Exercises

Exercises / Fitness / Habits / SIDCHAs

More Personal Bests: floor press, single-arm row, Turkish get-up

Personal best 1: floor press Regular readers know that when I bought my 70-pound kettle bell, I almost couldn't use it (though carrying it from the person I bought it from, used from Craigslist, to the subway, down the stairs to the subway, up and down stairs to transfer, and up more stairs home was a farmers walk). A few months ago I reported reaching personal bests for reps for floor presses. Well, last Thursday I reached eleven reps for my first set. When I got it, I may not have been able to do one rep. I'd been doing 10, 9, 8 for my three sets on my lifting days. Last Thursday I hit 11 for the first set. I didn't plan to. I…

June 3, 2026

There are many ways to meditate

Awareness / Exercises / Habits

There are many ways to meditate

I meditate for 31 minutes every morning. It's one of my sidchas. I've learned several ways to meditate, not that I consider myself to have mastered any: zen, vipassana, and mindfulness, for example. I've heard of many other styles. I also hear people distinguish dual from non-dual. Buddhist meditation comes in many forms, if you're Theravada, Mahayana, Chinese, Tibetan, etc. I've read Meditations by Marcus Aurelius. I also read Essays by Michel de Montaigne, which I understand were based on meditations. When I write, I often step away from the paper or computer I'm writing on to think, reflect, and let ideas come. I distinguish that reflection from meditations, but when I tell some people about it, they call it meditation. Which of these techniques…

May 26, 2026

Most people don’t realize how much stupid stuff they do every day that they consider critical

Awareness / Choosing/Decision-Making / Exercises / Leadership

Most people don’t realize how much stupid stuff they do every day that they consider critical

The title says it all, but it bears repeating: "Most people don't realize how much stupid stuff they do every day that they consider critical" I've been meaning to write this post for a while. People constantly say how busy they are, often as an excuse not to do something meaningful. As best I can tell, most people today don't know their values enough to know how to choose to act on their values and create meaning in their lives over acting in ways to entertain them and deliver short-term reward but nothing or less-than-nothing in the long term. Coaching clients and workshop participants find that the exercises bring them more free time and save them money, even though those results aren't the main goal.…

May 20, 2026

This week’s selected media, May 3, 2026: Changing views of extinction in history

Art / Creativity / Education / Exercises / Hands on Practical Experience / Models / Nature / Tips

This week’s selected media, May 3, 2026: Changing views of extinction in history

This week I finished: A Man at Arms, by podcast guest Steven Pressfield: I hear Steven has two groups of fans -- those of his The War of Art-type books and those of his historical fiction -- and they don't overlap much. I was in the first group. His latest book, The Acadian, comes out soon. We're scheduled to record our second podcast episode on it this week. It stands on its own, but follows A Man at Arms, so I started with it. I'm also watching his Warrior Archetype series. It's also my first novel in a while. The basics are great, but it works as a complete whole where each part builds to a conclusion that feels greater than the sum of its…

May 3, 2026

A new insight on beliefs

Awareness / Exercises / Perception

A new insight on beliefs

In Leadership Step by Step, I give several exercises on how to influence how you perceive the world. I recently found a simpler way of describing them. We all know that our beliefs influence our perception. If you believe a person approaching you is friendly, you perceive them differently than if you believe they intend to hurt you. Many people don't know that they can choose their beliefs, even people who work on mindfulness. I participate in a meditation group that includes people who have meditated regularly for decades. They generally know that if they feel an emotion or thought that they don't like then if they observe it, it will pass. This skill helps calm one's life. It makes you less reactive. I work…

April 23, 2026

Discipline Equals Freedom: Two years no hot showers

Awareness / Exercises / Habits / Pollution and Depletion / SIDCHAs

Discipline Equals Freedom: Two years no hot showers

If you don't get that discipline creates freedom, this post will make no sense to you. If so, probably best not to read it. Regular readers know I found value in taking cold showers. Maybe five years ago, after watching podcast guest Joel Runyon's TEDx talk on cold showers then reading his conversation with his readers on his Cold Shower Therapy Guide, which I recommend, I experimented taking a cold shower. I learned a lot from the experience. It was December in New York City, and very cold, but very invigorating and any discomfort ended the moment I ended the shower. There was no risk of injury. I got most of the value I get from a workout or practicing anything challenging with no cost…

