Hi everyone,
Lately I've been writing about daily habits that greatly impacted my lifestyle. What they all have in common, is that they expose my body to hormetic stress. Unlike chronic, long term stress which is known to be harmful, it's been proven over and over that hormetic stress is beneficial. Whether you're doing intermittent fasting, exercising or taking an ice bath, all of these improve your well-being.
What is hormetic stress?
In simple words, it's stressing the body enough to make it stronger, but not so much to damage it.
Examples of hormesis
- cold exposure eg. ice baths, cold showers; you can find more on the topic here;
- power breathing eg. Wim Hof method breathing; head down here for more information;
- intermittent fasting; I wrote a piece about it a couple days ago;
- exercising; something that takes your breath away like jogging, cycling or swimming
The list goes on.
It's worth noticing that, when we voluntarily expose ourselves to a short term stress, we naturally step out of our comfort zones. That in a way connects us to our ancestry, simply because for hundreds of thousands of years we didn't have an easy access to foods, there was no heaters, no warm running water. Our ancestors were required to stay fit and always alert in case danger would come around and they had to escape it.
Nowadays, living became too comfortable. With our warm clothes and homes, different types of foods available at hand and comfy beds we've lost contact with the true nature of the world. We're becoming more isolated, left without meaning, anxious or depressed, and in result more prone to being manipulated. Comfort is slowly killing us. Especially now, when without hesitation, we're willing to give up our freedoms so we're not deprived of all the conveniences we've been given. I'm not saying ditch comfort entirely, but rather become aware that life has always been about discomfort. Remember the saying, life begins where comfort ends?
Let me know in the comments what's your thoughts on the topic and how you manage to step out of your comfort zones :)
Have a good one!