Simpler

Matt Madeiro

Table of Contents
Simpler Health 1: Intro 2: Food 3: Drink 4: Fasting 5: Daily Routine 6: Fitness 7: Walk 8: Sprint 9: (Body)Weight 10: Simpler Health Simpler Stuff 1: Intro 2: Crap 3: Non-Crap 4: Cutting the Crap 5: Keepsakes 6: Simpler Buying 7: Simpler Stuff Simpler Life 1: Intro 2: Time 3: TV 4: Internet 5: People 6: Simpler Time

9 10 16 18 21 26 28 30 32 38 41 43 48 49 53 55 58 61 63 65 68 72 74

Wrapping It All Up Resources About the Author

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There's someone I want to be. He has a lean, athletic build, the exact kind of body that makes you pause and steal another look. He's funny, intelligent and charming, serious when he needs to be but enthusiastic at every other chance. He's well-traveled, comfortable with just about everything, and he's the guy who makes at least three dozen friends every time he steps into a new country. Mostly, though, he's the guy living life the way he wants to. He's the guy living on his own terms. That's not me. Not yet, at least but I'm working on it. And I'm starting to think, now, that realizing our ideal self your perfect you is a little bit different than we've been lead to believe. It's a little bit easier, even. That ideal self? Maybe it's been here all along. Maybe that man is me. Hell, maybe he's always been me, but buried underneath years of doubt, twice-daily Dr. Pepper, and more layers of bad advice and stupid, stupid information than you could ever possibly believe. Maybe I just have to do a little digging to find him. Maybe I just need to take all the mess in my life, bundle it up nice and neat, and punt it out across the water.

Maybe just maybe! I need to simplify my life, focus on what matters, and make every effort to uncover that person I've always wanted to be. That's what I started thinking, at least, about nine months back. Those thoughts were the first volley in a full-scale movement towards simplicity, the culmination of which is the book you have on your screen. Simpler is diced three ways: Health, Stuff, and Life. That last category is kind of a catch-all for "everything else," but I think it might have a few fresh takes on the parts of life we tend to complicate most. I can vouch for them, in any case. Nine months later, I find myself a remarkably different person from the messy, unhappy, and pot-bellied man of before. I just had to go digging, as it turns out. I just had to simplify. And you know what? I found out a few interesting things when I did. You can have strong, effortless health. You can be happy and free. You can make every day count. You've had the power and the capability all along, but that little truth has been buried under years of complications and complexities piled on from modern life. But when you dig it out? You can do anything. I hope you enjoy the book. - Matt
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Disclaimer-Type Things
I'm not a doctor. I'm not a perfect minimalist, and I'm not (yet!) a world traveler. I'm a blogger. I'm a guy who packed on about forty pounds during his last year of college nearly all of it on the stomach. I'm a guy who got robbed that same year, only to realize that his room was so messy that the poor thief couldn't find anything worth stealing. I'm a guy, mostly, who was never comfortable in his own skin. But I'm a guy who changed, too. In the span of nine months, I lost all that weight and more, seeing a pretty sweet set of abs I never knew I had. I sold most of the stuff I owned, consolidating my life down to just a few bags, and made bold plans to live in every city that caught my attention. I made incredible friends both on and offline, met people from all over the globe, and gained immeasurable confidence in my ability to help change the world. And through it all, I realized something incredible something that even now is kind of hard to believe. The weight loss? The minimalism? The new outlook on life? Those were easy. Simple, even, a heck of a lot easier to grasp than I had ever been lead to believe. And so I decided to write about it.

You don't have to take me at my word. Feel free to challenge me every step of the way, in fact. I ask just one thing: try it. Try it for a single month, please, and if it doesn't improve your life in some way, then I give you full permission to write me a nasty letter and make me cry myself to sleep at night. Thatd be pretty mean, though. Let's get started, shall we?
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Simpler Health

1: Intro
Ever seen the "Diet" section of a bookstore? It's terrifying. You want to lose weight, right? Right. Let's say you start there. Dive into that section for just thirty minutes and try to surface with a single clear idea of a safe, simple way to drop the pounds. Low-carb? Low-fat? Blood type? Lacto-ovo Vegetarian? Fruitarian? Carnivorous? Ridiculous? It's confusing. It's contradictory. And beyond that, it's just a tiny bit sad. Why is this hard? Why, when our supermarkets carry an abundance of the food we need to maintain happy, healthy lives, is the modern world facing a health crisis of unimaginable proportions? I'm not here to point fingers. I'm not even here to say that one plan is better than the other, as a list like "The Top 10 Diets!" is the exact kind of nonsense better left for glossy magazines. I am here to say that reclaiming your health can be easy, natural, and simple above all else. Here's how.
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2: Food
People tend to get pretty passionate about what's on their plate. I can't blame them. I'm a self-styled foodie myself, a little personality quirk that probably contributed to the extra tire I was carrying around my midsection earlier this year. And that's the thing: I still love all the food I ate during my 'growing' phase, and I won't pretend I don't crave the occasional slice of pizza whenever I'm not in the mood to cook. I don't order a pizza, though. Here's why. You can eat all the pizza you want! You can have cake each weekend, doughnuts every morning, and brush your teeth with soft drinks before you lay down at night. Guess what? It won't kill you. You'll suffer some pretty miserable health, develop a staggering gut, and juggle a dozen different pills for over half of your lifespan, but hey you'll still (probably) survive. For some people, that's good enough. For me? No chance. And for you? I doubt it. You don't want to just survive. You want to thrive. You want to live healthy and strong for every year you're given, and you want to make every single day on this planet count as much as possible. You understand, deep down, that it's hard to do that when you can't touch let alone see! your toes.
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 Good news, then! You don't have to count calories. You don't have to count macronutrients. You don't have to do a single damn thing beyond taking the food off your plate and shoveling it into your mouth. The result will be strong, vibrant health, the way it should be: easy. Effortless. Simple. Step one: think about what you eat. This might be the single greatest change you can ever make for your health. Don't buy it? Let's start with an analogy that might hit a little close to home. A new pill hits the market. It passed clinical trials, sure, but still comes with a list of potential health complications at least a mile long. And you know how this goes, right? New pill comes out, hundreds of people add it to their routine, and ten years later half of them have gone blind. Raise your hand if you would willingly take this drug. Right. We view any new medication with the appropriate level of suspicion, wary of what this chemical cocktail might do to our bodies. But what if we took that a step further? What if we trained that suspicious eye on something even more important?
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 What if we were suspicious of food? Yes. Food. Bear with me for just a moment longer. It's not hard to picture a frozen pizza rolling down the assembly line like pills do. It doesn't help, too, that the ingredient list reads like the glossary in a chemistry book. And what about the thousands of gleaming boxes that crowd the interior of the grocery store? What about the latest and greatest food product that was designed in a laboratory setting before ever reaching your kitchen table? Doesn't that seem like a bad idea? Doesn't that seem unnatural? So why is it, then, that processed food has become a chief component of the modern diet? Why are we surprised to see our stomachs swell when we regularly chow down on much like those trendy pills! a food product that has only emerged in the last few decades? Our bodies are not used to this. And how could they be? We evolved to eat just a few things: meat, fish, veggies, and fruit. Natural food. It's what our bodies want, at the end of the day, and realizing just how little of it we consume can be a significant step towards a stronger, healthier you. Step two: eat natural. Just to rub it in: meat, fish, fruit, and veggies. Eat them. Eat them often. You might notice that this list doesn't include another staple of the modern diet: cereal grains. Exactly why you should avoid
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(or at least minimize) them is beyond the scope of this book, but here are two practical perspectives on the subject that you might want to consider. For the calorie counter: Want to consume fewer calories? Or, better yet, not have to count them at all? Drop the grains as often as you can. They add an immense amount of calories to any meal with just a tiny boost in nutrients, making it that much easier to blow past your caloric goals on a regular basis. Get a burrito without the wrap, in other words, and you'll start to realize something important: eating just meat, veggies and fruit makes it a heck of a lot easier to come in under 2,000 calories a day. The best part? Three square meals of simple, flavorful food will still leave you stuffed and satisfied. Knowing it's from healthy, natural sources is just icing on the (flourless!) cake. For the "Everything in Moderation" person: You're about to feel silly in a moment. The whole "everything in moderation" argument likes to get thrown about whenever going grain-free comes up. It's usually used to justify getting pizza and dessert with your salad, but let's take a closer look at what moderation really means.

