With the end of the Covid-19 pandemic now plausibly in sight, 70% of Britons say they hope to eat a healthier diet, lose weight and exercise more. But how? Every year, millions of people vow to be more physically active, but the vast majority of these resolutions fail. We all know what happens. After a week or two of sticking to a new exercise regime, we gradually slip back into old habits and then feel bad about ourselves.

Another Failed Resolution

Most adults in high-income countries, such as the UK and US, don’t get the minimum of 150 minutes per week of physical activity recommended by most health professionals. Everyone knows exercise is healthy, but prescribing and selling it rarely works.We all believe we should exercise more. So why is it so hard to keep it up? We list the most common and unhelpful workout myths.

Too Rich To Exercise

Exercise is a voluntary physical activity undertaken for the sake of fitness. You may think exercise is normal, but it’s a very modern behaviour. Instead, for millions of years, humans were physically active for only two reasons: when it was necessary or rewarding. Necessary physical activities included getting food and doing other things to survive. Rewarding activities included playing, dancing or training to have fun or to develop skills.But no one in the stone age ever went for a five-mile jog to stave off decrepitude, or lifted weights whose sole purpose was to be lifted.

Myth 1: It’s Normal to Exercise

When food is limited, every calorie spent on physical activity is a calorie not spent on other critical functions, such as maintaining our bodies, storing energy and reproducing. Because natural selection ultimately cares only about how many offspring we have, our hunter-gatherer ancestors evolved to avoid needless exertion – exercise – unless it was rewarding. So don’t feel bad about the natural instincts that are still with us. Instead, accept that they are normal and hard to overcome.

Myth 2: Avoiding Exertion Means You Are Lazy

Let’s not demonise a behaviour as normal as sitting. People in every culture sit a lot. Even hunter-gatherers who lack furniture sit about 10 hours a day, as much as most westerners. But there are more and less healthy ways to sit. Studies show that people who sit actively by getting up every 10 or 15 minutes wake up their metabolisms and enjoy better long-term health than those who sit inertly for hours on end. If you work all day in a chair, get up regularly, fidget and try not to spend the rest of the day in a chair, too.

Myth 3: Sitting Is the New Smoking

A common myth is that people uncontaminated by civilisation are incredible natural-born athletes who are super-strong, super-fast and able to run marathons easily. Not true. Most hunter-gatherers are reasonably fit, but they are only moderately strong and not especially fast. Their lives aren’t easy, but on average they spend only about two to three hours a day doing moderate-to-vigorous physical activity. It is neither normal nor necessary to be ultra-fit and ultra-strong.

Myth 4: Our Ancestors Were Hard-Working, Strong and Fast

Until recently just about every weight-loss programme involved exercise.  The truth is that you can lose more weight much faster through diet rather than exercise, especially moderate exercise such as 150 minutes a week of brisk walking. However, longer durations and higher intensities of exercise have been shown to promote gradual weight loss. Regular exercise also helps prevent weight gain or regain after diet. Every diet benefits from including exercise.

Myth 5: You Can’t Lose Weight Walking

Many people are scared of running because they’re afraid it will ruin their knees. These worries aren’t totally unfounded since knees are indeed the most common location of runners’ injuries. But knees and other joints aren’t like a car’s shock absorbers that wear out with overuse. Instead, running, walking and other activities have been shown to keep knees healthy, and numerous high-quality studies show that runners are, if anything, less likely to develop knee osteoarthritis. The strategy to avoid knee pain is to learn to run properly and train sensibly.

Myth 6: Running Will Wear out Your Knees

Despite rumours that our ancestors’ life was nasty, brutish and short, hunter-gatherers who survive childhood typically live about seven decades, and they continue to work moderately as they age. The truth is we evolved to be grandparents in order to be active in order to provide food for our children and grandchildren. In turn, staying physically active as we age stimulates myriad repair and maintenance processes that keep our bodies humming. Numerous studies find that exercise is healthier the older we get.