April 15, 2026

Something important missing in my life

Exercises / Leadership / Relationships

Something important missing in my life

I was talking to a coaching client about leadership, which works with people's intrinsic motivations. Since our greatest motivations and passions tend to be our greatest vulnerabilities, we tend to protect ourselves by hiding them. A challenge, then, for the leader who wants to go beyond just managing, beyond just leading, to inspire people, is to learn their deepest motivations, which they often protect the most. I was working with the client on how to make people feel comfortable sharing their vulnerabilities. As much as we protect them, since they are passions we care about, we want to share them... as long as we feel the person we're talking to will support us, not judge us, make fun of us, manipulate us, or otherwise use…

March 19, 2026

Another personal best: (floor/bench press)

Exercises / Fitness / Habits / SIDCHAs

Another personal best: (floor/bench press)

A few of my sidchas involve lifting weights. I don't lift to get big or strong, though I like that those results happen. I might like attaining those results more for their being side-effects rather than specific goals. My two main reasons are 1) because our ancestors for hundreds of thousands of years didn't eat by just walking to the fridge, they had to climb trees, dig up roots, and hunt animals, along with many other activities, so I do various exercises to keep mentally and physically healthy and 2) for the self-awareness and discipline that comes from a regular ritual that is challenging and beautiful. Despite getting strong not being a primary goal, I like when I find I can do more than I…

February 5, 2026

Turkish Get-Up Achievement and Freedom

Exercises / Fitness

Turkish Get-Up Achievement and Freedom

Following up my posts Another 70-pound Turkish Get-Up, also more lifting personal bests and Two personal bests in a week: Freedom---and, speaking of health and fitness, New resting pulse: 38 bpm---I forgot to mention I finally achieved my third 70-pound Turkish Get-Up. For the meaning of the achievement, read the first link above. It's funny that after at least a year of thinking about and planning it, the first one I did I didn't expect to work. Then the third one I didn't record when I did it. It was a week or two ago. I'll also add that I reached a personal best that week on my one-arm floor press (essentially a bench press but one arm at a time and on the floor)…

December 16, 2025

Passing fancies and shiny objects sap life of meaning, if you don’t know your values and how to live them

Awareness / Choosing/Decision-Making / Exercises

Passing fancies and shiny objects sap life of meaning, if you don’t know your values and how to live them

I said the following words today and realized I had to post them here: Chasing shiny objects means you're running away from what you value. For background, I describe passing fancies in my book Initiative: Passing fancies are things we enjoy in the moment but don’t bring long-term emotional reward. Since everyone’s values differ, your passing fancies will differ from mine. Our world is full of passing fancies like social media, fun classes, action movies, and some friendships. Our culture bombards us with more. From grade school through commencement, mainstream education spreads us thin with classes, extracurriculars, double majors, triple minors, sports, after-school jobs, and so on—too thin to go into depth with any of them. Most jobs continue the pattern. Rarely do you act…

October 10, 2025

Another 70-pound Turkish Get-Up, also more lifting personal bests

Exercises / Fitness / Habits / Hands on Practical Experience / SIDCHAs

Another 70-pound Turkish Get-Up, also more lifting personal bests

You may remember me posting about Two personal bests in a week: Freedom, in which I jumped 8.4 pounds (3.8 kilograms) in my Turkish get-up to 70 pounds, plus lifted more in my presses. I think I commented that part of why I tried it when I did was because it was the end of a month with 31 days. I do a six-day exercise cycle starting on the first of the month, so several times a year I have days to experiment. Well, last month had 31 days, so I tried my next 70-pound Turkish get-up. I had a few wobbly get-ups in August so even though I had done it before, I treated this attempt with respect. I concentrated on form. I was…

September 1, 2025

Professions and people NOT to ask how to solve our environmental situation

Education / Exercises / Hands on Practical Experience / Leadership / Nature

Professions and people NOT to ask how to solve our environmental situation

I have a PhD in physics, the most advanced degree in the most fundamental science. It was my priority for most of a decade. I loved and still love the field. I believe if you want to understand our situation, you must understand science or at least its findings. I also consider nature among the most beautiful thing to learn about. Scientists found out about our environmental situation. They project possible resolutions. Nonetheless, I don't consider scientists people to ask how to solve our environmental problem. Why not? Here's an example. When I started graduate school at Penn, there was a professor there, Howard Brody, who studied the physics of tennis. In his youth he played varsity tennis. He apparently led the field of the…

August 7, 2025

Two personal bests in a week: Freedom.

Choosing/Decision-Making / Exercises / Fitness / Freedom / SIDCHAs / Stories

Two personal bests in a week: Freedom.

