Issue #126: The Power of Love
Good morning. It’s Monday, February 13th. Last night, the Chiefs took down the Eagles 38-35. The game was epic until it wasn't, the commercials were meh and the halftime show was wearing red at a 2010s club on an airplane.
Did you miss any of our issues on MOVEMENT last week? Catch up on Issues #121 - #125 here.
This week we're completely switching gears to CONNECTION, specifically LOVE ❤️!
“When we were children, we used to think that when we were grown-up we would no longer be vulnerable. But to grow up is to accept vulnerability...To be alive is to be vulnerable. ”
From the Lab: The Power of Love
Take Action: "Catch" Your Partner in the Act
Speed Read: Wild Skating
Monday Metabolic: Row, Row, Thrust & Row
Monday Q: How Do You Show Love?
From the Lab
Humans are helpless when we’re born. (As a father of a 2-yr old, I can confidently state this obvious fact). Our brains are less than 30% developed on Day 1 (if they weren’t, poor moms would be in for a multi-year pregnancy).
This means we rely on our parents - not our coded DNA - for how to live our future life.
It also means we’re wired to need others for security and for deep, intimate relationships.
We’ve already talked about the importance of friends (Issues #40 - #44) and family (Issues #70 - #71), but for most of us, our life is defined by the relationship with our partner.
There isn’t a great definition of being “in love” - but go back and think about when you first met your partner (or former partner). During the first date with my now wife, we ended up talking until 3am while walking almost 4 miles in the middle of the night. She didn’t even know her feet were bleeding until after I finally hopped in an Uber.
Love is so powerful that even holding hands with that special someone lowers our feeling of pain as much as an anesthetic. And it calms the fear center of our brain.
In fact, just thinking about them can generate hormones and other chemicals to decrease our stress (See Issue #19 on oxytocin).
But opening ourselves up to love (and being loved), risks us getting hurt.
And…we completely changed our expectations. While we might be getting married less frequently (see Stat of the Day), we’ve significantly raised the bar for what it takes to be an awesome partner.
Before 1850 - marriage was all about survival. Since, life became a little easier so we added trying to find someone fun or sexy (at least in our eyes).
But now we expect so much of our partners. They need to make some money, give us great sex, love us for who we are, make us laugh, challenge us to become better versions of ourselves, and to be our best friends, right?*
Our partner is even more important today because of how often most of us move around (I've lived in Chicago, DC, LA, SF, Silicon Valley, LA again, now TPA). We’ve lost the connection with our local community and/or extended family so life revolves around our own household.
That’s a lot of eggs in one basket - why do we put ourselves in such a vulnerable position?
Because happiness in your marriage at age 50 is an even stronger predictor of our health later in life than most medical results - like your cholesterol level.
And because well…you can’t really explain love.
*For more check out “The All-or-Nothing Marriage” (Eli Finkel)
Take Action
Give your partner a “break” - they aren’t perfect so don’t expect them to be. Change your perspective to focus on the good, not the gap.
“Catch” your partner doing something kind. Don’t just recognize it inside your own head - actually tell them you’re grateful (and not just on Valentine’s Day).
Thrive25 Partner Spotlight
Safety and security are intertwined with health & longevity. Knowing a little bit more about who you are meeting up with, sending money too, or considering doing business with can help shape informed decisions - enter dweeb.
The dweeb app taps in to the same databases that many private investigators use, and pulls publicly available, non-regulated data in to an easy use format.
Dweeb is NOT available in the typical app store, but is a free download at www.dweeb.app.
Speed Read
Health & Longevity in the News
Super Bowl = Economic Indicator: Last year, we saw hundreds (at least it seemed like it) crypto commercials - not this year, hmmm. The same happened in 2000-2001 with the dot.com bubble. So who spent millions of dollars for these time slots? Still a lot of chips, soda, alcohol (although Paul Ruud aka Ant Man promoted non-alki), plus pharma drugs with some movies, cars, and FOX TV shows mixed in. (The Atlantic - WIP)
Spotify for Healthcare: Founder Daniel Ek has spent the last four years on development of a non-invasive body scan coupled with AI consisting of 70 sensors that measures 50M data points to detect and measure abnormalities. The company, Neko Health, is set to take on a broken healthcare system, starting in Sweden, and create a truly preventative health experience. (TechCrunch)
Wild Skating: For over 3800 years, people have been skating on the ice of lakes, rivers and canals. Skating in the wild brings a new sense of child-like adventure, you almost feel like you shouldn’t be doing it because most of the year you can’t walk on water. Check out the top 5 places to travel for it - Max and his family skated the Rideau Canal in Ottawa 4 years ago, it was awesome! (WSJ)
Monday Metabolic
Building strength today, but start & finish with an intense row and then some fast reps in between - just one round, but I bet that'll be enough.
Click HERE to view the workout on our YouTube channel.
Workout and video courtesy of Connor J. Obrochta. Check out all of Connor's workouts on Playbook!
Monday Q
What does love mean to you and how do you show love?
Product Recs
Impossible - my go-to after a week of poor sleep during my fast. A combination of magnesium and l-theanine powder with nothing else to help you sleep. Click HERE. 😴
TMAC Fitness - 20-min home workouts with no equipment that finishes with a quick meditation, what's easier than that? Try TMAC for 10 Days Free. 🧘
Thanks for joining us today! It's not Friday - but how about a little Power of Love?
Check out the latest workout videos on our YouTube channel
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Why Thrive25
We’re 40-something dads that felt our bodies and minds start to slow down and we’re not ready for that. We found too much information on every subject. So we started Thrive25 to transform what we’ve learned into something useful for the rest of us to spend just 3-5 min a day to optimize our health & longevity.
This newsletter is for you and we truly value your feedback. Never hesitate to reach out to us at team@thrive25.com.
To health!
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The information in this newsletter is for informational purposes only and may not be appropriate or applicable based on your individual circumstances. Thrive25 Labs LLC does not provide medical, professional, or licensed advice. Please connect with your healthcare professional for medical advice specific to your health needs.