DAY 1147 & Back from the States

Day 1147 Record Keeping
Day 1119 Fixed Meditation (30 min)
Day 993 Writing (1 round/30 min)
Day 533 Rowing (DID NOT DO)
Day 274 Mobility/Stretching (DID NOT DO)
—
Early to Rise
Day 302 Sleep Recording  (1|2:30|9|1)
Day 273 Bedtime Curfew
Day 111 Wakeup Alarm
Day 28 Wakeup Walk 22
–
Great sleep. Nixing my Wakeup Walk habit for now. This has got to be a record for the shortest habit!

Back from the States
I had a fantastic time going back to the States for my 20 year high school reunion. I left on March 25th after sort’ve unsteady routines due to having a guest. I got back last week on April 12th after a mammoth flight back - What ended up being 5 flights, 6 if you count being rerouted to San Antonio due to a storm and only getting to Austin after sitting on the tarmac for 3 hours. Then a separation due to an overbooking on our last flight, which delayed getting back to the homestead for about 2 hours. And they lost Lydia’s bags! 

After all that, I was pretty down - I felt like I hadn’t done anything. But the more I look over things the more impressed at how much I’ve improved. The stoics about hedonistic adaptation - the more you get used to pleasurable things the more you expect them in your life. Well this is self improvement adaptation. The more you improve the less you notice your own improvement. You have to force yourself to recognize your successes.

I meditated a lot. I usually went to bed early, and even kept recording my stats for the week and a half I was in Houston even though I wasn’t recording anything formally. I did partial cookups every Sunday, going to the store and getting bags of salad and veggies to throw together for lunches during the week. I went on walks, did an instance of kettlebell swings, and went kayaking. I worked a bit and didn’t do any mobilizing. I did not record.

But man - that’s a lot for a jam packed couple of weeks split between two states. And what’s even better? I’m already starting up again and it’s been less than a week. It usually takes me a full week or 2 to get back to even thinking about starting up everything again.

My plan now is to just to stabilize my habits. I’m down to my daily minimums, and I’m not going to do my morning walking (big mistake starting that the week I was leaving, hehe). I have a long time of stability with no trips planned, so I can really hunker down and experiment, test, and add new habits. Jet lag has been horrible, and I had an immensely trying day emotionally today - but that’s to be expected these first few weeks back. Right on cue.

Day 1120

Day 1120 Record Keeping
Day 1092 Fixed Meditation (DID NOT DO)
Day 966 Writing (A LOT)
Day 506 Rowing (walked, 1.5 hours)
Day 247 Mobility/Stretching (DID NOT DO)
—
Early to Rise
Day 275 Sleep Recording  (12|(5:30-7:30)11:30|1:20|)
Day 246 Bedtime Curfew
Day 84 Wakeup Alarm
Day 1 Wakeup Walk 22
–
Horrendous sleep, horrible wakeup. Very very upset this morning because of bad sleep. The morning walk turned it around and was very enjoyable. I’m pretty sure the sleep had more to do with the timing of when I drank tea (which was a few hours before bed), as I had to get up several times to go the bathroom. Add that to the list of variables to test. Really busy with work hence the lack of the habits that failed to discharge. 

Formalizing Wakeup Walk

Implementation Intention: As soon as I get up I’ll put my clothes on, grab my coffee thermos and notebook, and walk around the block or to the pier. I’ll drink my coffee, and plan my day and do emotional control meditation to positively flip my mood. This meditation will be separate from my formal vipassana/samatha sit.

Tiny Habit and Step Ups: Daily minimum will be once around the block in the sun. Will always attempt emotional meditation, and will include planning, though I think all of it is a Tiny Habit that will not require a step up.

Mental Contrasting:
1) Positive Aspects
The idea of starting my day out on a good note is rather foreign to me - all too often I get up in a pretty bad mood, feeling as though I’m already behind on the day. I think a positive vibe is really important - I usually come back feeling amazing. I think it has many side benefits - potentially better sleep, not feeling like a total shut in, feeling like I’m a part of this city and not a useless habit hamster, and it makes me more likely to get out later in the day rather than feeling scared and wanting to hide. I feel that it energizes me. And it’s something that can replace my failed attempt at getting excited at waking up via my “bacon and water” habit. I also think it will dissuade me from late nights or drinking or eating badly the night before and tie me to a better family of habits. I want to tie myself to great mornings rather than great nights, which will in turn help push me towards a better night time ritual and hopefully better sleep.

2) Obstacles
Rain. I hate going outside in the rain. The first rainy day is not going to be fun. I can counter that by getting a good rain coat in the States when I’m back - I had a great one that was light weight and made me utterly comfortable in bad weather, but I have no idea where it went. I finally got good shoes that are more waterproof - now all I need is more socks. Luckily these are all things easily solved by a few relatively cheap purchases.