Isolation Hacks 101 | Modern Wisdom Podcast 153

1. 0:00 – 0:50

   Intro

   1. CWChris Williamson0:05

      Ladies and gentlemen, welcome back. I am joined by Johnny and Yusuf from propainfitness.com, remotely over the interwebs in our isolation station.

   2. JOJonny0:16

      Mm, from a distance. Isolation stations.

   3. CWChris Williamson0:20

      Isolation stations.

   4. JOJonny0:21

      Otherwise we'd have to be socially distancing within the same isolation station.

   5. CWChris Williamson0:25

      Yeah, no. We, uh, we'd just be walls apart, wouldn't we? But look at us. Look at us, still doing a podcast. COVID can't stop this fucking train.

   6. JOJonny0:34

      (laughs) It can't. You're right, it can't. And we have, we've got no video man, Dean, either.

   7. CWChris Williamson0:40

      No. Well, he's, he's, he's actually in quarantine, isn't he?

   8. JOJonny0:44

      He's in a separate bit-

   9. CWChris Williamson0:45

      Yeah.

   10. JOJonny0:46

       ... waiting for this file.

   11. CWChris Williamson0:48

       Yeah. Well, um, we thought

2. 0:50 – 3:08

   Isolation Hacks 101

   1. CWChris Williamson0:50

      that given the fact that the entire world has just changed, everyone's lifestyles are dramatically altered in one form or another, people are starting to work from home, the opportunity to go out and train, do social stuff, their opportunities for business, everything has been upended dramatically. We figured let's do isolation hacks. So this is it. Isolation hacks 101. So Johnny, hot potato, uh, how are we starting... Catch it. How are we, um, how are we gonna frame isolation hacks?

   2. JOJonny1:23

      Um, so, I like to split mine between physical and-

   3. CWChris Williamson1:29

      (laughs)

   4. JOJonny1:29

      ... different

   5. YUYusef1:29

      I knew that was coming. (laughs)

   6. CWChris Williamson1:33

      (laughs)

   7. JOJonny1:33

      If anyone gets that, I'm quite... Well, I suppose any life hacks listeners will.

   8. CWChris Williamson1:37

      They will do, yeah.

   9. JOJonny1:39

      Um, the way I see it is there's, there's damage control and then there's taking advantage of it. So there's how do I kind of continue my, everything that I would have been doing normally as normal, and then how do I, like, spot the opportunities and make the most of it. So I was, I was speaking to our clients about this the other day. When all this is over, more than any other time probably in your entire lives, there'll be, there'll be two outcomes that you experience from people you know. There'll be some people who you meet and you're like, "Fucking hell, you're, you're way leaner. Like, your, like, you look way better. Like, wow, look at, like, look at all the things you've achieved." And there'll be other people who've, like, gained a bit of weight, looking really pasty and pale and like, "Oh, always isolating." So it's like you can decide now more than any other time, because everyone's in the same position. You can be the person that gets to impress all your friends off the back of what you did in isolation.

   10. CWChris Williamson2:34

       I said, I s- I said this on a podcast the other week that it's very rare that everybody on the planet experiences the same thing.

   11. JOJonny2:44

       Yousuf looks really confused. What are you confused about? (laughs)

   12. CWChris Williamson2:48

       That's just his resting face.

   13. YUYusef2:49

       It, it was just when, when Chris paused, I thought I'd been hot potatoed. And I was like, oh.

   14. JOJonny2:54

       Oh, right. (laughs)

   15. CWChris Williamson2:56

       Is this because none of us actually look at each other's faces? We're all just engrossed usually in what Dean's doing behind the camera and trying to think of our next life hack.

   16. JOJonny3:04

       (laughs)

   17. CWChris Williamson3:04

       But now I actually have to look you in the eye. It's really weird.

   18. JOJonny3:07

       It's a really weird experience.

3. 3:08 – 4:55

   Social Distancing

   1. JOJonny3:08

   2. CWChris Williamson3:08

      Um, yeah, it's very rare, right, that everybody on the planet has... especially everyone even, even within a country, but everyone on the planet is experiencing the same thing at the same time. Like, it doesn't even rain everywhere at the same time, you know? Like, it can be sunny in Newcastle and raining in London. We don't even experience the weather together, but everyone, people in America, people in China, they're all experiencing some flavor of this same thing, which is social distancing, social isolation, potentially working from home, reduced facilities, worries about the economy, worries about work. So yeah, hopefully we can provide people with some, uh, some tips, some tricks, some hacks today for how they can-

   3. JOJonny3:48

      I remember when, uh, I remember when T Nation... This is a... you're gonna have to bear with me here. I remember when T Nation released Indigo 3G. Does anyone else remember that?

   4. CWChris Williamson3:56

      I remember when you bought it, yeah.

   5. JOJonny3:58

      So I saved up and bought... I was doing an internship at the time and I bought it. They released ba- basically blueberries in capsules.

   6. CWChris Williamson4:04

      (laughs)

   7. JOJonny4:04

      And the marketing angle for it was like, "It's a level playing field now. Everybody's on Indigo 3G." And I remember thinking, "Fuck, that's so cool." Like, once everyone's on Indigo 3G, then it's, it's just how hard you work at that point, like, that at no other time in training and diet is it a level playing field, that everyone's got the same advantage.

   8. YUYusef4:20

      When absolutely everybody is on the blueberry extract together. (laughs)

   9. CWChris Williamson4:26

      (laughs) Um, and now are you saying that this is that situation?

   10. JOJonny4:31

       I mean, Yusuf's the one eating blueberries out of a cup frantically.

