The Savage Philosopher

What I really learned during a 46 hour fast. Over the past two months or so I have been trying to fast for 24 hours straight. Each day that I have attempted it, I have failed horribly. The reasons behind doing the fast in the first place is to simply to do the fast. To prove to myself that I can conquer my Hunger. Well this strategy completely failed. More recently, I've had a dramatic change in motivation. I have been forced to shed about 10 lbs of unnecessary fat. This is an external motivation that is internally desired. Meaning that I wish to fill the requirement, but the requirement came from an external source. With this new found motivation I was able Conqueror the first 24 hours without even thinking about it. It was so easy. When the second 24 hours past I was worried that food may not ever be needed. I was seriously beginning to consider the link to hunger is more connected to our emotional state than to actually needing nutrients. After 36 hours I started to realise ...

Humans have been able to dominate this planet because of our ability to create and use advanced tools. The smartphone is no different. The ability of technology to enhance our capability dramatically increases our productivity. Right now I am forced to write this blog using my phone. Last month, my primary computer died, and I have been at a loss on how to effectively get my thoughts out of my head and onto a blog. I am able to draft this post in Google Docs and use Google Voice to text feature to get the majority of the text on the page. Then as I read through, I can make simple edits using the keyboard. My typing skills are very adequate at 55 words per minute, but I can speak at 150 words per minute. As long as I can focus my thoughts on what I want to say, voice to text is 3 times more efficient on getting words on paper. The majority of the work to ensure a quality blog has always been in the editing process anyways. The unification of the voice to text and using Google Docs for...

All authority must be given and cannot be taken. Those in charge may be disillusioned that somehow they ‘forced’ their authority, but in reality it was a choice by the person being ‘ruled’ to choose to be ruled. This begs the question, “how is control obtained?” What is it that the ruled do to specifically give others authority over them. My answer: Obligation When we agree to an obligation we are giving over our control to the obligation. We give over our control in our; promises to ourselves, promises to others, and promises to God. The promises we make to ourselves generally fall into changing the type of person we are. We want to be a better person, a healthy person, or a charitable person. Every day I strive to be a better friend, parent, and spouse. I’m not always as successful as I would like, and when that occurs I feel like a ‘failure’. I feel that I failed to live up to the obligation I set before myself. This pain is a point of control. I make stives to eat well, ...

I am not sure if the Reaper came knocking or just did a drive by, I decided not to take the chance and ended my Fast. I started it officially on Monday evening at 1900 and ended on Friday at 1600; a total of 93 hours without food. My only consumption was lots of water, black coffee, and a 20 oz Gatorade split over two days diluted in the water. I went from 230.6 pounds to 222.4 pounds in that time frame and slept about 40% less than normal. I also worked out every day. Other than what was reported, on Thursday I jogged with a 12 pound weighted vest for 25 minutes in 100 degree weather followed by 10 minute rest and another set of 35 minute speed walking. Then on Friday, I took an easy and inclined walked for 20 minutes at a moderate pace without the vest followed by 20 minute sauna time. Bottom Line: I learned that I can control my hunger and push myself physically and mentally much further than I ever thought. I learned that by having big goals and not small ones are the key to a...

Overall, day two went very well. I was really tired by the afternoon because I didn't sleep the night before. In contrast, last night I had a great sleep. I woke up feeling really rested and ready for the day. I will confess that getting to sleep wasn't all roses. I finally passed out after many trips to the bathroom and I did not wake up exactly when I wanted to. Drinking lots of water throughout the day really helped, I just need to work on my ability to fall asleep more easily. Day two's workout was awesome. I ran for two miles with a 12 pound vest at maximum speed. I basically ran as fast and far as I could before stopping to catch my breath. Then I hit the weights increasing my load by 10 pounds on all four exercises, and felt awesome afterward. I was surprised by the lack of hunger I had during the day. I wasn't even hungry during my normal feeding time. The only thing I missed out was on some birthday cake near the end of the day. Let's be clear, my mouth ...