Myth 7: It’s Normal to Be Less Active as We Age

Many medical professionals follow the World Health Organisation’s recommendation of at least 150 minutes a week of moderate or 75 minutes a week of vigorous exercise for adults. In truth, this is an arbitrary prescription because how much to exercise depends on dozens of factors, such as your fitness, age, injury history and health concerns. Remember this: no matter how unfit you are, even a little exercise is better than none.

Myth 8: There Is an Optimal Dose/type of Exercise

Most people don’t like exercise and have to overcome natural tendencies to avoid it. For most of us, telling us to “just do it” doesn’t work any better than telling a smoker or a substance abuser to “just say no!” To promote exercise, we typically prescribe it and sell it, but let’s remember that we evolved to be physically active for only two reasons: it was necessary or rewarding. So let’s find ways to do both: make it necessary and rewarding.  For example: if you agree to meet friends to exercise regularly you’ll be obliged to show up, you’ll have fun and you’ll keep each other going.

Myth 9: ‘just Do It’ Works

Let’s not oversell exercise as medicine. Although we never evolved to exercise, we did evolve to be physically active just as we evolved to drink water, breathe air and have friends. Thus, it’s the absence of physical activity that makes us more vulnerable to many illnesses, both physical and mental. In the modern, western world we no longer have to be physically active, so we invented exercise, but it is not a magic bullet that guarantees good health.

Myth 10: Exercise Is a Magic Bullet

We all believe we should exercise more. So why is it so hard to keep it up? Daniel E Lieberman, Harvard professor of evolutionary biology, explodes the most common and unhelpful workout myths

Stashed ideas

Just don’t do it: 10 exercise myths

<ol><li>Pick your palette. Stick to either warm or cool colours or various shades of the same colour.</li><li>Look for one to two types of greenery with different textures and three to four types of flowers: A filler flower, a flower with some height, the "star" flower to grab attention, and a more complex flower such as berries.</li><li>Look for healthy flowers. The flowers should have green stems and firm petals.</li><li>Prep your plants. Cut stems at a 45-degree angle and remove leaves that will be below the waterline in the vase.</li></ol>

Find the right flowers

Put your vase on a lazy susan so you can spin it as you work.<ol><li>Start with the greenery</li><li>Then add your filler flowers</li><li>Next, add the tall flowers to create a high point</li><li>Then add the "star" flowers</li><li>Finish off your arrangement with the dainty flowers</li></ol>Ensure your bouquet has different layers of height and feels full and balanced all around.

Build your bouquet

Whether you forgot to order flowers for that special occasion, or you just want to flex a new creative muscle, here's how to DIY a professional-looking bouquet with grocery store flowers.

How to arrange supermarket flowers like a pro : Life Kit

Iñigo San-Millán, Ph.D. (@doctorinigo) is an internationally renowned applied physiologist. His research and clinical work focus on exercise-related metabolism, metabolic health, diabetes, cancer metabolism, nutrition, sports performance, and critical care  Iñigo San-Millán returns to The Drive to take a deep dive into Zone 2 training. He and Peter Attia breakdown metrics and levers of elite athletes, how to assess Zone 2 threshold, training levels for optimal health, and touch on learnings gathered from studying the mitochondria of long COVID patients in the ICU.

Podcast Introduction

<ul><li>Tadej Pogačar’s unique characteristics: can sustain high amounts of power output over long periods of time, recovers well, highly trainable.</li><li>Functional threshold power (FTP), lactate measurements, and watts per kilo predict performance – you really know where you stand before the race.</li><li>The Tour de France is won and lost in minutes when your ability to put out power really sets you apart.</li><li>Algorithms and metrics that work with the general population don’t always translate as well into professional athletes because they can mentally ignore a lot more.</li></ul>