   11. YUYusef4:34

       This is a proper life hack. Frozen berries, pour some hot water on, and you can eat them like a soup. (laughs)

   12. CWChris Williamson4:44

       (laughs)

   13. JOJonny4:44

       This is real, this is the real life equivalent of everybody taking Indigo 3G.

   14. CWChris Williamson4:49

       Okay.

   15. JOJonny4:49

       Everyone's on the plane.

   16. CWChris Williamson4:50

       Everyone's on drugs except me. Um...

   17. JOJonny4:53

       (laughs)

4. 4:55 – 7:15

   Isolation Routines

   1. JOJonny4:55

   2. CWChris Williamson4:55

      Right, okay. Uh, let's go. Johnny, what have you got first? Why don't we start... I'll tell you what, why don't we start with what I think is the most important part, which is people's routines throughout the day, 'cause I think that's the biggest change that we're gonna have. A lot of people potentially working from home, they can no longer do things they usually do, go to a café, go to a restaurant, go to the gym. So how can I, how can I make my routine keep me sane?

   3. JOJonny5:23

      Okay. So the... probably you and I, Chris, I think Yusuf less so, but you and I probably have this weird thing at the moment where everyone's like, "Oh my God, I have to self-isolate." And you're like, "Well, yeah, I suppose I leave the house slightly less than normal, but otherwise it's just the same."

   4. CWChris Williamson5:40

      (laughs) It's just normal life for me. Everyone, everyone just gets to experience a little flavor of what Jonathan Watson and Chris Williamson do on a daily basis.

   5. JOJonny5:49

      (laughs)

   6. CWChris Williamson5:51

      Welcome to my world, motherfuckers. Feeling lonely? Here we go. (laughs)

   7. JOJonny5:56

      It's like there's a file going round where it's like 9:00 AM wank, 10:00 AM wank, 11:00 AM wank. You know.

   8. CWChris Williamson6:03

      Yeah. (laughs)

   9. JOJonny6:04

      My self-isolation routine.Um, but on, on that, on that, um, sort of thread, I think there's a, there's a... You gotta be careful, 'cause you don't wanna have exactly the same routine. Like you do have some potential to, like, go for a walk on a Monday afternoon when maybe you otherwise wouldn't have done, or, um, sit in a slightly different room on a Tuesday than you did on Monday. Like, you don't wanna be too rigid, but I think having a plan for the day is probably the most important thing. 'Cause otherwise you end up just sort of like, the hours just bleed into one, the days bleed into one. You don't like... What did I do? It's like, "What day is it?"

   10. CWChris Williamson6:41

       (laughs)

   11. JOJonny6:41

       "Have I got work today, do I not..." So at the end of the day, just planning the next day with, like, the people that you're self-isolating with, or like if it's just yourself, just having a, having a plan of like, "Right, tomorrow I'm gonna, um, I'll do this in the morning and then I'm gonna have three hours off and then I'm gonna..." You know, create your own structure that can evolve day to day. But I think having nothing and just winging it and trying to get things done is, is probably not... Like, I don't think anybody ever really achieves anything major without having some kind of intentional plan first, so...

   12. CWChris Williamson7:13

       You, you gotta have structure

5. 7:15 – 11:00

   Structure

   1. CWChris Williamson7:15

      for sure, yeah. I think the main thing for me is to try and keep a semblance of what life is usually like for you, as close as you can. So, you know, get up on time. Pick a time to get up. Get up and make your breakfast, go for a walk, take the dog out, do the things that you usually do, if you can do them. Um, for instance, if you're working from home, my advice would be to get dressed for work. That might not have to be a full suit, but go through the rituals that are a part of your day usually. And the reason is that if you decide to work in your, like, pants, boxers and a, and a vest or something all day, you're not actually going to feel like you've been to work and it's going to further create, um, a alienation from what you usually do and from what you're doing now. The same thing about going to the gym. If you're going to do home workouts, there's loads of fantastic home workouts available. Link to the one from Propain Fitness will be in the show notes below, um, which you can do for free so you can work out at home. Also some great ones from Warrior Programming will also be in the links below. Um, if you're doing a workout at home and you decide to just do it in your pajamas, barefoot, in your bedroom, like it doesn't feel like you've been to the gym. So do your things. You know, like get, get a water bottle ready, get your gym kit on, go for, do the thing, go for the run, because that feels like you've got some semblance of normality still in your life. I think that's-

   2. YUYusef8:38

      I think that's a really good point. And this is what Jonny mentioned that he was struggling with a few months ago when he got a home gym, which is that the closer your gym is to your hou- or if your gym is, is in your house, suddenly the idea of just going for a sit down on the sofa, 'cause it's two meters away, becomes much more real. Whereas if you have to... We've all had an experience where, you know, "Oh, I can't be arsed to go to the gym." But then you think, "Okay, I'll just go." So you get in the car or you get on the bike, you go over to a new building. By the time you're there, you complete a full workout because you're like, "Well, I'm in the building for the training now, so it's gonna happen."

   3. CWChris Williamson9:17

      The ritual is a big part of it. Okay, so we are planning our day. We are making sure that we have a stable sleep and wake time. We're not just lolling around in our pants and a vest or in our pajamas doing a workout. What are we doing next, Jonathan?

