Say you exercise in the morning. When is the best time for it? First, what’s the point of morning exercises? Fitness? Yes, you can’t leave fitness out, and if you don’t impose on yourself a healthy daily challenging activity, you might expect the point of the specific activity to be the main goal. It’s not—not in the long term. The goals of daily morning exercise include in the long term[…] Keep reading →

On December 22, 2011, a friend and I challenged ourselves to do ten burpees a day for thirty days. As I had aged out of playing ultimate at the level I wanted to, squeezed enough sense of accomplishment from running marathons that I wanted, and didn’t want to pay to use the gym down the block, which I might not go to in the rain and required changing, reshowering, and[…] Keep reading →

I’ve written on the difference in sensation between something tasting good versus making you feel like you want more of it (see “Want to eat more” and “tastes good” aren’t the same feeling). I also spoke about them as a podcast guest in Tastes Good versus Want More, explored in depth. The difference, briefly: when you bite into a fruit you love, say an apple, it tastes good and you[…] Keep reading →

The other day, just walking down the street I felt super tired, like I got hit by a truck. Then I remembered that I lifted that morning and I had lifted more than ever before in my life. No wonder I felt exhausted. I had noticed I was lifting more than before that morning, but it slipped my mind when I went out for the day. I don’t lift heavy[…] Keep reading →

I don’t know how long it takes time for depression to take root — that is, for someone feeling fine to feeling depressed. A quick web search didn’t show anything and I’m sure it differs from person to person. I imagine it rarely happens overnight. The reason I thought about it was a conversation with a friend about sidchas and my twice-daily burpee-based calisthenics. As he put it, motion creates[…] Keep reading →

I write a lot about cold showers. They may sound crazy, but bear with me and you may find them more helpful than you could have imagined. After taking a few in Shanghai because the water took five minutes to warm up that I couldn’t stand wasting, in December of 2013, I took thirty days of cold showers. I can’t tell you how much the discipline, dedication, and so on[…] Keep reading →

I can’t believe I didn’t think of saying the phrase until the other day: I do more burpees before 9am than most people do all day. It’s satisfying to write. I could have said it years ago. Friends are surprises I haven’t said it. When I said it to someone out loud, he pointed out I could say: I do more burpees before 9am than most people do in their[…] Keep reading →

EDIT (May 2020): I gave my most comprehensive talk on sidchas. Here is the recording Most people seem to want improve themselves, personally or professionally. Reading, watching, and listening to people tell you how you can develop yourself professionally or personally doesn’t change anything beyond give you a bit of information. People don’t succeed because they have more information. They succeed because they act. Even if you know you should[…] Keep reading →

I couldn’t help share Jia Jiang’s sidcha. I’ve favored fitness sidchas like my burpee-based calisthenics, a mindfulness one in cold showers, and the expressive one of writing here. I’ve also described business ones like cold-calling five of sales leads daily or writing a business idea every day. There are aesthetic ones like drawing a picture every day or dancing every day. I also describe social ones like talking to a[…] Keep reading →