Insights From Work With Tour de France Winner Tadej Pogačar

<ul><li>The sport of cycling has changed over time: watts and power output have decreased from the era drug use were rampant.</li><li>It’s feasible that the future of cycling will include real-time physiology & output metrics of riders.</li><li>Tour de France racers like Tadej spend 70-80% of the time in zone 2 training during winter months and increase intensity as the race nears.</li><li>Each energy system has a time in the calendar to achieve the desired output.</li></ul>

The Sport Of Cycling

<ul><li>Zone 2: the exercise intensity at which you are stressing mitochondria and oxidative capacity the most.</li><li>Tenants of zone 2 training: recruits mainly type I muscle fibers, mobilizes the highest amount of fat oxidation, and stimulates bioenergetics (fat & glucose in mitochondria).</li><li>Lactate is the preferred fuel for most cells in the body.</li><li>Lactate is oxidized in the mitochondria back to energy.</li><li>The purest way to estimate zone 2 training is indirect telemetry which will give us information about fat oxidation.</li></ul>

Zone 2 Training

<ul><li>Hook the device up to yourself then ride a bike or machine and gradually increase the intensity, measuring VO2 and VCO2</li><li>Consumption of oxygen production of carbon dioxide – which tells us total energy consumption (in kcal per minute).</li><li>Ratio of VO2 and VCO2 tells us how much energy comes from fat oxidation and how much is glycolytic.</li><li>In a more glycolytic state of fatty oxidation state, you still consume oxygen but don’t produce as much CO2.</li></ul>

Indirect Telemetry

As exercise intensity increases, you need more oxygen so VO2 increases then you give off more CO2 – you are recruiting type II muscle fibres, using more glucose for energy, consuming more oxygen, and producing more CO2.Mitochondria oxidize fuels differently at different exercise intensities – an elite athlete can still recruit slow-twitch muscle fibres at high intensities and rely on fat to produce energy while the average person fully relies on glucose (instead of fat) to sustain the effort.

Increase In Exercise Intensity

<ul><li>The independent variable is workload (in watts); the dependent variable is blood lactate.</li><li>People with metabolic syndrome have high resting lactate (almost 2 mmol) – it’s possible that resting lactate will eventually be a tracked biomarker (the same way we use blood glucose).</li><li>Once lactate exceeds 2 mmol you are leaving zone 2 and entering zone 3.</li><li>A healthy person starts with a lactate of about 1 mmol; an elite athlete starts at lactate of about .5 mmol.</li><li>The fitter the individual, the higher the absolute capacity for fat oxidation.</li></ul>

Muscle Physiology, Lactate, & Fat Oxidation

The metabolic stress of an elite athlete is not the same as a recreational athlete or layperson at the same blood lactate – 2 mmol of stress in an elite athlete might be higher than 2 mmol of stress in the average person because of the intensity it takes the elite athlete to get to 2 mmol in the first place

Metabolic Stress

<ul><li>The lactate in the blood reflects mitochondrial oxidation: someone with high power output who needs a lot of glycolysis to produce energy will produce lactate.</li><li>Lactate is the byproduct of glycolysis – the higher the glycolysis, the higher the lactate.</li></ul>Two routes of lactate: <ol><li>From fast-twitch muscle fibres to slow-twitch muscle fibres; </li><li>Export to blood.</li></ol><ul><li>Every time you use glucose you produce pyruvate; every time that pyruvate will be reduced to lactate.</li><li>No matter how fit you are, at some point, you have to produce lactate.</li><li>When lactate can no longer be oxidized it’s transported to the blood.</li></ul>

Producing Lactate

<ul><li>A reasonable measure of how zone 2 should feel: you can carry out a full conversation, maybe not as comfortably as if you weren’t exercising, but still without much strain.</li><li>You want to know your actual maximum heart rate – zone 2 will be about 70-80% of your realized maximum heart rate.</li><li>Zone 2 will depend on fatigue as well – heart rate variability will be lower on days you are tired or didn’t sleep well.</li><li>Heart rate variability is actually a strong indicator of how hard you should push or back off exercise.</li></ul>