   4. JOJonny9:33

      Okay. Um, so the... Well, per- perhaps... Quite a lot of people I know wrestle with this thing where they really wanna try and build a morning routine for the first time. They wanna try like all of the, like the stuff that we talk about a lot in Life Hacks and just on, on, on in Modern Wisdom in general, I suppose. But they wrestle with this thing of like, "Well, I wake up at 7:00 and then I'm like running down a hill trying to catch a cheese." You know, there's that, that footage that everyone's seen of people trying to catch the cheese, like trying to just get to work and then I get to work and I'm like, "Oh, oh," and then I sit down at my laptop and quietly type away for eight hours and then do the same when I get home.

   5. CWChris Williamson10:09

      (laughs)

   6. JOJonny10:09

      Like, now you don't have that. You have this ability to create a bit more space in the morning. So there's a real opportunity to create this thing that you're constantly kind of ingraining and, um, reinforcing over the next however long we're all in isolation for. So picking things that make you feel really, really good for the rest of the day, that make you feel more productive, make you feel more organized. You're a lot more likely to get more out of the time on each day and in the self, self-isolation in general if the first, like, hour to 90 minutes of your day is just spent doing things that make you feel fantastic rather than like slamming loads of coffee down, scrolling through Instagram, watching like, "Oh my God, the news says the world's gonna end today. Oh, I better check my emails." Like compare the two things. Or like Yousef's, um, Fit Pro morning routine.

   7. CWChris Williamson10:59

      The anxiety

6. 11:00 – 14:35

   Morning Routine

   1. CWChris Williamson11:00

      inducing morning routine.

   2. YUYusef11:01

      The anxiety -

   3. CWChris Williamson11:57

      ... every day. And for most people, I'm going to imagine the commute's 30 minutes, 45 minutes. That's an hour and a half a day, 45 minutes each way. It's an hour and a half that's just been re-gifted back into your life. So how are you going to spend that time? So I couldn't agree more. This is the opportunity you have to get rid of bad habits and develop new good habits. And a morning routine for me, I think is, it's number one on the list. All of us have one for that very reason because it is so important. So Scob, any thoughts on that habit-building?

   4. YUYusef12:28

      Yeah. So, so far really, like, good points about the structure being, (clears throat) being so important that when people don't have a structure, it's very much associated with depression and depressive-type behavior when there's no reason to get up in the morning or no reason to do anything at a particular time. It correlates very well with the behaviors that produce and are the effect of depression. Um, the thing that Jonny said about using this time, uh, to turn what would have been a weakness into a strength means that especially w- a- an- even in a very real sense with the virus is that not only do you put yourself from normal into the low-risk category, but then it means that to be really unwell from that, then whatever the outside stressor is, it has to then dethrone you from the, the position of strength into normal and then into weakness. So you're-

   5. CWChris Williamson13:27

      Mm-hmm.

   6. YUYusef13:27

      ... really creating this, this buffered position there.

   7. CWChris Williamson13:30

      Mm-hmm.

   8. YUYusef13:30

      Now the problem with protecting yourself from a, a virus is that the, the things that improve our health are not something that we can just flip on like a switch now that we're isolated for seven days. Like yeah, obviously, it's helpful to be like, "Oh, well I, I smoked up until last week and I've, I've quit now." But-

   9. CWChris Williamson13:50

      Mm-hmm.

   10. YUYusef13:50

       ... to be able to really cre- turn your body into something that is, um, resilient to a shock like this does take years. And now is the best time to do it. (clears throat) I think you said that this is the, the best opportunity where we've got more time and more focus to be able to do this. And it also makes it harder in that now the volume on our mental noise is turned up because there is only those internal battles to deal with. And so we're now having to, like without having a structure in place to begin with, it's gonna be running downhill chasing the cheese because the- there's ju- there's only the mental noise. And so-

7. 14:35 – 16:18

   Paradox of Choice

   1. YUYusef14:35

   2. CWChris Williamson14:35

      It's the paradox of choice, right? It's, it's the world that me and Jonny live every single day. I had a message off a friend who usually works in an office and is now working from home. And his message essentially said, "Mate, I have no idea how the fuck you do this every day. It's, uh, it's destroying me."

   3. YUYusef14:52

      (laughs) .

   4. CWChris Williamson14:52

      He's unproductive, he's constantly distracted, he's always on his phone, he is finishing work at s- at 9:00 PM at night, 10:00 PM at night every day. I was like, "Oh, it's us. It's us. Hi, mate. Hi."

   5. YUYusef15:04

      Hello.

   6. CWChris Williamson15:05

      "Hello. I remember that." Like... (laughs) And it's because everyone now is feeling what it feels like to be a self-employed person who works mostly online. Um-

   7. YUYusef15:16

      It's great though 'cause once, once you've got a handle on it, it's, it's so liberating 'cause then you really do have command over your time. But it, it's hilarious how like we, we've had this repeatedly with clients who ... So with business clients who we coach, personal trainers, to help become online coaches. They have this dream. They're like, "Oh, I can't wait to be, like, fully in command of my time and working online. I won't have to go to the gym. I won't have to be... Won't let those people tell me what to do and all this." And then a week in, they're just like, "Oh my God. Like I haven't trained, I'm eating shit. I'm, um, like my mental health is terrible." And you're like, "Well, this is it." Like you've suddenly... You've grown up in such an institutionalized acculturated way to just follow instructions and follow schedules. And suddenly that's all been thrown out the window and you're left with something that you... Well, you haven't replaced it with anything.

   8. CWChris Williamson16:09

      Yeah.

   9. YUYusef16:09

      And so if you're somebody that thrives on rules and structure and you throw it away, of course, you're gonna be miserable.

   10. CWChris Williamson16:15

       Yeah.

