Maggie's Farm

It's a longer read, probably not of much interest to most but it is about politics. Rittenberg at Substack: On Utopian Thinking. 

I have written about "Psycho-utopianism" (my term, I think). The Garden of Eden had just two people, one god - and a snake. Quote:

... we have seen that utopian thinking is characterized by the following features: failure of reality testing; implicit belief in the omnipotence of thoughts; tolerance of mutually contradictory thoughts. This collection of features will inevitably begin to seem familiar to teachers, psychologists, parents, anyone having to do with small children. For these are precisely the characteristics of infantile thought processes at a particular stage of development: the stage in which the infant mind conceives of itself as comprising the entire universe, and as absolutely perfect: the stage of infantile, omnipotent narcissism. Here, at last we have come upon Utopia! For it is to this lost, dimly remembered but never to be recaptured infantile bliss that the utopians long to return. In fact. such an infantile state is the only Utopia we humans ever have known or ever shall know.

January 1 is when people decide to get back into shape. It is wonderful for the income of gyms, because people pay up and last a few months.

All the same, my general advice to those over 35 or 40 is to start slowly.  If overweight, tiny meals. If underweight, eat food of any sort. Begin with 3 hrs/wk at the gym for a month to get going.

Best way to do it is with a trainer.

I suggest two half-hours of light cardio, 2 half-hours of light weights/machines, and 2 half-hours of calisthenics. After that, a more demanding program.

Most people can use a guide through the journey of physical fitness. It is a lifetime journey to try to avoid eventual decrepitude.

In The LA Times.

Could Viagra reduce Alzheimer’s risk?

Correlation or causation, or just one of the 50+ percent of medical studies which turn out to be wrong? 

Regardless of the above, Cialis and Viagra are good for guys who can use it. You are not dead yet. By coincidence, some might recall that Bob Dole did some of the first TV ads for Viagra. Good for him. 

Three links:

Sally Satel:  What is Happening to My Profession?

 AMA bringing dangerous levels of wokeness into the medical profession

 Doctors now cannot say 'morbidly obese'

Re my post about semaglutide and weight loss, I was not entirely up-to-date. As of this summer, it IS now FDA-approved for weight loss in non-diabetics.

It is termed "a game-changer" for overweight problems.

"Diet and exercise" are typical suggestions for the sedentary or over-eaters. However, strict nutritional plans rarely work for overweight people in the long run, and exercise has minimal effect on fat loss (but is essential for general fitness). Nutritional self-control is difficult for most people. Most, not all. 70% of Americans are overweight by some measure.

Metformin is a typical medicine for overweight, pre-diabetes, etc.  In my experience, it is not very effective and has many side effects.

In my view, semaglutide  might be the current gold standard. It's a tiny weekly injection, done easily at home. Like everything, it has some side effects but not much. It can be labeled as Wegovy or as Ozempic. You have to qualify as meaningfully overweight to get a prescription. It definitely reduces appetite, but has other beneficial physiological effects especially on the insulin system. Can it permanently re-jigger your food compulsions after months of use? It is not clear. 

Semaglutide is on-label for Type 2 diabetes, or pre-diabetes, and off-label for weight loss alone. 

If you have overweight issues, discuss it with your doctor as an option.  It could save your joints, your heart, maybe your life (for a while). I would try it, if eating were one of my hobbies.

Deliberately Divided—A Review

The world does not do a good job with people with the most serious mental illnesses. It is partly the world's fault, but it is partly because many of the seriously-ill reject the sorts of help which can be offered. Or, in many cases, can't get their act together enough to avail themselves of it.

From Michael Shellenberger, Madness for Decivilization 

Do you aspire to climb Ben Nevis in winter?  Or, God forbid, Mount Washington?

Autumn is the time for serious hiking in whatever the weather serves up. Adventure.

We feel the best stuff is made by Montane.  It's a Euroland company so it has an Alpine feel.

LL Bean is fine, but not for winter climbing. Patagonia has the brand, but check out Montane. Bear in mind that they use Euroland sizing, which is different. 

Fruits are designed as attractions for critters to spread their seeds. Thus they contain sugar (fructose, not glucose) and a bit of fiber to hold it together.

Fruit is a fun snack, especially with pears. Pears are perfect with cheese.

If you want to lose weight, fruit is something to avoid. Fructose goes directly to fat storage.  

This article is about stressful exercise, not about walking or "long slow 'cardio'": How does the brain respond to a single bout of exercise?

Some links from Boudreaux

Why not get a booster? It won't kill you. Latest info is that you can mix up the shots. It makes sense to me.

Nobody likes to get sick. I got my annual flu shot today at CVS. I am required to do so, and the flu is miserable.

Quillette's Best on Human Nature

Here's an addendum to my past post about recovery: Do Older People Need Longer to Recover from Exercise?

What is "older"? But anyway, generally the answer is no, especially once you are into a month or so of a daily fitness program.  Nobody can benefit from heavy deadlifts every day, or HIIT every day. For general fitness (maybe not for master athletes in training), mixing it up for an hour or so daily works best.

At any age, get your 20 gms or so of protein after a workout. It can't hurt. 

What Light Does ‘Three Identical Strangers’ Throw on the Nature/Nurture Debate?

From the article:

... researchers are now digging deeper into the mechanisms that underlie the benefits of physical activity. They are finding that exercise is both powerful and wide-reaching, affecting not just muscles and the cardiovascular system, but almost every part of the body, from the immune system to the brain to the energy systems within individual cells. And as scientists understand more precisely which levers exercise pulls to improve our health, clinicians are on the verge of being able to change their practice. The goal is to think of exercise as a medicine — a therapy that they can prescribe in specific doses for specific needs.

In exclusive interviews, two prominent providers sound off on puberty blockers, 'affirmative' care, the inhibition of sexual pleasure, and the suppression of dissent in their field.

As readers know, I view these "treatments" as malpractice, quackery, or something in that direction. 

About semaglutide and related topics: The Future of Weight Loss:

 Semaglutide, and the drugs that will follow it, may soon replace most bariatric surgeries. “Slowly, slowly, slowly, we outcompete the surgeons,” predicts Macklin, who is already referring many fewer patients for surgery. “They know we’re coming.”

How a ‘fatally, tragically flawed’ paradigm has derailed the science of obesity

Yes, it is about carbs and not so much about calories.

That is the wrong question but James Q. Wilson's 2004 essay (re-posted at City Journal for 9-11) is good.

Why is it the wrong question? Because it makes it sound as if terrorism were some sort of pathology rather than a form of war for those without large armies and weapons.  

The Truth about Autogynephilia

After having spoken with many people, over decades, about their lives and sometimes their wildest sexual fantasies, I still find the gender identity issue sort of strange. I suppose I have heard it all, but have never seen a patient who was worried about their gender expression. I have seen plenty of gay men who were afraid to come out of the closet though. That was usually prompted by wives who wondered about their husbands' lack of sex drive.

Wild fantasies are normal, at least in people lacking in the usual sorts of repression of taboos. Perhaps the political climate is making way for the overcoming of sex and gender taboos.