The healthy habits thread

[Drew]

I love to tell this story about saying "no" in business because it involves the only metric business cares about (aka, $$$). A quarter century or so ago I got promoted to an upper management position at an audio-visual production company. I'd spent the previous 6 or 7 years working for this company as an audio engineer, so I was quite familiar with how the business worked, what our clients wanted/needed, and what the pain-points in terms of fulfillment were. A year or two prior to my promotion my predecsssor had implemented an explicit policy: "We Say 'No' To Nothing!" Basically whatever the client wanted, we did, no questions asked.

The very first thing I did upon taking over that position was announce that our corporate mantra was no longer "We Say 'No' To Nothing!" ...from now on it would be "Know When To Say 'No'!"

Revenue was up 20% after just one year of this new policy.
:dancing banana:

Precisely. I found it’s helped me professionally, as now my customers and co-workers can trust me. IE, if I say I’ll handle it… it’s going to happen. If I say “no,” that’s usually followed by reprioritization options to make it happen, an explanation of why it can’t happen, or a delayed schedule that fits against current priorities. Two-way trust is the key. Say no, but politely…

[bcm119]

I have a case of Sierra Nevada Hop Splash delivered to my door from the brewery every month as a subscription with free shipping. I still drink real beer, but reach for the Hop Splash after a couple now. It has nothing but sparkling water and hops (amarillo and citra), no flavors, no sugar, no alcohol etc. Absolutely delicious (if you love hops) and far superior to farting around with NA "beer", imho. I'm sure it has a place in your plan.

I second the recs to walk a lot. I discovered walking/hiking only in the past 5 years as an activity with literally no downsides, as opposed to other activities I do that carry some risk. I particularly like that it's impossible to become competitive about walking, which is a very healthy thing for me.

[monadnocky]

I remember once being at a party and downing a Beck's, then another, then another, and so on. After about the fourth beer, when I was starting to feel pretty buzzed, it was only then I noticed that the beer tasted just a little different... and a closer inspection of the label showed why - it was an NA beer. I was stunned because I really thought I was feeling it.
I'm not saying that the effect of alcohol is completely subjective (or even mostly so). But the brain plays weird tricks. If I'm coming home from work and I really want a beer and there's just no point in having alcohol that late in the day, I have one from Athletic Brewing Company - all their brews are NA and they're all really amazing. Not "amazing for an NA beer" - just really good regardless. I'm not necessarily trying to trick my brain into thinking I'm drinking something with alcohol, but after a can (or even two), that desire is just gone.
Now, if I can only duplicate that effect with my desire for a few fingers of Whistle Pig...

[robin3mj]

I am all in on HopLark products (like the Sierra one aforementioned) because they don’t try to be beer but their own thing entirely. I subscribe to their monthly explorer series which uses different varieties and blends of hops and usually order another 12 pack of whatever strikes my fancy any given month. Their basic mosaic and citra iterations are nice.

Will probably up my purchasing to 36 cans/mo going forward.

[htwoopup]

I remember once being at a party and downing a Beck's, then another, then another, and so on. After about the fourth beer, when I was starting to feel pretty buzzed, it was only then I noticed that the beer tasted just a little different... and a closer inspection of the label showed why - it was an NA beer. I was stunned because I really thought I was feeling it.
I'm not saying that the effect of alcohol is completely subjective (or even mostly so). But the brain plays weird tricks.

That is actually how I found I had intestine issues. I was a huge bourbon drinker. Could down a bunch with no seemingly ill effects. Had two NA beers at a lunch one day because I was driving afterwards. Got absolutely hammered which made no sense. Had a doctor appointment anyway the next day. Told her about it. She sent me to allergy doc. Found out I have major digestive allergy issues with hops and all kinds of other things. Hence, no more alcohol/ sugar/ way back on sugary starches.

So, it may not just be your mind it may be physical. At least it was for me.

[SlowPokePete]

This thread is literally fucking killing me while me while on vacation.

lol

SPP

[Tom]

Me too. I'm six weeks from retirement if I live that long. Up at 2am to capture trace data for a network problem, analyze it and then do my own job the rest of the day. Make dinner far enough to knives away, glass of wine at first opportunity. This is going to end.

[bigbill]

Me too. I'm six weeks from retirement if I live that long. Up at 2am to capture trace data for a network problem, analyze it and then do my own job the rest of the day. Make dinner far enough to knives away, glass of wine at first opportunity. This is going to end.

I had planned to work through this fall and then retire before the holidays. When I was hired as the engineering manager in 2018, they kept the guy I replaced and put him under me. It hamstrung me for four years. I was never allowed to take ownership of my departments (engineering and maintenance) because I couldn't get rid of the guy. He was a decent enough guy, and my boss liked him, but he accomplished almost nothing while working eleven-hour days. It was like I had an unfilled engineering position for four years.

My son graduated from USNA in May. I returned from the grad trip with a new outlook on enjoying life. Another factor was some friends in the past few years who either died young or were diagnosed with some kind of severe illness. I am a retired naval officer so I have a decent pension plus retirement accounts. I decided to retire in the third week of July. My boss was pissed, but I owed him and the company nothing. I gave a four-week notice. I miss the cash flow, my jobs since retiring from the military have paid well, but I'm financially good. I'm going to enjoy life, teach some community education classes at the community college, and spend my summers in Wyoming.