   11. YUYusef16:15

       Of course you're gonna, you're gonna feel chaotic.

8. 16:18 – 18:28

   Make a Plan

   1. CWChris Williamson16:18

      I think the, uh, the solution to that is, as Jonny said, make a plan. So looking at the list here, plan your day, have a stable sleep and wake cycle, get dressed for work, get dressed for the gym, build habits, create a morning routine. What's next, Jonathan?

   2. JOJonny16:32

      Just related to that. So again, um, it's just another what seems like a really weird story. But does anyone remember reading about the guy who went into a cave and deprived himself completely of nat- of, of any artificial light? Has anyone read that?

   3. YUYusef16:47

      No.

   4. CWChris Williamson16:48

      No. I know Aubrey Marcus did it. (laughs)

   5. JOJonny16:50

      Okay. Well, h- he ended up, like, falling into sort of, like, a biphasic sleeping pattern. And I remember thinking like, man, how awesome would it be to be able to just have... 'Cause that, that's a, that's a world where he's just, like, removed, right, any sort of artificial structure that exists.

   6. CWChris Williamson17:04

      Mm-hmm.

   7. JOJonny17:04

      And he's like, "I'm just gonna sleep exactly how my body wants and I'm gonna feel the best as a result." Right? So this is exactly the same thing where probably for the first time in most people's lives, they have the pressure that... Just check the microphone. They have the pressure that has always decided when they do what they do-

   8. CWChris Williamson17:23

      Mm-hmm.

   9. JOJonny17:23

      ... is no longer there. So, like, you probably are all still trying to keep a nine-to-five life if that's what you've done.

   10. CWChris Williamson17:28

       Mm-hmm.

   11. JOJonny17:28

       But you can completely design your day to be exactly how you want. And as Yusuf says, like, that's either an opportunity to let it absolutely fist you and you end up like at midnight-

   12. CWChris Williamson17:39

       (laughs)

   13. JOJonny17:39

       ... still doing the same thing you were doing at 9:00 AM.

   14. CWChris Williamson17:41

       Yeah.

   15. JOJonny17:42

       Or you can just create the... Uh, and you'll realize how much you can get done if you sit down and absolutely focus for 90 minutes or have a genuinely, like, free evening where you don't have to think about work 'cause you've got so much done during the day.

   16. CWChris Williamson17:54

       Mm-hmm.

   17. JOJonny17:55

       So it, it is such an opportunity, but it just... I think you have to take it seriously. I think people who, as you say, like, if you're taking working from home, like, you're sort of sat on the sofa with like...

   18. CWChris Williamson18:04

       Oh, this is a fucking doss. Yeah. I've got time off.

   19. JOJonny18:06

       Yeah. Like-

   20. CWChris Williamson18:07

       I'll do what I want.

   21. JOJonny18:08

       ... yeah, like, to treat it, like, right. This is my- I'm gonna build a routine here that's gonna last after this so that even when I go back to work, I'm more productive, I wake up at the same time every day, I'm getting more done. Slingshot yourself into, like, "This time next year, I'm an absolute motherfucker," rather than-

   22. CWChris Williamson18:25

       Yeah.

   23. JOJonny18:26

       ... "I'm, like, I've gained five kilos."

9. 18:28 – 20:24

   Create a Space

   1. JOJonny18:28

   2. CWChris Williamson18:28

      Yeah, couldn't agree more.

   3. JOJonny18:29

      So-

   4. CWChris Williamson18:30

      So, um, let's start doing round tables of just little things that we can put in, and we'll, we'll add them in as we need. So my first hack is create a space. If you are working from home, create a space that you're going to work out of. So whether it be stack some books on top of the kitchen counter and work a standing desk in the kitchen, whether it be the spare bedroom, whether it be, um, some area... I would advise not doing it in your bedroom. Uh, I would... if you can, I would have a separate area for sleep and work just because it creates quite a nice physical barrier that tells you work has finished, uh, sleep has begun type thing. Um, but I think that definitely, that makes a big difference for me. I have my work area, I have my sleep area, you know, m- I think that's a, a great place to start. Uh, Yusuf, what have you got?

   5. YUYusef19:22

      Yeah, very much agree, like segregate out where you're gonna work and where you're gonna sleep so that you, you... And this, this is the same as having a structure of time in your day, but it's just physical structure, like boundaries within the space in your house. Um, the other thing that I would say is this is a time where the news and social media and people's minds are going crazy with anxiety. Because you, not only now do we have the existing systemic features of anxiety which are, like, or things that have promoted that over the last 10 years. We've seen that Google trend of people searching for the, the term, like, I think it goes up, like, fivefold or something over the last 10 years because of probably, um, influence of social media, expectations, body image, all that stuff. And that stuff's still going on on Instagram. Now compounded with we're all gonna die and you don't have job security and COVID is, is increasing in your area and this is the death rate today and here's the number

10. 20:24 – 22:12

    No Distraction

    1. YUYusef20:24

       of people-

    2. CWChris Williamson20:24

       And, and now a lack of distraction. There's nothing going on. People aren't outside with real other people, and this vacuum just sucks in speculation. I've seen the most vitriol Facebook debates I've ever seen. More than the general election.

    3. JOJonny20:38

       (laughs)

    4. CWChris Williamson20:38

       More than Brexit, more than, you know, like the final of Love Island. Like, I- it is, you know, it's really serious because people have got fuck-all else to do, and there's something for them to be worried about. It's a, a real melting pot.