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For the average grain-free eater (focusing on meat, fish, fruit and veggies), a day's intake tends to look like this: v 100g Protein v 100g Fat v 80-100g Carbohydrates Notice the consistency between all three macronutrients. Carb intake might rise further if you regularly include starch (potatoes, sweet potatoes, etc.), or it might dip lower if you dont often partake in fruit. Let's compare that to the daily intake for the average American: (source: CDC, http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db49.htm) v 100g Protein v 90g Fat v 250-300g Carbohydrates "Everything in moderation." Right. You'll notice the high carbohydrate intake, which is enabled by several carb-rich foods that tend to comprise the modern diet: soft drinks (being straight sugar, a carbohydrate), processed food, and an emphasis on including grains in every meal. Reducing your intake of carbohydrates, then, usually leads to weight loss and a rapid improvement in various health markers. Why? That depends on whom you ask, but a popular theory is that reduced carb intake falls more in line with how humans evolved to eat how our ancestors survived and thrived long before even agriculture took over.

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And that makes sense, doesnt it? Picture a time before agriculture. Our ancestors thrived on whatever they could find, which pretty assuredly didnt include grains that had to be heavily processed in order to make them viable to eat. We cant know the exact details of what they consumed, of course, but logic comes into play here: they would eat meat, vegetables, and whatever fruit they stumbled across. I'm not claiming, of course, that you can't lose weight while still including grains in your daily routine. I am claiming that it's both easier and simpler to lose and maintain weight without them, however, especially if you arent the sort of high- level athlete who relies on excess carb intake to fuel physical activities. One caveat if you decide to forego the grains: the first week might surprise you. Regular carb intake in the triple digits has a tendency to teach the brain to expect carbohydrates for energy, so reducing the amount you're consuming has the (thoroughly surprising!) effect of making you feel like under the weather for a couple of days or longer. Your body will adjust, however, and start doing something interesting. Given the lack of carbohydrates to burn, it'll switch to its other preferred source of energy: fat. Stored fat in particular. That means exactly what you think it means. For more information on the great grain debate including sources to plenty of people far smarter than I am explaining why you should minimize their appearance in your diet check the Resource section at the end of the book.
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3: Drink
Water. Tea. Coffee. Drop everything else. This comes from a former Dr. Pepper addict, the guy who would order the smallest cup possible (it's healthier!) but still make three or four trips for a refill at the drink machine. Soft drinks are not good for you. It's as simple as that. Your body, believe it or not, does not like it when you give it massive amounts of sugar on a regular basis. Remember the pill analogy from the previous section? Remember the part about "our bodies are not used to this"? That still applies. Think about it. Fruit, by most definitions, is nature's candy bar. It's a natural source of sugar and host to a wealth of nutrients, but the impact of that sugar is minimal on the body a result of the need to chew the fruit itself. You're not giving yourself a straight injection of sugar. You're chewing on an apple, instead, and enjoying a natural source of fiber that serves as slow, safe transport for the sweet stuff. Soft drinks, though? There's no special delivery method to be found. You have a bottle, sure, but it's carrying an immense amount of sugar that wreaks havoc in your system and has a tendency to show up later as an extra roll around the gut.

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This does include, mind you, a breakfast staple: juice. That might be an eye-opener for some (it was for me!), but it's an uncomfortable truth. Fruit juice, healthy as we'd like to think it is, is still straight sugar. Sure, it's natural sugar from fruit, but that's not much better when it comes without the part that makes it legitimately natural in the first place: the fruit itself. You know, the fleshy, fibrous exterior that prevents an apple from heading straight to your thighs. Water. Tea. Coffee. Drink them in abundance, but avoid or, in the case of alcohol, dont go crazy with everything else.
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4: Fasting
Fasting has a bad reputation. You know it. I know it. I also happen to know that there is very little (if anything!) in the way of science to support that bad reputation, and I also happen to know that it helped me trim down considerably in my first few weeks of trying it. The concept of Intermittent Fasting (IF) might seem a little strange to anyone unfamiliar with it, so bear with me a moment as I describe its more practical applications. Ever heard of an eating window? It's usually an eight-hour period in which you consume your entire day's worth of calories. That can translate to two meals, three meals, or whatever you like the idea is to only eat within that eight- hour window, leaving sixteen hours of the day in a fasted state. Why's that important? Your body has a tendency to burn fat in the fasted state (especially if your average carb intake is low), meaning you get a solid sixteen hours of fat-burning each day. That's awesome. The other perk comes in calorie consumption. Provided you don't eat staggering amounts of food to compensate for skipping breakfast (tip: don't do that), it's far easier to live and prosper with a caloric deficit each day of the week. You can make the argument that just cutting calories will work too. I won't argue otherwise. But speaking from experience, here, straight caloric restriction tends to make me go a little crazy after the first few weeks. I like food. Love it, in fact, which
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is why daily intermittent fasting has been such a breath of fresh air. Sure, I don't eat breakfast, but nor am I starving myself at the other two meals of the day. I eat a pretty sizable lunch and dinner, have a mid-day snack as needed, and don't worry about much else. The beauty of IF, after all, is its simplicity. Skipping a meal won't kill you. If anything, it'll help you achieve your weight goals in an easy, effortless way. And theres another key benefit, too, when it comes to a subject very near and dear to my heart: pizza. Cake. Everything I dont normally eat for the sake of my health, in other words, that I used to consume in abundance. Fasting isnt a go pig-out! card, but knowing that I can skip meals does afford a different perspective: I dont have to feel guilty for that occasional cheat meal. Theres a tendency, when you start eating healthy, to beat yourself down every time you so much as make the bedroom eyes at a slice of pizza. When youre accustomed to fasting, however, you dont need to do that. You just need to understand two things: 1. If youre going to eat something unhealthy, you know what youre doing. Youre not eating unhealthy food out of some rebellious sense of breaking the rules. Youre eating that huge piece of pie because you want to, and because you know the next point as well. 2. You can make up for it. After a night of debauchery and bad food, I might fast the entire day after. When
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Thanksgiving rolled around, I fasted for twenty-hours before it so that I could enjoy all the pumpkin pie and stuffing I wanted. I still dont plan on shoveling pizza into my mouth on a weekly basis, but I know that whenever I do, I can simply skip a meal (maybe two!) after to compensate for the surplus in calories. Its as simple as this: if you eat too much one day, eat less the next. Intermittent Fasting enables you to do this, and to do it without the feeling of deprivation that normally accompanies reduced calorie intake. Thats win-win in my book.

