Five wellness things I liked lately - September
Here are 5 health & wellness things I’ve loved lately.
This podcast episode of Peter Attia in conversation with Oliver Burkeman. Oliver’s book - Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals - is one of my all time favorite books and one that I have recommended to many friends. I find it difficult to distill its essence, (generally dislike telling people what books are “about” anyway) but what I can say is that I found it profoundly touching and dare I say, life changing. I come back to it often, trying to capture (and failing to embody) one of its central ideas: that time is not something we have, but something we are. Peter does an amazing job at getting Oliver to expand on many insights from the book, particularly his fascinating take on meaning and purpose. I highly recommend the podcast, book, and Oliver’s series on the Waking Up app.
The now famous blog post from Sam Altman on how to be successful. Some of his observations are not groundbreaking (as is the case with most great ideas). But how pleasant it is to be reminded of them from someone who possess the (surprisingly) rare quality of expressing their thoughts in a simple and concise manner. Here are some of my highlights:
The ketone water by HVMN for a caffeine-free energy boost and to curb stress-induced food cravings. Ketones are generally a more efficient source of energy than glucose as they can produce more power while using less oxygen. You can reach natural ketosis through fasting or by eating a very low carb diet - practices I don’t encourage most women to engage in unless metabolically unhealthy. For that reason, I prefer occasionally supplementing with exogenous ketones (the aforementioned ketone water) to mimic some of the benefits of producing my own ketones such as improved focus and energy.
Speaking of food cravings, the number one strategy for improving satiety is to eat enough protein for your weight, age and level of physical activity. That amount is usually higher than standard recommendations which are designed to give you a rough estimate of the minimal amount of protein you need to not eat into your own muscle mass. I find that around 1 gram of protein per lb. of body weight is usually needed to improve body composition, stabilize blood sugar and reduce food cravings. For someone who weighs 130 lbs. that means consuming 130 grams of protein per day, ideally split into 3-4 servings of around 30 grams each. The most complete sources of protein are fish (preferably wild caught), poultry (ideally pasture raised), lean cuts of red meat (grass-fed), eggs, a high quality whey protein isolate (my all time favorite is Made Of) as well as legumes, nuts and seeds. For me, the easiest way to make sure I’m getting all the protein I need is to start my day with a high protein and high fiber smoothie and then have a variation of fish/ chicken/ eggs with lots of veggies for both lunch and dinner. I try to eat 90% whole foods and avoid packaged and processed foods like the plague. But sometimes I do find high quality foods/ snacks that although come in packages, contain minimally processed ingredients. One such discovery is these protein bars by IQ that do not contain sugar, additives or nasty ingredients. I’ve been eating a bar as an afternoon snack or after lunch when I typically crave something sweet. The almond butter one is my favorite, followed by the chocolate sea salt.
My daily meditation practice is one of the most important habits I ever established. I’d go beyond calling it a habit, and rather the foundation of my mental wellbeing. Most often I practice open awareness mindfulness (traditionally know as Vipassana meditation), but I’ve recently been experimenting with some incredible visualization meditations that have taken me to the deepest states of pure presence I ever experienced (beside psychedelic trips). I found many good ones on Insight Timer, but here’s a recent favorite.
Note: I have no affiliation with any of these products or brands. These are simply things that I tested for a long enough period of time to be able to see a clear health benefit.
As always, let me know what kind of recommendations you’d like to receive in this newsletter. Which one of the above was your favorite? You can reach me on Instagram, Twitter or at sabina@kahla.com
Have a great weekend
Sabina