    5. YUYusef20:51

       (laughs) So it's... yeah. So it's a breeding ground for all of the negativity and all of the, all of that style of thinking. Plus, yeah, like, to be a keyboard... like all you can do is be a keyboard warrior, like if, if you're gonna sit on Facebook and, and then you're also stuck with your family. Apparently divorce rates have gone up massively in China, um-

    6. JOJonny21:11

       (laughs)

    7. YUYusef21:11

       ... because people are just si-... I mean it's, it's a bit stupid to divorce, I think, like if you, if you're still stuck in the house with your partner.

    8. JOJonny21:17

       (laughs) That's babying with the bathwater, isn't it?

    9. YUYusef21:20

       Yeah.

    10. JOJonny21:20

        Like, forget about this virus. You know what? That's it. I'm out.

    11. YUYusef21:25

        I'm not sure it's even babying out with bathwater. It's, it's pooing in your own bed. Like-

    12. CWChris Williamson21:30

        (laughs)

    13. YUYusef21:30

        It's like, it's like right. Well, if, if you don't leave me alone, I'm gonna poo myself. And you're like, "Okay."

    14. CWChris Williamson21:38

        (laughs)

    15. JOJonny21:38

        I'm gonna poo in my fridge and in my dishwasher and on my own face. Yeah.

    16. YUYusef21:43

        Yeah.

    17. CWChris Williamson21:44

        Well, I, I know for a fact, I don't know about the divorce rates thing, but I know for a fact that sales of sex toys have gone up by around about 30 to 40%. Um, which is-

    18. YUYusef21:53

        It's so interesting, like the effect on the markets that this is having is so unpredictable, like home, homes gyms. Like who would have thought? You would never have been able to predict, like a year ago, that in March 2020 home gym sales and sex toys will go up massively-

    19. CWChris Williamson22:07

        Yeah.

    20. YUYusef22:07

        ... when the stock market went down, while, while the stock market is crashing. And Deliveroo, like, firing.

    21. CWChris Williamson22:11

        Talking... (laughs)

11. 22:12 – 37:34

    Anxiety

    1. CWChris Williamson22:12

       Yeah, sure, S&P. Um, a couple of things I've seen recently which are amazing. Have you seen that... it must be a television medium guy, American guy from maybe the '80s. And he's walking around and the video says what it's like being under, uh, home quarantine with your four-year-old, and it's just this guy walking around and he goes, "How tall's that tree over there? When was the last time that you washed your hands? Have you seen how fast I can run? What's that?" It's like just loads of random stupid questions, um, and I just thought, that must be, that is precisely what it's like to be with a four-year-old. And the other thing is, I saw a tweet yesterday from someone who said, um, "Absolutely unbelievable seeing your partner in full workflow. I'm married to a 'let's circle back to this' guy. Who knew?"

    2. YUYusef23:04

       Oh.

    3. CWChris Williamson23:10

       (laughs)

    4. JOJonny23:10

       Yeah, it is, it is weird actually, isn't it? If you've never worked with your partner bef-... like, the, your partner lives an entire life that you're not aware of and you're just being introduced to it now.

    5. CWChris Williamson23:19

       (laughs)

    6. JOJonny23:20

       So maybe that's why divorce rates have gone up.

    7. YUYusef23:23

       That's maybe it. I think that... so there, there's a lot of, uh, there's a, a lot of stuff would be cool to discuss today of like... so the, the job security is another kind of source of this anxiety, um, which has just been whipped away from most people, and, you know, most people do work in an offline environment. We don't have the infrastructure to, to really handle everybody working from home at once, and there are still certain professions that just need to continue running. Um, but to, to, to circle back to the, uh, the anxiety-

    8. CWChris Williamson23:55

       Nice, nice, nice.

    9. YUYusef23:56

       ... thing, um, one, one of the key things would just be to tune out of a lot of that negativity. Like I've seen apps being developed now of like the number of COVID cases on your menu bar so you can keep up... well, so you can keep up to date with the, the constant threat that's-

    10. CWChris Williamson24:12

        (laughs) Lurking outside of the door. Oh, it's nearly here. It's gonna be... like an Uber app. You will develop coronavirus in-

    11. YUYusef24:20

        It's, I mean, what-what does that help anyone?

    12. JOJonny24:23

        I, I don't know what any of the news helps with. 'Cause like everybody knows there is a virus. So like no one can argue with that. So there is a virus and you might get it. So the only thing you can do is wash your hands and stay inside. So like once you've ticked that box, like do something else. There's no need to like constantly be reminded, like, "Oh, fuck the news. Oh, shit. Oh yeah, just wash our hands and stay inside. All right, I thought so. Just checking, just checking that's still the case."

    13. CWChris Williamson24:47

        Mm-hmm.

    14. JOJonny24:47

        Like it's all just future-based, out of your control, outside for those two things. So go, go watch like Free Solo or something or like go, go do something interesting.

    15. YUYusef24:56

        Absolutely. It's, it's why I'm so glad that the guidelines is just, here are five points.

    16. JOJonny25:00

        (laughs)

    17. YUYusef25:00

        Like stay away from grandma, wash your hands. You, you know, it, like don't, don't buy all the toilet roll. Like just simple stuff-

    18. JOJonny25:07

        Yeah.

    19. YUYusef25:08

        ... that ... And there's no, you know, we don't need to go deeper into that. Like you're at home doing ...

    20. JOJonny25:13

        Have you ever seen Dad's, Dad's Army before? (sighs) Yeah. You, you know, you know Don't Panic Captain Man ring? Yeah. That's it. That's all anybody needs to do. 'Cause Don't- You know the guy who just, no matter what happens, uh, something happens and he just comes out with, "Don't panic, don't panic. Don't panic, Captain Man ring."

