About 20 years ago, researchers took ~200 adults and weighed them before, during, and after the holiday season. At the post-holiday season weigh-in, most participants tipped the scales by an additional 1+ pound(s) of fat. While that seems harmless enough, it doesn't tell the whole story.

 

Weighing these participants a year later (before the next holiday season), the researchers found that the weight put on during the previous holiday season wasn't lost, rather they were even slightly heavier than their post-holiday season weight. (r)

 

"The good news is that most people are not gaining five or six pounds during the holidays, but the bad news is that weight gained over the winter holidays isn't lost during the rest of the year." 

 

– Jack Yanovsky, MD, head of Growth and Obesity at the National Institute of Health and author of the study.

 

These few pounds put on every holiday season add up year-after-year, leading to the sequalae of medical problems associated with metabolic dysfunction like heart disease, diabetes, and cancers.

 

To enjoy the Holiday Season and not ruin your body/health, here's a couple tips:

 

 

After polishing off your 3rd piece of pumpkin pie...avoid the self-dialog that goes like: "What's the point of getting back to my normal routine...I'll just get back on track after the New Year." 

 

Don't let a little over-indulgence turn into a month of poor eating. The "what-the-hell effect" aka, counter regulatory eating, is particularly strong for those who are generally the most strict about their diet. (r)

 

Take advantage:

 

While I don't recommend a prolonged hypercaloric diet filled with junk (called a "dirty bulk" in the bodybuilding world), at least take advantage of the excess energy and use it to build some muscle by not missing any resistance training (in fact, turn it up!). Combine this with a diet strategy of filling up on protein (shoot for 1g/lb of bodyweight), and you'll limit the negative consequences of some poor food choices. 
 

 

 

The Productivity Paradox

Work longer, get less done. Parkinson's Law says that work expands to fill the time available for its completion. When you establish fixed hours to your work, you find unproductive ways to fill it. Work (and eat) like a lion instead—sprint, rest, repeat.

 

 

Archimedes said, "Give me a lever long enough and a fulcrum on which to place it, and I shall move the world."

 

Leverage is the difference between recording a lecture once and putting it on YouTube where millions of people watch it versus giving that lecture millions of times.

 

Here are 50 levers to amplify your impact : effort ratio.

 

 

I love the idea of creating our own personal dashboard. On this dashboard you can clearly see your main goal(s), but more importantly, you track your "inputs," those things you actually have control over, that either move the needle towards your objective or not. With this dashboard in place, you can then objectively evaluate whether the inputs are working or if you need to change course.

 

 

This video seems "duh" but highlights what I knew was a mistake when setting out on my 2021 Challenge where I set arbitrary revenue goals for two businesses without an accompanying metric that I had control of and could measure. At the start of the challenge I acknowledged it was a flaw, but went with it anyhow. A goal without a trackable system is throwing darts in the dark. 

 

 

 

– Donald Kaberuka

 

 

I really enjoyed reading through these 2 twitter threads:

 

 

The economic environment is such that even the most connected like Tim, who could call up most any investor on the planet, don't know what to do. We live in a world where, for the 1st time ever, a company (Rivian) is valued over $100 billion with less than $1 million in revenue. How do you save for the future when everything seems wildly overvalued? Based on the comments in the threads, the consensus is bitcoin.

 

 

The winners of the 2021 Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards.

 

A Saturday morning roundup on health and wealth, art and science, creativity and innovation, laughs and life by Kevin Stock.