[Mark Kelly]

Also- it’s an expensive habit, but if fill your gut with enough Kombucha you won’t want anything additional fermented in there, in my experience.

Just be careful that the fermented drink is actually alcohol free: a couple of years ago I measured a friend's brew which she claimed was non alcoholic, it came out at 2.7% ABV.

This was water kefir based rather than kombucha but several sources have confirmed that kombucha can also be alcoholic: it depends on the balance between the activities of the yeasts and bacteria present: yeasts mostly make alcohol, bacteria mostly make acids, sometimes doing so from the alcohol.

[robin3mj]

Still doing well and feeling good here. Had about 1.5 beers in NY with my sister and her husband over the weekend and wasn't really feeling it, which means hopefully some of the healthy changes are beginning to stick. Down a few pounds and working in more quick workouts when I don't have time for something more substantial.

[bigbill]

For me, it was food. I was in Fargo last week presenting my thesis at a history conference. Since I was eating in restaurants, I had many more choices than normal. Fargo is about midwest comfort food. I had pancakes smothered with butter, twice. There was a Jewish deli down the street (Bernbaum's) that had an excellent cold brisket sandwich with a horseradish schmear, chopped pickles, and dill on a focaccia roll. I had that twice. I had german sausage and pierogis in a butter sriracha sauce for dinner the first night. I was walking seven to ten thousand steps a day so I think that was some offset. Every meal outside the conference involved at least a 20-minute walk each way. A day after returning from the conference, my weight was within half a pound of what it was before Fargo.

I think the habits I've built in the last eight months have been the biggest impact on my health. At the grocery, I park at the far end of the parking lot, and after putting my groceries away, I return the cart to the pen closest to the store. I also get a cart from the parking lot to use. I started doing that during covid because this is Arizona, and a cart sitting in sunny 100+ temps is likely cleaner than anything wiped down with disinfectant. I did a 30 minute walk this morning and hopefully get a mtb ride in this afternoon if it doesn't rain.

[Mabouya]

Me too. I'm six weeks from retirement if I live that long. Up at 2am to capture trace data for a network problem, analyze it and then do my own job the rest of the day. Make dinner far enough to knives away, glass of wine at first opportunity. This is going to end.

This ^^^^^ prompted me to take a look at my 401k balance - I hadn't checked in quite a while.

Let's just say that it isn't quite where it was in January.

[aingeru]

a lot of interesting advice here BUT, I believe the key is finding what your substance or behavior of abuse is "giving" you. It does not matter if it is drinking, gambling, shopping, using heroin it all comes to the same. That is the reason why some people get addicted and others do not to the same "stimulus".Don't know if I explained myself...the is this canadian guy named Gabor Maté who wrote a book called "In the real of hungry ghosts". Fantastic reading, a lot of interviews to find also on youtube

[Scott G.]

Me too. I'm six weeks from retirement if I live that long. Up at 2am to capture trace data for a network problem, analyze it and then do my own job the rest of the day. Make dinner far enough to knives away, glass of wine at first opportunity. This is going to end.

switch(config)# interface range fa0/1 - 48

switch(config-if-range)# shut

Repeat as needed, remember users are just a test load on the system.
User error: please insert new user.

[bigbill]

This ^^^^^ prompted me to take a look at my 401k balance - I hadn't checked in quite a while.

Let's just say that it isn't quite where it was in January.

I have two years for the market to recover.

[Tom]

To think I grumbled about the interest we were getting on the savings account and a couple CDs. That quarter of a percent is looking pretty good right now!

[fastupslowdown]

My new healthy habit is i decided to give up sugar. Sort of a 5783 new year's resolution. I don't even miss it. Once i decided it was not a big deal. I'm not worried about my alcohol consumption, to me this was where I thought a change in diet would make the most bang for the buck. It's been almost a week now -Mike

[rmplum]

I'm also a big fan of the Sierra Nevada Hop Splash and Lagunitas Hoppy Refresher. They really do hit the spot on those nights where I'd have otherwise cracked an IPA or two and then slept like $h!t.

Another one to look for (but harder to find) is Shorts Brewery's Thirst Mutilator. Dumb name, but the hops along with the lemon/lime essence is pretty darn delicious.

Great thread.

Ryan

[gt6267a]

Countries in Europe (and elsewhere) that require zero blood alcohol levels for driving have spawned some nice non-alcoholic beers. When we were in Iceland, waiters at a couple nice restaurants offered a non-alcoholic beer when everyone else ordered beer or a mixed drink. There were also herbal infusions that offered non-alcoholic alternatives to mixed drinks, and those were creative enough that some in our group switched to those. I thought it was a nice recognition of the concept of “refreshment” versus intoxication or self-medication as a way to unwind at the end of the day. I have not seen anything similar to that approach in the US.

I find most restaurants with a decent bartender will make anything you like. This includes creative and tasty mocktails. When my wife was pregnant she tried them all around town. In a few places, I might have liked her faux beverage to the full octane version. A few restaurants here have them on the menu. Otherwise, a simple request and its yours.

[fastupslowdown]

I limit my alcohol to one glass of wine with dinner, contrary to Mae West too much of a good thing is NOT wonderful. I see nothing fun out of getting drunk. -Mike G