    21. CWChris Williamson25:29

        (laughs)

    22. JOJonny25:30

        Like it doesn't matter how basic or serious it is, he's, he's instantly in there with don't panic.

    23. CWChris Williamson25:35

        Yeah.

    24. JOJonny25:35

        'Cause everything's better if you just don't panic.

    25. CWChris Williamson25:38

        It is. Um-

    26. JOJonny25:39

        All of this would be better if people didn't panic.

    27. CWChris Williamson25:40

        Well, the, the problem that we've got is the lack of things for people to do is forcing them to spend more time online and the, the, um, amplitude that we're playing with of how just worried people are and an-anxious people are is drilling it into them seeking fixes for their anxiety in the place where the anxiety lives. So they're going online to-

    28. JOJonny26:06

        Yeah.

    29. CWChris Williamson26:06

        ... uh, they're jumping into an anxiety pool in a desperate attempt to try and cure their anxiety burns, which, which isn't working. So I mean, straight off the bat, couple of hacks, basic stuff that we've been talking about for ages. Sleep with your phone outside of your room. Um, don't use your phone before you have breakfast on a morning as a hard stop, and don't use your phone after, if you can, sort of 8:00 PM, 9:00 PM on a night. At the absolute least, one hour before you go to bed. That's gonna improve your sleep quality because you're not gonna be exposed to blue light. It's also gonna improve your life quality because it means that you're not going to be looking at social media immediately upon waking and the last thing before you try and get to sleep on a night. To add to that, if you're working from home, work in a room and have your phone in a different room. If you need WhatsApp for work, if you need Messenger for work, if you need anything else, all of those are available as web-based apps or, um, uh, web-based programs for your laptop, or just download the, the, uh, partner program onto your computer. There you go, like you've saved yourself from all of the shit that people are swimming in on the internet. It's the basics of trying to reduce your phone. Set a hard stop on a morning and a hard stop on a nighttime and then reduce the use during the day by having a physical barrier between you and your phone. There you go.

    30. YUYusef27:19

        It's not as if we need any more external sources of, of negativity or bad news when most people are thinking, am I gonna have a job when this is over? Or when is this gonna be over? Or am I gonna die or is my family gonna die? And all, all of these, these things don't, don't help with, yeah, as you said, when you, you, when all you have is those questions and nothing else to occupy (laughs) your time with. No t- no, no social events. Just sat in the house listening to what's between your ears.
12. 37:34 – 45:13

    Powerlifting

    1. YUYusef37:34

       is.

    2. CWChris Williamson37:34

       And if, if the, if your main concern as well during a global pandemic is the fact that you can't place fifth in a local powerlifting meet...

    3. JOJonny37:44

       (laughs) Well, that's it, isn't it? But just write that on a Post-It Note and put it on your wall.

    4. CWChris Williamson37:50

       (laughs)

    5. JOJonny37:50

       Just to remind yourself-

    6. CWChris Williamson37:51

       "This pandemic stopped me from placing fifth."

    7. JOJonny37:55

       Yeah. Well, so, so I suppose two things have come of it. One, go watch Jesus' video on what happened when I stopped training for six months.

    8. CWChris Williamson38:02

       (laughs)

    9. JOJonny38:02

       'Cause he just, like, not basically, the shortcut is nothing. Right? (laughs) And like, my deadlift, so I did CrossFit for seven months where I barely did any basic strength training, like any sort of barbell-based progressive like five by five, all that sort of stuff. Um, my deadlift went from like 312 to about 300.

    10. CWChris Williamson38:23

        (laughs)

    11. JOJonny38:23

        In six, six to seven months of cardio based, circuit based training that is supposedly, like, really bad for a str- overall strength goal. So, like, probably, and obviously it's different individually, but probably you aren't gonna lose much, like, even if you spend six months doing, like, yoga, flexibility, cardio, like, build up your chin-up and your press-up. Like, you definitely-

    12. YUYusef38:45

        It could be a good thing for you.

    13. JOJonny38:47

        It probably will be.

    14. YUYusef38:49

        'Cause then you, you know, you've improved your flexibility, you've taken a bit of time off those niggling injuries that are always getting the scab poked.

    15. JOJonny38:56

        Yeah, yeah.

    16. YUYusef38:56

        You've improved your work capacity. You then come back, you've got a bit more training flexibility and you can then come back to, to hit training whenever it happens.

    17. JOJonny39:03

        There's also an article on Pro Pain Fitness called I think Offseason for a Powerlifter.

    18. YUYusef39:08

        Yeah.

    19. JOJonny39:08

        I think. I mean this is very

    20. CWChris Williamson39:09

        Very good post.

    21. JOJonny39:10

        ... hard to... But it applies to, like, anyone who's been going to the gym regularly for a sustained period of time. When was the last time that you took a total, total break from resistance based training where you aren't, like, constantly trying to add weight to the bar or add weight to the machine or whatever you're doing? Most people don't do that. If you look at a pro athlete, like, look at, like, an NFL player or a rugby player, they have structured breaks in their training so they're not just constantly stressing the tendons and ligaments. You know-

    22. YUYusef39:37

        And they can be quite long, these breaks.

    23. JOJonny39:40

        Yeah.

    24. CWChris Williamson39:41

        Well, I mean, it, now is a perfect time to do some rehab movements, like, uh, @dr.sam spinelli on Instagram used to be The Strength Therapist but changed his handle.

