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naraburns  nihil supernum  1yr ago (text post)   2836 thread views

Wellness Wednesday for November 23, 2022

The Wednesday Wellness threads are meant to encourage users to ask for and provide advice and motivation to improve their lives. It isn't intended as a 'containment thread' and any content which could go here could instead be posted in its own thread. You could post:

  • Requests for advice and / or encouragement. On basically any topic and for any scale of problem.

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Unemployed for a while before I start my next job. I’m staying with family and I’ve ruled out significant travel because I want to spend time with them. But I won’t be glued to them 24/7 so I have a lot of free time. How should I spend it? More importantly, how do I hold myself to whatever I decide to do instead of watching YouTube all day?

I second the exercise suggestion but how exactly to go about it depends on your current fitness level, weather, and living environment. If you're somewhere not too cold and are not already a runner I highly suggest the couch to 5K program! Only 3 days a week and takes about 2 months to get you running 30 minutes continuously. You will be in much better cardio shape by the end.

Reading more books is another idea. To avoid distractions, take a physical book or a dedicated ereader without web browsing capabilities to a coffeeshop and read a few hours a day. Maybe bring a notebook to reflect on what you're reading.

Exercise? Exercise! Go outside!

How to hold yourself to it: Loudly announce to your family what you intend to do and what they are to playfully punish you with if you don't go through with it.

Seconding this.

You may also want to try to look at it as an experiment: a couple of weeks where you can really test how far you can optimize this particular human being. How far can you drive it? Grow its muscles? Strengthen its tendons? Find the optimal sleep/eat/workout plan?

This sort of curiosity got my 5k time from 30 minutes to 23 in the span of a month. It was also great fun--both mentally and physically.

Any little home improvement jobs you could do around there? Good time frame for it, and will be welcome if it's your parents. (Railings on steps, non-slip surfaces, all that little stuff that helps people getting older)

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