hiking is basically running but better

try roller skates. saves your knees and not boring.

I’ll admit running is difficult at first because it requires your active thoughts to keep going. Depending on fitness level (mainly regarding weight, not musculature or cardiovascular), after a month or so of a 3xWk plan, you can start to get into a point where it starts getting more sexond nature and you get more of your mind to yourself and the distraction from running becomes more related to your ability to regularly distract yourself with just your thoughts and/or audio (music, books, podcasts, etc).

But yeah, the beginning is really hard. I used to run, got pretty good at it (would go on 8mi runs with a sub-9 minute pace on the weekend) but then stopped for like… 7 years. Just started again a month or two ago. I can only run for about 25 minutes at like a 12 minute pace. I’m also overweight and over 40 which isn’t helping anything. But when I started (or restarted as it were) I couldn’t run for 5 minutes straight. I do get shin splints, I was getting sore muscles all over, but slowly I’m getting better at it. At even just the 20ish minute mark though, I need something to distract me. Right now it’s music, but I’ve been considering podcasts as I feel they generally get me more distracted.

Do you like audioboks or podcasts? Listening to something while running really helped me to find more interest in running/walking more. You do need a good pair of headphones so that they don’t fall out of your ears, though.

Try low intensity while listening to a podcast. 80% of runs are best done at a pace where you can easily hold a conversation and breath through your nose (5/10 effort).

I’m listening to history podcasts now and it feels incredibly relaxing and makes my whole day better. Now I don’t even like rest days anymore. 🙃

It’s all about the activity. My younger kid is extremely athletic: he did a 5k on a whim and kept up with the runners club without preparation. However he hates running, and gives similar reasons. His activity is soccer. Soccer gives a point to running. That kid will run the entire game if he’s playing soccer, but even he can’t stand running

If like me you also didn’t know what “Cilantro” is, it’s Coriander.

Never got a soapy taste from cilantro, but as a kid, a suicidal stink bug landed on a PB&J I was eating.

At first I was pissed off at my brother, cuz that bastard put cilantro on a fucking PB&J!!! I spit the bite out. Wad of partially chewed sandwich, mixed with insect legs and broken shell lands on my plate: no cilantro. Brother is now looking up at me with a genuine expression of concern: not a prank.

Lesson 1: look before you bite.

Lesson 2: Stink bugs taste exactly like cilantro.

Lesson 3: …cilantro tastes exactly like stink bugs.

The tiniest little flek of that shit can ruin an otherwise delicious bite of food.

This for sure. I have the soap gene as well. I love Mexican food, and it’s nigh impossible to find much traditional Mexican without cilantro.

Is parsley related to Cilantro?

I really really cannot stand parsley in anything, it is bitter and disgusting and mu workplace puts it in everything.

For most of my life I always hated the idea of exercise just for the sake of exercise. I would try to find activities where exercise was an associated benefit. Hiking, skateboarding, rock climbing etc. Eventually being an adult slowly killed all of my recreational fitness outlets and I ended up teetering on the edge of overweight.

With the goal of getting back in shape, I tried a few gyms but I never got into it. It always felt like a chore. Turns out the problem for me was that I am a cheap bastard, and I was only considering the least expensive discount shitty gyms. One of my friends convinced me to try out a pricier more fully featured gym and it made a huge difference. Well maintained equipment, group classes, child care while you work out, showers that didn’t scare me. It was a lot less intimidating, and it switched the gym experience from feeling like a chore to feeling like a break.

It’s been a couple years now, and I’ll say, having once thought I’d never be a gym person, I’m now definitely a gym person.

Not saying it’d be the same for everyone, just what ended up working for me.

I’m the same and as someone who’s worked remotely for 10 years, my life was way too sedentary. I got a dog which helped as the guilt of not walking her is plenty of motivation to get out daily, but whilst it helps, it wasn’t exactly making me fit and healthy, just a bit LESS unhealthy.

I discovered rock climbing 3 months ago though and my life is completely changed, all exercise and diet is done with my current project route in mind and after 3 months I’m already far healthier and stronger than I’ve ever been before.

Phenomenal sport, as someone who HATES the gym I really recommend everyone tries it at least once. It’s as intense as any workout and 100x more fun.

For most of my life I always hated the idea of exercise just for the sake of exercise. I would try to find activities where exercise was an associated benefit. Hiking, skateboarding, rock climbing etc. Eventually being an adult slowly killed all of my recreational fitness outlets and I ended up teetering on the edge of overweight.

With the goal of getting back in shape, I tried a few gyms but I never got into it. It always felt like a chore. Turns out the problem for me was that I am a cheap bastard, and I was only considering the least expensive discount shitty gyms. One of my friends convinced me to try out a pricier more fully featured gym and it made a huge difference. Well maintained equipment, group classes, child care while you work out, showers that didn’t scare me. It was a lot less intimidating, and it switched the gym experience from feeling like a chore to feeling like a break.

Not saying it’d be the same for everyone, just what ended up working for me.

The trick is to do it regularly and develop an addiction. I worked in an care home one summer and after that I promised myself to exercise until I die.

I tend to just feel bad for the characters involved, I don’t understand the appeal.

I’m the same way. It usually makes me uncomfortable and I don’t want to watch it.

Something similar with reality TV. I start to get irritated. I know the situations are fabricated and edited but it gets me worked up and I hate it.

God I’m so glad I’m not the only one. I thought everyone likes embarrassment humor and maybe I was getting a little cynical about “how bad taste is getting” or something. So good to know that others call it “cringe” (in one way, not in the other) and can’t watch it either.