When I started doing Turkish Get Ups, I struggled with a 25-pound kettle bell. Over the years, I worked up to where I comfortably do them with a 28-kilogram one, which is 61.6 pounds. My next heavier kettle bell is 70 pounds, which is a big jump. I wondered if I would ever be able to do it. I dented my floor when I lost control of a kettle bell and I once injured a rib that way, so I respect the exercise's potential for injury, or rather, the need for safety and form. Personal Best #2 Today I did my first 70 pound Turkish Get Up, one on each side. For those who don't know what they are, here are many posts. In a…

August 1, 2025

My biggest downside to aging so far

Exercises / Fitness / Habits / SIDCHAs

My biggest downside to aging so far

I've passed the milestones everyone my age has. Some I like, like developing patience and wisdom. I may not have much of them, but more than before. I felt my potential strength decrease in my thirties. In my forties I lost yet more, and found even walking counted as exercise. Also in my forties, I noticed injuries took longer to heal. Injuries that in my twenties would hurt and affect functionality momentarily, then go away, and in my thirties bother me for a while, in my forties would linger for months. Months! I have three pains that have lingered for months that I don't think even injuries caused. I'm writing and editing a lot. I think they came from just sitting too long without moving.…

March 21, 2025

What’s in your garbage?

What’s in your garbage?

When people hear I take years to fill a load of garbage at home, after their incredulity passes, they often ask, "What's in your garbage?" It's weird for people to be interested in your garbage. I mean, how often has anyone asked you what's in your garbage? I guess it makes sense as a knee-jerk response, but the more interesting question isn't what remains in mine but what fills up everyone else's. Or nearly equivalently, what's not in mine. Frozen pizza boxes, ice cream containers, coffee grounds, takeout containers, food packaging of all types, and packaging from online purchases are things in many trash cans that aren't in mine. All these things hurt people by polluting and don't improve your life, except maybe the coffee…

October 26, 2024

On considering when to decrease my daily exercises started over a decade ago, now in my 50s

Choosing/Decision-Making / Exercises / Fitness / Habits / SIDCHAs

On considering when to decrease my daily exercises started over a decade ago, now in my 50s

I've meant to write this post for years. It may be the longest past due. Why? Because it relates to many parts of my life and involves decisions that will affect me the rest of my life. I'll stick with the basics to put the main thoughts on paper, so to speak. When I started doing burpees daily, it was ten a day for thirty days with a friend in 2011. I didn't expect to continue them daily for an indefinite period. Within those thirty days, the value of an exercise needing no equipment, spotter, etc that exercised much of my body became clear. I knew two conflicting things: practice would enable me to increase but aging would lead me to decrease. In the years…

August 3, 2024

More Life-Changing, Inner-You-Revealing, Passion-Unleashing Magic of Initiative

Creativity / Entrepreneurship / Exercises / Relationships

More Life-Changing, Inner-You-Revealing, Passion-Unleashing Magic of Initiative

A month and a half ago I wrote about Eugene's reflections on finishing the ninth of the ten exercises in my book Initiative in my post The Life-Changing, Inner-You-Revealing, Passion-Unleashing Magic of Initiative. He finished and posted about the tenth exercise at his blog: Method Initiative (Round 4) – Exercise 10: 10 Valuable People (And final Initiative methodology thoughts), and it's as inspiring. Read the whole post for all he shares. As a teaser, what got me most: The 7 Principles If you recall from my Exercise 6 reflection, the 7 key principles to the Initiative methodology are as follows, and this time I decided to include my thoughts regarding each one: Personality matters less than skills you can learn. – Absolutely! I don’t think…

May 1, 2024

The Life-Changing, Inner-You-Revealing, Passion-Unleashing Magic of Initiative

Creativity / Education / Entrepreneurship / Exercises / Stories

The Life-Changing, Inner-You-Revealing, Passion-Unleashing Magic of Initiative

I've shared Eugene's public postings of his experience doing the exercises in my book Initiative. At each stage, he learns more about himself and making his world work for him. Taking initiative forces you to learn your values, not in some abstract way, but: How do I want to spend my time, money, energy, and resources? How long do I want to follow other people's values, or the worn path society lays for me that benefits others, not me? Quoting his recent post, Method Initiative (Round 4) – Exercise 9 – Second Personal Essay: For the first time ever, I’ve made it to the final exercises in Josh Spodek’s Initiative book on bringing your passions to life. It took four rounds of going back to…

March 15, 2024

Meditation: Thoughts aren’t just ideas that arise and pass away. Each wants to hook you.

Awareness / Exercises / Freedom / Perception

Meditation: Thoughts aren’t just ideas that arise and pass away. Each wants to hook you.