    25. JOJonny39:53

        (laughs)

    26. CWChris Williamson39:53

        Um, (laughs) and, um, he has-

    27. JOJonny39:57

        Seriously?

    28. CWChris Williamson39:57

        ... his, that's, yeah, he changed it.

    29. JOJonny40:00

        It's more like-

    30. YUYusef40:01

        For reasons that-
13. 45:13 – 49:10

    Zoom

    1. CWChris Williamson45:13

       There's a lot of, there's a lot of-

    2. JOJonny45:14

       That's all you gotta do is flatten the curve.

    3. CWChris Williamson45:15

       Well, the, again, the, the problem is, the, the key thing that we keep coming back to, everybody's experiencing the same situation.

    4. JOJonny45:22

       Mm-hmm.

    5. CWChris Williamson45:22

       And as in a general election, unfortunately the vote of a stupid person is worth the same as the vote of someone who's well-informed.

    6. JOJonny45:30

       Yeah.

    7. CWChris Williamson45:31

       And w- whereas now the good actions of a person that decides to be virtuous and responsible are no way, in no way can mitigate the actions of a complete idiot that decides that they-

    8. YUYusef45:45

       Covidiot-

    9. CWChris Williamson45:45

       Yeah.

    10. YUYusef45:45

        ... is what the, uh, the new hashtag is.

    11. CWChris Williamson45:47

        It's what?

    12. JOJonny45:48

        Covidiot.

    13. CWChris Williamson45:48

        Covidiot?

    14. YUYusef45:48

        Covidiot.

    15. CWChris Williamson45:49

        Nice. I like that.

    16. YUYusef45:50

        Like, "Don't be a covidiot. Stay in the house."

    17. CWChris Williamson45:53

        I like it. Okay, so, um-

    18. JOJonny45:54

        Good code, mate.

    19. CWChris Williamson45:55

        ... what else, what else do we think? We've spoken about physical fitness, we've spoken about routines, a little bit of stuff for work. How can people make themselves feel less lonely and, and isolated? I actually don't quite like the, the term social isolation. Social distancing would be a better term, 'cause social isolation does imply that you're actually going to be isolated socially, which is not a very nice thing for people to deal with. Um, but yeah, how can we avoid the, the loneliness?

    20. JOJonny46:21

        Just get, get Zoom. Like, seriously. So I, I, I, I saw a post the other day of a guy who went for beers with his mates over a Zoom meeting.

    21. CWChris Williamson46:30

        My, my mate last night-

    22. JOJonny46:32

        Nice stuff.

    23. CWChris Williamson46:32

        ... my mate last night had a virtual stag do.

    24. JOJonny46:35

        Oh, that's brilliant.

    25. YUYusef46:37

        Oh.

    26. JOJonny46:37

        That is brilliant.

    27. CWChris Williamson46:38

        He was supposed to be in Istanbul, and David Coverdale, writes for The Sun, uh, had a virtual stag do, 20 people.

    28. JOJonny46:46

        What did, what software did he use?

    29. CWChris Williamson46:47

        Zoom.

    30. JOJonny46:48

        Yeah, well.
14. 49:10 – 52:08

    Group Chat

    1. CWChris Williamson49:10

       Well, I mean-

    2. JOJonny49:10

       And I'm funnier for that.

    3. NANarrator49:11

       (laughs)

    4. CWChris Williamson49:11

       Definitely one of the most anti-fragile things to COVID-19 so far has been group chats. Everyone that is listening will know just how up-regulated group chat activity has been. Yeah. And I have to say as well, the quality hasn't gone down. If anything, the quality's gone up. Like the quality-

    5. JOJonny49:28

       Yeah.

    6. CWChris Williamson49:28

       ... of some of the banter that's gone on in group chats has been great. So, w- whilst we're saying you do need to distance yourself from social media, I think that you need to account for the fact that your lack of social connection is going to lead to you feeling lonely and isolated, so-

    7. YUYusef49:45

       But group chat is not... I, I wouldn't class that as social media. I think that's direct messaging. As long as it's not, like, 100 people and-

    8. CWChris Williamson49:51

       Mm-hmm.

    9. YUYusef49:51

       ... people you don't know. But the negative effect of social media are looking at people who you don't really know on the news feed, and it's by definition because you don't know them, you assign this, like, idyllic life that they're living, and you... Whereas actually, like, all the kind of influencers on Instagram, like, they will have carefully crafted that shot and they will have been really writhing in a sense of, like, agonizing, wanting approval and trying to promote products and, and actually when you're interested in a group chat with your mates, like yeah, that's, it's the closest proxy we have to having a stag do or having a barbecue.

    10. CWChris Williamson50:26

        Yeah. So I did a podcast with Lydia Denworth who's written a book called Friendship, and in that she talks about just how, um, central it is to peoples' sense of wellbeing. But she also said that the fact that you can speak to people online, i- is not as good, it's not the same as having in-person connection, but it's a hell of a lot better than having nothing at all. So I love the idea of scheduling-

    11. YUYusef50:47

        Absolutely.

    12. CWChris Williamson50:47

        ... in, like, video calls or, or dinner parties and stuff. That virtual stag do I think's, like, phenomenal. A virtual night out would be, you know, like just a, a remote night out. Imagine what we would do. What would we do?

    13. NANarrator51:00

        (laughs)

    14. YUYusef51:01

        Just this.

    15. JOJonny51:01

        Probably just this.

    16. CWChris Williamson51:02

        Yeah, it would just be this, wouldn't it? You would get a broomstick out and you'd start doing handstands, Scourne. Johnny, you'd complain about the fact that your hips are tight.

