My 5 Rules For Health
A (kind of) evidence-based guide for daily peak performance.
I’m going to share some of my personal “rules for health.”
These aren’t rules in the sense that I never deviate from them or punish myself when I do. Rather, they’re things I try to abide by each day. I consider these my health non-negotiables (most of the time).
Some of these are evidence-based: formed from research that is applicable and can likely to lead to positive health or performance outcomes.
Some of these just make me feel good, even though there might not be much hard science to support them.
Do I expect you to adopt these rules? Of course not. But I think you’ll find at least one or two of them interesting enough to experiment with.
#1: Aim for 10,000 steps per day in addition to exercise
I don’t need to tell you that walking is good — up to 10,000 steps per day seems to have health benefits. But I don’t walk for exercise. For me, it’s not intense enough to yield performance adaptations.
So why then do I try to walk a lot outside of exercise? Isn’t training enough?
Being too sedentary can inhibit some of the metabolic benefits of an exercise session. Under 5,000 steps seems to cause “exercise resistance” while more than 8,500 allows the benefits of exercise to manifest.
#2: Keep a consistent wake and bed time
When you go to sleep is under your control, but less so than when you wake up. My AM work start time varies daily, so I do my best to be in bed by 10PM. And although we can’t set a “fall asleep” alarm (wouldn’t that be so nice?) I also try to wake up at the same time every day - between 5:30 and 6:30AM.
A consistent wake-up time keeps our circadian rhythms on schedule, and this seems to have long-term benefits for cardiovascular and metabolic health. The body likes consistency.
Specifically, your sleep duration should vary by less than 90 minutes each night. If you average 8 hours of sleep, avoid getting less than 6.5 or more than 9.5 hours on any given night. Try to keep your bed time and wake time consistent within 30—45 minutes from night to night.
#3: Perform some strength exercise 3X per week
I make sure to integrate some resistance-based training 3X per week.
Some of my favorites are pull-ups, pushups, kettlebell swings, and single-leg RDLs (with a kettlebell), deadlifts.
The data on why strength training for improving one’s health are definitive. Strength training is ESSENTIAL. Strength training means; moving against very heavy loads 2-3 times per week. This will look different depending on experience, but the efforts should be very fatiguing.
#4: Eat protein
Over the last few years I’ve made a tremendous effort to eat ~120g of protein daily. We need protein for everything. It is essential for all cellular processes in the body as it is important for our healthspan and longevity. Children need it to grow, middle-aged adults need it to build muscle before they begin to age, and older adults need it to stave off sarcopenia and frailty. My main reason for this dietary change was initially to improve my body composition. And now, it has helped to improve the amount of inflammation in my body (and yes, I do bloodwork 4x/year to check this).
Muscle is the organ of longevity. It also regulates our metabolism, blood sugar, and blood lipids. The stronger and healthier your muscles, the more carbohydrates and fats our bodies can burn. It is our metabolic currency. We also need protein for hormones and neurotransmitters.
#5: Low/No alcohol
Drinking during the work week doesn’t make sense for me. To give my best to my patients, I simply cannot manage the brain fog that comes with having even one alcoholic beverage if I’m to be awake before 7AM. Plus I want to be as sharp as possible during the work day, and alcohol certainly isn’t going to help with that in any capacity. I’m just not willing to risk poor quality sleep when I might not even get 7 hours of total sleep time. Every (good) minute of sleep counts and every sip of alcohol takes away from that. Furthermore, unless I’m celebrating something important or on vacation, I don’t feel the “need” or desire for an alcoholic drink.
But I DO drink alcohol.
I enjoy mezcal negronis, spicy margaritas, and all of the wine…and get excited when I get to have a great cocktail!
I now fall into the camp that — while not protective — moderate alcohol consumption doesn’t appear to significantly elevate mortality or disease risk vs. not drinking.