I was the same way and then I found American Family. I also only started watching it to have something on in the background which is actually probably the reason why I “adapted” to embarrassment humor.

I looked up from the computer/phone/chores to appreciate funny moments bit by bit, started appreciating the characters in wholesome moments, tune out when cringy things were going on… Eventually I got invested into the story of some of the episodes to the point where I started to tolerate cringe and even laugh at it.

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I adore dogs but no one really loves dogs barking. Even dogs with a relatively discrete or non-annoying bark pitch will tire any ear if they go into a barking ceremony.

god same, everyone else loves stuff like salmon and shrimp and it just makes me vomit, it’s absolutely terrible.

the only things i can eat are smoked roe paste (kaviar), and fish sauce.

I feel you. I have persistent depression and it’s such a struggle to just enjoy life most days. Neal Brennan said it best IMO. He says he is unable to feel joy. I have happy moments, but they are fleeting. I enjoy some things and I have fun doing my hobbies, but it never feels fulfilling. Like, I’m just always looking for something to fulfill me, and nothing ever gets there.

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Ok listen, if you want to get into bananas, you might wanna try banana and Nutella.

While I love bananas so can’t relate, maybe my hatred of tomatoes is similar. I can’t stand the things. However I love tomato sauce and soup and juice. I love salsa, and stews, etc. I love things that tomatoes make. Presumably it’s a texture thing.

Have you tried things with bananas in them, to separate the taste from the texture? Someone else mentioned smoothies, which is a great choice for taste but no banana texture

Trust me, it’s overrated. Besides, you’re avoiding COVID naturally. That’s a perk.

That’s completely normal, and a large portion of people here in Europe would do the same as you do. There is this saying where “people in North America life to work, people in Europe work to life”. Because who cares if you make more money if you barely have the time to actually enjoy it?

Not trying to say one continent is better than the other, but it is a very clear difference in work-life balance mentality.

Nothing wrong with that

I see people I’ve known that are in higher roles and they’re overworked and put in like 50% more hours than I do. They probably make 20% more but I make enough to be very happy. So what’s the point?

You can negotiate your hours, just like you can negotiate the pay.

Lots of people do that.

Maybe find a way to define “career growth” for you, instead of the company’s version? I’ve been pretty happy with increased freedom, increased decision-making, without the extra hours and without having to deal with people.

I was in the same boat until about a month ago. Feel like I’ve figured out a brain hack for myself and I’ve been looking for someone to share this with!

Here’s what I’ve done; Kindle app on my phone, set to infinite scroll, white text on black background and the Kindle app widget on the home screen, displaying current book I’m reading.

Infinite scroll makes it feel like I’m just reading a really long article, something I’ve never had trouble with. White text on black background is easier on the eyes. The widget is 4 times the size of other app icons so drawn to it over Lemmy or Mastodon.

I’ve gone from reading nothing in about 5 years to about 200 pages a week!

Same. I’ll sit and veg out to shows or a movie occasionally but I get obsessed with nonfiction, mainly news (which isn’t necessarily nonfiction I’ll grant you). It’d be nice to get absorbed in a good story once and a while but I usually find it hard to just “push through” some books when the setting is rather alien (i.e. fantasy and sci-fi). That’s the kind of stuff I like to watch but maybe I’d do better reading stuff in a more real-world setting.

How do you feel about audiobooks?

The problem might be the coffee itself. The stuff you buy at the store is often the cheaper robusta variety, which is known for its bitter taste. It’s why it’s cheap. Arabica coffee is smoother, and much less bitter in some cases. But anything from the store is also from multiple sources, meaning they take crops from all over the world and mix them together. Single source coffee is more expensive, but you can find varieties that are more delicate than store coffee and taste more fruity. Chances are you could find a kind you would be happy drinking with no added cream or sugar.

But then again, don’t push yourself to try it. It’s really no big deal if you don’t like coffee. And honestly, it’s not really good for you anyway, as caffeine is addictive and weaning yourself off of it can be a quite literal headache. Plus it raises your blood pressure, so depending on your health conditions, it might be really bad for you. You’re not missing anything to be sad over. And I say that as a coffee lover.

If you’re interested in trying to like it, there are a few technique changes I’ve made over the years that have made me enjoy it. If you’re not interested, stop reading and enjoy your coffee free life. 😊

I used to only enjoy it from coffee shops and tolerate it when I made it at home, but I’ve learned a few tricks that helped.

1. a pinch of salt in the grounds. Yes, a pinch. 1/16 to 1/8 tsp per pot of coffee. If you can taste the salt, it’s too much. Got this tip from Alton Brown on Good Eats.

2. preheat your water. The standard American drip coffee maker cannot heat the first cup or 2 of water to boiling. It comes out around 160-180. Got this from James Hoffman on his YouTube.

3. lighter roasts. Dark roasts are like anything burned more.

4. grind fresh beans with a burr mill. Bladed coffee grinders make inconsistent chunks and dust. Burr mills don’t. Fresh beans have better and less bitter flavor.

The water and the salt tricks are easy. The lighter roast is more tricky bc grocery stores sell darker roasts. The burr grinder is harder bc they’re not super popular, so you may have to look for one.

First off, do not do it if you don’t want to, King. But I have found I enjoy light roasts with cream, and yes, that’s a very far departure from what macho men call coffee, but who cares. A light roast will be less bitter and more acidic and sweet instead. Also something I’ve learned is that most people use far too many grounds in their coffee, so you get what amounts to over-steeped coffee that again has bad taste.

Yes, we can’t trust you if you don’t like coffee. :(

You might be a super taster like me, do you also hate wine, beer, and most fermented things?