Obesity Thrills

Caped cats and other nerdy things.

[obfk]

The IF Diet

The IF Diet by Robert Skinner is a quick and easy read filled with valuable information about a dietary framework known as Intermittent Fasting. The underlying concept with IF is that our bodies have been built with the concept of feast and famine in mind - and in fact, our bodies thrive best when there are longer periods of time in which we forego eating anything at all. 

Skinner outlines several popular methods for fasting, which include a number of variations for fasting. These methodologies range from daily fasts, where you skip breakfast or dinner and piggyback on top of your “built in fasting” time, also known as sleeping. There are additional variations to complement other lifestyles, many of which can be hybridized to suit your needs.

Perhaps most interesting to me, was the valuable insight about the benefits that accompany intermittent fasting. Studies have shown that people on low calorie diets (IF) live longer than their food-shoveling counterparts. Intermittent fasting also promotes better insulin sensitivity, lower rates of cancer, higher levels of human growth hormone and  brain-derived neurotrophic factor as well as lower levels of visceral fat.

This book is a quick and easy read that’s filled with practical information pertaining to IF. Skinner covers the the what, why and how with ease. There’s bound to be something here for all of us to draw upon, in our post-famine world where food is to be found in relative abundance. IF can’t help but make me wonder if there was some validity towards the old ways, which very well may hold the key to unlocking a new level of dietary potential

[obfk]

Introvert’s Ramblings

I can’t say that I’ve ever considered myself a loner or total introvert in any fashion whatsoever, but I’ve definitely been known to “disappear” for a few days at a time where I shameless play games and eat pizza alone, or with close friends. It’s mostly been a mechanism to recharge. However as time has progressed, I’ve become not only more aware of my “alone time”, but also my diminishing desires to be alone...introverted if you will.

A big part of what’s made my love of interacting with people more pronounced over the past few months, I believe to be in large part due to my time spent pair programming every single day. It’s a continual process that requires constant communication and vocalization between your partner, which for some introverts may very well sound like their worst day. I’ll certainly admit, I had my doubts at times. However, any reservations that I had, are certainly gone now.

This isn’t really a discussion about the merits of pairing, but rather my progress through a more introverted progression towards extroversion. When you work with people in this capacity, you are forced to either run from this discomfort, or to embrace it. I’ve choosen the later. Extroversion isn’t the only added benefit, there’s also a seemly improved sense of communication, and in general, a desire to communicate.

The journey continues.

[obfk]

Figure 1-1. Cat with fruit.

[thesociologist-blog]

Why is love a social construct? Love is an emotion and emotions do exist.

Love as a physiological reaction, a feeling, or an emotion is real. And the evolutionary psychology and biological basis of love cannot be denied. But our understanding, conception, and expectation of love is certainly a social construction (see: Anne E. Beall’s The Social Construction of Love).

Philosophically, when expressed in whatever metaphysical manner, love loses its value. This is an rookie offshoot from Barthes’ Lover’s Discourse: when love becomes a discourse, “I” am reduced to a projection of “your” thoughts. And what about thoughts? Because thoughts are not feelings, and anything that is expressed comes in the form of language and semiotics, which are both socially learned. And the cycle repeats.

The novelist Natsume Soseki once told his student off for using “I love you,” in writing, stating that it is meaningless. Instead he said, “Tsuki ga tottemo aoi naa” (‘今夜月色很好’, ‘The moon is so blue tonight’) is a better expression. And I guess that is true, speak your feelings, not just use the L word that has been embedded in our brains from whichever cultural framework we are drowning in.

I am going to cheat and redirect you to a thread on Quora which has much more to offer on this topic. Thank you for this message.

[artmania-feed]

ART PRINTS BY MIKE GOTTSCHALK 

The Universe

The Galaxy

The Solar System

The Earth

Voyager 1

We Can Look Into the Past

Also available as canvas prints, T-shirts, Phone cases, Throw pillows, and More!

[obfk]

Ride the Dao

You're traveling, your backpacking, you're free from work and time - stepping away from the idea of a rigid agenda and timeline. It's not about how much you pack in, or selfies you can get, it's not about knowing what you're doing everyday, it's about riding the Dao. Moving like water, forward with fluidity.

[obfk]

Necessity of Busy

Hustle and bustle. That’s the way of things in this world. There’s an itch to be doing, making, building, fixing, producing. When one stops doing such, there’s a void that occurs (although vacations may occur from time to time) which can only be fueled through the process of doing. Staying busy as they call it, is the remedy for many a situation.

[obfk]

The Future of Cars

Personal car ownership has, since the start of owning a car, been an iconic aspect of being an America. The freedom afforded to oneself through the ownership of a vehicle, along with the limitless combination of routes, routinely makes for the backdrop of a countless movies. However the automobile as we know, is destine to die. Soon.

Personal automobiles are soon to be replaced with self-driving cars, which by all accounts will defeat the necessity of owning a car at all. To add insult to injury, cities are thriving, this in turn will result in smarter and more eco-friendly transportation options for the masses (beyond self-driving cars). This includes public transit, dedicated biking lanes, and pedestrian friendly cities.

Owning a car may make sense now, but for the life of me, I can’t really see the point of buying a new car, or investing all that much in a car at all. They’re certainly useful, although investing great sums of money in an object that will be obsolete soon seems absurd. With the off chance that older cars may be retrofit, even still it will be dated technology at that point.

