A Friendly Nudge - Managing Friction
...because we all could use a little encouragement!
If I’m not really interested or invested in something, my hassle or friction threshold is pretty low. The older I get the more “life’s too short” becomes a real consideration. Don’t get me wrong, I’m seriously invested in living to a ripe old age, but I don’t want to waste precious time on things that don’t really matter to me or that make a difference. So if something’s unnecessarily complicated or fussy and it’s not important to me, it’s not likely to happen.
When it comes to things that are important to me I can be pretty determined–in fact, some might even say hard-headed. While we were living in the apartment (as our foundation saga was unfolding) I started paying attention to how friction influences my habits and approach to things.
In the beginning of December when the foundation work got underway, we figured we’d be out of the house for a couple of weeks based on the timeframe given by the foundation folks. But that was before the water line got jackhammered, so 2 weeks turned into almost 2 ½ months. Since we’d only taken the barest essentials, most of our stuff was still at the house underneath a fine layer of concrete and drywall dust.
The apartment where we spent a good chunk of the time had a kitchen, but it was a lot smaller than the one at the house and with the exception of a skillet and a couple of sheet pans none of my stuff was there. That didn’t keep me from cooking but it significantly changed how ambitious I was. Because of the reduced amount of space and tools, prep was more of a hassle so simplicity became the name of the game. But real food even prepared simply can still be delicious and so much better than most of the food that you get in a restaurant unless you’re spending a fortune.
This was an excellent reminder of how valuable habits can be because even though my circumstances influenced what and how I cooked, the pull to eat good food was enough to overcome the friction and hassle to accomplish that.
The other friction insight came via the gym at the apartment complex. It was probably less than 100 yards from our apartment so getting there was effortless. And both Jude and I realized that 45 minutes to an hour at the gym worked wonders at dissolving the stress that creeped in every time we went by the house and saw the giant holes in the floor and the cloud of dust. Having easy access to a gym, even one with far fewer options than our neighborhood YMCA, came at a perfect time for us. I’ve gone to our neighborhood Y for years but not with anywhere near the consistency that I developed at the apartment. Easy and effective can be a compelling combination.
You may have a different opinion about it, but I’m not worried about getting stuff perfect. I know myself well enough to know that consistency is challenging enough. Some weeks or months are going to be better than others. But if I can at least show up and put in some focused effort, even if it’s not as often or for as long as I’d like, something is not only better than nothing but something actually makes a difference. It keeps me moving in the right direction.
I always have mixed feelings when I hear someone insisting how important it is to never miss a workout. I think that probably works for some folks and I’ll leave it to them to navigate the tradeoffs that come with that level of rigidity. My concern is for all of the folks who hear or read those kinds of statements and think that anything less than that is inadequate or insufficient. That can scare someone off before they even get started.
One of the advantages of exercise snacks is that they’re doable. Even if you can’t do a deep squat, just sitting in a chair and then standing back up is a start. If you have to use your arms to push off, don’t belittle yourself, just recognize that is going to be your starting point. Celebrate your wins and try to do something to get at least a little movement and some level of exertion most days. It doesn’t have to be intense or prolonged but if you give yourself a chance, pretty soon you’ll start to notice a difference.
All this talk about exercise is making me hungry.This week we’re going to make a super simple but delicious fennel and orange salad!
This is one of those dishes that I made once and it immediately got placed in the requested and repeated category.
It has raw red onion in it, but we’re going to let those hang out in some red wine vinegar for a few minutes to tame them a little.
I’m using Cara Cara oranges that Costco has been carrying but navel oranges also would work great.
The crumbled feta is optional.
This salad is perfect with grilled chicken, steak or fish.
Ingredients:
2-3 fennel bulbs depending on size, tough core removed and the rest of the bulb sliced thin
1 medium red onion, sliced thin
1 large or 2 medium oranges (navel, blood or cara cara), cubed
1 handful pitted kalamata olives
Crumbled feta - optional
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Salt & Pepper to taste
For slicing the fennel and onion you can use a sharp chef’s knife or a mandoline. Either way, keep those fingers out of the way.
Slice the fennel and red onion and place the red onion in a little red wine vinegar to tame it just a little.
Cut the peel and bitter pith away from the orange and then cube the orange(s)
Remove the onions from the vinegar and put them, and the fennel slices and cubed oranges into a mixing bowl and toss to combine. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and then plate and top with salt and pepper to taste and feta cheese if using.
Enjoy!
Now that we’ve got something tasty figured out let’s build some exercise options for the week.
Exercise snacks give you a doable, low friction way to build a healthy relationship with exercise and a viable way to start getting stronger. I’m making a point to include some “while the coffee brews” options every week. As usual, skip any that you don’t feel ready for and remember that our goal is to challenge ourselves a little but to not over do it.