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5: Daily Routine
Let me describe my daily routine. I wake up around 8 or 9 am, fresh-eyed and ready to roll. Rather than reaching for a bowl of cereal (sugar), however, I'll enjoy a cup of coffee (maybe two!) and crank out some work, focusing on reading and writing instead of the state of my stomach. Around noon, however, my stomach might start growling. If not, no worries! I'll wait until it does, and then I'll jump in the kitchen and cook up something that happens to be both natural and awesome. Ribbons of zucchini, maybe, mixed with melted goat cheese, artichoke hearts and chicken meatballs. That'll satisfy me for a few good hours. If my stomach is growling come three in the afternoon, I'll make myself a small snack. Typical examples include cottage cheese and some fruit or a shake made with berries and coconut milk. Dinner will be similarly awesome. I didn't pack in too many vegetables for lunch, so I might make a decent-sized salad and top it with some kind of protein. Avocado, too, for more of a taco salad, complete with hot sauce dashed liberally throughout. My eating window closes at 8pm. I'm pretty comfortably full by this point, and food quickly vacates the mind as I get ready for far more important things (Glee!).
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And that's it. I don't count calories. I don't count carbs, protein, or fat. I might count how many artichoke hearts I can fit into my mouth at once (26, in case you were wondering), but beyond that I just do what comes naturally: eat when I'm hungry, and do other things when I'm not. To be fair, I didnt always do that. My weight-loss journey started like any else: I counted macronutrients, measured my food, and tried to keep a running tally of how many carbs I consumed each day. I lost weight, sure, but I couldnt help but wonder if I had to do all this thinking. Humans made it this far without counting a damn thing. Why is the modern man or woman any different? The ability to not obsess about what Im eating, accordingly, is the result of all that overthinking I did during that first month. When I eventually made the switch to the daily routine I described above, I discovered two things. I still lost weight. Emphasizing natural food and pushing back from the table when I was actually full took care of that. Food doesn't have to be difficult. It doesn't have to be weighed and measured at every opportunity, and it doesn't need to become a rigid, joyless part of your daily routine. Try what I've described above for just one month and I think you'll discover that too. This is easy. This is simple. And this has helped me drop around forty pounds in the span of about nine months, going from what you see on the top to the slim, smiling, and unreasonably attractive man on the bottom.
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If youd prefer a little more specific plan to start with, do this: calm down. Take a deep breath, fill your plate mostly with vegetables, and then plop down a decent-sized piece of protein as well. It works. Its simple. You dont need to overthink it. This same strategy works for restaurants, too. Unsure what to get? Choose something with protein and vegetables. Skip any dishes that are primarily based on grains (pasta isnt doing you any favors!), and definitely dont tackle a dessert by yourself. If youre splitting it with multiple people, a few bites wont hurt you. Anything much more than that, however, can take a reasonably healthy meal straight into the gutter. What about snacks? Have two squares of dark chocolate (75% cacao and up!). Or aim for a piece of protein and some vegetables its healthier, for one, and far more satiating than a piece of candy. You might even find that you dont need snacks as you shift your focus to natural, healthy foods. If so, thats great! And a few final words about fasting: you dont have to do it. You can adjust the eating window to fit your schedule, if thats the concern (4pm to midnight is a popular option). Personally speaking, I lost the majority of my weight without fasting at all, though the eating window has since helped me achieve the kind of definition Ive been wanting. If youre uncomfortable with the idea of not eating three meals, dont fret! Taking steps to reduce your intake of carbohydrates and to emphasize natural, unprocessed foods will still produce outstanding benefits. The goal, in any case, remains the same: to achieve strong, vibrant health the simplest, most natural way we can.
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Simple weight loss? Natural health? Sounds nice, doesn't it? It can be yours. Don't make your life any more complicated than it already is: eat naturally, eat less, and move around a little, too. We'll talk about that last point in the next section.

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6: Fitness
10 Easy Steps to Rockin' Abs! 6 Exercises for a Trimmer You! Right. The magazines have gloss and slim, trim models, but I've got something pretty interesting too. I havent run a single mile in the last nine months. I've not stepped foot in a gym a single time since I started my journey, and I've never spent longer than thirty minutes on any individual workout. By all accounts, then, I shouldn't be slim (and lean, and unreasonably attractive, etc.) right now. If the conventional method of weight loss is to spend hours slaving away in the gym or on the track, then I definitely cant come up with the required hours to get pretty. I'm rather proud of that. My experience has been an eye-opening one, I hope, on a few key truths about health and nutrition: Exercise is not a magic bullet. It helps, and I'd advise you to include it where possible, but it is not the sole key to success here. There are a couple of reasons for that, but let's focus on the two you're probably already familiar with. 1. Exercise doesn't burn a lot of calories. Ever notice how an hour on the treadmill will burn maybe 300 calories?

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2.

Doesn't that seem awfully low for the sixty straight minutes of sweat and tears you just wasted in the gym? Exercise also increases appetite, meaning whatever caloric deficit you earn while exercising is usually lost the minute you head back home and slam down a protein shake.

Diet, on the other hand, is the single largest contributing factor in determining how healthy you are. Let that sink in for a moment. Hell, let's bold it and up the font a bit:

IT'S WHAT YOU EAT, NOT HOW MUCH YOU SWEAT.

Fix your diet and you'll see incredible benefits. It's as simple as that. Where does that leave exercise, then? It helps. It's a great tool that can enhance fat loss and pack on some much-needed muscle. It's worth pursuing, too, for the simple fact that it can be a lot of fun, and that staying active is hands-down the best way to keep your muscles from weakening and atrophying with age. And the best part? You don't have to do much. Here's the routine I employed for most of the last nine months. You might not care for it, especially if you're fond of the gym, but I'm hoping it'll prove that a little exercise can go a very long way.
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7: Walk
You've heard this before. Doctors far and wide are all speaking the same mantra: 10,000 steps a day. I've never counted, honestly, but that's a hint at just how dedicated I've been with this moving about business in the first place. On a good week, I'd walk four or five out of seven days. On a bad week, I'd be lucky to remember where I'd left my shoes. When I do walk, though, I make an effort to go at least sixty minutes. The idea is to keep an easy pace slow enough to where you could still hold a conversation without being breathless, but quick enough that you're not dragging your feet. You can certainly go faster, if you like (there's this 'running' thing getting popular now), but it's not necessary. I lost weight without even breaking a sweat on most of my walks, which suggests that the simple act of moving about for a decent period each day has health benefits beyond the expected. And hey! Dont have time for a dedicated walk? I dont believe you, but well let it slide for the moment. If you cant square away sixty minutes for your health, why not just tweak your daily routine a bit? Get some walking in wherever possible. Park your car in the back of the lot, if you like, so that you have to walk a bit extra to get into the store. If you live reasonably close to the store itself,

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why not try walking there whenever you just need a few groceries? The environment will thank you. Your body will too. However you end up walking, just keep it simple: one foot in front of the other. Dont even feel the need to break out into a jog just to burn extra calories, especially if you dont regularly work exercise into your daily routine.
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8: Sprint
Dont hurt yourself. Sprinting isnt something Id recommend for every person who reads this book. Why? Its pretty damn hard, honestly, and physically demanding on the body in ways the average person isnt prepared for. If you can do it, however, Id recommend it. The core idea behind sprinting is simple: elevate your heart rate for brief intervals separated by periods of rest. Doing so has tremendous benefits for muscle growth and fat loss, often to a degree you wouldnt expect from just ten minutes or so of exercise. Even more interesting, though, are recent studies conducted to compare the benefits of several short sprinting sessions versus more conventional long-distance endurance training. I wont get too much into the geekery (check the Resource section at the end of the book for more!), but the results were pretty surprising: there was no big difference. Sprinting, in other words, carries the same physiological benefits as long (tedious!) endurance training and in just a fraction of the time. Tempted to try it now? Just one suggestion: start small. And dont forget to warm up, too. A full sprint isnt wise if your body your muscles isnt prepared for it. To start, do a small sprint at about 60% of your maximum speed. Theres no
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magical way to know just how fast that is, of course, but dont stress just make it faster than a jog but a decent amount slower than your full speed. Do this five times with a brief rest (sixty seconds works fine) in between each. Your muscles should feel a good deal warmer by this point. When youre ready, run as fast as you can until you feel yourself noticeably slowing down. Take a minute or two break, then, and do it again. Do this as many times as you can handle, and in the beginning dont expect that number to be very high. You might last one or two sprints before needing to call it quits, but thats fine. Youll find yourself sprinting longer and harder within a matter of weeks. A great alternative is a stationary bike. You might need a gym for it, but anyone with access can hop on, pedal as hard as possible for ten to fifteen seconds, and then take a minute break. This is safer, easier solution for anyone uncomfortable with running, and can be a great place to start if youre at the beginning of your weight loss journey. Aim to sprint once a week, if possible. And remember: exercise isnt the big fix. Your progress wont tragically derail if you cant squeeze your sprints in, so dont stress! Focus on fixing your diet above all else.