Identifying Your Zone 2 Level

<ul><li>Zone 2 really involves steady-state, sustained cardio.</li><li>If you only train once per week, you will deteriorate overtime – two days per week you might maintain what you have – three days or more, we see improvements.</li><li>Ideal parameters of zone 2: ideally train 1 hour-1.5 hours, 4x per week.</li><li>If it’s difficult to start out with one hour, start with less and work your way up.</li><li>If you look at the workload of an elite athlete, most sessions are of lower intensity – it’s not all about intensity and interval training.</li></ul>

Starting With Zone 2 Training

You can accomplish very important mitochondrial adaptations and very important metabolic adaptations by exercising for one hour…3-4 days per week.

<ul><li>Four pillars of fitness: (1) stability; (2) strength; (3) “low-end aerobic” or zone 2; (4) high intensity/anaerobic capacity.</li><li>VO2 max is highly correlated with longevity.</li><li>Longevity is also highly correlated with mitochondrial function and metabolic health.</li><li>High-intensity training is not sustainable over time, the same way extreme diets are not sustainable over time.</li><li>High intensity is critical for sustaining glycolytic capacity, especially as we age – but thankfully it can be improved in just a few months.</li></ul>

The Four Pillars Of Fitness

<ul><li>Some studies point to elevated lactate levels in patients on metformin</li><li>Metformin carries a lot of potential long term benefits but it’s difficult to parse out effects on mitochondrial function</li><li>NAD levels decrease with ageing, but many other metabolites are also downregulated with ageing</li><li>Taking NAD is not going to increase longevity, I don’t think so, that’s my opinion because longevity is not just one supplement or two or three or four or five, it’s a compendium.</li><li>NR &NMN are precursors to NAD – but we should be cautious when considering – a lot of fads come and go in longevity research</li></ul>

Supplements and Use Of Metformin

<ul><li>Patients with long COVID, even if previously healthy, end up looking mitochondrially like patients with type 2 diabetes in terms of fat oxidation and lactate production.</li><li>Metabolic test results of patients with long COVID often have normal pulmonary function tests and normal cardiac function – but they struggle to go up a flight of stairs at 50 years old.</li><li>It’s suspected that COVID produces a global insult to mitochondria (maybe in skeletal muscle) and leads to severe mitochondrial dysfunction, even one year later.</li></ul>

Patients With COVID in The Long Form

<ul><li>The brain dies if the liver can’t produce glucose continuously</li><li>Muscles deplete glycogen because of high utilization but the liver has plenty of glucose because of gluconeogenesis</li><li>It’s plausible that muscles eat themselves to feed themselves and the rest of the body – so getting some sort of load-bearing training (even moving extremities in bed) and supplementing with amino acids could improve outcomes</li><li>Two main parameters that are predictors of mortality in ICU: (1) high cortisol levels; (2) high lactate levels</li></ul>

ICU Patients: An Observation

You’d much rather err on the side of hyperglycemia than hypoglycemia under a period of stress

