Month: July 2022

Three weeks into the framework of The Four Pillar Plan, I’m taking some time to look back on the progress gained, and lost, as well as the next pillar in my sights, movement. The week went well overall, with definite gains in relaxation, but some loss in sleep. Movement, however, took center stage as both a practice in itself, and a way to relax.

Prior Pillars

My previous posts centered around two pillars in the Four Pillar Plan, sleep and relaxation. The latter of which I’ve been incorporating more effectively. By taking the time to properly relax through walks or intended activity, I feel like I’m getting better quality relaxation time. In doing so, I feel better recharged to actually get things done, reducing my to do list and ultimately stress.

Sleep on the other hand is still on shaky ground. Whenever I start to get a handle on my sleep schedule, I spend a night or two up late, sleeping in, and screwing my sleep cycle up. While it’s sometimes something foolish like going out drinking, but it’s also as simple as wanting to read just a bit longer or having coffee too late in the day causing trouble falling asleep.

Minor decisions in my day make end up biting me later on. Attempting to close out my daily habits, I’ll sometimes stay up a little too long trying to button up the remaining habits. My hope is to make better practices that help to get them done sooner than later, especially if I can shift my mornings to allow some more personal time.

Move Along

One of the most critical habits I formed in the last few years was a long nightly walk I took back when I lived in Dubuque. I’ve tried a few times to reform the habit, but I find the Chicago suburbs to be a bit too noisy to have the same relaxing feeling the walks of Dubuque had.

Instead, I’ve found midday walks to be a bit more useful. Using a short walk as a form of relaxation has been a great way to tackle two pillars with one activity. Taking a break and disconnecting from work and technology through a walk around the neighborhood has been a nice way to unwind. Similar to my nightly walks, letting my mind wander helps to get idle thoughts off my mind.

I’ve been trying to work a few shorter walks in throughout the day as compared to the long walk of the past. With short walks in the morning, during lunch, and after work, I can get more in while spreading out my time spent being active. Something I’m trying to use to build the habit is having some kind of sweet treat if I complete all of these walks as intended. A nice little reward to build the habit up.

Walking isn’t the only method of movement I’ve been working into my routines. Biking is still my primary mode of transportation when traveling alone. Be it for the grocery store, the gym, or an odd errand to run, my bike has been a useful way to get around with some free activity. I’m extremely grateful for how easy it is to bike around here thanks to nearby trails connecting a string of suburbs.

Yoga is another practice that’s being reintroduced into my routine. Since the pandemic started a few years ago, I hadn’t been to a yoga class. Even when the opportunity arose to start, I held off. Getting back into a class this week was great. I’m far from as flexible and loose as I once was, but taking the time to move, flow, and breathe was a reminder of how helpful yoga is for me. It’s another practice that I feel reinvigorated after. Making a routine of going regularly will be extremely helpful both physically and mentally.

After a hectic week that bled directly into a camping trip, I’m getting this post out a few days late. With a stressful plan to try and muster something up for the weekend, I ended up leaning into one of the four pillars of The Four Pillar Plan, relaxation. Allowing myself to take a couple of days to not worry about everything on the other side of the trip made the experience significantly better.

Work Weak – Why Sleep is Critical

I was excited for the week I had on paper. Scheduled time off on top of the holiday meant I was looking at a quick three day week. What I received was technically that.

After unexpected issues arose, I ended up working a long, frantic night to leave on time for a camping trip the next day. In doing so, I demolished my sleep schedule.

Failing to get everything done over night, the next day was a struggle. The solutions I was putting together were getting me nowhere. After a long day, I was luckily able to hand off my progress to a co-worker and begin the drive to camp.

Outdoor Recovery

With a hectic work week behind me, it was time for some rest and relaxation. What better way to get away from working IT than to head out to the wilderness. In an attempt to stay on top of projects like this blog, I packed a notebook to jot down thoughts and drafts. However, lacking sleep and feeling overwhelmed, I made the decision to forget everything going on outside the trip.

In the Four Pillar Plan, relaxation seemed to be more directed to meditation, the closed eyes and breath work kind. While this is certainly a method to do so, sometimes it’s through a different form of work and focus that we can find relaxation. The challenges of camping is something I found relaxation in.

I’ve been getting into rock climbing lately and this trip was an opportunity to ascend actual stone walls. Our climbing endeavors were cut short by a nasty rain storm, but in the short time I was on the walls, it was all I could think about. Running through the woods back to the car in the heavy rain was another moment where all I could think about was every step I was taking.

Despite the challenges, there were plenty of fun, unexpected moments. In one extremely memorable instance, we found a praying mantis near our car while waiting out the storm. My friends took tons of pictures as we passed him around.

