Back to the Basics
The last 15 years or so of my life, I’ve had a distinctly parabolic use of gear, gadgets, and hacks of all varieties in my life. See my trajectory of “number of gadget x age” below.
When I was 18, optimizing anything was not on my mind. I was a simple guy with pretty straightforward ambitions. Throughout my 20s, my view of the world grew and I got hooked on the search for that new “thing” that would make my life better.
Sometimes it was a supplement I thought would make me stronger or lose fat faster. Other times it was a cooking gadget to help me prepare a particular dish. Often it was a new tool – new travel accessories, a massage gun, special alarm clock – to make some aspect of my life better.
This year, I’ve probably changed philosophically more than in any other year of life. I’m shifting back to the basics, but with much more awareness of what “the basics” should be.
This is something of a lengthy post, but if you are interested in 80/20 type introspection in your life, you may dig this. I’ll share the basic protocols I’m following/testing, as well as the minimalist gear and tools I’m using.
Post may contain affiliate links, which allow me to receive a small commission on purchases you decide to make.
Fitness
I’ve dabbled with all kinds of workout programs and with all kinds of gear. At the end of the day, fitness for me is about three things: strength, endurance, and flexibility.
You can gain strength in all sorts of ways (i.e., variations of lifting heavy things). For me, this means going back to the StrongLifts 5×5 training program that includes only squats, bench press, barbell rows, shoulder press, and deadlifts. These are all compound movements that cumulatively provide for a full-body workout, fluff-free.
This is a 3x/week deal that I can knock out in 30-45 minutes per session. Hard work, but easy to maintain.
Endurance is something I mix up a bit more. On a weekly basis, I’m doing two days of a brief, 15-minute HIIT ride on my Peloton. I hate cardio (and in fact don’t even value it much compared to resistance training), but know there are cardiovascular benefits.
Beyond that, I’ll incorporate “rucks” when the weather is nice enough to take the kids on a walk. That just means throwing 50 lbs on my back and pushing them in the stroller for a mile or so. I also ruck with a buddy of mine when he is in town from Kansas City.
Additionally, I usually do a half marathon, as well as a Spartan Race, throughout the year. Leading up to that sort of thing, I usually run once per week increasing mileage each time. Nothing fancy – realistically, I mostly suck it up and get a running event done rather than adequately prepare.
Increasing flexibility for me is pretty simple, though I have a long way to go on this front. First, for my weightlifting program, I am focusing on full range of motion. No half-way squats or cheating myself: full, deliberate range of motion.
I noticed an increase in hip mobility a year or two ago when I first started squatting. But even then, I was cheating myself on range of motion. Now I will be much more methodical.
Second, I spend 15-20 minutes before bed, five nights a week, stretching. I use the YOGABODY program. It is simple, cost-effective, and easy to do just about anywhere. Two months in, I’m already seeing results.
Eating
As a serial experimenter, I’ve tried a lot of diets and ways of eating. About the only thing I haven’t tried is anything similar to veganism; I’d rather eat cardboard than go without meat.
The problem for me has always been finding something 1) nutrient-dense, 2) satiating, 3) and sustainable.
As I’ve dug into the work of Dr. Shawn Baker and Dr. Paul Saladino, I’ve come to believe that we have been misled (often intentionally, I suspect) on the health benefits of plants and the health consequences of animal foods (e.g., beef, eggs, milk).
My diet now consists 100% of meat (mainly beef), organs (mainly beef liver, bone marrow, and bone broth), eggs, raw milk, and Greek yogurt. I will very occasionally eat fruit or honey, but never vegetables, processed sugars, or seed oils, the latter three of which most people consume lots of on a “healthy diet.”
I feel the best I ever have, have unintentionally lost about 10 lbs of (mostly) body fat, and actually enjoy every meal I eat. My cravings for junk food are effectively gone, and my only cheats are the occasional glass of whiskey and my daily coffee.
Humans have flourished on meat for thousands of years. Heart disease and various other conditions we suffer from today were largely non-existent 100 years ago before Crisco, Oreos, and other processed foods were introduced.
To summarize, I’m keeping it simple: water, meat, organs, eggs, and raw dairy. Back to the basics.
General Health
Besides working out and eating what I believe to be right, I’m making minor adjustments to other areas of health:
- Getting as much sun as possible. I don’t use sunscreen, which I view to be a poison and only helpful for long, long bouts in the sun or for people with lots of sugar and seed oils in their diets.
- Spending time outside whenever possible. For me, this can include walks with the kids, cutting the grass, or even just sitting in the hot tub. I like the idea of access to fresh air that isn’t being recirculated throughout my house.
- Waking up early. Having some quiet time in the mornings to read, journal, and wake my body up with a few minutes of yoga has been nice. I shoot for peaceful mornings, nothing crazy.
- Limiting alcohol. I like a good glass of bourbon so I’m trying to limit that to only social occasions or a glass on Friday or Saturday nights.
- Changing up little things. Two easy examples: I use deodorant and mouthwash. But now, instead of using chemical-based products, I use a mineral salt deodorant (I’ll put on Old Spice when I’m leaving the house to see other people because it prevents odors better) and a homemade mouthwash made with just water, baking soda, and a few drops of peppermint oil. Again, not hacks, just simpler replacements of products I already use.