 View the Show Notes Page for This Episode  Become a Member to Receive Exclusive Content Episode Description: Iñigo San-Millán is an internationally renowned applied physiologist and a previous guest on The Drive. His research and clinical work focuses on exercise-related metabolism, metabolic health, diabetes, cancer metabolism, nutrition, sports performance, and critical care. In this episode, Iñigo describes how his work with Tour de France winner Tadej Pogačar has provided insights into the amazing potential of elite athletes from a performance and metabolic perspective. He speaks specifically about lactate levels, fat oxidation, how carbohydrates in food can affect our lactate and how equal lactate outputs between an athlete and a metabolically unhealthy individual can mean different things. Next, he discusses how Zone 2 training boosts mitochondrial function and impacts longevity. He explains the different metrics for assessing one’s Zone 2 threshold and describes the optimal dose, frequency, duration, and type of exercise for Zone 2. Additionally, he offers his thoughts on how to incorporate high intensity training (Zone 5) to optimize health, as well as the potential of metformin and NAD to boost mitochondrial health. Finally, he discusses insights he’s gathered from studying the mitochondria of long COVID patients in the ICU. We discuss:  The amazing potential of cyclist Tadej Pogačar [3:00]; Metrics for assessing athletic performance in cyclists and how that impacts race strategy [8:30]; The impact of performance-enhancing drugs and the potential for transparency into athletes’ data during competition [17:00]; Tadej Pogačar’s race strategy and mindset at the Tour de France [24:00]; Defining Zone 2, fat oxidation, and how they are measured [26:45]; Using fat and carbohydrate utilization to calculate mitochondrial function and metabolic flexibility [35:45]; Lactate levels and fat oxidation as it relates to Zone 2 exercise [40:00]; How moderately active individuals should train to improve metabolic function and maximize mitochondrial performance [51:45]; Bioenergetics of the cell and what is different in elite athletes [57:30]; How the level of carbohydrate in the diet affects fuel utilization and power output during exercise [1:08:30]; Glutamine as a source for making glycogen—insights from studying the altered metabolism of ICU patients [1:15:00]; How exercise mobilizes glucose transporters—an important factor in diabetic patients [1:21:00]; Metrics for finding Zone 2 threshold—lactate, heart rate, and more [1:25:00]; Optimal Zone 2 training: dose, frequency, duration, and type of exercise [1:41:15]; How to incorporate high intensity training (Zone 5) to increase VO2 max and optimize fitness [1:51:15]; Compounding benefits of Zone 2 exercise and how we can improve metabolic health into old age [2:01:45]; The effects of metformin, NAD, and supplements on mitochondrial function [2:05:15]; The role of lactate and exercise in cancer [2:13:30]; How assessing metabolic parameters in long COVID patients provides insights into this disease [2:19:00]; The advantages of using cellular surrogates of metabolism instead of VO2 max for prescribing exercise [2:25:45]; Metabolomics reveals how cellular metabolism is altered in sedentary individuals [2:33:45]; Cellular changes in the metabolism of people with diabetes and metabolic syndrome [2:39:15]; and More.   Sign Up to Receive Peter’s Weekly Newsletter Connect With Peter on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube

#201 - Deep dive back into Zone 2 | Iñigo San-Millán, Ph.D. (Pt. 2)

The fix: You’ve got plenty of time; the trick is being intentional about how you use it.There are 168 hours in a week. Even after you subtract 56 hours to sleep and 50 for work, you’re left with 62 hours.We have the power to fill our lives with the things that deserve to be there.If you truly want to start working out, you must place it high on your mental to-do list. Then you need to put it in your physical schedule, by planning your week before you’re in it.

Excuse #1: “I don’t have the time to exercise.”

The fix: Put yourself in the future.When it comes to temptation, we humans are engaged in a righteous struggle between our present self and our future self. Our future self knows it’s in our best interest to exercise, but “it’s an unequal battle” between the two selves.The present self is present. It’s in control. It can easily put donuts into your mouth. The future self is not even around, and so the present self can trounce all over its dreams.Engage in mental time travel.   Picture yourself in 20 or 30 years if you don’t start exercising.

Excuse #2: “I’m just so comfortable at home right now; I’ll start exercising next week.”

The fix: You can do both at the same time.Make it a rule that you can consume your favourite stories (Netflix/novel/podcast/news) only while exercising. “Temptation bundling” is what this pairing of a pleasurable activity with a desired habit is.