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9: (Body)Weight
You dont need a gym. You sure as hell dont need a gym membership, either, though they tend to spike in popularity right around this time of year. Theyre expensive, often difficult to terminate, and generally just a guilt-giver all around, making you feel bad for wasting your money whenever you cant drum up any enthusiasm to go hit the weights. This, ladies and gentlemen, is why well be sticking with bodyweight exercises. The benefits are many: v Theyre free! Mostly. v Theyre far less likely to injure you. v They dont require someone to spot you on heavy lifts. v Theyre practical for all weights and ages. A simple circuit of three bodyweight exercises can make for a pretty exhausting (and beneficial!) workout, and usually in far less time than it takes just to drive to and from the gym. Bodyweight exercises overall have the benefit, too, of working a wide range of muscles. Theres no doubt that isolating a certain muscle in the gym has broad appeal amongst lifters, but our purposes are a bit more practical: functional strength. You want to be strong enough to enjoy sports and physical activities, but without rippling, bulging muscles and thats where bodyweight exercises tend to shine.
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The exercises themselves are pretty simple: pushups, pull- ups, and squats. Thats it. Those are the only three exercises I do on a regular basis, and a circuit of those three alone has helped me develop powerful, functional strength. Lets take each in turn. And check the Resource section, too, for links to videos showing proper form for each exercise and its individual variations. Pushups. Simple enough, right? Not everyone can just drop and do twenty, however, so dont fret if you dont have the arm strength just yet. Why not work your way up to them? You can start with your knees on the ground, if you like. This is a great way to strengthen your arms without applying the full weight of your body. If you have trouble with those, feel free to start with wall pushups instead. Stand a few feet from a wall and lean forward, stretching your arms out so that your palms are flat on the surface. Bend your arms and follow through with a pushup motion from there. Pull-ups. Youll need some form of horizontal bar for these, though you can usually pick one up for a reasonable price. Feel free to substitute a sturdy branch or even the bar at a playground if youre not afraid of receiving strange looks from passersby. A wide-grip pull-up (shoulder-width or wider) is a fantastic way to work most of the core muscles in your shoulders, back and arms. You can alternate with the chin-up, too, to strengthen your biceps.
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One caveat: these arent easy. I couldnt even do a single pull- up when I started, meaning I had to resort to negatives as a way of building some initial strength. If you find yourself in the same boat, grab a chair or stool and set it in front of the bar. Stand on it, grab the bar in a pull-up or chin-up position, and hoist yourself up so that your chin is above the bar. Dont try to do anything fancy: just slowly let yourself down until your feet touch the chair again. The key, of course, is to sink down in a controlled movement, working your muscles as you go. Try those for a week or two and then attempt a regular pull-up again. I think youll be surprised by the result. Squats. Air squats are arguably the only lower-body workout you need. Theyre also fairly difficult if you havent done any true squats in years, so definitely take your time easing into them. Youll want to keep your heels firmly on the ground, your back straight (but not strictly vertical!), and feet about shoulder width apart. Again, take it slow the squatting position, though a natural one, isnt common for most people, so give yourself plenty of time to reach a level where youre comfortable with the motion. Feel free to practice with your arms stretched out and hands grasping some kind of bar, too, for stability. How to combine these three exercises, then? Thats up to you. If youre just starting out, dont stress so much about finding a specific program to follow. Focus instead
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on strengthening your muscles to the point where you can comfortably handle more strenuous exercise. Try this: 1. Do wall/knee/regular pushups (whatever youre capable of) until your arms are exhausted. This shouldnt take long if youre just starting out, but thats okay! The idea is to just work these muscles that havent seen action in quite some time. Once youve done this, wait four or five minutes and move on to number 2. 2. Do air squats as youre able. Youll want to be careful, here, when youre just starting out, so go slow. The idea, again, is to gently work some muscles that probably havent seen action in years, so dont do so much that you injure yourself. After youve done as many as you can without inviting pain, wait for or five minutes and move on to number 3. 3. Pull-ups or chin-ups. You might want to start with the latter, as theyre generally easier. In any case, though, do as many as you can. If a single pull-up or chin-up is too much, do as many negatives as possible. 4. Start back at one and do it all one more time. This is optional in the beginning, as just one set each of the three exercises might be enough. If you feel sturdy enough to attempt it again, however, give it a shot. Keep track of how many you repetitions do in each category. The number, honestly, wont be something youre proud of, but it does have a purpose: comparison. Seeing how you progress

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each week is a fantastic way to keep your spirits high for the road ahead. How many times per week should you do this? Id aim for twice a week in the beginning. If youre just starting out, give yourself a good three to four days of rest between sessions, as youll want ample time for your muscles to adapt to pressure it might not have felt in years. The ultimate idea, here, is to work your way up to the core form of each exercise: regular pushups, regular pull-ups, and air squats with great form. Once you can comfortably do each emphasis on comfortably! then you can start looking into the myriad bodyweight programs already available on the Internet. I can recommend two: SimpleFit (www.simplefit.org) and the Primal Fitness program (www.marksdailyapple.com/primal- blueprint-fitness/#what-is-pbf). The former consists of three 20 to 30 minute sessions each week of pushups, pull-ups and squats, while the latter goes twice weekly for a similar length of time but with a few additional exercises. Which one works better? Thats up for debate. Ive done a few months of each. SimpleFit, true to its name, is an incredibly simple program to understand, so Id recommend it to anyone wanting to build lean muscle mass and functional strength without needing to get fancy. Primal Fitness is a bit more complicated, given the additional exercises, but it does discuss in detail how to build up to the core form of each exercise, making it a pretty fantastic resource for a beginner. It also has links to videos of the
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program author doing every single one of the exercises he endorses, which makes puzzling out the proper form a much easier thing to do. You can, alternatively, create your own system. Ive taken to experimenting with different styles of workouts, but always with a few goals in mind: Emphasize the three core exercises. Finish in twenty minutes at most. What can I say? Im not a fan of long exercise sessions when brief, intense workouts offer just as much benefit. However you decide to work your muscles, keep those two ideas in mind. You can build functional strength (and attractive muscularity!) without spending long hours in the gym, so resist the temptation to rely on fancy techniques or even fancier machines. You dont need them. You just need a simple, effective routine to keep your muscles active and strong, and bodyweight exercises are the perfect way to do it.

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10: Simpler Health

Lets put all the puzzle pieces together. Eat natural. Focus on meat, fish, fruits and veggies. Minimize grains where possible and youll see tremendous benefits. Drink water, tea, and coffee. Avoid everything else. Fast. Optional, but an eating window of eight hours daily will help you both burn fat and maintain an average caloric deficit to easily lose weight. Walk. Shoot for sixty minutes whenever possible. Sprint. Once a week if youre physically capable. Lift (body)weights. Pushups, pull-ups and squats are all you need to increase functional strength and build lean muscle mass. Shoot for two or three times weekly in sessions of 20-30 minutes each. This is simpler health. You dont need to count calories. You dont need to run miles every day of the week. And most importantly? You dont need a diet. Theres a connotation to that word Ive never been fond of it implies an end-point. Putting yourself on a diet suggests theres going to be some magical point in the future when you no longer need to do it, which seems strange when you consider that
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eating the way you did pre-diet is probably what put the weight on in the first place. What you need, however, is a lifestyle. You need a way to live that elevates food and exercise to their proper place: enjoyable, effective ways to positively transform your health. It doesnt have to be complicated. It doesnt have to be a mess of numbers and stress that pretty effectively saps any enjoyment out of your daily routine. Strong, natural health can be both simple and powerful. So why not try it? Give it a go for just thirty days and see what happens. What do you have to lose besides weight?