Taking the time to just enjoy the moment, even when roughing it, made me appreciate the experience more, especially my friends. There is something to be said about shared misery I suppose.

Giving myself these extra few days to get my head straight has been critical for not only getting this blog post published, but also benefitted bigger picture thinking.

Ever since declaring foundation my yearly theme, I knew I’d eventually have a trial involving getting my sleep in order. Sleep is one of the most critical tasks we do, but often it’s easy to put it aside. After reigning in my todo list in the last trial, I decided it was a good time to set my sights on sleep. Coincidentally, I came across the ideas of The Four Pillar Plan a couple of weeks ago, and felt it would make a good framing device for a trial. Now, I’m not only getting my sleep in order, but adding small habits for relaxation, eating, and movement as well.

The Four Pillars

While the book, contains some opinions about modern medicine I don’t totally fall in line with, I do agree that the four areas laid out are a good start to what many would consider a healthy lifestyle. The titular four pillars are relaxation, diet, movement, and sleep.

Relaxation is something I was surprised to see, but it makes sense. Taking time to really decompress helps reduce the stress hormone cortisol. I was glad to see, at least in the summary I read, that no wild practices were recommended, but instead a simple meditation practice of counting breaths for a few minutes.

The next two pillars many will be more familiar with as common areas of monitoring health. Diet and exercise are what most people probably consider when thinking about their health.

In regards to diet, the advice was pretty simple: reduce sugar consumption and try eating meals in a 12 hour period. These are both practices I’ve tried in the past and saw positive gains. While my sugar intake has certainly normalized in the last year and change, I still loosely practice intermittent fasting.

I really enjoyed the recommendations for exercise, or movement as the author puts it. The word exercise conjures the image of a jogger or weightlifter, but here it’s recommended as simply to incorporate movement into daily life. This can be accomplished with walking when able or light calisthenics like squats or pushups a few times a day. The point isn’t to work out, but to allow our bodies to work in ways it is built for.

Finally, the pillar I see as the most important, though largely neglected, sleep. When we sleep, our bodies engage in a variety of important functions from waste cleaning to muscle repair and even managing hormones such as cortisol, ghrelin, and leptin. The latter two are involved in managing hunger.

Focus on Sleep

In the past week, I’ve been attempting with limited success to dial back my bedtime. I started with a target. To be in bed and trying to sleep by 11 PM. I eventually would like to fall closer to 10:30.

Last weekend, a friend made a comment to the effect of allowing himself to sleep in simply led to staying up later. It got me thinking about how a lot of my late night activity is looking at my habit list and trying to tackle anything I haven’t done yet. I thought back to when I tried waking up at 5 AM for a month, and remembered how satisfying it was to tackle a few items for the day first thing. While I have no plans to get up that early, making some time for myself before work to read or write can put an end to the late night habit rush.

My main focus as been working on a winddown routine starting by 10 PM. I avoid screen use, make a cup of tea, and read. The book recommends 90 minutes away from screens, but with how much I rely on technology for hobbies and interests, I’m hoping 60 will suffice. Admittedly, I did read an ebook for a portion of the week, but have shifted to a nice paperback for the time being. Finally, I brush my teeth and put on a YouTube video I’ve used for years to fall asleep. The hope is that performing these activities time and time again will help to prime my brain and body that it’s time to fall asleep.

The weekends may prove to be a problem area for me. This weekend alone started with a late night of staying on the computer followed by a long night out for a friends birthday. The latter of which resulted in sleeping after sunrise. Making the decision to prioritize sleep is something that is easier said than done.

On the opposite side of the day, I’ve gotten back to using an alarm app called Sleep Cycle. Instead of blaring an alarm at a given time, it attempts to determine the sleep stage you are in and wake you up during the lightest sleep of a 30 minute window. Not every morning has been perfect, but I feel like I’m less groggy in the mornings. Whether it’s the app, the nightly routine, a combination or neither, I’m hoping to continue chipping away at my bad sleep habits.

The Other Pillars

Sleep has been my focus, but the other pillars haven’t gone unnoticed.

I’ve had an odd relationship with relaxing for some time. Many days I’ve logged off of work and laid in bed looking for a YouTube video to winddown for a bit. Minutes later I find I’ve been scrolling through the home page just as mentally exhausted.

I’ve been trying to tackle two birds with one stone and shift this sedentary activity with a quick walk in the neighborhood. I’ve been taking regular walks during my lunch break, but adding them to the end of the day has helped shake some of that late afternoon fog.

Nutrition is the least of my concerns of all the areas, but I’ll continue to ponder ways I can utilize good habits or eliminate bad ones surrounding my diet. I’m sure there’s plenty I can work on, but it hasn’t been an area of concern like sleep or relaxation has for me.