Day 1 complete. I probably should've picked a different day to start my fast. Starting it on the Fourth of July was a true test of self control. All day at the festival they were selling hot dogs, hamburgers, funnel cake, waffles, brats, lumpia, etc. All day I sat there letting my family enjoy all the delicious food. All day I thought to myself, “if I get through today, the rest will be easy.” Well, mission accomplished. I enjoyed the holiday without incident. The only thing I realize that I didn’t do was drink enough water. Not because I was hungry, but because I was so dehydrated. It probably prevented me from getting any real sleep last night. Lesson 1: Drink much more water than I think I need. As for any hunger issues. My hypothesis was correct. The fact that I am on an OMAD diet fixed any hunger pains I had to only early afternoon. After that, I was good regardless of the temptation. Around 1600, I started my planned workout. I got through half before it was...

Am I a Human or an Animal? This question is one of the central themes of this blog. We know biologically that we are part of the Homo Sapien species in the Animalia kingdom. This classification only helps us with taxonomy, but not it’s meaning. I believe that the only way to truly define what it means to be a Human is through experience and self awareness. This brings me to my current test to see if I am more Human or more Animal. To help me figure that out, I have started a seven day fast. That is right. Seven days of only water and black coffee. I’ve done all the research and will break the fast if I think the reaper is coming for me. The Plan. I expect that I will start to get hungry around lunch time. I have been on the One Meal A Day program now for two months and my body knows when it is feeding time. Specifically, the Ghrelin hormone (the reason you feel hungry at just before meal time) will spike between 1030 and 1130. I will need to just wait for the hormone to f...

What does it take to make the impossible look possible? Elon Musk at SpaceX have given us a glimpse of that yesterday (25 Jun 2017). SpaceX flawlessly launched the Falcon 9 rocket with a multiple satellite deployment and returned the booster to the floating dock in the pacific. It is hard to put into words how impossible this was just a few years ago. This may be a turning point in human history. The place in time where we look back and say, “This is when we started to make a difference in space operations.” The only thing that has been prohibiting us from doing this sooner was cost. The cost was too high to go through the failures that are required to achieve breakthrough technology. SpaceX have effectively cut the current cost in half and the next phase of tech will cut it down to almost ⅕ the average. This will allow for more launches and more opportunity to improve on the technology at a faster rate than anyone else. Here is an excerpt from SpaceX on the launch ye...

An animal does not need to think about the benefits of exercise or eating right. It simplies taps into its instincts and does what it needs to do. The Human animal has the same level of instincts with the added ability to think about them. What we have lost over time are the proper conditions the instincts were designed to help us survive in. I assert that by better understanding where our instincts come from within the body, we will have the ability to utilize them to help us survive and thrive in the modern world. The five hormones that form the basis of our instincts are: Endorphins, Dopamine, Serotonin, Oxytocin, and Cortisol. Here is the basic break-out of what they do and why we have them. The Big Five Endorphins - Released during physical activity to inhibit the transmission of pain signals. Also known as the “runner’s high”, this hormone allows us to hunt prey and move over long distances. Side note, laughing also produces endorphins. Dopamine - Released a...

The world is a dangerous and hostile place. It is filled with people who are different; they act different, talk different, and believe different. This difference has divided the world into two tribes The tribe of ‘us’ and the tribe of ‘them’. In one moment two people are in the same tribe as co-workers and in another, they are in different tribes as sport fans. This is all the work of our animal instincts to survive our hostile world. Our animal instincts are designed to do one thing, ensure our survival. Using the Reticular Activating System (RAS) it determines if something is a threat or an opportunity. The RAS basically filters out all the noise in the world to help us focus on what is important. Things that are new are immediately highlighted as a threat first, and then a possible opportunity. This is why we subconsciously choose to dress like our friends or end up wearing the same colors with our significant other. By matching, our animal feels safe and secure. If the n...