    17. JOJonny51:10

        (laughs) I'd just drink loads of fizzy water.

    18. CWChris Williamson51:12

        And drink loads of fizzy water, yes.

    19. JOJonny51:13

        Loads. (laughs)

    20. CWChris Williamson51:14

        (laughs)

    21. YUYusef51:14

        So Johnny, can you tell us about this before we, before we go on? (laughs)

    22. JOJonny51:18

        About what? My tight hips?

    23. YUYusef51:19

        Oh in fact, I think you mentioned it on the last Life Hacks.

    24. CWChris Williamson51:21

        On the last Life Hacks.

    25. JOJonny51:22

        (laughs)

    26. YUYusef51:22

        The fizzy water.

    27. CWChris Williamson51:23

        Yousaf, yeah.

    28. JOJonny51:23

        Oh, yeah.

    29. CWChris Williamson51:24

        Oh, don't worry, it's already been, it's already been dropped and I scorned it, and now some people have gone out and bought a SodaStream.

    30. JOJonny51:30

        (laughs) .
15. 52:08 – 1:15:58

    How to Plan Your Day

    1. CWChris Williamson52:08

       Referral a dog.

    2. JOJonny52:10

       (laughs)

    3. CWChris Williamson52:10

       Um, okay, so I reckon we've got... Because we're using a brand new piece of recording software that Johnny and Yousaf forced me to use, I have no idea how long we've got left. So let's do another 15 minutes or so if we can.

    4. JOJonny52:23

       Cool.

    5. CWChris Williamson52:23

       Um, we've talked about the fact that you need to plan your day. How do I... Just to loop back to that, Johnny, circle back. Um, how do I plan my day? Do I, do I need a piece of paper? Do I need a spreadsheet? What do I do?

    6. JOJonny52:36

       So I just use iCal. Um, and then what I would suggest is the night before, pick one to three or th- pick one main thing and then three l- slightly less important things, write them down on a bit of paper or schedule them in. Um, and then get, try the free version of Brain.fm, which is brilliant. Something I've been doing recently. So that's a, that's a pre-Life Hack life hack that'll be appearing in a Life Hack soon.

    7. CWChris Williamson53:06

       Ooh, I love this.

    8. JOJonny53:08

       But it's, uh, it basically plays you, like, um, binaural beats, that sort of thing. But you can set a s- you can set a period of time. So don't worry about, like, setting a timer or anything like that, or you don't have to go into Pomodoros if that's not convenient for your workflow. Um, you can do, like, 60 minutes, 30 minutes, and 90 minutes of deep work or creative work. It plays nice stuff. Work for that long, and then get up, move around, do something else, and try and just do a few blocks of those in your day. So rather than, like, scheduling things down to the minute, think, right, I'm gonna wake up, and at nine o'clock I'm gonna do my first 90-minute block, then I'm gonna have a, a break and do something else.

    9. CWChris Williamson53:42

       Mm-hmm.

    10. JOJonny53:43

        I, personally that's how I always... I find trying to work for it. If it's Pomodoros or an intense period of work, then change your, change the room you're in or, like, go lean out the window or something like that. (laughs)

    11. CWChris Williamson53:55

        Yeah. I think, I think that having-

    12. JOJonny53:56

        But remain inside.

    13. CWChris Williamson53:57

        Having a... Yeah, remain inside. Do not go and see your mother.

    14. JOJonny54:00

        (laughs)

    15. CWChris Williamson54:00

        Um, I think that, um, trying to have a lunch break, trying to have an end of work deadline as well is important. Like, remember the things that we said. Remember, keep that semblance of normalcy. Have, if you usually work until 11:00, then have a little 15-minute break and have a coffee. Then work till half 1:00 and go down to the canteen. You can do the same thing except from going to the canteen, and it's going to make you feel like life is a lot less different and alien and away from what you usually do.

    16. JOJonny54:30

        I think the average knowledge worker, so like someone who's, like, working in a standard sort of office-based job with a laptop will probably be amazed at how much you can do when people aren't interrupting you and that sort of thing. So that's why I'm saying, like, h- write... It is, it is immensely difficult, like elite level difficult, to just do one thing for a period of time. Like if... That is just productivity.... that's it. It's just complete one thing at a time, uninterrupted, undistracted, until it's complete. So like, write four things down on a bit of paper, and if by the end of the day you've done them, you are, like, you are being extremely productive, especially if they're important things.

    17. CWChris Williamson55:09

        Mm-hmm.

    18. JOJonny55:09

        So just try that and just see how much you can get done. Make it into a bit of a game, especially if this is new for you. You'll probably see a bit of a hike in your productivity.

    19. CWChris Williamson55:16

        I like it. Um, Seth, anything that you think that we haven't touched on so far? What's... You're just waving. Hey-

    20. YUYusef55:24

        This.

    21. JOJonny55:24

        ... should we get...

    22. YUYusef55:25

        (laughs)

    23. JOJonny55:26

        For the people that are-

    24. CWChris Williamson55:27

        Oh, yes.

    25. JOJonny55:27

        For the people that are listening, we are all holding up the exact same brass and glass hourglass timer.

    26. YUYusef55:34

        Oh, delightful.

    27. JOJonny55:34

        Bit of brass.

    28. CWChris Williamson55:35

        Bit of brass, bit of glass.

    29. YUYusef55:38

        (laughs)

    30. CWChris Williamson55:38

        Porn stars shitting on a table.

Episode duration: 1:16:15