5 ms·

Ask HN: How do you overcome laziness and lethargy?

10 points by renma 12y ago

I have big ambitious goals but procrastinate a lot. I need to hustle but I am slacking off a lot. Will doing cardio 2 hours a day help?

hackinthebochs 12y ago
Start small and build momentum off of small victories.
- rad_ 12y ago
  I think this is a great idea. Too ambitious can really tire you out if you're not completing a lot of what you want to get done. Is what it is, we have to start small.
Mz 12y ago
Given that you are ADD/ADHD, it might do more good to read up on diet and brain chemistry. I am all for better health but good brain health is more complicated than just getting more cardio.
- rad_ 12y ago
  I agree read up. It's just funny, a lot of situations where people are told their brain chemistry is off, by there doctor, from a written test. A lot of people have trouble focusing. Maybe it's cause we don't like working 40+ hours at a job we hate, not because our brains are all outta whack, but definitly after the doctor gets a hold of it, it will be. Sure, there are some real cases. But they are just going to learn in 5,10, or 15 years that all these drugs turned out to not be such a good idea, or at least, they weren't such a good idea for the majority of the people that they put on them. I know people always say this, but, they did not have focusing medicine back in the day. Maybe daddy's belt growning up, but that's about it.
omarforgotpwd 12y ago
Eat food, drink water, exercise, sleep. Take breaks.
lily2014 12y ago
I think it is will issue. You need to remind yourself how important the goals is. Maybe you can try racing, every day 5K miles. And try to run more than that. Insisit it, exceed it!
m0llusk 12y ago
The greatest and most critical motivator is purpose. You may have goals, but do you really connect with those goals and the things you need to do to make progress with them? You might try asking yourself these questions that relate to your purpose: 1. Who are you? 2. What do you do? 3. Who do you do it for? 4. What want or need was this intended to address? 5. What changed for them as a result of what you did?
dylanhassinger 12y ago
Being healthy will help. The exact mix of exercise/diet/supplements is for you to figure out. Also, Adderall
axaxs 12y ago
Will 2 hours of cardio help? Possibly. If you aren't exercising already, you really should. Nothing helped me overcome lethargy like going to the gym every day. Two hours is good but by no means necessary...30-45 minutes is all I usually do. Not a health not mind you, just getting out there. It really does help almost every aspect of your life, but unfortunately, doesn't seem to help me much with procrastination. For that I just need to figure out why I'm procrastinating. Am I distracted(surfing)? Quit surfing. Am I underprepared? Learn. Am I bored by the project? Add features or move on to something else.
Partyfists 12y ago
For me the things I can do to stay motivated are like this: 1. Work with people you really enjoy being around. 2. Do something you love doing 3. Find a type of music which is not distracting. Preferably, no lyrics or loud noises. 4. Find what is making you procrastinate (video games for me) and moderate it. 5. Be goal oriented. Be more agile and celebrate the small victories. I hope that helps!
thirsday 12y ago
Most of Partyfists' recommendations are good, especially 1 and 2. (to clarify, here is his list): >>> 1. Work with people you really enjoy being around. 2. Do something you love doing 3. Find a type of music which is not distracting. Preferably, no lyrics or loud noises. 4. Find what is making you procrastinate (video games for me) and moderate it. 5. Be goal oriented. Be more agile and celebrate the small victories. >>> For 3. I prefer brown noise, especially if you can find it in mono, not stereo (try simplynoise.com). For me 4. is irrelevant, since there's not one single thing that enables procrastination for me except being on the internet itself, and with apologies to those who have made or used apps to regulate their internet usage, I haven't found anything that has made regulating my internet time practical or useful – especially since I need it to do my job (also, regulating usage is merely addressing the symptom, not the cause). Advice from others' about exercise is good too – although I haven't been able to implement this yet. Finally, yes, talk to a specialist about whether you might have ADD and consider Adderall. It will give you more energy and make you more work harder/longer at things, but it's by no mean a magic bullet. Notice I didn't say it will make you more productive, if your productivity is being determined by others' goals/standards, for instance a boss at work. You may still find it hard to put your increased efforts towards the things they're supposed to be going towards. You may find yourself organizing a metaphorical sock drawer when you're supposed to be knitting an (again metaphorical) scarf. I don't know if perfectionism is often tied to ADD or not, but if you also tend to have perfectionistic tendencies this can be a very tricky combination to overcome to do fast, consistent work that meets expectations. If you figure it out, let me know (and let me know soon). If you stop taking Adderall you will have a difficult period for several weeks where you'll be lethargic, eat a lot, etc. due to your brain having reduced its serotonin levels to accommodate the Adderall. If you take Adderall during the week and don't take it on the weekends, you may find it hard to have the energy to do much of anything. I'm typing this from my bed right now and it's 10 minutes til noon. There are several other options as far as medication now, including some that are non-stimulants, but I can't speak as to their effectiveness. 2. from Partyfists is what most people would recommend. For me, I've found that even that is not enough. I've had about as close a chance to 'do what I love' as most people have ever had, and I still lacked the daily follow-through to make that a reality rather than waste time on the internet. If 2. is unrealistic or impractical for you, I have a feeling that 1. could be the next most important, and perhaps easier to attain. Currently working on fixing that one myself.
falconfunction 12y ago
Antagonize faster animals

10 points by renma 12y ago

I have big ambitious goals but procrastinate a lot. I need to hustle but I am slacking off a lot. Will doing cardio 2 hours a day help?

hackinthebochs 12y ago

Start small and build momentum off of small victories.

rad_ 12y ago
I think this is a great idea. Too ambitious can really tire you out if you're not completing a lot of what you want to get done. Is what it is, we have to start small.

