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Book I Recently Finished:
I’ve experienced the feeling of reading a good book and finding it nearly impossible to set down several times in my life.
But never as intense as what I felt last week when reading Dopamine Nation — a book written by psychiatrist Dr. Anna Lembke.
Usually the intensity arises when reading a fiction novel that keeps me on the edge with cliff hangers at the conclusion of every chapter.
Which is what made the compulsion to quickly read this non-fiction, psychological-focused book so unique to me.
However, the stories that Dr. Lembke shares from her years of clinical experience working as a psychiatrist with individuals suffering addiction were mind boggling.
Addictions of all kinds, too… much broader than the typical behaviors one would often consider such as alcohol abuse, cigarette dependency, or something of that sort.
However, if you are a person who suffers from one of these, I couldn’t more highly recommend this book.
While I won’t give away the specifics, Dr. Lembke relates these maladaptive behaviors back to our dopamine system — the one that drives the pleasure and pain balance we all experience. Think of it like a seesaw.
And unfortunately, the world we’re currently living in contains constant and endless “pleasure” available at the tips of our fingers which is why the dopamine system is out of whack for many — I’d argue, most — of us.
This is why I attest that everyone should read this book — it opens your eyes to the unhelpful compulsions you’ve developed over the years, no matter how big or small and to no fault of your own.
A couple big takeaways for me:
It takes 30 days of abstinence for an urge to lessen and the “withdrawal” symptoms to loosen their grip.
This is directly applicable to individuals who stop drinking alcohol for a couple weeks and claim they don’t notice a difference and are actually feeling worse than before. This is because the dopamine system hasn’t had time to level out.
It gets worse before it gets better, A LOT better to be precise.
You must accept this and be willing to suffer short-term pain to make big changes in your life.
Second, she reminded me of the nice buzzword “mindfulness” and how it ties into this realm.
Thoughts are just that, thoughts. We control the ability to observe them WITHOUT giving them the control over our actions.
This applies to so much of what we do on the daily and taking a step back to give this full consideration can be the lightbulb moment you need to get over whatever hump it is that you may be sitting behind.
Docuseries I Recommend:
I’m a big documentary fan and when I was recommended the newest talk of the town on Netflix, I had to tune in.
That being American Manhunt: Osama bin Laden Tracks.
A three-part docuseries recounting the world-altering 9/11 attacks and the years afterward spent hunting down those responsible.
Being only a couple years old when The World Trade Center and The Pentagon were attacked, I didn’t realize the many nuanced details of that time and just how much fear it produced.
Stacked on top of that the mastermind behind the events, Osama bin Laden, evading U.S. armed and intelligence forces for nearly a decade to follow and you have quite the storyline.
A perfect concoction for an attention-grabbing documentary.
It was neat to hear from numerous individuals who were on the forefront of the largest terrorist takedown in history including CIA officials, presidential advisors, and even the Navy Seal himself who took down bin Laden.
Highly recommend.
Type of Training I’m Prioritizing:
Unfortunately, the heavy load of marathon training is having its way with me.
I started experiencing shin pain a few weeks back and it greatly worsened after a 20-mile run about 2.5 weeks ago.
This has completely sidelined me from running.
With just 8 days left until I toe the line of Grandma’s Marathon in Duluth, this is of course slightly concerning.
However, I’ve prioritized something called “cross training” in the meantime to maintain fitness and ensure I don’t fall too far behind by missing the last month of run-focused training.
Cross training is incredibly important during heavy training loads and in fact, it’s something I should’ve been doing more of PRIOR to the injury as it likely would have been preventative.
Hindsight is always 20/20, eh?
Since running puts such a high load on the musculoskeletal system, it’s wise to add other forms of cardiovascular exercise that don’t have as much of a jarring impact.
Enter swimming, aqua jogging, biking, elliptical machine, etc.
Personally, I’ve been cruising around on my 10-speed and I’m starting to enjoy it.
I even sped around on this piece of work for one of my workouts:
The upside of biking is that you can go much farther in a short period of time which allows you to venture out to areas you haven’t had the chance to in the past!
Just trying to keep the glass somewhat not empty…
What else?
I’m down to just one opening for my personal training and lifestyle coaching this summer. Reach out if you’d like more details on the specifics & pricing!
Master your compulsions, master your life.
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DISCLAIMER
This is NOT Medical advice. Consult your medical professional before starting any supplement, diet regimen, or workout program.