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Simpler Stuff

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1: Intro
I got robbed. I wont rehash every dirty detail, here, save for the more juicy ones: It sucked, Never again, and Best thing that ever happened to me! That last one might surprise you. It surprised me too, honestly. But thats where life found me during my last year of college, when I came home from work one evening and found my apartment missing several thousand dollars worth of gadgets and toys. Not my toys, mind you. I lost a computer monitor and a stack of games, but I found myself in a strange place afterwards: I kinda wished they had taken more. My room, you see, was a bit of a mess. I should clarify: it was messy before the robbers ever arrived. My room was so messy, in fact, that those unfortunate jerks mostly passed it over and stole from my (reasonably tidy) roommates instead. One more time: my room was too messy to be burglarized. I realized, that night, that things had to change. Id been locked in this cycle of buy, buy, buy for four straights years of university, collecting a monstrous collection of crap that traveled with me as I moved from place to place.
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 Simply put, I had way too much stuff. The next few weeks followed an exhausting routine: I sold, donated, and trashed nearly everything I owned, coming out at the end with far less stuff and an entirely new perspective on life. This section, accordingly, is split into two parts. The first will show you how to simplify what you already have, in case youre feeling now like I did back then: surrounded by stuff on every side and unsure of how to dig yourself out. The second part will apply that same simplicity to the act of buying, offering a new approach Ive used to keep the clutter from ever creeping up again. First, though, we need to rewrite the dictionary.
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2: Crap
Lets start with crap. Crap, by my definition, is just about everything that we want, but honestly dont need. (This book launched in early January, so please forgive the holiday-themed example. Anyone reading it later still probably knows what Im talking about, though.) Ever seen a holiday shopping ad? The big chains roll their stock out for everyone to see, sending out thirty-six page catalogs that are stuffed to the brim with every kind of item imaginable. The running assumption here is that you want this. You want this stuff, for some reason, and we know youre going to buy it, so you might as well purchase it with us. It boggles the mind. Why do we need DVD collections of an entire TV show? Why do we need a thousand separate gadgets that well hardly ever use? Why do we need name-brand crap? The answer, of course, is that we dont. We do want them, however, for reasons we likely dont understand, and so the holidays are chock-full of pointless crap that it has become normal to own. Simple enough, right? Here are some (thoroughly crappy!) examples:
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 1.

DVDs. They're a waste. Rent them, borrow them, stream them online do not buy them. You dont need them. You dont need to drop thirty dollars (American example, sorry!) on a shiny, high-definition movie that you'll watch a few times before shoving in a closet. Video Games. I'm a gamer. Not so much now that I'm doing the blogging thing, but my nerdiness stretches way back to my childhood, so it's a habit I still enjoy. That doesn't mean, however, that I buy video games. With few exceptions, games are even worse for your purse than a conventional movie. Sure, you get a solid return on your investment in sheer number of hours spent glued to the TV screen (and I'm not saying that's a good thing!), but that doesn't quite justify the enormous amount of money they tend to cost in the first place.

2.

Rent them. Play them once and then return them, content that you got what you wanted with a minimum of expense. 3. TV (and cable packages). Well talk TV later, but lets make this short and sweet: you dont need a TV in every damn room of the house. You also dont need an elaborate cable package with a veritable buffet of stupid channels, and you especially dont need the monthly fee it comes with. Gadgets. I love technology. I do so wholly and unabashedly, feeling my heart a-flutter every time I skip gleefully through the electronics department at a local store.
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4.

 I don't buy much, though. Why do we need a Blu-ray player for every TV? Why do we need a massive forty-six speaker sound system that benefits audiophiles and hardly anyone else? Why do we need more kitchen toys and gadgets than we could ever possibly use? Convenience is a common argument. And given how often I use my blender, I can make that claim myself. It's hard to call a three hundred-dollar standing mixer a purchase of pure convenience, however, when it sees the light of day less than once a week. This is a broad category, in any case, but theres an easy way to tell if that expensive gadget youre eying is straight-up crap. Try this: next time you feel tempted, ask yourself how often youll use this thing. If its less than 4 or 5 times a week, ask yourself how many times youll use it per month. If that answer is in the single digits, why are you buying it? Decorations. Ever stepped inside a home decoration store? Its kind of insane. Picture every square inch of wall covered with crap that serves no purpose whatsoever other than to take up space. Dont get me wrong: Im not claiming all decorations are useless. Im not claiming you should have empty white walls, either. But I think its wise to pay attention to how much money you might spend on decorating the house when the purely decorative stuff carries a way higher price tag than most people realize.

5.

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6.

Clothing. Im not advocating nudism, but lets get practical here: how many pairs of shoes do you really need? How many shirts in your closet do you actually wear? I had an obscene amount of shirts when I started, the sad result of weight fluctuations all throughout college. Ive whittled it down to about seven, now, a handful of shirts that I regularly wear, and Im not too convinced Ill be expanding my collection anytime soon. Clothing, of course, is as variable as it comes. You might have an entire closet full of work clothes. I might argue that you could downsize it. Truth be told, though, the convenience of having enough business attire for the entire week (or longer!) cant be ignored. The great big idea of minimalism applies here better than anywhere else: if you need it, keep it. If you dont, dont. Body products. Disclaimer: this is a thoroughly male perspective, but its backed more by logic than anything else. Do we need a dozen different lotions? Six different creams and entire closets full of products meant to moisturize, deodorize, dewrinkle, etc.? Maybe you do. Id argue that you could keep these products to a minimum, though, especially when you consider just how many freaky chemicals they tend to pack into them. Theres an old saying that applies pretty well here: If you wouldnt put it into your mouth, why would you put it on your skin?

7.

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The skin, believe it or not, absorbs what you put on it. Remember this the next time you slather on a high-dollar skin lotion with an ingredient list at least a mile long.

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3: Non-Crap
This, stunningly, refers to everything that is not crap. Buckle up for a moment, though, as were about to get philosophical. Non-crap is everything you need that you cannot buy in a regular store. Think high concepts, here: time, memories, friends and family. These are the things that are (normally!) most important to us, the true treasures of life that we all share in abundance. Theyre also the things that tend to get overlooked most in the mad-dash pursuit of crap. Simple enough.
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4: Cutting the Crap

This wont be easy. I still remember just how soul-crushing it was to tear through four years worth of crap and empty out my apartment. I was racing against the clock, too, in a desperate bid to get out of town and on the road as soon as possible. First lesson, then: take your time. I seriously cant stress that enough. Its easy to just say sell your crap! and move on to more cheerful subjects, but the reality of decluttering of simplifying several years worth of pointless crap is never as pretty as wed like it to be. Take your time. Tackle one room at a time, if you can, or even start smaller than that. The trick is to do just enough each day to make some visible progress, but not enough that you feel intimidated by enormity of the job. Ready to get cracking? Here are a few suggestions: 1. Cut the crap. The crap, as youve probably guessed, is your main target here the main victim of your decluttering frenzy. If youre suffocating under the weight of stuff, something as simple as cleaning out a media case (or dumping one of those useless DVD tower things) can be a great, manageable place to start. 2. Seriously, cut the crap. Its not easy. You have to make a judgment call, here, on all the stuff in your life. More
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importantly, you have to decide whats important to you what stuff you genuinely need versus the stuff bought because its normal to own. There are a couple of ways you can do this. When I dug through my crap after the robbery, I made some pretty harsh judgment calls on everything I saw: v Had I looked at it or used it in the last two months? v Did I even remember where I got it? v Was it something that I could rent or borrow if I needed it again in the future? v Why had I saved it in the first place? That last one is a key one, I think, and where the act of decluttering tends to get a little messy. If the item reminded me of something non-crappy, as in an experience or memory, then Id always be reluctant to let it go. This is not a good thing. See the next section for a few more words on this very special kind of crap. You dont have to sell. You have a dozen different options for dumping your stuff. It might be easier to just throw it all in the trash, but I highly recommend you dont do that. Why? Its wasteful, for one, and it vaguely resembles giving the middle finger to Mother Earth, too. Try and make the trashcan your absolute last resort. Before it comes to that, consider any one of these options:

3.

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v The usual suspects: eBay, Craigslist, etc. Theyre a pain to deal with, normally, but persistence and a little luck might put some money in your pocket in exchange for your stuff. v FreeCycle and general donation centers. The former is a web service where you can give stuff away to people in your local community. The latter is just about the same thing minus the Internet interface. These are my favorite options, honestly, and the services I used most in my apartment-emptying frenzy. v Neighbors, family, friends. Dont want your DVDs? Give them away. Simple as that. Practically speaking, the trashcan is always going to seem like a great choice. In some cases massive piles of paper, for example itll seem like the only choice, though I recommend you do a little search for a local recycling center instead. I made about a dozen trips to a local place during my weeks of cleaning. Annoying? You bet. Worthwhile? Undoubtedly. 4. Be patient. Its worth repeating. Simplifying your stuff sounds easy on paper, but it takes time. Lots of it. Tackling the almighty piles in your attic can be disheartening, disappointing, and an incredible bore, but you have an advantage: time. You dont have to do this in a day. You definitely dont have to do it in a week. You have all the time you need to declutter and the knowledge of just how much more free time youll have
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whenever youre done. Less time for cleaning, organizing, and shopping tends to equal (in my book, at least!) more time for the one thing truly worthwhile in life: the pursuit of non-crap. 5. Know when to stop. Decluttering talk tends to stop well short of the ultimate question: when do you stop? When do you look upon a formerly cluttered life and say Alright! Im good? The answer is simple. Stop when youre happy. Stop when you can honestly look at your possessions and see that the majority of it is stuff you need. You dont have to shoot for less than 100 things just to call yourself a minimalist. Find a number that you and no one else! are comfortable with and adjust it as your life requires. Newsflash: Im not a perfect minimalist. I still have stuff I could classify as crap, honestly. Ill be donating it all in advance of my upcoming move, sure, but having it now doesnt make me any less of a person. The real progress, I think, is in reshaping our relationship with the crap we accumulate over the course of our lives.

