying to make you panic, just a word of caution.
- ldjkfkdsjnv 5y agoNo where close to an eating disorder
- NoPicklez 5y agoI agree with all of these except for the no sugar/carbs/processed food. It's important to know that sugars and carbs are good for you. I wouldn't say cutting out fruits are a good idea, but not eating chocolate bars and lollies is definitely a good idea.
- garren 5y agoNo drugs or alcohol, how about caffeine? I only ask because I stopped caffeine for months hoping it would help me get some sleeping problems under control. I was surprised to find that stopping caffeine, ~cups of coffee a day, didn’t have a noticeable effect. No carbs, so keto or paleo?
- mixmastamyk 5y agoYes, also exercise and bright sunlight in the mornings.
- openknot 5y agoIf it's too early for bright sunlight (winter, Northern hemisphere), thirty minutes in front of a daylight lamp works great for waking up in my experience.
- ldjkfkdsjnv 5y agoA mix of keto and paleo, I shoot for keto though. Try to eat organic and grass fed. Caffeine I have not removed yet! But the interesting thing is I notice that I need less when I am doing those 4 steps.