Excuse #3: “I’d much rather listen to This American Life/watch Netflix/catch up on the news"

The fix: People will judge, but you don’t need to be one of them.We live in a culture where being fat is seen as being a bad person — lazy, greedy, unhealthy, irresponsible and morally suspect. And we tend to see thinness as being universally good.Rather than seeing exercise as a way to punish ourselves for not being “perfect,” it can be a way for us to take care of our bodies.Reclaiming yourself can be one of the most gorgeous acts of self-love and can look like a million different things, from hairstyles to tattoos to body contouring to hormones to surgery and, yes, even weight loss.

Excuse #4: “I feel like I’m out of shape, and I dread going to the gym with all those workout fanatics staring at me.”

The fix: Take a tip from top athletes, and imagine a different scenario.You’ll frequently see Olympians frown right before they compete. Most of them are not worrying about the event (even though that’s what it looks like they’re doing). They’re engaging in imagery — visualizing what’s to come. Imagery is a mental rehearsal. This exercise is very effective: If you’re going for a run, what obstacles (bikers, traffic) will emerge? Picture yourself navigating around them.   Try to see every step as if you’re watching it in fast forward. Then take one last breath, open your eyes, and go.

Excuse #5: “When I think about working out, I picture myself panting, red-faced and in pain, so I find something else to do.”

How to exercise when it’s the last thing you want to do

You don't need to spend thousands of dollars to get a good workout. However, finding the time to go to the gym can be difficult and stressful. Studies show that the best way to lose weight and burn fat is using an exercise routine that incorporates multiple muscle groups and spike your heart rate. If you want to burn fat and lose weight in a short time, try resistance training.

Working out at home

This seven move, full-body resistance workout requires some extra resistance. Instead of hand weights,  you can use a can of baked beans or coconut cream, a pile of books or a basket of washing. 1. Alternating lunge and press2. Squat curl and press3. V-sit overhead boxing4. Row and press (left side)5. Row and press (right side)6. Front raise into side raise7. Running arms

Full body resistance workout

For this workout, you'll need a baby or and other cute resistance you have at home. Do each of these seven exercises for 30 seconds each, and repeat the sequence four times. <ol><li>Reverse lunge (right side)</li><li>Reverse lunge (left side)</li><li>Squat and press</li><li>Kneeling push up and kiss</li><li>Plank</li><li>Sit up</li><li>Baby kayaks</li></ol>

Home resistance workout with baby

<ol><li>Burpees</li><li>Jump squats</li><li>Split lunge jumps</li><li>Push-ups</li><li>Mountain climbers</li><li>Plank up-downs</li><li>Bicycle cruches</li></ol>

Fat burning HIIT in 7 moves without equipment

<ol><li>Mat jumps (side to side)</li><li>Mountain Climbers</li><li>Squat Jumps</li><li>Box & Jump</li><li>Split Lunge jumps</li><li>Ducking Squats</li><li>Burpees</li></ol>

Fat-burner routine

<ol><li>Swing Sit-Ups</li><li>Toe Taps</li><li>Kneeling Plank</li><li>Lying Leg Raise – Left Side</li><li>Lying Leg Raise – Right Side</li><li>Supported V Sit</li><li>Alternating Kneeling Shoulder Touches</li></ol> Beginners can start by doing 30 second of each of the seven exercises with 30 seconds rest between each exercise. As you become stronger, work your way up until you can do a minute of each exercise.

Home workout to tone your abs

<ol><li>Squats (20 reps)</li><li>Forward-back lunges (10 reps each leg forward and back)</li><li>Calf raises (20)</li><li>Static lunge (10 each leg)</li><li>Squat Jumps (10)</li><li>Side lunges (10 each leg)</li><li>Side Leg Raises (10 each leg)</li><li>Repeat 3-4 times</li></ol>

Home workout to tone your legs

<ol><li>Renegade row (10 reps each side, 20 in total)</li><li>Push-ups (20 reps)</li><li>Curl & Press (20 reps)</li><li>Arm Curls (20 reps)</li><li>Overhead tricep extension (20 reps)</li><li>Lat raise (20 reps)</li><li>Side Plank with Resistance (hold 30 seconds each side)</li></ol>

Home workout to tone your upper body

Multiple workout exercises you can do at home.