A journey of self-discovery has ended. I have defeated the main boss, received the treasure, and now back in the ‘real’ world. I have been changed on a fundamental level and I can no longer do the things I did before as this hero’s tale has come full circle and I bring my boon back home. The Boon. The treasure I gain by defeating the main boss of ‘undisciplined action’ and ‘small vision’ is a new sense of purpose and an upgrade in self-confidence. I learned that if I want to have a huge impact in the world I cannot do it alone. More than just building a team around myself to propel my career and success, I need to build other people’s teams to propel THEIR career and success. Only by developing other leaders into leaders can I even hope to achieve any sense of world-wide impact. This new purpose came with it a serious increase in my own self-confidence. Confidence is the gravity that pulls the universe inline with your goals. I originally thought that this idea was bulls...

I was laying in my bed one Saturday morning watching a number of YouTube videos on personal development. Somehow the rabbit hole I was following led me the topic of OMAD, One Meal A Day.  According to a number of different so-called experts, this particular diet increased longevity, productivity, and overall health of the human body. I have been thinking about fasting as a way to decrease the number of calories I consume over course of a week anyway. I decided that this Saturday would be the first time I attempt this diet. I failed. I did not fail because I was hungry, I failed because it did not organize my life around this idea. That weekend made me realise how dependent I was to the timestamp of the three meal a day plan. For the following month, I attempted the OMAD meal plan with mixed success. The days I failed were the days I felt obligated to eat another meal with my family. My eventual solution was to get my family on board with my meal plan and not expect me to eat mult...

My journey so far has been one of self discovery. Over the last couple of days, I realized that I will need something more than self discovery to succeed evolving into something greater. I need to completely change everything I do and the way I do it. Every moment of every day needs to be aligned with the desired life that I want to live. To include the actions I take and the habits I form to support my long term goals. The truth is that life is only what we make it; to quote the Great movie series ”there is no fate but the one we make.” I also have a confession to make. I have been holding back on all the things that I am doing to prepare myself for my next step. In this post I'm going to rectify that error. Bottom line: I have chosen to embrace suffering and pain so that I can know myself on a deeper level. This is done through newly formed rituals and habits: I only take ice cold showers. I don’t mean that at the end of a hot shower I rinse off in cold water. I mean...

I have two daughters and I am always looking for female role models to inspire them to be strong and independent. As a long time comic book fan, there are few heroines compared to the number of heros available to model. The choices range from super sexy Black Widow to muscle bond She-Hulk. Both are awesome, but neither represent the values I would like my daughters to center on. Here comes Wonder Woman to save the day. The on-screen adaptation in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice was as awesome as it was inspiring. She was portrayed as elegant in long evening gowns and then as fierce in her armor. I was very happy to see this dichotomy accepted by both my daughters. That a woman can be strong and feminine. And in Wonder Woman’s case, her feminism is her strength. I believe that having role models is very important in forming who we think we are. As part of the Human species, we tend to learn best by watching others. How to act and react to life’s situations are programed in ...

Gratitude is a thing. Determines how we see the world to include how wealthy we become. I have recently started a gratitude journal. At first I wasn't sure if it was going to change how i saw the world or not. After about two months of consistent journalling every day, I am convinced of the benefits. My general state of happiness is much greater than it ever has been. Just to make sure that the journal was having the expected effects, I stopped for about 4 days. By the end of the fourth day my attitude had plummeted and my overall state of mind  turned very very negative. So find the time every morning to be grateful for the big and the little things. The more I do it, the more I think it is the foundation to success. It might even be the key to unlocking our full potential as a human being. We will see.

I took a couple of days off from this series to build up some successes (or failures) that were worthy of talking about. Our last discussion was very bland as I started to engage into a more optimal battlerythm. We left off with some simple goals of increasing the number of blogs and getting the dishes done. Well, with such low goals, I can say with complete confidence that over the last couple of days I had complete success….yea me. I did though begin to stretch into a couple of different areas and techniques that I think are pretty cool. I started to do some of my blog posts from my phone. I have the ‘blogger’ app on my phone and when I combine it with the voice-to-text technology, I am able to produce a 300-400 word blog without a keyboard. This freedom from the computer will allow me to blog more when I am not home and only have access to my phone and wifi. Another thing I started was drinking MCT Oil (C:6,C:8) with my coffee in the morning. So far I am very excited about...