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5: Keepsakes
Here's where it gets tricky. I have a box, now, that has been sitting in my closet for the better part of a year. I havent touched it once. I know exactly what it contains and I don't much see the point in digging through it, so this little box of memories sits dusty and undisturbed. I'm inching closer and closer to throwing it away. It's full of keepsakes, however, those items with sentimental value, and I can't help but feel guilty every time I'm struck by a wild passion to grab the damn box and chuck it out. Keepsakes, in a sense, are the worst crap of all. They're stuff you dont need with a memory attached, the oft-useless little object that tugs at the heartstrings and sends all manner of memory rushing back to the forefront. Sure, all they do is sit around and take up space, but they're sentimental, you know? Sure, they tend to pile up over the years and become a constant creep of clutter that travels with you from house to house, but they remind you of that time in Mexico, you know? You don't need them. That's about as simple as it gets. Think about it like this: the appeal of a keepsake is exactly why you can toss it it's the

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memory attached. Find a way to preserve the memory, then, and the item itself becomes unnecessary. Try this. 1. Get a camera. Take a picture of keepsakes individually, if you want, or maybe one large picture as a collage. This lets you reap the benefits of a keepsake without having to possess the silly thing itself. 2. Open up a text document on your computer. Call it "keepsakes" or something wildly original like that. In it, write down everything you remember about the memory attached to the keepsake. 3. Dump it. Keepsakes can now go in the trash! Or be donated. Remember: trashcan is last resort. That second step is optional, admittedly, if you have a memory far sharper than mine. I think it's a nice bit of a future-proofing, though. You may never forget the memories that resurface when you look at the picture you took, but it's never a bad thing to have the younger, fresher recollection stored safely on your hard drive. This isn't a catch-all rule, of course. Some things will hold such tremendous value that you'll have to keep them whether you like it or not. I might argue that those items are even better candidates for the trashcan, given how they've convinced you that they're absolutely essential, but at the end of the day it's always your choice. My box in the closet? Its got to go.

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6: Simpler Buying
Lets talk shopping. This, I think, is where simplicity is needed most. Itd be easy to say that you should only buy what you need, but thats denying one of the inherent qualities of being human: we dont always know what we need. I still struggle with this myself. The worst part? I can be extraordinarily convincing. I might be looking at the most over- priced and craptacular gadget of all time, but rest assured Ill find at least thirteen different reasons for why I should own it immediately. But Im getting better. Thats due in no small part to the few tricks below: 1. Do I have to buy it? Ask yourself this right off the bat. If you can rent it or borrow it, then you probably dont need it so badly that you have to actually own it. 2. What could I use this money for instead? Keep this question close whenever you find yourself tempted by the latest gadget or over-sized TV. Break the price tag down into bite-sized chunks, if you like: I could use this money for x many restaurants, x many days traveling, or x many experiences instead. Pick whichever one you like whichever one is genuinely important to you. Im a fan of making memories, personally, and I know fully well that Im way less likely
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to make them if I spend my paychecks on the latest and greatest crap instead. It helps, too, to have some powerful memory to draw upon. I like to go back to my traveling to the incredible experiences Ive had while working my way across the globe. Next time youre eyeing a new toy, pause a moment and try to dig up something similar. When the memory fades and you blink back to reality, that fancy gadget will suddenly seem less appealing and youll know exactly why. It doesnt compare. It cant. Non-crap always wins. Where am I buying it? This is a pretty blatant generalization, sure, but I think it has some merit. Take a moment to realize where you are. Take another one to study your surroundings and get a closer look at whats happening all around you. You might see shelves upon shelves of expensive, useless stuff. You might see a line of price tags as far as the eye can see. You might see a hundred different shoppers milling around you, each one pushing a basket stuffed to the brim with crap. Heres what you wont see: the things you value most. You wont see memories, experiences, or friends and family sitting on those shelves. Why? You cant buy these things in a store. You already know that, Im sure, but its a great thing to remind yourself whenever youre knee- deep in the shopping season.

3.

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I havent found much that can survive this line of questioning. But if it does? Ill throw my money down without hesitation. I know, then, that its something worth spending for, and I know its something that will benefit me in some tangible way. You might have a stronger will than I do (and if so, congrats!). You may not even need a system to help separate what you want from what you need. No matter where youre coming from, though, I think the core idea can be of use: think. Think about what youre buying. Think about why you want it, why you need it, and think about what you might be giving up if you purchase it. Take some small step to interrupt the mindless cycle of buying. You might be surprised to discover just how many things are worth spending money on instead.

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7: Simpler Stuff
Im moving to Los Angeles, California, on January 5, 2011. Im going with one bag. Maybe two. Practically speaking, the freedom to do this is unheard of for a lot of people. The act of moving itself can become an all-out war whenever you have to contend with clutter, turning what could be a transformative experience into sheer, utter hell. Speaking from experience, of course. I think its important to highlight, though, that what weve discussed in this section cutting the crap and rethinking the act of buying has value even if youre not keen on becoming a location-independent vagabond. Its wise, in other words, to remember that simplifying your stuff can work some pretty incredible magic no matter who you are. That might not be obvious at first. It might not be obvious now, either. Here are the key benefits as I see them: 1. More time. Youre not wasting hours each week tidying and organizing the endless mess. Youre not spending hours in the mall every weekend. Youre not fixating on crap, in other words, but instead are realizing just how much more time you have for the things that truly matter. 2. More money. Buy less, save more. You can roll your eyes at that one, but its a point most people tend to forget when theyre locking eyes with something new and
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exciting at the electronics store. Think about what you could do with all that money instead! Vacations! Restaurants! Life! 3. More freedom. Again, you dont need to be a wandering soul anyone can absorb the full benefits of living a life without the endless mess. Imagine a family that rarely has to clean a family living within its means and enjoying the few things it possesses. Imagine the freedom this family has to enjoy the things that truly count: memories, experiences, and each other. Want to take a weekend trip? Grab a bag and go! Want to take your significant other to a fancy restaurant? Bon Apptit! Not like you spent your last paycheck on a piece of crap, after all, so why not go make a memory instead?

Interesting, isnt it, how simplifying your stuff can give you so much in return?
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Simpler Life

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1: Intro
We're looking at 32,800 chances to shine. That's assuming you make it to the age of 90, however, and maintain excellent health throughout. But just think about it: 32,800. That's incredible. That's 32,800 days to have wild, passionate romances, or 32,800 days to laugh, drink, and generally be the life of the party. That's 32,800 days to read a staggering amount of very good books. That's 32,800 days to make memories with the people you love, the kind of experiences that stick with you forever. It's 32,800 chances to live. But here's the hard part: are you making them count? Probably not. That's easy to do in the modern world, where every spare second is stuffed to the brim with mindless entertainment and digital Band-Aids for our boredom. It's so easy, in fact, that most of us dont even know whats happening. We're watching TV. We're surfing Facebook. We spend every passing moment on Twitter, reading about how other people live their lives instead of celebrating our own. We're not living. And we're not realizing, now, that we're wasting the one precious thing we've been given: time.