How to Exercise at Home Without Equipment – 28 By Sam Wood

"Ah yes, the past can hurt. But the way I see it, you can either run from it or learn from it.”

"Learn from every mistake because every experience, encounter, and particularly your mistakes are there to teach you and force you into being more of who you are."

“The greatest mistake you can make in life is to be continually fearing you will make one.”

“One of the basic rules of the universe is that nothing is perfect... Without imperfection, neither you nor I would exist.”

<ul><li>A mistake is an error in judgment, misunderstanding, or misguided action. You won’t always have poor intentions when making mistakes — in fact, many mistakes are accidents.</li><li>Alternatively, failure usually comes from a lack of success, or an inability to meet expectations. Everyone’s definition of failure is different. </li></ul>Several consecutive mistakes could lead to failure, but the terms aren’t synonymous.

Mistakes and failures

<ol><li>The first step to achieving growth is admitting when you’ve done wrong.</li><li>Changing your perspective is the second step to the learning process.</li><li>Take the time to consider what led up to the mistake, including errors you made along the way. </li><li>Put the lessons you've learned into practice.</li><li>Review your progress. </li><li>Recognize that it's okay to feel vulnerable.</li><li>Remember that we can't avoid making mistakes. It’s impossible to anticipate everything that will happen; all we can do is try our best, ask for help, and support others.</li></ol>

The art of making mistakes

How you see yourself and view your actions is a significant aspect of handling any errors you make. Your mindset is everything. It may seem small, but showing compassion toward yourself does wonders for your self-esteem.

Be compassionate toward yourself

A brief guide to the benefits of making and learning from your mistakes. Plus, take a look at inspirational quotes to help you bounce back when those mistakes happen.

Learn From Your Mistakes: Master This Art to Achieve More

The G8 summit or the Group of Eight is the annual meeting of the world's top economic leaders, happening since 1973. In 2013 it became the G7 due to the removal of Russia, due to their invasion of Crimea.
The G8 is more like a club of the world's most powerful people, where the leader of the group changes annually, and there is no legal or political authority.
The Original Eight countries are the US, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia and the UK.

The Great Eight

Originally called the G6, the first summit took place in France in 1975 and added Canada a year later to become G7. Russia was added in the year 1997.There were various informal group meetings in the 70s, discussing serious concerns, like the mid-east oil crisis.

Origins Of The G8

The G8 also acted as a planning and discussion forum for the bigger G20 event, which was formed in 1999 and added Argentina, Australia, Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Korea, Turkey, and the EU to the existing list of countries.The G8 is starting to look irrelevant after the formation of the G20, which proved its worth by handling crucial issues like the 2008 economic crisis. To remain relevant and useful, the G8 should address problems that affect developing nations.

G8 to G20

The G8 was conceived as a gathering of world economic powers to discuss global issues. But since the creation of the G20, it has become less relevant.

Self Improvement

What Were the G8 Countries?

The most powerful habit that helps boost happiness in the morning is the practice of gratitude. The people who journaled about the things they're thankful for during the week scored much higher on measures of happiness than people who noted the things they're irritated by.
A daily gratitude practice may contribute to improved physical health - which, in turn, contributes to overall feelings of happiness.

Incorporate gratitude

It depends on your personality and your schedule as to how you're going to connect with someone. It doesn't have to be an actual fact-to-face conversation, a simple text or email to a friend or family.
Send good thoughts and consciously focus on the things that you cherish about them.

Have social contact

The key to happiness really is just consistency, start slow and build gradually - whatever habit you choose to attach to a pre-existing routine will help you stick to continuously doing so.

Have a wellness habit then link it to an AM ritual you already have

Screens hamper happiness. This is backed by many studies and it confirms that frequent use of social media can decrease mood over time and that a high volume of emails is connected with overall feelings of unhappiness.
So if you reach for your phone in the morning or your tablet or your computer, you're inviting the outside world to dictate your mood first thing in the morning.