Clothing
My wardrobe has been simple for quite some time, but I’ve even narrowed down the already limited range of apparel options recently. Assume for a wedding or funeral or special occasion I pull out something nice, but this should give you a sense of my every day, decision-free attire.
Around the house (and anywhere I can go casual), I wear the same thing every single day. I wear my gray L2 Brands t-shirt (or tank top during the summer) with either sweatshorts from Vuori or my Public Rec joggers, depending on weather, season, or temperature of our house.
When I leave the house for anything beyond “very casual”, I standardize on Levi’s 505 jeans (because they actually fit me, hallelujah). I’ll keep on my gray shirt for casual, or throw on one of my several identical-except-for-color J. Crew polos that I got on sale for $22 a piece (e.g., church).
I’m beginning to rotate out my old shoes and boots in favor of Vivobarefoot’s options. Vivobarefoot sells shoes designed to mimic walking barefoot while providing a layer of protection and ensuring you don’t look like a caveman living in the modern world.
Again, the point is simplicity. No fluff.
Work
I shared my home office setup in a blog post a few months back that provides a bit more detail on this.
Long story short, I’m down to a single monitor, a desktop speaker, a basic web cam, and a microphone at my desk.
Now, I didn’t slack on quality. I got a nice standing desk and my microphone is the same one that Joe Rogan uses. Something I learned from my dad is that you should “buy a third as much, but three times as nice.” Many people, myself included at times, have lots of things… that constantly break or become quickly obsolete.
You’re better off with a nice desk, mic, monitor, and computer that will last for years than equipment that constantly requires maintenance or replacing. Quality over quantity.
Relational
I’ll qualify the relational segment by admitting that almost none of which I am describing here has yet to take shape. But it is a new goal for me.
I realized early this week as I was journaling that I have a big challenge in my life that didn’t exist three years ago.
Until the middle of 2019, my work always involved an office full of people. With this environment came built-in social opportunities – morning basketball with co-workers before work, happy hours, etc.
My brother and I then worked together for another two years. He’d come over to my house Monday through Friday and we’d collaborate in the basement. On Fridays, we’d have a beer together and hang out for a bit. But once COVID hit (so just eight months after we started our business), he went to work from home until we figured out the risk of the pandemic. It ended up just staying that way until we sold our business last year.
I’m a rather introverted guy. What I’ve noticed is that while I don’t necessarily get energy from hanging out with people, I do get energy from being in energy-rich environments where people are doing things.
As I write this, I am alone in my basement office with headphones on and almost no natural light streaming in. Most days have been like this for me since 2020.
Here is my “back to the basics” with relationships. Even us introverts need people around from time to time.
Tonight, we are having a couple over for cocktails that we’ve never spent any real time with before. My goal is to make a habit of having people over once every week or two. Relationships are crucial and, as much as I love hanging out with my wife every night at home, we, as people, need more.
All this is to say that:
- Relationships are important for humans
- Relationships require consistency
- Relationships demand attention
I don’t want my wife and I to be 80 years old one day, have kids move away, and not have anyone around to keep us young and having fun. That all starts with adding some density to our relationships now.
Finances
Finances are one of the most common problems in marriage, or so I’m told. They haven’t been for Alex and I, but the last year or so we’ve seen our spending needlessly move in an upward direction.
At the same time, we are watching our dollars become worth less and less as goofballs at the Fed and in Congress have jacked around with monetary policy and reckless spending.
How to escape the trap of over-spending while simultaneously hedging against inflation, you ask? There is no perfect solution, but we’ve found our best answer in the FOLD debit card.
The FOLD card allows you to transfer cash to it in a variety of ways and has an intuitive app for viewing your available balance. Additionally, you earn bitcoin as your reward for the card.
I’m killing two birds with one stone. I can’t spend money I don’t have with the FOLD card and I’m passively acquiring the hardest money ever invented in bitcoin (there will only ever be 21 million bitcoin; do you know with any certainty how many dollars there are or how many more will be printed?).
In addition to moving off of credit cards and toward earning bitcoin, we continue a practice that we’ve done for quite some time now.
Every Sunday night, we have a reminder alert us to do our “weekly purchases.” Throughout the week, we’ll add to a shared list of “potential purchases” – groceries we need, clothing items for the kids, miscellaneous stuff from Target (I’m looking at you, my dear bride).
When we sit down together and place orders on Instacart, Shipt, and Amazon all at once, we can readily see what we are spending in a given week. Ideally, we’ve made 90%+ of the weeks’ purchases in a single, transparent meeting.
This kind of system takes us back to the basics of finances; visibility into our expenditures and passive accumulation of an important financial tool (bitcoin).
These are just a few examples of ways I’m reintroducing myself to the fundamentals. This year, I’ve taken a lot of the needless bells and whistles out of my life to focus on what is most effective, and most important.
There will be more changes to come, and refinement is a never-ending process. As Antoine de Saint-Exupéry wisely observed:
“Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.”
Any thoughts on other areas of life could I simply? Send me your thoughts at michael@theothermichaeljordan.com. I hope to hear from you.
Comments
One Comment
So good M!