Waves

This intention is all you need. The ideas you came up with also will help to build that reservoir of relaxation (I would add Qigong). Then it just comes down to actually being in the body, noticing and accepting whatever is present. Once a particular tension (or voice) is seen and allowed to be here, it will eventually melt. Your job is to bring your attention to the body as regularly as possible with a soft and gentle touch, and without being so militant about it it feels like a chore, or a 'should'. Then you can carry this beingness (or the reflex to come back to beingness) into situations where you tense up and slowly develop ease by shedding all those reactions and sinking more and more into the body. Spaciousness and ease are the result of relaxing into tension.

@Leo Gura From what you've shared and by looking at what you've been able to create so far, you seem to naturally have exceptional amounts of creative/sexual energy. For a lot of us: we nut = we tired

@caesar13 Stagnation means simply that energy flow is obstructed (many possible causes, including emotional turmoil/stress). This creates all sorts of problems because life energy is meant to flow for health. I'm only starting to explore this field of energy work, so really experiment with yourself, i.e. see what happens if you don't do PMO for a week or two. Energy will build up indeed. Really be present with your strong desire or whatever comes up, because it is guaranteed things will come up, and they might not be pleasant. If you want to look into this, I really recommend reading this blog: https://www.awakenedintent.com/blog/sexual-energy-and-semen-retention-for-men, and don't be put off by 'semen retention'. It goes much deeper than that.

There is an exercise I recently heard from Erick Godsey (pod https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/cultivating-your-life-force/id1455569633?i=1000588300770 @53:50), but haven't tried it yet. Not sure it's what you're looking for, I'll just leave it here: Basically, it's about writing down stories in your past in which you felt shame. Write a bullet list of stories, then choose one to go deep into and write that story out. At the end, apologize to those involved for what you've done, apologize to your younger self for what you've done to yourself, and make sure you accept your own apology. You want to feel the energy that was stuck with that shame free up.

Your protein intake seems to be dangerously low, and fat too tbh. But this falling asleep doesn't depend only on what you eat. How are your energy levels during the day? I would start by including or putting more on your plate a variety of these things, adapted to how much you usually eat (not to have radical shifts in your diet): eggs, lentils (lentil soups/dahls are great during winter), nuts and seeds, beans, organic soy products, lean meat (if you eat any), greek yogurt.

There could be a correlation. If you look through the perspective of Traditional Chinese Medicine, your essence of life (jing) is stored in the kidneys, and with excessive ejaculation, you're depleting that. If kidneys are depleted or there is stagnation of energy in the area, there is likely going to be lower back pain. See if this could be the case, especially if you commonly feel tired, and experiment for yourself.

There is a lot that could be said here. To keep it simple: Get in touch with your body. Feel into various parts of your body, especially your pelvis and genitals. It is essential that you reconnect to that part of you. That's where your power, your desire, your expression reside. The way you feel about your penis is the way that you feel about yourself. Yes, it would be 'healthier' to masturbate without porn. It is fair to assume you'll feel more attracted to actual women, and they will feel your energy more. And when you beat your willie make it an act of pleasuring yourself based on sensations in your body, not stimulations coming from the mind. Make it about connecting with yourself. Be present with it. You could benefit from doing shadow work and self-esteem work. And - you guessed it - developing an intimate relationship with sensations in your body is the foundation. Go be around girls and talk to them. Feel the nice sensations that bubble up in your pelvis when you see a cutie, then go talk to her with a smile.

@The0Self Great, thank you for sharing your findings I've also been waking up at the same time every day lately and I'm starting to notice a difference, but since it's rather early (8am), and since I need 9h, it does get in the way of other plans, such as going out late. I'm using this period to regenerate anyways, so it's good for now. Good luck with the blue light haha

@The0Self Have you found any strategies to maintain a (healthy) regular sleep schedule (e.g. waking up at 8am) while going out on the weekends (and assuming one is training somewhat hard and wants to avoid hurting recovery too much)? For example, If you got home at 3am, would you still wake up at 8am or try to get at least 7.5h? I realize it's a matter of compromize and goals, and that if you'd be optimizing for training recovery you wouldn't want to stay out late, but I'm curious what your experience is.

