Phocus

We evolved to eat plants, and eventually, adapted to eat small amounts of meat and dairy. It doesn't mean that we can't eat animals/animal products. It's just not optimal. For most of our species existence, we ate plants, so our bodies are much better at processing them without other negative side effects. Now, we all do things that are not "optimal" for our health: drinking alcohol, eating fast/luxurious food, smoking, doing drugs, ect but it Just depends on what you prioritize. Unfortunately, American culture has come to enjoy eating large quantities of meat and anything that promotes meat eating will generally be very popular. The statement "...human evolution has been linked to meat in many fundamental ways." is misleading and untrue. A few examples why are: Humans can get heart disease. We have no way to regulate our blood's cholesterol levels (which is increased by eating meat, other saturated fatty animal products and eggs). Animals that evolved to eat meat do not get this because they are able to regulate their cholesterol. Our teeth. Look at a picture of a bear (omnivore), cow and human skull. Meat doesn't taste good in its raw, unprocessed/uncooked form. Fruits and plants do. Many people claim that meat is what was responsible for our great big brains, but this is very obviously untrue as many animals eat meat. Cooking is what was responsible for that accelerated development. Humans have no natural predatory instincts towards animals; we have nurturing instincts towards animals and an aversion to seeing animals slaughtered (people who visit slaughterhouses that have not been desensitized to the killing of animals tend to get physically ill). In my experience, everyone who has switched to a plant-based diet cures some kind of ailment or chronic health condition. The worlds leading diabetes and heart disease doctors are both vegan and both recommend a plant-based vegan diet to reverse and prevent their associated diseases. @Free Spirit There is no biological reason that you need to eat meat or animal products. It is purely personal preference. Animal products are very calorie dense so it may be as simple as, you're not eating enough. For adding calories to your diet you can include things like plant-based protein shakes, smoothies, nut butters and plant oils. Just a note: this community does appear to have quite a few vegans and vegetarians so you're probably going to get advice leaning that direction (myself included). Now, it is not without good reason but just do your own research. If you're experiencing negative side effects from your plant-based diet, it is probably because you're not getting the proper nutrition. Not because you cannot be a vegan/vegetarian for some biological reason.

@The Alchemist When you're waking up early, are you restructuring your day so that you're going to bed 4 hours earlier when you wake up 4 hours earlier and waking up naturally (aka without an alarm clock)? I don't do that currently, but when I was in the Navy I used to go to sleep right when I got home from work and would wake up extremely early (so that my leisure time was first thing) and I felt exceedingly well rested as well as many other positive side effects. I wouldn't think that 3 days is enough time to evaluate the effect of a change like this since it requires such a big shift in your daily routine and would take time to adapt to.

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Agreed, This seems like a very interesting subject. I support this thread.

Organic Oranges Organic Apples Organic Bananas Organic Blueberries Organic Kale Organic Baby Spring Mix Organic Green Peppers Organic Cucumbers Organic Carrots Red wine Vinaigrette Salad Dressing Organic Cashews Organic gluten free pasta (quinoa, brown rice and amaranth) Organic Tomato Puree Organic Garlic Organic Soy Milk Organic Whole Wheat Bread Organic Avocado Organic Peanut Butter Organic Humus Currently following a vegan diet. I also eat out a bit so... don't let this list make you think I'm healthy or anything

I would agree with @Lynnel It is going to take some time. A suggestion though would be to not stay trapped in any one state for too long. If you are feeling bad, then feel bad. Focus on what it is that brings up the strongest feelings and what hurts about it. Why does it hurt? But then, you have to go out. Force yourself into social situations. You will not want to most likely, but it will be good for you. The energy of the people around you will bring your mood up and help you temporarily forget about the breakup. Just don't do any one thing in excess. Only going out and burying the pain is not healthy, nor is being a hermit. As in all things, there should be balance.

So... lets say you get a girlfriend from Tinder somehow, what would you go and do with her? LARP and fly RC airplanes? Probably not. You need to show your prospective dates what your life entails that they can look forward to being a part of. That doesn't mean you need to stop doing those things, but you also are going to need to adapt your lifestyle to include things that a female would be interested in if you want a female in your life.

Generally, girls want to see pictures of you out doing things that you enjoy. They want to see you genuinely having fun. Now you might think "but i dont go out or do anything interesting?" well... then they probably wont be very interested in you. I think that content is more important than the quality of your attire and such in the picture. Perhaps not directly related to the post at hand but, will help with the end goal. Setup an account and mark yourself female looking for male and go through guys profiles. As you do, take note of which ones you think are interesting and also take note of common themes you see in people's profiles and DONT say the same things everyone else is. I would also suggest that you swipe right to all females and then refine your search from there based on the matches that you get.

Hey Everyone - After doing some research it seems that vegan diets have a lot going for them: Extraordinarily healthy Massively beneficial to the environment There is no biological reason to consume animal products Withdraws financial support from unethical farming practices So far the only reasons not to go vegan that I've been able to find are: It's inconvenient There are a number of indulgent food choices that would be off limits Looking for some feedback from people who have made the switch and their experience with it (positive or negative).

I told my girlfriend I would cheat on being a vegan for special occasions and I had some pepperoni pizza last night. After being vegan for about a week and then going back, it felt SOOO incredibly unhealthy! And obviously, that's because it is unhealthy but I have had a lot of pizza and this was a different experience. I am quite glad that I have undertaken this dietary change.

I find that I am happiest with "the grind" when I focus on being very present. Focus your total attention on exactly what you're doing at that moment and how your body feels. Do let your mind wander and think about how you're not where you want to be or you could be doing something else more valuable with your time. Those are important thoughts to have, but not while you're actively practicing. Think about what you want to accomplish, and then commit yourself to it completely. Afterwards, reflect on what you've done. But do not let that disrupt your practice.