[obfk]

DONE

I’m about ready to be done with this writing every day thing. I feel like it’s a total waste of time, that really isn’t amounting to much. By and large, it feels as if the “dialog” that occurs when writing is by and large lacking in critical thought and worth. Most situations, when it comes time to write, I often finding myself writing about the mundane, the trivial, or the worthless. It’s becoming a chore that I typically don’t devote a significant amount of time to.

Am I done? No clue. It certainly feels that way.

[obfk]

First find the problem

First and foremost, before attempting to solve any problem, one must find the source of the said problem. Jumping directly to a solution without first contemplating the root cause of an issue, will most certainly lead to: 1) creating new problems, 2) never truly addressing the original and underlying issue. So next time there’s a problem, lets not rush to a “solution” but rather rush to the source of the originating problem. Lets understand the SHIT out of what caused the problem in the first place, then once we’ve solidified that ground, we can move forward towards brainstorming solutions.

[obfk]

Cats

There's almost nothing better than having a fat, plump, juicy cat on your lap, purring away in blissful and infinite content. Baskets of kittens, majestic mountains filled with majestic beasts of lore. Their pink little noses carefully inspecting the air, their little shanks flailing about.

[obfk]

GCD

We're all only as good as our lowest common denomination. In other words, true character shows not in the best of times, but the worst of times. It's only when we're placed into the limbo state of discomfort, disinformation, or disgust that we truly begin to see what constitutes oneself. 

[obfk]

Bike

There's seriously something so wonderfully gratifying about being able to get around with nothing more than a bike and a bus pass. Especially now that the weather is starting to warm up, riding around is becoming that much easier. A car is great, and still not something I'd wish to give up by any means, however, it lacks the same satisfactory pleasure that comes along with riding ones bike. Interestingly, I think it's safe to assume that in the city, riding your bike is faster than driving in most situations. Traffic gets worse everyday, as does parking, and as such, biking makes more and more sense.

You can purchase a high end set of bikes for a fraction of the cost of a cheap car, and further more, you can maintain them all yourself. The benefits of riding go far beyond saving money at the pump, especially if you consider the fact that you're getting a free workout every time you ride (so much for that expensive gym membership). Granted there is one large caveat here, you need to be within riding distance of your work. For me I'm not, but that doesn't stop me. Half ride, half bus, no headache, just fresh air and free thoughts.

[obfk]

1/5

A fifth of the year is nearly over, which if you actually think about it, is pretty mind boggling. For me it's a reflective moment that prompts a very important question - what has been accomplished, and what lays ahead. If this is truly to be the year in which "things get done," I should propose an accurate system of measurement of which I may quantitatively gauge my progress.

Goals for the next fifth include two primary objectives: start a business, and travel. These are undoubtably the most valuable things to me at this moment time, for a number of reasons. Travel opens doors to new ideas, new experiences, and new ways of thought. It is an experience that cannot be rivaled in any other form. Running my own business(es), is another incredibly gratifying process, which ultimately has the potential to fuel complete control and freedom of monetary processes of work fulfilled through impartial employment.

Both goals, are symbolic of choice and of freedom. Fly or flounder, that's entirely up to you.

[obfk]

DST

Hooray for Daylight Savings Time! Today marks the point at which you can get home after work, and it's not complete dark and depressing. Spring is coming, summer is close, warm nights and long days are just around the corner. Today is one of my favorite days of the year.

[obfk]

IF

Intermittent fasting is something that we all do. Every time you head to bed, you typically fast for 10+ hours, so when I say I'm including an intermittent fasting regiment into my daily routine, it's really just code for me adding a few more hours on top of my already existent and very real fasting schedule. The goal with IF for me is simple: simplify.

I'm continually looking at different aspects of my life that can be simplified. For me, the constraints of dieting have never really been an issue, in that regard I've been fairly genetically endowed. Calories, weight loss, or LDL numbers have never been part of implementing the intermittent fasting protocol. There are some fairly well document indicators of the health benefits associated with IF, the big one for me is increased insulin responsivity. 

However by and large, the biggest benefit of skipping breakfast, and eating big from 12-8ish, is the simplification of my life. Rather than waking up, scrambling to get a decent tasting breakfast in, shower, etc. I simply wake up, take a cold shower, drink a cup of hot lemon water and get on my way. This seems small, but the added sleeping times makes a world of difference. 

The less mundane and trivial choices I need to make, the more I can focus on the things that really matter. I'm feeling more alert, more healthy, and more free to do things that exist outside of the monotonous. IF is here to stay. 

[obfk]

Lemon Water - DAY 1

Caffeine isn't the problem, in fact it isn't any problem. The stuff simply doesn't work anymore. So here I am, about to embark on a 14 day lemon water challenge (paired with intermittent fasting, which I'll cover later today). The idea is to drink a hot piping cup of lemon enhanced water each morning, in place of coffee. While there are a number of proposed reason to why lemon water is so great for you, I won't cover them here. They're all fairly available on the web.

As for how I feel, that's yet to be fully determined, however my stomach is already thanking me for avoiding the abrasive coffee right off the bat. Just to be clear, I have no intention of never having coffee again, but for all intents and purposes I'm going to stick to hot lemon water for the next couple weeks. We'll see what happens!