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One nice thing about having been doing this for a few months now is that I'm starting to get into my groove. A rhythm of writing these that makes it easier to get my fingers on the keyboard and let them loose. At the beginning I often either meticulously plotted out what I wanted to say, and I still do think doing that results in more unique pieces. Either that, or I was afraid to let my mind meander on; would that still produce anything of any value?

It took me far too long to realize my biggest asset when it comes to writing topics is my own life. I'm always out doing something interesting, now more than ever. I don't need to plan out some lengthy diatribe on the process of planning and it's impacts; just documenting and commenting on my stream of activities gives me plenty to say.

In a way it makes me more attentive and appreciative to what's going on around me as well. I used to imagine my life as a TV show, with myself as my primary audience. The idea was to keep things fresh and interesting; to remind myself that above all else I want to have fun out there. Now that I'm also actually writing about things, my audience has suddenly drastically expanded. That doesn't change the fundamental philosophy though, of doing fun and unique things. To become, no matter what, interesting.

It honestly has been a marked improvement to my quality of life. I spend my time looking for the beauty in things. Trying to be receptive to interesting ideas. Before the world would flow through me and I might not have noticed; now I look for and pick out all of its most interesting tidbits to share with the internet. It's true that there might be a lot of low hanging fruit to get out of my system. However if I ever do feel compelled to write 1000 words about how I pick my socks that means I'll never have to write about that again. In this respect I feel like the quality of these can only improve as time goes on, especially when you take into account that I'll be refining my writing style as well.

Lately I've been thinking about working out. Not starting to work out, as I imagine many endlessly struggle with, but just tinkering with my routine and goals. It really is marvelous though to see the transformational power of exercise. As they say, if exercise was a pill it would be the one of greatest miracle drugs in the history of medicine. Simply put, it does actually make you feel good.

There's something that medidation practitioners say when explaining the benefits of what they teach. That meditation teachs you how to live in the present, how to to appreciate and experience the current moment. That it's good for overthinkers and people who are stuck in their heads worrying about the future or the past. If I were to recommend exercise I think I might use a similar approach.

You see, we happen to exist inside of a fleshy lump of tissue, bone, and organic gunk we call our body. Yes it's true, if you look down you might even notice that you have one yourself. Contrary to popular opinion, you are not just the small hunk of grey goop nestled safely in the confines of your skull. You are your beating heart, your swinging arms, your digestive system and your tiny toes. All of that is you, and all of that can be inhabited.

There's a certain connection to our phisicality that is impossible to forge without significant dedication to some kind of exercise. A sport or the gym or a physical hobby. When you do this kind of stuff for a while you find yourself sinking out of your head and into whatever lies below. You inhabit the empty space between your heart and your lungs, the little cracks between your fingers; you clear out the dust and the cobwebs from what should be a well oiled machine.

Because our bodies are how we connect to the world, inhabiting your body lets you better inhabit the world. Getting from place to place transforms from a chore to be grudgingly completed to an excuse to let your body free and express yourself (note: this probably does not apply if you drive everywhere you go). Physical obstacles in your path give you an excuse to unleash your body and let it go wild. This in itself is a remarkably meditative experience. One of the few ways to truly turn your brain off and simply live is to stick it someplace inside your muscles and force it to think of nothing more than the next step to take.

You see, it's hard to even imagine what this feels like until you experience it. It is a shame for a man to grow old without seeing the beauty and strength of which his body is capable. Even discounting any actual muscle growth, repeatedly pushing yourself to your limits gives your mind a high speed connection directly to your muscles and keeps you constantly in tune with them. Your range of motion will expand, your perceived strength will increase, and just existing in the world will become much easier.

There is a longstanding human tradition of exercising and becoming stronger. Your countless ancestors never touched an electronic device and most of them might not have even mastered the art of reading and writing. However, working out is a common thread that binds all of humanity. You could be transported 2000 years into the past and despite the massive gulf in language and culture they could understand the universal experience of athleticism. Building muscle is a skill that there is no shortcut to, and throughout all of history this fact has never changed. And unless we ascend to our robo-gene edited-cyborg-ai powered future this doesn't seem like it will be changing anytime soon.

So, it's time to start lifting bro. Or at least break a sweat now and then. Appreciate that every bit of struggle brings you a little bit closer to understanding your body and yourself.