Members get a daily Covid-19 topic focused on Covid in Tennessee.
Supporters are part of a self-improvement sub-group where value is dispensed daily on personal growth in all aspects of life, informed by many sources. New members welcome!
The Tennessee Department of Health website isn't updated today, it appears.
It has been noted that the precipitous drop in cases in Tennessee, and especially in Northeast Tennessee, has leveled off. This is not the way I would want to go into the Thanksgiving holiday weekend.
Keep in mind that if you are exposed to someone with Covid, these are the parameters that matter:
Density - The number of people in a room for its size. More is worse.
Duration - The time you are in the company of the infected person. Longer is worse.
Dimensions - The size of the room. Smaller is worse.
Draft - The rate of air exchange in the room. Lower is worse.
This doesn't take into account the activity in the room. Eating, talking, laughing, singing, coughing, and any other activity that increases secretions or aerosolizes them, increases the amount of "exhaust," or exhaled air carrying microdroplets with virus, that an infected person exhales.
So Thanksgiving dinner in a well-insulated warm home with a small dining area is a setup for an infected person to share.
A dinner held outside or in a large and drafty room is lower risk.
During the times that folks are not eating, an N95 mask will lower your likelihood of exposure while sitting around the fireplace and talking politics with your relatives. It won't do anything to reduce acrimony, though.
Remember, most of politics is a stupid game of "whose team are you on," and not in any way an exercise in rational though. And that goes for both major parties. They are belief systems, like religion. Fighting about beliefs is counterproductive. Relationship is more important.
Stay healthy!
I'm on a weekend night call schedule this weekend, which always leaves me feeling under-rested and generally icky.
But I wanted to remind you that outdoor exercise without screens is really good for your mental health.
Go outdoors, preferably into the woods.
Get in tune with those surroundings, the sights, the sounds, the smells, even the movement of air and the varying temperatures as you walk.
We were made to be outdoors.
We were definitely not made to work in cubicles.
One Degree!
What you want from your body will dictate what you need to set as goals, and the goals will determine what you'll end up having to change to attain them.
I've spoken many times about systems being better than goals, and my position has not changed.
But goals are easier to discuss and to understand, so for this week, we'll be very specific about goals.
Do you want more muscle mass?
Do you want to be stronger?
Do you want to run faster?
Do you want to gain weight?
Do you want to lose weight?
Do you want to improve general fitness?
Do you want longevity?
Do you want strong bones?
Do you want to earn a Black Belt?
Understanding the benefits and costs of each particular goal may help you decide what you want.
For example, if you want to compete in body-building competitions, you'll not be doing the same thing as if you were focused on longevity. Same with strength competitions.
But general fitness and longevity go fairly well together.
Running is great but will increase the likelihood of needing knee or hip ...
I'll make this one short and to the point.
Spring time change is hard on all of us. Having to get up an hour early doesn't make going to bed an hour earlier much easier.
Yes, it's nice to have more productive time in the evening.
But it's at the cost of forcing us out of be an hour earlier, as we all know.
Our challenge is to adjust our circadian rhythm to match the world's expectations around us.
My main strategy is supplementing with a dose of melatonin about a half hour before I need to be asleep. It helps most people fall asleep more readily.
If you need a nap during your day, take it between mid-morning and early afternoon. Limit it to 20 minutes.
Taking a longer or later nap may make it even harder to get off to sleep in time.
All of the other normal advice applies even moreso:
- Take a 20-minute walk after supper.
- No screen time for the last hour before bed.
- Listen to calm music after supper.
- Don't eat for 2 hours before bed.
- Don't have conflict-laden conversations ...