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Time to laugh, time to cry, time to smile time to be really, truly alive, and to try and make every day count. Want to live simply? Start focusing on your time. Pay attention to how you spend your minutes, and start asking some severely uncomfortable questions. Do I want to do this? Am I doing this because I enjoy it, or because everyone else does it too? Does this benefit me in some way? Is this going to create a memory that I'll cherish forever? Not every moment, unfortunately, will be spectacular. That's not an excuse, however, to spend less than 100% of your energy trying to make each second the best it can be. Take control of your minutes. Realize that they're one of the few things you need, at the end of the day, and that there's a tremendously easy way to always remember that. You guessed it: simplify. This section, accordingly, is about time what to do with it, how to spend it, and, most importantly, how to simplify it so that you can make every day count.
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2: Time
Make time. "Oh, I don't have time for that." "There's not enough hours in the day!" Sound familiar? It should. That's the go-to excuse for anyone currently suffering from "Social Obligation" syndrome, a horrid disease that has spread to nearly every functioning being in the modern world. I kid. Somewhat. It can't be denied, in any case, that so many people are coming at this from the wrong angle. You don't have time to read a book? MAKE TIME. You don't have time to go for a walk? MAKE TIME. You don't have time to cook dinner? MAKE TIME. What are we waiting for? Life is full of uncertainty, sure, but the fact that there are just twenty-four hours in a day is pretty much set in stone. Why are we waiting for some magical twenty-fifth hour to open up and give us free reign to do the things we love? It's not going to happen. I wish it would, as that would offer me some additional time to scramble around and finish this eBook

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at the last possible minute, but that's the thing: you can't wait around for your schedule to open up. You have to open it yourself. You have to decide, right here and now, that there are several things you want to do with your life, and that you're going to make every effort to do them from this point forward. You're going to make time for the things you love. It's as simple as that. Want to do the things you normally "don't have time for"? Make time. And read the next few sections, too, for some ideas on how to do it.
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3: TV
You have your favorite shows. I have mine too. The practical reality of the television, though, goes way beyond a once-weekly episode of Glee. Do you turn the TV on the minute you come home? Does your morning routine involve coffee, the television, and a comfy couch? Do you grab the remote by reflex before/during/after a meal? Television has taken over our free time. Imagine, for just a moment, that you didn't have a TV. What would you do? You'd get bored. Think about it! The TV is easy entertainment to fill those quiet spaces in our life. Don't have anything to do? No worries! Surf through the channels instead. You're guaranteed to find something to keep you occupied. Take the TV away, though, and you'll start to clue in on just how much free time we have without it. Hours spent with your eyes locked on the screen can be redirected somewhere new. You can share long meals with your family. You can take a walk around the neighborhood with your dog. You can pursue whatever hobby you can dream of, utilizing these extra hours the exact way you should. Why not start a new morning routine? Brew the coffee and curl up with a book instead. You'll stay just as entertained, if that's

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what you're aiming for, but you're far more likely to take away something useful: knowledge. Information. I'm not saying you can't learn anything by watching TV. I am saying, though, that you can learn and do, and live so much more when the big black box is turned off. Try it. If you find yourself restless and bored without the TV to entertain you, then be happy. You've crossed over. You've decided that every hour you're given is an important one, and youve realized that it's hard to live meaningfully when you're snoring on the couch every evening after work. Here are a few ideas: 1. Watch your shows later! When your favorite show is scheduled to appear, deliberately keep the TV off instead. Spend every hour that you would normally give to the television doing something interesting or purely pleasurable: read a book, take a long bath, go on a walk, etc. The possibilities are endless, and you'll soon realize just how much time you have when the TV stays quiet. Its easy as can be, too, to catch up on that show later. The Internet is handy for this, or you can just record the show when it goes live and watch it later. Commercials, by their very nature, are a phenomenal waste of time. 2. Do. Don't watch. You like the cooking channel? Me too! Question, though: when was the last time you actually made one of those dishes? When was the last time you took that new recipe and put it to the test in your kitchen?

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 3.

There's a nasty habit, I think, that cooking channel fanatics tend to develop. Rather than watching the occasional episode, seeing something tasty and then trying to make it, the channel itself becomes the main appeal. You don't improve your cooking, now. You watch every episode that comes on "just to see what they're making," unaware of how much better your culinary skills might be if you were actually working in the kitchen instead. The cooking channel is just one example. You get the idea. Kick it out! Consider creating a "TV-Free" zone where no black boxes are allowed. A popular choice is the bedroom, where removing the television has proven to increase both the quality of your sleep and the likelihood of sexy time. Even if you're well-rested and well-sexed, though, there's still a bigger point worth considering. Lets say youre sitting quietly in bed with your significant other. What would you rather do: silently watch a show together, or hold a meaningful conversation? The latter, I hope. If not, well, that might explain the low likelihood of sexy time in the first place.

The goal, in any case, is clear: pay attention. Start noticing just how easily the TV fulfills our need for entertainment. Start observing just how many hours you spend with your butt on the couch hours not spent pursuing something meaningful and long-lasting instead.
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4: Internet
Don't get caught in the 'net. (So says the blogger, right?) Have you ever: v Caught yourself skimming your favorite sites even though you already checked them just a few minutes before? v Sat down to do a bit of work, but spent an hour reading celebrity news instead? v Checked Facebook in a fit of boredom and then realized you just spent thirty minutes snooping on that guy you knew in high school? The list goes on. I've done them all and more, unfortunately (let's see if I can write this section without mindlessly checking Twitter!). The Internet is a powerful tool. Where we get hung up, however, is in how we use it. Much like the beloved television, our computers have stretched beyond mere entertainment and information to something new instead: they fill the white space in our lives. When we get bored, now, we surf the Internet. When we're standing in line at the bank, we lock eyes on the smartphone and check our inboxes every thirty seconds.
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The 'net, incredible it may be, has become just another excuse to not engage to not think about what we're doing, and to pass our time the most painless, vaguely pleasant way possible. And hey! Maybe you want that. Maybe you don't want to do anything legitimately interesting after a long day at work. That's fine. It's your choice, in the end, though I suspect it won't be a very satisfying one. For everyone else: imagine, for a moment, if you had a 'dumbphone.' Imagine if your house didn't have an Internet connection. Imagine if you didn't even have computer access for a week. You'd be out of the loop! Things would be happening! Facebook would collapse in your absence! Maybe. (Fingers crossed on that last one!) But every moment lost in cyberspace is just another that's free to be shared with the real world, and I can't help but think that's a step in the right direction. Step away for any length of time and I think you'll realize, too, just how long the day can feel when you're not glued to a screen. Ready to break the habit? Here are a few ideas. 1. Take a digital sabbatical. It doesn't have to be planned in advance. Choose a weekend, for example, or even a stretch of time during the week where you can afford to step away from the screen. Make the conscious decision to spend that time doing things you enjoy in the real world. Go golfing. Take a cooking class. Grab coffee with friends. Do the sort of thing that you normally have to try and fit into your schedule, unaware that every minute you
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spend stressing over a (digital!) planner is a minute you could be living mindfully instead. 2. Set clear divisions between work and play. This is something I've been experimenting with for a few months, now. I'm the sort of person who can sit down to write something, hammer out a few words, and then be struck by the idea to Google "Naked Air Squats" not even a minute later. (Nothing good, by the way. I checked.) When I want to work, then, I shut off the Internet, isolate myself from the world, and get cracking. That might not sound too fun, but the difference in my productivity has been remarkable: things actually get done. I'm not wasting time with my social media sites, and I'm not spending precious seconds checking my inbox every half-hour I'm working. Nothing more, nothing less. Likewise, when it's time to play, I do just that. I'll do some research, lurk on social media sites, and generally take care of business for as long as I need. The key, I think, is to remember that I wanted this. Im not playing a game to just pass the time and keep myself moderately entertained I made the conscious decision to take a break with something I enjoy so that I dont get overwhelmed with work. The goal, in either case, is to remind ourselves of what the Internet really is: a tool. Use it when you need it, ignore it when you don't. You'll be surprised at the difference this makes in your amount of free time.
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3.