Get your phone out of your room

It seems like a crazy idea but it's pretty helpful in many ways. The people who spend a lot of time talking to themselves in their own heads are more likely able to calm themselves down during stressful mornings.
A helpful tip for this is to say your own name. When you say your own name during self-talk, you're actually more likely to follow your own advice.

Practice self-talk

If you roll out of bed feeling tired or stressed, these a.m. habits can help you turn your mood around.

5 Things You Should Do First Thing In The Morning To Be Happier All Day

<ul>
<li>Stress in small doses is beneficial in certain demanding situations, helping us perform and think better.</li>
<li>Intense, chronic stress is seen to diminish the person physically, psychologically, and cognitively, and the problems that provide stress and anxiety are not going away.</li>
<li>The need of the hour is to develop resilience, empathy, and coping skills.</li>
</ul>

The Pursuit Of Resilience

Regular brisk walking, along with a break from work-related activities defuses the body&#39;s stress response. Mindfulness is also an invaluable method to restore one’s calm and focus.
A positive mindset, great friendships and striving towards a personal goal help us manage our stress levels through perseverance and determination.

Manage Your Stress And Build Resilience

Scientific American is the essential guide to the most awe-inspiring advances in science and technology, explaining how they change our understanding of the world and shape our lives.

The Pursuit of Resilience

There are four main hormones that trigger the feelings of happiness: dopamine, serotonin, oxytocin, and endorphins.
Understanding these chemicals and how they work can help you figure out ways to feel better during a stressful time.

Hormones that makes you feel happy

The hormone dopamine is related to motivation and reward. It's why you feel good to reach a goal or lack interest when you have low dopamine.
How to boost it: While unhealthy habits like drinking, caffeine, eating sugar or consuming certain recreational drugs can increase this hormone, there are other ways to boost it. One way is to embrace a new goal and take small steps toward it every day. Your brain will reward you with dopamine each time you reach your goal.

Increasing Dopamine

Serotonin is a neurotransmitter that plays a role in mood. It is important for reducing depression and regulating anxiety. It also regulates digestion, sleep, and bone health.
How to boost it: Confidence increases serotonin. One way to build confidence is to start a new exercise routine, which helps increase your confidence when you stick to it over time. Another is to find ways to get out of your comfort zone each day.

Boosting Serotonin

Oxytocin is also called the "love" hormone and is associated with how people bond and trust one another. It explains why you feel happy to cuddle with your pets. It also helps parents bond with their newborn.
How to boost it: You can boost oxytocin by being physically or emotionally close with others that you trust. Reach out to a friend or contact you want to know better.

Raising Oxytocin Levels

Endorphines are linked with exercise. They function as natural painkillers that help minimize pain and maximize pleasure, explaining why an athlete may be able to push through a race with an injury that they don't notice until later.
How to boost it: Laughter will boost endorphins, so will eating dark chocolate, watching your favourite drama, working out, and meditating.

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to upgrade
your career

Liza Mills
@lizamm

Just don’t do it: 10 exercise myths

How to arrange supermarket flowers like a pro : Life Kit

#201 - Deep dive back into Zone 2 | Iñigo San-Millán, Ph.D. (Pt. 2)

How to exercise when it’s the last thing you want to do

How to Exercise at Home Without Equipment – 28 By Sam Wood

Bite-sized knowledgeto upgradeyour career

Liza Mills@lizamm

Just don’t do it: 10 exercise myths

How to arrange supermarket flowers like a pro : Life Kit

#201 - Deep dive back into Zone 2 | Iñigo San-Millán, Ph.D. (Pt. 2)

How to exercise when it’s the last thing you want to do

How to Exercise at Home Without Equipment – 28 By Sam Wood

Bite-sized knowledge
to upgrade
your career

Liza Mills
@lizamm