Meditation instructors often talk about thoughts arising and passing away in consciousness, as if they just come out of nowhere and go to nowhere. I've found otherwise. No part of your mind is superfluous. The human brain uses up too much energy for evolution to allow unnecessary parts to persist. Each part does something that helped your ancestors survive and pass their genes on to you. For example, some part of your brain interprets things that could look like faces to be faces, whether you want it to or not. So when face-like things enter your field of vision, that part of the brain puts a face into your consciousness. All parts of your brain, when activated, speak up into your consciousness when prompted that…

November 27, 2022

Fifty-one

Awareness / Exercises / Fitness / SIDCHAs

Fifty-one

Different people define middle age differently, but having just turned 51 I think I'm in it by all definitions. Physical My first sense of my body physically declining came in my early thirties, when my potential to compete in ultimate began to decline. Before then, I always felt motivation to practice since I knew the next year my potential would be higher. After then, no matter how much I practiced, my potential would decrease the next year, which decreased my motivation to practice. Over the years, the physical decline continued. The biggest included the time to heal from injury and recover from hard workouts. In my second-to-last summer playing summer league I didn't play to be the best on my team, then in my early…

July 20, 2022

Why I’m writing at 3am: I’m so sore that moving wakes me up.

Exercises / Fitness

Why I’m writing at 3am: I’m so sore that moving wakes me up.

Yesterday I ran outdoors for the first time this spring. Two days before I lifted weights and was still feeling tired, plus I'm fifty years old, so I took it easy and ran at a comfortable, even slow pace. Now I'm so sore that tossing and turning in bed wakes me up. [EDIT, the next morning: Note that I'm not complaining in this post. I'm just observing. If anything, I appreciate the soreness. As for aging, I find it life's greatest source of acceptance and therefore celebration. As I wrote in one of my blog's earliest posts, If you can accept something you can celebrate it. Not long after posting, I fell asleep.] I don't remember feeling this sore. I know I used to, when…

May 1, 2022

My new sleeping experiment

My new sleeping experiment

Unrelated to sustainability, sidchas, leadership, education, famous no-packaging vegan stews, burpees, and my usual subjects, I'm embarking on a new experiment. For years I've woken up to mild back pain. I suspected my mattress was getting old. I bought it around ten years ago and it felt like some parts lost their support. Was I sleeping on a not-flat surface? Maybe it was just me getting old. I started looking up tatami mats, which led me to looking up sleeping on the floor on minimal mattresses. I have a yoga mat I use for stretching and floor exercises with kettlebells. I found it in the trash, unused, and it works fine. I'm also planning to camp on my bike ride next month, so expect to…

April 28, 2022

My peaceful eating sidcha for this month

Awareness / Exercises / SIDCHAs

My peaceful eating sidcha for this month

I've been avoiding things I devalue lately. After writing about the day after Thanksgiving, also known as Buy Nothing Day, I decided to strive to buy nothing but food that month and succeeded, if you don't disallow that I bought two things that I later returned. I'll write more about it when I eventually do buy something, as I'm still going. Next, I decided to avoid social media and news sites for January. Strictly speaking, I'm avoiding pages that refresh daily or faster, though allowing short-term checks for deliberate intent sometimes. I'll probably write more about it after the month ends. But I've done things like those sidchas before. A new one emerged from training a new host for a new branch of This Sustainable…

January 9, 2022

Decade two, day 1: I reached the ground with my heels on downward dog for the first time in my life.

Exercises / Fitness / Habits

Decade two, day 1: I reached the ground with my heels on downward dog for the first time in my life.

An auspicious beginning to my second decade of my calisthenics sidcha: my heels reached the ground in one of my stretches, the downward dog. I did yoga regularly for a few years before starting burpees. Yoga means a lot of downward dogs. In all those years, my heels never touched the ground while doing them. At best I reached something like this: This morning my heels reached the ground. I think limberness decreases with age, so doing it at fifteen years older feels extra satisfying. So far, my heels barely brushed the floor. I'll keep going until I can do this: I only started stretching recently and my goal was originally to do a third-world squat (becoming known as the deep bodyweight squat, though in…

December 22, 2021

A New Reason I Pick Up Trash Every Day

Exercises / Habits / Leadership / Nature / SIDCHAs

A New Reason I Pick Up Trash Every Day

I've held back on sharing this because it felt too presumptuous. To remind you the context, I've found that to lead on sustainability, you need experience in three areas: LeadingScienceLiving the values you promote I know of almost no one with experience in all three. Not Gore, DiCaprio, Thunberg, or any of the big names people associate with sustainability. Previous guest Alexandra Paul fits the bill. For a while, I've contended that picking up litter gives me experience both leading and living the values I promote. Of course, it reduces the garbage immediately reaching the oceans too. Several other minor reasons. The Reason I'm Sharing for the First Time Another reason I hadn't consciously realized myself yet. I meant to post it on July 4,…

July 7, 2021

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