Quote: (11-17-2018 10:36 PM)gmoneysauce Wrote:
Dulceácido,I would love to read this DataSheet and yeah I have been wanting to do my own and doing it here would be a great way to compare notes. I used to have people guess my age and get 10 years less than my actual age but last year I fucking cratered on diet and exercise and I'm still paying for it. The main points of my current plan are:
1. Do some physical activity that I have a positive association with, on a consistent if not daily basis (I don't stay with it otherwise) . I currently like to rock climb (I'm a bigger guy so it tends to make me ripped, not just wiry strong like thinner guys), skateboard, play hockey/ice skate, open water swim, free dive/spear fish (I only do this in Latin America), hike, batting cage, and I do some lifting and kettle bell but since they are not 'activities' I don't tend to stay with them over the years.
2. Sauna. I sauna every day for at least 30-60 minutes when in the US. Sometimes on a weekend I will do a two hour session with a 10-15 cooling break. This has been a fucking magic bullet for blood pressure and stress. When I'm in the tropics I sweat a ton so maybe I don't need it there.
3. Sleep. Just good sleep hygiene and sometimes I use a sleep app and I take naps when I feel like it. There were some years when bad sleep just killed my energy levels.
4. Eat: Steak, avocado, some other colors of the rainbow. I use some dried Beet Juice as it really freaking lowers your blood pressure (it has nitric oxide...and we know what that does...). 4 Brazil nuts a day and some raw almonds on occasion. I often do a spinach salad when out of the house.
And also I tell people the truth, shoot straight, and that has just reduced so much social stress.
Also, I try to get good social interaction as this seems to be harder to get as you get older. I go shoot pistols with some guys and I have one friend who is single and we run game together....
That is the basic plan.
Hey buddy! Been a while, where you been? Glad you're back and getting back on top of your health.
The data sheet is still coming, I promise and I always keep my word. Should be soon, but I had been studying (more like practicing, really) for an exam, which I just took yesterday, and that was consuming my time. Now, I am preparing to receive visitors for the upcoming holiday and will have guests. So, after that, the data sheet will appear.
In the meantime, you have a solid plan that I can get behind and you sound like you'd be pretty cool to hang out with to boot. ?
Allow me to critique:
The "do some physical activity" rule, is not just a good idea, but for me, it's mandatory. There are no "off days." I train every day. I have to. I was blown up a few times and I have lingering injuries that just don't support a day of no activity. I had to learn that the hard way. I was almost cripple for 3 years until I climbed out of the "pity me, I'm a victim and I can't do (X)..." mindset. If I take a day off, it severely impacts me in a negative way. It's funny, I used to have a chaplain who I considered quite old, and he and I would go running together. One day I had mentioned that I took a few days off from running, so that's why I was gassing out, and he told me of his father (imagine how old this fucker was--97) who lives in the Appalachians and hikes the trail, at least 3 miles, every day. He said his father told him he can never--ever--take a day off, because the next day it limits his mobility and starts a downward spiral that's difficult to come back from. I'm not 97, but I find myself in that same boat. I can take an
easy day, but I can't take an "off day."
The sauna... This is an incredible resource that not many people understand. One of my physical therapists did his doctoral thesis on the health benefits of a sauna and it was fucking incredible. I'll see if i can find it online and I'll put it in here. It's long and technical so if you don't have a medical/physiology background it's kinda boring to read, but I wish I had access to a working sauna. There's one at my gym, but it has never worked. When I was in therapy there was a badass sauna and I used it 5 times/week. I don't think people understand that
it's a fucking cardio workout with no muscle/joint impact to sit in a sauna. It is, exactly like you describe: a magic bullet. So many massive benefits and little downsides to a sauna. If used properly, it's like a gift from the Gods.
Sleep... Sleep hygiene is crucial. I really struggled with this for a long time. There are not too many rules, fortunately. "Go to bed and wake up at the same time every day, sleep between 6-8 hours, and don't take naps." That's what all my docs said. I used to love naps, though. There's actually a lot of evidence that supports good benefits from napping and I don't doubt them, but that's probably for people who don't have sleep disorders. I used to have a terrible time sleeping and would then fall asleep at inappropriate times (traffic lights, for example ?), but that was a long time ago. I don't have that problem anymore. I eliminated it by getting up early as hell (used to get up at 0445, now I get up at 0400) and going to bed early. Do what works for you. I'm not gonna dump on naps. I think they work great for some people and not so good for others. I would say, though, basic adherence to a sleep schedule is very important. On the weekends, now, I "sleep in" (till 0600) and people laugh at me because when I sleep in, I'm still up 4 hours before them on Sunday.
Steak, avocado, nuts, and "dried beet juice..." What the fuck is a dried juice? Like dehydrated water? How does that happen? ?. Bygones...
I'm a fan of your diet program, too. I would just caution that there is such a thing as too much red meat. Enough said. My diet is so fucking boring. I eat for nourishment and that's it, 95% of occasions. In fact, I'm sort of struggling with how I'm gonna handle that when my holiday guests arrive, they're going to think I've gone mad when they see what I eat and how simple my food is. Meh. I'll figure it out.
All the diet/nutrition/workout/sleep stuff is actually the
easy part of figuring out your path and getting your shit straight and in order. Those are things onto which you can inflict your most effective and massive control measures. I've said it before and I'll keep saying it:
the key is discipline. People underestimate the power and importance of discipline. It, literally, affects everything--if not directly, then how you react, or your impression of things and events.
The
hard part is getting your mind and spirit right. That is essentially what I think I've been on the path towards lately and it has made all the difference in the world. Of course, I had to straighten out my body/health first, because it was such a major distraction. For example, you're never going to get your life in order when you're pounding whiskey and pain pills. Just not gonna happen. But, when you address the roots of those conditions,
you can focus on more important things and life becomes incredibly enjoyable and precious.