Mz 12y ago

Given that you are ADD/ADHD, it might do more good to read up on diet and brain chemistry. I am all for better health but good brain health is more complicated than just getting more cardio.

rad_ 12y ago
I agree read up. It's just funny, a lot of situations where people are told their brain chemistry is off, by there doctor, from a written test. A lot of people have trouble focusing. Maybe it's cause we don't like working 40+ hours at a job we hate, not because our brains are all outta whack, but definitly after the doctor gets a hold of it, it will be. Sure, there are some real cases. But they are just going to learn in 5,10, or 15 years that all these drugs turned out to not be such a good idea, or at least, they weren't such a good idea for the majority of the people that they put on them. I know people always say this, but, they did not have focusing medicine back in the day. Maybe daddy's belt growning up, but that's about it.

omarforgotpwd 12y ago

Eat food, drink water, exercise, sleep. Take breaks.

lily2014 12y ago

I think it is will issue. You need to remind yourself how important the goals is. Maybe you can try racing, every day 5K miles. And try to run more than that. Insisit it, exceed it!

m0llusk 12y ago

The greatest and most critical motivator is purpose. You may have goals, but do you really connect with those goals and the things you need to do to make progress with them? You might try asking yourself these questions that relate to your purpose: 1. Who are you? 2. What do you do? 3. Who do you do it for? 4. What want or need was this intended to address? 5. What changed for them as a result of what you did?

dylanhassinger 12y ago

Being healthy will help. The exact mix of exercise/diet/supplements is for you to figure out. Also, Adderall

axaxs 12y ago

Will 2 hours of cardio help? Possibly. If you aren't exercising already, you really should. Nothing helped me overcome lethargy like going to the gym every day. Two hours is good but by no means necessary...30-45 minutes is all I usually do. Not a health not mind you, just getting out there. It really does help almost every aspect of your life, but unfortunately, doesn't seem to help me much with procrastination. For that I just need to figure out why I'm procrastinating. Am I distracted(surfing)? Quit surfing. Am I underprepared? Learn. Am I bored by the project? Add features or move on to something else.

Partyfists 12y ago

For me the things I can do to stay motivated are like this: 1. Work with people you really enjoy being around. 2. Do something you love doing 3. Find a type of music which is not distracting. Preferably, no lyrics or loud noises. 4. Find what is making you procrastinate (video games for me) and moderate it. 5. Be goal oriented. Be more agile and celebrate the small victories. I hope that helps!

thirsday 12y ago

Most of Partyfists' recommendations are good, especially 1 and 2. (to clarify, here is his list): >>> 1. Work with people you really enjoy being around. 2. Do something you love doing 3. Find a type of music which is not distracting. Preferably, no lyrics or loud noises. 4. Find what is making you procrastinate (video games for me) and moderate it. 5. Be goal oriented. Be more agile and celebrate the small victories. >>> For 3. I prefer brown noise, especially if you can find it in mono, not stereo (try simplynoise.com). For me 4. is irrelevant, since there's not one single thing that enables procrastination for me except being on the internet itself, and with apologies to those who have made or used apps to regulate their internet usage, I haven't found anything that has made regulating my internet time practical or useful – especially since I need it to do my job (also, regulating usage is merely addressing the symptom, not the cause). Advice from others' about exercise is good too – although I haven't been able to implement this yet. Finally, yes, talk to a specialist about whether you might have ADD and consider Adderall. It will give you more energy and make you more work harder/longer at things, but it's by no mean a magic bullet. Notice I didn't say it will make you more productive, if your productivity is being determined by others' goals/standards, for instance a boss at work. You may still find it hard to put your increased efforts towards the things they're supposed to be going towards. You may find yourself organizing a metaphorical sock drawer when you're supposed to be knitting an (again metaphorical) scarf. I don't know if perfectionism is often tied to ADD or not, but if you also tend to have perfectionistic tendencies this can be a very tricky combination to overcome to do fast, consistent work that meets expectations. If you figure it out, let me know (and let me know soon). If you stop taking Adderall you will have a difficult period for several weeks where you'll be lethargic, eat a lot, etc. due to your brain having reduced its serotonin levels to accommodate the Adderall. If you take Adderall during the week and don't take it on the weekends, you may find it hard to have the energy to do much of anything. I'm typing this from my bed right now and it's 10 minutes til noon. There are several other options as far as medication now, including some that are non-stimulants, but I can't speak as to their effectiveness. 2. from Partyfists is what most people would recommend. For me, I've found that even that is not enough. I've had about as close a chance to 'do what I love' as most people have ever had, and I still lacked the daily follow-through to make that a reality rather than waste time on the internet. If 2. is unrealistic or impractical for you, I have a feeling that 1. could be the next most important, and perhaps easier to attain. Currently working on fixing that one myself.

falconfunction 12y ago

Antagonize faster animals