Min/Maxxing Into Hating Everything
If it's one thing I've noticed for a long time, it's our obsession with optimization. We have to be doing the most optimal exercise, for the most optimal length of time. Our heart rate has to be monitored and tracked, our heart-rate variability (whatever the fuck that even means), on and on and on. I know a lot of people who find themselves in this sort of cycle of min/maxing themselves to the point of burnout. They don't even start to do a thing because they're too busy trying to figure out the optimal routine, and if they aren't doing XYZ thing to the letter it's basically worthless. Hell even I had a habit of this for a long time.
Science-based fitness kinda lost the plot. Every video is about how some new exercise has had a study of 69 people that doing taint crunches gives them a 1% performance boost, so you better get to it or your gains are literally going to atrophy tonight. Don't even get me STARTED on calorie counting. This is something I'm trying to help my wife with, she'll be hungry, but if she eats something it'll put her 100 calories over... 100 calories... GIRL JUST EAT. 100 calories isn't going to turn you into Fat Bastard from Austin Powers.
We overlook doing "good enough" over long periods of time to do "optimal" and then burn ourselves out into doing none of it. You're turning a fun exercise into fucking homework and excel spreadsheets. Not to yuck someone's yum, if doing all that extra shit keeps you motivated and consistent, then by all means. I just think most of us out there see all of that and get overwhelmed and it prevents us from actually doing the thing.
Arbitrary metrics of optimization is the enemy of consistency.
Just focus on the basics and master them and get some variety to keep it fun. If you have to track, keep it simple to reps and sets or time or heart rate (this is mostly for runners). Focus on portion sizing and understand your internal hunger queues. Be in-tune with yourself. If you're not training to be an elite-level athlete or Mister Olympia you really don't need to think about counting calories. You know ranch dressing is high in fat, and so dowsing your chicken salad in it is gonna throw off your balance. Make micro adjustments, make them consistent, and do them over a long period of time. Need I remind y'all of the lesson we all learned from 'The Tortoise and the Hare'?
I've mostly been talking about fitness up to this point, but my point of optimizing ourselves to death goes beyond that.
I think there's also this war on "good enough". I can't remember if I read it on Bear or somewhere else, but it was something to the effect of "you can't just have a good tea cup, you have to have the best tea cup". Or "What is the best tea cup on a budget". I'm of course talking about tea because I just bought some last night and super excited, but that's neither here nor there.
The article I read talked about how obsession over what is "the best" often makes our own, perfectly fine things look suspect. If you're the author of this post I'm thinking of PLEASE lemme know so I can edit this and give you the credit you deserve.
Part of why I wanted to write this article was because I was looking into getting a DS a few days ago and was debating between the DS, DSi, and DSi XL. I was considering using the DSi XL because it was touted as "the best way to play DS games". I opted for just getting the DSi because I felt like the DSi XL would be too big for casual, on-the-go gaming. I wanted something that was good enough and I'm glad I stuck with just the DSi because I visited a retro game store and saw the DSi XL and holy shit there's no fucking way that thang is fitting in my pocket. Damn thing is a brick. The DSi is something that isn't technically the "best" from a screen resolution standpoint, but it fits my needs perfectly. And that matte finish is just preem.
I don't need $500+ audiophile headphones to enjoy music. My used $100 Sennheisers work perfectly well. I don't need a $1,000 chef knife if my $75 one is durable and cuts well enough. My $20 wired apple earbuds are just fine for casual listening. My $30 wired controller doesn't have paddles or even bluetooth, but it's lasted longer than the $200 "pro" controller. A "cheap" $400 guitar plays just as well as a $1200 one.
Good enough is still good. You don't "need" to buy the best for XYZ category. The stuff you have is perfectly fine. I will of course give leeway for people who purchase things in order to gain a deeper appreciation of the art. Like spending a couple hundred on a hand-crafted tea pot. But if you're just starting out, just get a $100 goose neck tea kettle and you're golden.
I think a lot of this mentality is just product of the capitalist society we find ourself in. I know, how can I something so bold. I just hope that if you're struggling with this, give yourself a bit of grace and practice just chilling the fuck out yeah?
Anywho, that's all I have to say on the matter. Have a good day/night, and be kind to yourself and others. Pirate out.
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as of writing this...
I have a Halo 3 game night tonight that I'm pretty excited for. I just dropped 50 friggen dollars on tea last night. It probably woulda been closer to like $30, but with taxes and international shipping (they're being imported from China and India), it added a bit to the bill. Got some Oolong, Earl Grey, and Assam black tea I have my DSi coming in today and I'm really excited for it. Got the light blue one like what I had when I was a kid. I remember loving that thing, I'm stoked to even just mess around with the camera.