@King Merk I see, good stuff. I also remember another good rule of thumb to have your knees lower than your hips, so that your hip flexors aren't compromised that much, which is taken care of with a yoga cushion. I should get one of these with an external monitor (and a yoga cushion as you mentioned), so I'm looking right in front of me instead of a bit down, which keeps me more alert.

@King Merk Sitting on the floor is awesome, although I find it uncomfortable to work on a laptop because I still find myself rounding my shoulders anyways (and straining my neck forward). Have you found a solution in this sense?

@The0Self Do you still manage to fuel your weightlifting training with a reduced eating window? Whenever I tried IF I was struggling to eat more than twice, and the fact that I was eating mostly plant-based probably didn't help with reaching at least 100g of protein.

I know similar posts have been created in the past about this topic, but I thought of doing an updated version. I have several Audible credits to spend so that I can interrupt the subscription (already paused it), which I have been running for too long. I’m looking for quality audiobooks, preferably not too complex and long or heavily spiritual/metaphysical, that flow nicely, and that aren’t filled with exercises. I’m happy to check out books unrelated to self-help, unless you have some really good ones that aren’t on Leo’s booklist. My current interests involve embodiment, emotional mastery, health, being a creator, building the foundations of an amazing life, art, history, etc. but feel free to share whatever you have found interesting.

Alright, I'll go first: Practicing the Power of Now - You know who In Defense of Food - Michael Pollan (understanding the food system) The Align Method - Aaron Alexander (align and harmonize mind and body with simple practices and lifestyle changes) The Art of Extraordinary Confidence - Dr. Aziz Gazipura

Imagine this + Mdma ?

Yeah I'm one of those people that keep 20+ tabs open on their browser... I'm starting to notice how overwhelming and draining it feels to have such a cluttered digital space. It's messing with my ability to focus and do work, with all this context switching and scattering of attention. The thing is, I keep so many open because I think I might need them in the future, or a reminder to do something or check out a video etc. It's a combination of potential to-do items and uncompleted tasks (e.g. when deciding what to buy between different options). I tried closing them all, but the pattern repeats itself. There must be something that I'm missing. How are you keeping a clean browser?

@Yarco Thanks for the thorough post! I can see bookmarks working for more permanent sites that you access regularly, or sites that fall into 'interesting' / 'might be handy at some point' category. Coming back to the bookmark list often and cleaning it up seems to be the key. Also, good shut about using a different browser for a different role/purpose. I do the same to separate work and personal stuff. For temporary 'active' projects that need multiple tabs I think I'll be using the extension @integral suggested, which seems great. _________________________________________ @Liebestraum Yeah I'm with you. My goal is to focus on one thing at a time, which is prevented by having many tabs open. This multitasking isn't something I want, on the contrary, it makes me feel all over the place and contributes to more distraction. Having some many tabs open is a consequence of a scattered mind, procrastination, and poor habits. And, as you say, of not having a singular, clear purpose as a foundation of it all. In the larger picture, I realized this is just a place where I could be more intentional in. Having a clean digital space is as important as having a tidy physical environment. Also, by being this deliberate I train to be more decisive, and to let things go instead of hoarding clutter.

@integral Good stuff, thanks. Is there a particular extension you prefer?

It's been going on for a while now. I remember one night, in March, in which I couldn't fall asleep. I was tossing and turning in my bed, feeling an intense anger and a sense of stuckness in my stomach. The following days I even developed a cough, and I'm pretty sure it was related to the digestive blockage. From then on, it's been going on and off in intensity, but always there in the background. It's clearly associated to emotional stress, but even now that sources of eternal stress are minimal, I can't seem to restore my digestive capacity. Every morning I wake up feeling that my stomach is a bit heavy and has stuff in it. Also I feel something in my throat that I can't swallow. My dietary & lifestyle habits: I eat mostly whole-food, plant-based with some eggs here and there First meal is a smoothie around 12pm, last meal between 8-9pm I try to eat mindfully and chew more than I feel normal, although it doesn't always happen Good appetite I exercise regularly (weight-lifting, yoga, cycling) Stopped drinking coffee in April or so, now only decaf In general I'm on a journey to explore my body and emotional world and working to feel more, letting go of tension, etc. What do you think I could do? I was thinking of doing a 36h water fast to give the whole system a break, but other than that and drinking ginger tea I currently don't have many ideas. I'd prefer not to resort to medications and stick to more natural methods at this stage. I appreciate any inputs

You don't need a commonplace book to contemplate. Just sit down with pen and paper, no distractions, and focus on the question. Leo explains it in the video I linked. You can then transcribe the insights you had in your commonplace book or where you keep notes. The benefit is also in getting your mind to go through the process of deriving the answer. It's not clear to me what you're worried about. I feel you're overthinking all of this and having a lot of "shoulds". You don't need to do all questions one after the other, you don't need to have perfect concentration or circumstances to contemplate, you don't need to do anything. Have you actually tried sitting down and contemplating? Start small if it seems daunting. Start with just one question. But start.

It depends on how long you're able to focus. Start with what you're feel comfortable, set a timer, then push yourself a little longer. It's like meditation. 20min is basic, 30min is good, and the juice comes between 30-60min. It also depends on the question you're contemplating. Use your intuition to get a feel for when you got the most out of the question. Leo has a video on How to Contemplate Using a Journal

Leo has got something for you (from the latest video, time-stamped):

@Average Investor I'm going to bed between 11pm and midnight. In terms of meal size it depends. Lately I'm having a big lunch in the afternoon and a lighter dinner, but it's not consistent. And now that I think about it I'm always full at the end of the meal, I don't leave much space. Probably not the best habit, especially for dinner. But at the same time I feel like I need to eat substantially to fuel myself properly. I'll try out the water fast soon and see how I feel. @Razard86 Yes I'm on a healing journey, which of course is a long-term process. Anger has always been there but "awakened" by a relationship and by other yogic methods of transmutation and sublimation. Right now I'm at a point where I'm getting familiar with it, but still struggle to play with it in a way that releases it. @Realms of Wonder Interesting, there might be some traffic in the whole digestive system haha, which makes sense, since it's all linked. I heard juices protocols can also help, but I'm not psychologically ready to only drink juice for 5 days straight. Currently things are still flowing through, although less freely than before. Might have to do with the fact that I stopped drinking coffee, which is laxative, and now I'm confronted with the reality that it's not as harmonious as I thought it was.

Found these two on this forum actually, good for a cry with the flavor of self-love

You don't need to go cold-turkey, it seems that you're clearly getting value from Youtube, and you might be in a period of your life where gathering knowledge and building a solid theoretical foundation is what you need to do. What I'd suggest is to change your relationship to it, making it more mature and intentional. First thing I would do is noticing what leads you to spend more time than you'd like on it. Are you watching 10 short videos, jumping from one to the other, or do you watch longer videos, treating them as lectures, watching for longer periods of time, uninterrupted, taking notes, etc.? If it's more of a mindless form of consumption, where you go down a rabbit hole and watch video after video, I would use some extension like Unhook, which dumbs down your Youtube page so that you can only see your subscriptions and playlists. No recommended, no home page. This helped me prevent going on loops and really only watching videos I intend to watch. When I feel I'd like to discover other videos (e.g. recommended), I scroll through Youtube on my phone, which has a timer of 5min per day. This way I have the option to receive new inputs without indulging in them. This depends on the type of content you consume, but at some point you'll notice you're saturated, like you cannot take in more information for the day. That's when you firmly and quickly decide to turn off your device and go do something else. It's important to change scenery, go outside for a walk. Of course, having other meaningful things to do helps spending less time on it. Digital Minimalism by Cal Newport is a great book to get an idea of what it looks like to have a more conscious and intentional relationship with technologies.