Rethink social media. I should clarify: rethink your relationship with social media. Theres no doubt that Twitter and Facebook are doing incredible work in connecting the globe, but theres also no doubt that they can be massive wastes of time. Facebook and Twitter have become a new TV for the Internet generation: an easy way to fill the white space in our lives. People check them frequently, obsessing over people theyve never even met, and the result is about what youd expect: thousands of people following an A- List celebrity on Twitter and forgetting to live their own lives instead. The Internet is a tool. Dont forget that. And realize, too, that this applies to social media as well. Overwhelmed by Twitter? Dont obsess over reading every new update that youve missed. Pop in, scan the last few in your feed, and then move on with your life. Same advice for the Facebook feed (especially when its stuffed to the brim with people youre not even that fond of!). You wont be up-to-date on every latest piece of gossip, of course. Itll feel strange at first, but dont fret! Thats the natural product of forcibly removing yourself from the loop. Its a sign, too, that youre doing something interesting: living. Youre not keeping tabs on that guy you knew in high school, and youre not giggling over the (grammatically offensive) tweets of sexy celebrity #13. Youre living your own life instead. And youre realizing, now that youve broken the grip of social media, just how many important and exciting things you have to do instead.

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5: People
I like people. Im going to hazard a guess that you do too. (If not, feel free to skip this section. Robot.) In fact, I might go so far as to say that personal interaction is king. When deciding between a night out on the town or one spent working on a project Im genuinely excited for, the night with friends usually wins out. Why? Well, here are a few reasons: 1. Memories. Im all about creating incredible memories however I can. This means, more practically speaking, that Ill drop whatever Im doing at any given time to go hang out with a friend. Why? I find that the resulting memories tend to be unique and exciting, the kind that stick around longest in my skull. 2. Opportunity. My projects, given my (pitiful) work ethic, tend to stick around for a long while. An opportunity to grab coffee with a friend, however, might be a one-time or infrequent thing, so Ill usually decide to go be a social butterfly instead. Seems reasonable, right? The point of this section, then, is to advocate a pretty simple rule: Spend time with people. Unless they suck.
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Its a beautiful system. And its win-win, isnt it? If you meet up with a friend, youll make a memory worth cherishing forever. If you decide to stay in and pursue one of your goals, youll step that much closer to success. This does mean, however, that you need to take stock of the people you keep in your life. A majority of them are (probably!) good. The rest? Well, they just might suck. You know the type. They bring nothing but drama to your life, insist you spend your time helping them with their problems, or generally just wear you down with a parade of never-ending negativity. Drop them. Is that harsh? Probably. The reasoning, though, is solid. This is your time, and you get final say in how youre going to spend it. At no point should you feel obligated to spend your minutes in a way that you dont enjoy, or in a way that doesnt serve to create a lasting, satisfying experience. You can always say no. Youll probably have to, when dealing with sucky people, and I can almost guarantee youll feel bad about it in the beginning. The feeling fades. Youll realize, after the first few times, just how much more you can accomplish how many better memories you can create when you opt to spend your time the way that you want to spend it. Just remember: Spend time with people. Unless they suck.
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6: Simpler Time
Let's paint a picture of an average Saturday. Morning. Roll out of bed around eight or nine am, bright-eyed and rested. Hungry? Make time to make breakfast for you and yours. Enjoy the meal, lounging around and chatting with the people you care for most, and then puzzle out just what you want to do until lunch. Go for a walk? Play some game outside? Take a family trip somewhere? Split off to work on individual projects? Go grab coffee with a friend? The possibilities are endless, honestly. If you want to do it, make it happen. Afternoon. Lunch! Plenty of time, after all, so make it a good one. Maybe get family and friends involved in the kitchen so you can all develop a few skills. Afterwards, the afternoon is yours. Hang out with friends, work around the house a little, or go walk the dog it's your choice. Evening. Dinner, maybe a long bath (wine optional, but recommended), and a book you've been meaning to read. Or play a board game with your family! There's a social component there you just don't get when you're all huddled around the TV. Is this idealistic? Maybe. But I want you to take a good look at this. Read it twice, even. Notice anything special about it?
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Nope. And thats the truth: its not special. It is, by all accounts, a regular day the kind we can enjoy any weekend of the year. Just because we can, however, doesnt mean we often do. What if we lived like this every day of the year? Its possible. Its simple. You just have to do one thing: take back your time. Make your minutes yours, again, and make every effort to spend each one in a way that benefits the people and projects you genuinely care about. Imagine what you could accomplish if just 75% of your free time was devoted to pursuing a singular goal maybe the kind of life-long goal youve carried for years. Imagine how much closer youd be to accomplishing it, now, if you had practiced this mentality for the last year. Imagine, too, if just 75% of your free time was spent with friends and family. Imagine if you made the firm decision for a single year to create lasting memories with the people you love the most. And imagine, lastly, if just 75% of your free time went a completely different direction: TV. Internet. Twitter and Facebook. Hell, maybe you dont have to imagine that last one. You might already be living it! The difference between it and the first two examples might already be stunningly clear. Take back your time. Make every day count.

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Take a few simple steps to live mindfully, cherish your time, and I think you'll be surprised at just how much you can accomplish. And always remember: this is your time. Spend it well. Spend it wisely. Spend it the best way we can: living, loving, and laughing your ass off at every opportunity.
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Wrapping It All Up
Life, health, stuff big concepts, right? But heres the thing: they dont have to be hard. They dont have to be complicated or messy or generally just a pain in the ass to deal with. They can be easy. They can be simple. And they can help you uncover the person you want to be the person you really are if youre willing to rethink your approach. You only have to do one thing, after all. Simplify.
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Resources
And heres where I admit that I dont know anything! Or, more accurately, that I cant just magically prove everything Im arguing for. I dont have access to long-term clinical studies that advocate every single one of the ideas championed in the Simpler Health section, and Im not even sure they exist. Thats not necessarily a bad thing. Trials that seek to prove new or different ideas dont tend to make a big impact (or even get funded), while the mainstream media likes to jump on every single study that falls in line with conventional wisdom. I guess its easier, in any case, to run a headline like Red Meat Causes Cancer! with little regard for what the study actually says. Thats why we see so-and-so causes cancer! headlines every six months. Thats why many people are convinced that they cant eat eggs (too much cholesterol!), that eating fat makes you fat, and that saturated fat consumption leads to cardiovascular disease. Are any of these ideas valid? Nope. But theyre conventional wisdom, now, and some people dont care to dig a little deeper for the truth. That being said, however, even the truth is hard to come by. At the end of the day, we cant easily rely on hard science to fill in the blanks. Were forced to work with experience instead the collective stories of thousands of people who eat meat, fish, veggies and fruit in abundance, but forgo grains and modern food products.
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 Im one of them. The community at Marks Daily Apple (www.marksdailyapple.com) holds thousands more. Were losing weight by the week, growing fit and strong as the months go by, and exempting ourselves from the parade of sickness and illness that can characterize modern life. Why say all this? A core idea from the Simpler Health section comes to mind: think about what you eat. And think a little bit deeper, too. Start digging into common nutritional advice and asking questions about the ideas weve come to accept as the norm. Thats what I did. And I encourage you, here and now, to do the same thing. I sincerely believe the plan in Simpler Health will work for you, and I sincerely believe it can transform your health in incredible ways. You dont have to believe me, though. What you do have to do, though, is take an interest in how the body works. Once youve done that, I invite you to check the Resources page at Three New Leaves: www.threenewleaves.com/resources. Its a reference point for all of the ideas Ive championed here, a constantly-updated list of studies and articles I think are worth reading. Im sure if you looked hard enough, you could find studies and sources saying the exact opposite of everything listed there and thats fine. All we can use all I can talk about is what works. If it works for you, fantastic! And if it doesnt, then I hope this is just the launching point of your own quest to find what does.
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About the Author

Matt Madeiro is a writer, traveler, and dork en route to the big city of Los Angeles, California. He writes about simplicity at his blog, Three New Leaves (www.threenewleaves.com), and how it can dramatically transform even the most complicated parts of life. Writing these biography things also makes him want to resort to heavy drinking. If youd like to contact him to offer alcohol, perhaps, or just sympathy please feel free to send him a message at matt@threenewleaves.com. Alternatively, you can follow him on Twitter (twitter.com/MattMadeiro). Feel free to friend him on Facebook (facebook.com/MattMadeiro), too, but remember that he doesnt really spend his free time there nearly as much as everyone else. The Internet is a tool, people. Remember that!

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