You have a sex drive. The idea behind not masturbating is that you go have sex with real people and use the build up of sexual energy to motive you to take risks or do things you might not otherwise be willing to do. It's not "just stop masturbating and become asexual".

I have been gradually adding and dropping habits but the most noteworthy is that I recently started transitioning to a plant-based vegan diet.

Do you have an alternate outlet for your sexual energy? Or are you pursuing another outlet?

To respond to a few points here - Pickup doesn't dissolve your ego, it destroys it so that it can be rebuilt even stronger. That is why i believe Leo made the video he did. All of those experienced and hardcore PUAs/players are very much in the orange category and very much living to indulge their egos. The vast majority of the pickup community (including the instructors from RSD) are operating with an orange mentality with the only exception to that being Owen himself. In the past few months the content Owen has been releasing feels more yellow. It has taken him 15 years of hardcore pickup, constantly grinding, teaching bootcamps, massive investment in self development and enlightenment work and only then, after a decade and a half of dedicated mastery is he just now starting to turn the corner and become a yellow. So I wouldn't be so quick to justify it because it's yellow... although I won't that say it's impossible, just understand the gravity of the commitment required to make that statement true if you are doing it that way. @OP Do it...! Understand that it will not bring you any degree of lasting happiness and will be extremely difficult, but it is a worthwhile investment IMO.

If you're not getting enough nutrients, then I would think that a vegan diet full of nutrient dense plants would be an ideal solution. OBGYNs are not trained nutritionists but for a variety of reasons its taboo to tell people not to believe what their doctors say.

To be successful, to the point of being an outlier, is to be an extremist. Most people achieve those levels of success as a product of life imbalance. I mean... how else do you achieve that much in that little time? Is that the optimal way to live? No. But that is the fastest way to achieve extreme levels of success. When I think of people with exceptional mental prowess, chess comes to mind. Magnus Carlson, and the higher ranks of the professional chess community, generally correlate physical fitness with mental fitness. Below is a quote from Grand Master Alexandra Kosteniuk (2008 Women's World Champion) which seems to be representative of the communities sentiment:

Having been a lifelong athlete I had never considered being vegan as we're all taught that meat = protein = muscle. I've been doing research and finding that this is not the case and that there are enormous benefits to eating a plat-based diet. I am in the process of doing a trail run as vegan but during my research I have heard a couple of people report that being vegetarian caused zinc deficiencies, as milk can inhibit the absorption of zinc (which you may not be getting as much of, depending on your diet); so watch out for that one.

Something that has helped me greatly with this is setting a goal that is EXTREMELY small. To the point of almost being trivial. "I will meditate for 60 seconds every day". Once you start doing it, you will exceed the goal or spend more time than you had originally planned. The hard part is just making the time to do it. Another "trick" is to simply document what you do or how you spend your time . Don't change anything, just document it. This will help to bring awareness to what you're REALLY spending your time doing. This will also help to keep you from deluding yourself by thinking that you've made more progress than you actually have and then use that to self-justify inaction. A great way to do this is with a Self-Actualization Journal! You might want to keep this a bit more high-level but it's a very powerful tool that Leo has provided.

How did you get your first client and how did you know when you had the skills to go from taught to teacher?

Some great discussion around dating and relationships in this thread and I have split it off into a new thread on the dating and relationships forum. Lets Phocus on ideas for this video topic in this thread

Comment on Diet: Where possible, it is always best to meet your caloric and macro-nutrient needs with real food. Controlled studies have shown that around .65 to .75 grams of protien per pound of body weight is ideal for athletes and that higher amounts ( .9 grams per pound and above) did not correlate with increased lean muscle mass. A calorie is not a calorie. "Junk" food tends to promote inflammation and your body has to work harder to process the toxins which will impair your ability to recover. Leo has a great video on how to make an extremely healthy and simple meal here: Comment on Training: In my opinion, the foundation of any good bodybuilding or strength training program should include a strong focus on the primary compound lifts: Squat, Deadlift, Bench Press and a rowing movement. I am also a big fan of the Clean and Jerk. There are lots of great, free, resources that demonstrate how to properly perform each lift. Spend time evaluating your form! You aren't making any gains when you're injured or not training because you're in pain! My training plan is not set in stone. I generally lift about 3 days a week, do a long run once a week (~5 miles) and then usually do some form of yoga once a week (usually hatha, but honestly I don't know very much about yoga). I have really enjoyed 5x5 and have also done more traditional bodybuilding programs that focus on hypertrophy and higher rep ranges. Ultimately, the #1 factor in the progress you make is going to be how effectively you're able to stick with it, regardless of what the program is. Do the research, try out different training programs/philosophies and find out what works for you.

I can't site specific studies to provide hard evidence but generally, you are more likely to retain a habit that is incorporated slowly and gradually into your daily routine vs sudden drastic changes. If you want to improve your diet, start by only drinking water, or having one day a week that is dedicated to eating healthy. Over time, as you successfully implement these habits, you can increase them. If you want to workout and meditate for an hour every day, first prove to yourself that you can do, well, anything every day. Meditate for 5 or 10 minutes every day. Go for a 20 minute walk every day. Start small and gradually integrate these positive habits instead of setting too ambitious of a goal and not being able to maintain it. The real power of this comes from building the discipline to make a commitment and follow through. Start very very small. Pick one thing to focus on. You've got plenty of time, no need to rush!

I'll collect them in my OP but that may be a more scalable solution.

This goes nicely with Leo's most recent video on finding absolute truth: